The Municipality of Kobarid (; sl, Občina Kobarid) is a municipality in the Upper

Soča The Soča ( in Slovene) or Isonzo ( in Italian; other names fur, Lusinç, german: Sontig, la, Aesontius or ') is a long river that flows through western Slovenia () and northeastern Italy (). An Alpine river in character, its source lies in ...

Valley in western

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, near the

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

border. The seat of the municipality is the town of

Kobarid Kobarid (; it, Caporetto, fur, Cjaurêt, german: Karfreit) is a settlement in Slovenia, the administrative centre of the Municipality of Kobarid. Kobarid is known for the 1917 Battle of Caporetto, where the Italian retreat was documented by Erne ...

. The municipality was established on 3 October 1994, when the former larger Municipality of Tolmin was subdivided into the municipalities of

Bovec Bovec ( or ; , german: Flitsch, fur, Plèz) is a town in the Littoral region in northwestern Slovenia, close to the border with Italy. It is the central settlement of the Municipality of Bovec. Geography Bovec is located from the capital Ljublj ...

, Kobarid, and

Tolmin Tolmin (; it, Tolmino,trilingual name ''Tolmein, Tolmino, Tolmin'' inGemeindelexikon, der im Reichsrate Vertretenen Königreiche und Länder. Bearbeit auf Grund der Ergebnisse der Volkszählung vom 31. Dezember 1900. Herausgegeben von der K.K. ...

Settlements

In addition to the municipal seat of Kobarid, the municipality also includes the following settlements: * Avsa *

Borjana Borjana () is a village in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. It is located in the Breginj Combe. Church The parish church in the settlement is dedicated to Saint Catherine of Alexandria Catherine of Alexandria ...

Breginj Breginj (; locally ''Brgin'' and ''Bәrgin'', it, Bergogna, fur, Bergogne) is a village in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. It is located in the Breginj Combe. Name Breginj was first attested in written sources in ...

* Drežnica *

Drežniške Ravne Drežniške Ravne (; it, Raune di Dersenza) is a settlement in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. The local church is dedicated to Saint Matthew and dates to 1511. The church itself with some of its furnishings was da ...

* Homec * Idrsko * Jevšček *

Jezerca Jezerca (; it, Geserza) is a small settlement above the town of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It i ...

Koseč Koseč (; Italian: ''Cossis'') is a small settlement above Drežnica in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. A small church in the settlement dedicated to Saint Justus dates to the second half of the 14th century, mak ...

* Kred * Krn *

Ladra Ladra () is a village on the left bank of the Soča River near Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It i ...

Libušnje Libušnje (; it, Libussina) is a small village in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. Churches The local church, dedicated to the Holy Spirit, was originally built in 1753, and rebuilt in the second half of the 19th ...

Livek Livek (; it, Luico) is a village in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. It is located on the border with Italy, under Mount Matajur and the Kolovrat mountain range, which separates the Italian region of Friuli from th ...

Livške Ravne Livške Ravne () is a small settlement above Livek in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Eur ...

Logje Logje () is a small settlement in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered ...

Magozd Magozd (; it, Magosti) is a settlement in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. Name The village was attested in written sources in 1409 as ''Namabisgonden'', circa 1439 as ''Na mali gosden'', and in 1763–87 as ''Magos ...

* Mlinsko * Perati * Podbela * Potoki *

Robidišče Robidišče () is Slovenia's westernmost settlement. It is located in the Municipality of Kobarid in the Littoral region on the border with Italy. It is located in the Breginj Combe. Name Robidišče was mentioned in written sources in 1763–87 a ...

* Robič * Sedlo * Smast * Stanovišče * Staro Selo *

Sužid Sužid () is a village near Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. Church The church in the village is dedicated to the Three Kings The biblical Magi from Middle Persian ''moɣ''(''mard'') from Old Persian ''magu-'' 'Zoroastrian clergym ...

Svino Svino () is a small village near Kobarid in the Littoral region of Slovenia. The church in the village is dedicated to Saint Andrew. It is a small Gothic building with a star vaulted sanctuary. Name Svino was first attested in written sources i ...

* Trnovo ob Soči * Vrsno

History

The area has been inhabited since prehistoric times. Archeological remains from the

Hallstatt period The Hallstatt culture was the predominant Western Europe, Western and Central European Archaeological culture, culture of Late Bronze Age Europe, Bronze Age (Hallstatt A, Hallstatt B) from the 12th to 8th centuries BC and Early Iron Age Europe ...

have been found in the area. In the 6th century, it was settled by Slavic tribes, ancestors of the modern

Slovenes The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( sl, Slovenci ), are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Slovenia, and adjacent regions in Italy, Austria and Hungary. Slovenes share a common ancestry, culture, history and speak Slovene as their n ...

. During the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...

, it was first part of the

Patriarchate of Aquileia The Patriarchate of Aquileia was an episcopal see in northeastern Italy, centred on the ancient city of Aquileia situated at the head of the Adriatic, on what is now the Italian seacoast. For many centuries it played an important part in histor ...

, and later of

County, before being included in the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...

in the 15th century, like the majority of Slovene-speaking territories. With the exception of a brief period between 1809 and 1813, when it was included under the

Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (1805–1814; it, Regno d'Italia; french: Royaume d'Italie) was a kingdom in Northern Italy (formerly the Italian Republic) in personal union with Napoleon I's French Empire. It was fully influenced by revolutionary Franc ...

, it remained under the

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

n rule until 1918. In the mid-19th century, the area became an important center of the Slovene national revival. During World War I, the whole area was the theatre of the

Battles of the Isonzo The Battles of the Isonzo (known as the Isonzo Front by historians, sl, soška fronta) were a series of 12 battles between the Austro-Hungarian and Italian armies in World War I mostly on the territory of present-day Slovenia, and the remaind ...

, fought between Italy and

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

. After the end of the war in 1918, the region was occupied by the Italian Army, and in 1920 it was officially annexed to Italy, and included in the

Julian March Venezia Giulia, traditionally called Julian March (Serbo-Croatian, Slovene: ''Julijska krajina'') or Julian Venetia ( it, Venezia Giulia; vec, Venesia Julia; fur, Vignesie Julie; german: Julisch Venetien) is an area of southeastern Europe wh ...

region. Between 1922 and 1943, the Kobarid area, which had an exclusively Slovene-speaking population, was submitted to a policy of violent

Fascist Italianization Italianization ( it, italianizzazione; hr, talijanizacija; french: italianisation; sl, poitaljančevanje; german: Italianisierung; el, Ιταλοποίηση) is the spread of Italian culture, language and identity by way of integration or a ...

. Many locals emigrated to the neighbouring

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...

. Several Italian military memorials were built in the area. Immediately after the

Italian armistice The Armistice of Cassibile was an armistice signed on 3 September 1943 and made public on 8 September between the Kingdom of Italy and the Allies during World War II. It was signed by Major General Walter Bedell Smith for the Allies and Brigad ...

in September 1943, the region was liberated by a

Partisan Partisan may refer to: Military * Partisan (weapon), a pole weapon * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line Films * ''Partisan'' (film), a 2015 Australian film * ''Hell River'', a 1974 Yugoslavian film also know ...

uprising, and became the center of large liberated area of around 2,500 square kilometers known as the

Kobarid Republic Kobarid (; it, Caporetto, fur, Cjaurêt, german: Karfreit) is a settlement in Slovenia, the administrative centre of the Municipality of Kobarid. Kobarid is known for the 1917 Battle of Caporetto, where the Italian front (World War I), Italian r ...

, administered by the

Liberation Front of the Slovenian People The Liberation Front of the Slovene Nation ( sl, Osvobodilna fronta slovenskega naroda), or simply Liberation Front (''Osvobodilna fronta'', OF), originally called the Anti-Imperialist Front (''Protiimperialistična fronta'', PIF), was a Slovene ...

. The area was retaken by German forces in early November 1943, who remained until May 1945 and the arrival of the

Yugoslav People's Army The Yugoslav People's Army (abbreviated as JNA/; Macedonian and sr-Cyrl-Latn, Југословенска народна армија, Jugoslovenska narodna armija; Croatian and bs, Jugoslavenska narodna armija; sl, Jugoslovanska ljudska a ...

. In September 1947, the

Paris Peace Treaties The Paris Peace Treaties (french: Traités de Paris) were signed on 10 February 1947 following the end of World War II in 1945. The Paris Peace Conference lasted from 29 July until 15 October 1946. The victorious wartime Allied powers (princi ...

awarded the area to

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...

. Several hundred inhabitants, especially from the

area, chose emigration to

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

rather than becoming citizens of a

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

state. With the

breakup of Yugoslavia The breakup of Yugoslavia occurred as a result of a series of political upheavals and conflicts during the early 1990s. After a period of political and economic crisis in the 1980s, constituent republics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yu ...

in 1991, the Kobarid area became part of the independent Slovenian state.

Politics

The Municipality of Kobarid is governed by a mayor, elected by popular vote every four years, and a municipal council of 16 members. In both the local and the national elections, Kobarid tends to favor conservative parties, especially the

Slovenian Democratic Party The Slovenian Democratic Party ( sl, Slovenska demokratska stranka, SDS), formerly the Social Democratic Party of Slovenia ( sl, Socialdemokratska stranka Slovenije, SDSS), is a conservative political party in Slovenia. It has been described as ...

(which is the largest party in the municipal council).Kobarid.si
/ref> However, in the mayoral elections, the voters have frequently supported independent candidates. The current mayor Darja Hauptmann is a member of the Slovenian Democratic Party.

Notable natives

Notable natives of the Municipality of Kobarid include: * Anton Gregorčič, conservative politician *

Simon Gregorčič Simon Gregorčič (15 October 1844 – 24 November 1906) was a Slovenes, Slovene poet and Roman Catholic priest. He is considered the first lyric poetry, lyric poet of the Slovene realist poetry and the most melodical Slovene poet. Biogr ...

, poet (born in the village of Vrsno) * Joža Lovrenčič, expressionist poet and educator * Andrej Manfreda, anti-Fascist resistance fighter, member of

TIGR TIGR, an abbreviation for ''Trst'', ''Istra'', ''Gorica'', and ''Reka'', full name Revolutionary Organization of the Julian March T.I.G.R. ( sl, Revolucionarna organizacija Julijske krajine T.I.G.R.), was a militant anti-fascist and insurgent or ...

* Josip Pagliaruzzi, poet *

Simon Rutar Simon Rutar (12 October 1851 – 3 May 1903) was a Slovene historian and geographer. He wrote primarily on the history and geography of the areas that are now part of the Slovenian Littoral, the Italian region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia and the C ...

, historian (born in the village of Krn) *

Jožef Školč Jožef Školč (born 19 August 1960) is a Slovenian left liberal politician. He was born in the village of Breginj in western Slovenia, in what was then the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. He graduated from political science at the ...

, liberal politician (born in

) *

Ivan Urbančič Ivan () is a Slavic male given name, connected with the variant of the Greek name (English: John) from Hebrew meaning 'God is gracious'. It is associated worldwide with Slavic countries. The earliest person known to bear the name was Bulgari ...

, philosopher (born in Robič) *

Andrej Uršič Andrey, Andrej or Andrei (in Cyrillic script: Андрей, Андреј or Андрэй) is a form of Andreas/ Ἀνδρέας in Slavic languages and Romanian. People with the name include: *Andrei of Polotsk ( – 1399), Lithuanian nobleman *A ...

, journalist, political activist

References

External links

*
Municipality of Kobarid on GeopediaKobarid municipal site

LTO Sotočje
local tourist board - tourist info about the area: lodgings, natural features
The Walks of Peace in the Soča Region Foundation
The Foundation preserves, restores and presents the historical and cultural heritage of the First World War in the area of the Isonzo Front for research, tourism, and educational purposes. {{Authority control