Prem (; ) is a village above the left bank of the

Reka River The Reka (literally, 'river' in Slovene), also the Inner Carniola Reka (), is a river that starts as Big Creek () in Croatia, on the southern side of Mount Snežnik, and flows through western Slovenia, where it is also initially known as Big Cre ...

northwest of

Ilirska Bistrica Ilirska Bistrica (; ; , before 1927: ''Bisterza,'' Hungarian: ''Illírbeszterce'') is a town in the Inner Carniola region of southwestern Slovenia. It is the administrative seat of the Municipality of Ilirska Bistrica. Name The name ''Ilirska ...

in the

Inner Carniola Inner Carniola ( ; ) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the southwestern part of the larger Carniola region. It comprises the Hrušica (plateau), Hrušica karst plateau up to Postojna Gate, bordering the Slovenian Littoral (the Goriška, Gor ...

region of

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

Name

The village was first attested in written sources as ''Prem'' in 1213 (and as ''Primo'' in 1234 and ''Prême'' in 1276). The name may be derived from the Slavic noun ''*prějьmъ'' 'that which is received'. If so, the meaning of the name would be similar to '

fief A fief (; ) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of feudal alle ...

'; that is, land received for use from a superior feudal lord.

History

The early history of Prem is closely connected with Prem Castle, where a district administration and court were active until 1840. During the Second World War, the

Partisans Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to: Military * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line ** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII ** Itali ...

attacked an Italian antiaircraft installment near Prem in 1941. A Partisan rally attended by about 1,700 people was held in Prem in 1944. Toward the end of the war, German artillery caused extensive damage to the village on April 29, 1945. A road from Dolnja Bitnja to Prem was built by a youth labor brigade in 1956/57.

Mass graves

Prem Ilirska Bistrica Slovenia - Nogradec 2 Grave 1

Prem is the site of a

mass grave A mass grave is a grave containing multiple human corpses, which may or may Unidentified decedent, not be identified prior to burial. The United Nations has defined a criminal mass grave as a burial site containing three or more victims of exec ...

and a formerly unmarked grave from the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. They both contain the remains of German soldiers from the 97th Corps that fell at the beginning of May 1945. The Nogradec 1 Mass Grave () lies next to the road by the cemetery, in a former roadside trench. It contains the remains of 23 soldiers, as well as animals and military equipment. The Nogradec 2 Grave () lies next to the first and contains the remains of a German officer.

Prem Castle

Prem Castle was first mentioned in written sources in 1213 as the property of Udo de Prem. It probably stands on the site of an old Roman fortification called ''Castra prima'', which was used as a watchpoint during campaigns against the

Iapydes The Iapodes (or Iapydes, Japodes; ; ) were an ancient people who dwelt north of and inland from the Liburnians, off the Adriatic coast and eastwards of the Istrian peninsula. They occupied the interior of the country between the ''Colapis'' (Kupa ...

. The castle came under the ownership of the

Patriarchate of Aquileia The Patriarchate of Aquileia was an episcopal see and ecclesiastical province in northeastern Italy, originally centered in the ancient city of Aquileia, situated near the northern coast of the Adriatic Sea. It emerged in the 4th century as a m ...

in the 13th century, and it was later owned by the Lords of

Duino Duino (, ) is today a seaside resort on the northern Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coast. It is a ''hamlet (place), hamlet'' of Duino-Aurisina, a municipality (''comune'') of the Friuli–Venezia Giulia region of northeastern Italy. The settlement, pict ...

, the

Lords of Walsee The Lords of Walsee were a German noble family between the 13th and 15th centuries. Taking their name from Bad Waldsee in Upper Swabia, they were originally ministerials (unfree knights) in the service of the abbey of Weissenburg and the Staufe ...

, and then the

Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

Church

The

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

in the settlement is dedicated to

Saint Helena Saint Helena (, ) is one of the three constituent parts of Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha, a remote British overseas territory. Saint Helena is a volcanic and tropical island, located in the South Atlantic Ocean, some 1,874 km ...

and belongs to the Koper Diocese.Koper Diocese list of churches

Notable people

Notable people that were born or lived in Prem include: *

Dragotin Kette Dragotin Kette (; 19 January 1876 – 26 April 1899) was a Slovene Impressionist and Neo-Romantic poet. Together with Josip Murn, Ivan Cankar, and Oton Župančič, he is considered the founder of modernism in Slovene literature. Life Kette ...

(1876–1899), poet *

Karel Lavrič Karel Lavrič, also spelled Laurič or Lauritsch (1 November 1818 – 3 March 1876), was a Carniolan liberal politician and lawyer from the Austrian Littoral. He was of Slovene descent and was one of the most prominent activists of the Young S ...

(1818–1876), politician

References

External links

*
Prem on Geopedia
{{Ilirska Bistrica Populated places in the Municipality of Ilirska Bistrica