Italian irredentism

"Let me dream in Gorizia" - 25th FEB 2014

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• published: 26 Feb 2014
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"Let me dream in Gorizia" - pictures collection & video not profit by Flavio Chianese flavio@chianese.info Gorizia, (German: Görz, Slovene: Gorica) is a town and comune in northern_east Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Province of Gorizia and a local center of tourism, industry, and commerce. Since 1947, a twin town of Nova Gorica has developed on the other side of the modern-day Italian-Slovenian border: the entire region was subject to territorial dispute between Italy and Yugoslavia during the period of early development, by the time the boundaries were marked and agreed by both parties, Nova Gorica came to stand on the Yugoslav side. Taken together the towns constitute a conurbation, which also includes the Slovenian municipality of Šempeter-Vrtojba. Since May 2011, these three towns are joined in a common trans-border metropolitan zone, administered by a joint administration board. Gorizia is located at the confluence of the Isonzo and Vipava Valleys. It lies on a plain overlooked by the Collio hills, which are renowned for the production of outstanding wines. Sheltered from the north by a mountain ridge, Gorizia is protected from the cold Bora wind that affects most of the neighbouring areas. The town thus enjoys a mild Mediterranean climate throughout the year, making it a popular resort. The name of the town comes from the Slovene word gorica meaning "little hill", which is a very common toponym in Slovene-inhabited areas. Gorizia was not on the frontline during the first 10 months of World War I, but the first Gorizian victim of the war occurred as early as August 10, 1914, when countess Lucy Christalnigg was shot by Landsturmer guards while driving her car on a mission for the Austrian Red Cross. Italy entered World War I on the Allied side and conflict with Austria-Hungary began on 24 May 1915. The hills west of Gorizia soon became a scenery of fierce battles between the Italian and Austro-Hungarian Army. The town itself was seriously damaged and most of its inhabitants were evacuated by early 1916. The Italian Army conquered Gorizia during the Sixth Battle of the Isonzo in August 1916, with the front line moving to the eastern outskirts of the town. With the Battle of Caporetto in October and November 1917, when the Central Powers pushed the Italians back to the Piave River, the town came under Austro-Hungarian control again. After the Battle of Caporetto, the political life in Austria-Hungary resumed and Gorizia became the focus of three competing political camps: the unified Slovene nationalist parties that demanded a semi-independent Yugoslav state under the House of Habsburg, the Friulian conservatives who demanded a separate and autonomous Eastern Friuli within an Austrian confederation, and the underground Italian irredentist movement working for the unification with Italy. At the end of World War I, in late October 1918, the Slovenes unilaterally declared an independent State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs, while the Friulians continued to demand an autonomous region under Habsburg rule. Gorizia became a contested town. In early November 1918, it was occupied by Italian troops again, which immediately dissolved the two competing authorities and introduced their own civil administration.