Franjo Malgaj (November 10, 1894 – May 6, 1919) was a

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, and ...

n soldier, military leader and poet. He was an officer of the

Austro-Hungarian Army The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...

. After the dissolution of the

Austro-Hungarian Empire 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

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

, he became one of the commanding officers in the Slovene volunteer army under

Rudolf Maister Rudolf Maister ( pen name: Vojanov; 29 March 1874 – 26 July 1934) was a Slovene military officer, poet and political activist. The soldiers who fought under Maister's command in northern Slovenia became known as "Maister's fighters" ( ...

's command that fought against

German Austria The Republic of German-Austria (german: Republik Deutschösterreich or ) was an unrecognised state that was created following World War I as an initial rump state for areas with a predominantly German-speaking and ethnic German population ...

n units during the struggle for the northern Slovenian borderlands. He later became an officer in the Army of Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. He died during the Austrian-Yugoslav struggles in 1919. He is considered a Slovenian national hero.

Education and military career

He was born in Hruševec near the

Lower Styria Styria ( sl, Štajerska), also Slovenian Styria (''Slovenska Štajerska'') or Lower Styria (''Spodnja Štajerska''; german: Untersteiermark), is a traditional region in northeastern Slovenia, comprising the southern third of the former Duchy o ...

n town of

Šentjur Šentjur ( or ; german: Sankt Georgen) is a town in eastern Slovenia. It is the seat, and largest settlement, of the Municipality of Šentjur. The town lies on the Voglajna River east southeast of Celje. The settlement, and the entire municipali ...

, in what was then the

(now in

). After finishing the elementary school in the nearby

Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered ...

n town of

Celje ) , pushpin_map = Slovenia , pushpin_label_position = left , pushpin_map_caption = Location of the city of Celje in Slovenia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Cou ...

, he enrolled to the Celje First Grammar School. He later studied in the

Carniola Carniola ( sl, Kranjska; , german: Krain; it, Carniola; hu, Krajna) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region s ...

n town of

Kranj Kranj (, german: Krainburg) is the third-largest city in Slovenia, with a population of 37,941 (2020). It is located approximately northwest of Ljubljana. The centre of the City Municipality of Kranj and of the traditional region of Upper Carnio ...

and in

Pazin Pazin ( it, Pisino, german: Mitterburg) is a town in western Croatia, the administrative seat of Istria County. It is known for the medieval Pazin Castle, the former residence of the Istrian margraves. Geography The town had a population of 8,6 ...

(

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian and Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian, Italian and Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic betwe ...

). After graduating from the school for infantry reserve officers in

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popula ...

, he participated in the Italian campaign during

. He participated in the first and

second The second (symbol: s) is the unit of time in the International System of Units (SI), historically defined as of a day – this factor derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes and finally to 60 seconds ea ...

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 ...

, where he contracted

Typhoid fever Typhoid fever, also known as typhoid, is a disease caused by '' Salmonella'' serotype Typhi bacteria. Symptoms vary from mild to severe, and usually begin six to 30 days after exposure. Often there is a gradual onset of a high fever over severa ...

. After recovering, he was transferred to the Tyrolean sector of the front. For his bold attacks on the Italian stronghold on

Monte Zebio Monte Zebio () is a mountain of the Veneto, Italy. It has an elevation of . The mountain was an important stronghold for the Austro-Hungarian defensive line during World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbrevi ...

he received the Golden Medal and transferred to the 87th Infantry regiment in Celje. In October 1918, he started to study law at the

University of Graz The University of Graz (german: link=no, Karl-Franzens-Universität Graz, ), located in Graz, Austria, is the largest and oldest university in Styria, as well as the second-largest and second-oldest university in Austria. History The univers ...

Slovenian military leader

After the dissolution of the

and the establishment of the

State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs The State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs ( sh, Država Slovenaca, Hrvata i Srba / ; sl, Država Slovencev, Hrvatov in Srbov) was a political entity that was constituted in October 1918, at the end of World War I, by Slovenes, Croats and Serbs ( ...

in late October 1918, he joined the Slovene volunteer army established by

. This army, known as "Maister's fighters" ( sl, Maistrovi borci), seized the Slovene-inhabited territories in

, and fought against the forces of the

for the border areas in

and

Carinthia Carinthia (german: Kärnten ; sl, Koroška ) is the southernmost Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The main language is German. Its regional dialects belong to the Southern Bavarian group. Carin ...

. In early November, Malgaj gathered a group of Slovene volunteers around Celje and marched into southeast Carinthia (in what is now known as

Slovenian Carinthia Carinthia ( sl, Koroška ; german: Kärnten), also Slovene Carinthia or Slovenian Carinthia (''Slovenska Koroška''), is a traditional region in northern Slovenia. The term refers to the small southeasternmost area of the former Duchy of Carinthi ...

). Together with General Maister and a company of volunteers composed of soldiers of the Army of the

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia ( sr-cyr, Краљевина Србија, Kraljevina Srbija) was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Prin ...

that were retreating from imprisonment in Austria, he reached

Lavamünd Lavamünd ( sl, Labot) is a market town in the district of Wolfsberg in the Austrian state of Carinthia. The Lavamünd hydroelectric power plant on the Drava River and the Koralpe power plant are located in or near Lavamünd. Geography Lavam� ...

and captured the

Carinthian Carinthia (german: Kärnten ; sl, Koroška ) is the southernmost Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The main language is German. Its regional dialects belong to the Southern Bavarian group. Carint ...

town of

Völkermarkt Völkermarkt (; sl, Velikovec) is a town of about 11,000 inhabitants in the Austrian state of Carinthia, the administrative capital of Völkermarkt District. It is located within the Drava valley east of the Carinthian capital Klagenfurt, north ...

( sl, Velikovec) in late November 1918.

Death

Accounts vary regarding his death. He either committed

suicide Suicide is the act of intentionally causing one's own death. Mental disorders (including depression, bipolar disorder, schizophrenia, personality disorders, anxiety disorders), physical disorders (such as chronic fatigue syndrome), and ...

on May 6, 1919 at Tolsti Vrh near

Dravograd Dravograd (; german: Unterdrauburg) is a small town in northern Slovenia, close to the border with Austria. It is the seat of the Municipality of Dravograd. It lies on the Drava River at the confluence with the Meža and the Mislinja. It i ...

after being surrounded by Austrian soldiers, or he died after he accidentally activated a hand grenade attached to his belt. Unconfirmed rumors suggest he was shot by a group of soldiers from

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia ( Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hu ...

with whom he was allegedly in conflict. He was buried in the Carinthian town of Guštanj (now Ravne na Koroškem).

Legacy

On 90th anniversary of Malgaj's death, his memoirs from 1914 to 1919 were published. A primary school in

was named after him. Malgaj is well known in

because he led the group of Maister's soldiers that captured

Meža The Meža ( Slovene) or Mieß (German; ) is a river in the Austrian state of Carinthia and in Slovenia, a right tributary of the Drava. It is long, of which are in Slovenia. Its catchment area is , of which in Slovenia. Name The Meža River was ...

and the Meža Valley for Slovenia after the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

References

External links

Text about Franjo Malgaj on web site of RTV Slovenia

Text about Franjo Malgaj on Tu-je.si web site

* ttps://web.archive.org/web/20110717113215/http://www.turizem-sentjur.com/Znamenite-osebnosti/Franjo-Malgaj.html Text about Franjo Malgaj published on web site of Šentjur pri Celju {{DEFAULTSORT:Malgaj, Franjo 1894 births 1919 deaths Slovenian military personnel Slovenian poets Slovenian male poets Writers from Celje Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Austro-Hungarian Army officers Slovenian soldiers Slovene Austro-Hungarians 20th-century poets People from the Municipality of Šentjur