Engelbert Besednjak
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Engelbert Besednjak (March 14, 1894 – December 21, 1968) was a Slovene
Christian Democrat Christian democracy is an ideology inspired by Christian ethics#Politics, Christian social teaching to respond to the challenges of contemporary society and politics. Christian democracy has drawn mainly from Catholic social teaching and neo ...
politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...
,
lawyer A lawyer is a person who is qualified to offer advice about the law, draft legal documents, or represent individuals in legal matters. The exact nature of a lawyer's work varies depending on the legal jurisdiction and the legal system, as w ...
and
journalist A journalist is a person who gathers information in the form of text, audio or pictures, processes it into a newsworthy form and disseminates it to the public. This is called journalism. Roles Journalists can work in broadcast, print, advertis ...
. In the 1920s, he was one of the leaders of the Slovene and
Croat The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...
minority in the
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...
-administered Julian March. In the 1930s, he was one of the leaders of Slovene anti-Fascist émigrés from the
Slovenian Littoral The Slovene Littoral, or simply Littoral (, ; ; ), is one of the traditional regions of Slovenia. The littoral in its name – for a coastal-adjacent area – recalls the former Austrian Littoral (''Avstrijsko Primorje''), the Habsburg poss ...
, together with Josip Vilfan,
Ivan Marija Čok 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 the ...
and
Lavo Čermelj Lavo Čermelj, Italianized name ''Lavo Cermeli'' (10 October 1889 – 26 January 1980), was a Slovenes, Slovene physicist, political activist, journalist, and author. In the 1930s, he was one of the foremost representatives of Slovene anti-Fasci ...
.


Biography


In Austria-Hungary

He was born to a Slovene-speaking lower-middle-class family in
Gorizia Gorizia (; ; , ; ; ) is a town and (municipality) in northeastern 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, Region ...
, in what was then the
Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military and diplomatic alliance, it consist ...
(now in
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
). After finishing the
German-language German (, ) is a West Germanic language in the Indo-European language family, mainly spoken in Western and Central Europe. It is the majority and official (or co-official) language in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and Liechtenstein. It is a ...
State Gymnasium in Gorizia, he enrolled at the
University of Vienna The University of Vienna (, ) is a public university, public research university in Vienna, Austria. Founded by Rudolf IV, Duke of Austria, Duke Rudolph IV in 1365, it is the oldest university in the German-speaking world and among the largest ...
, where he studied law, graduating in 1920. In the years before
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
, he joined the young generation of Christian Socialist activists around the
Carniola Carniola ( ; ; ; ) 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 still tend to identify with its traditional parts Upp ...
n priest Janez Evangelist Krek, who challenged the conservative leadership of the Slovene People's Party. Together with the priest Virgil Šček, Besednjak became one of the leaders of the Slovene Christian Socialist youth in the
Austrian Littoral The Austrian Littoral (, , , , ) was a crown land (''Kronland'') of the Austrian Empire, established in 1849. It consisted of three regions: the Margraviate of Istria in the south, Gorizia and Gradisca in the north, and the Imperial Free City ...
. Between 1913 and 1914, he was the president of the Christian Social Association (''Krščansko-socialna zveza'') in
Gorizia and Gradisca The Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca (; ; ), historically sometimes shortened to and spelled "Goritz", was a crown land of the Habsburg dynasty within the Austrian Littoral on the Adriatic Sea, in what is now a multilingual border area of ...
, and between 1917 and 1919 he was a personal secretary of the chairman of the Slovene People's Party,
Anton Korošec Anton Korošec (, ; 12 May 1872 – 14 December 1940) was a Yugoslav politician, a prominent member of the conservative People's Party, a Roman Catholic priest and a noted orator. Early life Korošec was born in Biserjane (then Duchy of Styr ...
.


In the Kingdom of Italy

After World War One, he returned to Gorizia, and soon became one of the main figures of Slovene and Croat
political Catholicism The Catholic Church and politics concerns the interplay of Catholicism with religious, and later secular, politics. The Catholic Church's views and teachings have evolved over its history and have at times been significant political influences ...
in the Julian March, an administrative region formed out of the former Austro-Hungarian
Adriatic The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...
provinces annexed to
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. In 1919, he became chief editor of the Slovene daily newspaper ''Edinost'' (Unity) of
Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
, and in 1921 he was elected to the Provincial Assembly of the
Province of Gorizia The province of Gorizia (; ; ) was a province in the autonomous Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy. Initially disbanded on 30 September 2017, it was reestablished in 2019 as the regional decentralization entity of Gorizia (; ; ), and was reacti ...
. From 1922 to 1924, he was director of the newspaper ''Goriška straža'' (The Guard of Gorizia). In the mid-1920s, he was a member of the executive board of the League of the Slovene Agrarian Workers in Italy, and of the National Council of Croats and Slovenes in the Julian March. He also served as editor of the journal ''Socialna misel'' (Social Thought). In 1924, he was elected to the
Italian Parliament The Italian Parliament () is the national parliament of the Italy, Italian Republic. It is the representative body of Italian citizens and is the successor to the Parliament of the Kingdom of Sardinia (1848–1861), the Parliament of the Kingd ...
on the unified list of Slovene, Croat and
South Tyrol South Tyrol ( , ; ; ), officially the Autonomous Province of Bolzano – South Tyrol, is an autonomous administrative division, autonomous provinces of Italy, province in northern Italy. Together with Trentino, South Tyrol forms the autonomo ...
ean parties. Besednjak thus became, together with the national liberal politician Josip Wilfan who was also elected on the same list, the highest representative of the around half a million
South Slavs South Slavs are Slavic people who speak South Slavic languages and inhabit a contiguous region of Southeast Europe comprising the eastern Alps and the Balkan Peninsula. Geographically separated from the West Slavs and East Slavs by Austria, ...
living in Italy. He quickly rose to prominence for his eloquent defence of minority rights against Fascist Italianization. Despite his consistent criticism of the regime, he insisted on the political loyalty to the Italian state. He did not join the Aventine Secession, but continued with regular parliamentary work until mid 1926. His parliamentary speeches, in which he defended
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, and
human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...
in general, from the early abuses of the Fascist regime, became famous among the Slovenes and Croats. Besednjak's speeches also attracted the attention of the Italian political scene and included parliamentary debates with the highest officials of the regime, including the Minister of Education
Giovanni Gentile Giovanni Gentile ( , ; 30 May 1875 – 15 April 1944) was an Italian pedagogue, philosopher, and politician. He, alongside Benedetto Croce, was one of the major exponents of Italian idealism in Italian philosophy, and also devised his own sys ...
and
Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...
himself. These speeches were printed in an integral version by Besednjak's journal ''Goriška straža'', thus becoming widely known in the Slovene public. Several of his statements and punchlines entered the daily speech or acquired legendary status. His most famous speeches were directed against the school reform which sanctioned Italian as the sole language of education in Italy. In his last speech, delivered in the Italian
Chamber of Deputies The chamber of deputies is the lower house in many bicameral legislatures and the sole house in some unicameral legislatures. Description Historically, French Chamber of Deputies was the lower house of the French Parliament during the Bourb ...
, he stated that, after the abolition of Slovene and Croatian language schools, every South Slavic family in Italy would transform itself into a school. In his concluding remark, he stated that "the laws of States are mutable, but Nations live forever", thus famously asserting the
natural right Some philosophers distinguish two types of rights, natural rights and legal rights. * Natural rights are those that are not dependent on the laws or customs of any particular culture or government, and so are ''universal'', '' fundamental'' and ...
of peoples before the established legal conventions.


In exile

In 1929, Besednjak emigrated to
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, but already the following year he returned to
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in order to work at the Congress of European National Minorities in
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
, serving as its vice-president. Afterwards, he moved to the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...
, settling in
Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
. Throughout the interwar period, he remained a member of the Slovene People's Party, supporting its centrist faction led by the Christian Democratic politician Andrej Gosar. After 1935, when the party leadership decided to support with the conservative Yugoslav government of
Milan Stojadinović Milan Stojadinović ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Стојадиновић; 4 August 1888 – 26 October 1961) was a Serbs, Serbian and Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav politician and economist who was the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia from 1935 to 1939. ...
, Besednjak became increasingly critical of its policies. Although he remained a member of the Slovene People's Party, he became disenchanted with its authoritarian and corporatist shift. He spent the
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 ...
years in Belgrade. Although he did not join any of the political factions fighting against the German occupation of Yugoslavia. Initially, he rejected both the partisan movement and Draža Mihajlović's
Chetniks The Chetniks,, ; formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland; and informally colloquially the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationalist m ...
, as well as the various collaborationist militias (such as the
Slovene Home Guard The Slovene Home Guard (, SD; ) was a Slovenes#World War II and aftermath, Slovene anti-Slovene Partisans, Partisan militia that was founded and supported by the Germans and fought alongside them against the Partisans. It operated during part of ...
). After 1943, he collaborated with the so-called "Catholic Centre", led by Jakob Šolar and Andrej Gosar in the
Province of Ljubljana The Province of Ljubljana (, , ) was the central-southern area of Slovenia. In 1941, it was annexed by the Kingdom of Italy, and after 1943 occupied by Nazi Germany. Created on May 3, 1941, it was abolished on May 9, 1945, when the Slovene Parti ...
, and Virgil Šček in the Julian March, trying to keep a balance between the pro-Communist Liberation Front of the Slovenian People and various
anti-Communist Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communist beliefs, groups, and individuals. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when th ...
forces. After 1944, however, he became increasingly supportive of
Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...
's partisan movement, believing that the
Communists Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, d ...
would be the only force able to achieve the annexation of the
Slovenian Littoral The Slovene Littoral, or simply Littoral (, ; ; ), is one of the traditional regions of Slovenia. The littoral in its name – for a coastal-adjacent area – recalls the former Austrian Littoral (''Avstrijsko Primorje''), the Habsburg poss ...
and
Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...
to
Yugoslavia , common_name = Yugoslavia , life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation , p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia , flag_p ...
, as well as the only ones capable to keep the country together.Boris Mlakar, 'Goriška sredina' In Prispevki za novejšo zgodovino 57, 2 (1997)


Return to the Julian March

With the Paris Treaty of 1947, the
Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...
n peninsula and most of the
Slovenian Littoral The Slovene Littoral, or simply Littoral (, ; ; ), is one of the traditional regions of Slovenia. The littoral in its name – for a coastal-adjacent area – recalls the former Austrian Littoral (''Avstrijsko Primorje''), the Habsburg poss ...
were annexed to the
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...
. Gorizia and the Slovene-inhabited Venetian Slovenia remained part of Italy, while Trieste and the neighbouring villages were included in the Allied-administered
Free Territory of Trieste The Free Territory of Trieste was an independent territory in Southern Europe between Italy and SFR Yugoslavia, Yugoslavia, facing the north part of the Adriatic Sea, under United Nations Security Council Resolution 16, direct responsibility of ...
. In 1950, Besednjak settled in Trieste. There, he was among the co-founders of the Slovene Christian Social Union, which later merged with other Slovene democratic and
anti-Communist Anti-communism is political and ideological opposition to communist beliefs, groups, and individuals. Organized anti-communism developed after the 1917 October Revolution in Russia, and it reached global dimensions during the Cold War, when th ...
parties in Italy into the Slovene Union. After the annexation of the Province of Trieste to Italy in 1954, he retired from public life. In the late 1950s, he published a memoir dedicated to his friend and collaborator Virgil Šček. The text remains, to this day, one of the most comprehensive sources on the Slovene and Croat political movement in the Julian March under the Kingdom of Italy. He died in Trieste in 1968.


See also

* Josip Ferfolja * Boris Furlan *
TIGR TIGR (an acronym of the place-names ''Trieste, Trst'', ''Istria, Istra'', ''Gorizia, Gorica'', and ''Rijeka, Reka''), fully the Revolutionary Organization of the Julian March T.I.G.R. (), was a Militant (word), militant Anti-fascism, anti-fascis ...


Sources

*Egon Pelikan, ''Engelbert Besednjak v parlamentu - Discorsi parliamentari dell'on. Engelbert Besednjak'' (Trieste: Krožek za družbena vprašanja Virgil Šček, 1996).


References


{{DEFAULTSORT:Besednjak, Engelbert People from Gorizia 20th-century Slovenian lawyers University of Vienna alumni Slovene People's Party (historical) politicians Italian Slovenes Slovenian Roman Catholics Slovenian anti-fascists 1968 deaths 1894 births Yugoslav lawyers