The Predil Pass or Predel Pass ( it, Passo di Predil; sl, Predel, ) (el. 1156 m) is a high mountain pass on the border between

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 ...

and

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 ...

Geography

Cave del predil Log-pod Mangartom tunnel map

The pass is located in the

Julian Alps The Julian Alps ( sl, Julijske Alpe, it, Alpi Giulie, , ) are a mountain range of the Southern Limestone Alps that stretch from northeastern Italy to Slovenia, where they rise to 2,864 m at Mount Triglav, the highest peak in Slovenia. A large p ...

, between the peaks of Mount Mangart to the north and Mount Kanin to the south. It connects Cave del Predil, part of the Italian municipality of

Tarvisio Tarvisio ( German and fur, Tarvis, sl, Trbiž) is a comune in the northeastern part of the autonomous Friuli Venezia Giulia region in Italy. Geography The town is in the Canal Valley (''Val Canale'') between the Carnic Alps and Karawanks ra ...

in the northwest, with the Municipality of Bovec 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 ...

(Isonzo) Valley in Slovenia. On the Italian side, state highway no. 54 (''del Friuli'') leads from Tarvisio and the Canal Valley along Slizza Creek to Lake Predil, where the route to the Sella Nevea Pass in the south branches off, and uphill to the Predil crest. On the Slovenian side, road no. 203 runs downhill to Log pod Mangartom and continues to

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 Ljubl ...

. The village of Strmec na Predelu lies just below the border crossing.

History

The road was built from 1319 onwards by the citizens of Cividale in 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 histo ...

with the consent of the Prince-Bishops of Bamberg, then the possessors of the Carinthian lands in the north. However, the importance of the trade route diminished after the Aquileia territory in the south was incorporated into the ''

Domini di Terraferma The ( vec, domini de terraferma or , ) was the hinterland territories of the Republic of Venice beyond the Adriatic coast in Northeast Italy. They were one of the three subdivisions of the Republic's possessions, the other two being the origina ...

'' by the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...

in 1420. Since 1754 the Predil Pass marked the border between the Duchy of Carinthia with the lands of the Princely County of Gorizia and Gradisca (part of the Austrian Littoral from 1849) in the southeast, both part of the Habsburg monarchy. During the

War of the Fifth Coalition The War of the Fifth Coalition was a European conflict in 1809 that was part of the Napoleonic Wars and the Coalition Wars. The main conflict took place in central Europe between the Austrian Empire of Francis I and Napoleon's French Empir ...

, an Austrian contingent under Captain Johann Hermann von Hermannsdorf on 18 May 1809 fought against the

French French (french: français(e), link=no) may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France, and its various dialects and accents ** French people, a nation and ethnic group identified with Franc ...

forces moving from the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Sardinia was proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to an institutional referendum to abandon the monarchy and ...

upon the Battle of Tarvis. Hermannsdorf was killed in battle, in 1851 a memorial was erected in his honour. In 1903 a long tunnel (''Štoln'') was built beneath the pass, serving miners from Log pod Mangartom on their way to the lead mines in Cave del Predil. In

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, ...

the mine railway was used to supply 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 ...

in the Battles of the Isonzo against the

Gallery

File:Predil Pass - view west.JPG, West view from the pass, showing Lake Predil File:Predil Pass - Italian fort.JPG, Fortification on the Italian side of the pass File:Predil Pass - Austrian fort.JPG, Austrian fort on the Slovenian side of the pass File:Predil Pass - Austrian monument.JPG, Monument to troops killed at the pass in 1809 File:Predil Pass - Austrian grave.JPG, Grave of Austrian troops killed at the pass in 1809 File:Log pod Magartom-Stoln.jpg, Tunnel entrance in Log pod Mangartom

External links

*{{commonscat-inline, Predil Pass Predil Predil Italy–Slovenia border crossings Mountain passes of the Julian Alps

Geography

History

Gallery

See also

External links