Mt. Skabrijel, 22.6.2003
Skabrijel, 22.6.2003

Skabriel (St. Gabrielle) Plaque In te days between 24.August and 15.September 1917 the hill overlooking two modern cities of Gorica became fatal for 40.000 soldiers who were sent there to mercilessly fight each other in what could only be described as inferno. The battle was a conclusion of the 11th Italian offensive on the Soca (Isonzo) river that raged from 17. August to 12. September on the area from Tolmin to Kras (Carso). After some initial successes and Austrian pull-back from Banjska planota the offensive stalled and Italians concentrated all their efforts on one single point. Regiment after regiment, brigade after brigade marched from both side up the hill that was bursting in explosions. Most of the men that went up remained there for ever. As the guns fell silent not a single grass was left growing on the slopes, the barren land was covered only with corpses. Odkritje plosce na Skabrijelu V dneh med 24. avgustom in 15. septembrom 1917 je gora, ki se dviga nad obema Goricama postala usodna za 40.000 vojakov, ki so jih poslali neusmiljeno klat drug drugega v nekaj, cemur bi lahko rekli edinole pekel. Spopad je bil zakljucna bitka enajste soske ofenzive, ki je sicer trajala od 17. avgusta do 12. septembra na prostoru med Tolminom in Krasom. Po zacetnih uspehih in avstrijskem umiku z Banjske planote je njen zagon zastal in Italijani so vse sile osredotocili na en sam vrh. Polk za polkom, brigada za brigado so z obeh strani korakale na goro, ki je bila ovita v plamene eksplozij. Vecina moz, ki se je vzpela na goro, je na njej tudi ostala. Ko so topovi utihnili, na njenih pobocjih ni rasla vec niti ena sama travnata bilka. Njeno razrito povrsje so pokrivala le trupla.

The new monument at Mt. Skabrijel.
Novi spomenik na Skabrijelu.

But within few years grass and trees covered again this theatre of the terrible drama and soon another world war pushed the memory of the battle far into the background, just as the nature gradually dismantled makeshift memorials left by the combatants. A decade ago dr. Vasja Klavora revoked the memories with his book "Skabrijel". He graphically described the battle and concluded that all the fallen soldiers deserved at least a modest marker. On Sunday 22. June 2003 his wish was fulfilled and he was invited to unveil that marker. A ze v nekaj letih so trava in drevje spet prerasli prizorisce strahotnih bojev in kmalu je naslednja svetovna vojna potisnila spomin nanje povsem v ozadje, prav kakor je narava pocasi zakrila zasilne pomnike, ki so jih malostevilni preziveli postavili padlim tovarisem. Pred desetletjem je dr. Vasja Klavora dogodke iztrgal pozabi s svojo knjigi "Skabrijel". V njej je slikovito opisal bitko in zakljucil, da bi si padli zasluzili vsaj skromno obelezje. V nedeljo 22. junija 2003 se je njegova zelja izpolnila in povabljen je bil, naj to obelezje odkrije.

Guests from re-enactment groups from Slovenia,
Austria, Czech republic and Italy.
Gostje iz vojaskozgodovinskih ponazoritvenih drustev
Slovenije, Avstrije, Ceske in Italije.

The event took place thanks to the joint action by three associations whose aim is to preserve the memory of the "Great War": the "Soska fronta" association from Nova Gorica, the "IR-87" association from Solkan and The Association of Gorica Patriots. The decision that the three associations join their forces was crowned by a ceremony attended not only by local population and representatives of the local government and clergy, but also by the guard of honour of Slovenian Army and by representatives of many "traditional regiments" of both former adversaries. For one day Slovenian Post opened a special post office on the mountain and issued a seal for the occasion. Guests came from Italy, Austria and Czech republic and so the fallen soldiers were remembered not as former enemies serving old imperialisms, but as a tragic part of our common history. The thought is echoed in the simple sign on the plaque: "To All That Had to Die on this Hill". Zasluga za odkritje spomenika gre zdruzeni pobudi treh drustev, ki negujejo spomin na prvo svetovno vojno: drustva "Soska fronta" iz Nove Gorice, drustva "IR-87 Solkan" iz Solkana in Drustva goriskih rodoljubov. Odlocitev, da vsa tri drustva zdruzijo sile, je bila kronana s slovesnostjo, ki se je ni udelezilo le stevilno krajevno prebivalstvo in predstavniki krajevnih oblasti in cerkve, ampak tudi castni oddelek Slovenske vojske in predtavniki mnogih "zgodovinskih polkov" obeh nekdanjih nasprotnikov. Posta Slovenije pa je za ta dan na gori odprla zacasni urad in izdala priloznostni zig. Gostje so prisli iz Italije, Avstrije in Ceske in tako so se mrtvih spomnili ne kot nekdanjih sovraznikov, padlih v sluzbi starih imperializmov, marvec kot tragicen del nase skupne zgodovine. Misel je izrazena v preprostem napisu na spominski plosci: "Vsem, ki so morali umreti na tem hribu!"

Representatives of the 1st mountain hunters regiment of Insbruck
presenting the memorial ice-pick to hosts, the IR-87 Association.
Delegacija 1. polka gorskih lovcev iz Insbrucka izroca
spominski cepin gostiteljem, drustvu IR-87 iz Solkana.

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besedilo/text: A.S.J.
fotke/Photos:
Simon Kovacic (barvne/colour)
Rajko Zbogar (crnobela/BW)

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