Russian Traces from World War I in Slovenia

Abstract

Most citizens from Tsarist Russia who were present in Slovenia during World War I were Russian prisoners of war. Their estimated number was between 20,000 and 30,000, but a more precise figure may be yielded by research in the archives, which are to become more accessible in the future. Russian prisoners of war were sent to the hinterland of the Isonzo front, and there was a strict demarcation line between those responsible for the construction of strategically important (military) objects and communication systems near the frontline (roads, water supply network, railways, cable cars, airports, warehouses, etc.) and those engaged in community service (farmers, workers, craftsmen) throughout Carniola, the Littoral, Carinthia and Styria. In addition to the (as yet) scarce archival sources, enriched with precious private collections, their lives are most eloquently attested by memorials, gravestones, constructions (roads, railways, a chapel, etc.), place names containing the adjective ‘Russian’, dispersed newspaper articles, photographs, testimonies, and individual objects.