Archives for July 6th, 2005

Trg svobode ("Liberty Square") in Maribor.

The large black
ball you see above is a monument to the Second World War that portrudes
from Maribor’s Liberty Square like an enormous blackhead. It doesn’t
really jibe well with the immediate surroundings, which include a
15th-century castle and a 12th-century Gothic church. (Here is a 360-degree panorama of the area.)

Locals humorously — and unanimously — refer to the big bronze ball as Kodžak. (In honor of bald actor Telly Savalas, star of the 70’s TV show Kojak.)

It’s
actually a very touching monument to the war, because of what is
inscribed at the base. During their four-year occupation of the area,
German soldiers massacred hundreds of Slovenian "communist bandits" (a
term that was loosely defined, but brutally enforced) as part of their
attempt to "make the city German again." The order to do this came from
Hitler himself, who visited the city in 1941 and famously spoke on the balcony of the town hall.

At any rate: at the base of the monument you can find an
inscription of the final letter of a Slovene to his family. It reads:
(scroll down for an attempted translation)

Dragi moji,
Danes sem bil obsojen na smrt. Ne žalujte za menoj, bodite hrabri kakor
sem hraber jaz. V duhu Vas vse poljubljam, Vas domaÄ?e mamo, teto Majdo,
Jelko, Toneta, svojo deklico Anko, vse prijatelje in tovariše. Ohranite
me v dobrem spominu. Jaz bom do zadnjega trenutka mislil na vas.

Mnogo poljubov poslednjih v duhu vam poslanih od vašega Jožeka
30.3.1942

My dears,
Today I was condemned to death. Don’t be sorry for me; be brave as I
remain brave. In my spirit, I kiss you all: my family, my mother, aunt
Majda, Jelka, Tone, my little girl Anka, all my friends and comrades.
Remember me well. I will think of you all until my final moments.

Sending you many final kisses in my spirit,

Your Jožek
30.03.1942