Centenary of the death of Field Marshal Boroević commemorated in Vienna and Zagreb

Updated: May 23, 2022

Members of the Croatian Royal Council organized two commemorations on May 23rd on the occasion of the centenary of the death of Field Marshal Svetozar Baron Boroević de Bojna in Vienna and Zagreb. And appropriately marked the centenary of the death of one of the greatest Croatian military leaders and the first Croat to reach the rank and honor of Field Marshal in the Austro-Hungarian army. The commemoration in Zagreb began at 10:00, while in Vienna at 15:00. Other Associations as well as Orders participated in both commemorations, with dozens of people joining them. Due to the Corona virus epidemic and security measures, the number of guests was limited.

Field Marshal Baron Svetozar Boroević de Bojna

Svetozar Boroević(1) is rightly considered one of the greatest Croatian military commanders, his contribution to the history of warfare, service to the Homeland and the Monarch, as well as the fact that he was the first Croat to reach the position of Field Marshal in the KuK monarchy will always leave his name written in golden letters of Croatian history. Field Marshal Svetozar Boroević was born in Umetići (Croatian Military Frontier) in 1856 into an Orthodox family,(2) although there are disputes about the birth date itself and the place of birth which also alternatively is placed in Mečenčani, he himself emphasized that he was from Umetić.(3) From an early age he was trained for military service, moving often with his father Adam due to him being a military officer and commander. After elementary school, he will attend a military high school in Srijemska Kamenica, and after that he will enroll in a higher military high-school in Koszeg. At the end of 1872, as a cadet, he joined the 52nd Regiment in Pécs, where his military service and higher military education in the infantry cadet school began. In 1878, he participated in the occupation and liberation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which became his first war experience, for which he was decorated.(4) Soon his military rise and titles grew, so he was promoted first to lieutenant, then captain, colonel, major general etc all the way to the infantry general, which he would remain until the First World War. From 1887 to 1891 he was a lecturer at the Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt, and in 1905 he acquired the title of Baron (Cro: Barun, Ger: Freiherr).(5) During the First World War, Svetozar Baron Boroević reached his highest military peak. He had great strategic successes on the Galician front, as the commander of the 3rd Army, he was decorated and praised for defending against Russian offensives near Limanova and the liberation of the city-fortress Przemyśl.(6) The series of successful strategic and leadership tasks put on him in Galicia continued on, until 1915 when Italy entered the war against the K. u. K. monarchy and thus Boroević was appointed commander of the 5th Army and from 1917 the 1st and 2nd army. While from 1917 to 1918, a group of armies under his command would bear his name in honor, which would have its peak in February of 1918 when he became the first Croat to advance to the rank of Field Marshal.(7) On this Italian front, he would reach his pinnacle in the 12 battles of Isonzo, of which 11 were defensive, and he would emerge from them victorious.(8) As well as the 12th battle which was an offensive one.(9) That was the reason he was awarded the highest military decoration of the Austro-Hungarian monarchy, the Commanders Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresa, and also earned him the nickname „Lion of Isonzo“ (Cro: Lav sa Soče) by his soldiers. At that time, he was given adequate honor throughout the KuK monarchy as well as his homeland the Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia, in addition to streets that bore his name, he also became an honorary doctor of the University of Franz Joseph in Zagreb (University of Zagreb).(10) After the disintegration of the KuK monarchy he remained in Austria, without the right to a full military pension either from the new republican government in Austria or from the newly formed Kingdom of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs (Yugoslavia).(11) Baron Svetozar Boroević de Bojna died on May 23, 1920 in Klagenfurt, at the age of 64,(12) in conditions of misery deprived of the right to a full pension and any recognition of Austria and newly formed Yugoslav Kingdom (SCS). He was buried in a civil funeral led by his friend Bishop dr hefter on May 26, 1920 in Klagenfurt,(12) while his earthly remains were later transferred to a tomb in Vienna which was funded by the now exiled Blessed Emperor and King Karl (Karlo IV).

Sources

1) Boroević same version of the Borojević last name, which was used by Svetozar himself

2) Ćosić Stjepan, Pojić Milan, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević 1856-1920., Zagreb, HDA, (2006), p 4.

3) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 7.

4) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 8.

5) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 7-8.

6) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 8. 7) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 8.

8) Ilustrovani list, No 38, 22nd September, Zagreb, (1917), p 1.

9) Twelfth Battle of the Isonzo which is also known as the Battle of Caporetto

10) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 8-9.

11) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 10.

12) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 30.

13) Ćosić, Pojić, Vojskovođa Svetozar Boroević, p 11.

Commemoration in Vienna

Representatives and members of the Croatian Royal Council gathered at the Vienna Central Cemetery at 15:00, represented by the American Catholic writer Charles A. Coulombe, Ivan Filipović-Čugura and Ivan Klarić. They were also accompanied by members of the Order of St George of the House Habsburg-Lothringen, who in their dashing ceremonial cloaks and uniforms contributed significantly to the commemoration itself. The gathered held a commemoration at the tomb of Field Marshal Svetozar Baron Boroević de Bojna and his family in the new arcades of the Vienna Central Cemetery. During which Charles A. Coulombe gave a short speech in which he emphasized the importance of Field Marshal Boroević for the KuK monarchy, its peoples and his relationship with Blessed Emperor and King Karl. He concluded that:

„To us, today, falls the requirement of attempting to live up to the examples those two men (Blessed Emperor and King Karl and Svetozar Boroević) have given us. We too must try to show the same level of duty, loyalty, and honour; not only when things are pleasant, but even if, as with them, we find ourselves living through the collapse of everything we know. Please God, that shall not happen to us. But we must be prepared – it may“

On that occasion, those gathered held a prayer, which was led by a priest from the Order of St George. With previously laid wreaths from various organizations from other parts of the former Monarchy. The members of the Order of St George and representatives of the Croatian Royal Council laid wreaths on his tomb and with it ended the commemoration. Which gave a honorable tribute to this great Croatian and Habsburg military leader.

Commemoration in Zagreb

At 10:00, numerous guests gathered near the monument and tomb of fallen Croatian soldiers in the First World War at the Mirogoj City Cemetery in Zagreb, among the guests were the Richter family, who are the last living relatives of Field Marshal Svetozar Boroević. The program leader was the Secretary of the Croatian Royal Council, Borna Kuri. On that occasion, he emphasized the importance and worthy of Field Marshal Svetozar Baron Boroević de Bojna for the Croatian and generally Central European historical context. The introductory speech was followed by a Orthodox prayer for the late Field Marshal Boroević and all the fallen Croatian soldiers of the Great War of 1914-1918, the prayer was held by the Croatian Archiepiscope Alexander on behalf of the Croatian Orthodox Community. The prayer was followed by commemorative speeches, the first of which was given by the representative of the Croatian Royal Council Ante Brešić pl. Mikulić who mentioned the historical significance and role of Field Marshal Boroević in Croatian and Central European culture and history. Emphasizing in particular his unquestionable patriotism, service and devotion to his Homeland and the King. Citing Svetozar's noble views even in the twilight of the end of the First World War, in a letter he sent to the National Council;

„That is why I am asking you not as a general, not as the last son of this land, but as a patriot who loves his homeland just like any other Croat, and I appeal to the patriotism of the National Council to repeal these provisions that would turn the army into hordes that would destroy the last civic achievements.“

After the first speech, the next speaker was Dr Darko Richter, great-grandson of Svetozar Boroević's nephew, Milica Boroević, who in his speech reflected on the family genealogy as well as held several interesting and unknown facts about the life and history of the Boroević family. After the speeches, the head of the commemoration Mr Borna Kuri asked for a minute of silence in honor for all the fallen in the First World War, at the end of which, thanking the guests, he exclaimed;

„In honor and glory for those fallen for the Homeland and the King!“

After that, the representatives of the organization laid wreaths in front of the monument, and the guests paid homage to all those who fell in the Great War of 1914-1918.