Notes in support of:
| The Photographs of Emil Anton Karl Maria (Emo) Zwierzina Captain, Artillery |
Alessio -
Albania: 41° 46' 60"N 19° 38' 60" E. (aka: Lesh, Lezha, Lezhë)
On the Adriatic coast of Albania, between Stari Bar and Durazzo (Durës,
Durrës).
Biglia ¤88 - a hill
Borgo San Rocco:
Busneshi - Albania: 41°34'0"N 19°38'0"E alt=3m (other end of the Kadaverstrasse). (see map segment at right - opposite Miloti).
Carso: (German: Karst; Slovene: Krst) A geological curiosity, a limestone plateau east of the Isonzo river found in Croatia, Slovenia and the Trieste region of Italy. The words Karst and Carso became well known during WW1 because, although the Carso front was tiny - perhaps 10 Kms, it was part of the Isonzo Front where some of the bloodiest battles between Austria and Italy were fought on and around the hills of the Carso - Podgora, Sabotino, Santo, San Martino, Doberdo, Mt. Hermada, Mt. S. Michele, etc.
Castarta - Italy:
Corada - Italy:
Cordovado:45°50'49"N 12°52'49"E. A small medieval walled town in the Friuli (a wine) region. By car, 40 minutes from Venice and Trieste.
Drinjaca - Bosnia: River that flows into the River Drina south of Zvornik 44°23'13"N 19°
Fajti Hrib ¤ 432 - Slovenia: (one of the "Black Hills" outside Rence, formerly Ranziano. Other "Black Hills" are Trstelj, Stol, Cerje), adjacent to Golnek. To quote one author: "... before the war, the eroded hills of Fajtji [sic] Hrib and Cosich and Debeli Vrh had been unvisited..."
Golnek (mountain) - Slovenia: Adjacent to Fajti Hrib ¤ 432.
Görz (Now Gorizia, Friuli-Venezia Guilia.) - Italy: 45° 57'N 13° 37'E. Located on the west side of the river Isonzo, at the border with Slovenia. It was defended with the Podgora and Oslavia turned into bastions and further supported by surrounding ring of mountains such as Mte. Sabotino in the North and the Carso plateau in the South. The western part of Görz went to Italy in 1947, the eastern part went to Yugoslavia and was given the Serbo-Croatian name of Nova Gorica (now belongs to Slovenia). During WW1, in order to defend the town of Görz on the right bank of the Isonzo, Austria maintained a bridgehead and, although outnumbered 1:6 by Italian troops, defended it for 14 months (23 May 1915 - 8 Aug 1916) until it was finally lost along with the Austrian bridgehead during the 6th battle of the Isonzo. Picture of bridge at Görz, blown up on 8 August 1916, can be seen on the web site of the Deutsches Historisches Museum. A pretty picture of the Isonzo north of Görz can be seen on the web site of World War I.
Gradisca d'Isonzo - Italy: 45° 53' 33"N 13° 30' 6"E: Located in Northeast part of Italy in the region of Friuli-Venezia-Guilia (Southwest of Udine, Northwest of Palmanova). It is on the Isonzo near the Slovenian border. Founded in the late 15th Century by Venice as a fortress against the Turks (a century older than Palmanova). Until 1918 it formed together with Görz the crownland of Görz-Gradisca in Austria's Küstenland Province. Due to the ravages of war little remains of the old town.
Gradiscutta
- Udine, Italy: 45°90'25"N 12°96'19"E
Isonzo (Soca) - River, and site of 12 of the bloodiest battles of WW1.
Krujë - Albania: 40°53'60"N
20°7'60"E - Alternate spelling: Kruja. 
(or 41° 20'N 19°40')
Kuk ¤611
Lovcen - Montenegro: Mountain range northwest of Lake Skutary, captured on 9 Jan 1916 by Austrian troops. See map segment across from Albania above.
Lucinico - Italy: 45° 55' 48N 13° 34' 27"E - ".. at the feet of Podgora's south side ..."
Noventa - Italy
Madrisio - Italy: (1)45°51'58"N
12°59'9'E alt=9m (2) 46°7'9"N 13°1'24"E alt=136m (inasmuch as the
picture is about the Tagliamento 
above
sea level is more logical for a town at or near a river than an altitude of
136 meters.
Medea - Italy: 45°55'12"N 13°25'25"E
Miloti (Milot) [mee-LOT] - Albania: 41°40'60"N 19°43'0E (on end of the Kadaverstrasse). West Central Albania on the River Mat 8 miles (12.9 Kms) SSE of Lezhë on the Lezhë-Durrës road.
Oderzo - Italy
Palmanova - Italy: 45°54'22"N 13°18'39"E - South of Udine, northwest of Trieste, west of Gorizia. As one WW1 pilot said "The most easily recognizable city from the air in all of Europe". Palmanova was founded 1593 by the Republic of Venice, and was intended to be a fortified city in the shape of a nine-¤ed star to protect against any invaders (e.g. Habsburgs or Turks). It started out with the name of Palma. Was held by Austria, then later by France and has been Italian since 1866. Interesting historical buildings can be seen at the DiMI web site of university of Udine.
 |
| Palmanova Townplan |
Podgora ¤ 240 - 45°41'10N 14°29'26"E - Forested Mountain range outside of Görz (Gorizia), and in effect the front door to it. Held by Austrian forces in WW1. (see Carso heading above).
Ramuscello - Italy: 45°52'20"N 12°53'19"E - 2 Miles north of Cordovado.
Ranziano - Slovenia: 45°52'60"N 13°40'60"E - Now called Rence. It is somewhat incredible that I should find an exact duplicate of one of my father's pictures on the Web, but this greenish picture of the Ranziano church could be a copy of the picture that my father took during WW1. The picture was found on the Rence site (which is unfortunately in Slovene, and not understandable to me). That site has many nice pictures, old and new, of Rence (Ranziano), so do visit and poke around at that Rence site.
Rivignano - Italy: 45°52'45"N 13°2'14"E - West of Palmanova, southwest of Udine. The Campanile still stands as can be seen on the Commune Rivignano site.
Monte Sabotino (Sabotin)
¤ 602 . Mountain directly above above Solkan
on west bank of the Isonzo. Isonzo. During WW1 part of the Austrian bridge
head protecting Görz - today it straddles the new international border
- its north-east faces belong to Slovenia, the summit and the south-west slopes
belong to Italy. (see map segment above opposite Gabriele and Görz).
See Aldo Pavan's pictures of
some Austrian caverns and positions on Mte. Sabotino. (also see Carso
heading above). Today there is a dam on the Isonzo between Sabotino and Santo
mountains.*
Monte San Gabriele (Skabijel) ¤
646 - Slovenia: Consists of two peaks, the summit Monte San Gabriele
646m, and a lower peak Veliki Hrib ¤
526. This range is situated just at the northeastern extremity of the
town Görz (Gorizia), on the left bank of the Isonzo river.(also see Carso
heading above). 
Monte San Marco ¤ 227 - Slovenia. One of the elevations of the Whippachtal between Ranziano and Mte. Sabotino which lent its name to a military sector ("Sector San Marco") during WW1.
Monte San Michele ¤ 275 - Hill south of Gorozia acroiss the tiny Vipaco River 1 mile east of the Isonzo, on the north edge of the Carso. Site of six battles (esp. German gas attack on 29 June 1916). Although more a hill than a mountain, it commanded the local terrain. Italians captured this mountain in 1916 after they had taken Görz in the 2nd week of August 1916. Today has an observation deck, monuments to several of the twenty nine Italian brigades that fought to win the peak at a cost of 112,000 Italians killed and maimed. There is also a monument near San Michele to the Hungarian 4th Honvéd Regiment.*
Monte Santo ¤ 682 - one of the elevations around Görz mentioned as having hilltop monasteries which helped the fliers to navigate (two others mentioned were Monte Vecchio, and Monte San Gabriele.
Podgora ¤ 240
Saint Giovanni di Medua - Albania: 41°49'0"N 19°34'60"E. Coastal town. (near Shingrin?)
Skutari (aka: Scutari, Shkodër- now Shkodra) - Albania: on the border with Montenegro (town is 6 Km from from the southern tip of Lake Skutari), in northern Albania, 32 Km inland from the Adriatic coast. Straight east of Stari Bar, Montenegro and straight north of Alessio, Albania.
Tabor - Slovenia: 45°46'7"N 13°57'31"E above Srmice ("Tabor near Czernizza"). Note that there are two Tabor in Slovenia. The other one is more inland, and a ways more to the East. The one quoted here is close to Görz and seems more likely to be the one in the picture.
Triešnek - Slovenia - ¤ 503 where Emo had an observation post and where he was wounded by a piece of shrapnel that remained stuck in his head.
Vertojba - Slovenia: 45°54'43"N 13°38'5"E. South-East of Gorizia on the Vertojba river. (see "Vertoiba in Campi Santi") aka: Vrtojba. This sector was held by the 14th Infantry Division.
Vipacco (Vipava, Wippach) - Slovenia: Vipacco River (aka Frigido, aka Wippach) flows into the Isonzo south of Görz (Gorizia) . Some of the localities of the Vipacco Valley are Santa Croce, Dornberg, Pravacina, Ranziano. See Wippachtal below.
Vlasanica - Serbia: 44°35'52"N 19°53'12"E. In the northeastern part of Bosnia.
Wippachtal (Vipavatal) - Slovenia: aka Vipavska dolina, aka Vipawa Valley, a wine growing region. The valley is surrounded by mountains and is only open towards to West, towards the Adriatic which gives it a special climate, with summers about 2 months longer than elsewhere. See Vipacco above.
