Frontline Labour Brigades in Nova Gorica
How did youth labour brigades differ from frontline brigades?
Who contributed more to the construction of the town? The youth, the frontline brigades, or the workers? And what did the “frontline brigades” actually build?
“Nova Gorica must become the westernmost beacon of our country, warning our working people of the dangers of the reactionary West. Nova Gorica must become a symbol of the working people and an expression of the unity of our nations! Nova Gorica will be a flourishing garden of new buildings, a small New Belgrade […] People of the Primorska region! June 13 calls upon us to demonstrate the brotherhood and unity of the Yugoslav peoples” (Nova Gorica, 1 Feb., No. 13, 11 June 1948).
The construction of Nova Gorica is symbolised by the shock-work of youth and frontline brigades, who—driven by the loss of Gorizia to Italy and the establishment of a new political ideology—built the new city in a spirit of competitive enthusiasm.
Youth labour brigades, composed of young people over the age of 16, worked in the city in four shifts from 13 December 1947 to 29 August 1948. They left the city due to new obligations—“the beginning of the school year was approaching,” as reported in the newspaper Nova Gorica (3 Sept. 1948, No. 25; cf. Marušič ed. 2017: 174). After their departure, the shortage of labour for the most demanding work became acute. The Ministry of Construction of the People’s Republic of Slovenia therefore instructed the District People’s Committee of Gorizia (OLO Gorizia), in cooperation with trade unions, to organise voluntary labour to support the construction company.
They began organising new types of brigades—the frontline brigades (known as frontovci)—which started working in the city at the end of September 1948. They took part in a labour action marking the first anniversary of the annexation of the Slovene Littoral to Yugoslavia, gathering around 2,500 people (Bukovič 2017: 137).
The organised activity of frontline brigades on the construction site began at the turn of 1949. They were organised in three shifts. The brigadiers also slept in the brickyard—the former Frnaža—where they had a small corner with a radio, newspapers, and a library. Their work included both physical labour and cultural-educational activities. The first brigade of the first shift was the Anton Šibelja – Stjenko Brigade from the Sežana district, consisting of 70 brigadiers. They worked eight hours a day. Three times a week they held study meetings, and once a week a work conference (Ukmar 1993: 33).
Every Sunday, voluntary frontline brigades from nearby villages (100–150 volunteers) came to help. Brigades from the Vipava Valley competed with those from Brda, the Karst, and Grgar, encouraging each other with song and accordion music.
In autumn 1949, workers together with frontline brigades largely completed (in rough construction) a furniture factory (later named Meblo), intended to be one of the most modern in the Balkans. Nearby, in the Kurja vas area of Kromberk, they also built six single-family workers’ houses and one apartment block for 24 working families. This block, designed by architect Danilo Fürst, stood by the Koren stream. In 1949, they also began constructing the administrative building for the Executive People’s Committee for the Gorizia region (today the Nova Gorica City Hall), various economic facilities, residential houses, and buildings for cultural institutions. They built four apartment blocks and drilled a tunnel through Panovec to connect Nova Gorica with Rožna Dolina and Šempeter. The main city road and sewage system were largely completed by the 1950s (Ukmar 1993: 33).
In 1951, financial difficulties halted construction in Nova Gorica. As a result, all work was suspended, unfinished buildings were left to deteriorate, and the frontline labour brigades also ceased their activities.
Avtor: Jasna Fakin Bajec
Vir:
Danica Ukmar (1993): "Začetki gradnje Nove Gorice". V: Kronika: časopis za slovensko krajevno zgodovino, letnik 41, številka 2. URN:NBN:SI:doc-T6USNG8G from http://www.dlib.si, str. 18-37.
Nova Gorica: Zgradili smo mesto: https://www.kamra.si/digitalne-zbirke/bruno-polanc/ (ogled: 27. 10. 2024).