On May 7th, the Military History Park, in cooperation with the British Embassy in the Republic of Slovenia, organized a memorial ceremony to commemorate the anniversary of the crash of the Spitfire MH980 aircraft near the village of Suhorje in the Brkini region and the death of the aircraft’s pilot, Sergeant Edmund Ramsbotham of the 249th Squadron of the British Royal Air Force. The ceremony honored one of the most famous fighter units of the Royal Air Force, established in August 1918, but achieving its glory in World War II – first in the Battle of Britain and then over Malta, Sicily, Italy, Albania, the Balkans, and finally over Slovenian territory at the end of the war. Sergeant Ramsbotham was the last victim of this famous unit in World War II.

The Minister of Defense of the Republic of Slovenia attended the ceremony, Mr. Marjan Šarec, the Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Slovenia, Her Excellency Tiffany Sadler, who laid wreaths at the monument to the fallen pilot, and former British Ambassador to Slovenia, Mr. David Lloyd.

The director of the Military History Park, Mr. Janko Boštjančič, highlighted in his welcome speech that the monument, erected by the Park two years ago, was inscribed with the words “Young Sergeant Ramsbotham died for a free Europe.” He emphasized that they did not realize that this inscription would acquire special meaning and significance a year later with the outbreak of war in Ukraine. The monument has become a symbol of European values and the struggle to defend them.

The Ambassador of the United Kingdom to Slovenia, Her Excellency Tiffany Sadler, also stressed the monument’s symbolic role in her speech. The memorial at the site where a young life was extinguished during the war represents a monument to the Slovenian-British alliance in the joint fight for freedom, for which young and innocent people are still dying on the other side of Europe almost 80 years after the end of World War II.

The symbolic role of the monument was emphasized in the ceremonial address by the Ambassador of the United Kingdom to the Republic of Slovenia, Her Excellency Tiffany Sadler. According to her words, the memorial plaque at the site where a young life was extinguished during the war also represents a monument to the Slovenian-British alliance in the joint struggle for freedom. For today, almost 80 years after the end of World War II, young and innocent people are again dying on the other side of Europe. The Ambassador sincerely thanked the Military History Park and the villagers of Suhorje for their dignified commemoration of the tragic death of the pilot and their selfless care to ensure that the memory of his sacrifice will not be forgotten.

The Minister of Defense of the Republic of Slovenia, Mr. Marjan Šarec, also praised the monument’s installation and expressed his gratitude to the Military History Park and the local community of Suhorje. As he emphasized, the commemorative ceremony on the anniversary of the plane crash and the tragic death of the young corporal also remembers all the other young heroes from our history who gave the most they could – their lives – so that we can live in peace.

The ceremony featured the brass quintet of the Slovenian Armed Forces Orchestra and the brass quintet of the British military orchestra “Royal Yeomanry,” who also performed a short cultural program after the event.

The Park of Military History will be open in May from Monday to Friday between 10 am and 4 pm and on Saturdays and Sundays between 10 am and 6 pm.

Prior reservation of the time slot is mandatory for visiting the submarine’s interior and testing the flight simulator with MiG-21 or Spitfire airplanes as an additional museum offering. This can be done by calling +386 (0)31 775 002 or emailing [email protected].

This year, on May 13th, 2023, the Park of Military History will once again host the international miniature festival “World in Miniature” organized by the World in Miniature Society. Hundreds of modelers and miniature enthusiasts from different countries will compete for the best miniature in various categories.

On that day, the exhibited skillful miniatures of military vehicles, vessels, and scenic displays will significantly complement the museum’s display of military-technical heritage. As part of the festival, there will also be demonstrations of miniature-making and a miniature flea market.

On Sunday, May 14th, 2023, you can participate in an organized hike along the Circular Path of the Military History Park.

 

The Park of Military History Pivka will be open during the May Day holidays (April 26 – May 2) from 10 am to 6 pm.

For a visit to the submarine’s interior and to try the flight simulator with MiG-21 or Spitfire planes, as an additional museum offer, prior reservation of the date and time is mandatory. Reservations can be made by calling +386 (0)31 775 002 or emailing [email protected].

A new museum exhibition titled “Enigma – The Mysterious Behind the Scenes of War” was opened today at the Park of Military History with a short ceremony. This is one of the largest exhibition projects in the Park’s history and the first broad museum treatment of this important historical topic in our region. Probably no device related to World War II, almost 80 years after its end, arouses as much interest and imagination as the German encryption machine Enigma. Countless books, professional and popular articles, documentaries, and feature films have been written about it. The German army guarded Enigma in great secrecy, as it was an important tool for carrying out the blitzkrieg strategy. German cryptologists were so convinced of Enigma’s security that they believed there was no theoretical possibility of breaking its code and compromising German communications.

On the other hand, one of the Allied side’s biggest secrets was that they had cracked the Enigma code and thus decoded most of the German messages. It was one of the greatest achievements of World War II, but it was a silent victory, wrapped in strict secrecy, which has only recently been presented to the broader public. Although it largely influenced the course of the war and, in a way, also contributed to its outcome, the names of those who deserved credit were not on the list of the honored, and their photos could not be found in special editions of war newspapers. Their work was as enigmatic as the name of the device whose power they had broken.

Although when Enigma is mentioned, we first think of the Battle of the Atlantic or the Battle of Britain, where the role of this German encryption machine and the breaking of its code are most researched and published, it appeared everywhere in World War II where German military units, ships, or submarines were present. Since German soldiers did everything by orders to prevent Enigma from falling into enemy hands, relatively few Enigmas have been preserved. Those of the M4 model, which the German Navy Kriegsmarine used, are extremely rare. But by a lucky coincidence, one was brought into the Park of Military History collection in 2021.

It is an Enigma from the German minesweeper R 15, which was sunk off the Istrian coast on the night of April 16-17, 1945. As a light minesweeper of the R 1 class of the German Kriegsmarine, it was launched in 1934 in Travemünde on the North Sea. In 1942, amid the war, it was transferred by inland waterways and land routes from the North Sea to the Mediterranean, where it first operated off the African coast. In January 1944, it was moved from Genoa to the Adriatic by land and on the river Po, where it was actively engaged until the fateful night when it was torpedoed by a British torpedo boat.

The sinking of the minesweeper R 15 left its cryptographic device hidden in the depths of the sea for four decades until experienced diver Zvone Kralj, along with several other objects, retrieved it from the sea in the 1980s. In 2020, he handed it over to his younger diving colleague, Danijel Germek, who gave it to the Park of Military History.

The Park of Military History recognized the exceptional historical significance of the underwater find. It turned out to be one of the rare surviving examples of the more complex naval version of the Enigma M4. At the same time as the challenging conservation process carried out by conservator Aleš Jelinčič of the Museum of Contemporary History of Slovenia, with the help of experts from the International Center for Underwater Archaeology in Zadar and the National Museum of Slovenia, preparations were also underway for its museum treatment.

The exhibition “Enigma – The Mysterious Behind the Scenes of War” was prepared by mag. Janko Boštjančič and Dr. Andrej Gaspari. The exhibition reveals the complex workings of the Enigma’s cryptographic wheel and, within the broader historical context, sheds light on the role of Enigma and the impact of revealing its code on the course of the Second World War. The museum presentation of the Enigma is complemented by a series of findings from the wreckage of R 15 and several other precious objects. A Croatian researcher of wartime events in the Adriatic, Danijel Frka, contributed significantly to the exhibition, which outlined the Second World War in the Adriatic.

The museum installation was designed and created with great attention to detail and a thematically rounded visual image by Barbara Sirk and Žiga Okorn from Uvid.si.

The exhibition was opened to the public by the Chief of the General Staff of the Slovenian Armed Forces, Major General Robert Glavaš. In a brief address, he praised the authors for their successful museum interpretation of such an important military-historical exhibit. The exhibition was inaugurated by its authors, mag. Janko Boštjančič and Dr. Andrej Gaspari. They led an honorary tour of the exhibition, highlighting key thematic emphases and the course of its preparation.

Excellent performance of the Slovenian Armed Forces Orchestra brass quartet accompanied the ceremony.

The project was supported by the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Slovenia as part of the co-financing program of the Military History Park. We would also like to thank the sponsors – EM.TRONIC, COMARK, NEK, VALHALLA TURRETS companies, especially the project’s general sponsor and an important partner of our museum – GUARDIARIS company.

Although the former Yugoslav submarine P-913 Zeta relinquished the title of the largest and heaviest exhibit at the Park of Military History Pivka in May 2016 to a German WWII-era locomotive, it still remains the most attractive and mysterious exhibit in the museum’s collection in many respects. Part of this fascination undoubtedly stems from the fact that the submarine was designated as a “commando” and is quite different from the classic image that people have of submarines.

The P-913 is relatively small, has only battery propulsion, and, perhaps most interestingly for many visitors, does not have a single torpedo tube or missile launcher, despite being considered by many as the most offensive weapon of the former Yugoslav Navy. Its main weapon was actually hidden inside, as the submarine could transport up to six commandos with only four submariners. While the submarine has already been featured, less has been written about the divers’ operations and equipment.

In 1960, the 82nd Naval Center for the Development of Naval diver units and Training for the entire Navy was established in Tivat, Montenegro. Just a year later, the center was relocated to the island of Sveta Katarina near Pula, close to the submarine base. The direct contact between both units brought many benefits, especially in intense joint naval-diver training and submarine candidates’ diving training.

Joint training for diver operations initially focused on transporting divers to the target and their disembarkation when the submarine was on the surface. This negated the advantage of covert transportation and exposed both submariners and divers to the enemy. Therefore, the 82nd Naval Center and the 88th Submarine Division began to develop plans for the exit of naval divers from the submarine. The exit occurs through flood chambers or torpedo tubes when the submarine is stationary on the seabed or at different depths.

Initially, the Sava submarine (P-802) was mainly used, and later the Sutjeska (P-811) and Neretva (P-812) submarines were also used. The fundamental problem quickly became apparent because of the depth of the exit from the submarine. If the depth was up to 10 meters, the problem was not so pronounced, but it was quite different at depths of up to 60 meters, where divers used the Oxymix 3C device on a semi-closed breathing circuit and Nitrox gas mixtures.

In 1971, the 88th Submarine Division left Pula and moved to Split. The intensity of joint training thus decreased somewhat but improved with the relocation of the 82nd center to Divulje near Split and the Lora military port. The 1970s saw the introduction of modern diving equipment as well as the introduction of new, more modern, and powerful submarines such as the P-821 Heroj, P-822 Junak, and P-823 Uskok, at the end of the 1970s, and the last two diesel-electric submarines of the former YNM, the P-831 Sava and P-832 Drava.

Transporting divers to their operational area always poses a high-risk operation for the crew and the vessel. To reduce the risk somewhat, so-called “riding torpedoes” were developed early on, which allowed for faster transport of divers and explosive devices. Italian divers also successfully used the mentioned concept when they sank the battleship Viribus Unitis in Pula with primitive torpedoes in November 1918. The concept matured during World War II when the Italians again vigorously used it.

The 82nd Naval Center had a few French T-14 Pegasus manned torpedoes in use, based on which the Zagreb Shipbuilding Institute (Brodarski inštitut Zagreb) started developing project documentation and a navigation device NU-10 for a vessel intended for transporting one diver. The R-1 vehicle was 3.7 meters long, weighed 160 kg without cargo, had a working depth of up to 50 meters, and had a total range between 15 to 20 km, depending on the speed, ranging from 4.4 to 5 km/h.

One advantage of the R-1 was that it could be launched from a submarine underwater through the 533-millimeter torpedo tubes of Yugoslav submarines, significantly reducing the likelihood of enemy detection. The vessel was of the “wet” type, and the diver lay on the top of it during the voyage, protected from the water flow by a Plexiglas windshield. Depth control was performed through the front handle, while steering was performed with the feet at the back of the R-1.

The underwater torpedo also had a transport compartment in the front, where either two magnetic mini M71s (each weighing 14.5 kg, containing 3 kg of TNT and a time fuse) or one diver’s M66 mine (50 kg, 27 kg of TNT, time fuse) could be placed.

The Institute of Maritime Studies Zagreb developed a larger two-seater vessel, R-2, for the needs of divers, which was transported by submarines on the external hull. The vessel was 4.9 meters long, weighed 1400 kg without cargo, had a working depth of up to 60 meters, and had a total range of 33 to 43 km, depending on the speed, which ranged from 6.9 to 8.1 km/h. Like R-1, it was powered by batteries. In addition to delivering divers and their operations in enemy waters, R-2 was also intended for underwater observation and protecting ports, anchorages, and minefields from enemy divers.

With the development of Una-class submarines in the 1980s, both submariners and divers were provided with a purpose-built vessel designed specifically for conducting covert operations along the enemy coast or on any potentially occupied islands in the Adriatic. Six Una-class stealth submarines represented the striking force of the navy, which could also operate on the opposite Italian side of the Adriatic in the event of a conflict.

With the development of Una-class covert operations submarines in the 1980s, both submariners and divers were given a purpose-built vessel designed for conducting covert operations along the enemy coast or on potentially occupied islands in the Adriatic. Six covert operations submarines formed the backbone of the navy, which could have operated on the opposing, Italian side of the Adriatic in the event of a conflict.

Submarines like the P-913 Zeta from Pivka would approach the operational area unnoticed and then descend to a depth of 43 meters, where they would move the divers to the central flooding chamber. Once the chamber was hermetically sealed, it would fill with water. The equalization of pressure would enable the divers to exit above the submarine’s hull, removing the R-1 underwater vessels from dedicated transport compartments and heading towards their final destination. Although returning to the submarine was possible, according to reports, divers usually retreated to the interior of Italy. They continued their covert operations after carrying out attacks on ships, key objects, and infrastructure. The covert operations submarine would close the hatch upon the departure of the last diver, expel water from the flooding chamber, and return home.

Both submariners and divers did not have to use their knowledge against a potential adversary in the Adriatic. Yugoslavia sank in its fire, along with a large part of the knowledge, experience, human and industrial potential, and pride of the former submarine forces of the navy. Part of this legacy can be seen in the Park of Military History thanks to the Society of Submariners, donors, the Municipality of Pivka, the Sergej Mašera Museum, and the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of Slovenia.

In the Park of Military History Pivka, where the P-913 Zeta submarine has been exhibited since 2011, we have been striving to find and acquire the R-2 underwater diver vehicle for years. Although it was believed that, in addition to a few museum specimens, all were destroyed, we accidentally discovered another one last autumn. In September 2021, the Košana Volunteer Fire Department in Slovenia donated a TAM 125 T10 firefighting vehicle to the Boka Volunteer Fire Department in Tivat, Montenegro. Given that the Zeta submarine came to Pivka from Tivat, the vehicle handover was carried out in the Park. The delegation from the Municipality of Pivka, which later visited Tivat, also invited the director of the Park, Mag. Janko Boštjančič, and his colleague Ana Čič.

The delegation also visited the Maritime Heritage Museum in Tivat, where they met with former submariners who have visited Pivka Park several times. These individuals pointed out that there was another R-2 vessel in an outdoor storage area behind the museum. Since the Slovenian defense attaché in Montenegro, Navy Captain Boris Geršak, joined the Pivka delegation during their visit to the museum, the action began immediately. Slovenia officially requested the donation of the exhibit, and the Montenegrin Ministry of Defense quickly granted the request. On September 20, 2022, during an official visit by Defense Minister Marjan Šarec to Montenegro, an agreement was signed to donate the museum exhibit, which arrived in Slovenia at the end of the same year.

Visitors to the park can visit the submarine accompanied by former submariners during the Submarine Weekend on April 15th and 16th. After the submarine exhibition, seasoned sea wolves will guide visitors through the submarine that weekend and present their own experiences of life and operation beneath the sea surface.

Boštjan Kurent, curator in the  Park of Military History in Pivka

 

 

 

The Park of Military History Pivka will be open in April from Monday to Friday between 11:00 am and 3:00 pm and on Saturdays and Sundays between 10:00 am and 4:00 pm.

For visiting the submarine’s interior and trying out the MiG-21 or Spitfire flight simulator as an additional museum offering, prior reservation of the date and time is mandatory by calling +386 (0)31 775 002 or emailing [email protected].