Love and revolution

The letters written by Slavko Šlander to Dana Ročnik

Abstract

The history of the workers' and revolutionary movement in Slovenia in the first half of the 20th century features Slavko Šlander as one of its most prominent and noteworthy protagonists. A capable and well-educated man and a dedicated revolutionary, Šlander was persecuted and imprisoned several times already before the Second World War. When Slovenia was occupied, Šlander was one of the first and leading organizers of the anti-fascist resistance movement - and also one of the first victims of the Nazi terror. Arrested and tortured by the occupying forces, Slander was shot in Maribor as a hostage on August 23, 1941. Although much is known about Slander the revolutionary, less is known about his private life. The following article contains - for the first time in print - the letters written by Šlander from 1932 to 1940 to his fiancée Dana Ročnik. These letters, many of which were written in prison, reveal to us in the most simple and sincere way possible, the depth and the broad-mindedness of the character of this man.