“Soon, almost no girl in our village will still be unable to pray with the prayer book!”

The Development and Significance of Girls’ Schools in Austria-Hungary: the case of the Notre Dame girls’ convent school in Trnovo at Ilirska Bistrica

Abstract

The article describes the development of girls’ schools in Austria-Hungary, using an example from a small, mostly rural area. Emphasis is on the presentation and analysis of the education of girls, who were often in an inferior position compared to boys. In addition, the author examines the differences between the education of less affluent girl students who lived outside the convent and those from richer families who resided in it. In addition to the literature, the study is based on preserved school catalogues. Data from the school and the convent chronicles were compared with other (oral) sources from the local environment, which helped us reconstruct the life at the school in more detail and dismiss incorrect interpretations from the past. The analysis showed that there were differences between the two types of students; nor were their destinies the same. The outcome was dependent on the completion/non-completion of education. However, the institution had an impact well beyond providing mandatory education. Besides engaging with the local community, the convent hosted social events, in particular during the many visits of dignitaries, and was a charitable institution.