Editing Jesenice (section)

==History==

===Name===
Jesenice was attested in written sources in 1337 as ''villa de Jesenicza'' (and as ''Assnigkh'' and ''Asnigkh'' in 1381, and ''Jasnickh'' and ''Aisnstnick'' in 1493–1501). The name is derived from ''*Jesen(ьn)icě'', a locative singular form of ''Jesenik'' (< ''*Esenьnikъ''). The suffix ''-ě'' became ''-i'' in the local dialect and was reinterpreted as a nominative masculine plural, the accusative of which (in ''-e'') was subsequently reinterpreted as today's feminine nominative plural. The name is derived from the common noun ''*jesenik'' '[[Fraxinus|ash]] woods' (< ''jesen'' 'ash tree'), thus originally meaning 'in the ash woods' and referring to the local vegetation.<ref>Snoj, Marko. 2009. ''Etimološki slovar slovenskih zemljepisnih imen''. Ljubljana: Modrijan and Založba ZRC, p. 115.</ref> The modern German name of the town is ''Aßling''.<ref name="Leksikon"/>

===Middle Ages===
Jesenice was first mentioned as ''Assling'' in a 1004 deed of donation issued by King [[Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry II of Germany]], in which nearby [[Bled]] (''Veldes'' at the time) was also mentioned. There were no settlements there at that time, and the name Assling only marked an area on the banks of Jesenica Creek.<ref>Natalija Štular: ''Od trga do mesta Jesenice: kratka zgodovina mesta Jesenice'', Municipality of Jesenice, 1999, p.8</ref> Later, a settlement slowly started to grow around the area now known as Murova, where [[Leonard of Noblac|St. Leonard]]'s Church is today. With the [[March of Carniola]] it passed to the Austrian [[House of Habsburg]] upon the [[Battle on the Marchfeld]] in 1278.

There are few sources for the early history of Jesenice; most of them focus on ironworks. The oldest is a set of mining rights issued to the [[Duchy of Carinthia|Carinthian]] [[counts of Ortenburg]], dating to 1381. According to the document, the first settlements in the area (like [[Planina pod Golico]]) were founded on the southern slopes of the Karawanks due to need for wood, flowing water for mills, and iron ore.<ref name="jesmuseum">[http://www.gornjesavskimuzej.si/?lang=en Jesenice museum website]</ref> With the development of new techniques of extraction of iron from ore, the need for water energy grew, and the small streams on the slopes of the Karawanks were no longer sufficient. The ore-extracting industry was thus relocated to the valley in 1538, when Bernardo Bucellini from [[Bergamo]] gained permission from the Habsburg King [[Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor|Ferdinand I]] to move the ironworks to a larger water source, the [[Sava Dolinka|Sava Dolinka River]],<ref>Natalija Štular: ''Od trga do mesta Jesenice: kratka zgodovina mesta Jesenice'', Municipality of Jesenice, 1999, p.12</ref> creating a settlement that was to become Jesenice. The ironworks continued to mine ore from the slopes of the Karawanks.

Members of the House of Ortenburg were the most prominent landowners in the area from the 11th century onwards. They were at their apex in the 13th century in terms of land, encompassing almost all of the [[Sava]] Valley from its source to its [[confluence]] with the [[Sora (river)|Sora River]]. The House of Ortenburg promoted [[colonization]] of the [[Upper Sava Valley]], especially in ore-rich areas. Throughout the 14th, 15th, and 16th centuries, small settlements of [[Plavž, Jesenice|Plavž]], [[Sava, Jesenice|Sava]], Murova, and [[Slovenski Javornik]] were founded. By [[decree]] of King [[Alexander I of Yugoslavia]], all of these settlements were amalgamated into the town of Jesenice on March 20, 1929.<ref>''Uradni List Kraljevine SHS 13.4.1929'', reprinted in Štular 1999, p.46</ref>

===Industrial growth===
The settlements evolved independently of each other and, until the arrival of the railway at the end of the 19th century, they were only connected by a gravel road. In addition to mining and ironworking, locals made a living from agriculture and stockbreeding. Different iron [[Foundry|foundries]] belonged to different owners - the Zois, Ruard and Bucelleni families. Compared to other foundries around the world at the time, the Jesenice ironworks were out of date because modernization required substantial investment [[funds]], beyond what the Zoises, the Ruards and the Bucellenis could raise. Help was offered by the Luckmann family of [[bank]]ers from [[Ljubljana]], who agreed to modernize the iron foundries in return for the foundation of a new shareholder company.

The company, named the Carniolan Industrial Company ({{langx|sl|Kranjska Industrijska Družba, KID}}) was founded by the Luckmann family on September 18, 1869. The Zois family was the first to join the company, with the Ruards following three years later. The company soon expanded its activities to the [[Tržič]] ironworks, and to [[Topusko]] in [[Croatia]]. This was the first time that all of the [[Carniola|Upper Carniolan]] ironworks had been joined under a single administration, with central management in [[Ljubljana]], and business administration in Jesenice. The greatest achievement was the [[Science|scientific]] discovery of a process for obtaining [[ferromanganese]] in a [[Smelting|smelting furnace]], which brought KID a gold medal at the World Exhibition in [[Vienna]] in 1873, and worldwide fame. The Jesenice ironworks achieved a status as a pioneering center of technical invention in the history of ironworking. KID was also the basis for the new ironworks facility, which expanded quickly, from [[medieval]]-style iron foundries to up-to-date modern ironworks facilities in just a few years. The town of Jesenice grew fast, with a great influx of people attracted to new jobs.

===The beginning of the 20th century===
The political, cultural, and social life in Jesenice at the beginning of the 20th century was affected by the founding of the competing [[gymnastics]] associations, the progressive-nationalist [[Slovenian Sokol movement|Sokol]] ({{lit|Hawk}}) in 1904, and the [[Political Catholicism|Catholic]] [[Orel (movement)|Orel]] ({{lit|Eagle}}) in 1906. Other groups established at that time were a [[choir]], a reading club, a [[brass band]], and the Workers' [[Catholic Church|Catholic]] Association. Three political parties—the Catholic [[Slovene People's Party (historical)|People's Party]] ("Clerical"), [[National Progressive Party (Carniola)|progressive-nationalist party]] ("Liberal"), and [[Yugoslav Social-Democratic Party|Democratic Party]] — also became active in Jesenice, all three establishing their own cultural and gymnastics associations. [[Germans]] had a great influence in Jesenice at that time, though Orel and Sokol, both being nationally oriented, contributed as well.

The first railway tracks were laid through Jesenice in 1870, and construction of a railway station followed soon after. This made Jesenice better connected with the world, and facilitated its export trade. Construction of the [[Karawanks]]-[[Bohinj Railway]] was started in 1905, which was a very complicated project because it required drilling two tunnels: one to Austria through the Karawanks, and the other through Mount Kobla in Bohinj to allow faster access to the seaport of [[Trieste]], then in [[Austria-Hungary]]. When the tunnels were completed, the railway line was opened to traffic in a special ceremony attended by [[Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria]].<ref>[http://www.palinstravels.co.uk/book-4217 Michael Palin's New Europe]</ref> The rolling mills were relocated from Jesenice to [[Slovenski Javornik]] in 1904. Stockholders wanted to cover the expenses of relocation by lowering workers' wages, which led to the first strike in Jesenice, involving around 400 workers. The strike lasted for six weeks, with strikers only partially achieving their goal.

===World War I===
During [[World War I]], Jesenice ironworks were mainly converted to the manufacture of materiel for the Central Powers. With the front lines being some distance to the south, the war did not reach Jesenice, which only suffered one bombing attack by [[Regia Aeronautica|Italian aircraft]], with no casualties. With the end of World War I came major political changes; on December 1, 1918, the [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]] was formed, opening up new markets. Due to its border position, Jesenice became an important traffic junction. Between the wars, the first grammar school was established in 1914. The first "boys' and girls' school" was established in 1920, offering higher education. Jesenice was also the center of various kinds of craft and small trade. A tradesman's union was formed in 1920. Development of the ironworks continued; 4,567 workers were affiliated to a greater or lesser extent with KID by 1937.

===World War II===
Italy [[Military occupation|occupied]] Jesenice on April 11, 1941, with the Germans taking over eight days later. This resulted in immediate arrests of some of the workers' leaders, educated and culture-affiliated individuals, and all of the [[Romany people]]. Forced mobilization and [[recruitment]] followed soon after. The Germans were aware of the strategic and industrial importance of Jesenice, so they soon began with a program of assimilation, introducing school teaching in the [[German language]] only, while they also Germanized public signs, and more. These measures led to the formation of the [[Partisan (military)|Partisan]] movement in Jesenice, including the [[Ivan Cankar|Cankar]] Brigade.

[[File:Jesenice 315-209.jpg|thumb|Jesenice Railway Station]]
The steel industry was again diverted to German military needs, and the [[German Labour Front|German management]] started importing [[France|French]] workers, followed by Italian workers after Italian [[capitulation (surrender)|capitulation]] in 1943. Sabotage of the German-led steel industry was problematic, because people were more sympathetic to the resistance, which by the end of the second world war proved to be ineffective. Before the end of [[World War II]], Jesenice had undergone a severe sabotage-bombing by [[Allies of World War II|Allied forces]], which came in two waves on March 1, 1945. There were many casualties, and great damage was done to the town's center, including the destruction of the train station. The ironworks secondary school was founded by KID on November 19, 1938. The first high school was established at the end of the war in 1945, for which KID also founded a staff-apprenticeship school in 1938.

===Second half of the 20th century===
With the end of World War II followed a new economic golden age. Soon after the war, two more smelting furnaces were put into operation. The Jesenice ironworks became one of the main steel manufacturers, charged with the rebuilding of the newly founded [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]], and started employing more people than ever before. Many more industrial plants were built to increase production, while Jesenice began to develop into its present shape. As the population also increased with new immigrant workers, massive building of apartment blocks, and residential sections took place. Cultural, sports, school, medical and traffic [[infrastructure]] was built. Jesenice became the center of black [[metallurgy]] in Slovenia. Introduction of electrical steel processing marked the era of manufacturing steel of higher quality, and in greater quantities. At its economic peak in the 1970s, the ironworks employed more than 8,000 people.

After the collapse of Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, economic policies changed, and the Jesenice ironworks could not compete with the better developed Western metallurgy. Another problem was the loss of access to raw material resources, which are located in the other, now separately independent republics of what had been [[Yugoslavia]]. This led to massive layoffs, and the emigration of people in search of new jobs. In the years since the declaration of Slovenian independence in 1991, Jesenice has become much less dependent on its metallurgic industry, and has started to develop other aspects of its economy.