Park of Military History Pivka

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Park vojaške zgodovine Pivka

Kolodvorska 51, SI-6257 Pivka

http://www.parkvojaskezgodovine.si

tank.pivka@siol.net

Phone386 (0) 5 721 2180, 386 (0) 31 775 002

Founded byMinistry of Defence

 Municipality of Pivka

The Park of Military History Pivka holds one of the biggest and possibly most diverse military history collections in this part of Europe. It was established in 2006, when the first so-called pavilion was opened on the grounds of abandoned Italian (and later Yugoslavian) army barracks in the town of Pivka, which is also the main initiator of the project. The park deals with military history of Slovenia and also of the region around Pivka, as well as with the wider military related technical and political heritage of Europe.

Today being the biggest museum-like complex in Slovenia, the park has grown and developed gradually, renovating and occupying the barracks houses one at a time. Yet, as of 2015 there are four main exhibition spaces, a courtyard and even a history trail in the surrounding area. The park hosts various lectures and educational events, organises an annual festival and partakes in other occasional events.

Park vojaške zgodovine Pivka / Park of Military History Pivka by Park vojaške zgodovine Pivka  on YouTube

The place has been set up in tight cooperation between the Pivka municipality, the Ministry of Defence, the curatorial department of the Military Museum of Slovenian Armed Forces and also a number of enthusiasts and collectors from the area, who contributed greatly both in terms of artefacts as well as knowledge.

Artefacts and exhibitions

The park has four main parts, which are thematically segmented into pavilions A, B and C and the Komanda building. The latter used to be the barracks headquarters, with is nowadays again serving as headquarters of the park. Besides the office spaces, there is a multimedia room, a museum shop and the Pivka Canteen, a restaurant that offers an army-like ambient and the food to match (groups can even order dinners in the caverns from the 1st World War). Komanda also houses the exhibition called Regio Carsica Militaris, presenting the historical trajectories that touched the area around Pivka since the Roman times onwards, with the occupying and passing armies among other things also leving a trail of forts and barricades.

An array of the bigger and more imposing artefacts is housed in the pavilions, with the newest and biggest one of them being foremost dedicated to the Slovenian war of independence and the historical currents surrounding it. There is the equipment of the Slovenian Territorial Defence forces, the infamous Gazelle helicopter (associated with one of very curios chapter of the war), tanks and other vehicles from the old Yugoslavian army, etc. Accompanied by additional explanatory materials, all of this forms the most comprehensive exhibition of this kind in Slovenia

In the same space, there are also a few aeroplanes from around the world (among them the American F-86 Sabre and Yugoslavian SOKO 522) and a Yugoslavian submarine P-913. These pieces are presented not only as the industrial and technical heritage but are also accompanied by objects that offer a more personal historical perspective. The same goes for the pieces exhibited in the other two pavilions, with the most prominent among them being the many tanks and an array of heavy artillery. Some of them were provided to the Yugoslavian army during the cold war by the USA, while others – like the famous German cannon Flak 88 and the American Long Tom 155mm cannon, both used during the 2nd World War – have been acquired by various other means.

Historical trails

The park also established two historical trails in the surrounding area. They connect the old barracks in Pivka with an abandoned military polygon, an underground fort built by the Italians in the 1930s, the accompanying underground tunnels and some other relevant points of interest.

Festival of military history

Similarly as the park, the Festival of military history has also been running since 2006. It has taken different forms, but its main component are still battle re-enactments, usually based on important historical moments. For example, to commemorate the 70 years since the end of the 2nd World War, the battle for Berlin between the Red Army and the German army was re-enacted in 2015.

There are also lectures, additional exhibitions, flea market of military artefacts, children’s workshops and also some other events.

See also

• Military Museum of Slovenian Armed Forces

External links

• Park of Military History Pivka website