Partizanska grobišča
Hodil sem po širnih roških hostah,
da bi se mi duša napila miru,
da bi naužil se dišečega zraka,
da spočil bi si noge v mehkobi mahu.
V skriti globeli sem videl grobišče:
mir in samota, le veter v krošnjah šumi,
skromne gomile brezimnih junakov,
kamnit spomenik in zvezda v barvi krvi.
Populil sem trnje, pobral sem suhljad,
in za trenutek spoštljivo postal.
Kot da nekdo bi me klical iz groba,
je veter iz krošenj dreves šepetal:
“Hvala ti, človek, da si prišel,
da si se odkril, ko si stopil med nas,
in da si pospravil nam domovanje,
da bi v pozabo ne zbrisal nas čas! “
(iz pesmi Jožeta Muhiča)
Skrivnostni, širni in še vedno ne povsod prehodni Rog je ponudil zavetje prvim partizanom že v prvih dneh avgusta 1941. Postavljali so barake, bunkerje, zemljanke, po odselitvi Kočevarjev so se vselili tudi v njihove izpraznjene domove.
Ustanovili so pet baz. Na Bazi 20 na Sokolskem vrhu je bilo od leta 1943 nastanjeno politično vodstvo, na bazi 21 pod Kraguljim vrhom pa je bil sedež glavnega štaba NOV in partizanskih odredov Slovenije, ter zavezniških vojaških misij.
Že spomladi 1942 je prišlo v Rog nekaj zdravnikov in drugega zdravstvenega osebja. Oskrbljeni so bili s skromno zalogo zdravil in sanitetnega materiala. Začele so nastajati bolnišnice. Prva je bila Jelendol na Daleč hribu.
Prevoz ranjencev z bojišč je trajal povprečno 4 dni, najmanj pa 24 ur. Praviloma so jih porazdelili po bolnišnicah Vinica, Leseni kamen, Zgornji in Spodnji Hrastnik. Do Komarne vasi so jih pripeljali z vozovi. Tu so jih prevzeli nosači bolnišnic. Poleti so ranjenca nosili po štirje, pozimi pa po dva nosača. Ponavadi so jih nosili ponoči, da jim zaradi konspiracije ni bilo potrebno zavezati oči. Marsikateri je med potjo podlegel ranam.
V Rogu je delovalo 25 bolnišnic. Nosile so skrivna zavajajoča imena. Zaradi strogega varnostnega reda jih je sovražnik odkril in uničil le malo.
Po vojni je večina stavb propadla. Ohranjeni sta le bolnišnici Jelendol in Zgornji Hrastnik, ter barake Baze 20.
Okupator je skušal večkrat vdreti v Rog. Najhujša je bila italijanska ofenziva leta 1942, znana kot roška ofenziva. Jeseni naslednjega leta ji je sledila silovita nemška ofenziva. Takrat so odkrili in požgali tudi partizansko bolnišnico Pugled skupaj z 21 težkimi ranjenci.
Sovražni vpadi so puščali za sabo mrtve in ranjene. Umirali so stari in mladi, dekleta in fantje. Umirali so na bojiščih, med potjo v bolnišnice in v bolnišnicah. Na začetku so jih pokopavali kjerkoli, brez obreda, pozneje pa na skrivna pokopališča. Veliko grobov so po vojni prekopali in posmrtne ostanke prenesli na urejena grobišča, ter jim postavili spomenike. Nekatere umrle so odpeljali svojci. Gotovo pa skriva Rog še veliko neodkritih grobov. Za vse ne bomo nikoli izvedeli.
V prvih desetletjih po vojni so bila partizanska pokopališča v Rogu zgledno vzdrževana. Prihajali so se jim poklonit svojci, šolski otroci, nekdanji soborci in mnogi drugi. Z leti pa je obiskovanje le teh splahnelo. Pokopališča so postala nikogaršnja, preraščalo jih je trnje, črke so zbledele.
Partizansko grobišče Zgornji Hrastnik
Četrt ure hoda od požgane vasi Smrečnik je na Bukovi gorici pokopališče s spomenikom partizanom, umrlim leta 1944 v bolnišnici Zgornji Hrastnik. Od bolnišničnih barak je oddaljeno kakih 300 m.
V posamičnih grobovih počiva 27 partizanov, drugi so v skupnem grobu. Po vojni so v Zgornji Hrastnik prenesli tudi nekaj padlih borcev, ki so bili pokopani na drugih mestih.
Akademik Janez Milčinski se spominja svojih umrlih pacientov na Zgornjem Hrastniku preprosto človeško:
“Tu je Anton Pišot, kurir Josip, tule Peter Šterbenc, ki je imel torakalno poškodbo in vem, da sem potem plašč njegov jaz nosil, tule je Ivanka Zupančič stara manj kot 20 let, naša bolničarka, ranjena v nogo je dobila gangreno ….in še in še.
Pokopališče in spomenik je postavil glavni odbor Zveze borcev. Načrt je izdelal arhitekt Miloš Lapajne. Odkrit je bil leta 1958.
Partisan Cemeteries
I walked through the wide dewy fields,
to let my soul drink in peace,
to inhale the fragrant air,
to rest my feet in the softness of the moss.
In a hidden valley I saw a cemetery:
peace and solitude, only the wind rustling in the branches,
modest mounds of nameless heroes,
a stone monument and a star in the color of blood.
I plucked thorns, picked up dead leaves,
and stood still for a moment to pay my respects.
As if someone were calling me from the grave,
the wind from the branches of the trees whispered:
"Thank you, man, for coming,
for revealing yourself when you stepped among us,
and for tidying up our dwelling place,
so that time does not erase us!"
(from the poem by Jože Muhič)
The mysterious, wide, and still not everywhere passable Rog offered shelter to the first partisans as early as the first days of August 1941. They set up huts, bunkers, dugouts, and after the departure of the Gottscheer families, they also moved into their emptied homes.
They established five bases. Base 20 on Sokolski vrh housed the political leadership from 1943, and base 21 under Kragulj vrh was the seat of the headquarters of the National Liberation Army and Partisan Units of Slovenia, as well as Allied military missions.
In the spring of 1942, a few doctors and other healthcare workers came to Rog. They were supplied with a small stock of medicines and medical supplies. Hospitals began to be established. The first was Jelendol on Daleč hrib.
The transportation of the wounded from the battlefield took an average of 4 days, but at least 24 hours. They were usually distributed to the hospitals in Vinica, Leseni kamen, Zgornji, and Spodnji Hrastnik. They were brought to Komarna village by trains. Here, the hospital carriers took over. In the summer, four carriers carried a wounded person, while in the winter there were two carriers. They usually carried them at night so that they did not have to blindfold them due to conspiracy. Many of them succumbed to their wounds on the way.
There were 25 hospitals operating in Rog. They had secret misleading names. Due to strict security rules, the enemy discovered and destroyed only a few of them.
After the war, most of the buildings collapsed. Only the Jelendol and Zgornji Hrastnik hospitals and the huts of Base 20 have been preserved.
The occupier attempted to invade Rog several times. The worst was the Italian offensive in 1942, known as the Rog Offensive. The following fall was followed by a powerful German offensive. At that time, they also discovered and burned the Partisan hospital Pugled along with 21 serious wounded.
Enemy attacks left dead and wounded behind. Old and young, girls and boys died. They died on the battlefield, on the way to hospitals, and in hospitals. At first, they were buried anywhere, without ceremony, later on secret cemeteries. Many graves were exhumed after the war and the remains transferred to other cemeteries and erected monuments. Some of the deceased were taken away by their families. But surely Rog still hides many undiscovered graves. We will never know about all of them.
In the first decades after the war, the Partisan cemeteries in Rog were excellently maintained. Relatives, schoolchildren, former comrades, and many others came to pay their respects. Over the years, however, the visit to these has declined. The cemeteries became nobody's, thorns grew over them, and the letters faded.
Partisan Cemetery Zgornji Hrastnik
A quarter of an hour's walk from the burned village of Smrečnik, on Bukova Gora, is a cemetery with a monument to the partisans who died in 1944 at the Zgornji Hrastnik hospital. The cemetery is about 300 m away from the hospital barracks.
27 partisans rest in individual graves, while others are in a common grave. After the war, some fallen fighters who were buried in other places were also brought to Zgornji Hrastnik.
Academician Janez Milčinski remembers his deceased patients in Zgornji Hrastnik in a simple human way:
"There is Anton Pišot, courier Josip, here is Peter Šterbenc, who had thoracic injuries and I know that I then wore his coat, here is Ivanka Zupančič, less than 20 years old, our nurse, injured in the leg, she got gangrene ….and so on."
The cemetery and monument were built by the main board of the Association of Fighters. The plan was made by architect Miloš Lapajne. It was unveiled in 1958.