Javorca, the wooden church of the Isonzo soldiers

A soldiers’ church from the Isonzo Front

It was built by Austro-Hungarian soldiers who were masters of various crafts, which is why it’s presented as a symbol of reconciliation and a unique example of the Secession style. The plans were drawn up by the Viennese painter Remigius Geyling, then a lieutenant, and the construction was led by Géza Jablonszky, a lieutenant of Hungarian origin. It turned a hundred in 2016, and it was restored in 1934, in the early 1980s, in 2005 and in 2016.

The bell tower has a sundial, the monarchy’s coat of arms and the word PAX, peace, above the entrance. On the outside are the coats of arms of the twenty lands that made up Austria-Hungary.

The 2,564 names on the panels

Inside, the walls are covered with oak panels representing the pages of a memorial book. Burnt into them are the names of 2,564 Austro-Hungarian soldiers who died on the nearby battlefields, arranged according to military rank. It’s a short visit, but it’s hard to leave without reading a few of them. My guide to the history of Slovenia fills in the background.

European heritage

In 2007 it was added to the list of particularly important European historical and cultural heritage, and in 2018 it received the European Heritage Label from the European Commission. From the terrace beside the church you look out at Rdeči rob and the chain of mountains between Tolmin and Bohinj. The church is also on the route of the Walk of Peace, which connects the First World War sites in the valley.

To round off the story, Tolmin has the German charnel house of 1936-1938, resting place of 965 German soldiers, and the Tolmin Museum in the former Coronini mansion, which arranges guided visits to the monuments nearby for groups who book ahead. In Kobarid, the Isonzo Front museum and the Italian charnel house tell the other side of the same war.

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Getting up to Javorca

You head up from Tolmin along the Tolminka valley. In summer the road may be closed to cars; in 2026 it was shut from 25 June to 30 August, from St Peter’s Church to the Polog pasture, and a shuttle bus ran instead. From Javorca a footpath leads to the source of the Tolminka and a bike route runs to Polog pasture, both listed in the table, so the church can also be the start of a longer day out in the mountains.

If you are short on time, see the best tours in Javorca church and pick one that fits your day.

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