Etbin Kristan
Encyclopedia
Etbin Kristan was a Slovenia
n labour
leader and Social Democratic politician and writer during the late-Austrian-Hungarian
and the Yugoslav monarchy
.
, Duchy of Carniola
, Austria-Hungary
(now the capital of Slovenia). He attended high school in Ljubljana and in Zagreb
. After finishing high school, he enrolled in the military school in Karlovac
. In 1887, he quit the military, moved to Vienna
, and dedicated himself to journalism.
In Vienna, he became active in the labor movement. In 1896, he co-founded the Yugoslav Social Democratic Party (JSDS), and served as its chairman until 1914. Kristan belonged to the left wing of the party. He advocated cultural autonomy for all the peoples in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and clashed with the right wing of his party (represented by Albin Prepeluh
, Dragotin Lončar
and Josip Ferfolja
), which demanded territorial autonomy for Yugoslav peoples.
In 1914, he emigrated to the United States
. He returned shortly after the end of World War I
and served as member of the first parliament of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Disappointed by the political development in Yugoslavia, he moved back to America in 1921. He settled in Cleveland, Ohio
, and co-founded the Slovene Republican Association of America, which he chaired.
He returned to Yugoslavia shortly before his death in 1951. He died in Ljubljana in 1953.
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
n labour
Labour movement
The term labour movement or labor movement is a broad term for the development of a collective organization of working people, to campaign in their own interest for better treatment from their employers and governments, in particular through the implementation of specific laws governing labour...
leader and Social Democratic politician and writer during the late-Austrian-Hungarian
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
and the Yugoslav monarchy
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...
.
Biography
Kristan was born in LjubljanaLjubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
, Duchy of Carniola
Duchy of Carniola
The Duchy of Carniola was an administrative unit of the Holy Roman Empire and the Habsburg Monarchy from 1364 to 1918. Its capital was Ljubljana...
, Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
(now the capital of Slovenia). He attended high school in Ljubljana and in Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
. After finishing high school, he enrolled in the military school in Karlovac
Karlovac
Karlovac is a city and municipality in central Croatia. The city proper has a population of 49,082, while the municipality has a population of 59,395 inhabitants .Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County...
. In 1887, he quit the military, moved to Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
, and dedicated himself to journalism.
In Vienna, he became active in the labor movement. In 1896, he co-founded the Yugoslav Social Democratic Party (JSDS), and served as its chairman until 1914. Kristan belonged to the left wing of the party. He advocated cultural autonomy for all the peoples in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and clashed with the right wing of his party (represented by Albin Prepeluh
Albin Prepeluh
Albin Prepeluh was a Slovenian left wing politician, journalist, editor, political theorist and translator. Before World War I, he was the foremost Slovene Marxist revisionist theoretician...
, Dragotin Lončar
Dragotin Lončar
Dragotin Lončar was a Slovenian historian, editor and Social Democratic politician.He was born as Karel Lončar in Selo near Lukovica in Upper Carniola. After finishing the State Gymnasium in Ljubljana, he studied history at the Charles University in Prague, graduating in 1904...
and Josip Ferfolja
Josip Ferfolja
Josip Ferfolja was a Slovene lawyer and Social democratic politician, and human rights activist from the Province of Gorizia...
), which demanded territorial autonomy for Yugoslav peoples.
In 1914, he emigrated to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. He returned shortly after the end of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and served as member of the first parliament of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Disappointed by the political development in Yugoslavia, he moved back to America in 1921. He settled in Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
, and co-founded the Slovene Republican Association of America, which he chaired.
He returned to Yugoslavia shortly before his death in 1951. He died in Ljubljana in 1953.