YOUTH OF RUDOLF MAISTER
Rudolf Maister was born on March 29, 1874, in Kamnik as the youngest son of the financial clerk Franc Maister and Frančiška. Rudolf soon lost his brothers and father. His older brother Artur died of diphtheria when he was only seven years old, and his younger brother Ernest died of tuberculosis at the age of 37. He first attended primary school in Mengeš, then in Kranj. In 1885, he started attending the lower grammar school in Kranj and finished it in 1890. He was an excellent student. He attended the fifth and sixth grades of grammar school in Ljubljana.
Throughout his schooling, he was fascinated by the military profession, so he soon decided to become a soldier. His intellectual abilities and extraordinary physical and mental characteristics enabled him to quickly advance in his military career.
THE FAMILY OF RUDOLF MAISTER
Rudolf Maister married Marija Stegner from Logatec in 1905. His wife was extremely active in the public and cultural life of Maribor, a true “national lady.” She was the president of the French Circle and the Slovenian Women’s Association. She also assisted students and academic youth.
The couple had two sons, Hrvoj, born in 1905, and Borut, born in 1908. The two of them primarily raised their children on their own. Even with the names of his sons, Maister publicly showed his national orientation.
EDUCATION AND MILITARY CAREER IN THE AUSTRO-HUNGARIAN ARMY
In 1894, Rudolf Maister completed the cadet academy in Vienna and was appointed as a cadet.
After finishing his training at the cadet school, he joined the home guard battalion in Ljubljana, and on October 1, 1894, he was assigned to an infantry regiment in Klagenfurt. On November 1, 1895, he was promoted to second lieutenant. As an officer, he served in various parts of the Habsburg monarchy. In 1903, he attended the Army Sharpshooter School in Bruck an der Leitha. In 1907, he attended the officers’ school of the 3rd Army Corps in Graz, where he was promoted to lieutenant.
On November 1, 1908, Maister was transferred as punishment to Przemyśl in Galicia, where he joined the home guard regiment. In 1910, he became the commander of the 7th combat company, and later the commander of the non-commissioned officers’ school. After recovering from tuberculosis, which he contracted due to strenuous training exercises, he recovered in Dalmatia and Egypt. In 1913, he was transferred to the Black Army in Celje. On December 7, 1914, he was transferred to Maribor. On June 21, 1916, he became the honorary commander of the district command of the Black Army in Maribor. On March 8, 1917, he was transferred to Graz due to growing German nationalist influences.
He was promoted to major and soon returned to Maribor. On June 1, 1917, he was appointed commander of the Black Army. He remained in Maribor until the dissolution of the monarchy.
ESTABLISHMENT OF THE STATE OF SLOVENES, CROATS, AND SERBS AND THE SLOVENE NATIONAL ARMY
On October 29, 1918, a large gathering was held in Ljubljana, where the State of Slovenes, Croats, and Serbs was proclaimed. About 30,000 people attended, including approximately 200 officers and soldiers. In their name, Lieutenant Mihajlo Rostohar, with a saber in hand, renounced the oath to the Habsburg emperor and pledged loyalty to the new state. The keynote speaker was Ivan Hribar.
This was a pivotal moment marking the birth of Slovenian statehood in 1918. The State of SHS existed from October 29 until December 1, 1918, when it joined with the Kingdom of Serbia to form the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes.
Sergeant Edvard Vaupotič led units of the Slovene army on the left bank of the Drava River during the coup in Maribor.
On November 1, 1918, events in Slovenia unfolded favorably, but soon complications arose. The soldiers, weary of war, scattered. Maister retained about seventy soldiers in the artillery barracks under the command of Joško Slobodnik and around ninety soldiers and officers in the Melje barracks under the command of Sergeant Edvard Vaupotič.
General Maister and his officers could not prevent the temporary, partial disintegration of the Slovene army.
TAKING MILITARY CONTROL IN STYRIA AND DISARMAMENT OF THE GREEN GUARD
With the consent of the National Council for Styria, on November 1, 1918, Major Rudolf Maister took over military authority in Maribor. He was promoted to the rank of general and commanded all units in Slovenian Styria. In the turbulent days, the Maribor Germans were led by the city council, composed of representatives of the German bourgeois parties. After the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Germans acted very hesitantly. They believed that for tactical reasons, concessions should be made to the Slovenians. The safety of life and property was their priority. Despite the uncertainty, they were convinced that Maribor would remain German. The Maribor City Council decided on October 30, 1918, that Maribor belonged to German Austria. In the second half of November 1918, the situation in Maribor changed. There were no more military transports, and the Maribor Germans recovered from the initial shock.
The final confrontation between the Slovene army and the Green Guard (Schutzwehr) was approaching. The question was who would act faster. Maister secretly prepared a plan for the disarmament of the Schutzwehr. He also ensured the safety of the families of the National Council members. Rumors spread throughout Maribor that the Schutzwehr would be disarmed. Members of the defense department at the National Council complained that the Maribor military command had not informed them of the measures. Maister obtained approval from the II Military District at the National Government in Ljubljana for the disarmament of the Schutzwehr. On November 23, he issued a proclamation for its disbandment. Maister achieved a complete victory for Slovenian Maribor. The Slovenians regained control in Maribor, which was skillfully exploited. Thus, Maister strengthened the military position in Maribor.
BATTLES FOR THE SLOVENIAN NORTHERN BORDER
At the end of November and early December 1918, military detachments of the Maribor infantry regiment occupied larger areas along the national border: Spielfeld, Cmurek, Radgona, Lučane, Radlje, and Muta. With the agreement of General Maister, Lieutenant Colonel Franjo Malgaj’s unit occupied Pilberk and Velikovec, and then proceeded towards Celovec. On December 14, 1918, soldiers from the II Military District captured Grabištanj near Celovec.
This was the largest occupation of Slovenian ethnic territory in 1918.
In mid-December 1918, Carinthian Germans realized that the national government in Ljubljana was indecisive, and they began attacking Slovenian units, which could not count on any significant assistance. The battles in Carinthia temporarily ended on January 14, 1919, with negotiations and a truce in Graz.
On the night of April 28-29, 1919, Slovenian units, at the request of the Provincial Government, launched the April Offensive, which concluded on May 6, 1919, with the withdrawal of Slovenian troops. A month later, on May 28, 1919, Yugoslav forces carried out the May Offensive, which ended on June 6, 1919, with the occupation of Celovec and Gospodsko polje.
PLEBISCITE IN CARINTHIA
After the conclusion of military operations during the May Offensive (May 28 – June 6, 1919), General Rudolf Maister undertook various duties in Carinthia in preparation for the plebiscite. He was the commander of the Carinthian Detachment and later the Carinthian Border Command. At his initiative, the National Council for Carinthia was established on June 16, 1919, with Maister becoming its president. As the plebiscite approached, German sentiment towards Maister became increasingly hostile. When the last Yugoslav units had to leave Zone A on September 18, 1920, rumors spread that General Maister intended to reoccupy the plebiscite area with his troops.
Due to these and similar accusations, General Maister was forced by the plebiscite commission to withdraw from Zone A and relocate to Belgrade. Maister’s departure from Carinthia had a negative impact on the outcome of the plebiscite vote.
RUDOLF MAISTER – VOJANOV
Rudolf Maister was a versatile individual, an author of historical articles, a painter, a book collector, a mentor to young people, and an organizer of cultural, especially literary, life in Maribor. In the field of culture, Rudolf Maister, who adopted the name Vojanov, achieved the most results as a Slovenian poet. His literary work is divided into two periods; the first, between 1889 and 1906, represents his youthful period, and the second, between 1912 and 1930, is the period of his mature years. In his youth, Maister also wrote short prose. His poems tell of the homeland, its culture, and, above all, the fight for freedom. He did not write during the tumultuous times but resumed writing after everything was over. In these poems, he remembers fallen comrades and laments the loss of Carinthia.
FAREWELL TO GENERAL RUDOLF MAISTER
He often visited Zavrh near Lenart, where he felt comfortable amid the rural life of the Slovenske Gorice. Upon his retirement, he suffered from inflammation of the nerves in his legs, for which there were no suitable treatments, and he was nearly paralyzed.
He also vacationed at Unec near Rakek, on an estate he inherited from his aunt. There, he suffered a stroke and died on July 26, 1934. During the transfer of his remains from Unec to Maribor, a large crowd paid tribute to General Rudolf Maister in Ljubljana and Celje.