LJUBLJANA DAY TRIP- PART TWO

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The photo shows many structures competing in the center of the capital, three bridges converge, and three architectural styles are seen; Art Deco in the distance, Italian Rococo on the left and French Empire. A delightful, compact city square.

Just a little more of Ljubljana's fascinating history. The ancient Romans established a military camp named Emona that by the 6th century AD had developed in the town Julia Aemona. The site of present day Ljubljana has been occupied continuously for well over 2000 years. Ljubljana is not only the political capital of Slovenia it is the cultural, economic and and educational capital as well. Nothing of importance occurs in Slovenia occurs without a connection to Ljubljana. An important but short-lived moment for Ljubljana was its selection by Napoleon for the capital of his new province of Illyria, which was to counter Hapsburg power and limit their access to the Adriatic.

This short exposure to French egalitarianism lasted only a few years, 1809 until 1813, but it set the stage for Slovene independence movements henceforth. In Ljubljana's French Revolution Square there is an Illyrian Pillardedicated in 1929 in remembrance of the short-lived Illyrian Province's and those heady days when so many reforms were introduced, including the use of the Slovene language in compulsory education, only later to be suppressed with the return of Hapsburg control. Napoleon is to this day highly regarded by the Slovene people for his reforms.

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Photos

THREE BRIDGES SQUARE
Many styles converge at tis lovely square