Partisan Field Hospital Zgornji Hrastnik

Introduction
Not far from the Croatian-Slovenian border is the former partisan hospital "Zgornji Hrastnik". One of the countless hospitals built in the middle of the national park "Kocevski Rog" to care for the wounded during the Second World War. The hospital is a stone's throw from the partisan base "Base 20" under a dense canopy of leaves.

Construction:
Just like the partisan base "Base 20", the construction of the hospital was started in early 1943. It is located just over 2 kilometers from the partisan complex and can be found via a hiking trail that runs through the woods.

It would become one of about 20 hospitals to be established in this heavy resistance area. A place for wounded partisans where doctors without running water or electricity and with far too few resources helped the seriously wounded as far as possible.

German actions
In October 1943 the Nazis opened a heavy offensive in the "Rog" area. They found a number of empty hospitals and depots and immediately set them on fire. In "Pugled" the Germans found a number of wounded partisans in a hospital who were immediately executed.

Near the end of the war, the German army launched a second major offensive in the area, only to return home empty-handed. In December of the same year, "Zgnornji Hrastnik" was expanded to handle the influx of wounded partisans.


Nowadays
From Base 20 you can walk along a narrow footpath to the former hospital. It is on the other side of the hill where bunker 44 is located. The area is freely accessible and free to visit.

The wooden barracks are renovated once in a while as they are considerably affected by the humid air in the middle of the woods. The roofs in particular have a hard time. There are some information panels and in barrack 16 you can read some newspaper clippings and a brochure.

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Source

• Text: Cheapskatetravel
• Photos: Wikimedia Commons