Charitable activity of institutions and associations in Đakovo during the First World War

Abstract

U prilogu se na temelju literature, novinstva te objavljenih i neobjavljenih izvora obrađuje dobrotvorna djelatnost đakovačkih društava, ustanova te pojedinaca tijekom Prvoga svjetskog rata. Suprotno početnim predviđanjima, rat je potrajao iznimno dugo i odnio mnogo žrtava, ostavljajući pritom i brojnu siročad, invalide te izgladnjele. Kako bi se pomoglo onima koji su bili najteže ugroženi ratom i njegovim posljedicama, diljem Austro-Ugarske Monarhije pokreću se brojne inicijative kojima su nositelji u prvom redu bile razne razine vlasti te dobrotvorna društva. Izuzetak nije bilo ni Đakovo, čiji su stanovnici u okviru svojih mogućnosti nastojali olakšati život vojnicima na bojištu, ali i raznim drugim skupinama kojima je svaka pomoć bila dragocjena.The First World War had serious consequences for the life of the whole population of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Along with the great number of combatant casualties on battlefi elds worldwide, there were numerous and various other sufferers appealing for state aid or any other kind of aid: families who with the outbreak of war and the mobilisation that was carried out lost their breadwinners, the disabled, orphans and in general the broad masses of the impoverished population among whom before the ending of war there was increasing incidence of death from starvation. As elsewhere across the Monarchy, in Đakovo local representatives of the government, the society and associations, of church and secular institutions, schools and broad masses – mainly regardless of ethnicity, religion and political orientation - joined forces within the limits of their (modest) capabilities to make the lives of those who were in need easier, at least to some extent. Within the scope of these efforts several Đakovo associations played a notable role; some of them were established at the beginning of the 20th century, others at the outbreak of war: the Đakovo section of Red Cross, the Military Veteran and Patients Assistance Association, the Catholic Charitable Ladies Association and the Ladies Association for Care and Nutrition. Thanks to the endeavours of all above mentioned associations, institutions and individuals, the poor social condition of the classes most at risk was at least alleviated. Noteworthy is the participation of the inhabitants of the Đakovo region in finding homes for children threatened with starvation coming from Istria, Dalmatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, in care for orphans and impoverished families from Đakovo whose breadwinners had lost their lives on the battlefi eld, as well as numerous charitable initiatives aimed at alleviating the conditions of everyday life of soldiers in the theatres of war