Figure 1.--This class photo was taken in Rijeka durung 1928, at the time Italian Fiume. Fiume/Rijeka had a mixed population. Notice that the boys do not wrear smocks which werev very common in Italian schools at the time. The schools were taught in Italian, meaning the non-Italian children (about half the population) had to adjust. The teacher here would have been Italian, but only about half the children were Italian. After World War II, the Yugoslav Goverment drove the Italians out of the city. When Yugoslabua was disolved (1991), Rijeka came under Croatin control.
Rijeka is a medieval city on the fault line between Italy, Venice, Austria, Hungary, and Yugoslavia (Slovenia and Croatia). Thus there were various names for the city, the primary alternative was the Italian name -- Fiume. Rijeka is today the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). The city's strategic position and its important deep-water port meant that that it was fiercely contested since medieval times. It was controlled for some time by the Austria-Hungarian Empire which also controlled much of northeastern Italy. Rijeka rivalled Venice when it was purchased by the Habsburg Emperor Frederick III, Archduke of Austria (1466). This is a liitle complicated as Austrian Empire/Austrian-Hungary was a dual moinarchy. And Croatia was a client state of Hungary. Rieka was this the land-locked Hungarian Kingdom's most important port. Rijeka has experienced political and demographic change over the centuries. Today most of the population are Croats with a small minority of Serbs, Bosniaks and Italians. Apart from Croatian and Italian, linguistically the city is home to its own unique dialect of the Venetian language. The city became an internatiinal issue adter World War when the Austro-Hungarian Empire was disolved. Ir was claimed by both Italy and the Kingdom Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (which would become Yugoslavia). Nearly half the population was Italian. Croats were the other major part of the population and dominated the region naround the city. Thus for a time the Free State of Fiume was established. Italy and Yugoslavia agreed partition the Free State, most of which went to Fascist Italy. There were industries located in the city (oil refinery, torpedo factory, shipyards). These industries and the port became a target of more than 30 Anglo-American air striles resulting in considerable damage (1943-44). At the end of Workd War II, Istria and Rijeka/Fiume was seized by he Partisans and came under Yugoslav control. To make the city thoroughly Yugoslav (Croat), the Yugoslavian Communist Government launched a brutal terror camapaign against the Italian populatiion. One of many ehnic cleansing operatioins. With the disolution of Yugoslavia (1991), the city came under Croat control.
A reader writes about the photograph, "A rum [meaning diverse] lot. They don't look a happy bunch of scholars. I think there is about 6 children who would be Italian who have a more settled appearance. The rest remind me of the children in comedy films of the 30s. One boy in front of the teacher reminds me of the lovable but mischievous young French boy in 'The War of the Buttons'. (The French Films not the One set in Ireland.) I think the non Italian children are in a peer group while the Italian boys are in another. T here is a boy possible Italian who does not want to be photographed and he is not looking at the camera. There is a cross section of children from poor to moderate economic backgrounds.
The teacher looks a kindly person and I have a feeling that at least one of the boys is his son. Reminds me of the novel and film 'Cuore'. I should think he had his work cut out dealing a class of lovable, energetic and mischievous boys. The adventures they had will never be known. Interesting photograph."
