Morgan Line
Encyclopedia
The Morgan Line was the line of demarcation set up after World War II
in the region known as Julian March
which prior to the war belonged to the Kingdom of Italy. The Morgan Line was the border between two military administrations in the region: the Yugoslav
on the east, and that of the Allied Military Government on the west. After 15 September 1947, the Allied Military Government was composed of both the British Element Trieste Forces (BETFOR) troops from the United Kingdom
and the Trieste United States Troops
(TRUST) from the United States
.
(Venezia Giulia), contended by Italy
and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
, and also to reduce the possibility of combat between Allied and Yugoslav forces in the area. The line was named after the British representative at the negotiations in Duino
that resulted in the demarcation, Lieutenant General Sir William Duthie Morgan
. Morgan, chief of staff to Field Marshal
Sir Harold Alexander
, Supreme Allied Commander in the Mediterranean, had been sent to Belgrade on May 7 to remind Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito
that Yugoslav forces were in violation of a February 1945 written agreement between Tito and Alexander in occupying the territory. During the negotiations, Morgan drew up a line, then called the "Blue Line" and, when Allied troops of the British XIII Corps began moving forward to the blue line on May 22, Tito agreed in principle to the demarcation the next day, with the agreement signed in Duino
on June 10, 1945.
The line, approximately 70 miles in length, began on the coast just south of Trieste
, curved 15 miles to the east and then northwest to Gorizia
, Italy
, then north along the Isonzo/Soča
River through Kobarid
to Rateče
near the Italian-Austrian border. The demarcation divided the Julian March into two zones, "Zone A" under Allied military administration and "Zone B" under the administration of the Yugoslav People's Army
.
and Gorizia
, a strip of territory between the current Slovene-Italian border and the Soča
river, the Brda
hills, the lower Vipava Valley
(corresponding roughly to the current Slovene municipalities of Šempeter-Vrtojba
, Renče-Vogrsko
, Miren-Kostanjevica
and most of the municipality of Nova Gorica
, except the Banjšice Plateau), the western section of the Kras
plateau (corresponding more or less to the current Slovene municipalities of Sežana
and Komen
), and the Istria
n villages of Plavje
, Spodnje Škofije
, Jelarji
and Hrvatini
, now in Slovenia.
The Istrian coastal town of Pula
(now in Croatia
) was also under Allied administration, forming an enclave of Zone A within the territory of Zone B.
, most of the Istrian peninsula
(with the exception of the town of Pula
and the municipalities of Muggia
and San Dorligo della Valle
), the Cres
-Lošinj
archipelago, and the eastern portion of the Slovene Littoral. The village of Opatje Selo
on the north-western edge of the Kras
plateau formed a small enclave of Zone B within the territory of Zone A.
came into effect. The Treaty established the border between Italy and Yugoslavia in the northern sections of the contended territory, while the Free Territory of Trieste
was established in its southern part. Allied troops along the Morgan Line withdrew several miles to a parallel "French Line" (adopted at the recommendation of the French Foreign Minister), part of which ran along sections of the former Morgan Line.
The Free Territory was divided into Zone A and Zone B, and the border between the two ran along the Morgan line. In 1954, when the Free Territory was abolished and the villages of Plavje
, Spodnje Škofije
, Jelarji
and Hrvatini
annexed to Yugoslavia together with the entire zone B, the Morgan Line ceased to serve as an internationally recognized border.
Today, almost all of the former Morgan Line is completely within Slovenian territory. Only a very small part still serves as a border between Italy and Slovenia, dividing the Italian municipality of San Dorligo della Valle
from the Slovenian municipality of Koper.
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
in the region known as Julian March
Julian March
The Julian March is a former political region of southeastern Europe on what are now the borders between Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy...
which prior to the war belonged to the Kingdom of Italy. The Morgan Line was the border between two military administrations in the region: the Yugoslav
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
on the east, and that of the Allied Military Government on the west. After 15 September 1947, the Allied Military Government was composed of both the British Element Trieste Forces (BETFOR) troops from the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and the Trieste United States Troops
Trieste United States Troops
-Establishment of Trieste United States Troops :The Army command Trieste United States Troops was established 1 May 1947 in accord with a protocol to the Italian peace treaty which created the Free Territory of Trieste....
(TRUST) from the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Boundary
The Morgan Line established a temporary boundary between the Yugoslav and Allied administrations in the region of Julian MarchJulian March
The Julian March is a former political region of southeastern Europe on what are now the borders between Croatia, Slovenia, and Italy...
(Venezia Giulia), contended by Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
and the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
, and also to reduce the possibility of combat between Allied and Yugoslav forces in the area. The line was named after the British representative at the negotiations in Duino
Duino
Duino is a town at the Adriatic coast in the municipality of Duino-Aurisina, part of the region of Friuli – Venezia Giulia in the province of Trieste, north-eastern Italy....
that resulted in the demarcation, Lieutenant General Sir William Duthie Morgan
William Duthie Morgan
General Sir William Duthie Morgan GCB DSO MC was a British Army General during World War II.-Military career:Morgan was commissioned into the Royal Artillery in 1913. He served in World War I winning the DSO at the Battle of Le Cateau in 1914 and later the MC and was mentioned in despatches four...
. Morgan, chief of staff to Field Marshal
Field Marshal
Field Marshal is a military rank. Traditionally, it is the highest military rank in an army.-Etymology:The origin of the rank of field marshal dates to the early Middle Ages, originally meaning the keeper of the king's horses , from the time of the early Frankish kings.-Usage and hierarchical...
Sir Harold Alexander
Harold Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis
Field Marshal Harold Rupert Leofric George Alexander, 1st Earl Alexander of Tunis was a British military commander and field marshal of Anglo-Irish descent who served with distinction in both world wars and, afterwards, as Governor General of Canada, the 17th since Canadian...
, Supreme Allied Commander in the Mediterranean, had been sent to Belgrade on May 7 to remind Yugoslav leader Josip Broz Tito
Josip Broz Tito
Marshal Josip Broz Tito – 4 May 1980) was a Yugoslav revolutionary and statesman. While his presidency has been criticized as authoritarian, Tito was a popular public figure both in Yugoslavia and abroad, viewed as a unifying symbol for the nations of the Yugoslav federation...
that Yugoslav forces were in violation of a February 1945 written agreement between Tito and Alexander in occupying the territory. During the negotiations, Morgan drew up a line, then called the "Blue Line" and, when Allied troops of the British XIII Corps began moving forward to the blue line on May 22, Tito agreed in principle to the demarcation the next day, with the agreement signed in Duino
Duino
Duino is a town at the Adriatic coast in the municipality of Duino-Aurisina, part of the region of Friuli – Venezia Giulia in the province of Trieste, north-eastern Italy....
on June 10, 1945.
Location
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
, curved 15 miles to the east and then northwest to Gorizia
Gorizia
Gorizia is a town and comune in northeastern Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Province of Gorizia, and it is a local center of tourism, industry, and commerce. Since 1947, a twin...
, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, then north along the Isonzo/Soča
Soca
The Soča or Isonzo is a 140 km long river that flows through western Slovenia and northeastern Italy. An Alpine river in character, its source lies in the Trenta Valley in the Julian Alps in Slovenia, at an elevation of around 1,100 metres...
River through Kobarid
Kobarid
Kobarid is a town and a municipality in the upper Soča valley, western Slovenia, near the Italian border.Kobarid is known for the famous Battle of Caporetto, where the Italian retreat was documented by Ernest Hemingway in his novel A Farewell to Arms. The battle is well documented in the museum in...
to Rateče
Ratece
-External links:** *...
near the Italian-Austrian border. The demarcation divided the Julian March into two zones, "Zone A" under Allied military administration and "Zone B" under the administration of the Yugoslav People's Army
Yugoslav People's Army
The Yugoslav People's Army , also referred to as the Yugoslav National Army , was the military of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.-Origins:The origins of the JNA can...
.
Zone A
Zone A comprised the western portion of the region, which included the current Italian provinces of TriesteProvince of Trieste
The Province of Trieste is a province in the autonomous Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Trieste.It has an area of 212 km², and a total population of 236,520...
and Gorizia
Province of Gorizia
The Province of Gorizia is a province in the autonomous Friuli–Venezia Giulia region of Italy.-Overview:Its capital is the city of Gorizia. It belonged to the Province of Udine between 1924 and 1927 and the communes of Sonzia, Plezzo, Bergogna, Caporetto, Tolmino, Circhina, Santa Lucia d'Isonzo,...
, a strip of territory between the current Slovene-Italian border and the Soča
Soca
The Soča or Isonzo is a 140 km long river that flows through western Slovenia and northeastern Italy. An Alpine river in character, its source lies in the Trenta Valley in the Julian Alps in Slovenia, at an elevation of around 1,100 metres...
river, the Brda
Brda (Slovenia)
Brda is a municipality in western Slovenia. It is located in the Slovenian Littoral region, extending from the Italian border to the river Soča...
hills, the lower Vipava Valley
Vipava Valley
The Vipava Valley is a valley located in the Slovenian Littoral, between the towns of Nova Gorica and Vipava.-Geography:It is a narrow valley, serving as the main passage between Friulian lowland and central Slovenia, and thus also an important corridor connecting Northern Italy to Central Europe...
(corresponding roughly to the current Slovene municipalities of Šempeter-Vrtojba
Šempeter-Vrtojba
Šempeter-Vrtojba is a municipality in Slovenia. The municipality comprises the town of Šempeter pri Gorici and the adjacent village of Vrtojba....
, Renče-Vogrsko
Rence-Vogrsko
Renče-Vogrsko is a municipality in the Goriška region of Slovenia. It was created in 2006 when it split from the Nova Gorica municipality.-External links:* *...
, Miren-Kostanjevica
Miren-Kostanjevica
Miren-Kostanjevica is a municipality in western Slovenia, on the border with Italy. It is part of the Goriška region of the Slovene Littoral. The municipality's main settlements are Miren and Kostanjevica na Krasu...
and most of the municipality of Nova Gorica
Nova Gorica
Nova Gorica ; 21,082 ; 31,000 ) is a town and a municipality in western Slovenia, on the border with Italy...
, except the Banjšice Plateau), the western section of the Kras
Kras
Karst ; also known as the Karst Plateau, is a limestone borderline plateau region extending in southwestern Slovenia and northeastern Italy. It lies between the Vipava Valley, the low hills surrounding the valley, the westernmost part of the Brkini Hills, northern Istria, and the Gulf of Trieste...
plateau (corresponding more or less to the current Slovene municipalities of Sežana
Sežana
Sežana is a town and a municipality in the Slovenian Littoral region of Slovenia, near the border with Italy. According to the census of 2008, it has a population of 12,470, of which around 5,332 live in the town of Sežana and the rest in the neighbouring rural areas.Sežana is located about on the...
and Komen
Komen
Komen is a settlement and a municipality in Slovenia. It is located on the Kras plateau in the Slovenian Littoral.-History:In the Middle Ages, it was first part of the Duchy of Friuli and in the 13th century it was included in the County of Gorizia. Komen was first mentioned in a document from 1247...
), and the Istria
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
n villages of Plavje
Plavje
Plavje is a village in the Koper Municipality in the Littoral region of Slovenia. It is located on the northernmost edge of the Istrian peninsula, on the border with Italy, on a small hill overlooking the Gulf of Trieste....
, Spodnje Škofije
Spodnje Škofije
Spodnje Škofije is a settlement in the Koper Municipality in the Littoral region of Slovenia.-Overview:Until the dissolution of the Free Territory of Trieste in 1954, it was part of the municipality of Muggia, now in Italy...
, Jelarji
Jelarji
Jelarji is a small settlement in the Koper Municipality in the Littoral region of Slovenia on the border with Italy.-External links:*...
and Hrvatini
Hrvatini
-Overview:For centuries Hrvatini belonged to the municipality of Muggia . After the dissolution of the Free Territory of Trieste in 1954, it was annexed to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Since then, it has been gravitating towards Koper...
, now in Slovenia.
The Istrian coastal town of Pula
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
(now in Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
) was also under Allied administration, forming an enclave of Zone A within the territory of Zone B.
Zone B
The Yugoslav-administered Zone B extended to almost two-thirds of the region, including the city of RijekaRijeka
Rijeka is the principal seaport and the third largest city in Croatia . It is located on Kvarner Bay, an inlet of the Adriatic Sea and has a population of 128,735 inhabitants...
, most of the Istrian peninsula
Istria
Istria , formerly Histria , is the largest peninsula in the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic between the Gulf of Trieste and the Bay of Kvarner...
(with the exception of the town of Pula
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
and the municipalities of Muggia
Muggia
Muggia is a small Italian comune in the extreme south-east of Trieste lying on the border with Slovenia.Muggia is the last and only flap of Istria still in Italian territory, after the dissolution of the Free Territory of Trieste in 1954....
and San Dorligo della Valle
San Dorligo della Valle
San Dorligo della Valle is a comune in the Province of Trieste in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about 4 km southeast of Trieste, on the border with Slovenia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 6,019 and an area of 24.5 km²...
), the Cres
Cres
Cres is an Adriatic island in Croatia. It is one of the northern island in the Kvarner Gulf and can be reached via ferry from the island Krk or from the Istrian peninsula ....
-Lošinj
Lošinj
Lošinj is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, in the Kvarner Gulf. It is almost due south of the city of Rijeka and part of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar county....
archipelago, and the eastern portion of the Slovene Littoral. The village of Opatje Selo
Opatje selo
Opatje selo is a village in the Miren-Kostanjevica Municipality in the Littoral region of Slovenia, right on the border with Italy....
on the north-western edge of the Kras
Kras
Karst ; also known as the Karst Plateau, is a limestone borderline plateau region extending in southwestern Slovenia and northeastern Italy. It lies between the Vipava Valley, the low hills surrounding the valley, the westernmost part of the Brkini Hills, northern Istria, and the Gulf of Trieste...
plateau formed a small enclave of Zone B within the territory of Zone A.
End of the line
The Morgan Line ceased to exist on 15 September 1947, when the Treaty of ParisParis Peace Treaties, 1947
The Paris Peace Conference resulted in the Paris Peace Treaties signed on February 10, 1947. The victorious wartime Allied powers negotiated the details of treaties with Italy, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Finland .The...
came into effect. The Treaty established the border between Italy and Yugoslavia in the northern sections of the contended territory, while the Free Territory of Trieste
Free Territory of Trieste
The Free Territory of Trieste was to be a city-state situated in Central Europe between northern Italy and Yugoslavia, created by the United Nations Security Council in the aftermath of World War II and provisionally administered by an appointed military governor commanding the peacekeeping United...
was established in its southern part. Allied troops along the Morgan Line withdrew several miles to a parallel "French Line" (adopted at the recommendation of the French Foreign Minister), part of which ran along sections of the former Morgan Line.
The Free Territory was divided into Zone A and Zone B, and the border between the two ran along the Morgan line. In 1954, when the Free Territory was abolished and the villages of Plavje
Plavje
Plavje is a village in the Koper Municipality in the Littoral region of Slovenia. It is located on the northernmost edge of the Istrian peninsula, on the border with Italy, on a small hill overlooking the Gulf of Trieste....
, Spodnje Škofije
Spodnje Škofije
Spodnje Škofije is a settlement in the Koper Municipality in the Littoral region of Slovenia.-Overview:Until the dissolution of the Free Territory of Trieste in 1954, it was part of the municipality of Muggia, now in Italy...
, Jelarji
Jelarji
Jelarji is a small settlement in the Koper Municipality in the Littoral region of Slovenia on the border with Italy.-External links:*...
and Hrvatini
Hrvatini
-Overview:For centuries Hrvatini belonged to the municipality of Muggia . After the dissolution of the Free Territory of Trieste in 1954, it was annexed to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. Since then, it has been gravitating towards Koper...
annexed to Yugoslavia together with the entire zone B, the Morgan Line ceased to serve as an internationally recognized border.
Today, almost all of the former Morgan Line is completely within Slovenian territory. Only a very small part still serves as a border between Italy and Slovenia, dividing the Italian municipality of San Dorligo della Valle
San Dorligo della Valle
San Dorligo della Valle is a comune in the Province of Trieste in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia, located about 4 km southeast of Trieste, on the border with Slovenia. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 6,019 and an area of 24.5 km²...
from the Slovenian municipality of Koper.