Ustje

Ustje ( _it. Ustie) is a village with 385 inhabitants near Ajdovščina in western Slovenia. The village's name means "a mouth of a river" and it is indeed situated at the place where the Hubelj issues into the Vipava river.

The oldest monument in the village is the 17^th century St. John's church at the top of the hill. Ruins of walls indicate that the site must have been used as a fortification during Turkish intrusions. The village also has a baroque church of St. Justus from 1766.

The most tragic day of the village was on August 8 1942 when Italian soldiers of the Giulia division killed 8 people and burnt down the village. After the war the village was reconstructed and August 8 is celebrated as a memorial day. Events from 1942 are described in Danilo Lokar's book "Sodni dan na vasi" ("The Doomsday in the Village").

External links

* [http://www.ajdovscina.si/index.php?&vie=ctl&gr1=mnkKs&gr2=&id=2004102810531077 A description of the village] (in Slovenian only)
* [http://www2.arnes.si/~ljeimv11/e8aug.html Detailed description of events on August 8, 1942] (English version)