Pregledni rad
https://doi.org/10.34075/cs.61.1.6
Behind the Iron Wire by Nikola Čolak: the pre-migration experiences of a Catholic historian and philosopher
Zrinka Podhraški Čizmek
; Sveučilište u Zagrebu, Fakultet hrvatskih studija, Zagreb, Hrvatska
Sažetak
In this paper we want to present the book of the Croatian historian, philosopher and writer of Catholic provenance: Behind the Iron Wire. Testimony of the life of Croatia in Serbian-Communist Yugoslavia by Nikola Čolak (Janjevo 1914 – Padua 1996). The book, published in Padua in 1977, after the author was forced to emigrate to Italy due to personal and political convictions, is today preserved together with his entire opus in the Croatian State Archives as Nikola Čolak's Personal Fund (HR-HDA-1946). Čolak describes the events and the people he met in the period from May 5, 1945 in Zagreb to August 17, 1966 in Zadar, that is the day of his escape as an emigrant. Throughout the entire work it is possible to follow the thoughts, considerations and opinions of the writer on the situations and historical events of the time, which speak of a deep faith and trust in a Higher Power that guides all creation and his life including. Never discouraged, working persistently and willing to bear his share of the burden, both in prisons and labour camps (in Popovača, Velika Pisanica, Sisak and Lepoglava), and since 1947 in civil society without political and civil rights, Čolak represents the paradigm of the Croatian people who, having handed over everything to God, work tirelessly for the improvement and advancement of science, everyday life and for the right to self-determination of Croatia as a sovereign state. Through his work, one gets an intimate perspective on people, events, the communist regime and a system that goes beyond everyday life, the author describes events and people without judgment and with breadth that are mirrored in transcendental coordinates and, due to his orientation and rootedness in classical and Christian philosophy, is very current as an ethical and moral example as a witness of its time for present and future generations.
Ključne riječi
Nikola Čolak; spiritual testimony; Alojzije Stepinac; Catholic intelligentsia; repression; political persecution; Mihajlo Mihajlov; Yugoslavia; Slobodni Glas (Free Voice)
Hrčak ID:
347351
URI
Datum izdavanja:
25.5.2026.
Posjeta: 0 *