Royal and Salon Carriages of BH Land Railway, History
With this article, we aim to tell a brief history of court transportation, in which the imperial and royal families traveled through the Bosnia River Valley, the rugged hills of Herzegovina, and the magnificent Neretva Canyon during the first half of the 20th century. Namely, we possess a very rare document in a sturdy cover measuring 44×25 cm, dating from 1935. The book (catalog) is titled “Court and Salon Cars” and consists of eighteen technical drawings meticulously handcrafted by engineers from the Sarajevo State Railways Workshop.
The conclusion on the use of this court composition is that it could have been used by the Austro-Hungarian imperial authorities, such as Franz Joseph during his visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1910, Archduke of Austria-Hungary, heir to the throne Franz Ferdinand in 1914, and the regent of the Kingdom of SHS (1918–1921), Alexander Karađorđević, during his visit to Sarajevo in 1920, and as king of the Kingdom of SHS during his return visit to Sarajevo in 1925.
Visit of Emperor Franz Joseph of Austria-Hungary to Bosnia and Herzegovina
On the occasion of the upcoming imperial journey on May 30, 1910, to Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Directorate of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian State Railways (BHStB) conducted a test run of special court and salon cars ordered from a factory in Graz. These four-axle cars, designed for operation on narrow gauge tracks (0.76 m), were thirteen meters long, equipped with automatic brakes, air brakes, an auxiliary braking device, and electric lighting. The court train consisted of two salon (one for the emperor) and two staff cars, as well as one car each for dining, kitchen, inspection, guard, and valet. The regular composition of the court train included a three-axle salon car, nine meters long, which was typically for ladies. The interior design was executed according to the engineer Kubick’s blueprint in the style of late German Renaissance. The cars had between eight and thirteen windows (depending on their purpose), placed in metal frames. The interior walls were covered in green, and the ceiling in white silk. The furnishings were made of walnut wood, and the floors from oak parquet covered with Bosnian rugs produced in the renowned Sarajevo rug workshop (“State Rug Weaving Workshop Sarajevo”). The exterior of the court and salon cars was painted green, with the Bosnian provincial flag in gold color. At the very entrance of the car housing the emperor, there were two antechambers for the adjutant, with one sleeping and working space, followed by a room—a cabinet for the emperor furnished with an armchair, a writing desk, and a sofa. Next was a neatly arranged bedroom with a bed, a sink, a room for personal servants, and a small space for electrical devices. On May 29, 1910, a standard-gauge royal train carried the emperor from Budapest to begin his journey. The next morning, around 5:00 a.m., he arrived at the Bosnian-Herzegovinian Railway station in Bosanski Brod. The station had two terminals—one for standard gauge and another for narrow gauge tracks. Around 5:30 a.m., the emperor was transferred into a separate train of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian Railways (BHStB) and continued to Sarajevo. At 8:12 a.m., the train arrived in Doboj (stopping for about 20 minutes). It reached Zavidovići at 9:59 (with about a 3-minute stop). The court train arrived in Zenica at 11:48, and after a half-hour stop, continued towards Visoko, arriving there at 1:50 p.m. After a ten-minute break, the journey proceeded to Sarajevo, where the court train arrived at 3:00 p.m. During this trip, as a curiosity, it is worth noting that at the end of the court composition, a half-loaded wagon was attached, transporting a cow and a woman from Vienna. The cow and the woman milked by the cow had arrived on a special train from Vienna to be part of the “regular” composition of this train on the day of travel to Sarajevo. This was ordered by Emperor Franz for health reasons, to drink milk from the same cow. According to protocol, on June 3, 1910, in front of the Pavilion near the Tobacco Factory, the emperor entered the court car to begin his journey to Mostar. At 9:00 a.m., the train arrived in Konjic, and at 10:27 a.m., in Jablanica, finally reaching Mostar exactly at noon. Shortly after 4:00 p.m., the court composition departed from Mostar toward Vienna, arriving in Bosanski Brod the following day at 7:30 a.m. According to protocol, Emperor Franz was supposed to depart from Mostar around 6:30 p.m., but due to the extreme heat in Mostar, parts of the program were canceled. For this occasion, the mayor of Mostar, Mujaga Komadina, organized the delivery of ice from the top of Mount Velež to keep the emperor’s coupe and salon cars at tolerable temperatures. Although this special narrow-gauge court train was built for narrow tracks, it could not be as luxurious and spacious as the imperial train on Viennese railroads. Nonetheless, it is believed that the emperor enjoyed the landscapes of the breathtaking Neretva canyon, spring-green Bosnian forests, and the horizon of the long horizontal line of the blue sky and the green Posavina plains. Finally, it is important to note the significance and reason for the emperor’s visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina. From a historical perspective, three reasons emerge. First, in February 1910, the State Statute for Bosnia and Herzegovina was adopted; second, during his stay in Sarajevo, the emperor signed a rescript appointing the parliamentary presidency; and third, on June 15 of the same year, the first
On May 29, 1910, the emperor set out from Budapest in a special royal train on a standard gauge track. The next day, on May 30, at around 5:00 a.m., he arrived on the soil of Bosnia and Herzegovina at the Bosanski Brod train station. By the way, the Bosanski Brod station had two stations, one for standard gauge and the other for narrow gauge. Around 5:30 a.m., the emperor settled into a separate train of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian State Railways (BHSTB) and continued the journey to Sarajevo. At 8:12 a.m., the train arrived in Doboje (stopping for about 20 minutes). It reached Zavidoviće at 9:59 a.m. (stopping for about 3 minutes). The royal train arrived in Zenica at 11:48 a.m., and after a half-hour stop, it continued towards Visegrad, arriving there at 1:50 p.m. After a ten-minute pause, the journey continued towards Sarajevo, where the royal train arrived at 3:00 p.m.
During this journey, as an interesting fact, it should be noted that at the end of the court composition, a semi-retired carriage was attached, in which one cow and a woman from Vienna were transported. Namely, the cow and the woman who was milking her arrived on a special train from Vienna in order to be in the “regular” train composition for the travel day to Sarajevo. All of this was because Emperor Franz ordered, for health reasons, to drink milk, and specifically, from that very cow.
According to the protocol, on June 3, 1910, in front of the pavilion near the Tobacco Factory, the emperor entered the royal train carriage and set out on a journey to Mostar. At 9:00 a.m., the train arrived in Konjic, in Jablanica at 10:27 a.m., and exactly at 12:00 p.m. in Mostar. Shortly after 4:00 p.m., the royal train departed from Mostar towards Vienna, arriving at Bosanski Brod the next day at 7:30 a.m. According to protocol, Emperor Franz Joseph was supposed to depart from Mostar around 6:30 p.m., but due to the intense heat in Mostar, parts of the program were canceled. On this occasion, the anticipated mayor of Mostar, Mujaga Komadina, in organizing the committee for the reception of the emperor of the three confessions, specially arranged for the delivery of ice from the top of Mount Velež, so that the emperor’s compartments and salon carriage would have a tolerable temperature. Although this special royal train was built for narrow-gauge tracks, it could not be as luxurious and spacious as the imperial train on the Vienna railways, but it is concluded that the emperor enjoyed the landscapes of the fascinating Neretva canyon, the spring-leafed Bosnian forests, and the horizon in the long horizontal line of blue sky and the green plains of Posavina.
Finally, it is important to note the significance and purpose of the Emperor’s visit to Bosnia and Herzegovina. From a historical perspective, three reasons stand out. First, in February 1910, the Provincial Statute for Bosnia and Herzegovina was enacted. Second, during his stay in Sarajevo, the Emperor signed the decree appointing the parliamentary presidency. Third, on June 15 of the same year, the first Bosnian-Herzegovinian Parliament began its work as the first genuine people’s representative assembly in the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Visit of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria-Hungary to Bosnia and Herzegovina
In mid-1914, large summer maneuvers of the Austro-Hungarian army were organized in Bosnia, caused by the consequences of the Balkan Wars of 1912 and 1913, and fears that their interests, especially on the Adriatic, were threatened because Serbia (having doubled its territory through conquest) intended to also seize part of the Albanian coast. To make the scenario of the Austro-Hungarian Army’s large summer maneuvers significant, the Vienna court announced the arrival of the General Inspector of the Armed Forces of the Crown, Archduke and heir to the Habsburg throne, Franz Ferdinand, for an inspection. The announcement of the archduke’s arrival on April 6, 1914, to the then Deputy Mayor of Sarajevo, Josip Vancaš, was officially authorized by the Vienna court to inform the City Council that Archduke Ferdinand would visit Sarajevo on June 28th.
Archduke Franz Ferdinand departed from Vienna to Sarajevo on June 23, 1914, aboard a special train to Trieste, then by military ship, arriving at the Neretva River estuary on June 25th, and by a yacht to Metković (The town of Metković was part of the Kingdom of Dalmatia, a crown land of the Habsburg Monarchy with its administrative center in Zadar until the end of 1918). After a warm reception by the municipal officer of Metković and the director of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian Railways, the archduke boarded a special court train and headed towards Mostar. He arrived at Mostar station at 8:25 a.m., where he had a short stop before continuing his journey towards Sarajevo. [END OF TRANSLATED SECTION]
The final station of the royal train was Ilidža Spa, where it arrived at 2:30 PM and stayed at the “Bosna” Hotel. There, he was greeted by his wife, Duchess Sofia, who had traveled to Sarajevo by train via Budapest, Slavonia, and the Bosnian route to Sarajevo, more precisely to Ilidža Spa, where she arrived around 9:30 in the morning, exactly five hours before her husband, Archduke Franz, arrived.
On June 26th, the royal convoy of Archduke Franz Ferdinand was taken to the Tarčin railway station, where he attended a military maneuver near Tarčin both that day and the following day. On June 28, 1914, Franz Ferdinand was scheduled to officially visit Sarajevo in the morning, and by the afternoon, he was to depart the city and return home by ship via Metković.
In the morning of that day, from Ilidža around 9:00 a.m., he arrived at the entrance of Filipovića Barracks by the same court carriage around 10:07 a.m., where a column of cars was waiting for him for a planned city tour. The epilogue of this last journey is historically known to readers, so around 11:30 a.m., the death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and the Duchess – the Czech Countess Sophie Chotek – was officially confirmed.
On Monday, June 29, 1914, after citizens said their last farewells to the deceased, coffins were late in the afternoon transported to the railway station where they were loaded from the front side of the last car. A special imperial wagon from Sarajevo headed towards Metković at exactly 7:10 PM. In Metković, the coffins were transferred onto the yacht “Dalmat” and transported along the Neretva River towards the Adriatic. They traveled across the Adriatic Sea to Trieste on the rear deck of the battleship “Viribus Unitis.” From there, the coffins continued by train through Graz and with a brief stop in Vienna to Artstetten, where they were buried in a newly constructed mausoleum on June 4, 1914.
This event in Sarajevo will be remembered as a tragic prelude to a horrific war, during which millions of peasants and workers will be sent to the front, stripped of their plows, hoes, and scythes, in exchange for rifles and cannons, many of whom will be led to their deaths.
Visit of Alexander Karađorđević to Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1920 and 1925
At the end of 1918, the Provisional Ordinance on the organization and establishment of railways in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (SHS-CXC) was passed. The entire railway network was divided into five separate directorates, including the Directorate of State Railways in Sarajevo. Based on the constitutional amendment of 1929, the name was changed to the Yugoslav State Railways (JDŽ-JДЖ).
According to historical data, only two official visits by the Royal Court of the Kingdom of SHS, based in Belgrade, to Bosnia and Herzegovina are recorded. The first visit by Alexander Karađorđević, then serving as regent, was arranged on September 20, 1920. The regent traveled by court train, which is now owned by the Directorate of State Railways in Sarajevo, from the direction of Bosanski Brod through Derventa and Zenica to Sarajevo. The second visit to Sarajevo occurred on April 18, 1925, this time as King, accompanied by Queen Maria. Based on these events and the effort put into gathering the necessary data, we are unable to describe the detailed route of the court’s train journey.
We can only assume that the court carriage used by Alexander was the same one used by Emperor Franz Joseph in 1910 and Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914. Additionally, we presume that the same royal and salon carriages from 1910, carefully preserved and maintained in hangars at the Main Railway Workshops, and later the State Railway Workshop in Sarajevo, were utilized.
Based on research, there are records indicating that the royal family frequently traveled by train for leisure in Miločer, near Budva in Montenegro. At that time, the only railway connection from Belgrade to Herceg Novi, or Zelenika, was a standard gauge train to Slavonski Brod, and from Bosanski Brod, a narrow-gauge track through Sarajevo, Mostar, Gabela, and Hum to Zelenika. It was only in mid-1938 that a direct passenger line between Belgrade and Dubrovnik via Užice, Visegrad, and Sarajevo was established. It is not known whether the royal family officially used court carriages for their holidays or traveled incognito in regular passenger trains and first-class wagons.
Regarding the fate of the courtly vehicles described above during and after World War II in these regions, we are currently unable to provide an answer.
