Russian chapel at Vršič pass, Slovenia
The Russian Chapel on Vršič Pass, also known as Ruska kapelica, is one of the most important historical and cultural landmarks in the Julian Alps. It stands on the Russian Road between Kranjska Gora and Vršič Pass, in memory of the Russian prisoners of war who were forced to build the military road over Slovenia’s highest mountain pass during the First World War. The road was built to supply the Isonzo Front with food, ammunition and military material, making Vršič an important strategic route between the Sava Valley and the Soča Valley. Today, the small wooden Orthodox chapel is a quiet and moving reminder of suffering, endurance and the human cost of war in the mountains.
