Church of St. Nicholas in Jainich

Along the spectacular road leading from the sanctuary of Castelmonte to Stregna, in the heart of the Natisone Valleys, visitors can retrace one of the routes used by Italian soldiers during the Caporetto retreat.

After passing the “Al Trivio” hotel/restaurant, visitors reach a small clearing surrounded by lime trees where the little church of St Nicholas can be seen, a place of worship dating back to the Middle Ages and restored in the mid-nineteenth century. Here visitors can discover some traces of the Great War and, in particular, of the turbulent days when the clashes of the Caporetto retreat took place.

Beside the church, set into a low stone wall, there is a large Monumental Cross with a Latin inscription and four plaques dedicated to German soldiers who died on 27 October 1917 during the “Battle of Cividale”. They were made in 1918, during the period of occupation, by the German administration responsible for military burials (“Deutsche Graberverwaltung”). At the entrance to the little church there is also the plaque of an Italian officer and another plaque paying tribute to the local inhabitants’ efforts in recovering those who fell in battle.