Federico Pignatelli: Who was my grandfather Emerik Mayer and why is my ancestral home important to me?

I spend quite a lot of time in beautiful Slovenia and the more I enter my later years, the more strongly I am drawn to my roots. After the loss of my mother an important thread that connected me to the past, to the precious stories of my family, was broken.

Ljubljana was the world of his mother. Her father, my grandfather Emerik Mayer, was a wealthy Slovenian wholesaler of Austrian origin who created a warm and safe home for his family. Between 1937 and 1938 he built the famous department store on the corner of Wolfove ulice and Hribarjevega nabrežja, today known as Mayerjeva hiša or spodnja Nama.

When my mother reached adulthood and understood the world better, he revealed the truth that marked his life. After the end of the Second World War the communist authorities arrested his grandfather, despite testimony from his employees who confirmed that he had helped partisan families. In 1945 he was tortured and then shot on Pohorju.

His mother experienced a second trauma. After the war she was imprisoned, raped and then expelled to Italy together with her mother and sister. Her beauty and intelligence led her to another world. She became miss Caprija and married prince Giovannijem Pignatellijem della Leonessa.

She participated in and helped the country in the process of Slovenia's independence. Together with her sister they managed to rehabilitate grandfather Emerik and secure the return of part of the family property that had been unjustly taken from them.

When she thought that the injustices of the past would finally be at least partially corrected, she again found herself in a difficult situation. She trusted people who were not worthy of it. He was convinced that the legal system would protect against manipulation and greed, but he was wrong.

His mother is no more, but he continues her fight. He feels he owes this. He wants to bring this story to an end and to repair what was once broken – trust in goodness and justice in people.