| Franjo Horvat | |
 | |
| Birth: | 10 October 1904 Kursanec, Medjimurje County, Austria-Hungary (now Croatia) |
| Death: | 16 August 2009 Nedelisce, Medjimurje County, Croatia |
| Age: | 104 years, 310 days |
| Country: |  CRO
|
| Centenarian | |
Franjo Horvat (10 October 1904 – 16 August 2009) was a Croatian centenarian who was the oldest known living man in Croatia at the time of his death. He was also the second-oldest known living Croatian-born man behind Samuel Bistirlich (1904-2011) of United States who was a few days older than Horvat.
Biography[]
Early Life[]
Franjo Horvat was born in Kursanec, Medjimurje County, Austria-Hungary (now Croatia) on 10 October 1904 to father Stjepan Horvat and mother Amalija Preloznjak. He was the third of ten children in a family that raised children to be modest, hardworking, and always close to God and the Church.
Franjo felt love for the vocation of a blacksmith from childhood and it did not leave him until his old age, despite the fact that he used to say that the blacksmith's bread was the hardest to earn. He trained as a blacksmith in Kursanac with master Jembrisko, who constantly repeated to him his motto, which he gladly adopted and told his family: 'Respect your father and mother and live virtuously'.
For some time, he worked as a blacksmith in his hometown, and then he worked on plant maintenance at Varteks in nearby Varazdin. Later in 1939, he continued his teacher's "blacksmithing" and opened his own blacksmith workshop in Kursanac, where he worked until his retirement.
In 1933, he married Rozalija Vukovic from Nedelisce, with whom he had six children, two daughters, and four sons. Living in Nedelisce, where they also engaged in agriculture, they rejoiced at the birth of Vjekoslava, Marija, Josip, Ivan, Rudolf, and Franja, and the whole family especially rejoiced at the spiritual vocation of Josip, today a priest of the Varazdin Diocese and a canon in Varazdin.
Despite the difficult profession he chose, as a blacksmith he was always healthy. He loved to read and play football. He was the founder of the fire department in Kursanac and served as the fire chief, and he especially liked to help and support various parish activities. In the spirit of closeness to God and the Church, together with his wife, he raised his children, trying to instill in their basic life and Christian values.
Later Life[]
His wife Rosalia died in 1975. On her tomb, with deep faith and humility before God, aware that suffering is an integral part of the Christian life that leads to eternity, Franjo had the words engraved: 'Good God, how did you create it, so that all pain ends there'. He lived with a holy reverence for God, and as a recipe for a long life he always emphasized 'God and faith', which are the foundation of an honest life.
After the death of his wife, Franjo was left to live alone in their old house in Nedelisce. With the great love and attention of his children, grandchildren, and relatives, and the care of his daughter, Franjo lived happily and modestly in his 'cottage' until a year and a half before his death.
In his old age, he worked as a blacksmith and gladly made whatever was needed for anyone who asked him, and even in the 90s he had his own 'cow and cats'. Only a year and a half before he died, due to increasing frailty and the need for professional care, he became the oldest resident of the Home for the Elderly in neighboring Slakovec, where he was often visited by family members, and was a favorite member of the home community who enjoyed playing board games.
Following the death of 104-year-old Egidije Foretic on 6 April 2008, he became the oldest known living man in Croatia.
Old age and illness seriously damaged his health in the last month of his life, so he did not reach his 105th birthday, which everyone would have liked to celebrate with him in October. He was remembered as a good man and a good craftsman, a pious and just man, whom everyone approached with respect and gratitude.
Death and Legacy[]
He died in Nedelisce, Medjimurje County, Croatia on 16 August 2009 at the age of 104 years, 310 days. He was the oldest resident of his parish, the entire Medjimurje, but also the Diocese of Varazdin, and the oldest man in Croatia. Along with his children, he was survived by 15 grandchildren, 22 great-grandchildren, and four great-great-grandchildren.
He was buried on 17 August, the day after he died, at the local cemetery in Nedelisce in the presence of his family, relatives, and numerous believers, especially from Nedelisce, Kursanc and Vratisinac, where his son was a pastor for many years. Funeral rites with the participation of about thirty priests were led by the bishop of Varazdin, Msgr. Josip Mrzljak, who expressed his condolences to all grieving family members and relatives. The local pastor, pres. Nikola Samodol in his speech recalled his exemplary Christian life which left a great, simple and important message that can be summed up in the motto "Pray and work". He recalled his regular visits to Sunday Eucharists, and that in the "holy preparation" that is forgotten today. The funeral mass in the parish church of the Holy Trinity was led by Bishop Mrzljak together with the deceased's son Josip and other priests.
References[]
- U 105. godini života u nedjelju 16. kolovoza, okrijepljen svetim sakramentima, preminuo je uzoran vjernik Franjo Horvat iz Nedelišća Varaždinska Biskupija, 17 August 2009 (Archived)
| Croatia's Oldest Living Man Titleholders (V • E) |
|
Ivan Jaklic • Egidije Foretic • Franjo Horvat • Mateo Palaversic • Andrija Prlic • Nikola Barkovic • Sime Petrovic • Josip Krsul • Dundo Bozo Kralj • Josip Pisnjak • Zdenko Premzl |