France Prešeren (3 December 1800) was a Slovenian poet in Vrba,[7] † 8 February 1849 in Kranj.
France Prešeren was born into a peasant family. In elementary school, he was so hardworking that he was recorded in the Golden Book. After successfully completing his studies at the Faculty of Law in Vienna, he returned to Ljubljana, where he worked as an attorney. During this time, he wrote most of his poems, the writing of which was significantly directed by his friend Matija Čop. Prešeren is the first Slovenian to compete with his contemporaries across Europe, where there was a romantic orientation at the time.
The life path of the poet, unfortunately in love with the rich Primic Juliet, to whom he dedicated the Sonetni Wreath (1834) and some other love poems, was full of various trials. His friends died one by one, but he was not recognized as a poet during his lifetime. In the last years of his life, he was increasingly faced with discouragement, problems with alcohol, which ultimately led to his death.
France Prešeren is today considered the greatest Slovenian poet. Part of his poem Toast, written in 1844, is the lyrics of the national anthem of the Republic of Slovenia, and the anniversary of his death is the central national cultural holiday. To a lesser extent, we also celebrate the anniversary of his birth than This Happy Day of Culture.
