The knightly Pogačnik family was founded by Josip (Jožef) Pogačnik, who was born in 1866 into a rural farming household in the village of Podnart in Upper Carniola. With Josip having been orphaned at a very early age, the farmstead was taken over by his uncle Janez Pogačnik, who owned a turret clock workshop in Podnart. He made sure that the boy received good education by sending him first to the grammar school in Ljubljana and then to complete his secondary education in Pazin. After that, Josip enrolled in law studies in Graz, which he had to abandon to take charge of the inherited farm.

In 1897, Josip Pogačnik entered politics by successfully running for a seat in the national assembly, in 1901 he was elected as a member of the provincial diet, and in 1908 he became the vice president of the national assembly, retaining all three positions until the disintegration of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. He was well known for opening his speeches in the Slovenian language. He associated with Janez Evangelist Krek and Fran von Šuklje and finessed his way around the Viennese political and aristocratic circles. Much to the chagrin of some Slovenian politicians, he also had amicable relations with the heir-apparent Franz Ferdinand.

Josip’s ability to see his tasks through to a successful completion paid off especially in 1912, when, chairing the war department of the chamber of deputies, he made sure that the new war legislation passed through the parliament in its entirety. In recognition of his accomplishment, Emperor Franz Joseph raised him that same year to the rank of Austrian hereditary knighthood. Pogačnik demonstrated his patriotism and Slovenian identity by selecting a noble coat of arms dominated by the Slovenian colors and symbols—the linden tree and Mount Triglav (part of his coat of arms is in fact identical to that of the Republic of Slovenia).

Following the disintegration of the monarchy, on October 31st, 1918, Pogačnik became the president of the National Government for Slovenia. He read his first government declaration to the cheering crowd that had gathered in Congress Square from the balcony of Provincial Diet Mansion (now the University of Ljubljana). After the dissolution of the government in March 1919, he became the first envoy of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes to Austria. However, on returning from Vienna in November that same year, he completely retired from political life and dedicated the rest of his life to commercial pursuits. He died in his native village of Podnart in 1932.

Among Josip Pogačnik’s descendants, special mention ought to be made of his grandsons Bogdan (1921–2005), a journalist, publicist, screenwriter, and translator, and Jože (1932–2016), a film director, renowned for his documentaries and feature films (Grajski biki, Naš človek, and Kavarna Astoria).

Josip Ritter von Pogačnik’s birth house still stands in Podnart as do the house across the street that he later built and his monument created by the sculptor Nikolaj Pirnat. The family tomb stands in Ovsiše Cemetery, with the knightly coat of arms carved on the grave plaque. Josip Pogačnik’s date of birth, October 19th, currently marks the feast day of the local community of Podnart.

Sources:
Rugále, Mariano in Preinfalk, Miha: Blagoslovljeni in prekleti. 2. del: Po sledeh mlajših plemiških rodbine na Slovenskem. Ljubljana: Viharnik, 2012, pp. 144–153.