Who was Lady Josephine?

Josephine’s Beginnings

Josephine was born on July 24, 1885, in Šentvid, Slovenia. Her name in Slovenian was Jožica, but documents from the AustroHungarian Empire registered her as Josephine.

She married Gabriel Hočevar, a doctor, and they moved to Bled for his practice. In 1918, they built their own house, a villa that was initially a two-story building. The house served as both their residence and the doctor's oce and pharmacy.

However, due to World War I, her husband spent years at the front, returned seriously ill, and passed away soon after the war

Building a Vision: Pension Hočevar

Being a single mother now, Josephine had a vision for tourism. She gathered the money and added another oor to the house in 1926, oering at the time four one-bed rooms and seventeen two-bed rooms.

The "Pension Hočevar," as her business was named, also oered four meals a day for guests, served in the dining room on the ground oor. Next to the house, where a pharmacy stands today, she built a wooden cottage that served as a cafe, oering coee, cigarettes, desserts, and famous ham sandwiches.

Legacy and Resting Place

She died in 1946, 61 years old, and was buried in the Ljubljana cemetery, but her name was later added to the family grave in the Bled cemetery, close to her beloved home.