The Yugoslav Partisans during World War 2 - A better insight
Jun 20, 2019 15:36:16 GMT
CountVonNumenor, Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr, and 2 more like this
Post by Tito on Jun 20, 2019 15:36:16 GMT
I'll talk about the Yugoslav Partisans, it's past, it's actions and a bit post ww2 in more posts. Now I will write about pre-ww2
The leaders of the Partisans were mostly members of the Communist party of Yugoslavia - KPJ, and here are some names (good luck pronouncing) on which I'd suggest reading as they are interesting, but I can talk about them if someone requests:
-Ivo Lola Ribar
-Koča Popović
-Rade Končar
-Peko Dapčević
-Kosta Nađ
-Franjo Kluz
-Rudi Čajavec
-Josip Kraš
KPJ started in 1919/20 and it functioned like a normal political party, but it was in a divided and unstable state with many internal clashes and poor leadership both on paper and in practice. Unlike most political parties like Croatian's Peasant Party (most dominant, there were others) the Green Bosnian Party and too many other Serb, Macedonian and Sloven parties to list, didn't base their members on nationality but on their ideals and efforts. Many of the previously mentioned names are volunteers from the Spanish Civil War fighting for the Republicans, political activists aka protesters. It's leader of course being the famously known Josip Broz Tito. Now I'll talk on some important points for the KPJ, and for Yugoslavia and what they did and had to say.
During their Legal Activity they peformed rallies to support the Hungarian Soviet Republic and Soviet Union during it's civil wars, but also won many votes, majorities, in major cities even Zagreb, and by 1920 they won majorities in Belgrade, Niš and Skoplje, beforehand having majorities in Osijek, Zagreb, Podgorica and others, all major cities and capitals of todays former Yugoslav states. Which resulted in an anxious leadership being more against KPJ than any other party.
With the fall of the Soviet Hungarian State the government was more determined, even though it feared the KPJ as they could destabilize the already unstable nation. An announcement was made after a miners strike in Tuzla where one police officer and 4 miners died. All property of the party were seized and many members and leaders were arrested. In response KPJ formed a secondary leadership in case the first leaders were arrested during their underground efforts. Also in response to their party being made illegal KPJ formed 'The Red Justice' claimed to be a 'terrorist group' attempting to assassinate King Alexander, unsuccessfuly, but they did manage to eliminate the minister of interior - Milorad Drasković - who was the author of "the announcement"
KPJ also witnessed a split with the centrists, but other parties had more vicious clashes, with many murders in between Croat and Serb party leaderships, the KPJ stood in the shadows on that matter, not to get dragged into the fighting there. But when the "national question" topic came they rationalised. The national question involved three people. Serbians, Croatians and Bosnians, and what did they want and what was the future of their peoples inside the state. To keep it short, all three had their own representatives, the representative for Bosnia, Mehmed Spaho, the leader of the Muslim political party, and the first bosnian politician and the most famous one for Bosnians during the days of the Kingdom of Croats Serbs and Slovenes as well as the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, was assassinated in June of 1939, then a plan was formed, an agreement popularly known as the Cvetković Maček agreement which would split the nation into two, a Croatian and a Serbian one, splitting Bosnia in half, but it didn't come into effect because the German military came to Yugoslavia as well. An anecdote being that Yugoslavia was part of the Axis for a few days, then students protests errupted which made them leave and then they were invaded, in two weeks the Army was pacified. Without a decleration of war, Belgrade and airfields were bombed making the Yugoslav Airforce unusable, command was in dissaray, Germans, Hungarians, Bulgarians, Italians and Romanian volunteers (Romania didn't take part directly in the invasion, don't let Easytech fool you) practically walked in, alongside radical nationalistic support from everywhere, mostly from Croatia's Home Guard taking all of Yugoslavia in one fell aswoop. The Royal Family and leadership fled to Africa and then to London. The aftermath was to be a Yugoslav/Mexican Standoff, on one side was the Independent State of Yugoslavia, lead by Ante Pavelić and supported by mostly Germany, but Axis troops operated freely on their soil, Italians on the Adriatic coast, Germany everywhere else. The Serb Chetniks lead by Draža Mihajlović who was a commander in the Yugoslav Army, but now lead a Serb only army wanting to liberate and form a Serbian-ethno state (supported by the allies), a monarchist one. And the Communists lead by Josip Broz Tito.
Now it has to be noticed that there are many segments of Chetniks not directly under the cooperation by Draža Mihajlović because of issues of communication so they acted more as a local force, then the Bosnian units formed loyal to Germany, even though their nation was occupied. But there were Slovene, Bosnian, Macedonian and other volunteers loyal to the Axis or the Partisans. To end this first part with some things to maybe think about. First, sides changed often, Draža worked alongside the Axis - not saying Croatia - in some operations against Partisans. And when occupation came, and when the peoples of Yugoslavia saw that there were many men in the NDH (Independent State of Croatia), Draža's Chetniks and other groups, and with no opposition or resistance at that time, there were people whom revolted openly, holding protests in major cities, calling for the people. With small insurgencies which lead to a policy where for each German soldier killed, a 100 yugoslav civilians would lose their lives, both of those lead to increase in popularity for the Partisans and KPJ, whom still worked underground. Civilians wanted to join in directly to the cause of liberation of Yugoslavia, some were informants, some even entered the ranks of Axis units and moved up high in them, some supplied. A HQ was formed for the Partisans and the Chetniks which were close, after the occupation. Sarajevo and other cities were ruled by Partisans from the underground and from the forests and hills. Some places like Sarajevo at one point had to be closed down, as it practically fell under siege by the Partisans, with their tactics which hindered operations and administration of the new lands. For now it's only hit and run tactics, local ones, but by the turning of the year the first official military unit of the Yugoslav Partisans will be formed, on the 22nd of December, with many more to emerge.
The leaders of the Partisans were mostly members of the Communist party of Yugoslavia - KPJ, and here are some names (good luck pronouncing) on which I'd suggest reading as they are interesting, but I can talk about them if someone requests:
-Ivo Lola Ribar
-Koča Popović
-Rade Končar
-Peko Dapčević
-Kosta Nađ
-Franjo Kluz
-Rudi Čajavec
-Josip Kraš
KPJ started in 1919/20 and it functioned like a normal political party, but it was in a divided and unstable state with many internal clashes and poor leadership both on paper and in practice. Unlike most political parties like Croatian's Peasant Party (most dominant, there were others) the Green Bosnian Party and too many other Serb, Macedonian and Sloven parties to list, didn't base their members on nationality but on their ideals and efforts. Many of the previously mentioned names are volunteers from the Spanish Civil War fighting for the Republicans, political activists aka protesters. It's leader of course being the famously known Josip Broz Tito. Now I'll talk on some important points for the KPJ, and for Yugoslavia and what they did and had to say.
During their Legal Activity they peformed rallies to support the Hungarian Soviet Republic and Soviet Union during it's civil wars, but also won many votes, majorities, in major cities even Zagreb, and by 1920 they won majorities in Belgrade, Niš and Skoplje, beforehand having majorities in Osijek, Zagreb, Podgorica and others, all major cities and capitals of todays former Yugoslav states. Which resulted in an anxious leadership being more against KPJ than any other party.
With the fall of the Soviet Hungarian State the government was more determined, even though it feared the KPJ as they could destabilize the already unstable nation. An announcement was made after a miners strike in Tuzla where one police officer and 4 miners died. All property of the party were seized and many members and leaders were arrested. In response KPJ formed a secondary leadership in case the first leaders were arrested during their underground efforts. Also in response to their party being made illegal KPJ formed 'The Red Justice' claimed to be a 'terrorist group' attempting to assassinate King Alexander, unsuccessfuly, but they did manage to eliminate the minister of interior - Milorad Drasković - who was the author of "the announcement"
KPJ also witnessed a split with the centrists, but other parties had more vicious clashes, with many murders in between Croat and Serb party leaderships, the KPJ stood in the shadows on that matter, not to get dragged into the fighting there. But when the "national question" topic came they rationalised. The national question involved three people. Serbians, Croatians and Bosnians, and what did they want and what was the future of their peoples inside the state. To keep it short, all three had their own representatives, the representative for Bosnia, Mehmed Spaho, the leader of the Muslim political party, and the first bosnian politician and the most famous one for Bosnians during the days of the Kingdom of Croats Serbs and Slovenes as well as the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, was assassinated in June of 1939, then a plan was formed, an agreement popularly known as the Cvetković Maček agreement which would split the nation into two, a Croatian and a Serbian one, splitting Bosnia in half, but it didn't come into effect because the German military came to Yugoslavia as well. An anecdote being that Yugoslavia was part of the Axis for a few days, then students protests errupted which made them leave and then they were invaded, in two weeks the Army was pacified. Without a decleration of war, Belgrade and airfields were bombed making the Yugoslav Airforce unusable, command was in dissaray, Germans, Hungarians, Bulgarians, Italians and Romanian volunteers (Romania didn't take part directly in the invasion, don't let Easytech fool you) practically walked in, alongside radical nationalistic support from everywhere, mostly from Croatia's Home Guard taking all of Yugoslavia in one fell aswoop. The Royal Family and leadership fled to Africa and then to London. The aftermath was to be a Yugoslav/Mexican Standoff, on one side was the Independent State of Yugoslavia, lead by Ante Pavelić and supported by mostly Germany, but Axis troops operated freely on their soil, Italians on the Adriatic coast, Germany everywhere else. The Serb Chetniks lead by Draža Mihajlović who was a commander in the Yugoslav Army, but now lead a Serb only army wanting to liberate and form a Serbian-ethno state (supported by the allies), a monarchist one. And the Communists lead by Josip Broz Tito.
Now it has to be noticed that there are many segments of Chetniks not directly under the cooperation by Draža Mihajlović because of issues of communication so they acted more as a local force, then the Bosnian units formed loyal to Germany, even though their nation was occupied. But there were Slovene, Bosnian, Macedonian and other volunteers loyal to the Axis or the Partisans. To end this first part with some things to maybe think about. First, sides changed often, Draža worked alongside the Axis - not saying Croatia - in some operations against Partisans. And when occupation came, and when the peoples of Yugoslavia saw that there were many men in the NDH (Independent State of Croatia), Draža's Chetniks and other groups, and with no opposition or resistance at that time, there were people whom revolted openly, holding protests in major cities, calling for the people. With small insurgencies which lead to a policy where for each German soldier killed, a 100 yugoslav civilians would lose their lives, both of those lead to increase in popularity for the Partisans and KPJ, whom still worked underground. Civilians wanted to join in directly to the cause of liberation of Yugoslavia, some were informants, some even entered the ranks of Axis units and moved up high in them, some supplied. A HQ was formed for the Partisans and the Chetniks which were close, after the occupation. Sarajevo and other cities were ruled by Partisans from the underground and from the forests and hills. Some places like Sarajevo at one point had to be closed down, as it practically fell under siege by the Partisans, with their tactics which hindered operations and administration of the new lands. For now it's only hit and run tactics, local ones, but by the turning of the year the first official military unit of the Yugoslav Partisans will be formed, on the 22nd of December, with many more to emerge.
