Croatian soldier and politician (1878?1947)
Slavko Kvaternik
(25 August 1878 ? 7 June 1947) was a
Croatian
Usta?e
military general and politician who was one of the founders of the
Usta?e
movement. Kvaternik was military commander and Minister of
Domobranstvo
(
Armed Forces
). On 10 April 1941, he declared the creation of the Independent State of Croatia and became Pavelic's right-hand man, the Doglavnik.
Kvaternik was an officer in the
Austro-Hungarian Army
and was involved in
World War I
. After the collapse of Austria-Hungary, he was appointed by the National Council of the
State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs
to lead a successful
incursion into Međimurje
in late 1918. He later transferred to the
Royal Yugoslav Army
and remained there until 1921.
In 1929, he was one of the founders of the Ustasha ? Croatian Revolutionary Movement in Italy. After
Germany invaded Yugoslavia
in April 1941, he declared the creation of the
Independent State of Croatia
on 10 April 1941 with the support of the
Axis
. In the newly created state, he became the Minister of the Armed Forces until 1943, when he retired.
[
citation needed
]
Kvaternik was executed for war crimes in 1947.
Early life
[
edit
]
Slavko Kvaternik was born in
Moravice
(then known as Komorske Moravice) in the
Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia
of
Austria-Hungary
on 25 August 1878, the son of Ljudevit, a postman, and his wife, Marija (nee Frank), who was of German descent from
Bavaria
and
Catholic
by religion.
[1]
Slavko Kvaternik married Olga Frank, daughter of
Josip Frank
, a Croatian nationalist politician of
Jewish
descent, who converted from
Judaism
to
Roman Catholicism
. Their son,
Dido
, was a member of the
Ustasha
. At the end of August 1941, Olga Frank committed suicide, probably because of her
Jewish
origins and the roles of her husband, and (especially) of her son Dido, in the
NDH
.
[2]
Educated in a military academy, Kvaternik served in the Austro-Hungarian Army as an adjutant (1914?1916) of field-marshal
Svetozar Boroevi?
during
World War I
, and was awarded the German
Iron Cross
1st Class (1918). In 1918, he joined the newly-formed
National Council of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs
, becoming the Chief of General Staff. At the end of the year, Kvaternik commanded Croatian troops during the successful
1918 occupation of Međimurje
.
World War II
[
edit
]
After the
German
invasion of the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
on 6 April 1941, the Usta?e formed their government with
Ante Paveli?
as leader. Four days later Kvaternik proclaimed the establishment of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) and formed the first Ustasha government. At the same time, at Kvaternik's request,
Vladko Ma?ek
(the leader of the
Croatian Peasant Party
, who had refused to cooperate with the Germans when they requested he lead the new nation) told the people to cooperate with the new regime.
Kvaternik's position at this time was commander-in-chief of the Croatian Armed Forces. This carried the title of
vojskovođa
(
marshal
). He was also the second-most powerful man in the state, even though he was only one of the members of the "Doglavnik's Council" (
Croatian
:
Doglavni?ko vije?e
). The
Croatian Home Guard
was established on 11 April. He stayed in his position until his retirement on 4 January 1943.
[3]
He was awarded the 1st Class Cross of the
Military Order of the Iron Trefoil
during his service to the NDH. This award gave him the title of
vitez
(
knight
), which is sometimes included in his name.
Death
[
edit
]
After the
Second World War
's end, Kvaternik was captured by the
United States Army
and extradited to Yugoslavia. In Yugoslavia, he was tried and sentenced to death for his crimes under the NDH regime. He was
executed by hanging
in
Zagreb
on 7 June 1947.
Awards and decorations
[
edit
]
References
[
edit
]
Further reading
[
edit
]
- Kisi?-Kolanovi?, Nada (1996).
"Drama vojskovođe Slavka Kvaternika"
[The drama of general Slavko Kvaternik's life]
(PDF)
.
?asopis za suvremenu povijest
(in Croatian).
28
(3). Croatian Institute of History: 379?397
. Retrieved
21 January
2020
.
External links
[
edit
]
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