Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia

• 1. The April Invasion And Partition

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  On the 6th of April 1941, German forces crossed the border into Yugoslavia, shattering the Kingdom of Serbia in a matter of days. The invasion was swift and decisive, leading to the surrender of Yugoslav troops by the 17th of April. Adolf Hitler issued instructions on that same day for the dismemberment of the country, entitled the Temporary Guidelines for Division of Yugoslavia. These directives placed what Hitler called Alt Serbien under direct German occupation. This decision reflected his anger against Serbs, whom he viewed as instigators of the coup d'état of the 27th of March 1941. The territory included most of modern central Serbia, along with the northern part of Kosovo and the Banat region. A demarcation line known as the Vienna Line ran across Yugoslavia from the Reich border in the west to where German-occupied Serbia met Bulgarian and Albanian territories. To the north of this line, Germans held sway, while Italians had prime responsibility to the south. The exact boundaries were fixed in a directive issued by Adolf Hitler on the 12th of April 1941. This directive also directed the creation of the military administration. On the 20th of April 1941, orders established the Military Commander in Serbia as head of the occupation regime. He was responsible to the Quartermaster-General of the OKH. In the short term, he was also responsible for guarding huge numbers of Yugoslav prisoners of war. He had to safeguard captured weapons and munitions. The first military commander appointed was General der Flieger Helmuth Förster on the 20th of April 1941.

• 2. The Structure Of Occupation

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  From his headquarters in Belgrade, the Military Commander directly controlled four poorly-equipped local defence battalions consisting of older age men. These units were deployed as follows: the 266th Landesschützen Battalion at Užice, the 562nd Landesschützen Battalion at Belgrade, the 592nd Landesschützen Battalion at Pančevo, and the 920th Landesschützen Battalion at Niš. Outside the military commander's staff, several senior figures represented key non-military arms of the German government. Prominent among these was NSFK-Obergruppenführer Franz Neuhausen, initially appointed by Göring as plenipotentiary general for economic affairs on the 17th of April. Another was Envoy Felix Benzler of the Foreign Office, appointed by Reichsminister Joachim von Ribbentrop on the 3rd of May. A further key figure was SS-Standartenführer Wilhelm Fuchs, who commanded Einsatzgruppe Serbia. This unit consisted of Sicherheitsdienst Security Service and Sicherheitspolizei Security Police, the 64th Reserve Police Battalion, and a detachment of Gestapo. While formally responsible to Turner, Fuchs reported directly to his superiors in Berlin. The occupation force also included the LXV Corps zbV under General der Artillerie Paul Bader. In June 1941, this corps commanded four poorly-equipped occupation divisions. These were the 704th Infantry Division, the 714th Infantry Division, and the 717th Infantry Division. The three occupation divisions had been raised during spring 1941 as part of the German Army's 15th Wave of conscription. They consisted of just two infantry regiments, one less than front line divisions. Each regiment comprised three battalions of four companies each. Each company was equipped with just one light mortar rather than the usual three. Their supporting elements did not include medium mortars or anti-tank guns. Even their artillery was limited to a battalion of three batteries of four guns each. The troops were conscripted from those born between 1907 and 1913, ranging from 28 to 34 years old.

• 3. The Commissioner And Nedić Governments

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  On the 30th of May 1941, the Military Commander appointed the first of two Serbian civil puppet governments called the Commissioner Government. Hitler had briefly considered erasing all existence of a Serbian state but quickly abandoned that idea. Förster decided on Milan Aćimović, who formed his government consisting of ten commissioners. He avoided Dimitrije Ljotić because he believed he had a dubious reputation among Serbs. The other nine commissioners included Steven Ivanić, Momčilo Janković, Risto Jojić, Stanislav Josifović, Lazo M. Kostić, Dušan Letica, Dušan Pantić, Jevrem Protić, and Milisav Vasiljević. Several commissioners had held ministerial posts in the pre-war Yugoslav government. The Commissioner Government lacked any semblance of power. It was a low-grade Serbian administration under control of Turner and Neuhausen. Soon after formation, Mihailović sent a junior officer to Belgrade to advise Ljotić of his progress. On the 29th of August 1941, Germans established a second puppet government with the aim of quelling the uprising. The Commissioner Government was replaced by the Government of National Salvation under Serbian general Milan Nedić. Five months earlier, SS-Standartenführer Edmund Veesenmayer had engineered the proclamation of the NDH. Veesenmayer selected former Yugoslav Minister of Army and Navy General Milan Nedić as best available candidate. The Germans applied significant pressure on Nedić including threats to bring Bulgarian and Hungarian troops into occupied territory. On the 27th of August 1941 about seventy-five prominent Serbs convened a meeting where they resolved that Nedić should form a new government. Two days later German authorities appointed Nedić and his government although real power continued to reside with occupiers.

• 4. The Uprising And Counterinsurgency

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  In early July 1941 armed resistance began against both Germans and Aćimović authorities. This followed a meeting of Central Committee of Yugoslav Communist Party in Belgrade on the 4th of July. The first fighting occurred at village of Bela Crkva on the 7th of July when gendarmes tried to disperse public meeting and two gendarmes were killed. At end of first week in July List requested Luftwaffe transfer training school to territory. Soon after gendarmerie stations and patrols were attacked and German vehicles fired upon. Armed groups first appeared in Aranđelovac district northwest of Topola. In mid-July Mihailović sent Lieutenant Neško Nedić to meet representative of Aćimović's administration. He ensured he was aware that Mihailović forces had nothing to do with communist terror. By late July Schröder died after being injured in aircraft accident. When new Military Commander Heinrich Danckelmann arrived he could not obtain more troops or police to suppress revolt. On the 29th of July in reprisal for arson attack by 16-year-old Jewish boy Einsatzgruppe Serbien executed 100 Jews and 22 communists. By August around 100,000 Serbs crossed into occupied territory from NDH fleeing persecution by Ustaše. They joined more than 37,000 refugees from Hungarian-occupied Bačka and Baranja plus 20,000 from Bulgarian-annexed Macedonia. The number of Partisans grew to around 14,000 by August. On the 1st of September the garrison of antimony works at Krupanj became isolated. Rebels demanded surrender and when deadline expired launched attacks between 00:30 and 06:00 on the 3rd of September. Of 10th Company only 36 men made way to Valjevo while 42 missing from 11th Company. In total despite air support two companies suffered nine dead thirty wounded and 175 missing.

• 5. The Final Solution In Serbia

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  German authorities murdered nearly all Jews in Territory of Military Commander in Serbia. Killings came in two waves: first in 1941 by mass shootings of men in reprisals then early 1942 by gassing women and children in mobile Nazi gas vans. On the 18th of July Einsatzgruppe Serbien executed 52 Jews communists and others with assistance of Serbian gendarmerie. Also in July German military government ordered Jewish community representatives supply 40 hostages each week for execution as reprisals. Subsequently when reprisal killings announced most referred to killing communists and Jews. On the 29th of July in reprisal for arson attack by 16-year-old Jewish boy Einsatzgruppe Serbien executed 100 Jews and 22 communists. By end of month number of communists and Jews shot or hanged reached 1,000. The Banjica concentration camp in Belgrade was controlled jointly by Nedić's Government of National Salvation and German army. During August there were 242 attacks on Serbian administration and gendarmerie as well railway lines telephone wires mines and factories. The Belgrade-Užice-Ćuprija-Paraćin-Zaječar railway line hardest hit. A sign of rapid escalation revolt was that 135 attacks occurred last 10 days month. German troops themselves lost 22 killed and 17 wounded. By end month number communists and Jews shot or hanged reached 1,000.

• 6. Resources And Rail Lines

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  The Territory had key rail and Danube transport routes containing valuable resources particularly non-ferrous metals. Some sources describe territory as puppet state or special administrative province with other describing it having puppet government. Hitler considered anger against Serbs who he saw as main instigators coup d'état the 27th of March 1941 which brought down Yugoslav government acceded Tripartite Pact two days earlier. The general approach Hitler took instructions ensure Serbia punished reduced rump. In Banat discussions Romanian Hungarian governments decided Vojvodina region divided river Tisa eastern portion Serbian Banat placed under German occupation along Old Serbia. Portion Vojvodina west Tisa occupied soon annexed Hungarians. Romanian-Hungarian rivalry not only reason retaining Banat under German occupation as also contained some 120,000 ethnic Germans Volksdeutsche valuable economic region. In addition to Tisa other borders Banat were Danube south post-World War I Yugoslav-Romanian Yugoslav-Hungarian borders north east. An area eastern Syrmia initially included occupied territory military economic reasons especially given Belgrade airport radio station located there. Number Volksdeutsche living area along role providing food Belgrade factors original decision. During early period border between occupied territory NDH ran villages Slankamen Danube Boljevci Sava. However after pressure NDH supported German ambassador Zagreb Siegfried Kasche gradually transferred NDH control approval Military Commander Serbia became formal part NDH the 10th of October 1941 forming Zemun Stara Pazova districts Vuka County NDH.

• 7. The Liberation And Aftermath

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  By fall 1944 Eastern Front nearly reached territory. Most Serbia liberated from Germans over course Belgrade Offensive carried out Red Army Yugoslav Partisans Bulgarian forces. With onset Belgrade Offensive administration evacuated Serbia Vienna October 1944. The puppet governments established Germans little more subsidiary organs German occupation authorities looking after some administration territory sharing blame brutal rule Germans. They had no international standing even within Axis. Their powers quite limited beginning further reduced time frustrating difficult Nedić particular. Despite ambitions Nedić government establish independent state area remained subordinated German military authorities until end existence. Real power rested administration's Military Commanders controlled both German armed forces Serb collaborationist forces. In 1941 administration's Military Commander Franz Böhme responded guerrilla attacks German forces carrying out German policy towards partisans that 100 people killed each German killed 50 people killed each wounded German. First set reprisals massacres Kragujevac Kraljevo by Wehrmacht. These proved counterproductive German forces aftermath ruined possibility gaining substantial numbers Serbs support collaborationist regime Nedić. Additionally discovered Kraljevo Serbian workforce group building airplanes Axis forces among victims. Massacres caused Nedić urge arbitrary shooting Serbs stopped Böhme agreed ordered halt executions until further notice. Ratio 100 executions one soldier killed 50 executions one soldier wounded reduced half February 1943 removed altogether later year. After war several key German Serbian leaders Territory tried executed war crimes. Milan Nedić died custody Belgrade 1946 awaiting trial treason.