In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became an independent communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Under UN supervision the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. - US CIA World Factbook

The History of Croatia 1918 to 1946

On December 1st 1918, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was proclaimed by the Treaty of Versailles to unite the Slavic people of the Balkans. Part of this new Kingdom was Croatia, a former part of Austria-Hungary. Since the Croats fought with the Empire during WW1 against the Serbs, there was little love between them. Resentment of the Versailles settlement brought resistance by the Croats. Civil conflict brought about the fall of the country's constitution in 1929, and the establishment of a virtual dictatorship by the King. The country was then renamed Yugoslavia (meaning roughly: All Slav Nation or Pan Slav Nation).

A Croatian separatist group was immediately formed called the Ustasha (meaning roughly translated as Rebel or Upriser) under the leadership of Lawyer Dr. Ante Pavelic. The Ustasha demanded an independent homeland for the Croatian people. The movement received assistance from Italy and Hungary. The Ustasha organized against the Yugoslav government, and began a terrorist campaign of bombing and killing. In 1934, with the help of Macedonian anti-Yugoslav terrorists, they murdered King Alexander.

Germany invaded Yugoslavia on April 6th 1941. Most of the population of Croatia greeted the Germans as liberators. While loyalist forces were fighting in Belgrade, the Ustasha, on April 10th 1941, announced in Zagreb the formation of the State of Croatia with Ante Pavelic as the head of state. On April 11th 1941, an order created a home defense force (Hrvstako Dombranstvo) consisting of an Army, Navy, Airforce, and Police. The force was largely officered by former members of the Yugoslavian army. By November 1941 six divisions were formed and this would expand to sixteen by the end of the war. The Ustasha Party formed an armed force along the lines of the German SS that was to earn a similar reputation for brutality. Croatia depended heavily on its wealthier Axis partners for military assistance. Even Finland contributed surplus army uniforms which Croatian army was happy to receive. Croatian military forces and volunteers (Croats that joined foreign armies) fought largely in the east against the Russians and at home against Tito's Communist Partisans.

On May 6th 1945, the Croatian government fled the Croatian capitol of Zagreb. Almost 200,000 Croatian soldiers retreated to Austria (no doubt to evade the Russians). In Austria, various Croatian units surrendered to the British between May 15th and May 17th 1945, thus having the distinction of being the last European Axis army to surrender. Forces of this nation were considered highly unreliable by it's AXIS partners due to high desertion rate.

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Renault FT-17

No information.

Polish TK3
Polish TK3

The 5000 man national police force (Redarstevna Straza) was absorbed into the Ustasha in June, 1942. A year later, it was transferred into the regular army. Throughout their history they used Polish tankettes. The exact number and mark of these vehicles is not known however.

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Austrian ADGZ Armored Car

No information.

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Polish wz.34 Armored Car

No information.

Ustashas, the one in the black uniform is a member of the Black Legion (1st and 5th Ustasha brigades) - Photo kindly supplied by M.I.M. Miholek---Domobran unit in Zagreb - Photo kindly supplied by M.I.M. Miholek
Italian CV33/35

In 1941 the Poglavnik Bodyguard Battalion, based in Zagreb, had 10 of these tankettes.

German Panzer III ausf. N
German Panzer III ausf. N

The Germans supplied the Croatian Armed Forces with about two dozen of these tanks in late 1943. Almost all of this armored vehicles was taken by Ustasha Units.

German Panzer IV ausf. F1---ustasha soldiers in Domobran uniforms with Ustasha caps and insignia talking to German officer sometime between 1944-45 - Photo kindly supplied by M.I.M. Miholek
German Panzer IV ausf. F1

Ten units were supplied by the Germans in late 1944.

German Panzer IV ausf. G
German Panzer IV ausf. G

Five units were supplied by the Germans in late 1944.

British Matilda II
British Matilda II

At one point the Croatian Motorised Legion served in Russia. During the battles around the Kharkov area they captured a British Matilda II Infantry tank.

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German Sdkfz-251 armored half-track

Fifteen units supplied by the Germans in late 1944.


Armored Train

There was at least one armored train which mounted French Somua S35 turrets.

General Stanzer
General Stanzer

Commander of the Croatian military forces during WW2. This picture was taken during a visit to a Bosnian regiment.

People who helped to make this page possible

Steven Guy
Author of
Thunder and Steel

M.I.M. Miholek
Author of
The Croatian Home Defence Army in History

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Last Update: Thursday, February 13, 2003