5th Division (Yugoslav Partisans)

Last updated • 6 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia
5th Krajina Division
Flag of Yugoslavia (1943-1946).svg
Flag of Democratic Federal Yugoslavia (used by the Partisans)
Active1942–1945
Country Democratic Federal Yugoslavia
Branch Yugoslav Partisan Army
Type Infantry
Size Division
Part of 1st Bosnian Corps (1 November 1942 – mid-October 1943)
1st Corps (mid-October 1943 – 1945)
Engagements World War II in Yugoslavia
Commanders
Notable
commanders		 Slavko Rodić
Milutin Morača

The 5th Krajina Division (Serbo-Croatian Latin: Peta krajiška divizija) was a Yugoslav Partisan division formed in Glamočko polje on 9 November 1942.

Contents

It was divided into three brigades on the day of formation: the 1st Krajina Brigade, the 4th Krajina Brigade, and the 7th Krajina Brigade. The division was commanded by Slavko Rodić, while its political commissar was Ilija Došen. It was a part of the 1st Bosnian Corps until mid-October 1943 when it became a part of the 1st Corps. The division fought against Germans, Independent State of Croatia (NDH) and Chetniks in Bosnia, Serbia and Croatia.

On March 7, 1943, the Seventh Brigade was excluded from the division, and the Tenth Krajina Strike Brigade was attached to the division. From November 1943 to February 1944, the division included the Garibaldi Division, composed of Italians. From September 20 to the end of October 1944, the division included the 21st Serbian Brigade, and from December 12, 1944, the Yugoslav Brigade, formed in the Soviet Union. On November 30, 1944, the Artillery Brigade became also part of the Fifth Krajina Division.

Formation of the division

On 9 November 1942, by a Supreme Commander Josip Broz Tito's order, the 5th Krajina Division was formed with Slavko Rodić as its commander. The division was formed from three brigades: the 1st Krajina Brigade, the 4th Krajina Brigade and the 7th Krajina Brigade. [1] The 5th Division was subordinated to 1st Bosnian Corps upon its formation. [2]

Operations

Attack on Sanski Most

First action undertaken by the 5th Division as a whole was an attack on Sanski Most, strategically important town in Bosnanska Krajina. In order to carry out this attack, Staff of the 5th Division brought all of its brigades to the village Donja Kozica  [ sh ] near Sanski Most on 5 December 1942. At that time, the 1st Krajina Brigade was participating in the battles at Bosanski Novi which it left in order to conduct a forced march to Donja Kozica, while the 4th Krajina Brigade and one battalion of the 7th Krajina Brigade were located nearby Donja Kozica so they had no trouble arriving there. On 6 December, Staff of the 1st Bosnian Corps ordered an attack on Sanski Most by the 4th and 5th Divisions. [3] It was planned that attack should commence on 10 December at 23:00, with two brigades of 4th Division and two brigades and one battalion of the 5th Division taking part in it. The 4th Division was tasked with capturing part of the town on the west side of the Sana river, while the 5th Division was to capture part of the town on the east side of the river as well as the nearby villages. [4]

The 4th Division began the attack at the planned time, capturing garrisons on the west side of Sanski Most, however 5th Division commenced its attack two hours later than planned. This delay was caused by the choice of the unit to move in one column in order to covertly approach village of Kijevo, southeast of Sanski Most. The 2nd Battalion of the 4th Brigade together with 2nd Brigade of the 4th Division attacked part of Sanski Most east of Sana, capturing several bunkers, gendarmerie station and the town hospital during the night. [4] In the morning of 11 December, German reinforcements arrived to the town center from where they conducted a successful counteroffensive which pushed all Partisan units from the town by the afternoon. Following skirmishes for the villages nearby Sanski Most in which 4th Brigade captured Kijevo and 7th Brigade failed to capture Sasina, Staff of the 1st Bosnian Corps ordered the units to stop fighting and rest until 22:00 that day, when they were to attempt to capture Sanski Most again. [5]

The 4th Brigade successfully captured village of Čaplje but Partisan units were again unsuccessful in their attempt to capture Sanski Most. Staff of the 1st Bosnian Corps decided that the units should, for a third time, attempt to capture Sanski Most on 13 December at 23:00. In the evening of 13 December, part of the 7th Brigade captured Sasina but it was decided that 5th Division shouldn't participate in the final attempt to capture Sanski Most which was once again unsuccessful. During the battles for Sanski Most and nearby villages, the 5th Division killed or wounded 290 and captured 241 enemy soldiers. It also captured 257 rifles, 6 submachine guns, 2 mortars and lot of ammunition. The division suffered losses of 67 killed, 4 missing and 122 wounded. [6]

Further operations in Bosanska Krajina

After failing to capture Sanski Most, Staff of the 1st Bosnian Corps decided to blockade enemy garrison in the town. Two battalions of the 1st Krajina Brigade blockaded Sanski Most on the east side of Sana river. One of the 1st Brigade's battalions together with one battalion of the 4th Krajina Brigade held Sanski Most–Prijedor railway near the village of Mitrovići, while most of the 4th Brigade was directed to Bronzani Majdan. The 7th Krajina Brigade fought against Chetniks in the area between the villages of Stričići and Vilusi. [7] During the blockade of Sanski Most, units of the 5th Division participated in several smaller battles. On 15 December 1942, two battalions of the 4th Brigade repulsed an attack on Sasina. Two days later, units at Sanski Most–Prijedor railway conducted an ambush on a train carrying enemy soldiers whom they forced to retreat after heavy fighting. [7]

On 18 December, German and Home Guard force of 400–500 men unsuccessfully attacked units of the 5th Division positioned on the railway, after repulsing the attack the units conducted a counteroffensive in which they captured villages of Rakelići, Gaćani and Miljakovci (7 km south of Prijedor). On 25 December, two battalions of the 4th Brigade, entered Bronzani Majdan without fighting as Home Guard soldiers garrisoned in the village fled north to avoid a battle. One battalion of the 4th Brigade destroyed all the bridges on Gomjenica river during 2–6 January. Two days later, 4th Brigade conducted an anti–Chetnik operation in the villages of Kmećani, Vilusi, Pervan and Goleši. [7] In mid–January, German forces defeated 1st Krajina Brigade which was blocking the railway towards Sanski Most, forcing it to retreat south. Germans brought more forces to various garrisons in North Bosnia which preluded a large–scale anti–Partisan operation named Case White. [8]

Case White

On 19 January 1943, a day before the Case White began, units of the 5th Division were stationed in the villages between German–held Sanski Most and Partisan–held Ključ. [9] On the next day, German 749th Regiment of the 717th Infantry Division, supported by Luftwaffe, crossed river Sana and defeated two battalions of the 5th Division at the village of Vrhpolje but its further advance on that day was repulsed. [10] [11]

Later operations

During 1943, the division carried out several successful attacks, among which the capture of Kakanj in June and the attack on Rajlovac Airport in August stand out.

During December 1943, the division waged heavy maneuvering battles against units of the 5th SS Corps during Operation Kugelblitz in eastern Bosnia.

Units of the 5th Krajina Division cross the River Vrbanju, May 1943. Peta krajiska divizija.jpg
Units of the 5th Krajina Division cross the River Vrbanju, May 1943.

From March to May 1944, she took part in the advance through Serbia, and then in the fights against the Germans, Chetniks and the Muslim Legion in Sandzak and eastern Bosnia. From the beginning of August 1944, the Fifth Krajina Division fought under the direct command of the Main Staff of the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Serbia in the battle of Kopaonik and the battles in the valley of the West Morava. From October 1944 to April 1945 it participated in the battles on the Syrmian Front. On January 17, 1945, during an offensive strike by the German 34th Army Corps, the division suffered heavy losses, and some of its units were defeated. During April 1945, it participated in the breakthrough of the Syrmian Front and the liberation of Slavonski Brod.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Case White</span> 1943 Axis offensive in Yugoslavia

Case White, also known as the Fourth Enemy Offensive, was a combined Axis strategic offensive launched against the Yugoslav Partisans throughout occupied Yugoslavia during World War II. It was one of the most significant confrontations of World War II in Yugoslavia. The offensive took place in early 1943, between 20 January and mid-to-late March. The Axis operation prompted the Partisan Supreme Command to enact its plans to drive toward eastern Herzegovina, Sandžak and Montenegro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Case Black</span> Battle during World War II

Case Black, also known as the Fifth Enemy Offensive in Yugoslav historiography and often identified with its final phase, the Battle of the Sutjeska was a joint attack by the Axis taking place from 15 May to 16 June 1943, which aimed to destroy the main Yugoslav Partisan force, near the Sutjeska river in south-eastern Bosnia. The failure of the offensive marked a turning point for Yugoslavia during World War II. It was also the last major German-Italian joint operation against the partisans.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sanski Most</span> Town and municipality in Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sanski Most is a town and municipality located in the Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of the Sana River in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina, in the region of Bosanska Krajina, between Prijedor and Ključ. As of 2013, it has a population of 41,475 inhabitants.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation Rösselsprung (1944)</span> German military operation

Operation Rösselsprung was a combined airborne and ground assault by the German XV Mountain Corps and collaborationist forces on the Supreme Headquarters of the Yugoslav Partisans in the Bosnian town of Drvar in the Independent State of Croatia during World War II. It was launched 25 May 1944, with the goal of capturing or killing Partisan leader Marshal Josip Broz Tito and destroying the headquarters, support facilities and co-located Allied military missions. It is associated with the Seventh Enemy Offensive in Yugoslav history, forming part of the Seven Enemy Offensives historiographical framework. The airborne assault itself is also known as the Raid on Drvar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Oštra Luka</span> Village and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Oštra Luka is a village and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, the municipality has a population of 2,786 inhabitants, with 782 in Oštra Luka itself.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Kozara Offensive</span> 1942 battle in northwestern Bosnia

The Kozara Offensive, also known as Operation Ksaver was a large-scale German-led counter-insurgency operation against the Yugoslav Partisans in the Bosnian mountain region of Kozara in the Independent State of Croatia during World War II. It was launched on 10 June 1942, with the goal to encircle and destroy the Partisans who were operating in the Kozara mountain region near Banja Luka, which threatened German access to the Belgrade-Zagreb railway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Lijevče Field</span> World War II battle in Yugoslavia

The Battle of Lijevče Field was fought between 30 March and 8 April 1945 between the Croatian Armed Forces and Chetnik forces on the Lijevče field near Banja Luka in what was then the Independent State of Croatia (NDH).

Operation Sana was the final military offensive of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina in western Bosnia and Herzegovina and the last major battle of the Bosnian War. It was launched from the area of Bihać on 13 September 1995, against the Army of Republika Srpska, and involved advances towards Bosanski Petrovac, Sanski Most and Bosanska Krupa. At the same time, the Croatian Army and the Croatian Defence Council were engaging the VRS in Operation Maestral 2 further to the southeast. After an initial 70-kilometre (43 mi) advance, VRS reinforcements managed to stop the ARBiH short of Sanski Most and Novi Grad, and reversed some of the ARBiH's territorial gains in a counterattack. After a part of the ARBiH 5th Corps was threatened with defeat around the town of Ključ, the ARBiH requested assistance from the HV.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">5th Corps (Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina)</span> Military unit

The 5th Corps was one of seven corps of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The formation was around the Bihać pocket to protect it against the surrounding Serb forces. The Fifth Corps also fought secessional Bosniak forces loyal to Fikret Abdić, who was cooperating with Serb forces. In the last military action of the ARBiH, Operation Sana, the corps defeated Abdić's supporters and brought a number of regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina under government control. In April 2018, police detained Atif Dudaković and 12 others on suspicion of committing crimes against humanity during the Bosnian war. The court process is still ongoing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Belgrade offensive</span> 1944 Second World War battle

The Belgrade offensive or the Belgrade strategic offensive operation was a military operation during World War II in Yugoslavia in which Belgrade was liberated from the German Wehrmacht through the joint efforts of the Soviet Red Army, Yugoslav Partisans, and the Bulgarian Army. Soviet forces and local militias launched separate but loosely cooperative operations that undermined German control of Belgrade and ultimately forced a retreat. Martial planning was coordinated evenly among command leaders, and the operation was largely enabled through tactical cooperation between Josip Broz Tito and Joseph Stalin that began in September 1944. These martial provisions allowed Bulgarian forces to engage in operations throughout Yugoslav territory, which furthered tactical success while increasing diplomatic friction.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mladen Stojanović</span> Serbian partisan and physician

Mladen Stojanović was a Bosnian Serb and Yugoslav physician who led a detachment of Partisans on and around Mount Kozara in northwestern Bosnia during World War II in Yugoslavia. He was posthumously bestowed the Order of the People's Hero.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">373rd (Croatian) Infantry Division</span> German army infantry division

The 373rd (Croatian) Infantry Division was a division of the German Army during World War II. It was formed in June 1943 using a brigade from the Home Guard of the Independent State of Croatia with the addition of a German cadre. The division was commanded by Germans down to battalion and even company level in nearly all cases, and was commonly referred to as a "legionnaire division". Originally formed with the intention of service on the Eastern Front, it was used instead for anti-Partisan operations in the territory of the NDH until the end of the war. It fought mainly in the western areas of the NDH, and was involved in the attempt to kill or capture the leader of the Partisans, Josip Broz Tito, in May 1944. Severely depleted by desertion, the division withdrew towards the Reich border in the early months of 1945, eventually surrendering to the Partisans on 10 May 1945 near Brežice in modern-day Slovenia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Knin</span>

The battle of Knin was a major Yugoslav Partisan operation during World War II in Yugoslavia launched by the 8th Dalmatian Corps from 7 November to 9 December 1944 with the purpose of destroying German, Ustaše and Chetnik formations in North Dalmatia and the city of Knin, then part of the Independent State of Croatia. It was the final part of the 8th Corps offensive for the liberation of Dalmatia which began on 12 September 1944. The Knin operation had three phases: Initial battles on approaches to Knin from 7 November to 25 November, main battle and liberation of Knin from 26 November to 4 December, and final battles and pursuit of retreating Axis forces to Otrić in Lika from 5 December to 9 December.

Operation Southern Move was the final Croatian Army (HV) and Croatian Defence Council (HVO) offensive of the Bosnian War. It took place in western Bosnia and Herzegovina on 8–11 October 1995. Its goal was to help the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (ARBiH) whose positions around the town of Ključ, captured by them during Operation Sana, were endangered by a counteroffensive by the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS). The objectives of Operation Southern Move included the capture of the town of Mrkonjić Grad and positions on the Manjača Mountain which would allow the HV and the HVO to directly threaten Banja Luka, the largest city controlled by Bosnian Serbs. Finally, the offensive was also aimed at capturing the Bočac Hydroelectric Power Station, the last significant source of electricity under VRS control in western Bosnia and Herzegovina. The combined HV and HVO forces were under the overall command of HV Major General Ante Gotovina.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Partisan Long March</span> Milirary maneuver in World War II

The Partisan Long March was the redeployment of Josip Broz Tito's Partisan Supreme Headquarters and the major fighting elements of the Yugoslav Partisans across the Independent State of Croatia, from south-eastern to north-western Bosnia that commenced in late June 1942. The march followed the first large-scale joint German-Italian counter-insurgency operation in the NDH, Operation Trio, and the combined Italian-Montenegrin Chetnik offensive in Montenegro and eastern Herzegovina.

Mile Mećava was a Yugoslav Partisan and a hero from World War II.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1st Krajina Corps</span> Military unit

1st Krajina Corps was one of the seven corps of the Army of Republika Srpska (VRS). Before implementation into the Army of Republika Srpska, the corps was known as 5th Corps of Yugoslav People's Army or Banja Luka Corps. It was because of this fact that it was successor of the infrastructure, organization and most of the equipment. The main task of the corps was to defend western parts of the Republika Srpska, today however these areas are mostly part of Banja Luka region. It was the most numbered corps of VRS with between 51,000 and 60,000 soldiers. During the War in Bosnia and Herzegovina 6,997 died, 27,176 wounded and 1,031 soldiers have been missing.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bihać operation</span> A military operation

The Bihać operation was a military operation conducted by Yugoslav partisans against the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) and Nazi Germany during World War II. The aim of the operation was to capture Bihać and the surrounding towns to connect Partisan held areas in Bosanska Krajina, and Knisnka Krajina. The battle for the city of Bihać lasted from 2 November to 4 November 1942. After capturing the city, the partisans continued to fight in surrounding areas until 15 November. The operation resulted in a major Partisan victory, with Bihać and the surrounding areas being captured, and the NDH suffering significant casualties.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">6th Division (Yugoslav Partisans)</span> Yugoslav Partisan military division formed in 1942

The 6th Proletarian Assault Lika Division "Nikola Tesla" was a Yugoslav Partisan division formed on 22 November 1942. It was formed from the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd Lika Brigades. On 11 November 1943, it became part of the 4th Corps and later a part of the 1st Corps. It operated in Dalmatia until November 1943 when it crossed into Bosnia, later it fought in Serbia and on the Syrmian Front. From October 1944, the 22nd Serbian Kosmaj Brigade also fought as part of the division, and in December 1944 an Artillery Brigade was formed within the division.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Operation "Breza '94"</span> Military operation during the Bosnian War

Operation "Breza 94" was the official codename for the military offensive conducted by the 1st Krajina Corps of the VRS in September 1994 in Bosanska Krajina. The objective of the offensive was the breaking of the 5th Corps and the conquest of Bosanska Krajina. The offensive ended in VRS defeat with the ARBiH capturing 20 square kilometers previously held by Serbs.

References

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Morača 1985, p. 6.
  2. ↑ Morača 1985, p. 12.
  3. ↑ Morača 1985, p. 16.
  4. 1 2 Morača 1985, p. 17–18.
  5. ↑ Morača 1985, p. 19.
  6. ↑ Morača 1985, p. 20–21.
  7. 1 2 3 Morača 1985, p. 23.
  8. ↑ Morača 1985, p. 25.
  9. ↑ Morača 1985, p. 27.
  10. ↑ Hotić 1971, p. 275.
  11. ↑ Morača 1985, p. 29.

Sources

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.