Lehre is a municipality in the district of Helmstedt , in Lower Saxony , Germany . The current population is 11,539 and is situated approximately 13 km (8.1 mi) southwest of Wolfsburg , and 12 km (7.5 mi) Braunschweig .
83-640: The municipality received the name of Lehre on June 10, 888 and is made up of eight surrounding villages. They are Beienrode, Essehof, Essenrode, Flechtorf, Groß Brunsrode, Klein Brunsrode, Lehre, and Wendhausen with Lehre being the largest. In 1934, construction began on the Army Ammunition Institute in the Kampstüh Forest 2.4 km (1.5 mi) east Lehre. More than 100 buildings on 225 hectares (556 acres) were constructed and
166-633: A Slovene, formed themselves into a Yugoslav Committee , with a view to creating a South Slav state in the aftermath of World War I. They saw this as a way to prevent Dalmatia being ceded to Italy under the Treaty of London (1915) . In 1918, the National Council of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs sent a delegation to the Serbian monarch to offer unification of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs with
249-611: A coalition with the Croatian Peasant Party. On 20 June 1928, Stjepan Radić and four other Croat deputies were shot while in the Belgrade parliament by a member of the Serbian People's Radical Party . Three of the deputies, including Radić, died. The outrage that resulted from the assassination of Stjepan Radić threatened to destabilise the kingdom. In January 1929, King Alexander responded by proclaiming
332-589: A few days of the creation of the NDH, Croatian workers were requisitioned by the Reich for cheap forced labour and slave labour. From 1942 onward, German and Croat authorities cooperated more closely in deporting "unwanted" Croats and Serbs to concentration camps in the Reich and Norway for forced labour, such people were to be rounded up and deported by the General Plenipotentiary for Labour Deployment to
415-531: A number of factors, including that Italy held the economically valuable portion of that territory within its possession while the northern Adriatic coast had no important railways or roads and because a larger annexation would have included hundreds of thousands of Slavs who were hostile to Italy, within its national borders. Italy intended to keep the NDH within its sphere of influence by forbidding it to build any significant navy. Italy only permitted small patrol boats to be used by NDH forces. This policy forbidding
498-517: A recognized territory of Italy since 1920 and long an object of Croatian irredentism, but Germany did not allow it. Geographically, the NDH encompassed most of modern-day Croatia , all of Bosnia and Herzegovina , part of modern-day Serbia , and a small portion of modern-day Slovenia in the Municipality of Brežice . It bordered Nazi Germany to the north-west, the Kingdom of Hungary to
581-456: A royal dictatorship, under which all dissenting political activity was banned and the state was renamed the "Kingdom of Yugoslavia". The Ustaša was created in principle in 1929. One consequence of Alexander's 1929 proclamation and the repression and persecution of Croatian nationalists was a rise of support for the Croatian extreme nationalist, Ante Pavelić , who had been a Zagreb deputy in
664-550: Is documented to have joined the Partisans). By 11 September 1943, NDH foreign minister Mladen Lorković received word from German consul Siegfried Kasche that the NDH should wait before moving on Istria. Germany's central government had already annexed Istria and Fiume ( Rijeka ) into the Operational Zone Adriatic Coast a day earlier. Međimurje and southern Baranja were annexed (occupied) by
747-846: The Albanian Kingdom was invaded by Italy and became the Italian protectorate of Albania . It participated in the Greco-Italian War in 1940, under Italian command. After the Italian armistice in 1943, German military forces entered Albania and it came under German occupation . Albanian troops were mostly equipped by Italians, and Albanian partisans used weapons from various sources. The Second Australian Imperial Force that served in Mediterranean and Middle East and Pacific theatre Before being conquered by Germany,
830-615: The Battles of Khalkhin Gol in 1939 The weaponry used by Royal Netherlands Army up to 1940 and colonial troops of Royal Netherlands East Indies Army (KNIL) up 1942. After occupation Dutch government continued in exile . Free Dutch Forces were equipped by Western Allies - Mainly British Commonwealth. The 2nd New Zealand Expeditionary Force that served in Africa , Mediterranean and Pacific theatre Weapons used by Norwegian Army during
913-586: The Belgian Army used their own equipment up to 1940. Free Belgian forces were equipped by UK, however colonial troops of Force Publique in East Africa had to use outdated weaponry. The Brazilian Expeditionary Force , under US command, served in Italy from 1944. The State of Burma was a puppet government set up by Japanese after they occupied Burma in 1942 . It lasted from 1943 to March 1945 when
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#1732782830837996-644: The Brunswick State Railway Company completed the Schunter Valley Railway in 1904, connecting Braunschweig with Fallersleben . This line officially ceased operation in 1998 following the opening of the Weddel loop which connected Wolfsburg and Braunschweig, bypassing Lehre. List of secondary and special-issue World War II infantry weapons#Germany This is a list of World War II infantry weapons . In 1939,
1079-749: The Burma National Army revolted and joined the allies. Weaponry used by Canadian Army that fought on the side of the Allies During the Second World War Canada produced grenades types with Numbers 36 and from 67 to 89. Weapons used by the National Revolutionary Army , as well as Communist forces and Chinese warlords. Chinese Forces also received a large amount of equipment from Lend-Lease during Burma campaign . Independent State of Croatia
1162-798: The Eastern Front . Italy, however, rejected the offer as it did not believe that it could on its own handle the unstable situation in the Balkans. After the ousting of Mussolini and the Kingdom of Italy's armistice with the Allies , Tomislav II abdicated from his Croatian throne: the NDH on 10 September 1943 declared that the Treaties of Rome were null and void and annexed the portion of Dalmatia that had been ceded to Italy. The NDH attempted to annex Zara (modern-day Zadar , Croatia), which had been
1245-463: The Italian capitulation on 8 September 1943, the state was a territorial condominium of Germany and Italy. "Thus on 15 April 1941, Pavelić came to power, albeit a very limited power, in the new Ustasha state under the umbrella of German and Italian forces. On the same day German Führer Adolf Hitler and Italian Duce Benito Mussolini granted recognition to the Croatian state and declared that their governments would be glad to participate with
1328-503: The Kingdom of Serbia . The leader of the Croatian Peasant Party , Stjepan Radić , warned on their departure for Belgrade that the council had no democratic legitimacy. But a new state, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes , was duly proclaimed on 1 December 1918, with no heed taken of legal protocols such as the signing of a new Pacta conventa in recognition of historic Croatian state rights. Croats were at
1411-736: The Norwegian campaign in 1940. Norwegian resistance movement used weapons from various sources, Commandos primarily used British equipment. Norwegian police troops in Sweden were recruited from refugees and trained in secret camps by Swedish military and used Swedish equipment, they originally intended to help maintain order in a post-war Norway however they partially participated in Liberation of Finnmark Weaponry used by Philippine Army in Commonwealth period. Philippine Army mainly used
1494-684: The Royal Yugoslav Army ( Jugoslavenska Vojska ), the country was occupied by Axis forces. The Axis powers offered Vladko Maček the opportunity to form a government, since Maček and his party, the Croatian Peasant Party (Croatian: Hrvatska seljačka stranka – HSS ) had the greatest electoral support among Yugoslavia's Croats – but Maček refused that offer. On 10 April 1941 the German army took control in Zagreb. With their support, retired lieutenant-colonel Slavko Kvaternik , deputy leader of
1577-732: The 1941 split between the Partisans and the Chetniks in Serbia, the Chetnik groups in central, eastern and northwestern Bosnia found themselves caught between the German and Ustaše (NDH) forces on one side and the Partisans on the other. In early 1942 Chetnik Major Jezdimir Dangić approached the Germans in an attempt to arrive at an understanding, but was unsuccessful, and the local Chetnik leaders were forced to look for another solution. Although
1660-664: The Armed Forces, Slavko Kvaternik, with the less zealous Jure Francetić. Kvaternik was sent into exile in Slovakia – along with his son Eugen , who was blamed for the persecution of the Serbs in Croatia. Before meeting Hitler, to appease the public, Pavelić published an "Important Government Announcement" (»Važna obavijest Vlade«), in which he threatened those who were spreading the news "about non-existent threats of disarmament of
1743-601: The Croatian government in determining its frontiers." In its judgement in the Hostages Trial , the Nuremberg Military Tribunal concluded that NDH was not a sovereign state. According to the Tribunal, "Croatia was at all times here involved an occupied country". In 1942, Germany suggested Italy take military control of all of Croatia out of a desire to redirect German troops from Croatia to
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#17327828308371826-554: The Croatian military commanders. The necessary ammunition and provisions were supplied to the Chetniks by the Ustaše military. Chetniks who were wounded in such operations would be cared for in NDH hospitals, while the orphans and widows of Chetniks killed in action would be supported by the Ustaše state. Persons specifically recommended by Chetnik commanders would be returned home from the Ustaše concentration camps. These agreements covered
1909-875: The East under the USSR were equipped with Soviet equipment, Polish Army in France was equipped with French equipment. Within occupied Poland the Polish resistance forces were equipped with weapons from many sources. Romania joined the Axis Powers in 1940 and the Romanian Royal Army fought on that side until August 1944. After a coup d'état in August 1944 Romania fought alongside the USSR against Germany and Hungary. Weaponry of First Slovak Republic participating in
1992-614: The German Army look responsible for countless crimes which it could not prevent in the past. The Gestapo report to Reichsführer SS Heinrich Himmler , dated 17 February 1942, states: Increased activity of the bands is chiefly due to atrocities carried out by Ustaše units in Croatia against the Orthodox population. The Ustaše committed their deeds in a bestial manner not only against males of conscript age, but especially against helpless old people, women and children. The number of
2075-524: The Independent State of Croatia" both to the state and its Poglavnik (Ante Pavelić). During the next three weeks, three additional agreements were signed, covering a large part of the area of Bosnia (along with the Chetnik detachments within it). By the provision of these agreements, the Chetniks were to cease hostilities against the Ustaše state, and the Ustaše would establish regular administration in these areas. The main provision, Article 5 of
2158-635: The Kingdom of Hungary . NDH disputed this and continued to lay claim to both, naming the administrative province centred in Osijek as Great Parish Baranja . This border was never legislated, although Hungary may have considered the Pacta conventa to be in effect, which delineated the two nation's borders along the Drava river. When compared to the republic borders established in the SFR Yugoslavia after
2241-581: The Kingdoms of Hungary and Italy . German foreign minister Joachim von Ribbentrop approved the NDH acquisition of the Dalmatian territories gained by Italy at the time of the Treaties of Rome. By now, most such territory was actually controlled by the Yugoslav Partisans , since the ceding of those areas had made them strongly anti-NDH (more than one third of the total population of Split
2324-858: The Middle East , these forces were reequipped by UK. Partisans and resistance movement used weapons from various sources but mainly used captured Italian and German weapons from Greco-Italian War and German invasion of Greece , they were also supplied by UK and OSS . Weaponry used by Royal Hungarian Army that fought on the side of the Axis powers The British Indian Army under UK command. Weapons used by Imperial State of Iran during Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran in 1941 Weapons used by Kingdom of Iraq during Anglo-Iraqi War in 1941 Weaponry of Royal Italian Army up to 1943 and National Republican Army from 1943. Weaponry used by Imperial Japanese Armed Forces during World War II. Japan officially joined
2407-612: The NDH was governed as a one-party state by the fascist Ustaše organization. The Ustaše was led by the Poglavnik The regime targeted Serbs , Jews and Roma as part of a large-scale campaign of genocide, as well as anti-fascist or dissident Croats and Bosnian Muslims . According to Stanley G. Payne, "crimes in the NDH were proportionately surpassed only by Nazi Germany, the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia and several of
2490-608: The NDH's armed forces. German anti-Semitic objectives for Croatia were further undermined by Italy's reluctance to adhere to a strict antisemitic policy, which resulted in Jews in Italian-held parts of Croatia avoiding the same persecution facing Jews in German-held eastern Croatia. After Italy abandoned the war in 1943, German forces occupied western Croatia and the NDH annexed the territory ceded to Italy in 1941. Within just
2573-738: The Orthodox that the Croats have massacred and sadistically tortured to death is about three hundred thousand. According to reports by General Glaise-Horstenau, Hitler was angry with Pavelić, whose policy inflamed the rebellion in Croatia, thwarting any prospect of deploying NDH forces on the Eastern Front. Moreover, Hitler was forced to engage large forces of his own to keep the rebellion in check. For that reason, Hitler summoned Pavelić to his war headquarters in Vinnytsia (Ukraine) on 23 September 1942. Consequently, Pavelić replaced his minister of
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2656-551: The Poglavnik ['head-man'] for his inspection or proudly displaying them and other human organs in the cafés of Zagreb." The Nazi regime demanded that the Ustaše adopt antisemitic racial policies, persecute Jews and set up several concentration camps . Pavelic and the Ustaše accepted Nazi demands, but their racial policy focused primarily on eliminating the Serb population. When the Ustaše needed more recruits to help exterminate
2739-426: The Reich ( Arbeitseinsatz ). Between 1941 and 1945, some 200,000 Croatian citizens of the NDH (including ethnic Croats as well as ethnic Serbs with Croatian nationality and Slovenes) were sent to Germany to work as slave and forced labourers, mostly working in mining, agriculture and forestry. It is estimated that 153,000 of these labourers were said to have been "voluntarily" recruited, however in many instances this
2822-610: The Serb population in Croatia. One plan involved an exchange in 1941 between Germany and the NDH, in which 20,000 Catholic Slovenes would be deported from German-held Slovenia and sent to the NDH where they would be assimilated as Croats. In exchange, 20,000 Serbs would be deported from the NDH and sent to the German-occupied territory of Serbia. On the meeting with Hitler on 6 June 1941 in Salzburg , Pavelić agreed to receive 175,000 deported Slovenes. The agreement provided that
2905-457: The Serbs, the state broke away from Nazi antisemitic policy by promising honorary Aryan citizenship, and, thus, freedom from persecution, to Jews who were willing to fight for the NDH. As this was the only legal means allowing Jews to escape persecution, a number of Jews joined the NDH's armed forces. This aggravated the German SS, which claimed that the NDH let 5,000 Jews survive via service in
2988-633: The Serbs. German military officials thought that Serbs could be rallied to fight against the Partisans. Hitler disagreed with his commanders, but pointed out to Pavelić that the NDH could create a completely Croat state only if it followed a constant policy of persecution of the non-Croat population for at least fifty years. The NDH was never fully sovereign, but it was a puppet state that enjoyed greater autonomy than any other regime in German-occupied Europe . As early as 10 July 1941, Wehrmacht General Edmund Glaise von Horstenau reported
3071-534: The Slovenes to Croatia, they were also deported to Serbia. In total, about 300,000 Serbs had been deported or fled from the NDH to Serbia by the end of World War II. The atrocities committed by the Ustaše stunned observers; Brigadier Sir Fitzroy Maclean , Chief of the British military mission to the Partisans, commented "Some Ustaše collected the eyes of Serbs they had killed, sending them, when they had enough, to
3154-590: The Ustasha regime." Decrees enacted by the regime allowed it to get rid of all 'unwanted' employees in state and local government and in state enterprises. The 'unwanted' (being all Jews, Serbs, and Yugoslav-oriented Croats) were all thrown out except for some deemed specifically needed by the government. This left a multitude of jobs to be filled by Ustashas and pro-Ustasha adherents and led to government jobs being filled by people with no professional qualifications. Mussolini and Ante Pavelić had close relations prior to
3237-407: The Ustashe units by representatives of one foreign power, about the Croatian Army replacement by a foreign army, about the possibility that a foreign power would seize the power in Croatia [...] " General Glaise-Horstenau reported: "The Ustaše movement is, due to the mistakes and atrocities they have committed and the corruption, so compromised that the government executive branch (the home guard and
3320-479: The Ustaše and Chetniks were rival nationalists (Croatian and Serbian), they found a common enemy in the Partisans, and thwarting Partisan advances became the overriding reason for the collaboration which ensued between the Ustaše authorities of the Independent State of Croatia and Chetnik detachments in Bosnia. The first formal agreement between Bosnian Chetniks and the Ustaše was concluded on 28 May 1942, in which Chetnik leaders expressed their loyalty as "citizens of
3403-469: The Ustaše and supported the NDH claims to annex the Adriatic Coast in order reduce Italy's planned territorial gains. Nevertheless, Italy annexed a significant central portion of Dalmatia and various Adriatic Islands. This was not what had been agreed with Pavelić prior to the invasion; Italy had expected to annex all of Dalmatia as part of its irredentist claims. Hitler sparred with his army commanders over what policy should be undertaken in Croatia regarding
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3486-417: The Ustaše, declared the creation of the Independent State of Croatia (Nezavisna Država Hrvatska – NDH) "in the name of Croats and the header [ sic ] (poglavnik) Ante Pavelić". A few days later on 15 April 1941, Ante Pavelić returned to Zagreb from exile in Italy, and on 16 April 1941 he took power as the State Leader, or the "Leader" (Poglavnik), holding the office of prime minister. Acceding to
3569-417: The Yugoslav parliament, He was later implicated in Alexander's assassination in 1934, went into exile in Italy and gained support for his vision of liberating Croatia from Serb control and racially "purifying" Croatia. While residing in Italy, Pavelić and other Croatian exiles planned the Ustaša insurgency. Following the attack of the Axis powers on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1941, and the quick defeat of
3652-575: The Yugoslavs rightfully deserved the territory in question. Italian nationalists were enraged. Italian nationalist Gabriele D'Annunzio raided Fiume (which held a mixed population of Croats and Italians) and proclaimed it part of the Italian Regency of Carnaro . D'Annunzio declared himself " Duce " of Carnaro and his blackshirted revolutionaries held control over the town. D'Annunzio was known for engaging in passionate speeches aimed to draw Croatian nationalists to support his actions and to oppose Yugoslavia. Croatian nationalists, such as Pavelić, opposed
3735-436: The agreement, states as follows: As long as there is danger from the Partisan armed bands, the Chetnik formations will cooperate voluntarily with the Croatian military in fighting and destroying the Partisans and in those operations they will be under the overall command of the Croatian armed forces. [...] Chetnik formations may engage in operations against the Partisans on their own, but this they will have to report, on time, to
3818-443: The area was liberated by the United States' 5th Armored Division and the Army Ammunition Institute was occupied without a fight. In mid 1945, the area was handed over to British troops who had a local presence until 1951. Today, many original buildings still remain standing and some are still in use. Lehre is located on State Road ( Landesstraße ) L295 which provides access to freeways A2 and A39 . Lehre rail service began when
3901-470: The border changes that occurred after World War I. Not only was D'Annunzio's symbolism copied by Mussolini but also D'Annunzio's appeal to Croatian support for the dismantling of Yugoslavia, as a foreign policy approach to Yugoslavia by Mussolini. Pavelić had been in negotiations with Italy since 1927 that included advocating a territory-for-sovereignty swap in which he would tolerate Italy annexing its claimed territory in Dalmatia in exchange for Italy supporting
3984-461: The conflict from 1939 to 1944 on the side of Axis powers. The Union of South Africa serving under UK command. Served in East Africa, North Africa, Madagascar, and Italy. Weaponry used by Red Army during World War II. Commonly used by the United States Marine Corps in the Pacific theater , limited use in Europe. Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia ( Serbo-Croatian : Nezavisna Država Hrvatska , NDH )
4067-435: The conflict in 1941 but was still involved in Second Sino-Japanese War . The Manchukuo Imperial Army served under Japanese Command in Second Sino-Japanese War and during Invasion of Manchuria in 1945. The Inner Mongolian Army served under Japanese Command in Second Sino-Japanese War and during Invasion of Manchuria in 1945. The Mongolian People's Army , under Soviet Command, served in Manchuria in 1945 and in
4150-403: The creation of NDH warships was part of the Italian Fascists' policy of Mare Nostrum (Latin for "Our Sea") in which Italy was to dominate the Mediterranean Sea as the Roman Empire had done centuries earlier. Italian armed forces assisted the Ustaše government in persecuting Serbs. In 1941, Italian forces captured and interned the Serbian Orthodox Bishop Irinej (Đorđević) of Dalmatia . At
4233-433: The crown in opposition to the Italian annexation of the Croat-majority populated region of Dalmatia, annexed as part of the Italian irredentist agenda of creating a Mare Nostrum ("Our Sea"). He later briefly accepted the throne due to pressure from Victor Emmanuel III and was titled Tomislav II of Croatia , but never moved from Italy to reside in Croatia. From the signing of the Treaties of Rome on 18 May 1941 until
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#17327828308374316-630: The crown out of a sense of duty. He never visited the NDH and had no influence over the government, which was dominated by Pavelić. From a strategic perspective, the establishment of the NDH was an attempt by Mussolini and Hitler to pacify the Croats, while reducing the use of Axis resources, which were more urgently needed for Operation Barbarossa . Meanwhile, Mussolini used his long-established support for Croatian independence as leverage to coerce Pavelić into signing an agreement on 18 May 1941 at 12:30, under which central Dalmatia and parts of Hrvatsko primorje and Gorski kotar were ceded to Italy. Under
4399-461: The demands of Benito Mussolini and the Fascist regime in the Kingdom of Italy, Pavelić reluctantly accepted Aimone the 4th Duke of Aosta as a figurehead King of the NDH under his new royal name, Tomislav II. Aosta was not interested in being the figurehead King of Croatia: Upon learning he had been named King of Croatia, he told close colleagues that he thought his nomination was a bad joke by his cousin King Victor Emmanuel III though he accepted
4482-486: The extremely genocidal African regimes." In the territory controlled by the Independent State of Croatia, between 1941 and 1945, there existed 22 concentration camps. The largest camp was Jasenovac . Two camps, Jastrebarsko and Sisak , held only children. The state was officially a monarchy after the signing of the Laws of the Crown of Zvonimir on 15 May 1941. Appointed by Victor Emmanuel III of Italy , Prince Aimone, Duke of Aosta initially refused to assume
4565-458: The following to the German High Command, the Oberkommando der Wehrmacht (OKW): Our troops have to be mute witnesses of such events; it does not reflect well on their otherwise high reputation [...] I am frequently told that German occupation troops would finally have to intervene against Ustaše crimes. This may happen eventually. Right now, with the available forces, I could not ask for such action. Ad hoc intervention in individual cases could make
4648-437: The invasion and occupation of Yugoslavia, Italy annexed numerous Adriatic islands and a portion of Dalmatia, which all combined to become the Italian Governorship of Dalmatia including territory from the provinces of Split , Zadar , and Kotor . Although Italy had initially larger territorial aims that extended from the Velebit mountains to the Albanian Alps , Mussolini decided against annexing further territories due to
4731-438: The new government. The Roman Catholic Church was also openly supportive of the government. According to Maček, the new state was greeted with a "wave of enthusiasm" in Zagreb, often by people "blinded and intoxicated" by the fact that the Nazi Germany had "gift-wrapped their occupation under the euphemistic title of Independent State of Croatia ". But in the villages, Maček wrote, the peasantry believed that "their struggle over
4814-448: The new parish of Sidraga-Ravni Kotari was created. In addition, on 29 October 1943, the Kommissariat of Sušak-Krk (Croatian: Građanska Sušak-Rijeka) was created separately by the Germans to act as a buffer zone between the NDH and RSI in the Fiume area to "perceive the special interests of the local population against the [I]talians" In 1915 a group of political emigres from Austria-Hungary, predominantly Croats but including some Serbs and
4897-424: The north-east, the Serbian administration (a joint German-Serb government) to the east, Montenegro (an Italian protectorate) to the south-east and Fascist Italy along its coastal area. The exact borders of the Independent State of Croatia were unclear when it was established. Approximately one month after its formation, significant areas of Croat-populated territory were ceded to its Axis partners, including
4980-427: The number of Serbs deported from NDH to Serbia could exceed the number of Slovenes received by 30,000. During the talks, Hitler stressed the necessity and desirability of deportations of Slovenes and Serbs, and advised Pavelic that NDH, in order to become stable, should carry on ethnically intolerant policy for the next 50 years. The German occupation forces allowed the expulsion of Serbs to Serbia, but instead of sending
5063-418: The old American equipment from Philippine–American War . In 1941 Philippine Army was placed under command of USAFFE . Before Germany conquered Poland the Polish army was chiefly equipped with weapons of its own making. After the German and Soviet occupation, the Polish government continued in exile . Polish armed forces in the West were equipped by the Western Allies, principally the UK and those formed in
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#17327828308375146-400: The outset politically disadvantaged with the centralized political structure of the kingdom, which was seen as favouring the Serb majority. The political situation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes was fractious and violent. In 1927, the Independent Democratic Party , which represented the Serbs of Croatia , turned its back on the centralist policy of King Alexander and entered into
5229-403: The pan-Yugoslav Partisans led by Josip Broz Tito . The Partisan movement was soon able to control a large percentage of the NDH (and Yugoslavia) and before long the cities of occupied Bosnia and Dalmatia in particular were surrounded by these Partisan-controlled areas, with their garrisons living in a de facto state of siege and constantly trying to maintain control of the rail-links. In 1944,
5312-429: The past 30 years to become masters of their homes and their country had suffered a tremendous setback". On 16 August 1941, the Ustaše Surveillance Service was established, consisting of four departments, the Ustasha Police , the Ustasha Intelligence Service , Ustasha Defense , and Personnel , for the suppression of activities against the Ustasha, the Independent State of Croatia, and the Croatian people. The Service
5395-521: The police) shall be separated from the government – even for the price of breaking any possible connection with the government." Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler is quoted characterizing the Independent State of Croatia as "ridiculous": "our beloved German settlements will be secured. I hope that the area south of Srem will be liberated by [...] the Bosnian division [...] so that we can at least restore partial order in this ridiculous (Croatian) state." The Ustaše gained German support for plans to eliminate
5478-405: The population of Croatia had been sent to the Reich to work, which was higher than the European average. On 22 June 1941, the Sisak Partisan Detachment was formed in Brezovica forest near Sisak ; this was to be celebrated as the first armed resistance unit formed in occupied Yugoslavia during World War II. Croats, Serbs, Bosniaks, and citizens of all nationalities and backgrounds began joining
5561-416: The same agreement, the NDH was restricted to a minimal navy and Italian forces were granted military control of the entire Croatian coastline . After Pavelić signed the agreement, other Croatian politicians rebuked him. Pavelić publicly defended the decision and thanked Germany and Italy for supporting Croatian independence. After refusing leadership of the NDH, Maček called on all to obey and cooperate with
5644-459: The sovereignty of an independent Croatia. In the 1930s, upon Pavelić and the Ustaše being forced into exile by the Yugoslav government, they were offered sanctuary in Italy by Mussolini, who allowed them to use training grounds to prepare for war against Yugoslavia. In exchange for this support, Mussolini demanded that Pavelić agree that Dalmatia would become part of Italy if Italy and the Ustaše successfully waged war on Yugoslavia. Although Dalmatia
5727-566: The territory of the NDH. The Ustaše movement had fewer than 12,000 members when the war started. While the Ustaše's own estimates put the number of their sympathizers even in the early phase at around 40,000. To act against Serbs and Jews with genocidal measures, the Ustase introduced widespread measures that Croats themselves were victim to. Jozo Tomasevich in his book, War and Revolution in Yugoslavia: 1941–1945 , states, "never before in history had Croats been exposed to such legalized administrative, police and judicial brutality and abuse as during
5810-411: The third year of the war in Yugoslavia, Croats formed 61% of the Partisan operational units originating from the Federal State of Croatia . The Federal State of Croatia also had the highest number of detachments and brigades among the federal units, and together with the forces in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Partisan resistance in the NDH made up the majority of the movement's military strength. After
5893-429: The time of its foundation, the state had 22 great parishes, 142 districts, 31 cities and 1006 municipalities. The highest level of administration were the great parishes (Velike župe), each of which was headed by a Grand Župan . After the capitulation of Italy, NDH were permitted by the Germans to annex parts of the areas of Yugoslavia previously occupied by Italy. To accommodate this, parish boundaries were changed and
5976-438: The time of the invasion of Yugoslavia by Nazi Germany, Adolf Hitler was uneasy with Mussolini's agenda of creating a puppet Croatian state, and preferred that areas outside of Italian territorial aims become part of Hungary as an autonomous territory. This would appease Nazi Germany's ally Hungary and its nationalist territorial claims. Germany's position on Croatia changed after its invasion of Yugoslavia in 1941. The invasion
6059-579: The war, the NDH encompassed the whole of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with its non-Croat ( Serb and Bosniak ) majority, as well as some 20 km of Slovenia (the villages of Slovenska Vas , Nova Vas pri Mokricah , Jesenice , Obrežje , and Čedem ) and the whole of Syrmia (part of which was previously in the Danube Banovina ). The Independent State of Croatia had four levels of administrative divisions: great parishes (velike župe), districts (kotari), cities (gradovi) and municipalities (opcine). At
6142-517: The war. Mussolini and Pavelić both despised the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Italy had been promised, in the Treaty of London (1915), that it would receive Dalmatia from Austria-Hungary at the end of World War I. The peace negotiations in 1919, however, influenced by the Fourteen Points proclaimed by US President Woodrow Wilson (1856–1924), called for national self-determination and determined that
6225-588: The weapons listed here, German armed forces also used a wide variety of weapons captured from defeated enemies. Foreign weapons produced under occupation Weaponry used by Hellenic Army during World War II. After World War I Greece received a large quantities of French weaponry. After fall of Greece elements of the Greek Armed Forces that managed to escape to the British-controlled Middle East formed Greek Armed Forces in
6308-625: Was a World War II –era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy . It was established in parts of occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, after the invasion by the Axis powers . Its territory consisted mostly of modern-day Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina , as well as some parts of modern-day Serbia and Slovenia , but also excluded many Croat -populated areas in Dalmatia (until late 1943), Istria , and Međimurje regions (which today are part of Croatia). During its entire existence,
6391-523: Was a largely Croat-populated territory, it had been part of various Italian states, such as the Roman Empire and the Republic of Venice in prior centuries and was part of Italian nationalism 's irredentist claims. In exchange for this concession, Mussolini offered Pavelić the right for Croatia to annex all of Bosnia and Herzegovina, which had only a minority Croat population. Pavelić agreed. After
6474-401: Was a puppet-state established in 1941 after fall of Yugoslavia. Croatian Legion and Light Transport Brigade served on Eastern Front under German and Italian commands. Weaponry used by Czechoslovak armies in exile that served under British and Soviet commands. For weapons used and produced in interwar period by First and Second Czechoslovak Republic see list below. Ethiopian Empire
6557-442: Was connected to the railway system. The Institute produced ammunition for infantry weapons , anti-tank mines , tank shells, artillery guns and .38 cm. Up until February 1945, 6,000 tons of chemical weapons were transported to the institute. It was not bombed during World War II and up until the end war, most of these weapons remained on site. In 1945, the location also housed Russian prisoners of war . On 11 April 1945,
6640-632: Was defeated by Italy in Second Italo-Ethiopian War and became Italian Ethiopia from 1937. Ethiopians continued a guerrilla war as the Arbegnoch until British forces took Italian Ethiopia in 1941 as part of the East African campaign Weaponry used by Finnish Defence Forces during Winter War , Continuation War and Lapland War . Weaponry used by French Army up to 1940 and by French Liberation Army . In addition to
6723-847: Was eliminated as a separate agency in January 1943 and functions were transferred to the Ministry of Interior under the Directorate of Public Order . Dissatisfied with the Pavelić regime in its early months, the Axis Powers in September 1941 asked Maček to take over, but Maček again refused. Perceiving Maček as a potential rival, Pavelić subsequently had him arrested and interned in the Jasenovac concentration camp . The Ustaše initially did not have an army or administration capable of controlling all
6806-559: Was not the case, as the workers that may have initially volunteered were forced to work longer hours and were paid less than their contracts had stipulated, they were also not allowed to return home after their yearly contract had ended, at which point their labour was no longer voluntary, but forced. Forced and slave labour were also conducted in Nazi concentration camps, such as in Buchenwald and Mittelbau-Dora . From 1941 to 1945, 3.8% of
6889-725: Was spearheaded by a strong German invasion force which was largely responsible for the capture of Yugoslavia . Military forces from other Axis powers, including Italy , Hungary , and Bulgaria made few gains during the invasion. The invasion was precipitated by the need for German forces to reach Greece to save Italian forces, which were failing on the battlefield against the Greek armed forces . Upon rescuing Italian forces in Greece and having conquered Yugoslavia and Greece almost single-handedly, Hitler became frustrated with Mussolini and Italy's military incompetence. Germany improved relations with
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