1st Cavalry Division (Kingdom of Yugoslavia)

Royal Yugoslav Army combat formation June 2019 1st Cavalry Division 1921–1941 Kingdom of Yugoslavia Royal Yugoslav Army Cavalry Division 1st Army Group Invasion of Yugoslavia (1941) Dragoslav Stefanović The 1st Cavalry Division of the Royal Yugoslav Army was established in 1921, soon after the creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, which became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1929. In peacetime it consisted of two cavalry brigade headquarters commanding a total of four regiments. It was part of the Yugoslav 1st Army Group during the German-led World War II Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941, with a wartime organisation specifying one cavalry brigade headquarters commanding two or three regiments, and divisional-level combat and support units. Along with the rest of the Royal Yugoslav Army, the 1st Cavalry Division began mobilising on 3 April 1941 following a coup d'état. Three days later, with mobilisation not complete, the Germans began an air campaign and a series of preliminary operations against the Yugoslav frontiers. By the end of the following day, the division's cavalry brigade headquarters and all of the division's cavalry regiments had been detached for duty with other formations of the 1st Army Group. The divisional headquarters and divisional-level units remained in the vicinity of Zagreb until 10 April, when they were given orders to establish a defensive line southeast of Zagreb along the Sava River, with infantry and artillery support. The division had only begun to deploy for this task when the German 14th Panzer Division captured Zagreb. The divisional headquarters and all attached units were then captured by armed Croat fifth column groups, or surrendered to German troops. thumb|350px|Crop of an official Yugoslav Government map illustrating Axis operations in the 1st Army Group area1st Cavalry Division marked with a red 10 around Zagreb German attacks in blue|alt=a colour map Background thumb|left|A map showing the location of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in Europe|alt=Map highlighting the location of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was created with the merger of Serbia, Montenegro and the South Slav-inhabited areas of Austria-Hungary on 1 December 1918, in the immediate aftermath of World War I. The Army of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was established to defend the new state. It was formed around the nucleus of the victorious Royal Serbian Army, as well as armed formations raised in regions formerly controlled by Austria-Hungary. Many former Austro-Hungarian officers and soldiers became members of the new army.Figa 2004 235 From the beginning, much like other aspects of public life in the new kingdom, the army was dominated by ethnic Serbs, who saw it as a means by which to secure political hegemony for the large Serb minority.Hoptner 1963 160–161 The army's development was hampered by the kingdom's poor economy, and this continued during the 1920s. In 1929, King Alexander changed the name of the country to the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, at which time the army was renamed the Royal Yugoslav Army (Vojska Kraljevine Jugoslavije, VKJ). The army budget remained tight, and as tensions rose across Europe during the 1930s, it became difficult to secure weapons and munitions from other countries.Tomasevich 1975 60 Consequently, at the time World War II broke out in September 1939, the VKJ had several serious weaknesses, which included reliance on draught animals for transport, and the large size of its formations.Tomasevich 1975 58 These characteristics resulted in slow, unwieldy formations, and the inadequate supply of arms and munitions meant that even the very large Yugoslav formations had low firepower.Tomasevich 1975 58–59 Generals better suited to the trench warfare of World War I were combined with an army that was neither equipped nor trained to resist the fast-moving combined arms approach used by the Germans in their invasions of Poland and France.Hoptner 1963 161Tomasevich 1975 57 The weaknesses of the VKJ in strategy, structure, equipment, mobility and supply were exacerbated by serious ethnic disunity within Yugoslavia, resulting from two decades of Serb hegemony and the attendant lack of political legitimacy achieved by the central government.Tomasevich 1975 63Ramet 2006 111 Attempts to address the disunity came too late to ensure that the VKJ was a cohesive force. Fifth column activity was also a serious concern, not only from the Croatian nationalist Ustaše but also from the country's Slovene and ethnic German minorities.Tomasevich 1975 63 Formation and composition Peacetime organisation The 1st Cavalry Division was a horsed cavalry formation established soon after the creation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, and was part of the army order of battle formalised in 1921, at which time it consisted of four regiments.Jarman 1997 527 According to regulations issued by the VKJ in 1935,Terzić 1982 99 the 1st Cavalry Division was headquartered in Zagreb during peacetime, and was under the control of Cavalry Command in Belgrade, as was the 2nd Cavalry Division, which was located in southeastern Yugoslavia at Niš. The division's units were manned by a mixture of full-time and part-time personnel. In peacetime, the 1st Cavalry Division comprised:Terzić 1982 99–102Niehorster 2015c Headquarters 1st Cavalry Brigade in Čakovec north of Zagreb Headquarters 2nd Cavalry Brigade in Subotica in the Banat north of Belgrade 2nd Cavalry Regiment, based in Virovitica on the Drava River in Slavonia 3rd Cavalry Regiment, based in Subotica 6th Cavalry Regiment, based in Zagreb 8th Cavalry Regiment, based in Čakovec Wartime organisation Yugoslav order of battle prior to the invasion of Yugoslavia The wartime organisation of the Royal Yugoslav Army was laid down by regulations issued in 1936–1937, which introduced a requirement to raise a third cavalry division for war service.Terzić 1982 104 The strength of a cavalry division was 6,000–7,000 men.Tomasevich 1975 58 The theoretical war establishment of a fully mobilised Yugoslav cavalry division was:Niehorster 2015cTerzić 1982 107 headquarters and headquarters company a cavalry brigade consisting of 2 or 3 cavalry regiments an artillery battalion of four batteries, one of which was motorised and equipped with 47 mm on anti-tank guns a bicycle-mounted infantry battalion with three rifle companies and one machine gun company a signals squadron a bridging squadron equipped with pontoons a chemical defence platoon a divisional cavalry battalion consisting of two cavalry squadrons, a machine gun squadron, an engineer squadron and a bicycle company logistics units, including a transport battalion Each cavalry regiment was to consist of four cavalry squadrons, a machine gun squadron, and an engineer squadron. Shortly before the war, an abortive attempt was made to motorise the 1st Cavalry Division, but this was stymied by a lack of motor transport and the division largely remained a horsed formation throughout its existence.Terzić 1982 107 The 1st Cavalry Division was also never equipped with the planned motorised anti-tank battery,Terzić 1982 204 and the divisional artillery battalion was largely equipped with World War I-vintage pieces.Terzić 1982 119 Two peacetime components of the division, the Headquarters of the 2nd Cavalry Brigade and the 3rd Cavalry Regiment, were earmarked to join other formations when they were mobilised,Terzić 1982 107 so the primary fighting formation of the 1st Cavalry Division was the 1st Cavalry Brigade, commanding the 2nd, 6th and 8th Cavalry Regiments.Niehorster 2015c Deployment plan Yugoslavia (1939-41) 350 Planned deployment location for the 1st Cavalry Division, with the location of the Yugoslav capital, Belgrade, highlighted Yugoslavia (1939-41) 1st Cavalry Division (Zagreb) 75 45.8 16.0 Red pog.svg right Yugoslavia (1939-41) Belgrade 75 44.816667 20.466667 Blue pog.svg right In case of war, Yugoslav planners saw the 1st Cavalry Division as forming the reserve for the 1st Army Group.Niehorster 2015a The 1st Army Group was responsible for the defence of northwestern Yugoslavia, with the subordinate 4th Army defending the eastern sector along the Hungarian border, and the 7th Army stationed along the German and Italian borders. The 1st Cavalry Division was to be deployed around Zagreb. On the right of the 4th Army was the 2nd Army of the 2nd Army Group, the boundary running from just east of Slatina through Požega towards Banja Luka, and on the left flank of the 7th Army, the Adriatic coast was defended by Coastal Defence Command. The Yugoslav defence plan saw the 1st Army Group deployed in a cordon, the 4th Army behind the Drava River between Varaždin and Slatina,U.S. Army 1986 37Geografski institut JNA 1952 1 and the 7th Army along the border region from the Adriatic in the west to Gornja Radgona in the east.Geografski institut JNA 1952 1 The planners estimated that cavalry formations would take four to seven days to mobilise.Terzić 1982 195 Mobilisation After unrelenting pressure from Adolf Hitler to join the Axis powers, Yugoslavia signed the Tripartite Pact on 25 March 1941. Two days later, a military coup d'état overthrew the government that had signed the pact, and a new government was formed under the Royal Yugoslav Army Air Force commander, Armijski đeneralEquivalent to a U.S. Army lieutenant general.Niehorster 2015b lower-alpha Dušan Simović.Tomasevich 1975 34–43 A general mobilisation was not called by the new government until 3 April 1941, out of fear of offending Hitler and thus precipitating war.Tomasevich 1975 64 The same day as the coup, Hitler had issued Führer Directive 25, which called for Yugoslavia to be treated as a hostile state; on 3 April, Führer Directive 26 was issued, detailing the plan of attack and the command structure for the invasion, which was to commence on 6 April.Trevor-Roper 1964 108–109 According to the Yugoslav historian Velimir Terzić, on 6 April the mobilisation of the division was proceeding slowly due to the low number of conscripts that reported for duty, and the poor provision of animals and vehicles. A large portion of the strength of the division had been earmarked to be detached to one of the formations of the 4th Army, Detachment Ormozki.Terzić 1982 260 The commander of the 1st Cavalry Division was Divizijski đenerallower-alpha Equivalent to a U.S. Army major general.Niehorster 2015b Dragoslav Stefanović.Niehorster 2015c While the divisional headquarters and other divisional-level units were mobilising in Sesvete near Zagreb, the headquarters of the 1st Cavalry Brigade had been designated to command Detachment Ormozki, and the 6th and 8th Cavalry Regiments and the divisional artillery battalion had also been allocated to that formation. This reduced the main fighting elements of the division to a single cavalry regiment (the 2nd), which was mobilising in Virovitica.Terzić 1982 260 The rest of the 1st Army Group reserve comprised an independent artillery battalion mobilising in Zagreb, and the 110th Infantry Regiment which was moving to Zagreb from Celje, a distance of 114 km on to the northwest. By early morning of 6 April 1941 when the invasion commenced, the 110th Regiment had reached Zidani Most, still some 90 km on from Zagreb.Terzić 1982 260 Operations Invasion of Yugoslavia Stripped of most of its subordinate units, the 1st Cavalry Division remained in reserve near Zagreb during the first few days of fighting. On 10 April, due to the critical situation on the front of the 4th Army, the division was directed to take under its command the 110th Infantry Regiment and the independent artillery battalion, and defend against crossings of the 110 km on stretch of the River Sava between Jasenovac and Zagreb, while collecting stragglers and organising resistance. These orders were quickly overtaken by the rapid advance of the 14th Panzer Division to Zagreb when it broke out of its bridgehead across the Drava River at Zákány on the Hungarian border.Terzić 1982 373 By 19:30 on 10 April, lead elements of the 14th Panzer Division had reached the outskirts of Zagreb, having covered nearly 160 km on in a single day.U.S. Army 1986 58 Armed fifth column Ustase groups and German troops disarmed the division and its attached units before they could establish any coherent defence along the Sava.Terzić 1982 373 On 15 April, orders were received that a ceasefire had been agreed, and that all VKJ troops were to remain in place and not fire on German personnel.Terzić 1982 444–445 After a delay in locating appropriate signatories for the surrender document, the Yugoslav Supreme Command unconditionally surrendered in Belgrade effective at 12:00 on 18 April.U.S. Army 1986 63–64 Yugoslavia was then occupied and dismembered by the Axis; Germany, Italy, Hungary, Bulgaria and Albania all annexed parts of its territory.Tomasevich 1975 89–95 Almost all of the Croat members of the division taken as prisoners of war were soon released by the Germans; 90 per cent of those held for the duration of the war were Serbs.Tomasevich 1975 73–74 Notes lower-alpha Footnotes References Books Figa Jozef Civil-Military Relations, Nation Building, and National Identity: Comparative Perspectives 2004 Framing the Conflict: Slovenia in Search of Her Army Praeger Westport, Connecticut 978-0-313-04645-2 Geografski institut JNA https://znaci.org/00003/385.htm Istorijski atlas oslobodilačkog rata naroda Jugoslavije Historical Atlas of the Yugoslav Peoples Liberation War Napad na Jugoslaviju 6 Aprila 1941 godine The Attack on Yugoslavia of 6 April 1941 Vojnoistorijskog instituta JNA [Military History Institute of the JNA] Belgrade, Yugoslavia 1952 504206827 Hoptner J. B. Yugoslavia in Crisis, 1934–1941 1963 Columbia University Press New York, New York 404664 Jarman Robert L. 1997 Yugoslavia Political Diaries 1918–1965 1 Archives Edition Slough, Berkshire 978-1-85207-950-5 Ramet Sabrina P. 2006 The Three Yugoslavias: State-Building and Legitimation, 1918–2005 Indiana University Press Bloomington, Indiana 978-0-253-34656-8 https://books.google.com/books?id=FTw3lEqi2-oC Terzić Velimir Slom Kraljevine Jugoslavije 1941 : uzroci i posledice poraza The Collapse of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1941: Causes and Consequences of Defeat sh II Narodna knjiga Belgrade, Yugoslavia 1982 10276738 Tomasevich Jozo Jozo Tomasevich 1975 War and Revolution in Yugoslavia, 1941–1945: The Chetniks Stanford University Press Stanford, California 978-0-8047-0857-9 https://books.google.com/books?id=yoCaAAAAIAAJ Trevor-Roper Hugh 1964 Hitler's War Directives: 1939–1945 Sidgwick and Jackson London 852024357 U.S. Army http://www.history.army.mil/books/wwii/balkan/intro.htm The German Campaigns in the Balkans (Spring 1941) United States Army Center of Military History Washington, D.C. CMH Pub 104-4 1986 16940402 1953 6 December 2015 19 June 2009 https://web.archive.org/web/20090619234443/http://history.army.mil/books/wwii/balkan/intro.htm dead Websites http://www.niehorster.org/040_yugoslavia/41-04-06/army.html Balkan Operations Order of Battle Royal Yugoslavian Army 6th April 1941 4 December 2015 Leo Niehorster 2015a Niehorster Leo http://www.niehorster.org/040_yugoslavia/_ranks.htm Royal Yugoslav Armed Forces Ranks 7 December 2015 Leo Niehorster 2015b Niehorster Leo http://www.niehorster.org/040_yugoslavia/41_org/div-cav/_cav-div.html Royal Yugoslavian Army Cavalry Division 6th April 1941 6 December 2015 Leo Niehorster 2015c Niehorster Leo Category:Military units and formations of Yugoslavia in World War II Category:Military units and formations of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia Category:Military units and formations disestablished in 1941