Batlle of Neretva Part of the Yugoslavian Front of World War II Date January-April, 1943 Location Near the Neretva river, southern Bosnia, the Herzegovina region (today's Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia) Result Offensive failed (partisan HQ and hospital not eliminated), strategic Partisan victory, decisive defeat of the Chetniks Belligerents Yugoslav Partisans (YNLA) Germany Kingdom of Italy Independent State of Croatia Chetniks Soundtrack cover to the film The Battle of Neretva is a 1969 Yugoslavian war film. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ... This article or section does not cite any references or sources. ... Combatants Allied powers: China France Great Britain Soviet Union United States and others Axis powers: Germany Italy Japan and others Commanders Chiang Kai-shek Charles de Gaulle Winston Churchill Joseph Stalin Franklin Roosevelt Adolf Hitler Benito Mussolini Hideki Tōjō Casualties Military dead: 17,000,000 Civilian dead: 33,000... Year 1943 (MCMXLIII) was a common year starting on Friday (the link will display full 1943 calendar) of the Gregorian calendar. ... River Neretva in Mostar, 2004 Neretva is a river in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. ... This article is about a geographic region of Bosnia. ... This article is about the geographic area of Herzegovina. ... Image File history File links Yugoslav_Partisans_flag_1945. ... The Rebellion The Yugoslav Partisans were the main resistance movement engaged in the fight against the Axis forces in the Balkans during World War II. // Origins The Yugoslav Partisans went under the official name of Peoples Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia (Narodno-oslobodilačka vojska i partizanski... The Yugoslav partisans were the main anti-fascist resistance movement which fought against the occupation of Yugoslavia by Axis forces during World War II. The uniting force of the anti-fascist partisans on the territory were the Peoples Liberation Army and Partisan detachments of Yugoslavia (Serbo-Croatian NOV i... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany_1933. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy_(1861-1946)_crowned. ... Anthem Marcia Reale dOrdinanza (Royal March of Ordinance)¹ The Kingdom of Italy at the height of its power in 1940. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Croatia_Ustasa. ... Capital Zagreb Language(s) Croatian Religion Roman Catholicism Political structure Puppet-state King  - 1941-1943 Tomislav II Poglavnik  - 1941-1945 Ante Pavelić Legislature None Historical era World War II  - Established April 10, 1941  - Disestablished May 8, 1945 Population  - 1941 est. ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Chetniks. ... Commanders Josip Broz Tito Alexander Löhr Strength Unknown (about 20,000 men) 150,000 men 200+ airplanes Casualties and losses Unknown Unknown

v • d • e Yugoslav Front Seven anti-Partisan offensives First offensive – Second offensive – Third offensive – Battle of Neretva (Fourth offensive) – Battle of Sutjeska (Fifth offensive) – Sixth offensive – Raid on Drvar (Seventh offensive) Other operations Battle of Kozara - Syrmian Front - Battle on Lijevča field - Battle of Poljana Image File history File links Yugoslav_Partisans_flag_1945. ... Tito redirects here. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany_1933. ... Alexander Löhr (May 20, 1885–February 26, 1947) was an Austrian Air Force commander during the 1930s before the Anschluss and, later on, a Luftwaffe Commander during the Second World War. ... The seven anti-partisan offensives is the name given to major Axis military operations on the territory of former Yugoslavia during World War II, undertaken against the Yugoslav partisan resistance movement. ... First enemy offensive (Serbo-Croatian: Prva neprijateljska ofanziva/ofenziva) was a battle during World War II between Partisans on one side and German and Chetnik troops on the other side. ... Second enemy offensive (Serbo-Croatian: Druga neprijateljska ofanziva/ofenziva) was a battle during World War II between Partisans on one side and German aided with some UstaÅ¡a and Italian troops on the other side. ... Third enemy offensive (Serbo-Croatian: Treća neprijateljska ofanziva/ofenziva) was a battle during World War II between Partisans on one side and German, Italian, UstaÅ¡a and Chetnik troops on the other side. ... The Sutjeska offensive in mid-1943 was a joint attack of the Axis forces that aimed to destroy the Yugoslav partisan force, near the Sutjeska river in southeastern Bosnia. ... The Sixth Enemy Offensive was a major anti-Partisan offensive planned by the German forces for late 1943 and early 1944. ... The Raid on Drvar (code-named Operation Rösselsprung -Knights Leap, by the Germans) was a World War II operation by the Germans in April and May 1944, whose goal was to capture Josip Broz Tito alive and disrupt the leadership of the communist Partisan movement in Yugoslavia. ... Side of the mountain called Kozaracki Kamen - overlooking town of Kozarac Kozara (Козара) is a mountain in western Bosnia and Herzegovina, administratively part of Republika Srpska. ... Combatants Yugoslav Army in the Fatherland Croatian Armed Forces Commanders Pavle ĐuriÅ¡ić, Petar Bačević Vladimir MetikoÅ¡, Marko Pavlović The Battle on Lijevča field was a battle fought between March 30 and April 8, 1945 between the Croatian Armed Forces (the amalgamated UstaÅ¡a and Home Guard forces... The Battle of Poljana was the last battle of World War II in Europe. ... List of Axis operations in the NDH

Bridge on Neretva river, damaged in Battle of Neretva

The Battle of Neretva (Bosnian, Croatian, Serbian: Bitka na Neretvi) was a German strategic plan for a combined Axis attack launched in early 1943 against the Partisans throughout occupied Yugoslavia during the Second World War. The offensive took place between January and April 1943.^[1]
The Germans code-named the operation Fall Weiss (German: Case White), while the operation is generally known as the 4th anti-Partisan offensive. In ex-Yugoslav terminology the operation is also known as the Fourth enemy offensive (Četvrta neprijateljska ofenziva/ofanziva) or the "Battle for the Wounded" (Bitka za ranjenike). River Neretva in Mostar, 2004 Neretva is a river in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. ... Serbian (; ) is one of the standard versions of the Shtokavian dialect, used primarily in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia, and by Serbs in the Serbian diaspora. ... Black: Zenith of the Axis Powers Capital Not applicable Political structure Military alliance Historical era World War II  - Tripartite Pact September 27, 1940  - Anti-Comintern Pact November 25, 1936  - Pact of Steel May 22, 1939  - Dissolved 1945 This article is about the independent countries (states) that comprised the Axis powers. ... Yugoslav Partisan Flag The Partisans (lat. ... Motto Brotherhood and Unity Anthem Hey, Slavs Capital Belgrade Language(s) Serbo-Croatian (spoken throughout the territory), Slovenian, Macedonian, Albanian, Hungarian (all official), and languages of other nationalities. ... Mushroom cloud from the nuclear explosion over Nagasaki rising 18 km into the air. ...

The battle

The Germans aimed to destroy the central command of the Partisan movement, the Central Committee of Communist Party of Yugoslavia, as well as the main Partisan hospital. The Axis rallied nine divisions, six German, three Italian, as well as two Croatian divisions and a number of Chetnik and Ustasha formations. Estimated 150,000 Axis combatants engaged a much smaller partisan force. SKJ flag in Serbo-Croat, with Cyrillic script SKJ flag in Serbo-Croat, with Latin script SKJ flag in Albanian SKJ flag in Hungarian SKJ flag in Italian SKJ flag in Macedonian SKJ flag in Slovenian The Communist Party of Yugoslavia (after 1952 the League of Communists of Yugoslavia) was... Symbol of the Polish 1st Legions Infantry Division in NATO code A division is a large military unit or formation usually consisting of around ten to twenty thousand soldiers. ... Chetniks (Serbian Četnici, Четници) were an organization of Yugoslavs (mostly Serbs) who supported the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and formed a notable resistance force during World War II. The name is derived from the Serbian word četa which means company (of about 100 men). ... The Ustaše (often spelled Ustashe in English; singular Ustaša or Ustasha) was a Croatian right-wing organisation put in charge of the Independent State of Croatia by the Axis Powers in 1941. ...

The operation was carried out in three stages:^[2]

• Weiss I started on January 20th, 1943, with the attack on Partisan-held areas in western Bosnia and parts of central Croatia.
• Weiss II followed on February 25th, with fighting in western and southwestern Bosnia, and the Partisans retreating as far southeast as the Neretva river.
• Weiss III was launched in March, and centered around the areas of northern Herzegovina, but the targeted partisans managed to break out from an encirclement into northern Montenegro, and the third phase was not successfully completed.

During the battle, the Partisans were caught in a pocket with their back to the Neretva river. On their side, the western side, were German forces accompanied with several elite units and supported by panzer brigades. The eastern side (opposite the Partisan pocket) was guarded only by the unorganised Chetnik formations, and was connected by a sole bridge. If the Partisans could cross the river they would be relatively safe. However, they had insufficient time to cross the bridge as the Axis forces were preparing for their final push. Faced with these seemingly insurmountable difficulties, the Partisan commander, Marshal Josip Broz Tito, prepared an elaborate ruse. He ordered his sappers to actually blow up the only bridge on the river. When this information reached the German command, they concluded that the Partisans must be preparing a final dash north of their current position (along the western shore), and had blown up the bridge as a morale boost and to prevent desertion. They, thus, began a complex redeployment of troops in the area to annihilate them as they attacked. They were, in fact, giving Tito's engineer corps the precious time needed to sufficiently repair the bridge and to eliminate the Chetnik troops defending its far side. The Germans, characteristically, quickly caught on, but were unable to prepare a serious offensive in time, because of their previous redeployment orders. The Partisans crossed the river under intense air bombardment (the Axis deployed large Luftwaffe units), but the mountainous landscape prevented accurate destruction of the makeshift bridge. After the escape was complete, the weak bridge was rendered finally completely useless to prevent pursuit. The humiliating strategic defeat was amplified by Tito being able to keep his (famous) promise to take even the wounded in the main Partisan hospital with him, as they faced certain execution at the hands of the Axis (which later actually happened after the Battle of Sutjeska).^[3] This article is about the country of Bosnia and Herzegovina. ... River Neretva in Mostar, 2004 Neretva is a river in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. ... This article is about the geographic area of Herzegovina. ... This article is about the country in Europe. ... Tito redirects here. ... The Deutsche Luftwaffe or   (German: air force, IPA: ) is the commonly used term for the German air force. ... The Sutjeska offensive in mid-1943 was a joint attack of the Axis forces that aimed to destroy the Yugoslav partisan force, near the Sutjeska river in southeastern Bosnia. ...

Aftermath

By the end of March, the Axis forces had killed about eight thousand Partisans, capturing another two thousand. Despite these heavy losses and a tactical victory for the Axis powers, the partisan formations secured their command and the hospital, and were able to continue operations. In fact, once they reached the eastern parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the partisans had to face only the Chetniks, and in turn almost entirely incapacitated them in the area west of the Drina river. Yugoslav Partisan Flag The Partisans (lat. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ...

The next major operation in Yugoslavia was Operation Schwarz. The Sutjeska offensive (May-June 1943) was a failed attempt by the Axis forces to destroy the anti-occupation Yugoslav partisan force, marking a turning point for Yugoslavia during World War II. This action--codenamed Operation Schwarz (Black) by the Germans--took place near the Sutjeska river, in Italian-occupied...

The 1969 Oscar-nominated motion picture The Battle of Neretva depicts these events. Also: 1969 (number) 1969 (movie) 1969 (Stargate SG-1) episode. ... Although he never won an Oscar for any of his movie performances, the comedian Bob Hope received two honorary Oscars for his contributions to cinema. ... Soundtrack cover to the film The Battle of Neretva is a 1969 Yugoslavian war film. ...

Axis order of battle^[4]

Germany
Image File history File links Flag_of_Germany_1933. ...

• 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division 'Prinz Eugen'
• 369th Infantry Division
• 714th Infantry Division
• 717th Infantry Division
• one regiment from 187th Reserve Division

 Italy Freiwilligen-Gebirgs-Division SS-Freiwilligen-Division Prinz Eugen SS-Freiwilligen-Gebirgs-Division Prinz Eugen 7. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Italy_(1861-1946)_crowned. ...

• 12th Infantry Division 'Sassari'
• 13th Infantry Division 'Re'
• 57th Infantry Division 'Lombardia'

Independent State of Croatia Image File history File links Flag_of_Croatia_Ustasa. ... Capital Zagreb Language(s) Croatian Religion Roman Catholicism Political structure Puppet-state King  - 1941-1943 Tomislav II Poglavnik  - 1941-1945 Ante Pavelić Legislature None Historical era World War II  - Established April 10, 1941  - Disestablished May 8, 1945 Population  - 1941 est. ...

• 2nd Croatian Home Guard Mountain Brigade
• 3rd Croatian Home Guard Mountain Brigade

Chetniks (as Italian Anti-Communist Volunteer Militia^[1]) It has been suggested that this article or section be merged into Chetniks. ...

• around 20,000 troops

See also

• Yugoslav Partisans
• Yugoslav People's Liberation War
• Seven anti-Partisan offensives
• List of anti-Partisan operations in Yugoslavia
• Sava Kovačević
• Resistance during World War II

The Rebellion The Yugoslav Partisans were the main resistance movement engaged in the fight against the Axis forces in the Balkans during World War II. // Origins The Yugoslav Partisans went under the official name of Peoples Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia (Narodno-oslobodilačka vojska i partizanski... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The seven anti-partisan offensives is the name given to major Axis military operations on the territory of former Yugoslavia during World War II, undertaken against the Yugoslav partisan resistance movement. ... This is a detailed list of axis-perpetrated anti-Partisan operations on the territory of Yugoslavia during World War II. 1941-09-30 - Operation Višegrad 1941-12-02 - Operation Ozren 1942-01-15 - Operation Süd-Kroatien I 1942-01-28 - Operation Süd-Kroatien II 1942-02-18... Sava Kovačević (Serbian: Сава Ковачевић) (1905 – June 13, 1943) was a Montenegrin Serb partisan commander during World War II. Kovačević was born in Nudo, close to Nikšić, (today in Montenegro) to a family of Montenegrin peasants. ... Members of the Dutch Eindhoven Resistance with troops of the US 101st Airborne Division in front of the Eindhoven cathedral during Operation Market Garden in September 1944. ...

References