Slovenia: Axis World War II Occupation (1941-45)


Figure 1.--

NAZI Germany invaded Yugoslavia (April 1941). Slovenia was partionioned between Germany and Italy with a small portion going to Hungary. The Italian sector was annexed by the Italian Kingdom as the province of Lubiana (May 1941-September 1943). The Germans occupied the northern portion of Slovenia along the Austrian border. After a period of military rule was annexed to the Reich, as part of Ostmark (Austrian) provinces of Carinthia and Steiermark. The former Italian sector was seized by the Germans after the Italians signed an Armistace with the Allies (September 1943). It becaceme part of the Adriatic Coastland (Adriatisches Küstenland). Yugoslavia became a killing field during the War because of the ethnic tensions. Slovenia escaped the worst of the attrocities. The SS organized the Domobrans, a home guard with German SS commanders. They committed widespread atrocities. I am not sure about details on the German occupation. As part of the Reich, men were conscripted into the German military. Hitler Youth units were organized for the children. The language of instruction in schools became German. I'm not sure to what extent the use of Slovenian was tolerated in daily life. What I am not sure about is the NAZI racial policies in Slovenia. In Poland a process was set up for Aryanizing some of the Poles. I do not know if that occurred in Slovenia. The Germans appear to initiated a process of deporting Yugoslavs from Slovenia. German authorities convened a meeting in Zagreb (June 4,1941). Councillor Von Troll presided. The purpose was to set up the means of deporting the Yugoslav population from Slovenia. Tens of thousands of persons were deported in carrying out this plan. [Nuremberg enditement] Ethnic Germans in the Italian occupation zone were incouraged to sign up for relocation. They were move to areas in the German occupation zone from which the population was relocated. We know that the relatively small Slovennian population in Austria proper was deported. This eems strange as the NAZIs annexed the occupied area of Slovenia with a much larger Slovenian population into the Reich--namely Ostmark. It seems rather strange to deport a small number and then add a large population. My guess is that the deportment was done by local Austrians NAZIs and the annexation done by Hitler, but that is just a guess. A German reader offers us some background information indicating how the NAZIs may have viewed Slovenia. One point to bear in mind is that NAZI decessions made during the War were not necessarily final. Had they won the War, they would have had plenty of time to revisit questions such as policies toward the Slovenes and other nationalities.

Axis Invasion (April 1941)

NAZI Germany invaded Yugoslavia (April 1941).

Partition (April 1941)

Slovenia was partionioned between Germany and Italy with a small portion going to Hungary.

Italian Sector

The Italian sector was annexed by the Italian Kingdom as the province of Lubiana (May 1941-September 1943). The Italuians initiated a policy of Italinization. Italian was made the official language and became the langauge of instruction in the schools. Unlike policies in the German occupation sector, there was not a racial component to the Italian occupation policies. The Italians cooperated with NAZI efforts to get ethnic Germans in the Italian sector to emigrate abd return to the Reich for resettlement. The Italian sector was seized by the Germans after the Italians signed an Armistace with the Allies (September 1943). It becaceme part of the Adriatic Coastland (Adriatisches Küstenland). I do not know to what extent the NAZIs attempted to introduce their eythnic policies in this area. Probably they had only a limited capability to do because of the deteriorating military situation.

German sector

The Germans occupied the northern portion of Slovenia along the Austrian border. After a period of military rule was annexed to the Reich, as part of Ostmark (Austrian) provinces of Carinthia and Steiermark. Yugoslavia became a killing field during the War because of the ethnic tensions. Slovenia escaped the worst of the attrocities. The SS organized the Domobrans, a home guard with German SS commanders. They committed widespread atrocities. I am not sure about details on the German occupation. As part of the Reich, men were conscripted into the German military. Hitler Youth units were organized for the children. The language of instruction in schools became German. I'm not sure to what extent the use of Slovenian was tolerated in daily life. What I am not sure about is the NAZI racial policies in Slovenia. In Poland a process was set up for Aryanizing some of the Poles. I do not know if that occurred in Slovenia. The Germans appear to initiated a process of deporting Yugoslavs from Slovenia. German authorities convened a meeting in Zagreb (June 4,1941). Councillor Von Troll presided. The purpose was to set up the means of deporting the Yugoslav population from Slovenia. Tens of thousands of persons were deported in carrying out this plan. [Nuremberg enditement] Ethnic Germans in the Italian occupation zone were incouraged to sign up for relocation. They were move to areas in the German occupation zone from which the population was relocated. We know that the relatively small Slovennian population in Austria proper was deported. This eems strange as the NAZIs annexed the occupied area of Slovenia with a much larger Slovenian population into the Reich--namely Ostmark. It seems rather strange to deport a small number and then add a large population. My guess is that the deportment was done by local Austrians NAZIs and the annexation done by Hitler, but that is just a guess. A German reader offers us some background information indicating how the NAZIs may have viewed Slovenia. One point to bear in mind is that NAZI decessions made during the War were not necessarily final. Had they won the War, they would have had plenty of time to revisit questions such as policies toward the Slovenes and other nationalities.

Hungarian sector


Ethnic Germans

Slovenia like other regions of Yugoslavia as well as other coutries in Eastern and Southeastern Europe had a substantial population of ethnic Germans. One sourcecclaims that the 1910 Austrian Census reported a population of over 103,000 ethnic Germans. One source suggest that this is probably an over count, including Slovenes who wanted to be considered Germans in Austrian dominated Slovenia. The Germans were concentrated primarily in lower Styria and in Carniola, which includes Kocevje, but also in Ljubljana. There were other areas with ethnic Germans. Most of the ethnic Germans were farmers, often described as "peaceful" farmers, who lived in German-speeking districts and towns and villages. One such village was Gottschee, current Kocevje. The ethnic Germans lived in Slovenia for centuries, emigraring at a time when the Duchy of Carniola (Krain) was a part of the Austrian Empire. Germans begam migrating into Slovenia in the 14th century. Accounts generally describe the Germans as living peacefully with their Slovene neighbors. A factor here may have been the political control of Austruan (German) authorities. The fact that there are Slovenes with German names and Germans with Slovene names does suggest amnicable interactions between the two communities. After World War I and the creation of Yugoslavia the Germans found themselves a minority in a foreign country. There were reports that the ethnic Germans were mistreated by Yugoslav authorities. Here it is difficult to determine if such charges were justified or the Germans found it difficult to adjust to minority status. Hitler used German minorities as a propaganda tool, but I do not know at a major NAZI propaganda campaign aimed at the Yugoslavs. Ethnic Germans in the Italian occupation zone were incouraged to sign up for relocation. They were move to areas in the German occupation zone from which the population was relocated. Many ethnic Germans in Slovenia and the rest of Yugoslavia were apparently attracted by NAZI propaganda, especially the younger generation. Many in the Italoian occupation zone accepted citizenship in the Reich and took the required oath of loyalty to Adolf Hitler. They agreed to be resettled as part of Hitler's Ingathering Policy or "Heimführung" (homebringing). The idea was to bring ethnic Germans from foreign countries back to the Reich. Often they were not brought to Germany, but to non-German areas of occupied cointries annexed to the Reich. Baltic Germans for example were resettled in areas of occupied Poland. The Slovene "Heimführung" to the Reich was not to Germany itself, but to the German annexed zone of Slovenia. The Slovenian inhabitants of certain areas were deported for forced labor in the Reich. There homes and farms were turned over to the ethnic Germans resettled from the Italian ocvupation zone. According to one source, about 37,000 Slovenes were deported for forced labor in the Reich. Obly about half of the deportees survived the War. [Tschinkel]

Sources

Tschinkel, John. The End of the Gottscheer as an Ethnic Group: The Documented Facts.





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Created: 7:01 AM 10/19/2005
Last updated: 7:01 AM 10/19/2005