Konstantin "Kosta" Mušicki ( sr-Cyrl, Константин Коста Мушицки; 7 April 1897 – 17 July 1946) was a Yugoslav brigadier general who commanded the collaborationist
Serbian Volunteer Corps during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
. He was captured by the
British Army
The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurkha ...
at the end of the war, but was subsequently handed over to the Yugoslav authorities, who tried and executed him for war crimes.
Early life
Kosta Mušicki was born on 7 April 1897 in
Slavonski Brod,
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...
(now in
Croatia
, image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg
, anthem = " Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland")
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capi ...
) to Milutin and Jelena Mušicki (''née'' Mihailović). An ethnic
Serb
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language.
The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
, he began his military service in the
Austro-Hungarian Army
The Austro-Hungarian Army (, literally "Ground Forces of the Austro-Hungarians"; , literally "Imperial and Royal Army") was the ground force of the Austro-Hungarian Dual Monarchy from 1867 to 1918. It was composed of three parts: the joint arm ...
. He later married and had two children. During the
interwar period
In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relative ...
, Mušicki served as an aide to King
Alexander
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
and Queen
Maria
Maria may refer to:
People
* Mary, mother of Jesus
* Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages
Place names Extraterrestrial
* 170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877
* Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, ...
. He joined the fascist
Yugoslav National Movement
The Yugoslav National Movement ( sh, Jugoslavenski narodni pokret / Југословенски народни покрет), also known as the United Militant Labour Organization (''Združena borbena organizacija rada'' / ''Здружена бор ...
( sr, Југословенски народни покрет, Збор, ''Jugoslovenski narodni pokret'', ''Zbor'') following the king's assassination in 1934.
World War II
Mušicki was stationed in Slavonski Brod at the time of the
Axis invasion of Yugoslavia
An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to:
Mathematics
* Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis
* Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...
in April 1941 and served as the
Royal Yugoslav Army
The Yugoslav Army ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Jugoslovenska vojska, JV, Југословенска војска, ЈВ), commonly the Royal Yugoslav Army, was the land warfare military service branch of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia (originally Kingdom of Serbs, ...
commander responsible for the railroad between
Belgrade
Belgrade ( , ;, ; names in other languages) is the capital and largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and the crossroads of the Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. Nearly 1,166,763 mi ...
and
Zagreb
Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...
in the rank of
colonel
Colonel (abbreviated as Col., Col or COL) is a senior military officer rank used in many countries. It is also used in some police forces and paramilitary organizations.
In the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, a colonel was typically in charge ...
. He demonstrated his support for the Germans by helping their forces during the invasion. Yugoslavia was quickly conquered by the
Axis powers
The Axis powers, ; it, Potenze dell'Asse ; ja, 枢軸国 ''Sūjikukoku'', group=nb originally called the Rome–Berlin Axis, was a military coalition that initiated World War II and fought against the Allies. Its principal members were ...
and Mušicki remained in Slavonski Brod for several months after the conquest. He attempted to join the
Ustaše Militia
The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croatian fascist and ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaša – Croatian Revolutionary Move ...
there, but was rejected. He went to Belgrade in mid-August, where he was received by Zbor leader
Dimitrije Ljotić
Dimitrije Ljotić ( sr-cyr, Димитрије Љотић; 12 August 1891 – 23 April 1945) was a Serbian and Yugoslav fascist politician and ideologue who established the Yugoslav National Movement (Zbor) in 1935 and collaborated with Ge ...
. On 6 October,
Milan Nedić
Milan Nedić ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Недић; 2 September 1878 – 4 February 1946) was a Yugoslav and Serbian army general and politician who served as the chief of the General Staff of the Royal Yugoslav Army and minister of war in the R ...
, the Prime Minister of the Axis-installed puppet
Government of National Salvation
The Government of National Salvation ( sr, Влада народног спаса, Vlada narodnog spasa, (VNS); german: Regierung der nationalen Rettung), also referred to as Nedić's government (, ) and Nedić's regime (, ), was the colloquial na ...
, appointed Mušicki to lead the Serbian Volunteer Command ( sr, Srpska dobrovoljačka komanda, SDK). Mušicki was involved in executing Serb civilians in the town of
Čačak
Čačak ( sr-Cyrl, Чачак, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Moravica District in central Serbia. It is located in the West Morava Valley within the geographical region of Šumadija. , the city proper has 73,331 inhabitants, wh ...
in December 1941. He and
Milan Aćimović contacted
Chetnik
The Chetniks ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Четници, Četnici, ; sl, Četniki), formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland and the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationa ...
leader
Draža Mihailović
Dragoljub "Draža" Mihailović ( sr-Cyrl, Драгољуб Дража Михаиловић; 27 April 1893 – 17 July 1946) was a Yugoslav Serb general during World War II. He was the leader of the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Ar ...
on 5 December, possibly in an effort to warn him in advance of the assault the Germans had planned, codenamed
Operation Mihailovic. This action prompted the Germans to question Mušicki's loyalty. He was removed from command at the end of 1941 and imprisoned by the Germans, but was later freed at Nedić's intervention.
In early 1943, the Serbian Volunteer Command was renamed the
Serbian Volunteer Corps ( sr, Srpski dobrovoljački korpus, SDK), and placed under the direct command of ''General der Artillerie''
Paul Bader
Paul Bader (20 July 1883 – 28 February 1971) was a '' General der Artillerie'' (lieutenant general) of the Wehrmacht during World War II who commanded the 2nd Motorized Infantry Division in the invasions of Poland and France then served ...
, the commanding general in Serbia. The SDK was not part of the SS, nor was it formally a part of the ''
Wehrmacht
The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the ''Heer'' (army), the '' Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmacht''" replaced the previo ...
''. It was fed and clothed to German standards, with these expenses reimbursed to the Germans by the puppet government, who also paid the troops at the same rates as the Serbian police. The service oath of this latter SDK was amended to state that the members of the SDK would fight, to the death if necessary, both the
Yugoslav Partisans
The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод� ...
and the Chetniks. Neither organisation was able to infiltrate the SDK due to its indoctrination with the ideas of Ljotić. Mušicki was re-appointed as its commander in the rank of general. The SDK was the only Serbian armed force that the Germans trusted during the war, and its units were often praised by German commanders for their bravery in combat. Mušicki attempted to flee Yugoslavia towards the end of the war, but was captured by the British. He was extradited to Yugoslavia and placed on trial. At his trial, he gave testimony about the involvement of Serbian volunteers in the
Kragujevac massacre. He was found guilty of collaborating with the Germans, sentenced to death, and was executed in Belgrade on 17 July 1946.
Notes
References
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Musicki, Kosta
1897 births
1946 deaths
People from Slavonski Brod
Serbs of Croatia
Executed Yugoslav collaborators with Nazi Germany
Serbian collaborators with Nazi Germany
Serbian fascists
Serbian people convicted of war crimes
Yugoslav people convicted of war crimes
People executed by Yugoslavia by firing squad
Executed military personnel
Serbian soldiers
Executed Serbian people
Royal Yugoslav Army personnel