The 42nd Home Guard Infantry Division ( hr, 42. domobranska pješačka divizija, also ), nicknamed the Devil's Division (Croatian: ''Vražja divizija'') was an infantry division of the

Royal Croatian Home Guard The Royal Croatian Home Guard ( hr, Kraljevsko hrvatsko domobranstvo, Hrvatsko-slavonsko domobranstvo or Kraljevsko hrvatsko-ugarsko domobranstvo, often simply ''Domobranstvo'' or ''Domobran'' in singular, in German: ''Croatisch-Slawonische Landw ...

within 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 ...

which was active in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Formation history

The 42nd division was called in Croatian, or Home Defense Infantry Division, in Hungarian and in

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) ** Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

. The division was created shortly before

, within the 7th Home Guard Croatia-Slavonia District of the

, it had the honorary title of (Slavonian Home Guard) but its official title was the ''Devil's Division''. It numbered 14,000 troops. At the start of war, the 42nd division was commanded by

Stjepan Sarkotić Stjepan Freiherr Sarkotić von Lovćen (also ''Stefan Sarkotić'', ''Stjepan Sarkotić'', or ''Stephan Sarkotić''; 4 October 1858 – 16 October 1939) was an Austro-Hungarian Army generaloberst of Croatian descent who served as Governor of Bosni ...

, an ethnic Croat officer from the Military Border born near

Otočac Otočac () is a town in Croatia, former bishopric and present Latin Catholic titular see. It lies in the northwestern part of Lika region, in the Gacka river valley. The population of the administrative area of the Town of Otočac was 9,778 in ...

. Its regiments were granted the right to use Serbo-Croatian as the official language of command instead of German or Hungarian. The division was known for its terrible crimes, including rape, torture and murder against the Serbian populations of Western Serbia. It took part in the Serbian Campaign of 1914 as part of the XIII Corps, first in Syrmia, in

Mačva Mačva ( sr-Cyrl, Мачва, ; hu, Macsó) is a geographical and historical region in the northwest of Central Serbia, on a fertile plain between the Sava and Drina rivers. The chief town is Šabac. The modern Mačva District of Serbia is nam ...

, then during the seven-day battle for

Šabac Šabac (Serbian Cyrillic: Шабац, ) is a city and the administrative centre of the Mačva District in western Serbia. The traditional centre of the fertile Mačva region, Šabac is located on the right banks of the river Sava. , the city ...

as well as the battles of Cer and

Kolubara The Kolubara ( sr-cyr, Колубара, ) is a long river in western Serbia; it is an eastern, right tributary to the Sava river. General overview Kolubara is formed by the two small rivers Obnica and Jablanica. ''Obnica'' is the river in W ...

. On November 11, 1914 Sarkotić was replaced by

Johann von Salis-Seewis Johann von Salis-Seewis (8 December 1862 – 24 October 1940) also known as Johann Ulrich Graf von Salis-Seewis was an Austro-Hungarian military officer during World War I. An ethnic Croat, Salis-Seewis commanded the Croatian 42nd Honvéd Infant ...

who led the division during the second Serbian offensive. After the failure of the campaign, it was redeployed at the beginning of 1915 in Galicia on the Eastern front along with the rest of the XIII. Corps. On 22 June 1915 Salis-Seewis was replaced, while he was on leave, by Anton Lipošćak before the

Russian Empire The Russian Empire was an empire and the final period of the Russian monarchy from 1721 to 1917, ruling across large parts of Eurasia. It succeeded the Tsardom of Russia following the Treaty of Nystad, which ended the Great Northern War. ...

launched the Brusilov offensive. On 25 June 1917 took command of the division. At the beginning of 1918, the 42nd Division was transferred to the Italian battlefield, in June 1918, the command was taken over by , the division remained in Italy until the end of the war.

Legacy

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 vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, after the

369th Croatian Reinforced Infantry Regiment The 369th (Croatian) Reinforced Infantry Regiment (, hr, 369. pojačana pješačka pukovnija) was a regiment of the German Army raised to fight on the Eastern Front during World War II. The regiment was formed in July 1941 by Croatian volunt ...

, a unit 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 ...

composed of

Croat The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, Ge ...

and Bosniak (Bosnian Muslim) volunteers under a mostly German command, was annihilated during the battle of Stalingrad, it was reformed as the 369th Croatian Infantry Division with the nickname of Devil’s Division in honour of the 42nd Home Guard Infantry Division of World War I.

Commanders

- 1912 to 1914 * Johann Salis Seewis - 1915 * Anton Lipošćak - 1915 to 1917 * - 1917

References

Sources

Order of Battle - Serbia August, 1914

Military history of Croatia Military units and formations of Austria-Hungary in World War I Infantry divisions of World War I Royal Croatian Home Guard {{Croatia-hist-stub