Ademaga Mešcić or Adem Aga Mešcić (25 March 1868 – 1 July 1945) was a Bosnian politician and military officer who served in the

Austro-Hungarian 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 1 ...

'' Schutzkorps'', and later a member of the

Ustaše The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian Fascism, fascist and ultranationalism, ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaš ...

government of the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist It ...

for Bosnian region 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 ...

Ottoman Bosnia

Mešcić was married without children, and considered himself a Muslim Croat.Kisić Kolanović, Nada
''Ademaga Mešcić i hrvatska nacionalna ideja 1895.–1918. godine''
// '' ČSP'', Vol. 40, No. 3 (December 2008), pp. 1124:Kisić Kolanović, Nada
''Ademaga Mešcić i hrvatska nacionalna ideja 1895.–1918. godine''
// '' ČSP'', Vol. 40, No. 3 (December 2008), pp. 1128-1229: He was the publisher of '' Behar'', a Bosnian Muslim political journal published in the period 1900–11.

Austrian annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Mešcić belonged to a Croatian-Muslim bloc installed in 1908 by the government of

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 ...

to support its annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As a Germanophile, he was a leader of the Muslim supporters of the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina who renounced any kind of autonomy, including one based on religion. In 1908, he established the Muslim Progressive Party, which had a pro-Croat orientation. He wrote and published a work titled ''"Moj odgovor bezimenim klevetnicima"''.

First World War

At the beginning of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

he was military commander in the '' Schutzkorps'', an auxiliary volunteer militia established in Bosnia and Herzegovina by the Austro-Hungarian authorities. The unit he organized and commanded was also known as "Ademaga's Army" ( hr, Ademagina vojska). After the war Mešcić was a poultry trader in Tešanj.

Second World War

During

, he belonged to a narrow circle of Muslims who were supporters of the

and was vice-president of its government ( hr, Doglavnik) with his seat in

Banja Luka Banja Luka ( sr-Cyrl, Бања Лука, ) or Banjaluka ( sr-Cyrl, Бањалука, ) is the second largest city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and the largest city of Republika Srpska. Banja Luka is also the ''de facto'' capital of this entity. ...

. At the end of the war he was part of the

Independent State of Croatia evacuation to Austria The Bleiburg repatriations ( see terminology) occurred in May 1945, after the end of World War II in Europe, during which Yugoslavia had been occupied by the Axis powers, when tens of thousands of soldiers and civilians associated with the Axis ...

, only to be imprisoned by British forces, who extradited him to the new Yugoslav communist government.

Trial and death

After the war he was tried. In his closing statement he said that he was only a loyal citizen of the

Ottoman sultan The sultans of the Ottoman Empire ( tr, Osmanlı padişahları), who were all members of the Ottoman dynasty (House of Osman), ruled over the transcontinental empire from its perceived inception in 1299 to its dissolution in 1922. At its hei ...

, Austrian emperor and Yugoslav king Karađorđević in turn, emphasizing his willingness to continue his loyal service, now to the new communist government. Mešcić was sentenced to life in prison, where he died in 1945.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mescic, Ademaga 1868 births 1945 deaths People from Tešanj Bosnia and Herzegovina people of World War I Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Ustaše Bosnia and Herzegovina politicians Bosnian Muslim collaborators with Nazi Germany Bosnian Muslim collaborators with Fascist Italy Genocide of Serbs in the Independent State of Croatia perpetrators Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina convicted of war crimes People extradited to Yugoslavia Yugoslav prisoners sentenced to life imprisonment Prisoners who died in Yugoslav detention Yugoslav people who died in prison custody Croatian Muslims