Ferid Džanić (1918 – 17 September 1943) was a Bosniak soldier 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 ...

. A member of the SS ''Handschar'' Division, he was one of the leaders of an unsuccessful anti-German mutiny in

Villefranche-de-Rouergue Villefranche-de-Rouergue (; oc, Vilafranca de Roergue ) is a commune in the Aveyron department in southern France. Villefranche-de-Rouergue station has rail connections to Toulouse, Figeac and Aurillac. History At the end of the Albigens ...

, in which he was killed.

Early life

Džanić was born to a

Bosnian Muslim The Bosniaks ( bs, Bošnjaci, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia, which is today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, who share a common Bosnian ancestry, cu ...

family in the Bosnian city of

Bihać Bihać ( cyrl, Бихаћ) is a city and the administrative centre of Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of river Una in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovin ...

in 1918, around the time

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 ...

came to an end.

Army history

Džanić served as an officer cadet in 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, ...

for a short time before joining the 8th Krajina Brigade of 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� ...

to escape imprisonment in autumn 1942. While patrolling in western Bosnia in early 1943, Džanić was captured by the Germans during the Fourth Enemy Offensive and incarcerated in a prison camp outside

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajevo ...

. He was only released when he agreed to volunteer to become a soldier in the German-aligned Handžar division, where he became a lieutenant and later a battalion

duty officer A duty officer or officer of the day is a position that is assigned to a worker on a regularly rotational basis. While on duty, duty officers attend to administrative tasks and incidents that require attention regardless of the time of day, in add ...

Death

In July 1943, Džanic began forming an anti-German "rebel cell" within the Handžar division while they were stationed in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. During their stint in

, Džanić first met Božo Jelenek, who would become a fellow ringleader in the "rebel cell". The division was transferred to southern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

in August 1943 where a third ringleader, teenager Nikola Vukelić, joined the group. SS Mountain Pioneer Battalion 13, the unit of the Handžar's that the rebel ringleaders were a part of was stationed the French commune

. The Bosniak and

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 ...

soldiers of the Division endured harsh discipline, forced labour and physical abuse by their German superiors and on 7 September 1943, the Bosniak and

living quarters were moved to the barracks while the German officers were quartered in a hotel in the town. News of German, and Chetnik atrocities against the

population in Bosnia made its way to the soldiers in

. All that coupled with anger about the plan to have the Division transferred back to

, and evidently eventually to

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

, led to an anti-German rebellion by the Handžars stationed in

. The

Villefranche-de-Rouergue uprising The 13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS ''Handschar'' (1st Croatian) was a mountain infantry division of the Waffen-SS, an armed branch of the German Nazi Party that served alongside but was never formally part of the Wehrmacht during Wo ...

, that began just after midnight on 17 September 1943, ended with five German soldiers and multiple Handžars being killed. Around 800 surviving Handžars were sent to the Dachau concentration camp following the battle. Among the dead was 25-year-old Džanić.

References

1918 births 1943 deaths Bosniaks of Bosnia and Herzegovina People from Bihać Bosnia and Herzegovina soldiers SS officers Bosnia and Herzegovina in World War II Bosnia and Herzegovina mutineers Waffen-SS foreign volunteers and conscripts Royal Yugoslav Army personnel Yugoslav Partisans members Yugoslav soldiers {{BosniaHerzegovina-bio-stub