Maksimilijan Njegovan (31 October 1858 – 1 July 1930) was an

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 ...

admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

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 = , capit ...

n descent. He was the Navy's senior administrator as well as its fleet commander 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 ...

, from 1917 to 1918. He "inherited a competent but exhausted service."

Background

Njegovan was born in 1858 in Agram (now

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 ...

). Upon graduation from the Imperial and Royal Naval Academy in Fiume (now

Rijeka Rijeka ( , , ; also known as Fiume hu, Fiume, it, Fiume ; local Chakavian: ''Reka''; german: Sankt Veit am Flaum; sl, Reka) is the principal seaport and the third-largest city in Croatia (after Zagreb and Split). It is located in Primor ...

), he joined the fleet in Pola (

Pula Pula (; also known as Pola, it, Pola , hu, Pòla, Venetian language, Venetian; ''Pola''; Istriot language, Istriot: ''Puola'', Slovene language, Slovene: ''Pulj'') is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, and the List of cities and town ...

) in 1877 as a ''Seekadett''. In 1893, after receiving a short instructional course as torpedo officer of ''Alpha'', he received his first command, the torpedo boat ''Condor''. At the Naval Academy, he was an instructor in seamanship from 1898 to 1905. Njegovan then held command of the battleship ''Budapest'' until 1907. He served from 1907 to 1909 as chief of staff to the ''Marinekommandant'' (Navy Commander),

Rudolf Montecuccoli Rudolf Graf Montecuccoli degli Erri (22 February 1843-16 May 1922) was chief of the Austro-Hungarian Navy from 1904 to 1913 and largely responsible for the modernization of the fleet before the First World War. Overview Montecuccoli was born i ...

, and as adjutant and chief of operations of the ''Marinesektion'' (Naval Section of the War Ministry), of which Montecuccoli was ''Chef'' (Chief). He was promoted to ''Kontreadmiral'' in 1911 and ''Vizeadmiral'' in 1913. At the outbreak of the First World War in 1914 he was named commander of the 1st Division of the 1st Battle Squadron, hoisting his flag in the dreadnought battleship ''Tegetthoff''. Njegovan was decorated with the Order of Leopold for his bombardment of

Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic S ...

the night

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

declared war on the empire, 23/24 May 1915.

Fleet Commander

In February 1917 he succeeded the late ''Grossadmiral''

Anton Haus Anton Johann Haus (13 June 1851 – 8 February 1917) was an Austrian naval officer. Despite his German surname, he was born to a Slovene language, Slovenian-speaking family in Tolmein (now Tolmin, Slovenia). Haus was fleet commander of the Austr ...

as ''Marinekommandant'' and as ''Flottenkommandant'' (Fleet Commander). Promoted to full

Admiral Admiral is one of the highest ranks in some navies. In the Commonwealth nations and the United States, a "full" admiral is equivalent to a "full" general in the army or the air force, and is above vice admiral and below admiral of the fleet, ...

, he was appointed to the additional post of ''Chef der Marinesektion'' in April 1917, succeeding the late Karl Kailer von Kaltenfels. Njegovan was the last man to hold all three posts. He received the Grand Cross of the

Order of the Iron Crown The Order of the Iron Crown ( it, link=no, Ordine della Corona Ferrea) was an order of merit that was established on 5 June 1805 in the Kingdom of Italy by Napoleon Bonaparte under his title of Napoleon I, King of Italy. The order took its name ...

for the battle of the Otranto Straits, 14/15 May 1917. Njegovan continued Haus' strategy of preserving his major forces as a '

fleet in being In naval warfare, a "fleet in being" is a naval force that extends a controlling influence without ever leaving port. Were the fleet to leave port and face the enemy, it might lose in battle and no longer influence the enemy's actions, but while ...

'. However, he was unable to ease ethnic tensions on individual warships, where sailors were also influenced by radical agitators. Another pressing problem for which Njegovan could find no solution involved shortages of food, fuel, and other vital supplies. In the face of such difficulties, in 1917, Kaiser

Wilhelm II of Germany Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until his abdication on 9 November 1918. Despite strengthening the German Empir ...

and Kaiser

Karl I of Austria Charles I or Karl I (german: Karl Franz Josef Ludwig Hubert Georg Otto Maria, hu, Károly Ferenc József Lajos Hubert György Ottó Mária; 17 August 18871 April 1922) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary (as Charles IV, ), King of Croatia, ...

proposed an unrealistic plan for an invasion of

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

using the whole fleet. Njegovan steadfastly opposed the proposal, which eventually was dropped. The abortive communist-inspired mutiny at Cattaro (

Kotor Kotor (Montenegrin Cyrillic: Котор, ), historically known as Cattaro (from Italian: ), is a coastal town in Montenegro. It is located in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor. The city has a population of 13,510 and is the administrative c ...

) in February 1918 underscored the need for a more energetic fleet commander. Relieved of command, Njegovan was succeeded as ''Flottenkommandant'' by

Miklós Horthy Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya ( hu, Vitéz nagybányai Horthy Miklós; ; English: Nicholas Horthy; german: Nikolaus Horthy Ritter von Nagybánya; 18 June 1868 – 9 February 1957), was a Hungarian admiral and dictator who served as the Regent o ...

and as ''Chef der Marinesektion'' by Franz von Holub. The office of ''Marinekommandant'' was left vacant. Retired on 1 March 1918, Njegovan spent the rest of the war in Pola. Pensioned and promoted to ''

Grossadmiral Grand admiral is a historic naval rank, the highest rank in the several European navies that used it. It is best known for its use in Germany as . A comparable rank in modern navies is that of admiral of the fleet. Grand admirals in individual n ...

'' on the retired list, he was decorated with the Grand Cross of the Order of Leopold for his services to the Empire.

Postwar

After the war, Njegovan lived for a time in Venice. His homeland of

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 = , capit ...

had become part of the new country of the

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...

, and in 1930 he died in his hometown of

at the age of 71. He is buried in

Mirogoj The Mirogoj City Cemetery (, hr, Gradsko groblje Mirogoj), also known as Mirogoj Cemetery ( hr, Groblje Mirogoj), is a cemetery park that is considered to be among the more noteworthy landmarks in the city of Zagreb. The cemetery inters members o ...

cemetery.

References

External links

First World War.com - Who's Who - Maximilian Njegovan
at firstworldwar.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Njegovan, Maximilian 1858 births 1930 deaths Military personnel from Zagreb Austro-Hungarian admirals Croatian military personnel in Austrian armies Croatian admirals Croatian Austro-Hungarians Austro-Hungarian military personnel of World War I Croatian people of World War I 19th-century Croatian military personnel 20th-century Croatian military personnel Burials at Mirogoj Cemetery

Background

Fleet Commander

Postwar

See also

References

External links