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 ...

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. It was established in p ...

awarded a number of orders, decorations and medals.

History

After the early April 1941 invasion of Yugoslavia, the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia 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 ...

was crushed, and the so-called

was established with

Ante Pavelić Ante Pavelić (; 14 July 1889 – 28 December 1959) was a Croatian politician who founded and headed the fascist ultranationalist organization known as the Ustaše in 1929 and served as dictator of the Independent State of Croatia ( hr, l ...

as the Head of State. As the Ustasha government of Yugoslavia were allies of the German Nazi government, the orders and decorations of Croatia from World War II remained secret until 1990 when Croatia became independent.

List of Medals

Military Order of the Iron Trefoil The Military Order of the Iron Trefoil, also known as the Croatian Cross, was the highest military decoration of the Independent State of Croatia. It was awarded for "acts of war, achieved by personal incentive, for efforts and good leadership in ...

(''Vojnički red željeznog trolista'') (27 December 1941) *

Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir The Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir ( hr, Red krune kralja Zvonimira) was an order awarded by the Independent State of Croatia (NDH). It was established as a "visible sign of decoration for merits done, in peace or in war, for Croatian people ...

(''Red krune kralja Zvonimira'') (17 May 1941) *

Medal of the Crown of King Zvonimir The Medal of the Crown of King Zvonimir ( hr, Kolajna krune kralja Zvonimira) was founded as a "visible sign of decoration for merits done, in peace or in war, for Croatian people and Independent State of Croatia." The Medal of the Crown of King ...

(''Kolajna krune kralja Zvonimira'') (27 December 1941) * Medal of Poglavnik Ante Pavelić for Bravery (''Kolajna poglavnika Ante Pavelića za hrabrost'') (27 December 1941) * Foundation of the Independent State of Croatia Memorial Medal (''Spomenznak na uspostavu Nezavisne Države Hrvatske'') (18 March 1942) * Order of Merit (''Red za zasluge'') (19 December 1942) * Wound Medal (''Ranjenička kolajna'') (8 April 1943) * 5th December 1918 Commemorative Ribbon (''Spomenznak 5. prosinca 1918.'') (30 November 1943) * War Memorial Ribbon (''Ratni spomenznak'') (29 December 1943) * Ustasha Badge of Honour (''Ustaški častni znak'') (3 April 1944) On 10 April 1945 the Velebit medal (''Velebitska kolajna'') for bravery (silver and bronze) was added to the order of Croatian decorations. It was created on 1 January 1932 in

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 ...

, and awarded to soldiers who participated in a diversion in Lika village Buršani (7 September 1932). By declaration of the Croatian government on 10 October 1943, small signs (ribbons) were added as decorations. Ribbons were made for military personnel and worn on uniforms. Since 1942, decorations of Croatia have been made in the

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

mint, "Braća Knaus" (Brothers Knaus) (former "Griesbach & Knaus"), and in the workshop of Teodor Krivak in

Varaždin ) , image_photo = , image_skyline = , image_flag = Flag of Varaždin.svg , flag_size = , image_seal = , seal_size = , image_shield = Grb_Grad ...

(former "Sorlini"). The Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir was made from the design of air force

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 o ...

Jakob Machiedo. Colonel Machiedo's design incorporated art elements from the oldest Croatian culture heritage, the trefoil ornament. The Medal of the Crown of King Zvonimir and the Medal of Poglavnik Ante Pavelić for bravery were made by the Croatian sculptor

Ivo Kerdić Ivo Kerdić (1881–1953) was a Croatian sculptor, best known for his metalwork and medallions. Biography Ivo Kerdić was born 19 May 1881 in Davor, a small village near Slavonski Brod, Croatia, at that time in Austria-Hungary. The son of a ...

. The Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir and The Military Order of Iron Trefoil have the shape of the Trefoil Cross. The Trefoil Cross has become famous and is known in world literature as the "Croatian Cross".

Knighthood

Knighthood in the Independent State of Croatia was conferred by the state during its existence from 1941 to 1945. The title of ''vitez'', or knight, was awarded to recipients of certain state orders and awards. The following awards granted the title: #

1st Class with oak leaves # Military Order of the Iron Trefoil 1st Class # Grand

with star and oak leaves # Grand Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir with star and swords # Grand Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir # Ante Pavelić Medal for Bravery in gold # Military Order of the Iron Trefoil 2nd Class with oak leaves # Military Order of the Iron Trefoil 2nd Class # Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir 1st Class with star and oak leaves # Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir with star and swords # Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir with star

Knights

The title was awarded to 26 generals: *Ladislav Aleman (-1945) *Salko Alikadić (-1941) **Received award posthumously after death in Operation Ozren. *

Vilko Begić Vilko Begić (20 January 1874 – 1946?) was a Croatian military officer. Biography Begić was born in Čazma, Austria-Hungary, that today is in Croatia. He was quartermaster colonel in the Austro-Hungarian Army. After World War I he was a jou ...

(1874–1946) *

Rafael Boban Rafael may refer to: * Rafael (given name) or Raphael, a name of Hebrew origin * Rafael, California * Rafael Advanced Defense Systems, Israeli manufacturer of weapons and military technology * Hurricane Rafael, a 2012 hurricane Fiction * ' ...

(1907–?) * Eduard Bona Bunić (1894–1944) **Received award posthumously after death in Battle of Travnik. * Matija Čanić (1901–1964) *Milan Desović (1895–1960) * Fedor Dragojlov *Stjepan Duić (-1934) **Received award posthumously after establishment of the Independent State of Croatia. * Jure Francetić (1912–1942) **Received award posthumously after his death in 1942. *Đuro Grujić (1885–1945) *Artur Gustović (-1945) * Đuro Jakčin (-1944) * Slavko Kvaternik (1878–1947) * Vladimir Laxa (1869–1945) *

Vjekoslav Luburić Vjekoslav Luburić (6 March 1914 – 20 April 1969) was a Croatian Ustaše official who headed the system of concentration camps in the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) during much of World War II. Luburić also personally oversaw and spe ...

(1914–1969) *Franjo Lukac (-1946) * Josip Metzger (1883–1945) * Ante Moškov (1911–1948) * Ivan Perčević (1881–1947) *Krunoslav Stjepan Perčić (1891–1971) *Dragutin Rubčić (-1986) *Adolf Sabljak (1886–1947) * Tomislav Sertić (1898–1945) * Franjo Šimić (1900–1944) * Slavko Stanzer (1872–1945) Colonels to receive the title included: * Viktor Pavičić (-1943)

Notes

References

* Mr. sc. Stjepan Adanić, Major General Krešimir Kašpar, prof. Boris Prister i prof. Ivan Ružić "Hrvatska odlikovanja."

External links

Independent State of Croatia's Military Decorations
at Wehrmacht-Awards.com {{DEFAULTSORT:Orders, Decorations, And Medals Of The Independent State Of Croatia