The Light Transport Brigade (, ) was a military unit of the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...

's Croatian Home Guard which fought alongside the

Royal Italian Army The Royal Italian Army () (RE) was the land force of the Kingdom of Italy, established with the proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy. During the 19th century Italy started to unify into one country, and in 1861 Manfredo Fanti signed a decree c ...

on the Eastern Front. It was attached to the 3rd Cavalry Division of the 8th Italian Army, which was in turn subordinate to the German

Army Group B Army Group B () was the name of four distinct German Army Group, army group commands that saw action during World War II. The first Army Group B was created on 12 October 1939 (from the former Army Group North) and fought in the Battle of France ...

. The legion was composed of about 1,215 volunteers divided into 3 Infantry Companies, 1 Machine-Gun Company, 1 (81mm) Mortar Company and 1 (65mm) Artillery Battery. The unit was formed by Italian request in July 1941, after a meeting between Italian General Antonio Oxilio, delivering a letter from the Italian High Command, and Poglavnik

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 was dictator of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH), a fasc ...

. However, it remained in the Independent State of Croatia until December when it was finally moved to Italy. Upon completion of their training the unit was visited by Croatian field marshal

Slavko Kvaternik Slavko Kvaternik (25 August 1878 – 7 June 1947) was a Croatian military general and politician who was one of the founders of the ultranationalist Ustaše movement. Kvaternik was military commander and Minister of the Armed Forces ('' Domobrans ...

in early 1941. By 16 April 1942 it arrived on the Eastern Front. It fought until December 1942 when it was destroyed by the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

around the Don River in the

Battle of Stalingrad The Battle of Stalingrad ; see . rus, links=on, Сталинградская битва, r=Stalingradskaya bitva, p=stəlʲɪnˈɡratskəjə ˈbʲitvə. (17 July 19422 February 1943) was a major battle on the Eastern Front of World War II, ...

. The unit was commemorated with a stamp featuring a soldier in the Don region. Proceeds went to the families of legionnaires. In 2008, 16 soldiers' remains were returned to

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

.Istočna fronta: U domovini nakon 65 godina

References

Croatian Home Guard (World War II) Military units and formations established in 1941 Military units and formations disestablished in 1943 {{Mil-unit-stub