Case Black
Inconclusive Uprisings 1942 1943 1944 1945 Case Black (German: Fall Schwarz), also known as the Fifth Enemy Offensive (Serbo-Croatian Latin: Peta neprijateljska ofanziva) in Yugoslav historiography and often identified with its final phase, the Battle of the Sutjeska (Serbo-Croatian Latin: Bitka na Sutjesci pronounced [bîtka na sûtjɛst͡si]) was a joint attack by the Axis taking place from 15 May to 16 June 1943, which aimed to destroy the main Yugoslav Partisan force, near the Sutjeska river in south-eastern Bosnia.[12] The operation immediately followed Case White which had failed in accomplishing the same objectives: to eliminate the central Partisan formations and capture their commander, Josip Broz Tito.With operation Schwarz, the Wehrmacht intended to clear the background of the Adriatic coast by destroying both the Chetnik and Partisan movements, which were still firmly established in Herzegovina and Montenegro.Hitler calculated that, in the event of a British invasion of the Balkans, Chetniks under Italian care would switch sides and join the Allies.This attitude was shared by Chief of Staff of the Italian Army, general Vittorio Ambrosio, but he had to obey the promise that Mussolini gave to Hitler.At the beginning of March 1943, general Ambrosio, summoned Robotti and Alessandro Pirzio Biroli to Rome for talks on the disarmament of Chetniks and operations against partisans.For this operation, the Commander of the Southeast, colonel-general Alexander Löhr, received elite 1st Mountain Division from the Eastern Front as reinforcements.After that, the 118th Jäger Division had the task of occupying the left bank of the Piva and thus closing the environment, so that the breakthrough was hindered not only by strong forces but also by deep river gorges.After the heavy defeat inflicted on the Italians in Pivka Javorka, on May 1, the First and Second Proletarian Divisions embarked on a comprehensive offensive to liquidate the Italian-Chetnik garrison in Kolašin, with the intention of continuing the advance towards Berane.In a surprise raid on the morning of May 14, despite the established contacts and strong opposition of the commander of the Italian 14th Corps, general Ercole Roncaglia, the Germans captured the Chetniks in their sleep and disarmed them.One part of captured Chetniks, including Đurišić, was to be interned in prison camps in Greece and Poland, and the rest for labor battalions in the upcoming fight against the Partisans.Faced with the advance of large German forces from the east, the Supreme Headquarters decided to prevent the closure of the ring by capturing Foča and provide communication with eastern Bosnia.Informed on May 20, 1943 of the arrival of the British military mission, the Supreme Headquarters left Đurđevića Tara and settled in the forest near Black Lake, at the foot of Durmitor.From May 31 until June 5, the 4th Montenegrin, 7th Krajina and 10th Herzegovinian brigades fought fierce and exhausting battles with the Germans on the rugged sides of the mountain Bioč and in the upper course of the Piva.As the attempt to break through the front via Foča failed, the Supreme Headquarters had to return to its initial positions, which the Germans used to make an even stronger ring.Following Hitler's instructions, German commander in chief Generaloberst Alexander Löhr ordered their annihilation, including the wounded and the unarmed medical personnel.At the post-war trial, generals Alexander Löhr, Fritz Neidholdt and Josef Kübler and at that time Standartenführer August Schmidhuber were charged with war crimes during the battle.[9] The German field commander, General Rudolf Lüters in his final report described the so-called "communist rebels" as "well organized, skillfully led and with combat morale unbelievably high".Consequently, they were able to replenish their losses with new recruits, regroup, and mount a series of counterattacks in eastern Bosnia, clearing Axis garrisons of Vlasenica, Srebrenica, Olovo, Kladanj and Zvornik in the following 20 days.Duboka je Sutjeska, kanjon iznad nje Na kanjonu Tito stoji, gleda ranjene Na kanjonu Tito stoji i poručuje Sutjeska se mora proći, da spasimo ranjene Sivi sokole... Sutjeska je probijena, ranjeni su spašeni A naš stari heroj Sava osta mrtav da leži Sivi sokole... Radili smo, radimo, radit ćemo još Druže Tito, kunemo se, pobijedit ćemo Peregrine falcon, old friend of mine, Give me wings, falcon, that I may fly over the mountains.
Battle of Sutjeska (film)World War II in YugoslaviaMontenegroBosnia and HerzegovinaYugoslaviaGermanyCroatiaBulgariaAlliesYugoslav PartisansAlexander LöhrRudolf LütersJosip Broz TitoVelimir TerzićKoča PopovićPeko DapčevićVlado ŠegrtSava KovačevićAxis invasionBombing of BelgradeBombing of SarajevoSanski MostEastern HerzegovinaDrvar uprisingRogaticaSrb uprisingUprising in SerbiaBela CrkvaLoznicaBanja KoviljačaŠabacKruševacMačvaKraljevoTrešnjicaNovi PazarMihailovicSjenicaUprising in MontenegroBullseyePljevljaDražgošeSoutheast CroatiaPrijedorChetnik sabotage of Axis communication linesKozaraPartisan Long MarchKupresKopaonikBihaćCase WhiteGreenwood–RoothamFungusHoathley 1TypicalZvornikDavidsonGrčariceTurjak CastleMacleanVišegradBombing of PodgoricaBombing of ZadarDelphinRogersKugelblitzKočevjeRaid on MljetRaid on ŠoltaLindsayRösselsprungAndrijevicaHalyardOžbaltRatweekSerbiaBelgradeStracin–KumanovoVukov KlanacBregalnitsa–StrumicaKosovoSyrmian FrontNiš airspace incidentBatinaDesivojcaTrnovoMostarBombing of ZagrebSpring AwakeningTransdanubian HillsLika-PrimorjeNagykanizsa-KörmendSarajevoLijevče FieldTriesteZelengoraPoljanaOdžakAxis occupation of SerbiaHungarian occupationKosovo during World War IIWorld War II in the Slovene LandsWorld War II in Yugoslav MacedoniaAir warfare in YugoslaviaAllied bombing campaignGermanSerbo-Croatian LatinYugoslavYugoslav PartisanBosniaYugoslavia during World War IIoperation WeissChetniksWehrmachtBalkansNorth African campaignAdriaticHerzegovinaMussolini governmentItalian Supreme CommandMario RobottiChief of Staff of the Italian ArmyVittorio AmbrosioAlessandro Pirzio BiroliItalianCroatian