{"id":1356,"date":"2026-08-11T07:57:47","date_gmt":"2026-08-11T07:57:47","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/?p=1356"},"modified":"2026-08-28T11:37:42","modified_gmt":"2026-08-28T11:37:42","slug":"the-ustase-swore-to-fight-then-they-fled","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/en\/the-ustase-swore-to-fight-then-they-fled\/","title":{"rendered":"The Usta\u0161e swore to fight, then they fled"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<pre class=\"wp-block-verse\"><em>We illustrated the text with photographs by Tanjug photojournalist Branko Savi\u0107, who documented the Partisans\u2019 entry into Zagreb in 1945.<\/em><\/pre>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">It is the beginning of May, 1945. The political and military leadership of the Independent State of Croatia has gathered at the Main Usta\u0161a Head quarters in Zagreb. Poglavnik Ante Paveli\u0107 imme diately takes the floor and ominously announces:<strong> \u201cGentlemen, the next eight days in May will prob ably be decisive for the survival of our homeland, our idea, and ourselves,\u201d<\/strong> and then, in an even more dramatic tone, continues: \u201cA difficult decision lies before us. Shall we abandon Zagreb and Croatia without a fight, or, like Nikola \u0160ubi\u0107 Zrinski at Sziget in 1566, heroically defend what we began to build in April 1941? Even if that means our death.\u201d   <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"692\" src=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_298_17-1024x692.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1298\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_298_17-1024x692.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_298_17-300x203.jpg 300w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_298_17-768x519.jpg 768w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_298_17-1536x1038.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_298_17-2048x1384.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_298_17-590x400.jpg 590w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_298_17-385x260.jpg 385w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Photo: Museum of Yugoslavia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Vjekoslav Maks Luburi\u0107 is the first to enter the discussion. \u201cPoglavnik, I do not know why we are even discussing this. I think that all of us present here, by taking the Usta\u0161a oath, already decided in advance that, if need be, we are <strong>ready to die for the homeland.<\/strong>\u201d Luburi\u0107\u2019s words are met with enthusiasm. Minister Andrija Artukovi\u0107, former deputy leader Mile Budak, former commander of the Black Legion and HOS general Rafael Boban, the Poglavnik\u2019s close associate General Ante Mo\u0161kov, as well as everyone else present in the hall, liter ally leap to their feet at the same moment, stretch their right arms into the air, and begin shouting, \u201cZa dom \u2013 spremni!\u201d (\u201cFor the homeland \u2013 ready.\u201d) His face radiant, with a barely visible tear in his eye, Ante Paveli\u0107 appears prouder than ever in his life. \u201cThen let it be so. We are going nowhere! We do not fear Tito\u2019s partisans, no matter how many there are, because our Croatian people stand with us. Vjekoslav, deploy the Usta\u0161e and the Home Guard around Zagreb. Include our Chetnik allies as well. There should be no problem with that, since <strong>Dra\u017ea Mihailovi\u0107 himself recently offered me a joint struggle against the communists<\/strong>. I will speak with Ambassador Kasche. I am certain that, after con sulting Hitler, he too will endorse our decision and order the German, Circassian, and Cossack units to join us in the heroic battle that is coming.\u201d          <\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"700\" src=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_290_06-1024x700.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1291\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_290_06-1024x700.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_290_06-300x205.jpg 300w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_290_06-768x525.jpg 768w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_290_06-1536x1051.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_290_06-2048x1401.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Photo: Museum of Yugoslavia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The episode described, supposedly taking place in May 1945, in fact never happened. On the contra ry, all sympathizers of Ante Paveli\u0107 and the other Usta\u0161a officials ought to be fairly disappointed by the behavior of their idols. The only resolve the Usta\u0161e showed in those days of May was for <strong>flight, plunder, and the destruction of Zagreb<\/strong> before abandoning it forever.    <\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"757\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/791077-757x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1303\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/791077-757x1024.jpg 757w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/791077-222x300.jpg 222w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/791077-768x1039.jpg 768w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/791077-1136x1536.jpg 1136w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/791077-1514x2048.jpg 1514w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/791077-scaled.jpg 1893w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 757px) 100vw, 757px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Paveli\u0107 at the F\u00fchrer\u2019s headquarters, \u201cWerwolf,\u201d near Vinnytsia in Ukraine, 1942. (Photo: Profimedia) <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">However, historical revision ism has gained such momentum in Croatia that, unfortunately, it is not at all difficult to imagine a story like this, or a similar one, appearing on some portal, in a book, or in a documentary film. Even the greater part of Croatian historiography has given up <strong>exposing lies and disinformation<\/strong> when it comes to events from the Second World War. Moreover, historians who otherwise deal with that period, through their silence, participate in rein forcing a revisionist narrative according to which the Usta\u0161e were Croatian patriots and innocent victims, while the partisans were occupiers and bloodthirsty criminals. Of course, not all historians have given up the struggle against historical revi sionism, but these \u201clast of the Mohicans\u201d mostly share the same problem in presenting their views. All too often they are linguistically, stylistically, and \u201cdramaturgically\u201d ill-adapted, incomprehensible, and therefore uninteresting to the broader reading public.    <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"697\" src=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_297_31-1024x697.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1297\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_297_31-1024x697.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_297_31-300x204.jpg 300w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_297_31-768x523.jpg 768w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_297_31-1536x1046.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_297_31-2048x1394.jpg 2048w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Photo: Museum of Yugoslavia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">That is why the book by Boris Ra\u0161eta and Goran Gavranovi\u0107, \u201cEight Days in May: The Rise and Fall of the NDH and the Birth of a New Yugoslavia\u201d, feels like an oxymoron. Namely, it is an interesting history book. On the basis of numerous archival sources, newspaper articles, and memoirs of direct participants in the events, two prominent Croa tian journalists and publicists have succeeded in writing a book that is <strong>informative, intriguing<\/strong>, at mo ments entertaining, even witty, yet by no means superficial or trivial.  <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"678\" height=\"1024\" src=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/9789533588537-2-0-678x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1302\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/9789533588537-2-0-678x1024.jpg 678w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/9789533588537-2-0-199x300.jpg 199w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/9789533588537-2-0-768x1161.jpg 768w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/9789533588537-2-0.jpg 794w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 678px) 100vw, 678px\" \/><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Ra\u0161eta and Gavranovi\u0107 are not his torians, but from the very first lines of the book they show that they very much understand how a good historical work should be written. Although the title suggests a very brief period, the authors are aware that understanding eight days in May (1945) requires knowledge of the events that preceded them. Some by months, some by years. Just as they considered it impor tant to acquaint readers with the causes, the authors also (correctly) judged that the story of the consequences of the decisions made by the participants during those eight May days had to be told as well. And yes, the main characters of this book are well-known historical figures such as <strong>Ante Paveli\u0107, Maks Luburi\u0107, Josip Broz Tito, Ko\u010da Popovi\u0107, and Ivan \u0160ibl<\/strong>, that is, all those whose actions would prove fateful for millions of people. But what makes this book different, and for that very reason more interesting, are the \u201csupporting characters\u201d in those events. Whether it is the greatest Croatian writer, Mi roslav Krle\u017ea, who survived the war and the Usta\u0161a regime hostile to him, and who now fears the peacetime regime of his communist comrades. Or \u0110uro Ku mi\u010di\u0107, a completely unknown clerk of the NDH, who by a twist of fate will be assigned the task of formally handing over power in Zagreb on 8 May 1945 to the victors of the war. Among the secondary figures there is also the mistress of a high-rank ing politician, a Croatian officer who spent the war in different (opposing) armies, and a Catholic priest inclined toward the Usta\u0161a movement and at the same time chaplain to the armed forces of the NDH. Many will certainly also find it interesting to read what a young partisan and communist was doing in those May days of 1945 \u2013 the same man who <strong>decades later would found the HDZ<\/strong> and become the first president of independent Croatia.             <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"692\" src=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_291_35-1024x692.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1294\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_291_35-1024x692.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_291_35-300x203.jpg 300w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_291_35-768x519.jpg 768w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_291_35-1536x1038.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_291_35-2048x1384.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_291_35-590x400.jpg 590w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_291_35-385x260.jpg 385w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Photo: Museum of Yugoslavia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But let me return to the story from the beginning of this text. As I said, it surely sounds very appeal ing to historical revisionists and sympathizers of the Usta\u0161a movement. Who knows what Croatian history would have looked like if Ante Paveli\u0107 and his associates had acted during those eight days of May 1945 as described there. But they did not. And how did they act, and why exactly in that way, and with what consequences? There is no easier or more enjoyable way to discover that than to read Ra\u0161eta and Gavranovi\u0107\u2019s book \u201cEight Days in May\u201d.      <\/p>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"696\" src=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_293_30-1024x696.jpg\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-1295\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_293_30-1024x696.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_293_30-300x204.jpg 300w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_293_30-768x522.jpg 768w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_293_30-1536x1044.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_293_30-2048x1392.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/VIS_293_30-590x400.jpg 590w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">(Photo: Museum of Yugoslavia)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><br\/><br\/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We illustrated the text with photographs by Tanjug photojournalist Branko Savi\u0107, who documented the Partisans\u2019 entry into Zagreb in 1945. It is the beginning of May, 1945. The political and military leadership of the Independent State of Croatia has gathered at the Main Usta\u0161a Head quarters in Zagreb. Poglavnik Ante Paveli\u0107 imme diately takes the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1353,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[22,460],"tags":[192,193,190,191,194,195],"class_list":["post-1356","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-nonfiction","category-review-2","tag-ante-pavelic","tag-boris-raseta","tag-goran-gavranovic","tag-hitler","tag-ndh","tag-tito"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>The Usta\u0161e swore to fight, then they fled - BestBook<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bestbook.hr\/en\/the-ustase-swore-to-fight-then-they-fled\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The Usta\u0161e swore to fight, then they fled - BestBook\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We illustrated the text with photographs by Tanjug photojournalist Branko Savi\u0107, who documented the Partisans\u2019 entry into Zagreb in 1945. It is the beginning of May, 1945. The political and military leadership of the Independent State of Croatia has gathered at the Main Usta\u0161a Head quarters in Zagreb. 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It is the beginning of May, 1945. The political and military leadership of the Independent State of Croatia has gathered at the Main Usta\u0161a Head quarters in Zagreb. 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