Serb boy in Domobrani

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roknic
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Joined: 28 Dec 2013, 01:05

Serb boy in Domobrani

#1

Post by roknic » 28 Dec 2013, 02:35

I have a photo of an unidentified family member, a very handsome young man, in a Domobrani uniform. We were Krajina Serbs, living in Vrginmost. I'm writing a novel in which a character based on this young man, appears. What I have imagined is that, in a rebellious teen phase, angry with his father, he converted to Catholocism, thereby being accepted at that verge of war period, as a Croatian. He's inducted into the Domobrani. I've been told that Serbs in the Domobrani served in work brigades, not as combatants. So, one question is, would it be too much of a stretch to suppose that his prior baptism caused him to be considered a Croat, and assigned to regular duty? I know my grandmother converted, in America, ca. 1915 and was classified here as Croatian, though I don't think she was fully accepted socially by other Croats. (Nobody was inviting us over.)

In real life, we lost very many kin to the Ustasha. In this story, I want this boy to come to the realization of what Ustasha are doing to his family. I've read accounts that there were many partisans who infiltrated the domobrani in order to increase desertions. So, I'm thinking my boy will encounter such an infiltrator, who will give him the low down on what's really going on, which he's already seeing for himself as he recognizes people being interned as communist Partisans whom he knows are apolitical.

Would it have been normal for him to be granted a leave? Desertions were very high, making me think leaves would be hard to get. If it's believable he'd get one, I'll have him get one, go home, find out the entire family has been wiped out, killed in their home, all but his sister. Another disaffected Domobrani has rescued his bride and son from Jacenovac, and tells him he saw his sister there. He goes there, looking for her, but by then she is but ashes. Is it a stretch that he would have that much freedom of movement?

He then plots with the infiltrator to sabotage the Ustasha. I'm definitely not a war action writer, so it will be a challenge to make this part exciting, while believable and relatively accurate, historically. These scenes will be few and brief, a minor subplot, if nothing else so I don't get in too far over my head in terms of accuracy.

Thanks for any help.

roknic
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Posts: 3
Joined: 28 Dec 2013, 01:05

Re: Serb boy in Domobrani

#2

Post by roknic » 28 Dec 2013, 17:02

Woke up with a great inspiration. I'll have the infiltrator pretending he's a Ustasha wannabe, spouting incredibly obnoxious, racist trash about Serbs, then gradually working in all these details about sadistic things being done to them, to find out who's going to object to what he's saying and those are the ones he later recruits to be part of their disaffection to the Partisans. His dialogue will be very easy to research. All I have to do is go over to the topix.com site on Serbia and glean what those trolls are saying. LOL.

Would still like advice on how common it would be in a war situation, when there are high desertion rates, to grant a weekend pass to a soldier?

And any opinions on how much a new, enthusiastically voluntary convert would be accepted by Croats in WWII? We know Starcevic was half-Serb and they've got statues of the guy all over the place in Croatia, while on the other hand those 'baptized' at the church in Glina were promptly slaughtered. My hunch is that the acid test would be a willingness to do violence to other Serbs.


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Joe Sakic
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Joined: 08 Jul 2014, 23:51

Re: Serb boy in Domobrani

#3

Post by Joe Sakic » 09 Jul 2014, 03:01

In a small country like Croatia where mixing was quite common before (as well as during and after) the Ustasha movement took over, it may come as not much of a surprise, at least to people familiar with the region's history, that Serbs served in the Croat WWII army just as it is fact that certain Croats served in the Partisan forces and even with the Chetniks.

That being said, Serbs were welcomed as Croatians if they converted. If anything, they were spared being killed. However, they were not trusted as their conversion was obviously looked upon as being not very believable. That being said, it was not that uncommon for troops of serb descent to be granted leave.

How would they have been accepted? Well like I said, very suspiciously. Their conversion - especially under duress - would have been extremely suspect. The more fanatical members of the Ustasha group probably would have preferred a dead serb to a converted one.

Sincerely,
Ustasha Fanatic

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