‘Catastrophe Avoided by a Hair’s Breadth’: German Sources on the 1944 Battle of Knin

Abstract

The battle that took place in Knin and its surroundings in November and December 1944 was one of the most important events during World War II in Croatia and Yugoslavia as a whole. As such, the battle occupied a prominent place in the narrative of the Yugoslav Partisans’ ‘People’s Liberation War’. The descriptions, however, were almost always written from the perspective of the winning side. This approach had both objective (lack of German documents) and subjective reasons (unwillingness to change the official—and much embellished—version, which had already begun to take shape during the war). Thanks to the passage of time, as well as the opening and advanced digitisation of archival holdings throughout the world, we now have a chance to take a look at the battle from the perspective of the losing side. As there are no major discrepancies in the German and Yugoslav descriptions of the course of the battle itself, the article at hand will concentrate on its lesser-known or controversial aspects. The reader will thus find out about the German High Command’s fixation with the events transpiring in the eastern parts of Yugoslavia. This effectively meant that the Wehrmacht’s contingent in Dalmatia was all but abandoned to its fate. The contingent was denied reinforcements and proper supply, and soon succumbed to the semi-regular, numerous, and well-equipped Partisan units operating in the area. The catastrophe brought the entire strategic right flank in the Balkans to the brink of collapse. That the enemy did not advance all the way to Bihać was more due to luck than design: thanks to the strained relations with the Western Allies at that time, the Partisans saw themselves compelled to call off the offensive and concentrate the bulk of their forces closer to the coast. Apart from details on these events, the reader will also find updated information on the German order-of-battle as well as new findings on the scale and type of losses incurred at or around Knin, a topic that is still shrouded in controversy.