Formation After the
Axis invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941,
Ante Pavelić, the leader of the newly created Axis
puppet state the
Independent State of Croatia (NDH), offered
Adolf Hitler volunteers to serve on the
Eastern Front. This offer soon resulted in the formation and deployment of army, air force and naval detachments which, after being trained and equipped by Germany, were committed to fighting the
Red Army. The largest element was the
369th Croatian Reinforced Infantry Regiment, which was part of the
100th Jäger Division, but was decimated at
Stalingrad in January 1943. The Croatian forces performed creditably on the Eastern Front, and the Germans continued to support the development of NDH forces with the aim of raising several divisions to serve there. Due to the lack of trained leaders and staff, these divisions were raised using a German
cadre. Commencing on 17 August 1943, the 392nd (Croatian) Infantry Division was assembled and trained in
Austria as the third and last Croatian division raised for service in the
Wehrmacht, following its sister divisions the
369th (Croatian) Infantry Division and
373rd (Croatian) Infantry Division. One infantry regiment and the divisional artillery regiment were formed in
Döllersheim, the other infantry regiment in
Zwettl, the signals battalion in
Stockerau and the pioneer battalion in
Krems. It was built around 3,500 German cadre troops, and 8,500 soldiers of the
Croatian Home Guard, the regular army of the NDH. It was formed under the command of
Generalmajor Johann Mickl who remained its commander until the last weeks of the war. Mickl was an Austrian who had served under
Erwin Rommel in
France and
North Africa, where he had been awarded the
Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross. He had also commanded the
11th Panzer Division on the Eastern Front, where he had received the
Oak Leaves to his Knight's Cross. The division wore Wehrmacht uniform with the coat-of-arms of the NDH on the right sleeve. Although originally intended for use on the Eastern Front, not long after its formation the Germans decided that the division would not be utilised outside the NDH. The division was deployed to the NDH in January 1944 to combat the
Partisans in the territory of the puppet state. It was known as the "Blue Division" (, ).
Anti-Partisan operations Initial deployment The first task of the division after its arrival in the western part of the NDH was to secure the
Adriatic coastline along the
Croatian Littoral between
Rijeka and
Karlobag (including all islands except
Krk) and about inland, and was a critical task due to German fears of an Anglo-American landing on the Adriatic coast. This operation included securing the crucial supply route between
Karlovac and
Senj. These areas had been largely dominated by the Partisans since the
Italian capitulation in autumn 1943, in particular the port of Senj. The division was placed under the command of the
XV Mountain Corps as part of the
2nd Panzer Army, and was initially headquartered in Karlovac. The division also took over responsibility for the security of the
Zagreb-Karlovac railway line from the
1st Cossack Division. The division was engaged by the Partisans from the first night in their garrison areas. Before the division had completed its initial deployment, it was called upon to relieve the NDH garrison of
Ogulin. This involved a drive southwest from Karlovac between 13 and 16 January 1944 initially led by the 847th Infantry Regiment. In the first engagements with Partisan units, the Croatian soldiers panicked and their German leaders were quickly wounded or killed. When the bodies of those that had been killed were recovered, they were often found stripped of equipment and some were even found naked. On 16 January, Ogulin was relieved, but the advance was continued south to
Skradnik, and villages in that area were also secured.
Operational history This was followed by Operation Drežnica, a push through to the coast, forcing passes through the
Velika Kapela mountain range, part of the
Dinaric Alps. Both passes were more than above sea level and the snow was often knee or thigh-deep. Delayed by mines and roadblocks, the division captured the
Kapela and Vratnik passes with minimal casualties. This was followed by a series of engagements along the road to the coast, and after some close quarter fighting with the Partisan
13th Assault Division, they captured and destroyed most of that division's supply dump northwest of
Lokve and secured Senj. The 847th Infantry Regiment was then allocated the task of securing the coastline and the 846th Infantry Regiment was directed to secure the divisional main supply route from Senj to
Generalski Stol. They started improved bases along the road, including Italian forts that had been established in the Kapela and Vratnik passes. The 847th Infantry Regiment spread out along the coastline between Karlobag and
Crikvenica, and supported by elements of the divisional artillery and pioneers they began building fortifications against a feared
Allied invasion. The troops in Karlobag linked up with the
264th Infantry Division which was responsible for the coast further to the southeast. The supply situation quickly became difficult due to Partisan interdiction of the route from Karlovac and Allied bombing of coastal shipping and Senj harbour. In late February or early March the 847th Regiment, supported by an
Ustaše battalion, advanced on
Plaški (south of Ogulin) when they were stopped by deep snow. Partisans then attacked their supply lines, killing 30 soldiers. Some of the bodies of the dead soldiers were looted or mutilated. After Plaški was captured, the Ustaše battalion independently pursued the Partisans and returned to Plaški with many of the looted items. In March, the 847th Regiment occupied the Adriatic islands of
Rab and
Pag without encountering any Partisan resistance. In the same month, the 846th Regiment conducted an operation in the
Gacka river valley around
Otočac, and assisted the Croatian Home Guard in enforcing conscription orders on their own population in the divisional area. Through the spring of 1944, the 846th Regiment used
jadgkommandos, lightly armed and mobile "hunter teams" of company or battalion strength, to conduct follow-up of sightings of Partisans, and transport moving through the Kapela Pass had to travel in convoy for security. The division was able to restore a land connection with the NDH garrison of
Gospić which had been reliant on supply from the sea since the Italian surrender, and drove three Partisan battalions out of the outskirts of Otočac. One of the difficulties faced by the division in fighting in the mountains was the lack of mountain artillery which could accompany the battalions in the field. The divisional artillery was equipped with field howitzers with a range of which seriously limited the artillery cover that could be provided during mobile operations. In April 1944, Mickl was promoted to
Generalleutnant. The Germans identified that the Partisan 13th Assault Division was using the Drežnica valley as a huge armoury, hiding captured Italian arms and ammunition in villages, basements, and even in fake graves in cemeteries. This was of major concern if the feared Allied landing eventuated. In mid-April, Mickl ordered Operation Keulenschlag (Mace Blow) to clear the area, using the 846th Infantry Regiment and parts of the 847th Infantry Regiment, supported by the divisional artillery and flak battalion. Over the next two weeks, the division pushed the 13th Assault Division north to the area of
Mrkopalj and
Delnice, and captured sufficient material to equip two divisions, including of small arms ammunition and of artillery ammunition. On 5 May, the Partisan
35th Lika Division attacked from the
Plitvice Lakes area and captured the village of Ramljane. Partisans also interdicted the Otočac-Gospić road. In response, Mickl planned Operation Morgenstern (Morning Star) to clear Partisan forces from the
Krbavsko Polje region around
Udbina. From 7 to 16 May 1944, along with elements of the 373rd (Croatian) Infantry Division, the 92nd Motorised Regiment, a battalion of the 1st Regiment of the
Brandenburg Division, and Ustaše units, the division was involved in Operation Morgenstern. According to German sources, Operation Morgenstern resulted in significant Partisan losses, including 438 killed, 56 captured, and 18 defectors, as well as capturing weapons, ammunition, vehicles, animals and large amounts of equipment. Also in May, the division received 500 German reinforcements, and formed a field replacement battalion. The division saw action against the Partisans until the end of the war, often fighting alongside a grouping of Ustaše units that numbered up to 12,000 troops.
Final months During the last few months of the war, the division was engaged in the defence of the northern Adriatic coast and
Lika. Mickl was shot in the head by Partisans near Senj on 9 April 1945, and died in hospital in Rijeka the following day. The task of the division was to fight the Partisan
4th Army advancing from the south-east, and to support the
LXXXXVII Army Corps, consisting of the
188th Mountain Division and 237th Infantry Divisions, which were in danger of being enveloped near Rijeka. The division arrived in the area of Rijeka in mid-April 1945 after it suffered losses in the
Lika-Primorje operation. However, by April 1945 the Croatian manpower of the division had been significantly reduced due to desertions or release. Around this time, about 3,000 Croats were released, leaving a small number of Croats remaining with the division. Some of the released Croats apparently succeeded in travelling to the
Slovene Littoral in the closing days of the war. They were then organised as a separate unit of the largely illusory remnant of the
Armed Forces of the Independent State of Croatia under the command of General
Matija Parac, which was formally part of General
Draža Mihailović's Chetniks. The unit was under the direct command of General
Miodrag Damjanović. Later the unit retreated to
British-occupied northern Italy. The division, including its few remaining Croats were ordered to move north towards
Klagenfurt in Austria. Some of the remaining Croat members of the division were killed while the LXXXXVII Army Corps attempted to push through, but the formation lacked the strength to achieve its objective. As a result, on 5 May 1945,
Generaloberst Alexander Löhr,
Commander-in-chief Southeast Europe, authorised the LXXXXVII Army Corps, including the 392nd Division, to surrender. The Partisans accepted the German surrender on 7 May in the area between Rijeka and
Ilirska Bistrica, at which time all the remaining Croats and some Italian fascist troops still fighting alongside the Germans within the Corps were released. For several days the disarmed German troops of the Corps were allowed to travel towards Germany, but on 12 May the Partisans decided to make them
prisoners of war.
Postwar Following the division's surrender many of its members, including all German personnel, were murdered. On 3 April 2009, the
Croatian Helsinki Committee for Human Rights announced that mass graves containing the remains of approximately 4,500 members of the division had been discovered near
Zaprešić. Locals indicated that the Partisan
21st Serbian Division was responsible for the massacre. ==Order of battle==