The Battle of Kupres () was a battle fought in 1942 during World War 2 in

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia ( sh, Nezavisna Država Hrvatska, NDH; german: Unabhängiger Staat Kroatien; it, Stato indipendente di Croazia) was a World War II-era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. It was established in p ...

between the forces of the

and the

Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene: , or the National Liberation Army, sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska (NOV), Народноослободилачка војска (НОВ); mk, Народноослобод� ...

, in and around the town of

Kupres Kupres ( sr-cyrl, Купрес) is a town and municipality located in Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, it has a population of 5,057 inhabitants, while the town of Kupres ha ...

in western Bosnia. The Partisans launched three concentrated attacks against the garrison of 1,500 men during the nights of 11/12 August, 14 August and 19 August. Although outnumbered, the Black Legion, Croatian Home Guard and local militia units successfully defended the town against several Partisan brigades.

Background

In July 1942, the 2nd Proletarian Brigade moved on Kupres and, with the assistance of local Partisans, seized control over several villages in the vicinity. During the night of 4 August 1942 the Partisans attacked the town of

Livno Livno ( sr-cyrl, Ливно, ) is a city and the administrative center of Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the river Bistrica in the southeastern edge of the Livno Fiel ...

and captured it in the following days. The plan of the National Liberation Army Supreme Command, following the seizure of Livno, was to move the Proletarian Assault Brigades to Kupres, whose capture was vital for further actions in the valley of River Vrbas.

The battle

11/12 August 1942, 13 battalions with around 2,100 menDavor Marijan: Borbe za Kupres 1942., Zagreb 1999., p. 104-105, 200 *2nd Proletarian Brigade *3rd Proletarian (Sandžak) Brigade *4th Proletarian (Montenegrin) Brigade *10th Herzegovinian Brigade *3rd Krajina NOP Detachment 14 August 1942, 16 battalions with around 2,400 - 3,000Davor Marijan: Borbe za Kupres 1942., Zagreb 1999., p. 125 men *2nd Proletarian Brigade *3rd Proletarian (Sandžak) Brigade *4th Proletarian (Montenegrin) Brigade *10th Herzegovinian Brigade *1st Krajina Brigade *3rd Krajina NOP Detachment 11/12 August 1942, in total around 1,400 men * Black Legion *Kupres Militia *XVII Ustaša Battalion *9th Artillery Battalion *9th Infantry Regiment *5th Gendarmerie Regiment 14 August 1942, around 1,500 armed menDavor Marijan: Borbe za Kupres 1942., Zagreb 1999., p.117 * Black Legion *Kupres Militia *XVII Ustaša Battalion *9th Artillery Battalion *9th Infantry Regiment *5th Gendarmerie Regiment *14th Infantry Regiment

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Kupres Kupres 1942 Kupres 1942 Kupres 1942 Independent State of Croatia Kupres 1942 Kupres 1942 Kupres 1942 1942 in Yugoslavia July 1942 events August 1942 events