Miroslav (Friedrich) Navratil (19 July 1893 – 7 June 1947) was a

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

n soldier, pilot, and general who served in the armies of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

, the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...

, and the

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 (1922–1943), Fascist It ...

Until the end of World War I

Navratil was born in

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its a ...

in the

Condominium of Bosnia and Herzegovina A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...

. He attended high school in Sarajevo, and finished cadet's school in

Graz Graz (; sl, Gradec) is the capital city of the Austrian state of Styria and second-largest city in Austria after Vienna. As of 1 January 2021, it had a population of 331,562 (294,236 of whom had principal-residence status). In 2018, the popul ...

. In

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

he served in the Austro-Hungarian Armed Forces, as a fighter pilot in the

Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops The Austro-Hungarian Aviation Troops or Imperial and Royal Aviation Troops (german: Kaiserliche und Königliche Luftfahrtruppen or , hu, Császári és Királyi Légjárócsapatok) were the air force of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the e ...

. While on the

Eastern Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air Li ...

and Italian fronts, he scored a victory with Flik 41J on 14 April 1918, before assuming command of Flik 3J on 9 June 1918. Flying

Albatros D.III The Albatros D.III was a biplane fighter aircraft used by the Imperial German Army Air Service ('' Luftstreitkräfte'') during World War I. A modified licence model was built by Oeffag for the Austro-Hungarian Air Service ( ''Luftfahrtruppen''). ...

s, he scored nine more victories. AlbatrosDIII Navratil

He attained the rank of Oberleutnant. His victory string ran until 31 August, when he downed a

Bristol F.2 Fighter The Bristol F.2 Fighter is a British First World War two-seat biplane fighter and reconnaissance aircraft developed by Frank Barnwell at the Bristol Aeroplane Company. It is often simply called the Bristol Fighter, ''"Brisfit"'' or ''"Bif ...

, but lost all four of his inexperienced wingmen in the process. Navratil blamed himself for their loss. He largely removed himself from combat operations. On 21 October, during a test flight of an

, his seat broke, and he was injured in the resultant crash landing. He did not recover before the Armistice.

Between the World Wars

In 1918, Austria-Hungary dissolved and Navratil moved to the newly formed

Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes Kingdom commonly refers to: * A monarchy ruled by a king or queen * Kingdom (biology), a category in biological taxonomy Kingdom may also refer to: Arts and media Television * ''Kingdom'' (British TV series), a 2007 British television drama s ...

, where he took on a position in the royal army. He rose to the rank of colonel, but was eventually retired from the army in 1940 because of conflict with Serb officers within its ranks.

World War II

With the establishment of the

on 10 April 1941 Navratil was brought back into active service. He was named as a military representative in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ro, București ) is the capital and largest city of Romania, as well as its cultural, industrial, and financial centre. It is located in the southeast of the country, on the banks of the Dâmbovița River, less than north of ...

. He served as minister of the armed forces from 2 September 1943 to 29 January 1944. After he was relieved of his post, reportedly due to complaints about the brutality of the government, he traveled to

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

, where his family was located and remained there until the end of World War II. In 1945 he moved to

Zell am See Zell am See is the administrative capital of the Zell am See District in the Austrian state of Salzburg (state), Salzburg. Located in the Kitzbühel Alps, the town is an important tourist destination due to its Ski resort, ski resorts and shorel ...

, where he lived until he was located by American troops in 1946. He was extradited to communist Yugoslavia in December 1946. In Zagreb he was sentenced to death on charge of war crimes, and executed on 7 June 1947.

Awards

Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir The Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir ( hr, Red krune kralja Zvonimira) was an order awarded by the Independent State of Croatia (NDH). It was established as a "visible sign of decoration for merits done, in peace or in war, for Croatian people ...

with Swords - September 1943

Notes

References

* * *''Tko je tko u NDH'', "Miroslav Navratil". Minerva. Zagreb, 1997. {{DEFAULTSORT:Navratil, Miroslav 1893 births 1947 deaths Military personnel from Sarajevo Austro-Hungarian World War I flying aces Croatian people of World War I Croatian soldiers Croatian collaborators with Nazi Germany Executed Yugoslav collaborators with Nazi Germany Prisoners and detainees of the United States military Croatian military personnel of World War II Croatian Home Guard personnel Government ministers of the Independent State of Croatia Recipients of the Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir Executed Croatian people Executed Bosnia and Herzegovina people Recipients of the Iron Cross (1914), 2nd class Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina