Milan Aćimović
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Milan Aćimović ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Аћимовић; 31 May 1898 – 25 May 1945) was a Yugoslav politician and collaborationist with the
Axis An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to: Mathematics * Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis *Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinate ...
in
Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label=Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavija ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
.


Early life

Milan Aćimović was born on 31 May 1898 in
Pinosava Pinosava (Serbian Cyrillic: Пиносава) is a small town and a suburb of Belgrade, Serbia. It is located in Belgrade's municipality of Voždovac, on the western slope of the Avala mountain, in the valley of the Topčiderka river, over 15 kil ...
, in the
Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
municipality of
Voždovac Voždovac ( sr-cyr, Вождовац, ) is a municipality of the city of Belgrade. According to the 2011 census results, the municipality has a population of 158,213 inhabitants. The municipality is located in the south-central part of the urban ...
. He finished gymnasium in Belgrade and received a law degree from the
University of Belgrade The University of Belgrade ( sr, / ) is a public university in Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia. Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it merged with the Kragujevac-b ...
in 1923. On 2 September 1935, he and
Velibor Jonić Velibor Jonić ( sr-Cyrl, Велибор Јонић; 12 February 1892 – 17 July 1946) was a Serbian fascist politician and government minister in the Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia during World War II. He taught at the Military A ...
successfully petitioned the
Ministry of Interior An interior ministry (sometimes called a ministry of internal affairs or ministry of home affairs) is a government department that is responsible for internal affairs. Lists of current ministries of internal affairs Named "ministry" * Ministry ...
to legalize the
Yugoslav National Movement The Yugoslav National Movement ( sh, Jugoslavenski narodni pokret / Југословенски народни покрет), also known as the United Militant Labour Organization (''Združena borbena organizacija rada'' / ''Здружена бор ...
(Zbor). He became the chief of police in Belgrade in 1938 and was appointed Minister of Interior by
Milan Stojadinović Milan Stojadinović ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Стојадиновић; 4 August 1888 – 26 October 1961) was a Serbian and Yugoslav politician and economist who served as the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia from 1935 to 1939. He also served as Forei ...
on 21 December 1938. He held this position until 5 February 1939. In April 1939, he was arrested alongside Stojadinović and was detained until August 1940.


World War II

In April 1941,
Reinhard Heydrich Reinhard Tristan Eugen Heydrich ( ; ; 7 March 1904 – 4 June 1942) was a high-ranking German SS and police official during the Nazi era and a principal architect of the Holocaust. He was chief of the Reich Security Main Office (inclu ...
came to
Belgrade Belgrade ( , ;, ; Names of European cities in different languages: B, names in other languages) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city in Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers a ...
and gave instructions to find loyal collaborators among
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...
and to rely on high police officers Milan Aćimović and Dragi Jovanović, with whom Heydrich already worked with. Besides Aćimović and Jovanović, German politics was supported by
Dimitrije Ljotić Dimitrije Ljotić ( sr-cyr, Димитрије Љотић; 12 August 1891 – 23 April 1945) was a Serbian and Yugoslav fascist politician and ideologue who established the Yugoslav National Movement (Zbor) in 1935 and collaborated with Ge ...
, leader of the organisation
Zbor The Yugoslav National Movement ( sh, Jugoslavenski narodni pokret / Југословенски народни покрет), also known as the United Militant Labour Organization (''Združena borbena organizacija rada'' / ''Здружена бор ...
. The Germans preferred Aćimović over Ljotić, as he was a security expert and was not ideologically burdened like Ljotić. The Commissioner Government was formed by the end of April by the decision of
Harald Turner Harald Turner (8 October 1891 – 9 March 1947) was an SS commander and ''Staatsrat'' (privy councillor) in the German military administration of the Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia in the partitioned Kingdom of Yugoslavia durin ...
and Helmuth Förster with Aćimović as President of Government and Commissioner of Interior. The government did not even have the status of
Quisling ''Quisling'' (, ) is a term used in Scandinavian languages and in English meaning a citizen or politician of an occupied country who collaborates with an enemy occupying force – or more generally as a synonym for ''traitor''. The word ori ...
government, but rather of an auxiliary organisation to the German military administration of the Military Commander in Serbia. Aćimović tried to maintain the existing state apparatus, but he had to replace officials who were not Serbs or who had left the country, as well as firing those suspected of being anti-German. On 13 July 1941, he ordered a decree to arrest family members of
communists Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a so ...
on the run, specifically wives and sons over 16, or if they did not have children, fathers and brothers younger than 60 only if they live together. Aćimović stayed in this position until August of 1941, when the government was took over by
Milan Nedić Milan Nedić ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Недић; 2 September 1878 – 4 February 1946) was a Yugoslav and Serbian army general and politician who served as the chief of the General Staff of the Royal Yugoslav Army and minister of war in the R ...
. The Germans who were unhappy with unrest in Serbia realised that the Commissioner Government was unpopular with the people and without any authority. The government was also divided between supporters of Ljotić and former allies of
Milan Stojadinović Milan Stojadinović ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Стојадиновић; 4 August 1888 – 26 October 1961) was a Serbian and Yugoslav politician and economist who served as the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia from 1935 to 1939. He also served as Forei ...
, led by Aćimović himself. The Commissioner Government collapsed after Ljotić withdrew two of his ministers from the government. However, Aćimović entered Nedić's government as minister of interior. As both head of Commissioner Government and as Minister of Interior in Nedić's government, Aćimović maintained relations with
Draža Mihailović Dragoljub "Draža" Mihailović ( sr-Cyrl, Драгољуб Дража Михаиловић; 27 April 1893 – 17 July 1946) was a Yugoslavs, Yugoslav Serb general during World War II. He was the leader of the Chetniks, Chetnik Detachments ...
's
movement Movement may refer to: Common uses * Movement (clockwork), the internal mechanism of a timepiece * Motion, commonly referred to as movement Arts, entertainment, and media Literature * "Movement" (short story), a short story by Nancy Fu ...
. Even though he knew about the Belgrade branch of Mihailović's movement, he did not take any actions against them. In December of 1941 he warned Mihailović about the upcoming operation against him. The Germans found out about this contact, which put Nedić in a difficult position. Nedić succeeded in convincing the Germans that he knew nothing and banned Aćimović from meddling in the Mihailović issue. Aćimović was replaced by Tanasije Dinić as Interior Minister on 10 November 1942 because of his connections to the
Chetniks The Chetniks ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Четници, Četnici, ; sl, Četniki), formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland and the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationa ...
, whom the Germans did not yet consider necessary or reliable allies in the fight against 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 ...
. After the expulsion of Germans from Serbia in October 1944, Aćimović became a connection between the German envoy for the Balkans
Hermann Neubacher Hermann Neubacher (24 June 1893 – 1 July 1960) was an Austrian Nazi politician who held a number of diplomatic posts in the Third Reich. During the Second World War, he was appointed as the leading German foreign ministry official for Greece an ...
and Mihailović. For that purpose he came to Mihailović's headquarters while he was in Bosnia. He died in the Battle of Zelengora while he was retreating from the partisans with the Chetniks.


Notes


References

* * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Acimovic, Milan 1898 births 1945 deaths Politicians from Belgrade People from the Kingdom of Serbia Serbian nationalists Yugoslav civilians killed in World War II Interior ministers of Yugoslavia Serbian collaborators with Nazi Germany People killed by Yugoslav Partisans Yugoslav Radical Union politicians Chetnik personnel of World War II