Vuk Rupnik (July 27, 1912 – August 14, 1975) was a Slovene military officer during the

Second World War 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 ...

. Rupnik was born in

Mostar Mostar (, ; sr-Cyrl, Мостар, ) is a city and the administrative center of Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the historical capital of Herzegovina. Mostar is sit ...

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...

, the son of the career soldier

Leon Rupnik Leon Rupnik, also known as Lav Rupnik or Lev Rupnik (August 10, 1880 – September 4, 1946) was a Slovene general in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia who collaborated with the Fascist Italian and Nazi German occupation forces during World War II. Rup ...

. He studied at the military academy in Belgrade and served as an officer in mountain units. In 1940 he became the commander of the company stationed in Gerovo (in

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 ...

's Gorski Kotar region) and was promoted to the rank of captain. After the capitulation of Yugoslavia, he was a prisoner of war in

Padua Padua ( ; it, Padova ; vec, Pàdova) is a city and ''comune'' in Veneto, northern Italy. Padua is on the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice. It is the capital of the province of Padua. It is also the economic and communications hub of the ...

for some time, but in 1942 he joined the

Anti-Communist Volunteer Militia The Anti-Communist Volunteer Militia ( it, Milizia Volontaria Anti Comunista, MVAC; sl, prostovoljna protikomunistična milica, also or , pejorative, meaning 'white guard'; sh, script=cyrl, italic=no, Добровољачка антикомун� ...

and became the commander of a special unit in the division in

Novo Mesto Novo Mesto (; sl, Novo mesto; also known by other alternative names) is a city on a bend of the Krka River in the City Municipality of Novo Mesto in southeastern Slovenia, close to the border with Croatia. The town is traditionally considered t ...

. After the capitulation of fascist Italy, he united the MVAC units in the Novo Mesto area and turned them over to the German army after the withdrawal of the Italians near

Kostanjevica na Krki Kostanjevica na Krki (; also ''Kostanjevica ob Krki,'' german: Landstraß''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 68.) is a small town in the ...

. In November 1943, the units headed by Rupnik (known as the ''Rupnikova skupina'' 'Rupnik Group') became the 3rd Battalion of the

Slovene Home Guard The Slovene Home Guard ( sl, Slovensko domobranstvo, SD; german: Slowenische Landeswehr) was a Slovene anti- Partisan military organization that was active during the 1943–1945 German occupation of the formerly Italian-occupied Province of Lju ...

. Under Rupnik's command, the battalion took part in the German offensive in

Lower Carniola Lower Carniola ( sl, Dolenjska; german: Unterkrain) is a traditional region in Slovenia, the southeastern part of the historical Carniola region. Geography Lower Carniola is delineated by the Ljubljana Basin with the city of Ljubljana to the no ...

in 1943. On December 14, 1943, Rupnik became the commander of the 3rd Battle Group and was transferred to Ljubljana at the end of the year, where he served as a liaison officer between the Home Guard Headquarters and the German staff. On July 5, 1944, he became the commander of the 2nd Strike Battalion at

Rakek Rakek (; it, Recchio"Primorske novice: Jezikovne perverznosti." 1923. ''Slovenec'' 51 (108) (15 May): 3.Versari, Quinto. 1968. ''Sulle sponde del Cerniski''. Milan: Gastaldi, p. 16.) is a settlement in the Municipality of Cerknica in the Inner Ca ...

, which was successful in battles against

Partisan Partisan may refer to: Military * Partisan (weapon), a pole weapon * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line Films * ''Partisan'' (film), a 2015 Australian film * ''Hell River'', a 1974 Yugoslavian film also know ...

units in

Inner Carniola Inner Carniola ( sl, Notranjska; german: Innerkrain) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the southwestern part of the larger Carniola region. It comprises the Hrušica karst plateau up to Postojna Gate, bordering the Slovenian Littoral (the ...

and Lower Carniola. In early 1945, he was promoted to major. At the end of the war, he withdrew to Carinthia with a battalion, and on May 11, 1945 he took part in the destruction of the Partisan prison near

Ferlach Ferlach ( sl, Borovlje) in the district of Klagenfurt-Land in Carinthia is the southernmost town in Austria. It is known for its centuries-old gunsmith tradition, part of the Austrian intangible cultural heritage since 2010. Geography It is situat ...

. He remained in Austria for some time and made a living working on farms in Tyrol. He then moved to

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

, where he worked as a clerk in a textile factory in

Ciudadela, Buenos Aires Ciudadela is a city in Greater Buenos Aires, Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is located in the Tres de Febrero Partido, immediately to the west of the neighborhood of Liniers in Buenos Aires city proper. It is separated from the city by Ge ...

. He died in

Castelar Castelar is a city in Morón Partido (county), Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, some 30 km west of the nation's capital, the autonomous city of Buenos Aires. It forms part of the Greater Buenos Aires metropolitan area. Castelar is the wes ...

, Argentina.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rupnik, Vuk 1912 births 1975 deaths Slovenian soldiers Slovenian people of World War II Yugoslav emigrants to Argentina