Ivo Herenčić
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Ivan "Ivo" Herenčić (28 February 1910 – 8 December 1978) was a general in the
armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. Militaries are typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with their members identifiable by a ...
of the
Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...
(, NDH), a
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. In 1941, he commanded a battalion of Ustaše Militia that committed many war crimes and atrocities on civilians during the Genocide of Serbs in the Independent State of Croatia. Born in
Bjelovar Bjelovar (, , Czech language, Czech: ''Bělovar'' or ''Bělovár,'' Kajkavian dialect, Kajkavian: ''Belovar,'' Latin: ''Bellovarium'') is a city in central Croatia. In the Demographics of Croatia, 2021 census, its population was 36,316 . It is ...
in
Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...
, he completed his secondary and
tertiary education Tertiary education (higher education, or post-secondary education) is the educational level following the completion of secondary education. The World Bank defines tertiary education as including universities, colleges, and vocational schools ...
in
Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...
and
Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...
in what was by then the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...
. In 1933, he left Yugoslavia to join the fascist and ultranationalist Croatian
Ustaše The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian fascist and ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaša – Croatian Revolutionar ...
movement in
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. Late that year, Herenčić participated in an unsuccessful assassination attempt on the King of Yugoslavia,
Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...
. Herenčić returned to his homeland when the NDH was established following the Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941. He was sent to the
Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical Regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia (reg ...
region where he formed and commanded the Mostar Battalion which committed war crimes in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Herenčić also served in the surveillance departments of the NDH, and committed atrocities that made him much feared. After being involved in an assassination attempt on Home Guard general Ivan Prpić in 1943, Herenčić had to emigrate to
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
. Several months later he was brought back to Croatia to help uncover the Lorković–Vokić plot against the NDH government. In March 1945 he was appointed commander of 5th Ustaše Corps of the Croatian Armed Forces (, HOS) and in the same month Herenčić was one of the leaders of the withdrawal of the HOS towards
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
. He participated in negotiations with the British, who decided that members of the NDH armed forces and accompanying civilians would not be allowed to proceed further and would have to surrender their arms to the
Yugoslav Partisans The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...
. Herenčić evaded the Yugoslav pursuit of Nazi collaborators and was able to escape to
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and later to
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
where he died in 1978.


Early life

Ivo Herenčić was born on 28 February 1910 in
Bjelovar Bjelovar (, , Czech language, Czech: ''Bělovar'' or ''Bělovár,'' Kajkavian dialect, Kajkavian: ''Belovar,'' Latin: ''Bellovarium'') is a city in central Croatia. In the Demographics of Croatia, 2021 census, its population was 36,316 . It is ...
, a city in the
Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia (; or ; ) was a nominally autonomous kingdom and constitutionally defined separate political nation within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It was created in 1868 by merging the kingdoms of Kingdom of Croatia (Habs ...
, a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He attended high school in
Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...
after which he attended a business college in the same city. From 1930 to 1931, he attended the school for reserve officers of the Royal Yugoslav Army in
Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ), ; ''see Names of European cities in different languages (Q–T)#S, names in other languages'' is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 2 ...
. In the early 1930s, Herenčić was a member of the
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for the leader of the
Croatian Peasant Party The Croatian Peasant Party (, HSS) is an agrarianism, agrarian List of political parties in Croatia, political party in Croatia founded on 22 December 1904 by Antun Radić, Antun and Stjepan Radić as Croatian Peoples' Peasant Party (HPSS). The ...
,
Vladko Maček Vladimir Maček (20 June 1879 – 15 May 1964) was a politician in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. As a leader of the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) following the 1928 assassination of Stjepan Radić, Maček had been a leading Croatian political figure ...
.


Ustaše activity

In 1933, Herenčić left Yugoslavia and on 9 September he joined a camp for members of the ultra-nationalist and
fascist Fascism ( ) is a far-right, authoritarian, and ultranationalist political ideology and movement. It is characterized by a dictatorial leader, centralized autocracy, militarism, forcible suppression of opposition, belief in a natural soci ...
Ustaše The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian fascist and ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaša – Croatian Revolutionar ...
organisation in Borgo Val di Taro,
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
. While in Italy, he adopted
pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true meaning ( orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individual's o ...
Hetman. this being a historical military title used in the Polish–Lithuanian state. Herenčić was a leader of an Ustaše plot to assassinate
Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...
, King of Yugoslavia, in Zagreb. The King was visiting the city to celebrate his and his wife Maria's birthday and the anniversary of the creation of Yugoslavia. In
Piacenza Piacenza (; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Piacenza, eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with more ...
, on 9 December 1933, Herenčić met with another Ustaša, Petar Oreb, who was meant to assassinate the King. Oreb and Herenčić traveled to Klagenfurt in Austria using fake passports in the names of Emil Benedikt and Janoš Kren respectively. They illegally crossed the Austrian–Yugoslav border and spent a night in
Celje Celje (, , ) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, third-largest city in Slovenia. It is a regional center of the traditional Slovenian region of Styria (Slovenia), Styria and the administrative seat of the City Municipality of Celje. Th ...
. They arrived in Zagreb on 11 December and were welcomed into the home of Josip Begović, a student. On 16 December, the King arrived in Zagreb and was welcomed by a crowd at Jelačić Square. Oreb was in the crowd and had two
hand grenade A grenade is a small explosive weapon typically thrown by hand (also called hand grenade), but can also refer to a Shell (projectile), shell (explosive projectile) shot from the muzzle of a rifle (as a rifle grenade) or a grenade launcher. A mod ...
s in his pockets which he had been taught how to throw in a training camp in . Herenčić and Begović were also nearby. Oreb was tasked with assassinating the King while Begović was to throw another grenade into the crowd immediately after Oreb's attack, in order to cause panic which would allow them to escape apprehension. When the King's car arrived at the center of the square, a group of children ran towards Alexander. Oreb was petrified after seeing the children, and Begović suggested that he throw a grenade at the military band behind the car, but Oreb refused. They left the square and started making new plans for the King's assassination. On the same day, Herenčić left Zagreb while Oreb and Begović were joined by another Ustaša, Anton Podgorelac. During the night police found out where the three Ustašas were, and, at dawn, broke into Begović's apartment. Oreb fired two shots, killing one policeman and injuring another, after which he managed to escape. Podgorelac and Begović were taken into custody where they gave a detailed description of Oreb, who was caught by the police the same day, in Velika Gorica. After the
interrogation Interrogation (also called questioning) is interviewing as commonly employed by law enforcement officers, military personnel, intelligence agencies, organized crime syndicates, and terrorist organizations with the goal of eliciting useful informa ...
of the three imprisoned Ustašas, Herenčić was implicated. Klagenfurt police attempted to determine whether Herenčić and other Ustaše were in Klagenfurt and were involved in the assassination plot. They managed to find out that Herenčić had met with Begović and Vladimir Singer in the autumn of 1933, and also that Herenčić was in Klagenfurt just before and after the assassination attempt. However, this was not enough to prove that Herečić had been involved. Upon returning to Italy Herenčić continued to live and work in various Ustaše camps. He also continued to occasionally travel to Austria in order to complete different Ustaše missions, such as recruiting new members into the Ustaše, which gained him the nickname ''Konzul'' ( English: Consul). In 1935, he became the commander of the 1st Ustaše Company, a paramilitary unit with a strength of 74 men, stationed on the Italian island of Lipari.


World War II

Herenčić participated in a meeting in Pistoia on 10 April 1941, organized by the Ustaše leader ( Poglavnik), Ante Pavelić, after the Ustaše received uniforms and weapons from the Italians following the news of initial German success in the invasion of Yugoslavia. On 11 April, while the invasion was still underway, Herenčić traveled together with Pavelić and other Ustašas to
Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...
. The following morning Pavelić tasked Herenčić with traveling to Zagreb where he was supposed to meet with the Ustaše deputy leader, Slavko Kvaternik. Herenčić's mission to Zagreb was canceled after the Italian general Vittorio Ambrosio told Pavelić that the Ustašas could travel to Zagreb that day, as the
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had reached
Karlovac Karlovac () is a city in central Croatia. In the 2021 census, its population was 49,377. Karlovac is the administrative centre of Karlovac County. The city is located southwest of Zagreb and northeast of Rijeka, and is connected to them via the ...
. After being provided with buses and automobiles in Trieste on the same day, Ustašas traveled towards Zagreb and they entered the city on 15 April. After Pavelić arrived in Zagreb, he sent Herenčić along with Jure Francetić and Mijo Babić to Bosnia and
Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical Regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia (reg ...
to form Ustaše units and organizations. Herenčić participated in the suppression of the Serb uprising in eastern Herzegovina in June and early July 1941. Main Ustaša Headquarters sent Herenčić to Mostar in mid-July. A few days after he arrived, arrests and killings of
Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...
and
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began in the city. Between 19 July and 4 August 750 people were arrested in Mostar and sent to various concentration camps in the NDH. On 2 August, Herenčić ordered the establishment of the Jablanica
concentration camp A concentration camp is a prison or other facility used for the internment of political prisoners or politically targeted demographics, such as members of national or ethnic minority groups, on the grounds of national security, or for exploitati ...
where, according to one witness, around 400 Serbs were detained. During the summer of 1941, Herenčić formed the Ustaše Mostar Battalion and became its first commander. His battalion committed various
war crime A war crime is a violation of the laws of war that gives rise to individual criminal responsibility for actions by combatants in action, such as intentionally killing civilians or intentionally killing prisoners of war, torture, taking hostage ...
s in the Mostar area, where it operated until 7 September when Italy took full control of the area. After this, the battalion traveled to the German occupation zone, where it continued to commit atrocities that disgusted even the high-ranking officials of the NDH. In November, Herenčić was promoted to the rank of
major Major most commonly refers to: * Major (rank), a military rank * Academic major, an academic discipline to which an undergraduate student formally commits * People named Major, including given names, surnames, nicknames * Major and minor in musi ...
and soon after to lieutenant colonel. Later he was wounded while participating in fighting in Bosnia and Herzegovina. In April 1941, Herenčić was appointed as a commissioner in RAVSIGUR, a supervisory department in the Ministry of Internal Affairs. In April 1942, the Chief Surveillance Department was created and tasked with overseeing the work of the Ustaše Surveillance Service (UNS) and of the police. Herenčić was appointed its leader with
Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...
Mirko Vutuc as his deputy. Herenčić remained in this position until August 1943, when he ordered the assassination of the Chief of Staff of the Croatian Home Guard, General Ivan Prpić, as he feared Prpić might reveal compromising information about him and other Ustaše Militia officers. The assassination failed and Herenčić had to flee to
Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...
. He was brought back to Zagreb by RAVSIGUR in the spring of 1944 when he was tasked with uncovering the Lorković–Vokić plot against the NDH government. Herenčić was one of the most feared UNS and RAVSIGUR officers because of the atrocities previously committed by units under his command. In mid-December 1944, Herenčić was promoted to the rank of
general A general officer is an Officer (armed forces), officer of high rank in the army, armies, and in some nations' air force, air and space forces, marines or naval infantry. In some usages, the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colone ...
and in mid-March 1945, he was appointed commander of the newly formed 5th Ustaše Corps. Herenčić, along with two other generals, Vladimir Metikoš and Vjekoslav Servatzy, led the withdrawal of the Croatian Armed Forces towards Austria with the goal of surrendering to the advancing British. Once the lead elements of the fleeing columns reached Bleiburg just across the Austrian border on 14 May 1945 they were stopped by the British 38th (Irish) Brigade, commanded by
Brigadier Brigadier ( ) is a military rank, the seniority of which depends on the country. In some countries, it is a senior rank above colonel, equivalent to a brigadier general or commodore (rank), commodore, typically commanding a brigade of several t ...
Patrick T.D. Scott. Herenčić, together with Metikoš, Servatzy and Danijel Crljen met with Scott on the same day. Scott decided that the NDH troops and the civilians accompanying them should not withdraw any further. On 15 May, Herenčić, Metikoš, Servatzy and Crljen, representing the retreating NDH forces, met with Scott and the Partisan representatives, Milan Basta and Ivan Kovačić-Efenka. During this meeting, it was decided that the NDH forces would have to surrender to the Partisans.


Post-war life and death

Although he was not able to negotiate passage for the NDH forces and the accompanying civilians into Austria, Herenčić himself was able to escape into the countryside and make his way to Italy. He lived for a time in Rome near Porta Pia, working as an art dealer. Later he traveled to
Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...
, where he died on 8 December 1978 in
Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...
, aged 68.


Personal life

During World War II, Herenčić married Vera Javor, Ante Pavelić's secretary; she fled to Argentina with Herenčić. She died in Buenos Aires on 19 August 1991.


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* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Herencic, Ivo 1910 births 1978 deaths Genocide of Serbs in the Independent State of Croatia perpetrators Croatian expatriates in Argentina Ustaša Militia personnel People from Bjelovar Failed regicides