Milan Aćimović ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Аћимовић; 31 May 1898 – 25 May 1945) was a Yugoslav politician and
collaborationist with the
Axis
An axis (: axes) may refer to:
Mathematics
*A specific line (often a directed line) that plays an important role in some contexts. In particular:
** Coordinate axis of a coordinate system
*** ''x''-axis, ''y''-axis, ''z''-axis, common names ...
in
Yugoslavia
, common_name = Yugoslavia
, life_span = 1918–19921941–1945: World War II in Yugoslavia#Axis invasion and dismemberment of Yugoslavia, Axis occupation
, p1 = Kingdom of SerbiaSerbia
, flag_p ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
.
Early life
Milan Aćimović was born on 31 May 1898 in
Pinosava, in the
Belgrade
Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
municipality of
Voždovac
Voždovac ( sr-Cyrl, Вождовац, ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality of the city of Belgrade. According to the 2022 census results, the municipality has a population of 174,864 inhabitants.
The municipality is located in the south ...
. He finished
gymnasium in Belgrade and received a law degree from the
University of Belgrade
The University of Belgrade () is a public university, public research university in Belgrade, 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 me ...
in 1923. On 2 September 1935, he and
Velibor Jonić successfully petitioned the
Ministry of Interior
An interior ministry or ministry of the interior (also called ministry of home affairs or ministry of internal affairs) is a government department that is responsible for domestic policy, public security and law enforcement.
In some states, th ...
to legalize the
Yugoslav National Movement (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 Serbs, Serbian and Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav politician and economist who was the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia from 1935 to 1939. ...
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 German high-ranking SS and police official during the Nazi era and a principal architect of the Holocaust. He held the rank of SS-. Many historians regard Heydrich ...
came to
Belgrade
Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...
and gave instructions to find loyal collaborators among
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 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 N ...
, leader of the organisation
Zbor. 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 and
Helmuth Förster with Aćimović as President of Government and Commissioner of Interior. The government did not even have the status of
Quisling 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 () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, d ...
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 taken 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 ...
. 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 Serbs, Serbian and Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav politician and economist who was the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia from 1935 to 1939. ...
, 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. 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,, ; formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland; and informally colloquially the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationalist m ...
, whom the Germans did not yet consider necessary or reliable allies in the fight against 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 ...
.
After the expulsion of Germans from Serbia in October 1944, Aćimović became a connection between the German envoy for the Balkans
Hermann Neubacher 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
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Acimovic, Milan
1898 births
1945 deaths
Politicians from Belgrade
People from the Kingdom of Serbia
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 killed in World War II