"Bleiburg" and the British Treatment of Croatian Collaborators 1945-48
"Bleiburg” and the British Treatment of Croatian Collaborators 1945-48

Author(s): Bernd Robionek
Subject(s): Local History / Microhistory, Military history, Political history, International relations/trade, WW II and following years (1940 - 1949), Peace and Conflict Studies
Published by: Institut za noviju istoriju Srbije
Keywords: Bleiburg; Croatian Exiles; British post-war policy; war criminals; Fermo;
Summary/Abstract: This article highlights ways in which British military and political personnel acted towards Croatian refugees fleeing the Communist takeover in the final stages of World War II and thereafter. Although events relating to the surrender o f various pro-German and anti-Communist forces at Bleiburg, a town in south Austria near the border with Yugoslavia, and the following quarrel over "war criminals" from Yugoslavia is a complex affair, this contribution examines sources shedding light on British perspectives on the Croatian part, notwithstanding that the developments and problems treated here also affected Serbian, Slovenian and (ethnic) German nationals. As a result of this study, the changes in the intentions of the decision makers in London as well as the principal-agent problem become transparent.

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