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Mladen Lorković

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Mladen Lorković
2nd Minister of Interior of the Independent State of Croatia
In office
11 October 1943 – 30 August 1944
Prime MinisterNikola Mandić
LeaderAnte Pavelić
Preceded byAndrija Artuković
Succeeded byMate Frković
5th Foreign Minister of the Independent State of Croatia
In office
28 April 1944 – 5 May 1944
Prime MinisterNikola Mandić
LeaderAnte Pavelić
Preceded byStijepo Perić
Succeeded byMehmed Alajbegović
Minister for Relations with German Army
In office
23 April 1943 – 11 October 1943
LeaderAnte Pavelić
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byOffice abolished
2nd Foreign Minister of the Independent State of Croatia
In office
9 June 1941 – 23 April 1943
LeaderAnte Pavelić
Preceded byAnte Pavelić
Succeeded byMile Budak
Personal details
Born1 March 1909
Zagreb, Austria-Hungary
DiedApril 1945 (aged 36)
Lepoglava, Croatia
NationalityCroat
Political partyUstaše
Other political
affiliations		Party of Rights (until 1929)
SpouseWally Marquead (1937–1944; divorced)
Countess Nada von Ghyczy (1944–1945; his death)
RelationsIvan Lorković (father)
Blaž Lorković (grandfather)
Zdravko Lorković (brother)
Šimun Debelić (brother-in-law)
Alma materUniversity of Berlin
ProfessionLawyer

Mladen Lorković (1 March 1909 – April 1945) was a senior member of the Ustaše, Croatian politician and lawyer who served as the Foreign Minister and Minister of Interior of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH).

As a student, he joined the Croatian Party of Rights, but, viewed as dissident in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, he fled the country to avoid arrest and eventually settled in Germany where he obtained a doctorate in law at the University of Berlin. In 1934, he joined the Ustaše and became a close associate of Ante Pavelić. Initially commander of all Ustaše in Germany, where he sought support in creating and protecting a Croatian state, he later became leader of all Ustaše outside Italy. Soon after the establishment of the NDH, he was appointed as Foreign Minister and strongly opposed Italian influence on the state. After his cabinet chief, Ivo Kolak, was executed in 1943 for smuggling gold, Lorković was removed from office but later named Minister of Interior. During that time, he negotiated with the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) in the hopes of establishing a coalition government. During the negotiations, he secretly met with HSS representatives and proposed having the NDH join the Allies against Germany. Although he apparently had the support of Pavelić, he and his cohorts were soon arrested as conspirators against the state and after a period in detention was executed at the end of April 1945 alongside Ante Vokić.

Life

Lorković was born in Zagreb on 1 March 1909, the son of prominent politician Ivan Lorković.[1] He attended gymnasium in Zagreb. As a high school student, he was a supporter of the Croatian Party of Rights and later joined the Croatian Youth Movement. He began law studies at the University of Zagreb,[2] which he would complete after his escape, first to Austria then to Germany. Lorković continued his law studies in Innsbruck, Austria, and would later receive his Ph.D on the subject of the "Establishment of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs" under Max Hildebert Boehm at the University of Berlin. Lorković and Branimir Jelić spoke about the state of Croatian university students at the International Students Federation congress in Brussels in 1930 for which they were arrested and held at the Palace of Justice before being taken to the German border.[3]

During his time in Berlin he met and later married Wally Marquead. He later divorced Marquead, and on 19 August 1944 he remarried to the Countess Nada von Ghyczy.[4] On 30 August 1944, he was indicted for conspiracy against the government and executed in late April 1945.[4][5]

Activities with the Ustaše

On 6 January 1929, King Alexander dissolved the government and introduced a royal dictatorship over the newly created Kingdom of Yugoslavia.[6] Because he was viewed as a dissident, Lorković was subsequently placed under constant police surveillance. On 15 November 1929, a warrant for his arrest was issued, but he succeeded in escaping to Austria and later to Germany.[2]

Lorković was a keen advocate for the amalgamation of all Croatian parties into a 'super-party' to secede from the Kingdom of Yugoslavia[2] and on 4 October 1934 swore his Ustaše oath.[5] He became commander of all Ustaše units in Germany and later, after the assassination of King Alexander, commander of all Ustaše outside Italy. The assassination of King Alexander led to him being briefly detained in Germany, but was released in mid-1935 after a German court rejected a Yugoslav request for his extradition.[2]

In 1937, Lorković was arrested following a hearing conducted by the Gestapo. He subsequently left Germany and moved to Hungary and in 1939 returned to Yugoslavia, where he became an associate editor of the Hrvatski narod (Croatian Folk) journal and the editor of the underground journal Hrvatska pošta (The Croatian Post).[2] Matica hrvatska published his book, The Croatian People and Their Lands, in 1939 in which he stated that all Muslims in Bosnia and Herzegovina were Croats by nationality.[7] After the Banovina of Croatia proclamation, he was arrested in 1940 and detained at Lepoglava prison and later in Krušćica, near Vitez. Lorković was a signatory to a declaration, made on 31 March 1941 and signed on 5 May 1941,[8] in which Ustaše requested the declaration of a Croatian state. The document also sought German support, protection and recognition among Axis nations.[9][verification needed]

Minister in the Independent State of Croatia

Mladen Lorković (2nd from left) taking oath in April 1941.
Pavelić, Slovak ambassador Karol Murgaš and Lorković (1st from right) in Zagreb.

Lorković was one of the most pro-German members of the prewar Ustaše movement having cultivated political and academic ties in Germany during his time there. After the establishment of the NDH, Lorković became a member of the temporary government of Slavko Kvaternik known as the Croatian State Leadership. In the first government formed by Ante Pavelić, who also served as Foreign Minister,[8] on 16 April 1941, he was named Secretary of the Foreign Ministry[1] and up to April 1943, acted as the chief contact between Edmund Glaise von Horstenau, the Plenipotentiary General in the Independent State of Croatia, and the Pavelić cabinet.[10]

Lorković succeeded Pavelić as Foreign Minister on 9 June 1941. Shortly after taking office, he inquired with the French authorities about the fate of three Ustaše implicated in the 1934 assassination of King Alexander I of Yugoslavia in Marseilles and sentenced to life imprisonment. The actual assassin was a Bulgarian mercenary, Vlado Chernozemski, who was cut down after the deed by French security forces. Two of the men died in prison, but the third, Milan Rajić, was returned to the NDH in early 1942 through the intervention of the German occupation forces in France, where he was killed allegedly on Pavelić's orders.[11]

On 27 July 1941, Lorković claimed that Serbs had beaten, mutilated and massacred tens of thousands of Croatian peasants during the inter-war period in a speech designed to inflame Croatians against Serbs living inside NDH territory.[12] During the August 1941, Lorković strongly opposed the Italian request to implement civil administration in the demilitarized zone of the NDH. A year later, in spring 1942, Italians accused him of being a communist to discredit him for his pro-German views, but was cleared of charges after a police investigation, although a German police attache in Zagreb did claim that Lorković had been in contact with some communists in the early 1930s and had helped some Croatian communists in 1941 and 1942.[13] Lorković was appointed honorary member of the German Institute for Border and Foreign Studies in May 1942.[14] Lorković, along with Vladimir Košak and Stijepo Perić, strongly opposed Italian influence over the Independent State of Croatia[15] and towards the end of 1942, wrote a note ("Spomenica") in which he described the cooperative efforts of Italy's 2nd Army with the Chetniks. This note was officially submitted on 26 January 1943 to the Italian Foreign Minister Galeazzo Ciano. In response, the Italian diplomat Raffaele Casertano tried to have Lorković removed from office.[8]

After his chief of cabinet, Ivo Kolak, was found guilty of gold smuggling and executed, on 23 April 1943 Lorković was removed from office.[8] Following his removal, Lorković was named a Minister in Government's Presidency, where he was responsibile for relations with the German Army, and he become a close associate of General Edmund Glaise von Horstenau. During the summer of 1943, he advocated cooperation with the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) and as Ustaše representative entered negotiations with the vice president of the HSS August Košutić about forming a coalition government.[16] Lorković advocated a stronger government and greater independence in its activity. He initiated a new government to be led by himself as Prime Minister and not the Poglavnik,[17] but contrary to his wishes, Pavelić named Nikola Mandić as Prime Minister on 2 September 1942. Lorković and some of his associates submitted resignations, which were not accepted. Despite this setback, Lorković, along with Mandić, continued the negotiations with HSS throughout September finalising them at the end of the month.[8]

After the capitulation of Italy on 20 September 1943, Lorković along with Kasche and other high-ranking German officers participated in a discussion about the return of territory lost after the Treaty of Rome in April 1941. Ultimately, Hitler gave permission for the Independent State of Croatia to annex the territory by "guaranteeing unlimited independence of Croatia, including this Croatian Adriatic coast."[18]

On 11 October 1943 Lorković was named Minister of Interior, where he promoted stricter police activity,[19] and Foreign Minister, again, from 29 April until 5 May 1944, after his friend Perić was removed from office. It was agreed that Lorković would remain Foreign Minister and Minister of Interior simultaneously, but was soon replaced by Mehmed Alajbegović as Foreign Minister.[20] After realising that Germany would lose the war and the Independent State of Croatia would cease to exist, he again advocated radical changes in state policy. In February 1944, he wrote a detailed memorandum in German which summarized the history, current situation and the fundamental problems of the NDH and its Armed Forces, as well as problems with the German Army.[8][21]

Lorković-Vokić coup and death

Main article: Lorković-Vokić coup

In May 1944, he secretly met with the president of Knin County, David Sinčić, with whom he discussed the poor state of the German war effort and that the Allies may invade the Balkans via Taranto.[22] In the same month, he launched an initiative to renew negotiations with the HSS, which he conducted in his apartment. There, he secretly met with Sinčić, August Košutić and Ivanko Farolfi.[22] Lorković also sought foreign contacts and through Switzerland made contact with British and American officials,[23] but did not obtain any help.[24] He proposed that the Independent State of Croatia end its relations with Germany and join the Allies, an idea supported by the Minister of the Armed Forces, Ante Vokić as well as many high-ranking Croatian Home Guard officers and politicians.[25] Lorković also negotiatied with the HSS about switching sides with Pavelić's knowledge and consent.[24]

At a special session of government held on 30 August 1944, Lorković and Vokić were accused of conspiracy against the Poglavnik and Croatia's German ally. Lorković was kept under house arrest until he was tried before the Poglavnik's Bodyguard Division (PTS) where it was decided that he would be stripped of his rank and expelled from the PTS. After the trial, he was arrested and interned in Koprivnica and later in Lepoglava, alongside Vokić, Farolfi, Ljudevit Tomašić and others, although Košturić escaped.[26] Lorković was executed at the end of April 1945.[4][5]

Publishing activities

Lorković's publishing activities during the Independent State of Croatia were closely tied with his political activity and state obligations. He cooperated with a number of magazines, such as Croatia, which was published by HIBZ in German and French for the Foreign Ministry.[4]

In 1939, Matica hrvatska published his book, The Croatian People and Their Lands (Narod i zemlja Hrvata),[2] in which Lorković focussed on the question of Croatian boundaries.[27] In 1942, he participated in the Parliament of Croatia (Sabor). Two of his speeches were independently published: The International Political Position of Croatia (Međunarodni politički položaj Hrvatske; 1942) and The Croatian Struggle Against Bolshevism (Hrvatska u borbi protiv boljševizma; 1944). The latter was published in German in 1944.[4]

References

Citations
  1. ^ a b Banac 1984, p. 359.
  2. ^ a b c d e f Dizdar et al. 1997, p. 237.
  3. ^ Jelić 1982, p. 42.
  4. ^ a b c d e Dizdar et al. 1997, p. 239.
  5. ^ a b c Nikolić 1976, p. 169.
  6. ^ Frucht 2004, p. 428.
  7. ^ Tomasevich 2001, p. 377.
  8. ^ a b c d e f Dizdar et al. 1997, p. 238.
  9. ^ Jelić-Butić 1983, p. 26.
  10. ^ Tomasevich 2001, p. 346.
  11. ^ Tomasevich 2001, p. 34.
  12. ^ Tomasevich 2001, pp. 406–407.
  13. ^ Tomasevich 2001, p. 37.
  14. ^ Bartulin 2009, p. 215.
  15. ^ Nikolić 1967, p. 516.
  16. ^ Matković 2002, p. 203.
  17. ^ Krizman 1986, p. 105.
  18. ^ Matković 2002, p. 243.
  19. ^ Kovačić 2009, p. 213.
  20. ^ Krizman 1983, p. 351.
  21. ^ Vrančić 1985, p. 70.
  22. ^ a b Matković 2002, p. 251.
  23. ^ Kisić-Kolanović 1996, p. 103.
  24. ^ a b Pavlowitch 2008, p. 246.
  25. ^ Kujundžić 1995, p. 66.
  26. ^ Pavlowitch 2008, p. 247.
  27. ^ Colić, p. 70.
Bibliography
  • Banac, Ivo (1984). The National Question in Yugoslavia: Origins, History, Politics. Cornell University Press. ISBN 0-8014-1675-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Template:Cite article
  • Bilandžić, Dušan (1985). Historija SFRJ (in Croatian). Školska knjiga. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Colić, Mladen (1973). Takozvana Nezavisna Država Hrvatska (in Croatian). Delta-press. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Dizdar, Zdravko; Grčić, Marko; Ravlić, Slaven; Stuparić, Darko (1997). Tko je tko u NDH (in Croatian). Minerva. ISBN 953-6377-03-9. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Frucht, Richard C. (2004). Eastern Europe: An Introduction to the People, Lands, and Culture. Vol. 1. ISBN 9781576078006. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Jelić, Branimir (1982). Jareb, Jere (ed.). Političke uspomene i rad dra Branimira Jelića (in Croatian). M. Šamija. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Jelić-Butić, Fikreta (1983). Hrvatska seljačka stranka (in Croatian). Globus. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Kisić Kolanović, Nada (1996). Andrija Hebrang: iluzije i otrežnjenja (in Croatian). Institut za suvremenu povijest. ISBN 953-6324-04-0. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Kovačić, Davor (2009). Redarstveno-obavještatjni sustav Nezavisne Državne Hrvatske od 1941. do 1945 godine (in Croatian). Hrvatski institut za povijest. ISBN 953-6324-74-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Krizman, Bogdan (1983). Ustaše i Treći Reich (in Croatian). Vol. 2. Globus. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Kujundžić, Milivoj (1995). Doprinos hrvatske pobjedi antifašističke koalicije (in Croatian). Odbor za obilježavanje 50. obljetnice pobjede antifašističke koalicije u Europi i svijetu sabora Republike Hrvatske. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Matković, Hrvoje (2002). Povijest Nezavisne Države Hrvatske (in Croatian). Naklada Pavičić. ISBN 953-6308-39-8. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Nikolić, Vinko (1976). Hrvatska revija: jubilarni zbornik 1951–1975 (in Croatian). Hrvatska revija. ISBN 978-84-399-5346-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Nikolić, Vinko (1967). Pred vratima domovine: susret s hrvatskom emigracijom, 1965: dojmovi i razgovori (in Croatian). Hrvatska revija. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Pavlowitch, Stevan K. (2008). Hitler's New Disorder: The Second World War in Yugoslavia. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-70050-4. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Tomasevich, Jozo (2001). War and Revolution in Yugoslavia: Occupation and Collaboration. Stanfrod University Press. ISBN 0-8047-3615-4. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
  • Vrančić, Vjekoslav (1985). Branili smo državu: uspomene, osvrti, doživljaji (in Croatian). Knjižnica Hrvatske revije. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

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