Independent State of Croatia

The Independent State of Croatia was an Axis-aligned puppet state established in occupied Yugoslavia in 1941 and defeated in 1945. Governed by the Ustaše, it carried out mass persecution and killings of Serbs, Jews, Roma, and political opponents.

Ustaše: A Croatian fascist movement that ruled the Independent State of Croatia and pursued ethnic and political persecution. The movement controlled the state and directed its regime of terror.
Invasion of Yugoslavia: The Axis invasion that began on 6 April 1941 and rapidly defeated the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia’s defeat created the conditions for the state’s proclamation.
Vladko Maček: A Croatian politician who led the Croatian Peasant Party and declined to head the Axis-backed state in 1941. His refusal left the Ustaše without the broad political legitimacy they sought.
Holocaust in the Independent State of Croatia: The persecution, deportation, and murder of Jews by the Ustaše regime and its Axis allies. The regime’s antisemitic policies formed part of the Holocaust in wartime Europe.
Ante Pavelić: A Croatian fascist politician who led the Ustaše and headed the Independent State of Croatia. As head of state, Pavelić embodied Ustaše authority and its dependence on Axis patrons.
Kingdom of Yugoslavia: A South Slavic monarchy established in 1918 and dissolved during the Axis invasion of 1941. The new state claimed territory from the kingdom after its collapse.
Andrija Artuković: A senior Ustaše official who helped organize the legal and administrative persecution of the regime’s victims. As a government minister, he helped implement the regime’s repressive policies.
Genocide of Roma in the Independent State of Croatia: The persecution and mass murder of Roma by the Ustaše regime during World War II. Roma were targeted for destruction under the regime’s racial policies.
Jasenovac concentration camp: A complex of camps operated by the Ustaše regime in which tens of thousands of people were murdered. Jasenovac was the regime’s largest camp complex and a central site of mass murder.
Proclamation of the Independent State of Croatia: The declaration establishing the Independent State of Croatia on 10 April 1941, under Axis occupation. The proclamation marked the formal beginning of the regime.

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