by H.L. deZeng IV

One of the most urgent and critical tasks faced by the new Croatian armed forces was the creation of a well-trained cadre to be produced through the establishment of its own military schools. The first call for applicants for the military Cadet School, which opened in Zagreb in July 1941, was made on 5 May, just a few weeks after the foundation of the new Croatian state on 10 April 1941. By September 1941, eight schools were in operation offering instruction in the various combat and combat-support disciplines. Additional schools were established during the war and many Croatian officers and soldiers received military training in Germany and Italy as well. Most of the schools were forced to close in the autumn of 1944, either because the instructors and students were mobilized and sent into action, or because the area occupied by the school was overrun by the Partisans, such as was the case in Syrmia. (1)

Footnotes

1. Colić, Mladen - Takozvana Nezavisna Država Hrvatska 1941 (Belgrade: Delta-pres, 1973), plus numerous references and stories about the various schools in Hrvatski narod, the national daily newspaper published in Zagreb.