Bombing of Zara in World War II
Encyclopedia
The bombing of Zadar
during the Second World War by the Allies
lasted from November 1943 to October 1944. Although other large cities in Italy
were also bombed, the bombing of Zadar stands out because of the number of attacks and the number of fatalities. Reports vary greatly; the Allies documented 30 bombing raids, while contemporary Italian accounts claim 54. Fatalities recorded range from under 1,000, up to as many as 4,000 of the city's 20,000 inhabitants.
Over the course of the bombing, 60% of the city's buildings were destroyed. Zadar has been called the "Dresden
of the Adriatic" because of perceived similarities to the Allied bombing that city. In both cases, Allied bombs devastated a city rich in artistic and historical treasures but with no apparent industrial or military targets.
It is the most significant historical event in Zadar after the Siege of Zadar in 1202 by forces of the Fourth Crusade
.
as "Zara") became part of the Kingdom of Italy
as a result of the Treaty of Rapallo of 1920
, which settled the status of former Austro-Hungarian territories. It had a large Italian majority and was an Italian enclave in Dalmatia.
From the 1920s on, many more Croats were pressured to leave the city while their place was being taken by ethnic Italians resettling there from within Yugoslavian
Dalmatia—such as the famous fashion stylist Ottavio Missoni, who moved with the family from Dubrovnik
. The 1910 census in Austria-Hungary placed the Italians at 69.3% of the population, which consistently rose in the decades that followed. Public functionaries, teachers, and policemen were transferred from the mainland.
During this time, there was also a significant presence of military personnel.
In June 1940 Italy declared war on Britain
and France
.
Up until 1941, the city was surrounded by Italian fortifications, of which the bunker behind Gaženice and in the area of Ploče and Crnog were the most notable. At the same time as preparing a defense from the sea, an attack was planned against the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
attacked the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
on 6 April 1941. On 17 April, the Yugoslavian government surrendered. Zara held a force of 9,000 commanded by General Emilio Gilioli that after bloody fighting on 15 April reached Šibenik
and Split
. Arriving in Dubrovnik and Mostar
on 17 April, they met troops that had started out from Albania
.
It is known that on 8 April, the Yugoslavian air force bombed Zara. Although this resulted in some damage, it cannot be compared to the bombing that the city would endure two years later. The civilians had been previously evacuated towards Ancona
and Pula
.
The Treaty of Rome in 1941 between the newly-formed fascist puppet Independent State of Croatia
(NDH) and Italy handed over a large part of northern Dalmatia to Italy including the cities of Split and Knin
.
was removed from power, the new government of Pietro Badoglio
declared an armistice
, and on 8 September 1943, the Italian army collapsed. The NDH took advantage of this chaotic situation by proclaiming the Treaty of Rome to be void and occupying Italian Dalmatia with German support. However, the Germans entered Zadar first, and on 10 September the German 114 Infantry Division took over. This stopped the Partisans (the local Allied forces) from temporarily liberating Zadar, as was the case with Split
and Šibenik
where several ethnic Italian civilians were reportedly executed.
The city was prevented from joining the NDH on the grounds that Zadar itself was not subject to the conditions of the Treaty of Rome, whether it was void or not. Despite this, the NDH's leader Ante Pavelić
designated Zadar as the capital of the Sidraga-Ravni Kotari County, although its prefect
was prevented from entering the city. Zadar remained under local Italian administration with German military protection, and in this unsure climate that the Allied bombing began.
participated in the strikes, dropping 90 tonnes of bombs.
Besides these main attacks, the city was bombed to a lesser degree on other days. Through the use of carpet bombing
, entire neighborhood blocks were destroyed. The city centre was hardest hit, especially around the Forum and the Kalelarga street where no buildings were spared. As with other cases of urban bombings the damage was not caused by the initial explosions but the resulting fires, which turned the city into a pile of skeletons of burnt-out houses. Each attack targeted a specific part of the city. On the 16th, the area from the Church of Our Lady of Good Health to across the Kalelarga to the Piazza delle Erbe (today's People's Square) was targeted, while on the 30th the area from the Riva Nova waterfront to Giuseppe Verdi Theatre was attacked. On 31 December, the city hospital and the majority of the industrial machinery was destroyed. The Luxardo factory (manufacturer of the Maraschino
cherry liqueur
) was set on fire, and the building burned for three days.
Attacks which completely ravaged Zadar followed from January to March 1944. On 16 January 1944, Liberator
heavy bombers attacked Zara losing one bomber but claiming nine Luftwaffe
fighters.
However, the number of casualties was much less because the population rendered homeless escaped to the less damaged outskirts (Arbanasi and Stanovi) as well as Zadar's islands. It is estimated that in the spring of 1944, there were fewer than 4,000 civilians left in the city . Even though the industrial plants and piers were crippled, bombing continued throughout of 1944. Thus, the Germans were forced to establish a port in Zaton
near Nin
and Ražanac
.
By the summer, the center of Zadar had practically ceased to exist. The majority of houses were completely destroyed and their ruins buried the streets. The city was desolate. The period from June to the beginning of October was not marked by any large attacks, but they resumed in the middle of October as German forces abandoned the city. The worst attacks came on the 25th and 30th of that month when the areas of Arbanasi and Brodarica, Jazina, and the Riva Nova waterfront were hit.
The last attacks came on the 31st on the same day that the forces of the Yugoslav Partisans entered Zadar. During the attacks, a number of Partisans were killed in the attack by accident.
Several summary executions were performed by the Partisans. Among them, three of the four Luxardo brothers (owners of the Maraschino factory) were killed. Nicolò Luxardo, as was many others, was thrown alive into the sea with a stone tied to his neck in front of his wife, who was executed immediately afterward with a shot to the head. A number of citizens, mostly Italians, left the city some time later.
and neighborhood blocks around the Forum, the Kalelarga, the school near the Church of St. Chrysogonus, the churches of St. Mary, Our Lady of Health, and the baptistery of the Cathedral of St. Anastasia
. Only the churches were restored. Many buildings which had burned were not rebuilt but demolished, with their stone reused in the rebuilding of the coastline and roads. A well-known example of this was the city theatre Teatro Verdi, which was only slightly damaged, but was plundered by Communist forces and destroyed. War and postwar damage occurred mostly in the western part of the peninsula, where the government offices and piers were located. The Varoš, was one of the areas where the prewar appearance was retained.
Apart from the destruction caused by the Allies, the withdrawing Germans mined the Riva Nova slowing down postwar recovery as well as causing casualties. Exact numbers will likely never be known, as Zadar saw a significant population change. The percentage of Croatian
citizens dramatically increased. The number of military personnel remaining in the city is undetermined.
After the war, the number of casualties became a political question, especially within the community of Italians who had left the city for Italy. They placed the number at 3,000-4,000 deaths, claiming that a genocide had been carried out on them. Most sources place the count at 1,000 deaths, as a big part of the population escaped after the first attacks in fall and winter, 1943. This small figure was the highest of any city in Italy.
Zadar
Zadar is a city in Croatia on the Adriatic Sea. It is the centre of Zadar county and the wider northern Dalmatian region. Population of the city is 75,082 citizens...
during the Second World War by the Allies
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
lasted from November 1943 to October 1944. Although other large cities in Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
were also bombed, the bombing of Zadar stands out because of the number of attacks and the number of fatalities. Reports vary greatly; the Allies documented 30 bombing raids, while contemporary Italian accounts claim 54. Fatalities recorded range from under 1,000, up to as many as 4,000 of the city's 20,000 inhabitants.
Over the course of the bombing, 60% of the city's buildings were destroyed. Zadar has been called the "Dresden
Dresden
Dresden is the capital city of the Free State of Saxony in Germany. It is situated in a valley on the River Elbe, near the Czech border. The Dresden conurbation is part of the Saxon Triangle metropolitan area....
of the Adriatic" because of perceived similarities to the Allied bombing that city. In both cases, Allied bombs devastated a city rich in artistic and historical treasures but with no apparent industrial or military targets.
It is the most significant historical event in Zadar after the Siege of Zadar in 1202 by forces of the Fourth Crusade
Fourth Crusade
The Fourth Crusade was originally intended to conquer Muslim-controlled Jerusalem by means of an invasion through Egypt. Instead, in April 1204, the Crusaders of Western Europe invaded and conquered the Christian city of Constantinople, capital of the Eastern Roman Empire...
.
Italian enclave of Zara
Zadar (known in ItalianItalian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
as "Zara") became part of the Kingdom of Italy
History of Italy as a monarchy and in the World Wars
This articles covers the history of Italy as a monarchy and in the World Wars.-Italian unification :Modern Italy became a nation-state during the Risorgimento on March 17, 1861 when most of the states of the Italian Peninsula and the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies were united under king Victor...
as a result of the Treaty of Rapallo of 1920
Treaty of Rapallo, 1920
The Treaty of Rapallo was a treaty between the Kingdom of Italy and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes , signed to solve the dispute over some territories in the upper Adriatic, in Dalmatia and in the region which became known as the Julian March.The treaty was signed on 12 November 1920 in...
, which settled the status of former Austro-Hungarian territories. It had a large Italian majority and was an Italian enclave in Dalmatia.
From the 1920s on, many more Croats were pressured to leave the city while their place was being taken by ethnic Italians resettling there from within Yugoslavian
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...
Dalmatia—such as the famous fashion stylist Ottavio Missoni, who moved with the family from Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik
Dubrovnik is a Croatian city on the Adriatic Sea coast, positioned at the terminal end of the Isthmus of Dubrovnik. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations on the Adriatic, a seaport and the centre of Dubrovnik-Neretva county. Its total population is 42,641...
. The 1910 census in Austria-Hungary placed the Italians at 69.3% of the population, which consistently rose in the decades that followed. Public functionaries, teachers, and policemen were transferred from the mainland.
During this time, there was also a significant presence of military personnel.
In June 1940 Italy declared war on Britain
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Up until 1941, the city was surrounded by Italian fortifications, of which the bunker behind Gaženice and in the area of Ploče and Crnog were the most notable. At the same time as preparing a defense from the sea, an attack was planned against the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.
Second World War until the capitulation of Italy (1941–1943)
The Axis powersAxis Powers
The Axis powers , also known as the Axis alliance, Axis nations, Axis countries, or just the Axis, was an alignment of great powers during the mid-20th century that fought World War II against the Allies. It began in 1936 with treaties of friendship between Germany and Italy and between Germany and...
attacked the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Invasion of Yugoslavia
The Invasion of Yugoslavia , also known as the April War , was the Axis Powers' attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II...
on 6 April 1941. On 17 April, the Yugoslavian government surrendered. Zara held a force of 9,000 commanded by General Emilio Gilioli that after bloody fighting on 15 April reached Šibenik
Šibenik
Šibenik is a historic town in Croatia, with population of 51,553 . It is located in central Dalmatia where the river Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea...
and Split
Split (city)
Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
. Arriving in Dubrovnik and Mostar
Mostar
Mostar is a city and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the largest and one of the most important cities in the Herzegovina region and the center of the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation. Mostar is situated on the Neretva river and is the fifth-largest city in the country...
on 17 April, they met troops that had started out from Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
.
It is known that on 8 April, the Yugoslavian air force bombed Zara. Although this resulted in some damage, it cannot be compared to the bombing that the city would endure two years later. The civilians had been previously evacuated towards Ancona
Ancona
Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....
and Pula
Pula
Pula is the largest city in Istria County, Croatia, situated at the southern tip of the Istria peninsula, with a population of 62,080 .Like the rest of the region, it is known for its mild climate, smooth sea, and unspoiled nature. The city has a long tradition of winemaking, fishing,...
.
The Treaty of Rome in 1941 between the newly-formed fascist puppet Independent State of Croatia
Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia was a World War II puppet state of Nazi Germany, established on a part of Axis-occupied Yugoslavia. The NDH was founded on 10 April 1941, after the invasion of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers. All of Bosnia and Herzegovina was annexed to NDH, together with some parts...
(NDH) and Italy handed over a large part of northern Dalmatia to Italy including the cities of Split and Knin
Knin
Knin is a historical town in the Šibenik-Knin county of Croatia, located near the source of the river Krka at , in the Dalmatian hinterland, on the railroad Zagreb–Split. Knin rose to prominence twice in history, as a one-time capital of both the Kingdom of Croatia and briefly of the...
.
Capitulation of Italy
After MussoliniBenito Mussolini
Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini was an Italian politician who led the National Fascist Party and is credited with being one of the key figures in the creation of Fascism....
was removed from power, the new government of Pietro Badoglio
Pietro Badoglio
Pietro Badoglio, 1st Duke of Addis Abeba, 1st Marquess of Sabotino was an Italian soldier and politician...
declared an armistice
Armistice with Italy
The Armistice with Italy was an armistice signed on September 3 and publicly declared on September 8, 1943, during World War II, between Italy and the Allied armed forces, who were then occupying the southern end of the country, entailing the capitulation of Italy...
, and on 8 September 1943, the Italian army collapsed. The NDH took advantage of this chaotic situation by proclaiming the Treaty of Rome to be void and occupying Italian Dalmatia with German support. However, the Germans entered Zadar first, and on 10 September the German 114 Infantry Division took over. This stopped the Partisans (the local Allied forces) from temporarily liberating Zadar, as was the case with Split
Split (city)
Split is a Mediterranean city on the eastern shores of the Adriatic Sea, centered around the ancient Roman Palace of the Emperor Diocletian and its wide port bay. With a population of 178,192 citizens, and a metropolitan area numbering up to 467,899, Split is by far the largest Dalmatian city and...
and Šibenik
Šibenik
Šibenik is a historic town in Croatia, with population of 51,553 . It is located in central Dalmatia where the river Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea...
where several ethnic Italian civilians were reportedly executed.
The city was prevented from joining the NDH on the grounds that Zadar itself was not subject to the conditions of the Treaty of Rome, whether it was void or not. Despite this, the NDH's leader Ante Pavelić
Ante Pavelic
Ante Pavelić was a Croatian fascist leader, revolutionary, and politician. He ruled as Poglavnik or head, of the Independent State of Croatia , a World War II puppet state of Nazi Germany in Axis-occupied Yugoslavia...
designated Zadar as the capital of the Sidraga-Ravni Kotari County, although its prefect
Prefect
Prefect is a magisterial title of varying definition....
was prevented from entering the city. Zadar remained under local Italian administration with German military protection, and in this unsure climate that the Allied bombing began.
The bombing
The first large Allied aerial attack on Zadar was carried out on 2 November 1943 by the USAAF 12th Air Force, during which an orphanage was destroyed, among other buildings. Larger attacks followed on 28 November in which 200 people were killed, and on 16 December and 30 December. The first attacks caused many civilian casualties, but the city continued to function despite the damage. The attack on the 16th was especially harsh, as the shelters at Voštarnica and at the city's centre were hit, killing between 150 and 200 people. Fifty American B-25 medium bombersB-25 Mitchell
The North American B-25 Mitchell was an American twin-engined medium bomber manufactured by North American Aviation. It was used by many Allied air forces, in every theater of World War II, as well as many other air forces after the war ended, and saw service across four decades.The B-25 was named...
participated in the strikes, dropping 90 tonnes of bombs.
Besides these main attacks, the city was bombed to a lesser degree on other days. Through the use of carpet bombing
Carpet bombing
Carpet bombing is a large aerial bombing done in a progressive manner to inflict damage in every part of a selected area of land. The phrase invokes the image of explosions completely covering an area, in the same way that a carpet covers a floor. Carpet bombing is usually achieved by dropping many...
, entire neighborhood blocks were destroyed. The city centre was hardest hit, especially around the Forum and the Kalelarga street where no buildings were spared. As with other cases of urban bombings the damage was not caused by the initial explosions but the resulting fires, which turned the city into a pile of skeletons of burnt-out houses. Each attack targeted a specific part of the city. On the 16th, the area from the Church of Our Lady of Good Health to across the Kalelarga to the Piazza delle Erbe (today's People's Square) was targeted, while on the 30th the area from the Riva Nova waterfront to Giuseppe Verdi Theatre was attacked. On 31 December, the city hospital and the majority of the industrial machinery was destroyed. The Luxardo factory (manufacturer of the Maraschino
Maraschino
Maraschino .The liqueur's distinctive flavor comes from the Marasca cherries, and the crushed cherry pits lend an almond-like flavor to Maraschino...
cherry liqueur
Liqueur
A liqueur is an alcoholic beverage that has been flavored with fruit, herbs, nuts, spices, flowers, or cream and bottled with added sugar. Liqueurs are typically quite sweet; they are usually not aged for long but may have resting periods during their production to allow flavors to marry.The...
) was set on fire, and the building burned for three days.
Attacks which completely ravaged Zadar followed from January to March 1944. On 16 January 1944, Liberator
B-24 Liberator
The Consolidated B-24 Liberator was an American heavy bomber, designed by Consolidated Aircraft of San Diego, California. It was known within the company as the Model 32, and a small number of early models were sold under the name LB-30, for Land Bomber...
heavy bombers attacked Zara losing one bomber but claiming nine Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
fighters.
However, the number of casualties was much less because the population rendered homeless escaped to the less damaged outskirts (Arbanasi and Stanovi) as well as Zadar's islands. It is estimated that in the spring of 1944, there were fewer than 4,000 civilians left in the city . Even though the industrial plants and piers were crippled, bombing continued throughout of 1944. Thus, the Germans were forced to establish a port in Zaton
Zaton
Zaton can refer to:* Zaton, Dubrovnik-Neretva County, a village located northwest of Dubrovnik, Croatia* Zaton, Šibenik-Knin County, a village located northeast of Vodice, Croatia* Zaton, Zadar County, a village located south of Nin, Croatia...
near Nin
Nin, Croatia
Nin is a town in the Zadar county of Croatia, population 1,256 , total municipality population 4,603 .Nin was historically important as a centre of a Christian Bishopric in the Middle Ages. Up to the abolition and Latinization imposed by King Tomislav in the first half of the 10th century, Nin was...
and Ražanac
Ražanac
Ražanac is a municipality in Croatia in the Zadar County. According to the 2001 census, there are 3,107 inhabitants, 98% which are Croats.The settlements in the municipality are:* Jovići * Krneza...
.
By the summer, the center of Zadar had practically ceased to exist. The majority of houses were completely destroyed and their ruins buried the streets. The city was desolate. The period from June to the beginning of October was not marked by any large attacks, but they resumed in the middle of October as German forces abandoned the city. The worst attacks came on the 25th and 30th of that month when the areas of Arbanasi and Brodarica, Jazina, and the Riva Nova waterfront were hit.
The last attacks came on the 31st on the same day that the forces of the Yugoslav Partisans entered Zadar. During the attacks, a number of Partisans were killed in the attack by accident.
Several summary executions were performed by the Partisans. Among them, three of the four Luxardo brothers (owners of the Maraschino factory) were killed. Nicolò Luxardo, as was many others, was thrown alive into the sea with a stone tied to his neck in front of his wife, who was executed immediately afterward with a shot to the head. A number of citizens, mostly Italians, left the city some time later.
Destruction and casualties
The greater part of the city's core was destroyed, including the entire Riva Nova with its 12 Austro-Hungarian palaces, its post officePost office
A post office is a facility forming part of a postal system for the posting, receipt, sorting, handling, transmission or delivery of mail.Post offices offer mail-related services such as post office boxes, postage and packaging supplies...
and neighborhood blocks around the Forum, the Kalelarga, the school near the Church of St. Chrysogonus, the churches of St. Mary, Our Lady of Health, and the baptistery of the Cathedral of St. Anastasia
St. Anastasia
Saint Anastasia was a Christian saint and martyr who died at Sirmium. In the Orthodox Church she is commemorated as the Great Martyr Anastasia, the Deliverer from Potions ....
. Only the churches were restored. Many buildings which had burned were not rebuilt but demolished, with their stone reused in the rebuilding of the coastline and roads. A well-known example of this was the city theatre Teatro Verdi, which was only slightly damaged, but was plundered by Communist forces and destroyed. War and postwar damage occurred mostly in the western part of the peninsula, where the government offices and piers were located. The Varoš, was one of the areas where the prewar appearance was retained.
Apart from the destruction caused by the Allies, the withdrawing Germans mined the Riva Nova slowing down postwar recovery as well as causing casualties. Exact numbers will likely never be known, as Zadar saw a significant population change. The percentage of Croatian
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
citizens dramatically increased. The number of military personnel remaining in the city is undetermined.
After the war, the number of casualties became a political question, especially within the community of Italians who had left the city for Italy. They placed the number at 3,000-4,000 deaths, claiming that a genocide had been carried out on them. Most sources place the count at 1,000 deaths, as a big part of the population escaped after the first attacks in fall and winter, 1943. This small figure was the highest of any city in Italy.