| 4th Army | |
|---|---|
&sq=Google&lang=en&file=File:Petar_Nedeljkovi%C4%87.jpg) Armijski đeneral Petar Nedeljković commanded the Yugoslav 4th Army during the Axis invasion of Yugoslavia | |
| Active | 1941 |
| Disbanded | 1941 |
| Country | Kingdom of Yugoslavia |
| Branch | Royal Yugoslav Army |
| Type | Infantry |
| Size | Corps[a] |
| Part of | 1st Army Group |
| Engagements | Invasion of Yugoslavia |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders | Petar Nedeljković |
The 4th Army was a Royal Yugoslav Army formation mobilised prior to the German-led Axis invasion of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia during World War II. It was drawn from the peacetime 4th Army District. When mobilised, it consisted of three divisions, a brigade-strength detachment, one horse cavalry regiment and one independent infantry regiment. It formed part of the 1st Army Group, and was responsible for defending a large section of the Yugoslav–Hungarian border, being deployed behind the Drava river between Varaždin and Slatina. Like all Yugoslav formations at the time, the 4th Army had serious deficiencies in both mobility and firepower.
Despite concerns over a possible Axis invasion, orders for the general mobilisation of the Royal Yugoslav Army were not issued by the government until 3 April 1941, in order to not provoke Germany any further following the military coup d'état and precipitate war. When the invasion commenced on 6 April, the 4th Army was only partially mobilised, and this weakness was exacerbated by fifth-column activities within its major units and higher headquarters. Revolts of Croat soldiers broke out in all three divisions in the first few days, causing significant disruption to their mobilisation and deployment. The town of Bjelovar was taken over by rebel troops. Widespread desertions of Croat troops, many of whom turned on their Serb comrades, made control even more difficult. German activity in the 4th Army sector in the first four days included limited objective attacks to seize crossings over the Mura and Drava rivers, along with air attacks by the Luftwaffe.
The formation and expansion of German bridgeheads were facilitated by fifth-column elements of the Croatian fascist Ustaše organisation and their sympathisers among the Croat-majority populace of the 4th Army sector. Elements of the 4th Army did put up scattered resistance to the Germans, but it began to withdraw southwards on 9 April, and on 10 April it quickly ceased to exist as an operational formation in the face of two determined armoured thrusts by XXXXVI Motorised Corps from bridgeheads at Zákány and Barcs. The 14th Panzer Division captured Zagreb late that day, and the Germans facilitated the proclamation of an independent Croatian state. A senior staff officer at the headquarters of the 1st Army Group who sympathised with the Ustaše issued orders redirecting formations and units of the 4th Army away from the advancing Germans, and fifth-column elements arrested some 4th Army headquarters staff.
Under the leadership of its commander, Armijski đeneral[b] Petar Nedeljković, the mostly ethnic Serb remnants of the 4th Army attempted to establish defensive positions in northeastern Bosnia, but were brushed aside by the 14th Panzer Division as it drove east towards Sarajevo, which fell on 15 April. A ceasefire was agreed on that day, and the remains of the 4th Army were ordered to stop fighting. The Yugoslav Supreme Command surrendered unconditionally effective on 18 April.
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