Historical Archive

Documented testimonies of events that shape our memory

283 documented events in the archive

"Crvena zora" (Red Dawn) Kraljevo - Symbol of the Massacre (poem, book, film), 16-20 October 1941

"Crvena zora" (Red Dawn) - a symbol of the Kraljevo massacre (16-20 October 1941). The poem "Crvena zora" (Desanka Maksimović, 1945) - dedicated to the victims. The book "Crvena zora nad Kraljevom" (Red Dawn over Kraljevo) (Miloš Minić, 1960). The film "Kraljevski voz" (The Royal Train) (1981) - depicts the massacre. Every year (16 October) - Day of remembrance. "Crvena zora" = a metaphor: the blood of the Serbs coloured the sky above Kraljevo.

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General Paul Bader - Reprisal order in Kraljevo (1941), "special brutality needed to break Serbian resistance"

General Paul Bader (commander of German troops in Serbia, 1941) - ordered the massacre in Kraljevo (16-20 October 1941). Telegram: "Special brutality needed to break Serbian resistance." 2,000-5,000 Serbs shot. Bader also took part in the Kragujevac massacre (21 October). Nuremberg Trial - charged with war crimes. But: released in 1951 (served only 6 years). Died in 1959 - never fully held accountable. Impunity.

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October 1941 - Šabac hostage executions, 3,500-5,000 Serbs shot by the Germans (reprisal for Partisan attacks)

October 1941 - The Germans shoot 3,500-5,000 Serbian hostages in Šabac and its surroundings (reprisal for Partisan attacks). The "rule of 100 for 1" was applied - for every German soldier killed, 100 Serbs were to be shot. Victims: civilians + prisoners from the Šabac camp. Duration: the whole of October (new executions every day). Execution sites: Zasavica, Jarak, Crna Bara. Bodies buried in mass graves. The Germans were NEVER held to account.

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Šabac - "City of Hostages" (a symbol of the hostage system in WW2), 3,500-5,000 Serbs shot as hostages (October 1941)

Šabac - the "City of Hostages" (a name given after WW2). October 1941: 3,500-5,000 residents of Šabac shot as hostages (reprisal for Partisan attacks). The hostage system = a war crime (reprisals against civilians are prohibited). Every year (5 October) - Šabac commemorates the "Day of the City of Hostages". A symbol: Serbian resistance to the German occupation. Even today: the people of Šabac say "We are the city of hostages - we will never forget."

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Šabac 1941 - The First Application of the "Rule of 100 for 1" in Occupied Serbia (4 October 1941, before Kraljevo and Kragujevac)

4 October 1941 - General Franz Böhme issues the order: "For every German soldier killed - shoot 100 Serbian hostages." This is the FIRST order of the "rule of 100 for 1" in occupied Serbia. 5 October: the FIRST execution under this rule (Šabac, Zasavica) - 200 Serbs. After Šabac: the same method was applied in Kraljevo (16-20 October) and Kragujevac (21 October). Šabac = an experiment that was later extended to the whole of Serbia.

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The Šabac Camp 1941 - 7,000+ Serbian prisoners, appalling conditions (hunger, disease), 2,000-3,000 taken away to be shot

The Šabac camp (September-December 1941) - a German camp for Serbian prisoners. 7,000+ Serbs imprisoned (soldiers, civilians). Conditions: hunger (100 g of bread a day), disease (typhus, dysentery), torture. October 1941: 2,000-3,000 prisoners taken away to be shot (Zasavica, Jarak). December 1941: the camp closed (the remaining prisoners deported to Germany). Only 20-30% survived the war.

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