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

Šabac 1941 - The first application of the "rule of 100 for 1"

4 October 1941 - General Franz Böhme (commander of the German troops in Serbia) issues a historic (and tragic) order:

"For every German soldier or ethnic German (Volksdeutscher) killed - shoot 100 Serbian hostages. For every one wounded - shoot 50 hostages."

- General Franz Böhme, order of 4 October 1941

This is the FIRST order of the "rule of 100 for 1" in occupied Serbia.

5 October 1941 - the FIRST execution under this rule:

• Location: Zasavica (near Šabac)
• Victims: 200 Serbian hostages from the Šabac camp
• Method: Execution + burial in mass graves

Šabac = the place where the "rule of 100 for 1" was applied for the first time.

📜 General Böhme's order - how did it come about?

September 1941 - the Partisan movement in western Serbia grows stronger:

• Frequent attacks on German columns
• The Germans lose control over parts of Serbia
• Hitler is furious: "Serbian resistance must be broken!"

30 September 1941 - Hitler sends a telegram to General Böhme:

"The use of the most brutal measures is necessary to break Serbian resistance. For every attack - severe reprisal against civilians."

- Adolf Hitler, telegram of 30 September 1941

4 October 1941 - General Böhme translates Hitler's words into a concrete order:

• "100 Serbs for 1 German" (reprisal)
• "50 Serbs for 1 wounded German"
• Hostage-taking = the method (arresting civilians as hostages, shooting them when the Partisans attack)

The order was sent to ALL German units in Serbia.

📅 5 October 1941 - the FIRST execution (Šabac, Zasavica)

5 October, in the morning - the German commander in Šabac receives the order:

• "The Partisans attacked our patrol yesterday (4 October) - 2 Germans killed."
• "By the rule of 100 for 1: 200 Serbs must be shot."

5 October, 10:00 - the Germans enter the Šabac camp:

• They select 200 prisoners (at random)
• They take them by lorry to Zasavica (a marsh 10 km from Šabac)

5 October, 14:00 - the execution:

• 200 Serbs shot
• The bodies buried in a mass grave

This is the FIRST execution under the "rule of 100 for 1".

📊 The application of the "rule of 100 for 1" in Serbia - statistics

The "rule of 100 for 1" was applied in 3 major massacres (October 1941):

Conclusion: The "rule of 100 for 1" claimed 8,278-17,000 Serbian lives (in October 1941 alone).

🔍 Why Šabac first? - strategic reasons

Why did Böhme choose Šabac as the first place to apply the "rule of 100 for 1"?

1. The Šabac camp existed:

• 7,000+ prisoners were already imprisoned in the camp
• It is easy to select 200-300 people every day
• There is no need to arrest new people

2. Šabac = a hotbed of the Partisan movement:

• Western Serbia (Šabac, Valjevo, Užice) - a strong Partisan movement
• Frequent attacks on German columns
• The Germans wanted to "make an example" of the Serbs

3. An experiment:

• Böhme wanted to see whether the "rule of 100 for 1" worked
• Would it break Serbian resistance?
• If it worked in Šabac → apply it in the whole of Serbia

The result of the experiment:

• Šabac: 3,500-5,000 Serbs shot (October 1941)
• Was the resistance broken? NO - the Partisans continued their attacks
• But Böhme extended the method to the whole of Serbia (Kraljevo, Kragujevac)

⚖️ International law - the "rule of 100 for 1" = a war crime

The Hague Convention (1907) - international law of war:

Article 50: "No collective penalty may be inflicted upon the population on account of the acts of individuals for which they cannot be regarded as jointly and severally responsible."

The "rule of 100 for 1" violates international law:

• Collective punishment = prohibited
• Reprisal against civilians = prohibited
• The shooting of hostages = a war crime

General Böhme knew that he was breaking the law - but ignored it (Hitler had ordered it).

🇷🇸 The Serbian perspective - Šabac = where it all began

For the Serbian people, Šabac = the place where it all began:

• 4 October 1941 - the order of the "rule of 100 for 1" (the FIRST)
• 5 October 1941 - the FIRST execution (Zasavica, 200 Serbs)
• October 1941 - 3,500-5,000 Serbs shot in Šabac
• After Šabac - the same method was applied in Kraljevo, Kragujevac
• In total: The "rule of 100 for 1" claimed 8,278-17,000 Serbian lives (October 1941)
• Šabac = an experiment that became genocide
• We will not forget - Šabac is where it all began

"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. October 1941: 3,500-5,000 Serbs shot in Šabac. After Šabac: the same method was applied in Kraljevo (16-20 October, 2,000-5,000 Serbs) and Kragujevac (21 October, 2,778-7,000 Serbs). The 'rule of 100 for 1' = a war crime (the Hague Convention). In total: 8,278-17,000 Serbs shot (October 1941). Šabac = an experiment that became genocide. Šabac = where it all began. WE WILL NEVER FORGET."