List of admirals of Croatia
Admirals from Croatia served in many naval forces on the eastern Adriatic seaboard. First admirals were mentioned in 14th century as commanders of the royal fleet of Croatian-Hungarian king Louis I. Officers from today's Croatia served in various navies in control of Croatia or its parts. For instance, Jusuf Mašković served as a grand admiral of Ottoman Navy in 1630s, just like Sinan Pasha in 1530s; Ivan of Vrana was a Venetian admiral in late 16th century, taking part in the Battle of Lepanto.[1] Croatian personnel served in the Venetian Navy until its demise in 1797 and, in modern times, in Habsburg/Austro-Hungarian Navy as Croatia was a constituent part of the monarchy (until 1918). First Croatian admirals distinguished themselves commanding Habsburg ships in First Italian War of Independence in 1848.
Croatian admirals helped lead Austro-Hungarian Navy through World War I and later oversaw the creation and development of Royal Yugoslav Navy in the interwar years (1918-1941). In World War II they found themselves on opposing sides, as some chose to collaborate and joined rather limited Navy of Independent State of Croatia (1941–45), while others founded guerilla Partisan Navy, which liberated the Croatian Adriatic and later developed into Yugoslav Navy (1942–91). Croatian admirals led Yugoslav Navy during the Cold War, overseeing its development of submarines and strengthening its capacities. After 1991, breaking off from Yugoslav Navy, Croatian admirals steered Croatian Navy through the Croatian War of Independence from Yugoslavia (1991-5).
What follows is a list of naval officers from the territory of today's Republic of Croatia. For a list of admirals of the modern, post-1991 Croatian Navy, see List of Croatian Navy admirals. Historical Croat community in Boka Kotorska has produced a long line of admirals (Russian Grand admiral Matija Zmajević, Austrian vice-admiral Aleksandar Bujaković (1792-1870) etc.), but these are excluded from this list.
Admiral flote
In Yugoslav Navy, Branko Mamula was promoted to the rank of the Admiral of the Fleet in 1983. In Croatian Navy, rank of Fleet Admiral was introduced in 1995 as the naval equivalent to the five-star rank of the OF-10. Commending him on his role as the commander of Croatian Navy during the War of Independence (1991-5), president Tuđman conferred the rank on admiral Letica. Sveto Letica-Barba was the first and so far the only Croatian flag officer to hold this rank.
Name | Born | Died | Date of rank | Navy | Crew/Year | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sveto Letica | 4 April 1926 | 6 November 2001 | March 1996 | 1950 | Served in Yugoslav Navy 1942–86, retired as viceadmiral and retroactively promoted to the rank of admiral. Reactivated in 1991 | |
Branko Mamula | 30 May 1921 | 22 December 1983 | ||||
Admirals
Name | Born | Died | Date of rank | Navy | Crew/Year | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Mate Jerković | 1905 | 1980 | 1956 | People's Hero of Yugoslavia | ||
Bogdan Pecotić | 1912 | 1998 | 1968 | People's Hero of Yugoslavia | ||
Ljubo Truta | 1915 | 1991 | 1969 | People's Hero of Yugoslavia | ||
Maximilian Njegovan | 31 October 1858 | 1 July 1930 | 23 February 1917 | 1877 | Commander of Austro-Hungarian Navy 1917-8 | |
Dragutin Prica | 1867 | 1960 | 6 September 1925 | 1885 | Served as a rear admiral in Austro-Hungarian Navy until 1918 | |
Viktor Wickerhauser | 1866 | 1940 | 30 April 1930 | 1885 | Served as a rear admiral (1917) in Austro-Hungarian Navy until 1918[3] | |
Božidar Grubišić | 1932 | 1988 | Joined Croatian Navy in 1991, his earlier rank confirmed | |||
Ivo Purišić | 1920 | 1976 | 1974 | |||
Petar Šimić | 1932 | 1990 | 1989 | |||
Davor Domazet-Lošo | 1948 | 2000 | ||||
Vid Stipetić | 1937 | 2011 | 2002 | 1959 | ||
Robert Hranj | 1962 | 11 March 2020[4] | 1985[5] | |||
Tihomir Vilović | 1924 | 2008 | 5 July 1984 | Retired as viceadmiral in April 1984; in July retroactively promoted to the rank of an admiral | ||
Vice Admirals
Name | Born | Died | Date of rank | Navy | Crew/Year | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Predrag Stipanović | 1964 | 2016 | ||||
Zdravko Kardum | 1953 | 2009 | ||||
Ante Urlić | 1957 | 2013 | ||||
Davorin Kajić | 1957 | 1995[6] | ||||
Edgar Angeli | 1892 | 1945 | 1943 | |||
Andrija Božanić | 1906 | 1989 | 1961 | People's Hero of Yugoslavia | ||
Josip Grubelić | 1918 | 2006 | 22 December 1971 | served as an NCO in Royal Yugoslav Navy | ||
Mladen Marušić | 1923 | 2009 | 22 December 1976 | |||
Benko Matulić | 1914 | 1976 | 22 December 1968 | |||
Milan Vranješ | 1922 | 22 December 1975 | ||||
Josip Žužul | 1923 | 1993 | 22 December 1974 | |||
Ante Paić | 1923 | 22 December 1977 | ||||
Momčilo Novaković | 1916 | 1988 | 22 December 1967 | People's Hero of Yugoslavia | ||
Nikola Aračić | 1915 | 1978 | 22 December 1966 | |||
Pero Bogunović | 1924 | 2012 | 22 December 1978 | |||
Veljko Dokmanović | 1926 | 1982 | 22 December 1978 | 1/ | ||
Nikola Steinfel | 1889 | 1945 | May 1944 | 1909 | retired as SotL Captain of Royal yugoslav Navy in Feb 1940 | |
Marijan Polić | 1876 | 1958 | 6 September 1935 | 1893 | Retired in April 1940 | |
Rear Admirals
Name | Born | Died | Date of rank | Navy | Crew/Year | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ivo Raffanelli | 1965 | 18 September 2019[7] | 1987 | |||
Tihomir Erceg | 1959 | 2019 | 2015[8] | 1982 | ||
Julijan Luterotti[9] | 1884 | 1956 | 1 December 1937 | 1902 | In 1941 commander-in-chief of Royal Yugoslav Navy[10] Later joined ISC Navy, earlier rank confirmed | |
Janko Vuković | 7 October 1871 | 1 November 1918 | 30 October 1918 | 1889 | Served in Austro-Hungarian Navy as captain. Promoted to the rank of rear admiral by the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs | |
Đuro Jakčin | 1889 | 1944 | 10 April 1941 | 1909 | ||
Stanko Parmać | 1913 | 1982 | 22 December 1954 | People's Hero of Yugoslavia | ||
Dinko Šurkalo | 1920 | 2010 | 1969 | People's Hero of Yugoslavia | ||
Marko Eugen Florio | 1820 | 1906 | 1889[11] | |||
Vid von Vončina[12] | 1867 | 1935 | 11 May 1918 | 1885 | ||
Ivan Buratović[13] | 1785 | 1849 | 28 August 1848 | von Flaggentreu | ||
Juraj Bonači[14] | 1903 | 1971 | 1958 | 1929 | ||
Ante Kronja | 1915 | 1985 | 22 December 1961 | |||
Alojz Vjekoslav Bačić | 1864 | 1950 | 29 December 1919 | 1882 | ||
Artur Catinelli Obradić-Bevilacqua | 1867 | 1939 | 1 May 1918 | 1886 | ||
Paul Stupar | 1866 | 1928 | 1 May 1918 | 1886 | ||
Mario August Petar Ratković von Modruš | 1870 | 1918 | 1 November 1918 | 1888 | ||
Jozo Erceg | 1936 | 22 December 1986 | Joined Croatian Navy, his earlier rank confirmed | |||
Martin Matošević | 1933 | 22 December 1987 | ||||
Fridrih Moretti | 1932 | 22 December 1990 | 5/ | |||
Đuro Pojer | 1935 | 22 December 1987 | 9/ | |||
Ante Budimir | 1945 | 1993 | ||||
Vladimir Marijašević | 1886[15] | 1961 | 1 December 1937 | Retired in 1940; later joined ISC Navy,[16] earlier rank confirmed | ||
Tomo Tijanić | 1887 | 1953 | 1 December 1939 | Joined ISC Navy,[17] earlier rank confirmed | ||
Milan Domainko | 1889 | 1968 | 6 September 1940 | 1909[18] | Commander in chief of Royal Yugoslav Navy in April 1941 | |
Sources
Yugoslav Navy
- List of Yugoslav Navy admirals
- Petar Strčić. On Admiral Petar Simic
Royal Yugoslav Navy
- Bjelajac, Mile (2004). Generali i admirali Kraljevine Jugoslavije 1918—1941. Beograd: Institut za noviju istoriju Srbije. ISBN 978-86-7005-039-6.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
- List of Royal Yugoslav admirals and generals (in Serbian)
- List of Royal Yugoslav naval officers who served in collaborationist Croatian Navy
Austro-Hungarian Navy
- Schmidt-Brentano, Antonio. Die k. k. bzw. k. u. k. Generalität 1816-1918. Oesterreichischer Staatsarchiv, 2007
- Dubrović, Ervin. Vojno-pomorska akademija u Rijeci 1866.-1914. Rijeka: Pomorski fakultet u Rijeci/Muzej Grada Rijeke, 2011.
- "Rang- und Einteilungsliste Marine 1876-1918 | Könyvtár | Hungaricana". library.hungaricana.hu. Retrieved 2020-04-01.
References
- Čoralić, Lovorka; Prijatelj Pavičić, Ivana (2005-12-01). "Ivan iz Vrane – mletački admiral u Lepantskom boju (1571.)". Povijesni prilozi (in Croatian). 24 (29): 127–149. ISSN 0351-9767.
- "Socialist Yugoslavia: Naval rank flags (1956-1991)". fotw.info. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "Načelniku Glavnog stožera Hranju dodijeljen čin admirala pomorstva". MORH (in Croatian). 2020-03-11. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "Komodor Robert Hranj spašavat će HRM od potopa". 057info. 2012-11-05. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "Hrvatski biografski leksikon". hbl.lzmk.hr. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "VIDEO/28. OBLJETNICA OSNUTKA 'Hrvatska ratna mornarica imala je veliku ulogu u obrani Dubrovnika'". DuList.hr (in Croatian). 2019-09-20. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "Održana komemoracija kontraadmiralu Tihomiru Ercegu". MORH (in Croatian). 2019-03-11. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "ARHiNET - Luterotti, Julijan". arhinet.arhiv.hr. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- Catalogue description Appointment of Rear-Admiral Luterotti as Commander-in-Chief of Yugoslav Navy. Code 92... 1941.
- "Hrvatski biografski leksikon". hbl.lzmk.hr. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- Dokumentation, Österreichisches Biographisches Lexikon und biographische (2003). "Vončina, Vitus von;". ISBN 978-3-7001-3213-4 (in German). Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "Hrvatski biografski leksikon". hbl.lzmk.hr. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "Hrvatski biografski leksikon". hbl.lzmk.hr. Retrieved 2020-03-29.
- "Tsingtau - historisch-biographisches Projekt". www.tsingtau.info. Retrieved 2020-03-30.
- "Služba u Hrvatskoj vojsci", Hrvatski narod 122, 16/6/1941
- SUDBINA PRIPADNIKA KOMANDNOG SASTAVA VOJSKE KRALJEVINE JUGOSLAVIJE
- Strauss, Heinz (2017-07-21). K.u.k Linienschiffsleutnant Otto Bielobradek-Bernau: Ein sicher navigierender Torpedobootskommandant in turbulenten Zeiten (in German). Pro Business. ISBN 978-3-86460-693-9.