Pavle Đurišić (, ; 9 July 1909 – 21 April 1945) was a Montenegrin Serb regular officer of the Royal Yugoslav Army who became a Chetnik commander (vojvoda) and led a significant proportion of the Chetniks in Montenegro during World War II. He distinguished himself and became one of the main commanders during the popular uprising against the Italians in Montenegro in July 1941, but later collaborated with the Italians in actions against the Communist-led Yugoslav Partisans. In 1943, his troops carried out several massacres against the Muslim population of Bosnia, Herzegovina, and the Sandžak in which an estimated 10,000 people were killed between January and March, including thousands of women, children, and the elderly. He then led his troops during their participation in the anti-Partisan Operation Weiss offensive alongside Italian forces. Đurišić was captured by the Germans in May 1943, escaped, and was recaptured.
After the capitulation of Italy, the Germans released Đurišić and he began collaborating with them and the Serbian puppet government. In 1944, he created the Montenegrin Volunteer Corps with assistance from the Germans, the leader of the Serbian puppet government, Milan Nedić, and the leader of the fascist Yugoslav National Movement, Dimitrije Ljotić. In late 1944, the German commander in Montenegro decorated him with the Iron Cross 2nd Class. Đurišić was killed following the Battle of Lijevče Field, after being captured by elements of the Armed Forces of the Independent State of Croatia near Banja Luka in an apparent trap set by them and Montenegrin separatist Sekula Drljević. Some of Đurišić's troops were killed either in this battle or in later attacks by the Partisans as they then continued their withdrawal west. Others attempted to withdraw to Austria; they were forced to surrender to the Partisans and were killed in the Kočevski Rog area of southern Slovenia in May and June 1945. Đurišić was a very able Chetnik leader; his fighting skills were respected by his allies and opponents alike.
Early life Pavle Đurišić was born on 9 July 1909 in Podgorica, Principality of Montenegro, where he was raised until the death of his father Ilija. His mother was Ivana (née Radović), from the Radović clan. According to some sources he was born in 1907. Đurišić was educated up to lower secondary school. Following his father's death, he moved to Berane, where he lived with his uncle Petar Radović, a judge and former Chetnik who had been a member of the band of Vuk Popović during the Macedonian Struggle. Đurišić attended a teacher training college in Berane for almost two years.
In 1927, Đurišić entered the 55th class of the Military Academy; he was commissioned as an infantry potporučnik (second lieutenant) in the Royal Yugoslav Army (, VKJ) in 1930. He began his service in Sarajevo with the 10th Infantry Regiment Takovska and attended infantry officers' school. Đurišić remained in Sarajevo until 1934 when, upon his request, he was transferred to Berane where he served first as a platoon commander and later as a commander of the 1st Company of the 48th Infantry Regiment. Đurišić had a daughter named Ljiljana, who was born in 1937 but died in 1943.
On 7 April 1939, after the Italian invasion of Albania, Đurišić's company was sent to Plav near the Albanian border to gather intelligence. He established contact with individuals in the Italian protectorate of Albania and obtained intelligence, but the information he obtained was not very useful for the defense of Yugoslavia and he returned to Berane with his company. Contacts Đurišić made during this period would become important a few years later. Đurišić's son Ilija was born in 1940.
World War II Axis invasion and Italian occupation of Montenegro
In April 1941, Germany, Italy and Hungary invaded and occupied Yugoslavia. Montenegro was captured by the Germans, who soon withdrew, leaving the Italians to occupy it. The Montenegrins quickly developed grievances against the Italians related to the expulsion of Montenegrins from Kosovo and Vojvodina, the influx of refugees from other parts of Yugoslavia, and those fleeing Ustaše terror in the regions along the borders with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Montenegrins also had grievances against the Italian annexation of important food-producing territory in Kosovo and a salt-producing facility at Ulcinj to Albania, and the economic damage inflicted on many Montenegrins by the temporary removal of Yugoslav banknotes of 500 dinars and above from circulation. By the time of the invasion, Đurišić had been promoted to the rank of kapetan prve klase (captain first class).
Uprising in Montenegro
In mid-July 1941, the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (, KPJ) in Italian-occupied Montenegro initiated a general uprising against the Italians. The uprising was triggered by the proclamation of a restored Kingdom of Montenegro headed by an Italian regent and led by the Montenegrin separatist Sekula Drljević and his supporters, known as "Greens" (zelenaši). The insurgents also included large numbers of Montenegrin Serb nationalists known as "Whites" (bjelaši), who "stood for close ties to Serbia". About 400 former VKJ officers, many of whom were willing to work with the communists, also took part. Some of the officers had recently been released from prisoner-of-war camps by the Germans and Italians, having been captured during the invasion. The VKJ officers assumed command, while the KPJ organised the revolt and provided political commissars. When the uprising commenced, Đurišić joined the committee that had been organised to lead military operations in the Berane district.
In the early phase of the uprising, the rebels seized control of small towns and villages. Đurišić fought alongside communist insurgents, and led a successful attack on Berane. During the heaviest fighting, he distinguished himself, and emerged as one of the main commanders of the uprising. After nearly two days of house-to-house fighting to capture Berane, he was involved in negotiating the surrender of the surviving Italian troops. Following the Italian surrender, he objected to the instructions he received from the communists regarding the handling of Italian prisoners. During the uprising, Đurišić also led fighting against Drljević's forces. Following the Italians' removal from the Lim valley, Đurišić urged rebels to march on Rožaje and Kosovska Mitrovica and attack the Muslims and Albanians there, whom he considered "anational". The leaders of the uprising made it clear they considered such an action unacceptable.
The other main commanders of the uprising included the former VKJ officers Colonel Bajo Stanišić and Major Đorđije Lašić. Within six weeks, a force of 67,000 Italian troops, assisted by Muslim and Albanian irregulars from border areas who provided flank security, regained control of all towns and communication routes in Montenegro. General Alessandro Pirzio Biroli, the Italian military governor of Montenegro, issued orders to crush the revolt but directed his forces to avoid "acts of revenge and useless cruelty". Nevertheless, dozens of villages were burned, hundreds were killed, and between 10,000 and 20,000 inhabitants were interned during the suppression of the revolt. For a while, the Muslim and Albanian irregulars were permitted to pillage and torch villages. As soon as the Italians launched their offensive, politicians in Berane abandoned their support for the uprising and began criticising it. Former VKJ officers deserted their units and Đurišić left the military committee organising the uprising in the Berane district. The politicians and officers formed their own committees and approached the Italians to express their loyalty and denounce the communists.
A division developed between the uprising's communist leadership and the nationalists who were participating. The nationalists recognised the uprising had been crushed and wanted to stop fighting, while the communists were determined to continue the struggle. In late 1941, the nationalists contacted the Italians and offered to help them fight the communists, who had since been renamed Partisans. The nationalistsincluding Đurišić, who was popular in his own Vasojevići tribe of northern Montenegrosubsequently withdrew into the hinterland. They sought to avoid provoking the Italians and protect the mountain villages if they were attacked. In northern Montenegro, there was a marked distinction between the communists and nationalists. The nationalists had closer ties with Serbia and exhibited a "frontier" mentality towards Muslims. The communists wished to continue the uprising by turning against their class enemies. Ustaše manipulation of the Muslims in the Sandžak and the expulsion of Serbs from areas annexed by Albania made Đurišić and his Chetniks impatient to attack Muslims and Albanians. They subsequently turned on the Muslims and Albanians in the region. The uprising continued with reduced intensity until December 1941. In 1941, Đurišić was awarded the Order of Karađorđe's Star by the Yugoslav government-in-exile on the recommendation of Chetnik leader Draža Mihailović.
Mihailović's instructions In October 1941, Mihailović appointed Đurišić as his commander for all regular and reserve troops in central and eastern Montenegro and parts of the Sandžak. In early November, the nationalist leaders in Montenegro quickly became aware of the split between the Chetniks and Partisans in Serbia; later that month they sent Đurišić to visit Mihailović. During this visit, Đurišić received verbal orders from Mihailović and was appointed as the commander of all Chetnik detachments in the Sandžak. Lašić was appointed commander of all Chetnik forces in Old Montenegro. Đurišić's appointment was also included as part of instructions dated 20 December 1941 that were received from Mihailović. The instructions included the following objectives:
These instructions stated that the objectives of the Partisans meant that there could be no cooperation between them and the Chetniks. They also appointed Đurišić as a Chetnik vojvoda. Some historians have challenged the authenticity of these instructions; they say the document was a forgery made by Đurišić after he failed to reach Mihailović. Other historians either do not mention any controversy about the provenance of the instructions, mention evidence supporting their authenticity, or explicitly state they consider them to be authentic.
Collaboration with the Italians against the Partisans in Montenegro
In January 1942, Đurišić met with representatives of Generale di brigata (Brigadier) Silvio Bonini, the commander of the Italian 19th Infantry Division Venezia. Đurišić's brother Vaso was responsible for liaising with the Italian division and was stationed at their headquarters in Berane; at this meeting, Đurišić was granted freedom of action against the Partisans in the division's area of responsibility An agreement between Đurišić and the Italian representatives was signed by Vaso on Đurišić's behalf. That March, Đurišić again met with the staff of the division. In the same month, he assembled a group of former VKJ officers, politicians and other non-communists, and passed on Mihailović's instructions. Mihailović codenamed Đurišić's headquarters "Mountain Staff No. 15"; Đurišić selected the village of Zaostro for its location. Bonini wrote a letter to Italian Montenegro Command that Đurišić