Operation Rösselsprung (1944) facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Operation Rösselsprung
Part of World War II in Yugoslavia
Marshal Josip Broz Tito (far right) with his cabinet and principal staff officers in Drvar, days before the offensive.
Date 25–27 May 1944 Location Drvar region, Bosnian Krajina, Yugoslavia 44°22′51″N 16°23′14″E / 44.38083°N 16.38722°E / 44.38083; 16.38722 Result German failure
Belligerents
Axis and collaborationist forces:  Germany  Independent State of Croatia Chetniks	Allies: Yugoslav Partisans Balkan Air Force
Commanders and leaders
Lothar Rendulic Ernst von Leyser Otto Kumm Eduard Aldrian Kurt Rybka	Josip Broz Tito Koča Popović Slavko Rodić Vlado Ćetković William Elliot
Strength
c. 12,000 German troops, unknown number of NDH and Chetnik troops	c. 12,000–16,000
Casualties and losses
789 killed 929 wounded 51 missing	See Aftermath section

Operation Rösselsprung (which means "Knight's move" in German) was a secret German plan during World War II. It happened on May 25, 1944, in a town called Drvar in Bosnia. The main goal was to capture or kill Josip Broz Tito, who was the leader of the Yugoslav Partisans. The Partisans were a group fighting against the German and Axis forces.

The Germans used a special attack involving paratroopers and gliders. These troops were dropped from the sky directly into Drvar. At the same time, German ground forces and their allies marched towards the town. They wanted to trap Tito and his headquarters. Even though the attack was a surprise, Tito and his main staff managed to escape. Strong resistance from the Partisans in Drvar and nearby areas helped them get away. This operation is also known as the Seventh Enemy Offensive in Yugoslav history.

Why the Attack Happened

The War in Yugoslavia

In April 1941, Germany and its allies invaded Yugoslavia. They quickly took control of the country. Yugoslavia was then split up, and a new state called the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) was formed. This state was controlled by a group called the Ustaše, who were allied with Germany.

Two main groups fought against the Axis powers in Yugoslavia. One was the Yugoslav Partisans, led by Josip Broz Tito. They were against the Axis throughout the war. The other group was the Chetniks, who were Serb nationalists. The Chetniks often worked with the Italian and German forces.

Tito's Growing Power

In 1943, Tito's Partisans faced tough battles but grew stronger. When Italy surrendered in September 1943, Tito's forces captured many Italian weapons. This helped them grow to about 200,000 fighters. Tito became a marshal and prime minister. He set up his main headquarters in a cave near Drvar. This made the Germans see him as a very dangerous enemy.

Tito's cave headquarters was about 1 kilometer north of Drvar. The Unac River ran below it. Many Partisan support groups and Tito's personal guards were also in Drvar. British and Soviet military officers, including Randolph Churchill (son of Winston Churchill), were also staying nearby.

Partisan Defenses Around Drvar

This map shows how Partisan forces (in red) were set up around Drvar. German movements are shown in blue.

Around Drvar, there were about 12,000 to 16,000 Partisan fighters. Some of the closest units were from the 1st Proletarian Corps and the 6th Lika Proletarian Division. Other larger Partisan groups, like the 5th Corps and 8th Corps, were in the wider area. The 4th Krajina Division was positioned north of Drvar, forming a defensive line.

German and Partisan Spies

German spy groups tried to find Tito's exact location. One officer, Kirchner, got very close to the Drvar cave. Another German officer, Otto Skorzeny, learned from a Partisan who had left their side that Tito's headquarters was in the cave. However, different German spy groups didn't share all their information. This lack of sharing made it harder for the Germans to plan the attack perfectly. The Germans also found fake documents that said May 25 was Tito's birthday, so they planned the attack for that day.

The Partisans also had good spies. They knew that a German airborne attack might happen. Because of this, Tito moved his main headquarters to another cave about 7 kilometers west of Drvar. He used the Drvar cave during the day but returned to the new cave at night. As a safety step, some Partisan units were moved closer to Drvar.

On May 23, 1944, a German plane flew over Drvar, taking pictures. This made the British officers there suspect a bombing raid. They warned Tito and the American officers, who then moved their locations. Despite these warnings, Tito stayed in the Drvar cave on the night of May 24, after a celebration. This meant he was there when the attack began.

Planning the Attack

German leaders approved the attack plan on May 21, just four days before it happened. Lothar Rendulic, a top German general, gave the orders. The main plan was to bomb Drvar heavily, then drop paratroopers and gliders to capture Tito. Ground forces would then quickly move in to meet the airborne troops.

The Paratroopers' Plan

The German paratrooper unit, the 500th SS Parachute Battalion, was led by Kurt Rybka. He knew they couldn't drop all their troops at once. So, he planned two waves of attack. The first wave of 654 soldiers would attack at 7:00 AM. A second wave of 220 soldiers would follow five hours later.

A big mistake in the German plan was that they thought Tito's headquarters was in a cemetery, almost 2 kilometers away from his real cave. This wrong information would cause problems during the attack.

The first wave of paratroopers had specific jobs:

• Panther Group: To capture the "Citadel" (the wrong location) and destroy Tito's headquarters.
• Greifer Group: To destroy the British military mission.
• Stürmer Group: To destroy the Soviet military mission.
• Brecher Group: To destroy the American military mission.
• Draufgänger Group: To capture a key crossroads.
• Beißer Group: To seize a radio station and help the Greifer Group.

Rybka didn't have many backup plans if things went wrong. His only plan was to fire a red flare to gather all his forces. The paratroopers were moved to airfields near Drvar and were only told about the mission a few hours before it started.

Ground Forces Plan

The German ground forces, about 16,000 men, were to attack Drvar from nine different directions. Their goal was to link up with the paratroopers. These forces included German mountain troops, Croatian soldiers, and Chetniks. They were supposed to move quickly, breaking through Partisan defenses.

The Attack Begins

A view of Drvar in 2007. The town was the target of the German attack.

The attack started at 5:00 AM on May 25, 1944, with the ground forces moving out. Around 6:35 AM, German planes began bombing Drvar. They flew 440 bombing missions that day.

Fight for Tito's Cave

Tito's cave headquarters in 1990. This was the target of the German paratroopers.

Around 10:30 AM, the paratroopers attacked Tito's cave. They fired machine guns into the cave entrance. The Germans got very close, but they faced heavy resistance and lost many soldiers. They were also running out of water.

Before this attack, Tito and about 20 of his staff were inside the cave. As the Germans attacked, Partisan forces rushed to defend Drvar. Three battalions of the 3rd Lika Proletarian Brigade came from the southeast. They attacked the Germans from different sides.

Around 11:15 AM, after the first German attack failed, Tito and his group escaped from the cave. They climbed down a rope through a hidden trapdoor. Tito's dog, Tigar, caused a small delay. The group split up and moved away from the river, climbing the hills to the east and heading towards the village of Potoci.

Second German Attack and Retreat

The second wave of paratroopers landed around noon, west of the cemetery. This area was exposed to Partisan fire, and many paratroopers were killed during the landing. Rybka gathered the remaining troops and launched a second attack. But the Partisans were too strong on his sides, and this attack also failed. Fighting continued fiercely all afternoon.

In the late afternoon, Rybka ordered his troops to pull back to the cemetery and set up defenses. Some German groups were cut off and killed during this retreat. Around 6:00 PM, Rybka was wounded by a grenade. He was later flown out in a small plane that was supposed to take Tito after his capture. The Partisan commander in Drvar, Milan Šijan, was also wounded. By 9:30 PM, the Germans were surrounded in the cemetery. The Partisans attacked the cemetery during the night, but the paratroopers held on.

Ground Forces Advance Slowly

The German ground forces, though strong, did not advance as quickly as planned on May 25. They met unexpected resistance from Partisan units. Communication between the German columns was also poor. Allied planes, called in by the British mission, also attacked the German ground forces throughout the day.

One German group, Kampfgruppe Willam, attacked from Srb towards Drvar. They faced strong resistance from the 2nd Lika Proletarian Brigade. By the end of the day, they had captured one village but couldn't break through the Partisan defenses in the hills. Another German group, the 92nd Motorised Regiment, advanced from Bihać. They used their fast vehicles to go around Partisan defenses and reached Vrtoče, halfway to Bosanski Petrovac.

Other German columns also faced tough Partisan resistance. The 7th SS Division attacked from Mrkonjić Grad but was slowed down by Partisan brigades. Two German reconnaissance battalions attacking from Livno also faced heavy fighting. One of them, the 369th Reconnaissance Battalion, was pushed back with many losses.

Tito, his staff, and his guards moved towards Potoci. There, they met the Allied military missions. The British mission's radio officer had the only working radio. Tito initially wanted to keep fighting the paratroopers. But he soon realized the Germans were trying to surround his command. So, he canceled further attacks and moved towards Kupres.

May 26–27: German Breakthroughs

On May 26, German planes attacked Partisan troops leaving Drvar. The German ground columns from Bihać, Livno, and Knin finally broke through Partisan lines. The 92nd Motorised Regiment took Bosanski Petrovac without a fight and reached Drvar at 12:45 PM, relieving the surrounded paratroopers. Other German units also reached their targets, like Bosansko Grahovo and Ključ.

However, in the eastern area, the Partisan defenses still held strong. The 7th SS Division struggled to break through the 1st Proletarian Division. By May 27, the front line in that area was stable.

Because of the fast-changing situation, there was some confusion on both sides. The Partisans left a key road unguarded, which could have put Tito in danger as he fled. But the Germans didn't realize this and failed to use the opportunity.

On May 27, the German general Rendulic was unhappy with how the operation was going. He ordered all German units to return to their starting positions. He planned a new, bigger attack for May 28 to surround Tito and the Partisan headquarters.

Tito, his staff, and his escort continued their journey towards Kupres. They traveled on foot, horseback, and even on logging trains.

What Happened Next

While unable to capture Tito, the Germans did find his marshal's uniform in Drvar, and later placed it on display in Vienna.

During their escape, the British mission kept in touch with their headquarters by radio. They called for air support from the Balkan Air Force, which flew over a thousand missions against the Germans. There was also a costly attack by Partisan, British, and American forces on a German-held island called Brač.

After six days of avoiding the Germans, Tito and his group were evacuated by air. On June 3, seven transport planes, mostly American, flew Tito, his party, the Allied missions, and 118 wounded Partisans to Italy. On June 6, Tito was taken by a British warship to Vis, where he set up his new headquarters.

Operation Rösselsprung was a failure for the Germans. Even though Tito's headquarters was temporarily disrupted, all Partisan groups quickly moved and continued their work. Drvar was back under Partisan control within a few weeks. The main reasons for the German failure were the strong Partisan resistance and the German spy groups not sharing important information about Tito's exact location.

The 500th SS Parachute Battalion, the main German paratrooper unit, suffered heavy losses. Out of 874 soldiers, 576 were killed and 48 were wounded. Only about 200 soldiers were able to fight the next day. This was their only combat parachute operation during the war.

German reports claimed they killed 6,000 Partisans, but Partisan records show their total losses were 399 killed, 479 wounded, and 85 missing. The attack on Drvar itself caused 179 Partisan deaths. In the end, the attack failed to achieve its main goal: capturing Tito.

Interestingly, Tito was born on May 7, but after he became president of Yugoslavia, he celebrated his birthday on May 25. He did this to remember the day the Germans tried and failed to capture him.