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Serbia's northern province is Vojvodina. Slavs settled Vojvodina (6th and 7th centuries). It was ruled by both the Austro Empire/Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. As a result it was the most most ethnically diverse Serbian province. It was the scene of fighting betweem the Hapsburg Empire and Ottomon Turks (18th century). As a result, a large part of the population which was primarily Serb were killed or fled the fighting, depoplulating large areas. Some Serbs had remained in the province during the fighting and many returned after the province was fully in Austrian hands. And there were Hungarians from the period of Hungarian rule. The Hapsburgs once in control of the province, promoted the resettlement of the province. A wide diversity of ethnic groups from the Empire settled in Vojvodina. This included ethnic Germans as well as Croats, Czechs, Hungarians, Romanians, Ruthenians (Ukrainians), Slovaks, and others. As a frontier province of the Austrian Empire, the Hapsburgs granted considerable autonomy to the province. World War I had little impact on minorities. The Central Powers occupied Serbia (1915), but were ultimarely defeated. The Austro-Hungarian Empire disintegrated at the end of the War. Serbia/Yugoslavia gained control of the province as part of the World War I peace settlement. The Yugoslavs reported a population of 1.6 million people in Vojvodina. [1931 Census] Only about a third of the population was Serbian. The German population was substantial--about 20 percent of the total (0.35 million). Most of the ethnic-Germans in Serbia were in Vojvodina. Some of the Yugoslav/Serbian minorities, such as the Germans, had rights to their own schools. The Lazarevo village school here is an example (figure 1). One interesting question is the economic status of the ethnic Germans in Serbia and the rest of Yugoslavia compared to Reich Germans and compared to Serbs. The school portrait here provides some clues. We do not have much detail about these minority-language schools. After the Germans invaded Yugoslavia during World d War II (April 1941), a portion of Vojvodina called the Banat was formed into a separate autonomous region ruled by the German minority. Terrible attrocuties were perpetrated against Jews, Serbs and others in the Banat. When the Germans withdrew from the Balkans (1944), many of the ethnic Germans, afraid of the Partisans accompanied the retreating Wehrmacht. Those Germans that attempted to remain were attacked, deported, or killed.
Serbia's northern province is Vojvodina. Slavs settled Vojvodina (6th and 7th centuries). It was ruled by both the Austro Empire/Hungary and the Ottoman Empire. As a result it was the most most ethnically diverse Serbian province. It was the scene of fighting betweem the Hapsburg Empire and Ottomon Turks (18th century). As a result, a large part of the population which was primarily Serb were killed or fled the fighting, depoplulating large areas. Some Serbs had remained in the province during the fighting and many returned after the province was fully in Austrian hands. And there were Hungarians from the period of Hungarian rule. The Hapsburgs once in control of the province, promoted the resettlement of the province. A wide diversity of ethnic groups from the Empire settled in Vojvodina. This included ethnic Germans as well as Croats, Czechs, Hungarians, Romanians, Ruthenians (Ukrainians), Slovaks, and others. The ethnic-Germans were commonly referred to as the Danube or Banat Swabians. As a frontier province of the Austrian Empire, the Hapsburgs granted considerable autonomy to the province.
Serbia played an important role in World War I. There was very little fighting in Vojvodina during the War. The War had little impact on minorities during World War I. Vojvodina where most of the Germans were located was part of Austria. The Austrians with German and Bulgarian help occupied Serbia (1915). The Serbian Army evacuated the country. We do not yet have much information on how Vojvodina fared or on the Central Powers occupation of Serbia. We believe that it created a good deal ofcanti-Austrian/German feeling. The Central Powers were ultimarely defeated. The Serbian Army with British abndcFrench assistance liberated thecoutry. The Austro-Hungarian Empire disintegrated at the end of the War.
Serbia/Yugoslavia gained control of the former Austrian province of Vojvodina as part of the World War I peace settlement. We have few details, but as as far as we can tell, Austrians and Germans were not targeted in Yugoslavia after the War. Most of the Germans in Vojvodina stayed there even though the province was now part of Yugoslavia. The Yugoslavs reported a population 1.6 million people in Vojvodina. [1931 Census] Only about a third of the population was Serbian. The German population was substantial--about 20 percent of the total (0.35 million). Most of the ethnic-Germans in Serbia were in Vojvodina. Some of the Yugoslav/Serbian minorities, such as the Germans, had rights to their own schools. The Lazarevo village school here is an example (figure 1). One interesting question is the economic status of the ethnic Germans in Serbia and the rest of Yugoslavia compared to Reich Germans and compared to Serbs. The school portrait here provides some clues. We do not have much detail about these minority-language schools.
The Germans invaded Yugoslavia during World War II (April 1941). The Germans divided Vojvodina into three occupation zones. The Banat was nominally part of Nedic's Serbia, but effectively under German control because of the large ethnic German population. The Banat was formed into a separate autonomous region ruled by the German minority. Bačka was annexed to Horthy's Hungary which it was a paert of until World War I. Eastern Syrmia which was made part of the Croatian Banovina (August 1939). Maore of Syrmia was turned over to Croatia which under Axis occupation was nominally independent and a German ally. tTerrible attrocuties were perpetrated in Vojvodina. An estimated 50,000 people were murdered and more than a quarter million arrested, raped or tortured.[
The targets were primarily Jews, Serbs, and Gypseys. Some of the worst attrocities were conducted by the Hungarian Army in Bačka. Jews in theBanat were deported to camps in Belgrade where they were deported.
Wedo notvyet hsve details as to the complicity of the ethnic Germans.
When the Wehrmacht withdrew from the Balkans (1944), many of the ethnic Germans in the Banat abnd other areas, afraid of the Partisans accompanied the retreating Wehrmacht columns. The Partisans saw the ethnic Germans as not only a foreign element, but collaborators. Many but not all had collaborated with the German occupationnforces in various ways. The Partisans when they moved into Vojvodina attacked, deported, or killed the ethnic-Germans they found. As a result, very few ethnic Germans remained in Yugoslavia after the War. We note more discussion in Germany tioday of the expullsion of ethnic Germans after the War from Poland abnd other countries. This is a subject that does need more historical attention. But wenote that the German sources are primarily interested in sescribing the pain and suffering inflicted upon the displaced Germans. There seemns tgo be less interest in addressing the extent to which ethnic Germns collaborated with the German occupation authorities and were involved in war crimes.
Only a handfull of ethnic-Germans now live in the former-Yugoslavia. The largest numbers are located in Serbia, primarily the northern province of Serbia--Vojvodina. There are also a number of Hungarians in Vojvodina which borders Hungary. Both the Hungarians and Serbs refer to them as Swabians. The numbers are very small, less than 4,000 people. [Serbian 2002 Census.] Most lived in Vojvodina. They organized a minority council in Novi Sad (2007). The thresshold is 3,000 voter signatures. The president is Andreas Biegermeier. Hecidentified the major vissuescofvconcern as: property restitution, marking of mass graves, and camp sites. By camp sites he is referring to detention camps set up by the Partisans and Communist Yugoslasc government where Germans were interned after World War II. He estimated a larger number of ethnic Germans than the Census, about 5,000–8,000 (2007).
Enciklopedija Novog Sada, Sveska 5, Novi Sad, 1996 (page 196).
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