Notes
After the beginning of World War II in Slovenia and the division of the territory, the German occupying forces set up after the departure of the occupying military units its civil administration in the Gorenjska region (Upper Carniolia), led by the first Deputy Gauleiter of the Carinthian Gau Franz Kutschera, from December 1941 onwards Gauleiter Friedrich Rainer. The territory of the so-called Southern Carinthia belonged to the XVIII. Military District. By the agreement between the head of the civil administration and the SA group Südmark in the summer of 1941 Wehrmannschaft units subordinated to SA group were organized. After organizing the headquarters and establishment of units, recording of men between the ages of 18 to 45 years followed. Although the decree introducing the service established in the 1939 as voluntary, in Gorenjska represented a duty and obligation. Wehrmannschaft units carried out, unlike the units of Wehrmannschaft in Styria, only half military service, excercising, participation in various events and fundraising for different formations and groups. Leaders and sub leaders of Wehrmannschaft were trained in a school for leaders in Rogaška Slatina, together with the Styrian men. By the spring of 1942 the number of Wehrmannschaft in Gorenjska did not exceed 17,000 men. Men were within the SA system of units included in the Wehrmannschaftsbrigade Oberkrain. From early spring Wehrmannschaft men were included in the various units of local guards, provincial guards and the selfdefence as well as in the units of the technical assistance Technische Nothilfe. They were also transferred to gendarme units and helped as auxhiliary policemen. In January 1942 the Nazi party NSDAP in Gorenjska was founded. Since the spring 1942 the Wehrmannschaft men were urged to voluntary join the Waffen SS but there was very little response. On 7th July 1942 Gauleiter Rainer introduced the so-called duty of state labor service and military duty. With announcement on 27th September 1942 the Gorenjska population were granted citizenship on probation, in coordination with the Ministry Decree of 14rd October 1941. Legally, Gorenjska otherwise was never for a variety of reasons, included in the Third Reich, but the granting of citizenship started to subject residents of Gorenjska to the same laws as the ones one the territory of Germany. Thus, even the military reporting office, which were established in December 1941 ordered municipal offices to prepare records of generations who would have been called in. Since November 1942, evidences of men born from 1916 to 1926 were prepared beginnig with the 1923 and 1924 generations and in August 1943 the generation 1926 was conscripted into the national labor service RAD. The first conscripted were generations 1923 and 1924, who were sent to RAD camps in January 1943. After a half year of service in the RAD the men were sent to various reserve military units, where they were trained for the front. The majority of Gorenjska soldiers were sent to the Eastern Front. Total number of forcibly mobilized exceed 11,000. On the battlefields over 1700 of them were killed or died. Many ended in the Anglo-American or Russian captivity. Slovenian prisoners who were captured in front at Normandy founded in Britain the core of 5th Overseas Brigade, in the Soviet Union was founded the 1st Yugoslav brigade and a tank brigade. Many also deserted on the front and joined different liberation movements in Europe. Several managed to desert to the partisans in Slovenia, some few hundred of them joined the Gorenjska selfdefence, Oberkrainer Selbstschutz. Coming home from various POW camps continued until the mid-fifties. Status of the forcibly mobilized into Wehrmacht after the war was dependent on the situation in home society. Many of them were treated as second class citizens, had difficulties in schooling, getting jobs, obtaining credit, at least until the seventies several were also repeatedly interrogated.