Mladen Lorković

Mladen Lorković
2nd Foreign Minister of the Independent State of Croatia
In office 9 June 1941 – 28 April 1943
Leader	Ante Pavelić
Preceded by	Ante Pavelić
Succeeded by	Stijepo Perić
Minister for relations with German Army
In office 28 April 1943 – 11 November 1943
3rd Minister of Interior of the Independent State of Croatia
In office 11 November 1943 – 30 August 1944
Preceded by	Andrija Artuković
Succeeded by	Mate Frković
Personal details
Born	1 March 1909 Zagreb, Austria-Hungary
Died	30 April 1945(1945-04-30) (aged 36) Lepoglava, Croatia
Political party	Ustaše
Spouse(s)	Nada von Ghyczy
Relations	Ivan Lorković (father) Blaž Lorković (grandfather) Zdravko Lorković (brother) Šimun Debelić (brother-in-law)
Alma mater	University of Berlin
Profession	Lawyer
Religion	Roman Catholic

Mladen Lorković (1 March 1909 – 30 April 1945) was a Croatian politician, lawyer and Ustasha leader.

Biography

Early life

Lorković was born in Zagreb on 1 March 1909. As a high school student he was a supporter of Croatian Party of Rights, later joining the Croatian Youth Movement.^[1] He studied law at the University of Zagreb. Because he was opposed to the regime of King Alexander I of Yugoslavia he was reportedly threatened with arrest.^[1] After the king invoked the January 6th Dictatorship in 1929, Lorković moved to Austria and later to Germany.^[1] He continued with his political activities, primarily opposing Yugoslavia and supporting the idea of an independent Croatian state.^[1] He continued to study law at Innsbruck and Berlin, earning his doctorate. He later became a close associate of Ante Pavelić, and represented the Ustaša in Nazi Germany and, later for all European countries except for Italy. He continued to advocate the unification of all Croatian parties into one superparty to secede from the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.^[1]

Acitivity in Ustaše

He swore his Ustaše oath in 1934 and was arrested three years later.^[why?] After that, he went to Hungary. In 1939 he returned to Yugoslavia. He was an associate editor of the Hrvatski narod (Croatian Folk) journal and the editor of the underground journal Hrvatska pošta (The Croatian Post).

In 1940, by court order of the Banate he was arrested and taken to prison at Lepoglava, and later to a camp near Krušić. In 1941 he escaped and began participating in preparations to declare the Independent State of Croatia in Zagreb. He was one of five people who signed a document dated 30 March 1941, asking the Third Reich for assistance in establishing the Croatian state.^{[citation needed]}

Minister in Independent State of Croatia

Mladen Lorković taking oath in April 1941

After establishing of Independent State of Croatia Pavelić named Lorković as Foreign Minister of Croatia. On 28 April 1943 he was released of his duties as Foreign Minister. After that he was named state minister without Portfolio and he was in charge in activities with German Army. In 1943 he initiated an ultimately unsuccessful negotiation with the vice-president of Croatian Peasant Party, August Košutić, about a possible coalition. On 11 November 1943 he became Minister of the Interior of Croatia.^{[citation needed]}

Lorković-Vokić coup and death

Main article: Lorković-Vokić coup

In May 1944 along with Ante Vokić, minister of Armed Forces, he attended secret meeting with the Croatian Peasant Party's August Košutić and Ivanko Farolifi. At the meeting they allegedly made plans to change sides, and for the Domobranstvo (regular Croatian Army) to attack Germany, to join the "Anglo-American Allies" who would presumably sponsor an independent Croatia. Lorković and Vokić informed head of state Ante Pavelić about their plans, and he supported them.^{[citation needed]}

On 21 August 1944 Pavelić informed Siegfried Kasche, a German ambassador to Croatia, about their activities. On 30 August 1944 Pavelić revealed the conspiracy and conspirators. August Košutić escaped but the rest were jailed in Lepoglava.^{[citation needed]}

On 30 April 1945, Lorković, Ante Vokić, and Croatian Peasant Party representatives Ivanko Farolifi and Ljudevit Tomašić were executed.^{[citation needed]}

Marriage

In August 1944 he married Countess Nada von Ghyczy.

Books

Lorković published two books:

• The Croatian people and their lands (Narod i zemlja Hrvata; 1939)
• [The] Croatian struggle against Bolshevism (Hrvatska u borbi protiv boljševizma; 1944)

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} Kisić-Kolanović, Nada. Mladen Lorković: ministar urotnik. Golden marketing, 1998. ISBN 9536168510

Sources

• Dizdar, Zdravko Tko je tko u NDH. Zagreb: Minerva, 1997. Print.
• “Mladen Lorković” Hrvatska enciklopedija. Zagreb: LZMK, 2009. Print.
• Pavlowitch, Stevan K. Hitler's new disorder: the Second World War in Yugoslavia. Columbia University Press, 2008. Print, p. 246
• Tomasevich, Jozo War and revolution in Yugoslavia, 1941-1945: occupation and collaboration Stanford University Press, 2001. Print, p. 37

Persondata
Name	Lorkovic, Mladen
Alternative names
Short description	Croatian politician, lawyer and Ustasha leader
Date of birth	1 March 1909
Place of birth	Zagreb, Austria-Hungary
Date of death	30 April 1945
Place of death	Lepoglava, Yugoslavia