Momčilo Đujić, Serbian-American priest and commander (d. 1999)

Momčilo Đujić: A Complex Figure in Balkan History

Born on 27 February 1907, Momčilo Đujić, known in Serbian Cyrillic as Момчилo Ђујић, was a prominent and controversial figure who lived until 11 September 1999. A Serbian Orthodox priest by vocation, he became widely known as a Chetnik warlord (or vojvoda in Serbo-Croatian) during World War II. His leadership extended over a significant portion of the Chetnik forces operating within northern Dalmatia and western Bosnia, regions that were part of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH)—a fascist puppet state carved out of occupied Yugoslavia by the Axis powers.

In this tumultuous role, Đujić became a key collaborator, first with the Italian and then with the German occupying forces. His primary objective, as it evolved, was to oppose the burgeoning communist-led Partisan insurgency, which was also fighting against the Axis occupation.

Early Life and Pre-War Activism

Đujić’s journey into the priesthood began with his ordination in 1933. He quickly established a reputation as a fervent and outspoken orator, a "firebrand" in the pulpit. Following the assassination of King Alexander of Yugoslavia in 1934, a pivotal moment in the country's pre-war political landscape, he joined the Chetnik Association led by Kosta Pećanac. Within this organization, he was instrumental in forming several armed groups in the Knin region of Dalmatia. Initially rooted in historical Serbian nationalist traditions, the Chetnik Association eventually transformed into a reactionary force, frequently used by the central government to suppress dissent among the populace.

Interestingly, despite his later conservative and nationalist affiliations, Đujić was also active in promoting workers' rights. His commitment to these causes even led to a brief imprisonment after he led a protest involving railroad workers. He was also a member of the exclusively Serb Agrarian Union political party, indicating his deep engagement with Serbian identity and socio-economic issues of his time.

World War II: Shifting Alliances and Conflict

The Axis invasion of Yugoslavia in April 1941 dramatically reshaped the region. The newly established Croatian Ustaše regime, a deeply nationalistic and fascistic organization, swiftly implemented brutal policies against Serbs and other minority groups. These policies included widespread incarcerations, massacres, forced emigration, and outright murder. Đujić, facing this existential threat to his community, initially sought refuge in the coastal zone annexed by Italy, where he began to recruit Chetniks from a refugee camp.

When a general uprising erupted in August 1941, Đujić returned to Knin. There, he rallied his Chetnik forces to defend local Serbs from the Ustaše atrocities. Under his command, his Chetniks successfully captured the town of Drvar in the Bosanska Krajina. However, his initial anti-Ustaše stance soon gave way to complex and controversial alliances. He quickly began collaborating with the Italians, securing their assistance by signing a non-aggression agreement. At this juncture, he was still ostensibly aligned with the broader insurgency, which included the communist-led Partisans. Yet, this alignment proved short-lived. Đujić soon betrayed the Partisans, actively subverting their units and engaging in joint attacks against them alongside the Italian forces. This period marked the formal establishment of his Chetnik Dinara Division in early 1942, a significant fighting force.

By mid-1942, the intricacies of the conflict led Đujić to encourage his Chetniks to even cooperate with the forces of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH), a surprising turn given the Ustaše's earlier persecution of Serbs. This collaboration, however, did not preclude atrocities under his command; on 1 October, Chetniks led by Đujić perpetrated a horrific massacre, killing nearly 100 Croat civilians in the village of Gata.

As the war progressed, his strategic maneuvering continued. In early 1943, he attempted to join the Axis side in the "Case White" campaign, a major offensive against the Partisans, but his participation was ultimately blocked by the Germans. That August, the Dinara Division suffered significant losses from Partisan attacks and widespread desertion, severely diminishing its combat effectiveness. By the time of Italy's capitulation in September 1943, the division was largely incapable of offensive operations. When the Germans then occupied the area, they restricted Đujić's forces primarily to guarding railway tracks against Partisan sabotage. By November 1943, even the supreme Chetnik commander, Draža Mihailović, was explicitly ordering Đujić to collaborate with the Germans.

The war's final stages saw Đujić continue his collaboration. In November 1944, he combined his 4,500 Chetniks with German and NDH forces in a desperate attempt to defend Knin from the increasingly ascendant Partisans. As the tide turned decisively, Đujić progressively withdrew his troops, eventually surrendering to the Western Allies in May 1945.

Exile, War Crimes Conviction, and Legacy

After the war, the newly established Yugoslav communist government tried and convicted Momčilo Đujić in absentia for numerous war crimes. He was found guilty of mass murder, torture, rape, robbery, forcible confinement, and extensive collaboration with the occupying forces. These charges held him responsible for the deaths of an estimated 1,500 people.

Đujić eventually emigrated to the United States, settling in California, where he became an important figure within Serbian émigré circles. He co-founded the Ravna Gora Movement of Serbian Chetniks alongside other exiled Chetnik fighters, striving to keep their ideology and wartime narratives alive. He later retired to San Marcos.

His post-war influence also saw him interact with later generations of Serbian ultranationalists. In 1989, Đujić controversially appointed Vojislav Šešelj, a prominent Serb politician, as a Chetnik vojvoda. However, Đujić later expressed regret for bestowing this title on Šešelj, citing his disillusionment with Šešelj's involvement with Slobodan Milošević and his Socialist Party during the Yugoslav Wars of the 1990s. In 1998, Biljana Plavšić, who was then President of the Republika Srpska, presented Đujić with an honorary award. Ironically, Plavšić herself would later be convicted of crimes against humanity for her actions during the Bosnian War.

Momčilo Đujić died at a hospice in San Diego in 1999, at the age of 92. His life and actions remain highly contentious. In contemporary Serbia, efforts to rehabilitate the reputations of Đujić and the broader Chetnik movement have faced strong criticism, widely condemned as historical revisionism and a falsification of history, reflecting the deep divisions and unresolved traumas of the region's past.