The Study Written by the HSZ (Croatian Peasant Defence) Lieutenant Colonel Milan Pribanić in 1948 Regarding Croatian Peasant and Civil Defence in Croatian State Archives

U radu se uz kratak uvod donosi elaborat jednog od zapovjednika Hrvatske seljačke zaštite (HSZ) Milana Pribanića rodom iz garešničkog kraja, o njenom osnivanju i razvoju u razdoblju od 1935. do 1941. godine, što ga je dao 1948. godine istražnim organima Jugoslavije. Iako danas neki istraživači početke osnivanja HSZ-a vide i u ranijem razdoblju, to je teško dokazati. Očigledno da se prve inicijative u organiziranju HSZ-a pojavljuju oko 1932. godine nakon šestojanuarske diktature, ali trebalo je proteći nekoliko godina da se u konkretnu realizaciju krene. Ovaj elaborat jasno pokazuje osnove i načine ustrojstva ove ilegalne odnosno poluilegalne organizacije HSS-a, sve do Sporazuma Cvetković-Maček 26. kolovoza 1939. godine. Tek za vrijeme Banovine Hrvatske organizacija počinje legalno djelovati, dobiva svoja službena pravila od organa banske vlasti iz Zagreba, ali i dalje izaziva podozrenje beogradskih vlasti, najviše vojske Kraljevine Jugoslavije. Ovaj dokument je jedan od važnijih i vjerojatno najjasnije oslikava razvoj i djelatnost te velike poluvojne organizacije Hrvatske seljačke stranke.This paper, with a brief introduction, is the study of one of the commanders of the Croatian Peasant Defence (HSZ), Milan Pribani≥, coming from around Garešnica, as well as of founding and development of HSZ in the period from 1935 to 1941 through the testimony given by Pribani≥ in 1948 before the investigators of the communist Yugoslavia. Even though some researchers today see the beginnings of HSZ\u27s foundation during the previous period, this is difficult to prove. It is obvious that the initiative to organise HSZ appeared around 1932 during the 6 January Dictatorship, but it took several years to start with the actual implementation. This study clearly shows the ways and means of organising this illegal, i.e. semi-legal, organisation of HSS up to the Cvetkovi≥-MaËek Agreement of 26th August 1939. Only during the time of the Banovina of Croatia did the organisation become legal; it got its official rules and regulations from the authorities of the Banovina from Zagreb, but it continued to be in the disfavour of the Belgrade government, mostly of the army of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. This article tries to give a clear account of the development and the activities of this large semi-military organisation of the Croatian Peasant Party