13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), Kuwait
The 13th ESC supported Operations Inherent Resolve (Iraq), Freedom Sentinel (Afghanistan), Spartan Shield (Kuwait), provided logistics and sustainment support and oversight to the Multinational Forces and Observer mission - Task Force Sinai, supported USCENTCOM forward elements in Jordan, and worked in cooperation with Combined Joint Interagency Task Force - Syria (CJIATF-S) to provide support to moderate Syrian opposition forces in the fight against the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria.


13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), Current Activities
The 13th COSCOM became the first COSCOM to transform to a Sustainment Command (Expeditionary) and deploy to combat during Operation Iraqi Freedom 06-08. The command's primary mission is to provide combat support and combat service support in the areas of supply, maintenance, movement control, field services, and general engineering & construction.


13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), Current Activities
At Fort Hood, the 13th ESC currently has the missions of:


13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), Current Activities, LSOC-West
Leveraging Sustainment Organizations in CONUS West duties involve coordination with all Sustainment Brigades, Support Brigades, and Army Field Support Brigades in the Continental United States, West of the Mississippi river.


13th Sustainment Command (Expeditionary), Current Activities, Organization
Currently, the 13th ESC is Fort Hood's third largest unit with a local strength of almost 6,000 soldiers. It is composed of various battalions and detachments:


13th TCA Awards
The 13th TCA Awards were presented by the Television Critics Association. Drew Carey hosted the ceremony on July 20, 1997, at the Huntington Hotel and Spa in Pasadena, Calif.


13th TVyNovelas Awards
The 13th TVyNovelas Awards, is an Academy of special awards to the best of soap operas and TV shows. The awards ceremony took place on April 29, 1995 in the México D.F.. The ceremony was televised in the Mexico by Canal de las estrellas.


13th TVyNovelas Awards
Edith González, Alfredo Adame and César Évora hosted the show. El vuelo del águila won 9 awards, the most for the evening. Other winners Imperio de cristal won 7 awards including Best Telenovela of the Year, Agujetas de color de rosa won 5 awards and Marimar and Volver a Empezar won one each.


13th TVyNovelas Awards, Winners and nominees, Missing
People who did not attend ceremony wing and were nominated in the shortlist in each category:


13th Tamil Nadu Assembly
Thirteenth Assembly of Tamil Nadu was instituted after the victory of DMK and allies, in the 2006 state assembly election. M. Karunanidhi became the 14th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu due to the election.


13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci"
The 13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci" (Italian: 13° Battaglione Carri "M.O. Pascucci") is an inactive tank battalion of the Italian Army based in Cordenons in Friuli Venezia Giulia. Originally the battalion, like all Italian tank units, was part of the infantry, but since 1 June 1999 it is part of the cavalry. Operationally the battalion was last assigned to the Armored Brigade "Ariete".


13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci", History
The battalion was formed during the 1975 army reform: on 15 July 1976 the 182nd Armored Infantry Regiment "Garibaldi" was disbanded and the next day its XI Bersaglieri Battalion became the 11th Bersaglieri Battalion "Caprera", while its XIII Tank Battalion became the 13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci". As the war flag and traditions of the 182nd Regiment "Garibaldi" were assigned to the 11th Caprera the 13th Pascucci was granted a new war flag on 12 November 1976 by decree 846 of the President of the Italian Republic Giovanni Leone.


13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci", History
The battalion received the traditions of the XIII Tank Battalion "M", which had been formed by the 32nd Tank Infantry Regiment in October 1941 and sent to Italian Libya in August 1942 to bring the 132nd Tank Infantry Regiment p to strength for the Battle of Alam el Halfa. The XIII fought to annihilation in the Second Battle of El Alamein and by 5 November 1942 had ceased to exist.


13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci", History
After World War II the XIII Tank Battalion was reformed in Sacile in 1961 as tank component of the 182nd Armored Infantry Regiment "Garibaldi", which was the armored formation of the Infantry Division "Folgore".


13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci", History
Tank and armored battalions created during the 1975 army reform were all named for officers, soldiers and partisans, who were posthumously awarded Italy's highest military honor the Gold Medal of Military Valour for heroism during World War II. The 13th Tank Battalion's name commemorated 132nd Tank Infantry Regiment Lieutenant Luigi Arbib Pascucci, who had served in the XIII Tank Battalion "M" and was killed in action on 4 November 1942 during the Second Battle of El Alamein. Equipped with Leopard 1A2 main battle tanks the battalion joined the Mechanized Brigade "Brescia".


13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci", History
In 1986 the Italian Army disbanded the divisional level and the Mechanized Brigade "Brescia" joined the 3rd Army Corps in Milan on 1 October 1986. On the same date the 13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci" was transferred to the Armored Brigade "Ariete".


13th Tank Battalion "M.O. Pascucci", History
After the end of the Cold War the Italian Army began to draw down its forces and therefore the 13th Pascucci was reduced to a reserve unit and transferred to the Mechanized Brigade "Mantova" on 10 December 1989. The 13th Tank Battalion "M.O.Pascucci" was disbanded on 31 March 1991 and its flag transferred to the Shrine of the Flags at the Vittoriano in Rome.


13th Tank Brigade (Bulgaria)
The 13th Tank Brigade (Military Unit Number 22220) is a former land formation of the Bulgarian Army.


13th Tank Brigade (Bulgaria), History
The brigade was established in October 1948 after the relocation of three tank companies - the 1st tank company from Kazanlak, the 2nd tank company from Sofia and the 3rd tank company from Plovdiv. The brigade was officially formed on January 1, 1949 as the Third Tank Brigade and was assigned to the Third Army. The brigade received his battle flag on October 6, 1950, a date that is officially celebrated in the history of the brigade.


13th Tank Brigade (Bulgaria), History
Later the brigade was renamed the Thirteenth Tank Brigade, and was still assigned to the Third Army in 1980. Since 1998 it has been the 13th "Sliven" Tank Brigade. It changed its state and organization several times. On June 1, 2008, the brigade became a Center for training of tank units.


13th Tank Brigade (Bulgaria), History
The 9th Tank Brigade and the 13th Tank Brigade in Sliven were the elite tank formations of the army. They received T-72 tanks, BMP-1 and BMP-23 infantry fighting vehicles while the other brigades only received older equipment.


13th Tank Brigade (Bulgaria), History
The Specialists' Training Centre, in addition to training, is the storage facility of the operational reserve of 160 T-72M1 tanks and many other armoured vehicles.


13th Tank Division (Czechoslovakia)
The 13th Tank Division (Czech: 13. tanková divize, Slovak: 13. tanková divízia) was an armored division of the Czechoslovak People's Army during the Cold War that became part of the Army of the Slovak Republic after the Dissolution of Czechoslovakia.


13th Tank Division (Czechoslovakia), History
The 13th Tank Division was formed on 9 May 1955 by renumbering the 3rd Tank Division, based at Mladá, Milovice in Bohemia. At the same time it was given the Kiev–Dukla–Ostrava historical designation in commemoration of battles that Czechoslovak forces fought in under Soviet command during World War II; to this was added the Czechoslovak-Soviet friendship honorific on 6 October 1959.


13th Tank Division (Czechoslovakia), History
Following the suppression of student demonstrations by the police during the Strahov events, the division's 8th Motor Rifle Regiment began a snap mobilization on 4 December 1967, during which 3,430 reservists were called up and 578 vehicles from Prague, Central Bohemia, and North Bohemia were mobilized. The reservists were released on 11 December and the regiment conducted training on the western border of Czechoslovakia until 18 December.


13th Tank Division (Czechoslovakia), History
By 1968, the division was part of the Western Military District and included the 13th Tank Regiment at Čáslav, the 15th and 103rd Tank Regiments at Mladá, the 8th Motor Rifle Regiment at Mladá Boleslav, the 3rd School Tank Battalion at Luštěnice, the 361st Artillery Regiment at Turnov, and the 3rd Anti- Aircraft and 13th Separate Rocket Launcher Battalions at Mladá. The division headquarters was visited by Soviet Marshal Kirill Moskalenko in May 1968, ostensibly for Liberation Day, while other senior Soviet commanders went to other Czechoslovak units.


13th Tank Division (Czechoslovakia), History
When the Warsaw Pact invasion of Czechoslovakia began on 21 August 1968 the regimental anti-aircraft batteries of the division and the anti-tank missile battery of the 8th Motor Rifle Regiment were at the Jince Military Training Area, which was not occupied by Soviet troops. Other units that who were not blockaded by Soviet troops included a company of the 13th Reconnaissance Battalion and a tank battalion from the 13th Tank Regiment at the Mimoň Military Training Area. However, the main units of the division at Mladá and Mladá Boleslav were blockaded by the Soviet 20th Tank Division.


13th Tank Division (Czechoslovakia), History
After the establishment of the Soviet Central Group of Forces, the division was relocated to Topoľčany in Slovakia, where it was assigned the 10th Tank Regiment in Martin and the 64th Tank Regiment in Levice, transferred from the 14th Tank Division. In Bohemia it left behind the 13th Tank Regiment, which became part of the 4th Tank Division. In Slovakia, the division became a training unit, with 4,000 permanent personnel and 2,400 trainees. The 3rd School Tank Battalion was disbanded in 1968, followed by the 13th Helicopter Squadron in 1969.


13th Tank Division (Czechoslovakia), History
Additional units included the 3rd Chemical Defense Company, 13th Supply Company, 53rd Motor Transport Battalion,  3rd Medical Battalion, 13th Reconnaissance Battalion, 1st Engineer Battalion, 13th Communications Battalion, 8th Motor Rifle Regiment, 15th Tank Regiment, 3rd Artillery Regiment, and the 13th Technical Repair Shop. In 1989, as the Czechoslovak Army transitioned to a defensive posture, its 15th Tank Regiment was disbanded.


13th Tank Division (Czechoslovakia), History
With the fall of Communism in Czechoslovakia, the division's Soviet-era honorifics were modified by the removal of the Czechoslovak-Soviet friendship honorific and Kiev from the historical designation in 1991. On 1 January 1993, with the Dissolution of Czechoslovakia, the division became part of the Army of the Slovak Republic. The division was reorganized into the 1st Army Corps on 1 October 1994, and the headquarters of the latter became the Militia Headquarters on 1 April 2000.


13th Tank Division (People's Republic of China)
The 13th Tank Division (Chinese: 坦克第13师) was formed in Taian, Shandong province, on December 3, 1969 from Independent Tank Regiment of Fuzhou Military Region, 3rd Independent Tank Regiment of Jinan Military Region.


13th Tank Division (People's Republic of China)
The division moved to Pingdingshan, Henan province in March 1970 after its formation to reinforce 43rd Army Corps.


13th Tank Division (People's Republic of China)
In the 1970s the division maintained as a reduced tank division, however it consisted of 3 full-equipped tank regiments of Type-59 tanks.


13th Tank Division (People's Republic of China)
In 1973 the Artillery Regiment of 51st Army Division was attached to the division and renamed Artillery Regiment, 13th Tank Division.


13th Tank Division (People's Republic of China)
On January 7, 1976 the division was disbanded. Its 49th Tank Regiment became Tank Regiment of 20th Army Corps, 50th Tank Regiment became Tank Regiment of 47th Army Corps and 51st Tank Regiment became Tank Regiment of 43rd Army Corps.


13th Television State Drama Festival
The 3th Television State Drama Festival (Sinhala: 13වැනි රූපවාහිනී කලා රාජ්‍ය සම්මාන උලෙළ), was held to honor the best films of 1996 Sinhala cinema on 21 November 2018, at the Nelum Pokuna Theater, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Minister of Regional Infrastructure Development S. B. Nawinne and Film Poetry and Veteran Film Director Sumitra Peries were the chief guests at the awards night. It was jointly organized by the State Television Arts Advisory Council, Arts Council of Sri Lanka, Department of Cultural Affairs, Ministry of Cultural Affairs and Regional Development.


13th Television State Drama Festival
The Nomination Certificate Award Ceremony of the 2018 Rupavahini Arts State Awards Ceremony was held at the Bandaranaike International Memorial Conference Hall on 7 November 2018. For the ceremony, around 600 different types of programs were directed and several tribunals worked. About 30 programs, children's dramas and tele films were also monitored.


13th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment (Union)
The 13th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was originally designated 12th Tennessee Volunteer Cavalry, but was changed by order of Governor Andrew Johnson on December 31, 1863.


13th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment (Union), Service
The 13th Tennessee Cavalry was organized at Strawberry Plains, Gallatin and Nashville, Tennessee, and mustered in for a three-year enlistment under the command of Colonel John K. Miller. Nine companies mustered in at Strawberry Plains on October 28 and November 8, 1863.


13th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment (Union), Service
The regiment was attached to District of Columbus, Kentucky, 6th Division, XVI Corps, Department of the Tennessee, to November 1863. District of North Central Kentucky, Department of the Ohio, to January 1864. District of Nashville, Tennessee, Department of the Cumberland, to April 1864. 3rd Brigade, 4th Division, Cavalry Corps, Army of the Cumberland, to October 1864. 3rd Brigade, 4th Division, Cavalry Corps, Military Division Mississippi, November 1864. District of East Tennessee to March 1865. 3rd Brigade, Cavalry Division, District of East Tennessee, Department of the Cumberland, to July 1865. Cavalry Brigade, District of East Tennessee, to September 1865.


13th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment (Union), Service
The 13th Tennessee Cavalry mustered out of service at Knoxville, Tennessee, on September 5, 1865.


13th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment (Union), Detailed service
Duty in District of Columbus, Ky., and at Camp Nelson, Ky., until January 1864. Duty in District of Nashville and on Nashville & Chattanooga Railroad, and at Bull's Gap, Tenn., until September 1864. Rogersville August 21, 1864. Pursuit to Greenville August 21–23. Blue Springs August 23. Park's Gap, Greenville, September 4. Morgan killed. Gillem's Expedition from eastern Tennessee toward southwest Virginia September 20-October 17. Rheatown September 28. Watauga River September 29. Carter's Station September 30-October 1. Operations in eastern Tennessee October 10–28. Greenville October 12. Bull's Gap October 16. Clinch Mountain October 18. Clinch Valley near Sneedsville October 21.


13th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment (Union), Detailed service
Near Memphis October 25. Mossy Creek and Panther Gap October 27. Morristown and Russellville October 28. Operations against Breckenridge's advance into eastern Tennessee November 4–17. Russellville November 11. Bull's Gap November 11–13. Russellville November 14. Strawberry Plains November 16–17. Flat Creek November 17. Stoneman's Saltsville Raid December 10–29. Big Creek near Rogersville December 12. Kingsport December 13. Glade Springs December 15. Marion and capture of Wytheville December 16. Mt. Airy December 17. Engagement near Marion December 17–18. Capture and destruction of Saltville, Va., December 20–21. Duty in eastern Tennessee until March 1865.


13th Tennessee Cavalry Regiment (Union), Detailed service
Stoneman's Expedition from eastern Tennessee into southwest Virginia and western North Carolina March 21-April 25. Wytheville April 6. Shallow Ford and near Mocksville April 11. Salisbury April 12. Catawba River near Morgantown April 17. Swannanoa Gap, N.C., April 20. Near Hendersonville April 23. Duty in District of East Tennessee until September.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment
The 13th Regiment, Tennessee Infantry was an infantry regiment from Tennessee that served with the Confederate States Army in the American Civil War. Notable battles fought in include the Battle of Shiloh , the Battle of Chickamauga and the Battle of Franklin.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Field Officers
Colonels-John V. Wright, Alfred J. Vaughn, Jr. Robert W. Pitman.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Field Officers
Lieutenant Colonels-Alfred J. Vaughn, Jr., William E. Morgan, Robert W. Pitman, Beverly L. Dyer.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Field Officers
Majors-W. E. Winfield, William Jere Crook, Peter H. Cole, Beverly L. Dyer.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company A - Captains S.R. Brewer, F.H. Carter - "The Fayette Rifle Grays" - Men from Fayette County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company B - Captains Joe L. Cranberry, Ben F. Lightle, William G. Mehane - "The Macon Grays" - Men from Fayette County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company C - Captains John H. Morgan, E.W. Douglass, W.D. Harrison - "The Secession Guards" - Men from Shelby County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company D - Captains John A. Wilkins, S.R. Brewer - "The Yorkville Rifles" - Men from Gibson County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company E - Captains  Alfred J. Vaughan, Jr., Beverly L. Dyer, Johna A. Moody - "ThevDixie Rifles" - Men from Fayette County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company F - Captains John V. Wright, Dew Moore Wisdon, G.W. Churchwell - "The Wright Boys" - Men from McNairy County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company G - Captains W.E. Winfield, C.D. Palmore, R.F. Lanier - "The Gain's Invincibles"  - Men from Fayette County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company H - Captain Robert W. Pitman, Sylvester A. Munson - "The Yancey Riflemen" - Men from Fayette County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company I - Captains G.L. Ross, William Jere Crook, John R. Purdy - "The Forked Deer Vounteers" - Men from Henderson County, now Chester County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company K - Captains Samuel L. Latta, Joseh Rucks Hibbitt, Ausburn D. Brown - "The Dyer Grays" - Men from Dyer County.


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Companies
Company L - Captains C.B. Jones, Richard E. Moody - "The Zollicoffer Avengers."


13th Tennessee Infantry Regiment, Citations
Co. I of the 13th Tennessee captured the national colors of the 57th Indiana Infantry at the Battle of Franklin, November 30, 1864. The flag was returned to the 57th Indiana at their reunion in Kokomo, Indiana in September 23, 1885.


13th Tony Awards
The 13th Annual Tony Awards took place at the Waldorf-Astoria Grand Ballroom on April 12, 1959, and was broadcast on local television station WCBS-TV in New York City. The Master of Ceremonies was Bud Collyer.


13th Tony Awards, The ceremony
Presenters: Dana Andrews, Ina Balin, Ralph Bellamy, Polly Bergen, Claudette Colbert, Robert Dowling, Faye Emerson, Farley Granger, Oscar Hammerstein II, Celeste Holm, Robert Preston, and Rip Torn. Music was by Meyer Davis and his Orchestra.


13th Transgender Erotica Awards
The 13th Annual Transgender Erotica Awards are a scheduled pornographic awards event recognizing the best in transgender pornography form the previous year from  October 2, 2019 to October 31, 2020. Pre -nominations were open from November 3 to November 13, 2020.


13th Transgender Erotica Awards
The public-at-large was able to suggest nominees using an online form. Nominees were announced on December 24, 2020, online on the theteashow.com website or 16 awards, with the following awards having the winner announced without nominees;Transcendence Award, Lifetime Achievement Award, Gender X Model of the Year, Kink's Kinkiest TGirl Domme, Black-TGirls.com Model of the Year, Chaturbate TS Performer of the Year, Pornhub Model of the Year, The Fan Choice Award voting is opened in 2021, with the winners announced after public nominations and voting.


13th Transgender Erotica Awards, Winners and nominees
The nominations for the 13th Transgender Erotica Awards were announced online on December 24, 2020, online on the theteashow.com website. The winners are scheduled to be announced during the awards on March 7, 2021. On December 4, 2020, it was announced that the award show would be held as an online production and on February 9, 2021, it was announced the ceremony would be broadcast on Pornhub. The awards were presented with winners notified in advance after signing non-disclosure agreements. Each winner gave a pre-recorded acceptance speech. Award trophies were mailed out to recipients after the award show was broadcast.


13th U-boat Flotilla
The 13th U-boat Flotilla (German 13. Unterseebootsflottille) was a World War II U-boat unit of Nazi Germany's Kriegsmarine stationed in Trondheim, Norway. The emblem of the unit was a cross with a Viking ship in the middle.


13th U-boat Flotilla, History
In 1941, construction of the DORA 1 submarine base started in Trondheim. Two years later, in June 1943, it was handed over to the flotilla commander, Korvettenkapitän (later Fregattenkapitän) Rolf Rüggeberg. The 13th submarine flotilla was a front line unit, and a total of 55 Type VIIC and VIIC/41 served with it until the end of the war in May 1945.


13th United States Colored Infantry Regiment
The 13th United States Colored Infantry was an infantry regiment that served in the Union Army during the American Civil War. The regiment was composed of African American enlisted men commanded by white officers and was authorized by the Bureau of Colored Troops which was created by the United States War Department on May 22, 1863.


13th United States Colored Infantry Regiment, Service
The 13th U.S. Colored Infantry was organized in Nashville, Tennessee November 19, 1863 and mustered in for three-year service under the command of Colonel John A. Hottenstein.


13th United States Colored Infantry Regiment, Service
The regiment was attached to Defenses Nashville & Northwestern Railroad, Department of the Cumberland, to November 1864. 2nd Colored Brigade, District of the Etowah, Department of the Cumberland, to January 1865. Defenses Nashville & Northwestern Railroad, District Middle Tennessee, Department of the Cumberland, to May 1865. 3rd Sub-District, District Middle Tennessee, Department of the Cumberland, to January 1866.


13th United States Colored Infantry Regiment, Service
The 13th U.S. Colored Infantry mustered out of service January 10, 1866.


13th United States Colored Infantry Regiment, Detailed service
Railroad guard duty in Tennessee and Alabama on line of Nashville & Northwestern Railroad until December 1864. Repulse of Hood's attack on Johnsonville, Tenn., September 25 and November 4 and 5. Eddyville, Ky., October 17 (detachment). Battle of Nashville December 15–16. Pursuit of Hood to the Tennessee River December 17–18. Railroad guard and garrison duty in the Department of the Cumberland until January 1866.


13th United States Colored Infantry Regiment, Casualties
The regiment lost a total of 355 men during service; 4 officers and 86 enlisted men killed or mortally wounded,  265 enlisted men died of disease.


13th United States Congress
The 13th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, consisting of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, D.C. from March 4, 1813, to March 4, 1815, during the fifth and sixth years of James Madison's presidency. The apportionment of seats in the House of Representatives was based on the Third Census of the United States in 1810. Both chambers had a Democratic-Republican majority. The first two sessions were held at the Capitol building while the third, convened after the Burning of Washington, took place in the First Patent Building.


13th United States Congress, Party summary
The count below identifies party affiliations at the beginning of the first session of this congress. Changes resulting from subsequent replacements are shown below in the "Changes in membership" section.


13th United States Congress, Party summary, House of Representatives
Following the 1810 census, the size of the House was increased to 182 seats from 142.


13th United States Congress, Members
This list is arranged by chamber, then by state. Senators are listed by class, and representatives are listed by district.


13th United States Congress, Members, Senate
Senators were elected by the state legislatures every two years, with one-third beginning new six-year terms with each Congress. Preceding the names in the list below are Senate class numbers, which indicate the cycle of their election. In this Congress, Class 1 meant their term ended with this Congress, requiring reelection in 1814; Class 2 meant their term began in the last Congress, requiring reelection in 1816; and Class 3 meant their term began in this Congress, requiring reelection in 1818.


13th United States Congress, Members, House of Representatives, Maryland
The 5th district was a plural district with two representatives.


13th United States Congress, Members, House of Representatives, New Jersey
There were three plural districts, each had two representatives each.


13th United States Congress, Members, House of Representatives, New York
There were six plural districts, the 1st, 2nd, 12th, 15th, 20th & 21st, each had two representatives.


13th United States Congress, Members, House of Representatives, Pennsylvania
There were six plural districts, the 2nd, 3rd, 5th, 6th & 10th had two representatives each, the 1st had four representatives.


13th United States Congress, Changes in membership
The count below reflects changes from the beginning of the first session of this Congress.


13th Vanier Cup
The 13th Vanier Cup was played on November 19, 1977, at Varsity Stadium in Toronto, Ontario, and decided the CIAU football champion for the 1977 season. The Western Mustangs won their second consecutive championship and fourth overall by defeating the Acadia Axemen by a score of 48-15 in a rematch of the previous year's game. This was the first, and so far only, time that the same two teams played in a Vanier Cup game in consecutive years.


13th Venice International Film Festival
The 13th annual Venice International Film Festival was held from 20 August to 12 September 1952.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment
The 13th Vermont Infantry Regiment was a nine months' infantry regiment in the Union Army during the American Civil War. It served in the eastern theater, predominantly in the Defenses of Washington, from October 1862 to August 1863. It was a member of the 2nd Vermont Brigade.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, History
The 13th Vermont Infantry was raised as a result of President Lincoln's call on August 4, 1862, for additional troops due to the disastrous results of the Peninsula Campaign. It was composed of volunteers from Washington, Chittenden, Lamoille and Franklin counties, as follows:


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, History
The regiment's commander, Colonel Francis V. Randall of Braintree, had served with the 2nd Vermont Infantry. Lieutenant Colonel Andrew W. Brown had no previous military experience. Major Lawrence D. Clark had served as captain of Co. A, 1st Vermont Infantry. Clark resigned in March 1863 because of impaired health, and was replaced by Captain Joseph J. Boynton, of Company C. Brown resigned in May 1863, and was succeeded by Captain William D. Munson, of Company D.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, History
James Stevens Peck, originally a second lieutenant in Company I, was subsequently appointed regimental adjutant.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, History
The 13th Regiment went into camp at Brattleboro on September 29, 1862, and was mustered into United States service on October 3 with 953 officers and men. It left Vermont on October 11, and arrived in Washington, D.C. on October 13.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, History
The regiment suffered its first two casualties within two weeks of arriving in Washington: Isaac N. Brooks, 16, of Company E, died on October 26, and Lieutenant Nathaniel Jones Jr., of Company B died of typhoid fever on October 29.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, History
The regiment set up camp on East Capitol Hill, a half-mile west of the 12th Vermont Infantry, then moved to Camp Chase, Arlington, Virginia, on October 25, returning to East Capital Hill three days later when the 2nd Vermont Brigade was formed.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, History
The regiment marched to Munson's Hill on October 30, and Hunting Creek on November 5, where it stayed until November 26, in 'Camp Vermont'. It was engaged in picket duty near Fairfax Courthouse until December 12 to January 20, 1863, participating in a repulse of J.E.B. Stuart's cavalry on December 29. The regiment was stationed at Wolf Run Shoals from January 20 to April 2, then performed railroad guard duty at Warrenton Junction until June 25.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, History
On June 25, the brigade was assigned as the 3rd Brigade, 3rd Division, I Corps, and ordered to form the rear guard of the Army of the Potomac as it marched north after Robert E. Lee's Army of Northern Virginia. The 13th marched with the brigade from Wolf Run Shoals on June 25, crossed the Potomac river on June 27 at Edward's Ferry, and moved north through Frederick City and Creagerstown, Maryland. On the morning of July 1, it left Westminster, Maryland, arrived on the battlefield at Gettysburg after dark on the first day of the battle, and camped in a wheat field to the left of Cemetery Hill.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, Gettysburg
On the afternoon of July 2, the 13th responded to a request by General Winfield S. Hancock to assist Lieutenant Gulian V. Weir, Battery C, 5th U.S. Artillery, whose battery was in danger of being captured by a regiment of Brigadier General Ambrose R. Wright's brigade. The battery was saved and moved back to the rear. The 13th moved forward to Emmittsburg road and captured two rebel guns. Receiving fire from Rodgers' house, Captain John Lonergan, Company A, surrounded the building and took 81 prisoners from an Alabama regiment, returning to the main lines on Cemetery Ridge. He subsequently received the Medal of Honor for his actions.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, Gettysburg
The 13th, 14th and 16th Vermont Regiments played a pivotal role in the Union repulse of Pickett's Charge on the afternoon of July 3. The 13th and 16th flanked James L. Kemper's brigade as it approached the copse of trees on Cemetery Ridge, then the 16th wheeled about, and joined by the 14th, stopped the advance of Cadmus M. Wilcox's brigade, capturing hundreds of Virginians. Lieutenant George Benedict, an aide to Brigadier General George J. Stannard, related General Abner Doubleday's reaction, saying he "waved his hat and shouted: 'Glory to God, glory to God! See the Vermonters go it!'"


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, Gettysburg
During the forced march from Virginia to Gettysburg, 2nd Lieutenant Stephen F. Brown, Company K, had disobeyed orders, and left the regiment to get water for his men. He was placed in arrest and had his sword and sidearm taken from him. When the regiment arrived on the battlefield at Gettysburg, he was released from arrest, but his weapons were back in the regiment's supply train. Taking a camp hatchet, he went into battle, captured a rebel officer and relieved him of his sword and sidearm. Lieutenant Brown, who subsequently served in the 17th Vermont Infantry, kept the sword and eventually donated it to the Vermont Historical Society.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, Gettysburg
During the battle, the 13th's surgeon, George Nichols, was in charge of a field hospital for the I Corps.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, Gettysburg
After the battle, the 13th Regiment participated in the pursuit of Lee's Army of Northern Virginia across the Catoctin mountains on July 7, to Middletown, Maryland, on July 8, when it was ordered home. The regiment marched to Monocacy Junction, where it took a train to Baltimore. Departing Baltimore on July 11, the regiment was met by the 12th Vermont Infantry in Brattleboro on July 13. After a few days furlough, the regiment was mustered out on July 21.


13th Vermont Infantry Regiment, Gettysburg
Like the other regiments in the 2nd Vermont Brigade, dozens of newly discharged members from the 13th Regiment enlisted again, predominantly in the regiments of the 1st Vermont Brigade, and the 17th Vermont Infantry.


13th Vietnam Film Festival
The 13th Vietnam Film Festival was held from December 6 to December 9, 2001 in Vinh City, Nghệ An Province, Vietnam, with the slogan: "For an advanced Vietnam cinema imbued with national identity" (Vietnamese: "Vì một nền điện ảnh Việt Nam tiên tiến, đậm đà bản sắc dân tộc").


13th Vietnam Film Festival, Event
This year, in the Feature Film section, there is a fierce competition between the works of veteran directors and the next generation. In the end, 7 Golden Lotuses were awarded for the following categories: Feature Film (2 films), Direct-to-Video Feature Film (1 film), Documentary Film (2 films), Animated Film (2 films).


13th Vietnam Film Festival, Event, Participation
There were 105 films in attendance at the Film Festival: 12 feature films, 22 direct-to-video feature films, 15 documentary feature, 42 direct-to-video documentary and 14 animated films. At the Documentary Feature section, there is just a competition between two units: The Central Documentary and Science Film Studio (DSF) and People's Army Cinema. In the Animatied film section, it is almost just an internal review conference for the Vietnam Animation Studio, the only unit in the country that still produces this type of film.


13th Vietnam Film Festival, Event, Activities
The exchanges between artists and audiences in Vinh were very exciting. They were as enthusiastic as going to a sport. Especially in the exchange with students of Pedagogical University of Vinh, many students had to squeeze together to enter the hall and there were many questions sent to the artists.


13th Vietnam Film Festival, Event, Inadequacy
Direct-to-video feature films outnumber feature films, making the festival feel like an expansive television festival. This is a situation that has continued since the 1990s and shows no sign of getting better. Most of the audience only remembers the feature films that are broadcast on television and the actors who act in TV series, because it has been a long time since many people have had the opportunity to watch a feature film.


13th Virginia Cavalry Regiment
The 13th Virginia Cavalry Regiment was a cavalry regiment raised in Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia.


13th Virginia Cavalry Regiment
Virginia’s 13th Cavalry Regiment was formed in July 1862, using the 16th Battalion, Virginia Cavalry as its nucleus (itself formed from seven companies from the 12-month unit 5th Cavalry, Provisional Confederate Army). The men were from Petersburg and the counties of Southampton, Sussex, Prince George, Surry, and Nansemond. It was the second cavalry unit to bear the designation 13th Regiment, the first having ended its 12-month term of service in the spring of 1862.


13th Virginia Cavalry Regiment
It was assigned to W.H.F. Lee's, Chambliss', and Beale' Brigade in the Army of Northern Virginia. The unit was active in the conflicts at Fredericksburg, Brandy Station, Upperville, Hanover, Gettysburg, Bristoe, Kelly's Ford, and Mine Run. Later it participated in The Wilderness Campaign, the defense of Petersburg and Richmond, and the Appomattox operations.


13th Virginia Cavalry Regiment
This regiment had 298 men in action in Gettysburg and surrendered on April 9, 1865, with 10 officers and 78 men. The field officers were Colonels John R. Chambliss Jr. and Jefferson C. Phillips; Lieutenant Colonels Alexander Savage and Thomas H. Upshaw; and Majors Benjamin W. Belsches, Joseph E. Gillette, and Benjamin F. Winfield.


13th Virginia Infantry Regiment
The 13th Virginia Infantry Regiment was an infantry regiment raised in central and western Virginia for service in the Confederate States Army during the American Civil War. It fought mostly with the Army of Northern Virginia.


13th Virginia Infantry Regiment
Its commanders were Colonels George A. Goodman, Ambrose P. Hill, James B. Terrill, and James A. Walker; and Majors Charles T. Crittenden and John B. Sherrard.


13th Virginia Infantry Regiment
The 13th Virginia completed its organization during the summer of 1861 with men from Winchester and Culpeper, Orange, Louisa, and Hampshire counties, and one company from Maryland. The original Companies B and E enlisted only for 6 months, the others for one year. At the end of that year, their service was extended for the duration of the war.


13th Virginia Infantry Regiment
After fighting at First Manassas and in Jackson's Valley Campaign, it served in General Early's, W.Smith's, Pegram's, and J.A. Walker's Brigade. The 13th was prominent in the campaigns of the Army of Northern Virginia from the Seven Days' Battles to Cold Harbor, then it moved with Gen. Jubal Early to the Shenandoah Valley and later was involved in the Appomattox operations.


13th Virginia Infantry Regiment
It reported 16 casualties at Cross Keys and Port Republic, 111 at Gaines Mill, 34 at Cedar Mountain, 46 at Second Manassas, 22 at Fredericksburg, and 36 at Chancellorsville. During the Gettysburg Campaign it was left at Winchester as provost guard. The unit sustained heavy losses at the Battle of Cedar Creek and surrendered at Appomattox Court House with 10 officers and 52 men.


13th Virginia Regiment
The 13th Virginia Regiment was a United States infantry regiment during the American Revolutionary War.


13th Virginia Regiment, Summary
The 13th Virginia Regiment was authorized on 16 September 1776 by the Continental Congress for service with the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. The unit was organized on 12 February 1777 at Fort Pitt in present-day western Pennsylvania to consist of nine companies of troops from the far-western Virginia counties (now parts of West Virginia and western Pennsylvania). The regiment saw action in the Battle of Brandywine, Battle of Germantown, and the Battle of Monmouth.


13th Virginia Regiment, Summary
On 24 May 1778 the unit was assigned to the Western Department (Fort Laurens), and on 12 May 1779 it was reorganized and redesignated as the 9th Virginia Regiment. It was again reorganized and redesignated as the 7th Virginia Regiment on 1 January 1781 to consist of two companies. The regiment was disbanded at Fort Pitt on 1 January 1783.


13th Visual Effects Society Awards
Best Visual Effects in a Visual Effects Driven Motion Picture:Dawn of the Planet of the Apes


13th Visual Effects Society Awards
The 13th Visual Effects Society Awards was held in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on February 4, 2015, in honor to the best visual effects in film and television of 2014. Patton Oswalt was the host.


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes – Joe Letteri, Ryan Stafford, Matt Kutcher, Dan Lemmon, Hannah Blanchini


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) – Ara Khanikian, Ivy Agregan, Sebastien Moreau


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Big Hero 6 – Don Hall, Chris Williams, Roy Conli, Zach Parrish


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - Caesar - Paul Story, Eteuati Tema, Andrea Merlo, Emiliano Padovani


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Big Hero 6 – Baymax – Colin Eckart, John Kahwaty, Zach Parrish, Zack Petroc


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Interstellar - Tesseract - Tom Bracht, Graham Page, Thomas Døhlem, Kristy Clark


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Big Hero 6 - Into the Portal - Ralf Habel, David Hutchins, Michael Kaschalk, Olun Riley


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
X-Men: Days of Future Past - Kitchen Scene - Austin Bonang, Casey Schatz, Dennis Jones, Newton Thomas Sigel


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Big Hero 6 - San Fransokyo - Brett Achorn, Minh Duong, Scott Watanabe, Larry Wu


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
X-Men: Days of Future Past - Quicksilver Pentagon Kitchen - Adam Paschke, Premamurti Paetsch, Sam Hancock, Timmy Lundin


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Big Hero 6 - Henrik Falt, David Hutchins, Michael Kaschalk, John Kosnik


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Film
Dawn of the Planet of the Apes - Christoph Salzmann, Florian Schroeder, Quentin Hema, Simone Riginelli


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Television
Game of Thrones - The Children - Joe Bauer, Steve Kullback, Stuart Brisdon, Thomas Schelesny, Sven Martin


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Television
American Horror Story: Freak Show - Edward Mordrake, Part 2 - Jason Piccioni, Jason Spratt, Mike Kirylo, Justin Bal, Eric Roberts


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Television
SSE - Maya - Neil Davies, Alex Hammond, Jorge Montiel, Beth Vander


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Television
SSE - Maya - Jorge Montiel, Alex Hammond, Daniel Kmet, Philippe Moine


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Television
Game of Thrones - Braavos Establisher - Rene Borst, Christian Zilliken, Jan Burda, Steffen Metzner


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Television
Cosmos: A Spacetime Odyssey - Dominique Vidal, Isabelle Perin-Leduc, Sandrine Lurde, Alexandre Lerouge


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Television
Game of Thrones - The Watchers on the Wall - Dan Breckwoldt, Martin Furman, Sophie Marfleet, Eric Andrusyszyn


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Other categories
Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare - Yi-chao Sandy Lin-Chiang, Joseph Salud, Demetrius Leal, Dave Blizard


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Other categories
Ratatouille: L’Aventure Totalement Toquée de Rémy - Tony Apodaca, Marianna McLean, Gilles Martin, Edwin Chang, Mark Mine


13th Visual Effects Society Awards, Winners and nominees, Other categories
Wrapped - Roman Kaelin, Falko Paeper, Florian Wittmann, Paolo Tamburrino


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian)
The 13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian) was a mountain infantry division of the Waffen-SS, an armed branch of the German Nazi Party that served alongside but was never formally part of the Wehrmacht during World War II. At the post-war Nuremberg trials, the Waffen-SS was declared to be a criminal organisation due to its major involvement in war crimes and crimes against humanity.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian)
From March to December 1944, the division fought a counter-insurgency campaign against communist-led Yugoslav Partisan resistance forces in the Independent State of Croatia, a fascist puppet state of Germany that encompassed almost all of modern-day Croatia, all of modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina as well as parts of Serbia. It was given the title Handschar (Bosnian: Handžar) after a local fighting knife or sword carried by Ottoman policemen during the centuries that the region was part of the Ottoman Empire. It was the first non-Germanic Waffen-SS division, and its formation marked the expansion of the Waffen-SS into a multi-ethnic military force. Composed of Bosnian Muslims (ethnic Bosniaks) with some Catholic Croat soldiers and mostly German and Yugoslav Volksdeutsche (ethnic German) officers and non-commissioned officers, it took an oath of allegiance to both Adolf Hitler and the Croatian leader Ante Pavelić.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian)
The division fought briefly in the Syrmia region north of the Sava river prior to crossing into northeastern Bosnia. After crossing the Sava, it established a designated "security zone" in northeastern Bosnia between the Sava, Bosna, Drina and Spreča rivers. It also fought outside the security zone on several occasions, and earned a reputation for brutality and savagery, not only during combat operations, but also through atrocities committed against Serb and Jewish civilians. In late 1944, parts of the division were transferred briefly to the Zagreb area, after which the non-German members began to desert in large numbers.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian)
Over the winter of 1944–45, it was sent to the Baranja region where it fought against the Red Army and Bulgarians throughout southern Hungary, falling back via a series of defensive lines until they were inside the Reich frontier. Most of the remaining Bosnian Muslims left at this point and attempted to return to Bosnia. The rest retreated further west, hoping to surrender to the Western Allies. Most of the remaining members became prisoners of the British Army. Subsequently, 38 officers were extradited to Yugoslavia to face criminal charges, and 10 were executed. Hundreds of former members of the division fought in the 1947–48 Civil War in Mandatory Palestine and the 1948 Arab–Israeli War.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Background, NDH and Ante Pavelić
After the invasion of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers on 6 April 1941, the extreme Croat nationalist and fascist Ante Pavelić, who had been in exile in Benito Mussolini's Italy, was appointed Poglavnik (leader) of an Ustaše-led Croatian state – the Independent State of Croatia (often called the NDH, from the Croatian: Nezavisna Država Hrvatska). The NDH combined almost all of modern-day Croatia, all of modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina and parts of modern-day Serbia into an "Italian-German quasi-protectorate". NDH authorities, led by the Ustaše Militia, subsequently implemented genocidal policies against the Serb, Jewish and Roma population living within the borders of the new state.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Background, NDH and Ante Pavelić
In an effort to secure the loyalty of the Bosnian Muslims, Pavelić ordered that a property in Zagreb be converted into a mosque that he named the "Poglavnik's Mosque". Despite Pavelić's assurances of equality with the Croats, many Muslims quickly became dissatisfied with Croatian rule. A Muslim leader reported that not one Muslim occupied an influential post in the administration. Although this was an overstatement, Muslims were underrepresented in government positions, comprising only two of 20 ministerial positions, none of the six state secretaries was a Muslim, and there were only 13 Muslim "people representatives" in a total of 206.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Background, NDH and Ante Pavelić
Fierce fighting broke out between the Ustaše, Serb-chauvinist Chetniks and pan-Yugoslav Partisans in NDH territory. Some Ustaše Militia units became convinced that the Muslims were communist sympathisers, and burned their villages and murdered many civilians. The Chetniks accused the Muslims of taking part in the Ustaše violence against Serbs and perpetrated similar atrocities against the Muslim population. The Muslims received little protection from the Croatian Home Guard, the regular army of the NDH, whom the Germans described as "of minimal combat value". Local militias were raised, but these were also of limited value and only one, the Tuzla-based Home Guard Hadžiefendić Legion, led by Muhamed Hadžiefendić, was of any significance.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Background, Denunciations and request for protection
The Bosnian Muslim elite and notables in various cities and towns issued resolutions or memoranda to the NDH and German authorities that publicly denounced the genocide of the Serbs and the NDH laws targeting them. These were issued in: Prijedor (23 September 1941), Sarajevo (12 October), Mostar (21 October), Banja Luka (12 November), Bijeljina (2 December) and Tuzla (11 December). The resolutions condemned the Ustaše in Bosnia and Herzegovina, both for their mistreatment of Muslims and for their attempts to turn Muslims and Serbs against one another. One memorandum declared that since the beginning of the Ustaše regime, the Muslims had dreaded the lawless activities that the Ustaše, Croatian government authorities and various illegal groups had been perpetrating against the Serbs.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Background, Denunciations and request for protection
The Bosnian Muslims' dissatisfaction with the Ustaše rule of the NDH and their need for protection were combined with nostalgia for the period of Habsburg rule in Bosnia and a generally friendly attitude towards Germany among prominent Bosnian Muslims. These factors led to a push towards autonomy for the Bosnian Muslim community which was strongly opposed by Pavelić as counter to the territorial integrity of the NDH. By November 1942, the autonomists were desperate to protect the Muslim people and wrote to Adolf Hitler asking that he authorise the creation of an autonomous "political-administrative authority" in Bosnia within the structure of the NDH, led by a Hitler appointee.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Origin
On 6 December 1942, Reichsführer-SS Heinrich Himmler and key Waffen-SS recruiting officer SS-Obergruppenführer und General der Waffen-SS Gottlob Berger approached Hitler with the proposal to raise a Bosnian Muslim SS division. Both the Wehrmacht and the Waffen-SS were concerned about the rapidly deteriorating security situation in the NDH that tied down German military personnel needed elsewhere. A German source noted that by 1943 over 100,000 Bosnian Muslims had been killed and 250,000 had become refugees. In addition, a serious food shortage threatened the region. "The Muslims," remarked SS-Gruppenführer und Generalleutnant der Waffen-SS Artur Phleps, "bear the special status of being persecuted by all others".


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Origin
The romantic notions that Himmler had about the Bosnian Muslims were probably significant in the division's genesis. Nonetheless, a memorandum dated 1 November 1942 also indicates that leading Muslim autonomists had already suggested the creation of a volunteer Waffen-SS unit under German command. Himmmler was personally fascinated by the Islamic faith and believed that Islam created fearless soldiers. He found their ferocity preferable to the gentility of Christians and believed their martial qualities should be further developed and put to use.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Origin
He thought that Muslim men would make perfect SS soldiers as Islam "promises them Heaven if they fight and are killed in action." As for their ethnic background and SS requirements, it appears that Himmler accepted the theories advanced by both Croatian and German nationalists that the Croatian people, including the Muslims, were not ethnic Slavs but pure Aryans of either Gothic or Iranian descent.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Origin
Himmler was inspired by the noted successes of the Bosnian-Herzegovinian Infantry in World War I. He "endeavored to restore what he called 'an old Austrian' tradition by reviving the Bosnian regiments of the former Austro-Hungarian Army in the form of a Bosnian Muslim SS Division". Once raised, the division was to engage and destroy Josip Broz Tito's Partisan forces operating in north-eastern Bosnia, thus restoring local "order". Himmler's primary concern in the region was not the security of the local Muslim population, but the welfare of ethnic German settlers to the north in Syrmia. "Srem (Syrmia) is the breadbasket of Croatia, and hopefully it and our beloved German settlements will be secured. I hope that the area south of Srem will be liberated by ... the Bosnian division ... so that we can at least restore partial order in this ridiculous (Croatian) state."


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Origin
Hitler formally approved the project in mid-February 1943 and Himmler put Phleps, commander of the 7th SS Volunteer Mountain Division Prinz Eugen, in charge of raising the first SS division to be recruited from a non-Germanic people.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Recruitment
On 18 February 1943, Phleps travelled to Zagreb to begin formal negotiations with the NDH government. He met with German foreign ministry envoy Siegfried Kasche and NDH Foreign Minister Dr. Mladen Lorković who represented Pavelić. Pavelić had already agreed to raise the division, but the Waffen-SS and NDH governments had very different ideas of how it would be recruited and controlled. Lorković suggested that it be named the SS Ustaša Division, a Croatian unit raised with SS assistance, with familiar geographically based regimental names such as Bosna, Krajina and Una.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Recruitment
This reflected the concerns shared by Pavelić and Kasche that an exclusively Muslim division might aid a Muslim bid for independence. As a compromise, the word "Croatian" was included in its official title and Catholic Croatian officers were recruited. Himmler and Phleps largely prevailed and created the division as they saw fit, leaving the NDH very unhappy with the outcome, particularly regarding its ethnic composition.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Recruitment
SS-Standartenführer Karl von Krempler, a specialist in Islam who spoke Serbo-Croatian, was charged by Himmler and Phleps with organising the division. On 3 March 1943, Phleps met with von Krempler, who was to work with NDH government representative Alija Šuljak. The campaign began on 20 March 1943, when von Krempler and Šuljak began an 18-day recruiting tour through 11 Bosnian districts. With assistance from the SS, recruiting rallies were held in the towns of Živinice and Gračanica. In the meantime the Germans began raising the divisional headquarters staff in Berlin, including SS-Standartenführer der Reserve Herbert von Oberwurzer, who was transferred from the 6th SS Mountain Division Nord to command the division.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Recruitment
Šuljak and von Krempler soon fell out over the aims and purposes of the proposed division. Šuljak, an entirely political appointee, criticised von Krempler's Serbian dialect and his use of traditional Islamic colours and emblems (green flags and crescent moons) during the recruitment drive rather than the Ustaše symbols. When he reached Tuzla in central Bosnia, von Krempler met with the militia leader Hadžiefendić.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Recruitment
On 28 March, Hadžiefendić escorted von Krempler to Sarajevo, where he introduced him to the leader of Bosnia's Islamic clergy, Hafiz Muhamed Pandža, the reis-ul-ulema, as well as other leading Muslim politicians not involved with the Ustaše. The NDH government and Kasche were furious, demanding von Krempler's immediate removal. The SS ignored the demand and von Krempler continued recruiting, including deserters from the NDH armed forces.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Recruitment, Mufti of Jerusalem
In March–April 1943, both Himmler and a group of Muslim leaders within the NDH requested that the Mufti of Jerusalem, Haj Amin al-Husseini, then resident in Berlin, assist in organising and recruiting Muslims into the Waffen-SS and other units. He was escorted by von Krempler, who spoke Turkish. From 30 March to 10 April, the Mufti visited Zagreb, Sarajevo and Banja Luka to meet senior Muslim leaders and agitate in support of the new division. The Mufti also visited in order to bless and inspect the division, during which he used the Nazi salute. The Mufti insisted, "The most important task of this division must be to protect the homeland and families [of the Bosnian volunteers]; the division must not be permitted to leave Bosnia", but the Germans paid no attention.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Recruitment, Croat Catholic recruitment
Despite the support of al-Husseini, recruitment of Muslims for the division fell well short of the numbers needed. Himmler then allowed a 10 percent Christian component, but the recruitment of sufficient Muslims continued to prove difficult, resulting in the induction of 2,800 Catholic Croats into the division. To Himmler's dismay, this was greater than the ratio of Catholics to Muslims that he had wanted.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Recruitment, Croat Catholic recruitment
Hussein Biščević (Husejin Biščević or Biščević-beg; born 28 July 1884) was the highest ranking (and perhaps the oldest) Bosnian military officer to volunteer. Bišcević had served in the Austro–Hungarian army and in August 1943 was appointed as an SS-Obersturmbannführer  to command the divisional anti-aircraft battalion. He was eventually judged unsuitable, and was replaced with a German just before the division went into combat.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Composition
Sources differ regarding the division's initial composition. Pavlowitch states that sixty percent of its recruits were Muslims and the rest were Yugoslav Volksdeutsche who made up the majority of its officers and non-commissioned officers (NCOs). Tomasevich states that it was formed with 23,200 Muslims and 2,800 Croats, with mostly German officers. He further states it was the largest of the Muslim SS divisions with 26,000 men. Lepre indicates that the division's prescribed strength was reduced from 26,000 to 21,000, and Cohen states that the division achieved a maximum strength of 17,000 in April 1944.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Composition
The division had a Muslim imam for each battalion other than the all-German signal battalion. For about six months the division included about 1,000 ethnic Albanians from Kosovo and the Sandžak region who made up the 1st Battalion of the 2nd Regiment, which later became the 1st Battalion of the 28th Regiment (I/28).


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Composition
By the time the division had completed its training, it was still about one third below its designated strength in both officers and NCOs, and its officer corps remained almost entirely German. Most of the officers and NCOs were drawn from replacement units of other Waffen-SS divisions.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny
The division was initially sent to southern France for formation and training, where it was accommodated mainly in towns and villages in the Aveyron and Lozère départements. For a long period after its official formation, the division was unnamed and was referred to as the "Kroatische SS-Freiwilligen-Division" (Croatian SS-Volunteer Division) or the "Muselmanen-Division" (Muslim Division). The decision by the Waffen-SS to form and train the division outside Bosnia was contrary to advice given by the NDH's German plenipotentiary general, Edmund Glaise von Horstenau. This advice soon proved prophetic.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny
On 9 August 1943, Oberst Karl-Gustav Sauberzweig took command of the division from von Oberwurzer. Sauberzweig transferred to the Waffen-SS and was appointed to the rank of SS-Oberführer. He was a Prussian who had been decorated as an eighteen-year-old company commander during World War I, and had served as a regimental commander during the early stages of Operation Barbarossa before being wounded. A "proven leader of men", he spoke no Serbo-Croatian but quickly gained the lasting respect and affection of the men of the division.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny, Villefranche-de-Rouergue Mutiny (September 1943)
On the night of 16/17 September 1943, while the 13th SS Division was training in Villefranche-de-Rouergue in France, a group of pro-Partisan soldiers led by Muslim and Catholic junior officers staged a mutiny within the Pioneer battalion. Led by Ferid Džanić, Božo Jelinek (aka Eduard Matutinović), Nikola Vukelić and Lutfija Dizdarević, they captured most of the German personnel and executed five German officers, including battalion commander SS-Obersturmbannführer Oskar Kirchbaum. Apparently, the mutineers believed that many of the enlisted men would join them and they could reach the Western Allies.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny, Villefranche-de-Rouergue Mutiny (September 1943)
The revolt was put down with the assistance of the unit imam, Halim Malkoč, and unit physician Dr. Willfried Schweiger. Malkoč told the Bosnian enlisted men of 1st Company that they were being deceived, released the German NCOs and rallied the company to hunt down the ringleaders. Schweiger did the same with 2nd Company. Dizdarević and Džanić were shot and killed during the fighting, and Vukelić was captured, while Jelinek escaped.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny, Villefranche-de-Rouergue Mutiny (September 1943)
Sources vary on the number of mutineers killed after the revolt was suppressed. Tomasevich states that 78 of the worst offenders were executed, but Lepre lists only 14 executions while four more deserters were located and shot in late September. Cohen states that about 150 mutineers were killed immediately, while Noel Malcolm writes that 15 of the mutineers died and a further 141 were killed in a subsequent "clean-up operation." The Germans attributed the infiltration to Tito's suggestion that his Partisan followers enlist for police duty to receive superior weapons, uniforms and training. Enlistees who were deemed "unsuitable for service" or "politically unreliable" were subsequently purged. Eventually, 825 Bosnians were removed from the division and sent to Germany for labour service with Organisation Todt. Of these, 265 refused and were sent to the Neuengamme concentration camp where dozens of them died.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny, Villefranche-de-Rouergue Mutiny (September 1943)
Speaking of the Bosnian Muslim troops who had served in the Austro–Hungarian army, Himmler later said, "I knew there was a chance that a few traitors might be smuggled into the division, but I haven't the slightest doubt concerning the loyalty of the Bosnians. These troops were loyal to their supreme commander twenty years ago, so why shouldn't they be so today." Himmler awarded both Malkoč and Schweiger the Iron Cross Second Class for thwarting the mutiny. Five soldiers were also decorated.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny, Villefranche-de-Rouergue Mutiny (September 1943)
When Villefranche-de-Rouergue was liberated in 1944, the local population decided to pay tribute to the mutineers by naming one of its streets Avenue des Croates (Bosnian Muslims were seen by the local population as Croats of Islamic faith) and commemorating "the revolt of the Croats" every 17 September. Cohen states that after the war, the Yugoslav government requested it be changed to "the revolt of the Yugoslavs" in order to obscure the mutineers' ethnicity; this request was refused by the French. The Villefranche-de-Rouergue uprising was originally commemorated in the city with a monument designed by Croatian sculptor Vanja Radauš.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny, Silesia
As a result of the mutiny, the division was moved to the Neuhammer training grounds in the Silesian region of Germany (present-day Poland) to complete its training. During the training phase, the German officers, pleased with its progress, coined the term Mujo for the Bosnian Muslims. The members of the division swore an oath of allegiance to both Hitler and Pavelić.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Formation, training and mutiny, Silesia
On 9 October 1943, SS headquarters officially named the division the 13. SS-Freiwilligen b.h. Gebirgs-Division (Kroatien), but a short time later a change was made to differentiate it from those that were composed of Germans and it became the 13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian) (German: 13. Waffen-Gebirgsdivision der SS "Handschar" (kroat. Nr . 1), Serbo-Croatian Latin: 13. oružana brdska divizija SS-a Handžar, također i hrvatska br. 1). The division was named Handschar, after a local fighting knife or sword carried by Turkish policemen during the centuries that the region was part of the Ottoman Empire. On 15 February 1944, the division completed its training and returned to the NDH by rail.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944
The division was formed for the primary role of securing around 6,000 square kilometres (2,300 sq mi) of territory (the designated security zone) in north-eastern Bosnia within the NDH. The security zone encompassed the Posavina, Semberija and Majevica regions between the Sava, Bosna, Drina and Spreča rivers. It roughly corresponded with the area of operations of the Partisan 3rd Corps. Himmler saw this task as critical to the safeguarding of important agricultural areas and Volksdeutsche settlements in the Syrmia region to the north.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944
The division participated in what may have been the largest anti-Partisan sweep of World War II: Operation Maibaum. The 13th SS Division also participated in other divisional and corps-sized anti-Partisan operations between March and May 1944.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Wegweiser
The division first saw action during Operation Wegweiser (Signpost) from 9 to 12 March 1944. The aim of Operation Wegweiser was to clear a part of the Syrmia region which was occupied by Partisans who threatened the Zagreb-Belgrade railway. The Partisans were operating from forests around Bosut and villages along the Sava. As the division entered the area, the Partisans withdrew to the south-east, avoiding decisive engagement. Sauberzweig claimed the Partisans suffered 573 killed and 82 captured. Hoare writes that the division massacred hundreds of Serb civilians during the operation. According to Vladimir Dedijer and Antun Miletić, 223 civilians were killed in Bosut, 352 in Sremska Rača, and 70 in Jamena, mostly old men, women and children. The operation was a success in clearing the Bosut forests, but the Partisans returned to the area soon after it concluded.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Save
On 15 March 1944, Operation Save was launched with the objective of clearing Partisans from the Semberija region. Sauberzweig wrote an open letter to the division: "We have now reached the Bosnian frontier and will (soon) begin the march into the homeland. ... The Führer has provided you with his best weapons. Not only do you (have these) in your hands, but above all you have an idea in your hearts – to liberate the homeland. ... Before long, each of you shall be standing in the place that you call home, as a soldier and a gentleman; standing firm as a defender of the idea of saving the culture of Europe – the idea of Adolf Hitler."


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Save
Sauberzweig also ordered that each commander read a prepared message as his unit crossed the Sava River, which emphasised that the "liberation of Bosnia" and ultimately the liberation of "Muslim Albania" was their goal. This was a direct appeal to the Albanian troops as well as the Bosnians. The 27th Regiment crossed the Sava at dawn at Bosanska Rača near the confluence with the Drina. The rest crossed at Brčko covered by an intense artillery bombardment. Contact was immediately made with Partisan forces, who quickly withdrew into the forests. The service support units remained north of the Sava in Vinkovci, which became their permanent garrison area. The 27th Regiment advanced easily across the Pannonian Plain through Velino Selo to Brodac and then on to Bijeljina which was taken against light Partisan resistance late on 16 March.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Save
The 27th Regiment then consolidated its position in Bijeljina while the 28th Regiment and the divisional reconnaissance battalion (German: Aufklärungsabteilung) bore the brunt of the fighting as they advanced through Pukis, Čelić and Koraj at the foot of the Majevica mountains. Sauberzweig later recorded that the 2nd battalion of the 28th Regiment (II/28) "at Čelić stormed the Partisan defenses with (new) battalion commander Hans Hanke at the point" and that enemy forces withdrew after a hard battle with heavy losses, low on ammunition.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Save
Once the area was secured, defensive positions were established along the Čelić–Lopare road and company strength units were sent out to conduct reconnaissance. On the night of 17–18 March, elements of the Partisan 16th Vojvodina Division and 36th Vojvodina Division mounted unsuccessful attacks against the 28th Regiment's positions at Koraj and Zabrđe, losing over 200.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Osterei
After Operation Save, the division remained relatively static for more than three weeks, mopping up and repelling local Partisan attacks. The Muslims were impatient to push further into Bosnia, but the reconnaissance battalion was heavily engaged on the divisional western flank, attacking positions held by the Partisan 3rd Vojvodina Brigade of the 36th Vojvodina Division at Gornji Rahić on 26 March, killing 124 Partisans and capturing 14. The battalion captured several more Partisan positions in the following week. In early April, 200 Partisans of the 16th Muslim Brigade surrendered to the division. They were mostly former members of various Muslim militias who had been conscripted into the ranks of the Partisans.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Osterei
Operation Osterei (Easter Egg) began on 12 April 1944 with the goal of clearing the Majevica mountain, which was held by elements of the 3rd Corps led by General Kosta Nađ. The 27th Regiment quickly captured Janja and drove through Donja Trnova to reach the Ugljevik coal mines, an important economic objective for the German war machine. Following fighting which continued into the evening of 13 April, the 27th Regiment reported Partisan casualties of 106 dead, 45 captured and two deserters along with large amounts of weapons and ammunition. The regiment also seized a huge amount of medical supplies from aid stations in the area of Donja Trnova.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Osterei
The 28th Regiment drove south through Mačkovac and during fighting around Priboj, its 1st Battalion (I/28), made up of Albanians, incurred heavy casualties. The Partisan 3rd Corps then withdrew the 16th and 36th Vojvodina Divisions south across the Tuzla–Zvornik road. The reconnaissance battalion continued the advance, driving into the western Majevicas and capturing Srebrnik and Gradačac then linking up with the Croatian Home Guard 1st Mountain Brigade. The Germans considered Operation Osterei a major success, achieving all objectives with minimal losses.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Osterei
During the final phase of Operation Osterei, I/28 was withdrawn from the fighting and transferred to Pristina in Kosovo to form part of the 21st Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Skanderbeg (1st Albanian) being raised by Himmler's order. A new I/28 was raised from other divisional units and new recruits.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Osterei
In the latter part of Operation Osterei, Jagdkommandos, lightly armed and mobile "hunter teams" of company or battalion strength, were used to break up and harass Partisans still operating on the flanks. These teams killed over 380 Partisans and captured over 200 between 21 and 23 April. By mid-April, half of the security zone had been cleared of Partisans.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Maibaum
The ambitious goal of Operation Maibaum (Maypole) was to destroy the Partisan 3rd Corps. Army Group F ordered V SS Mountain Corps to form a blockade along the Drina to prevent the Partisan force from crossing into Serbia. Operation Maibaum was one of the largest counter-insurgency operations of World War II and included 7th SS Division and NDH forces. The 13th SS Division was under the command of V SS Corps, and the primary tasks of the division were to capture Tuzla and Zvornik, then drive south parallel with the Drina to meet other Corps elements.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Maibaum
The original plan included the parachute insertion of 500th SS Parachute Battalion into the Vlasenica area, but this was cancelled due to unsuitable weather. Flank security was to be provided by the reconnaissance battalion in the Srebrnik area. The deployment south of the Spreča, and therefore outside the security zone, during Operation Maibaum was ordered by the corps commander, Phleps, despite opposition from Sauberzweig. This caused friction between the two that eventually required Himmler's intervention.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Maibaum
On 23 April, the 28th Regiment pushed south along mountain roads through Tuzla. The following day it continued on as far as Stupari. On 25 April, the 27th Regiment advanced south to capture Zvornik. At the same time, the 28th Regiment sent I/28 east towards Vlasenica and II/28 continuing south towards Kladanj, capturing the town on 27 April. Due to the level of the Drinjača at Kladanj, instead of fording the river and pushing east towards Vlasenica, II/28 continued south-east towards Han Pijesak, where they met elements of 7th SS Division advancing north.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Maibaum
I/28 captured Vlasenica on 28 April, but was almost immediately attacked from the east by two Partisan divisions. A third Partisan division surrounded the headquarters of 28th Regiment at Šekovići, 30 kilometres north-west of Vlasenica. Both II/28 and the reconnaissance battalion were rushed to Vlasenica, where II/28 relieved the battered I/28 and then surrounded Šekovići. After a 48-hour battle, during which II/28 was decimated, the town was taken.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Maibaum
While the battle of Šekovići raged, the 27th Regiment extended the Drina blockade further south, ambushing a Partisan column and reaching Nova Kasaba on 30 April. After the situation at Šekovići improved on 1 May, the 27th Regiment returned to patrolling the Tuzla–Zvornik road. The 28th Regiment moved to the Simin Han-Lopare area on 5 May, while the 7th SS Division pursued the Partisans withdrawing south.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Maibaum
Operation Maibaum had not only stopped the Partisan 3rd Corps from crossing the Drina into Serbia, it had scattered the Partisan formation. On 6 May, V SS Mountain Corps ordered the division to return to the security zone north of the Spreča.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations March to May 1944, Operation Maiglöckchen
On 17–18 May 1944, the division, along with the local Majevica-Tuzla Chetnik unit commanded by Radivoj Kerović, commenced Operation Maiglöckchen (May Bell) to destroy several Partisan brigades in the Majevicas. The Partisans were encircled in the Stolice heights. An attempt by the Partisan 16th Vojvodina Division to relieve the surrounded force was defeated by the reconnaissance battalion and elements of the 28th Regiment. The relieving column was driven back across the Spreća. After heavy bombardment by the artillery regiment, the trapped Partisan force escaped south out of the pocket under cover of darkness on 18 May. The Partisans suffered considerable casualties, for example the 17th Majevica Brigade of the 27th East Bosnia Division lost 16 killed and 60 missing. At the conclusion of Operation Maiglöckchen, the 27th Regiment remained near Zvornik and the 28th Regiment deployed near Srebrenik.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Cooperation with local forces
After Operation Maiglöckchen, the division shifted to a largely defensive posture aimed at denying the Partisans access to the security zone. Since its arrival in the zone the division had been assisted in this task by local forces of varying reliability. These included four groups of Chetniks numbering 13,000, Nešad Topčić's Zeleni kadar (or Green Cadres, a Muslim nationalist militia) most of which eventually joined the Partisans, and both Ustaše militia and the Croatian Home Guard, neither of which was effective. These same groups, along with the Partisans, had simultaneously been trying to encourage Bosnian and Croat members to defect. Between March and June 1944, these attempts were largely fruitless, producing fewer than 200 deserters.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Vollmond
Following Operation Rösselsprung (Knight's Move), the German attempt to kill or capture Tito at Drvar in western Bosnia on 25 May 1944, the Partisan leader ordered a general uprising. The Partisan 3rd Corps planned an offensive that involved three parallel columns of divisional strength thrusting north into the zone to engage and destroy German and local allied forces. The columns comprised:


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Vollmond
Operation Vollmond (Full Moon) was devised quickly after the reconnaissance battalion observed Partisan forces crossing the Tuzla–Zvornik road on the evening of 6 June 1944. Sauberzweig's aim was to assault from the east and north, pushing the advancing Partisan forces against the Drina. The German plan underestimated the strength of the Partisan "Western Column" and had placed only one battalion (I/28) on high ground in the Partisans' path. This battalion included many raw recruits, and was protecting two batteries of the artillery regiment, one of which (7/AR13) was deployed just east of Lopare.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Vollmond
Late on 7 June, the Partisans scattered I/28 and although II/28 was sent from Srebrenik to assist, the 16th Vojvodina Division surged forward against the positions of 7/AR13, which consisted of 80 men with four 150 mm guns and only one machine gun. After four hours fighting, and with half the battery's personnel dead, the artillerymen ran out of small arms ammunition and scattered into the forest.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Vollmond
As a result of a counterattack by II/28 on the afternoon of 9 June and throughout 10 June, the 16th Vojvodina Division withdrew that afternoon and the battalion pursued both the "Western Column" and "Centre Column" south. The guns and vehicles of 7/AR13 had been destroyed by the Partisans before they withdrew and there were reports that the German dead at Lopare had been mutilated. The "Eastern Column" was stopped by the 27th Regiment and the last of the Partisan 3rd Corps was pushed back across the Spreča on 12 June.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Vollmond
According to German accounts, Operation Vollmond cost the division 205 dead, 528 wounded and 89 missing. I/28 had been decimated, with only 180 men remaining. Sauberzweig claimed 3,000 Partisans were killed in this operation, but Phleps dismissed this as "a large exaggeration". According to one German after-action report, they had killed over 1,500 Partisans and captured large amounts of arms and ammunition. According to Partisan sources, the losses of the Partisan 3rd Corps were:


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Vollmond
At the conclusion of Operation Vollmond, the commander of the 27th Regiment, Desiderius Hampel, was appointed division commander at his substantive rank of Standartenführer and Sauberzweig was tasked with forming a new corps headquarters, the IX Waffen Mountain Corps of the SS (Croatian). The commander of the 28th Regiment, Helmuth Raithel, was tasked to raise the new 23rd Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Kama (2nd Croatian). Both the new corps headquarters and new division were to be formed in southern Hungary. Three NCOs from every company of 13th SS Division, along with other personnel, were transferred to form the core of 23rd SS Division. New commanders were appointed to the two mountain infantry regiments, notably Hanke to the 28th.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Vollmond
Soon after Hampel's assumption of command, he became aware that local Chetniks were scavenging the Operation Vollmond battlefields for divisional equipment. He met with the Chetnik leader Kerović and arranged for the return of the equipment in exchange for small arms ammunition and boxes of hand grenades.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Vollmond
Throughout the remainder of June 1944 and into the first week of July, the division was engaged in fighting off attempted Partisan incursions into the security zone and reinforcing local NDH and Chetniks who were under attack from the Partisans. During the summer of 1944, elements of the division were tasked with guarding Hungarian Jewish forced labourers building fortifications in Tuzla. While guarding the labourers, they subjected them to cruel treatment, and shot 22 who were unable to continue working.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Fliegenfänger
Operation Fliegenfänger (Flypaper) was launched on 14 July 1944. It aimed to destroy a makeshift Partisan runway in the Osmaci area about 26 kilometres (16 mi) southeast of Tuzla, south of the Tuzla–Zvornik road and the Partisan forces guarding it. The airstrip was just north of the southern boundary of the security zone and was being used by Allied aircraft to bring in supplies and evacuate wounded Partisans to Italy.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Fliegenfänger
It had been built by the 19th Birač Brigade of the 27th East Bosnia Division between 3 and 6 July, and the first flight into the airfield occurred on the night of 6/7 July. The 19th Birač Brigade was also responsible for its defence. Two battalions of the 27th Regiment, along with a battalion of Chetniks from Majevica launched the operation from the line of Caparde–Memići–Prnjavor, and captured the towns of Osmaci and Memići and damaged the airfield despite stiff resistance. That afternoon, the 19th Birač Brigade counter-attacked and pushed the German and Chetniks back across the Tuzla–Zvornik road.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Fliegenfänger
At the same time as the counter-attack was underway, the headquarters of the Partisan 3rd Corps ordered the 36th Vojvodina Division to clear the enemy from the area so that the airfield could be used. During the night of 14/15 July, elements of the 36th Vojvodina Division arrived in the Osmaci area and relieved the 19th Birač Brigade, which moved towards Srebrenica. During the night of 16/17 July, Allied aircraft delivered equipment to Osmaci and about 100 wounded Partisans were airlifted to Italy.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Fliegenfänger
According to German reports, 42 Partisans were killed, while the division's losses were four dead and seven wounded. The Partisan force withdrew south to the Vlasenica–Rajići area. The cooperation with the Chetnik battalion was described in the IX SS Mountain Corps war diary as "effective".


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Heiderose
While the division was conducting Operation Fliegenfänger, the Second Panzer Army was developing a plan to block a large Partisan force from moving from central Bosnia into western Serbia to reinforce the Partisans. Due to issues with the availability of various units of V SS Mountain Corps, the planned Operation Rose was cancelled.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Heiderose
In the interim, since most of the division was deployed in the southern part of the security zone, Hampel planned a divisional-level operation, named Operation Heiderose (Wild Rose) targeting Partisan positions north-west of Šekovići, south of the Spreča. The 27th Regiment, reinforced by the same Chetnik battalion that cooperated in Operation Fliegenfänger, would attack east towards Šekovići and the 28th Regiment would push south. A detached battalion of 7th SS Division would act as a blocking force driving north. Hampel was apparently unhappy with the performance of the new commander of the 27th Regiment (SS-Obersturmbannführer Hermann Peter) and put the divisional chief of staff, SS-Sturmbannführer Erich Braun, in charge of the 27th Regiment.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Heiderose
On 17 July, the operation began. Fierce resistance was immediately encountered by the 28th Regiment, while the 27th Regiment climbed the heights to Udrč before dusk without serious opposition. Early on 18 July, the Chetniks attacked from Matkovac towards Šekovići. The 27th Regiment reached Bačkovac and seized the high ground south of Šekovići on 19 July 1944. The 28th Regiment forced the Partisan 36th Vojvodina Division back. The battalion from 7th SS Division encountered serious resistance around Vlasenica but pushed through. On 19 July, the 28th Regiment drove north towards Gornje Petrovice to attack the Partisan 12th Corps at Živinice. The reconnaissance battalion of 7th SS Division pushed in from Vareš as a blocking force to stop the Partisans from withdrawing via Kladanj.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Heiderose
The Partisans then committed the 16th Vojvodina Division to assist the 36th Vojvodina Division that had borne the brunt of Operation Heiderose to this point. On 20 July, both divisions attacked the 27th Regiment, which counterattacked the following day after the Partisans were rebuffed with heavy casualties. On 23 July, the Partisans began to withdraw south out of the area. The division began to search for the hidden Partisan bases that German intelligence had indicated were located there. After a day of searching, the division uncovered more than ten Partisan bases, which the cooperating Chetniks began to clear despite having shown little interest in actually fighting the Partisans in previous days.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Heiderose
Operation Heiderose was a significant success for the division, inflicting serious losses on the Partisans. More than 900 Partisans were killed and a large amount of equipment was captured: one anti-tank gun, two mortars, 22 machine guns, over 800 rifles and nearly 500,000 rounds of small arms ammunition. The division suffered 24 killed and over 150 wounded. Communist sources hold that the Partisans suffered serious losses, with the 12th Corps alone having 250 dead, wounded and missing. However, Partisan reports estimate that German losses were significantly larger than their own. Erich Braun was recommended for the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross but the recommendation was not supported, apparently due to disagreements between the divisional staff and Phleps that had occurred during the division's formation.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Hackfleisch
In the first week of August 1944, the Second Panzer Army was finally ready to move to thwart the Partisan advance from Bosnia into Serbia, originally planned as Operation Rose. Renamed Operation Rübezahl (Mountain Spirit), the revamped plan required the 7th and 13th SS Divisions to form the Bosnian phase of the operation, named Operation Hackfleisch (Minced Meat). Hackfleisch aimed to drive out the Partisans occupying the area between the towns of Kladanj, Vlasenica, Sokolac and Olovo, south of the security zone. The overall plan involved columns that were to force the Partisans eastwards into the pincers of the other units, thereby destroying them.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Hackfleisch
The 27th Regiment became locked in fierce fighting with the Partisan 27th East Bosnia Division and 38th Bosnia Division, which had launched an offensive near Vlasenica. The inability of the 27th Regiment to push forward meant that the plan to encircle the Partisan force was not achieved and the Partisans escaped by crossing the Vlasenica–Han Pijesak road to the east. Other Partisan forces withdrew in the direction of Goražde.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Hackfleisch
As far as the Germans were concerned, Operation Hackfleisch was a moderate success, with 227 Partisans killed and over 50 prisoners taken. It delayed, but did not prevent, the Partisans' advance into Serbia. In order to allow the 7th SS Division to pursue Partisan forces withdrawing towards central Bosnia, both I/28 and III/28 were placed under the command of that division for the period of 8–17 August 1944. During the remainder of August 1944, the rump of the division fought hard to keep the Partisans out of the security zone.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Hackfleisch
The Partisan 11th Krajina Division and 38th Bosnia Division quickly infiltrated into the southern part of the security zone and the 27th East Bosnia Division crossed into the area north-west of Srebrenica and drove towards Bratunac. After a series of rapid redeployments and battalion and regimental attacks, the division scattered the 11th Krajina Division and mauled the 27th East Bosnia Division.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Anti-Partisan operations, June–August 1944, Operation Hackfleisch
The division had by now been fighting almost continuously throughout the summer. According to divisional commander Hampel, it had been exhausted even before Operation Hackfleisch began. The cumulative effect of this exhaustion, the deteriorating situation that the Germans faced on all fronts and rumours probably spread among members by the Partisans and Ustaše, was that the division began to disintegrate in early September 1944.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Last battles against the Partisans
In early September 1944, the division returned north to the security zone, basing the infantry battalions in the villages of Kurukaja, Vukovije (south of Foča), Osmaci and Srebrnik. Almost immediately, the Partisan 3rd Corps commenced an offensive, attacking II/28 at Srebrnik. It held on despite being pressed hard during two days of fighting against the 11th Krajina Division. By the end of the first week in September, divisional supply columns were being attacked by Chetniks, sensing German weakness and looking for arms and supplies. Three members of the division were killed in these attacks.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Last battles against the Partisans
Over the same week, the Allies conducted Operation Ratweek throughout the Balkans, which involved Allied air power pounding Axis troop concentrations and key infrastructure in order to impede the German withdrawal from Greece. The local effect was to complicate the division's logistics through destruction of the Sarajevo-Brod railway and mass desertions of NDH troops tasked with securing supply lines.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), Last battles against the Partisans
On 8 September, II/27 was assaulted unsuccessfully by the Partisans at Matkovac. After the first week of September, most of the division's fighting power was shifted to the western boundary of the security zone to meet Partisan incursions. The division succeeded in dislodging Partisan units from Slatna and Međeđa and allied Chetniks captured Skurgić. After relief by NDH forces, the division's fighting regiments withdrew to Brčko for rest and refit. As a result of the shift to the western area of the security zone, the zone's southern area was quickly overrun by Partisan forces. Zvornik and Tuzla had fallen by mid-September.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), August 1944 – May 1945
On 17 August 1944, Tito offered a general amnesty and many in the division took advantage of this opportunity. During the first three weeks of September, while hard fighting continued, over 2,000 Bosnians deserted, many taking their weapons with them. They went home, joined the Green Cadres militia or went over to the Ustaše. Many defected to the Partisans, with over 700 having joined the Partisan 3rd Corps by early October.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), August 1944 – May 1945
Due to high rates of desertion from 13th SS Division, Sauberzweig proposed to disarm the Bosnians in both 13th SS Division and 23rd SS Division, but Himmler instead opted to transport the 2,000 Bosnians of 23rd SS Division from Hungary to Bosnia and re-organise the remaining troops of both divisions there, with key support units from 13th SS Division centralised under IX SS Mountain Corps, which would also move to Bosnia from Hungary.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), August 1944 – May 1945
In the early morning of 3 October 1944, the Partisan 28th Slavonia Division assaulted a squadron of the reconnaissance battalion at Janja close to the Drina on the eastern boundary of the security zone. As they broke out of the encirclement to the north, the rest of the reconnaissance battalion drove south from Bijeljina and stopped the Partisan advance at heavy cost. Rushing towards Janja from the east, III/27 came into contact with Partisans around Modran, reaching the Janja garrison at 10 pm that night and received artillery reinforcement by 3/AR 13 during the night.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), August 1944 – May 1945
At dawn the following day, an additional four Partisan brigades attacked the garrison in Janja, with fighting continuing throughout the day before the Partisans withdrew to the south. Jagdkommandos were sent after the fleeing enemy but were not able to inflict significant losses on them as they had already crossed the Drina into the German-occupied territory of Serbia. Following this battle, Army Group F concluded that the division's overall combat value was minimal.


13th Waffen Mountain Division of the SS Handschar (1st Croatian), August 1944 – May 1945
A few days later, the 9th Company of the 28th Regiment (9/28) displayed what could still be achieved by the Bosnians under determined leadership when Leutnant Hans König ambushed the Partisan 17th Majevica Brigade near Vukosavci, killing at least 67 and capturing orders for future operations. König was awarded the German Cross in Gold for his fanatical leadership.