Austro-Slovene conflict in Carinthia
The Austro-Slovene conflict in Carinthia was a military engagement that ensued in the aftermath of World War I between forces loyal to the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs and later the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, and forces loyal to the Republic of German-Austria. The main theater of the conflict was the linguistically mixed region in southeastern Carinthia. The conflict was settled by the Treaty of Saint-Germain in 1919, which stipulated that the territorial dispute be resolved by a plebiscite.
| Austro-Slovene conflict in Carinthia | |||||||||
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| Part of the aftermath of World War I and the creation of Yugoslavia | |||||||||
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| Belligerents | |||||||||
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State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs
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After unification with Kingdom of Serbia on 1 December 1918:
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After 13 February ceasefire: Army of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes |
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| Commanders and leaders | |||||||||
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Rudolf Maister Franjo Malgaj † Alfred Lavrič After April German-Austrian counter-offensive also: Vladimir Uzorinac Ljubomir Marić Dobrosav Milenkov Sava Tripkov |
Arthur Lemisch Ludwig Hülgerth Hans Steinacher | ||||||||
| Units involved | |||||||||
| "Green Guard" (Schutzwehr) | ||||||||
| Strength | |||||||||
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4,000 fighters | Unknown | ||||||||
| Casualties and losses | |||||||||
| 150 killed |
200–270 killed 800 wounded | ||||||||
Many Slovene-speaking people were in favor of joining the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Yugoslavia), while the German speaking people and also a large part of Slovenes were loyal to the newly proclaimed Republic of German Austria (Deutsch-Österreich). The disputed territory was earlier on a part of the Duchy of Carinthia within the Holy Roman Empire from year 976, and had belonged to the Habsburg monarchy since year 1335. At the centre of conflict was the position of the border that separated the two new states. In German-language historiography, the conflict is known as the Kärntner Abwehrkampf ("Carinthian defensive struggle"), while in Slovene-language historiography, the conflict is known as the Boj za severno mejo ("Struggle for the northern border").