Marking the 80th anniversary of the enthronement, we're bringing to light a lesser known episode from Croatian history, about an Italian Duke who became the King of Croatia during the darkness of the Second World War. A story of how Aimone Tomislav II became the King of the Independent State of Croatia.
Introduction
To understand how the very idea of crowning a new Croatian dynasty came to be, and more specifically, how the Independent State of Croatia got its King, we need to return to the year 1918 at a time when the the pro-monarchist Rightist (Pravaški) politicians such as the Dr Aleksandar Horvat, Dr Fran Milobar, Dr Ivo Frank and many others were incarcerated by the National Council and persecuted by the newly formed Kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (Yugoslavia). The majority of monarchists and other anti-Yugoslav politicians spent the first year after the creation of the new State in jail (most often interned and jailed during 1919 & 1920) or in emigration. Some like the last Governor of Bosnia & Herzegovina, Baron Stjepan Sarkotić, were put through a political process and exiled, while others like the first Croatian Field-Marshal Svetozar Baron Boroević were stripped of all possessions and then exiled. Many such events lead to the formation of the first truly Croatian emigrant political movement, the Croatian Committee which operated primarily in the Interbellum Austria and Hungary. At this time they still hoped of bringing down Yugoslavia and renewing the Kingdom of Croatia whose unity was proclaimed in the last days of October 1918 by Blessed Emperor and King Charles IV. Under these political circumstances various interpersonal connections were formed and so in 1923 the representative of the Hungarian government Dr Karoly Dragutin Unkelhäusser, the last legitimate Ban of Croatia, entered into secret negotiations with Stjepan Radić (leader of the Croatian Peasent Party) about the restoration of the Kingdom of Croatia whose rise against Yugoslavia would be supported by Hungary and Austria. Because of these negotiations Stjepan Radić was imprisoned in 1925 in a mockup political process.
Leaders of the Croatian CommitteeWith the murder of Radić and other Croatian representatives in the parliament of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in 1928 there was a wave of radicalization among Croatian politicians, where, for the first time, the political spotlight turned to Ante Pavelić, a lawyer and nationalist politician. Although he was tutored as a lawyer intern in the office of the the rightist monarchist politician Dr Aleksandar Horvat, he did not share his ideals such as Catholicism, legitimacy and monarchism, and was the author of the new Republican rigtist program (Republikanski program HSP-a) which he created in 1919. Emigrating after the murder of the Croatian representatives, he contacted the exiled intellectual, political and military elite in the Croatian Committee. Because of the belief that Yugoslavia can be brought down only through military or revolutionary means monarchists and republicans joined the newly formed organization called UHRO (Ustasha - Croatian revolutionary movement) lead by Ante Pavelić. Many believed the promises of Pavelić that his fight is only against Yugoslavia. Because of that, in their beginnings Ustasha even had the support of various groups including communists, which manifested in events like the Velebit Uprising of 1932, which speaks about its original ideological plurality and not its homogeneity. This gradually changed due to the idealization of the Italian fascist movement and its ideology by Pavelić, as well as his strong connections with the Kingdom of Italy which culminated with the events described by this article. One of the first people from the political circle of Pavelić who warned about the dangers of fascism and his idealization of the same was Dr Ivo Frank, the leader of the Croatian Committee, a rightist politician and a monarchist, who told the then still young Eugen Kvaternik to distance himself from Pavelić because:
“...fascism is not for Croats!”
Despite all of the above, Pavelić built a circle of loyal Ustasha around himself. Sharing his fascist views, they were often called the Italian circle (two other important circles also existed, the so-called Black-Yellow circle of older monarchists and Austro-Hungarian officers, and the German pro-nazi circle led by Dr Mile Budak). Pavelić took the framework of earlier negotiations of the Croatian Committee in international discussions, primarily with kingdoms of Italy and Hungary (both monarchies), and presented himself as a supporter of the Kingdom of Croatia open to the idea of making a personal unions with either of these states. A good example of this views are his dealings with the Italian minister of foreign affairs Count Galeazzo Ciano who made a deal with Pavelić and the Hungarian ambassador after the fall of Austria in 1938, that if Croatia was liberated it would rejoin Hungary in a personal union and on whose throne Duke Amedeo Savoya-Aosta would be enthroned. Only a few people were aware of these deals and those that knew (such as Count Bombelles) were often the targets of assassination attempts and later Ustasha persecution.
Proclamation on the creation of the Independent State of Croatia on the 10th April 1941Creation of the Independent State of Croatia
After the Belgrade coup d'état of 1941 and the beginning of the April War with the Axis powers under the direction of the German Reich, it was clear to the Axis that the Serbs were no longer a loyal ally in Southeastern Europe. At the same time the negotiations with Vlatko Maček and the Croatian Peasant Party failed after which they turned to the Ustasha who were interned in Italy. Their rise to power was organized and a radio-station given for usage, contacting the Homeland branch of the Ustasha so that they could jointly coordinate with the Axis powers. Entering Zagreb on the 10th April 1941, Slavko Kvaternik, the former Austro-Hungarian officer and the leader of the homeland branch of the Ustasha movement in the country proclaimed the creation of the Independent State of Croatia. Already within the the first few months her territory would be defined and its form of government decided. On 15th May 1941 a law was passed concerning the crown of Zvonimir which tied the sovereignty of the state to the crown, making Croatia a de jure Kingdom. The law also physically defined the design of the crown. With this law all the prerequisites for uplifting a new dynasty to the throne of the Kingdom were laid down. The Independent State of Croatia, although officially a Kingdom, remained a dictatorship under Pavelić, under whom many crimes were committed, especially through the legalization and institutional implementation of ethnic and political repression. The Independent State of Croatia ceased to exist in May 1945 when a major part of Pavelić's government fled the country and left room for the arrival of the socialist Yugoslav rule and the continuation of the dictatorship under a different ideological regime. It is interesting that in the preamble of modern Croatia, although she claims historic succession as her legal foundation, it is noted that the country bears no connection to the Independent State of Croatia.
Law of the crown of ZvonimirReturning to the main topic, the preparations to send a large Croatian delegation to Rome started soon. This delegation was composed of the representatives of the state and all classes (commoners, religious leaders and other representatives) led by Ante Pavelić as the head of the government. After the delegation arrived in Rome, two separate and seemingly unconnected events took place, both of which bore fruit as deals made by Pavelić and Count Ciano. As very few people knew about these deals, while travelling on train from Trieste to Rome, Slavko Kvaternik asked Pavelić if there had been any arrangements which he was forced to accept, to which Pavelić replied that there were not. Kvaternik and other members of the delegation were astonished by the signing of the Treaties of Rome, as they had not expected to cede such a large proportion of Croatian territory. It has to be stressed though that the original Italian territorial claims were not only much larger but demanded all the territory up to the town of Knin, and propagated the idea of a personal union of Croatia and Italy under the House of Savoy similar to the one of Albania and Italy. Upon arriving to Rome the delegation was greeted by euphoric crowds in the streets lined with Croatian and Italian flags all across the city. The reason for this was not (as the newspapers put it) the love towards Croatia, nor the enthronement of a new Croatian King, but exclusively because of the Treaties of Rome in which Pavelić gave large parts of the Dalmatian coast to Italy.
Croatian delegation in Rome, 18th May 1941And so on the 18th May of 1941 in the Quirinal Palace before the high representatives of the Italian government and the ruling family, the Croatian delegation came before the Italian king Victor Emanuel III. Pavelić and Kvaternik read their speeches in which they spoke of establishing Croatia (named Kingdom of Croatia in international treaties) and the Crown of Zvonimir. The peak of the enthronement was the moment when the Poglavnik of the Kingdom of Croatia (Independent State of Croatia) Ante Pavelić asked the Italian king Victor Emanuel III to designate a member of his family to become the new Croatian king. Even though this person was supposed to be duke Amedeo, due to being in British captivity (where he died in 1942), duke Aimone Savoy-Aosta was chosen instead.
Signing the Treaties of Rome, Pavelić and Mussolini sign a map with a new territorial demarcation according to which a large part of Dalmatia belongs to ItalyCroats had a good opinion of the House of Savoy-Aosta (especially because of Eugen of Savoy) and considered the family honorable and the dynasty worthy of the Croatian throne. In chosing them Pavelić ignored old Croatian laws and traditions like the Pragmatic Sanction which tied Croatia to the House of Habsburg-Lothringen before God. But by exploiting their absence he opened a legal space to introduce a new dynasty. Duke Aimone was born in Turin 9th March 1900 and was a particularly tall and handsome man who served as a high-ranking officer in the Italian Royal Navy. He was an expert mountain-climber and a geographer married to Princess Irene, the daughter of the Greek King Constantine I. It is interesting that through her, the newly created Croatian dynasty was related to the hated House of Karađorđević. In the beginning Duke Aimone was against his designation as the Croatian king, but after his enthronement he accepted his new duty and devoted himself fully to Croatian interests.
Upper photo: Royal and Church delegation with Duke Aimone
Lowwer photo: Part of the delegation representing Croatian classesThe moment of enthronement of the Croatian King
After Ante Pavelić called upon king Victor Emanuel III to designate a member of his Royal House who would “...accept the Crown of Zvonimir as king of the Independent State of Croatia and the founder of the Croatian dynasty” he invoked the name of Duke Aimone to step forward, and to personally greet every member of the delegation, from the members of government to religious leaders and all the way to the common people. Duke Aimone bowed his head to king Victor Emanuel III and Poglavnik Ante Pavelić, after which he gave a speech reciting the royal oath through which he took his ruling name “Tomislav II.”. At this moment the delegation gave him the royal insignia composed of the Croatian crown, sceptre, sword, royal standard etc. With the agreements of Pavelić and Victor Emanuel III the new Croatian dynasty Savoy-Aosta was formed. As a proof of this new state of afairs, the Italian heir to the throne, Prince of Piedmont, gave to his cousin, now the Croatian King, the front place in the royal chariot (which was usually occupied by him) as a sign of recognition of his new authority. After this the new Croatian King and Queen went to their palace, while Pavelić and his political delegation went to the Palace of Venice, where they signed the Treaties of Rome about which the Croatian people would soon learn.
Pavelić gives a speech and invites the Italian King Victor Emmanuel III to appoint a family member as the new Croatian king (Aimone is to the right of the King)
Aimone takes the royal oath before Poglavnik Ante Pavelić and King Viktor Emanuel III, taking the regal name Tomislav IIRoyal duty and his reign
Due to the Croatian law regarding the sovereignty of the crown, the newly appointed King Aimone Tomislav II could not resume his former Italian duties, and so on 19th May the newspapers notified the public that he had left his position as an officer in the Italian Royal Navy. He took his new position seriously and established the Croatian Royal Table with its headquarters in Florence and Rome. He read various documents, researched the conditions in Croatia and learned the Croatian language. For his Croatian Aide-de-camp he appointed Count Julije Česnegić-Milvanski, a member of an old Croatian noble family and a Croatian Domobran Colonel. He tried to better the relationships of the Holy See and Pavelić's government and was often a mediator between their relations. Furthermore, a thesis exists, stating that he mediated the talks between Croatia and the Allies. What he is most remembered for and is often buried for political reasons, is his disapproval of the Italian politics towards Dalmatia, which he considered a Croatian land and for whose return to Croatia he made various efforts. Namely, King Aimone Tomislav II wanted to bring back Dalmatia to Croatia as a sort of a coronation gift, like a royal apple/orb. His strong opinions on Dalmatia were witnessed by Slavko Kvaternik and other delegates of the Croatian Domobran envoys which visited him multiple times during the three years of his reign, which was one of his conditions as the new King-Designate.
Opening of the session of the Croatian State Parliament in 1942, during several sessions, the Parliament confirmed all previous laws, including the one on the Crown of ZvonimirKing Aimone Tomislav II made various demands to Pavelić such as the separation of politics and army i. e. he represented the Domobran army as being a separate institution to the Ustasha. He also asked for the opening of the Croatian parliament (Sabor) and to be recognized by it, as he considered the Parliament the only legitimate representative of the will of the Croatian people. Even though the Croatian State Parliament was opened for only several sessions in 1942, it confirmed previous decisions and laws, including the law regarding the crown of Zvonimir. Even though it had no legal freedom, but rather a symbolic function of confirming laws, the Parliament was soon shut down anyways because of various disagreements with the politics of Ante Pavelić. In both cases the Parliament confirmed the Laws of the Crown of Zvonimir, making Croatia a de jure monarchy and Aimone Tomislav II the last historic person to hold the title King of Croatia. The Ustasha considered Aimone Tomislav II not trustworthy, and thought that his efforts to reunite Dalmatia with Croatia was harmful to their relations with the Italian fascists with whom they had strong connections. At the same time, the Italian fascists were furious with him because they had hoped that Aimone Tomislav II would become their puppet-king and not lead a pro-Croatian and sovereign politic. The enthusiasm for the new Croatian king was certainly not hidden by the numerous high-ranking Domobran officers who visited him during their official and unnofficial visits to Rome and Florence, surprised by his seriousness and dedication to protecting Croatian interests. So, from the political point of view, he became an unexpected bright spot for defending the interests of Croatian Dalmatia stuck between the agreements of the two fascist governments. This led Ustasha to deliberately postpone his coronation, which was to take place in the Field of Duvno (near Tomislavgrad) in 1942. Official communication of Aimone Tomislav II with the government was soon cut to once-a-year congratulations to the King on the anniversary of his enthronement by Pavelić.
Congratulation from Ante Pavelić to King Aimone Tomislav II and Queen Irene on the occasion of the anniversary of the enthronement, 1942Although he wielded only symbolic power, during his reign he ennobled almost 50 people and awarded several dynastic orders. Many have written that during his reign he never set foot in Croatia which is a wrong statement. In fact he did visit Croatia! It is not known widely that he did have a few visits, one of which was the major one was to the capital city of Zagreb where he arrived incognito followed by his Aide-de-camp, to see the situation in Croatia in person. During this visit, it was his intention to gauge people's support for the Ustasha government which Pavelić represented, as well as confirm various reports of war crimes comitted by Pavelić's regime. After the fall of Italy in 1943, King Victor Emmanuel III asked him as ruler of a warring party in Italy to abdicate or be officially interned, to which King Aimone Tomislav II on 25th July 1943 made a decision to abstain from all his political obligations as a Croatian sovereign. On 12th October 1943, he officially abdicated, transferring all his royal rights and obligations to his newborn son Amedeo Zvonimir, which was witnessed by family members, nobles and the Domobran officers present at the same event.
King Aimone Tomislav II (the tallest) with the delegation and his Aide-de-camp (Second from the left in Croatian uniform) during the visit to the International exhibition in Milan, 1942.Life after the abdication
After his abdication, he continued his short career in the navy, but was soon fired after criticizing the military courts and the way they tried generals from the war. Already in 1946, after the referendum that abolished the monarchy in Italy, he was seen as undesirable by the new Republic, although the implementation of the House of Savoy's exile did not apply to him since he was Croatian king i. e. belonged to a separate lineage. But due to frequent conflicts, especially land problems with members of the socialist and communist authorities (they came to power in full in the 1948 coalition), which came into force in 1947 and led by Justice Minister Palmiro Togliatti, he decided to leave the country. He moved to Argentina where he continued to live in Buenos Aires until his death on January 29, 1948.
Croatian King Aimone Tomislav II and Queen IreneOfficial title
Aimone Tomislav II bore the title: King of Croatia, Prince of Bosnia & Herzegovina, Duke of Dalmatia, Tuzla and Knin and from 1942 Duke of Aosta
Legitimacy and inheritance?
Although he became historically the last Croatian Monarch to bear the title of King of Croatia, and who was enthroned and confirmed by the Parliament and the representatives of the classes required by the Croatian coronation tradition. He certainly did not have the legitimacy enjoyed by the Habsburg-Lothringen dynasty, so he is often refered to in Croatian history as a King-Designate or the Last historical king, which would distinguish him from Blessed King Charles IV (Karlo IV) who was the last legitimate Croatian king. Despite all the above, the process of enthronement is valid and enters Croatian history as a ruling house, never in the rank of the Habsburg-Lothringen and certainly with very few people who would give it support. His son Amedeo Zvonimir was born as a Croatian Prince in 1943, in the past he often titled and presented himself that way, while in the last decades he has denied this due to his claims to the Italian throne and dynastic orders. Prince Amedeo Zvonimir married Princess Claudia of Orleans, with whom he has three children: Princess Bianca and Malfada, and his son Aimone, who in turn has three children, Umberto, Amedeo and Isabella.The marriage of Prince Amadeo Zvonimir with Princess Claudia was declared invalid by the Church in 1987. He also married the same year Marquise Silvia Paternò of Spedalotta with whom he has no children. Prince Amedeo Zvonimir also has one child born out of wedlock, Ginevra Maria, born in 2006, whom he conceived in an affair with Kyara van Ellinkhuizen when he was 63 years old.
Whole genealogy of the Croatian Savoy-Aosta Royal familySince 2006, Amedeo Zvonimir has openly aspired to the Italian throne, i.e. the title of Duke of Savoy, thus entering into direct conflict with the Italian Crown Prince Vittorio Emanuel, Duke of Savoy and the son of the last Italian King Umberto II. Although few organizations acknowledged his candidacy, the Italian court ruled that he had no right to use the surname and title Duke of Savoy against his cousin, also the most important dynastic institutions such as the Order of St Lazarus and Maurice do not acknowledge his claim. From a legalistic point of view, the Savoy-Aosta family has no right of claim to the Italian throne because his father, Aimone Tomislav II created a new Croatian dynasty, which is tied to the laws and tradition of Zvonimir's crown that guarantees exclusive sovereignty which means that the family can not claim other thrones nor could the crown of Zvonimir be shared by a person which has claim or rules other countries due to its right of sovereignty. The same rights were transferred from Arimone Tomislav II to his son and the contemporary head of the dynasty Amedeo Zvonimir in 1943. It should be noted that Savoy-Aosta are still bound by the oaths they have taken. And for the future, the question of the Croatian crown, scepter, sword and standard is left open, which were handed over by the Croatian delegation to them on May 18, 1941.
From left to right Amedeo Zvonimir: Amedeo with his son Aimone; Aimone with hiw son in front of a portrait of King Aimone Tomislav IIFor sources of text or images feel free to contact the editors
Croatian Royal Council
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