The Croatian Armed Forces united the Croatian Home Guard and the Ustaše Militia in the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) for around five months from 1944 to 1945. It was established by the fascist Ustaše regime of Ante Pavelić in the NDH an Axis puppet state in Yugoslavia during World War II.
The Croatian Armed Forces was reorganized in November 1944 to combine the units of the Ustaše and Domobrani into eighteen divisions, comprising 13 infantry, two mountain, two assault and one replacement Croatian divisions, each with its own organic artillery and other support units. There were also several armoured units, equipped in late 1944 with 20 Panzer IIIN and 15 Panzer IVF and H medium tanks. From early 1945, the Croatian divisions were allocated to various German corps and by March 1945 were holding the Southern Front. Securing the rear areas were some 32,000 men of the Croatian Gendarmerie, organised into 5 Police Volunteer Regiments plus 15 independent battalions, equipped with standard light infantry weapons, including mortars.
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