Franko Winter
Franko Winter (29 March 1897 – 29 March 1944) was a Croatian lawyer and communist of Jewish origin.[1][2] He was the maternal grandfather of Franko Simatović.[3]
Early life and education
Franko Winter was born into a rich Jewish family[1] in Bjelovar. His father was a lawyer and politician Ivan Winter (1868 – 1922). After completed primary school and gymnasium in his hometown, he began studying law in Vienna and earned his doctorate at the Faculty of Law in Zagreb in 1922.[1]
Public and political activity
During his studies he participated in the Yugoslav Democratic Youth League (JDOL). Later he became involved in Marxist and communist youth circles.[1] After returning to Bjelovar, he opened a law practice. He was very active in public and sports life, serving on the boards of the Bjelovar Citizens' Sports Society and the Esperanto Society. He was particularly prominent in the Sokol movement (first Croatian Sokol, then Yugoslav Sokol), where he held positions as secretary, deputy elder, and from 1933 district Sokol elder. He publicly protested the appointment of Crown Prince Peter II Karađorđević as head of the Sokol organization.[1]
Until the mid-1920s he participated to some extent in the activities of the local Jewish community, but later distanced himself, publicly declaring himself an atheist.[1]
From 1934 Winter took part in actions of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (KPJ) and became a member in 1935. He served on the District Committee of the Communist Party of Croatia (KPH) in Bjelovar from 1937 to 1939. In March 1937, a meeting with Josip Broz Tito was held in his house to organize volunteers for the Spanish Civil War.[1]
As a KPJ informant, he joined the Croatian Peasant Party (HSS) and worked to strengthen its left wing in the Bjelovar district.[1]
World War II and death
After the establishment of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH) in 1941, he was arrested on 24 April but later released. He fled to Crikvenica, where he continued working within the left wing of the HSS under the pseudonym "Pajo" and cooperated with the National Liberation Movement (NOP). He was imprisoned for a time in the Danica concentration camp before his release.[1]
In October 1943 he was elected a member of the Anti-Fascist Council for the National Liberation of Croatia (ZAVNOH) at its second session in Plaški. In 1943–1944 he served as secretary of the District People's Liberation Committee in Bjelovar and operated in the Bilogora and Moslavina regions.[1]
On 29 March 1944, while travelling to the third session of ZAVNOH, Winter was killed in a German ambush near Oborovo.[1]
Marriage and family
He married Darinka (Dara) and had a son Franko (born 1926) and a daughter Neda.[2]
Franko Winter was the maternal grandfather of Franko Simatović, the deputy head of Slobodan Milošević's secret service, the infamous DB. Simatović was born to Neda Winter (Franko Winter's daughter) and Pero Simatović, and was named after him.[3]
His son, Franko Winter (1926–1981), was also a prominent figure. He joined the partisans in 1943, graduated in law in 1951, and served as general director of Radio-Television Zagreb from 1972 until his death. He held several high positions in the League of Communists of Croatia.[1]
References
- ↑ 1.00 1.01 1.02 1.03 1.04 1.05 1.06 1.07 1.08 1.09 1.10 1.11 Karaula, Željko (2023). Jews in Bjelovar: from settlement to the Holocaust (in Croatian). Zagreb: Družba „Braća hrvatskog zmaja“. pp. 154–160. ISBN 978-953-6928-43-9. Retrieved 2026-04-07.CS1 maint: Unrecognized language (link) Search this book on
Cite error: Invalid <ref>tag; name ":0" defined multiple times with different content - ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Franko Winter". Jewish Biographical Lexicon. Retrieved 2026-04-07.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 "Personal File of Franko Simatović from the Hague Tribunal" (PDF). Institute for History / ICTY Archive. Retrieved April 07, 2024. Check date values in:
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Sources
- Karaula, Željko (2023). Židovi u Bjelovaru – od doseljavanja do Holokausta. Zagreb: Družba „Braća hrvatskog zmaja“ pp. 154–160. Available online (PDF).
- "Winter, Franko". Židovski biografski leksikon. Leksikografski zavod Miroslav Krleža. Available online.
