Governatorate of Dalmatia
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Governatorate of Dalmatia (Italian: Governatorato di Dalmazia; Croatian/Serbian: Dalmatinski Gubernatorat) were parts of coastal Yugoslavia that were annexed by Italy in April 1941, following the Axis invasion and occupation of that country. Italy previously had a small presence on the Dalmatian coastline after obtaining Zara (present-day Zadar) and some islands (Krk/Cherso, Lošinj/Lussino and Lastovo/Lagosta) after World War I. The occupation lasted until the Italian capitulation of 1943, when the areas were nominally added to the Independent State of Croatia, though outside the cities they were mostly under Partisan control by then.[1] The existence of the territorial entity was not recognized by non-Axis countries, and the area was never officially part of Italy.
Not all of Dalmatia was annexed by Italy, as the German puppet state - the Independent State of Croatia - took some sections of the Dalmatian areas, though the Italian army held control over all of Dalmatia.
Italy divided the Governatorate in three provinces: Zara, Spalato and Cattaro, but never created officially an Italian region with the name "Dalmatia" (waiting for the future peace conference). While the governatorate was not officially a region of Italy, the northern Dalmatian islands of Krk (Veglia) and Rab (Arbe) were administratively united to the Italian province of Fiume/Rijeka and became "legally" areas of the Kingdom of Italy.
In September 1941, Italy's fascist dictator, Mussolini, ordered the military occupation of the entire Dalmatian coast and islands (like Dubrovnik/Ragusa, Vis/Lissa, and Pag/Pago) that belonged to fascist Croatia of Ante Pavelic: he tried to annex those areas to the Governatorate of Dalmatia, but was stopped by the strong opposition of Pavelić, who retained nominal control of those areas.
The northern dalmatian islands of Veglia and Arbe were not added to the Governatorate of Dalmatia, but were added to the italian "Province of Fiume". This province was enlarged with areas of northern coastal Dalmatia to the east of Fiume (Rijeka).
Fascist Italy even occupied Marindol, and other villages that previously belonged to Banovina of Croatia, Milić-Selo, Paunović-Selo, Žunić-Selo, Vukobrati, Vidnjevići and Vrhovci. These villages were anexed to Črnomelj (now Slovenia) , that was part of the italian "Provincia di Lubiana" in 1942, even if the population of those villages was not Slovene but Croat of Orthodox religion.
After the Kingdom of Italy changed sides to the allies in 1943, German forces took over the area. This territory was not given to the fascist Italian Social Republic which was a puppet state of Nazi Germany, but instead completely dissolved. Only Zara remained Italian administered (but under control of the German Army) until the end of 1944.
