Španovica

Location of Španovica in Croatia

The village of Španovica (pronounced Shpanovitza) is located on the main road Pakrac to Požega, south of the Papuk mountain in western Slavonia, Croatia. It is administratively part of the city of Pakrac and its population is 31 (census 2001).^[1]

History

The village was established in 1865. Inhabited mostly by immigrants from Gorski Kotar, the town got its name "Španovica" from the title of earl's superintendent - “Span”. According to the 1931 census, Španovica was populated by 1,300 people (about 297 households), mostly Croatian.

On 5th and 6 October 1942, Španovica was attacked by Communist Partisan forces with the support of the Serb population of the surrounding villages. This attack was justified by the existence of an Ustashi camp in Španovica, whose members mainly came from Bosnia and Herzegovina, and had committed a number of exactions against the local Serb population. About 140 persons, including women, children and elderly lost their lives during these 2 days, the remaining population being expelled. The entire settlement was burnt to ashes during the period from 1942 to 1946, including the church and graveyard, all properties were confiscated.

Španovica was renamed Novo Selo in 1948, a limited number of the houses were rebuilt and a Serb population was settled.

In late 1991, the village was renamed back to Španovica but was controlled by the forces of the self-proclaimed Republic of Serbian Krajina up until mid-1995.

The graveyard of Španovica has two monuments - one is engraved with the names of 398 people from Španovica who were killed or disappeared during and after the Second World War. More than 2/3 of them were civilians, and all of them were Croats. The second monument is a mass grave for 70 inhabitants of Španovica, civilians found on the place of killing after the partisan’s attack on 5th and 6 October 1942. The bodies of 41 men that were taken in to the forest and executed there were never found.

References

Coordinates: 45°28′N 17°18′E / 45.467°N 17.300°E / 45.467; 17.300