Dragiša Nikola Ristić papers, 1941-1980

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Summary

Creators:
Churchill, Winston, 1874-1965, Simović, Dušan, 1882-1962, and Ristić, Dragiša Nikola, 1909-
Abstract:
Correspondence and writings, relating primarily to Yugoslav military operations and diplomacy during World War II, and to postwar Yugoslav émigré affairs. Includes postwar correspondence between D. T. Simović and Winston Churchill, and a book-length study by D. N. Ristić relating to Nadezhda Krupskaya and V. I. Lenin.
Extent:
7 manuscript boxes, 1 painting (5.2 Linear Feet)
Language:
In Serbo-Croatian and English
Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Dragiša N. Ristić Papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Background

Scope and content:

The papers of Dragiša N. Ristić, acquired in increments between 1972 and 2004, document his military career in the Yugoslavian air force, with a special emphasis on his role as a protégé of General Dušan Simović. Simović was one of the leaders of the coup of March 27, 1941, which overthrew the pro-German government in Belgrade. Ristić was an aide-de-camp to General Simović, and as such, was both a participant in and eyewitness to the events surrounding the coup.

In the years following the war, Ristić sought to document the events of this period, with an eye to defending the reputation of his mentor. Having spent the war years in London, Simović returned to Yugoslavia in 1945, and lived in Belgrade until his death in 1962. During the 1950s, Simović maintained a steady correspondence with Ristić, who by then had settled in Monterey, California, and designated him to write his biography. To facilitate this, Simović transferred his wartime diary and manuscript memoir to Ristić, both of which can be found in a separate collection under Simović's name at the Hoover Institution Library & Archives. During that period, Ristić began corresponding with and interviewing many of the surviving key figures from the Yugoslavian government before the coup, including Vladko Maćek, Slobodan Jovanović, Prince Paul, and others.

The Biographical File contains various personal documents, but also includes fairly extensive wartime diaries of Ristić from his period in North America and Egypt. These diaries were written initially in Serbian, but Ristić switched to using English in 1942, when he began studying English at Wayne State University in Detroit. Fragments of a never-completed memoir can also be found in this series.

The Correspondence contains the bulk of the surviving research material for his book on the 1941 coup. It consists of correspondence and interviews primarily from the 1950s, including his extensive correspondence with Simović. The Writings contains various fragmentary works and essays, but also a lengthy unpublished history of the Russian Revolution, a topic that greatly interested Ristić over the years. Also included in this series are theses from his academic career at the University of California, Los Angeles and Western Colorado University, works that also are connected to the history of the 1941 coup. The Subject File and Printed Material contain additional material that he used in his research. The collection also contains an oil Painting depicting General Dušan Simović, by Yugoslavian artist Veljko Stanojevic, which Ristić displayed in his home in Monterey.

Biographical / historical:
Date Event
1909 January 9
Born, Veliko Bonjice, Serbia
1928
Graduated, Belgrade Military Academy, rank of second lieutenant, assigned to Yugoslavian air force
1932
Promoted to first lieutenant, Yugoslavian air force
1935
Instructor, non-commissioned officers school
1936
Promoted to second captain, squadron commander
1936-1938, 1940-1941
Aide-de-camp to General Dušan Simović, commander of Yugoslavian air force
1939
Promoted to first captain
1941 January 23
Accompanied General Dušan Simović to a meeting in Belgrade with Colonel William J. Donovan, Franklin D. Roosevelt's representative in Europe
1941 March 23
Yugoslav Prime Minister Cvetković signed the Tripartite Pact with Nazi Germany
1941 March 27
Took part in the coup led by General Dušan Simović to overthrow the government of Prince Paul and Cvetković. The 17-year-old Peter II was appointed king, and Simović became the new prime minister
1941 April 6
Germans bombarded Belgrade, began invasion of Yugoslavia
1941 April 14
Received assignment to escort King Peter II out of Yugoslavia to safety, and flew him to Athens. Two days later, Simović, Ristić, and the King flew to Alexandria
1941 April-June
In Jerusalem, where Yugoslavian government-in-exile was based until it moved to London
1942 March
Transferred to the Yugoslav military mission in Canada and the United States, and was based variously at Ottawa, Washington, Nashville, and Windsor, Ontario. While in Windsor, enrolled at Wayne State University in Detroit
1943-1945
Transferred to Yugoslavian forces based in Cairo, and while there, enrolled in the American University
1945 May 26
Honorable discharge from the Yugoslavian armed forces, rank of major
1946-1948
Returned to the United States, employed by U.S. Steel Products Company, Los Angeles, and enrolled at University of California, Los Angeles
1950
Graduated, bachelor's degree in political science, University of California, Los Angeles
1951
Employed as instructor of Serbo-Croatian language at the U.S. Army Language School, Presidio of Monterey, California
1953
Graduated, master's degree in political science, University of California, Los Angeles
1955
Studied at the Faculté de Droit, University of Paris, while researching book on the Yugoslavian revolution of 1941
1966
Published Yugoslavia's Revolution of 1941 (Pennsylvania State University Press)
1972-1973
Studied in doctoral program for political science, Western Colorado University
2004
Died, Monterey, California
Acquisition information:
Acquired by the Hoover Institution Library Archives in increments between 1972 and 2004.
Arrangement:

Arranged in six series, Biographical File, Correspondence and Interview Notes, Writings, Subject File, Printed Material, and Painting.

Physical location:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives
Rules or conventions:
Describing Archives: A Content Standard

Access and use

Restrictions:

The collection is open for research; materials must be requested in advance via our reservation system. If there are audiovisual or digital media material in the collection, they must be reformatted before providing access.

Terms of access:

For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Preferred citation:

[Identification of item], Dragiša N. Ristić Papers, [Box no., Folder no. or title], Hoover Institution Library & Archives.

Location of this collection:
Hoover Institution Library & Archives, Stanford University
Stanford, CA 94305-6003, US
Contact:
(650) 723-3563
hooverarchives@stanford.edu
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