By: HISTORY.com Editors

1941

Croatia declares independence

Published: November 05, 2009Last Updated: May 28, 2025

On April 10, 1941, the German and Italian invaders of Yugoslavia set up the Independent State of Croatia (also including Bosnia and Herzegovina) and place nationalist leader Ante Pavelic’s Ustase, pro-fascist insurgents, in control of what is no more than a puppet Axis regime.

The Ustase began a relentless persecution of Serbs, Jews, Gypsies and antifascist Croats. As many as 350,000 to 450,000 victims were massacred, and the Jasenovac concentration camp would become infamous as a slaughterhouse.

Croatia’s Serbs gave sporadic resistance, but it was the communist partisans, led by Josip Broz Tito (a Croat himself), who provided antifascist leadership. By 1944, most of Croatia—apart from the main cities—was liberated from Axis forces, and Croats joined partisan ranks in large numbers. As the war neared its end, however, many Croats, especially those who had been involved with the Ustase regime or who had opposed the communists, sought refugee status with the Allies. But British commanders handed them over to the partisans, who slaughtered tens of thousands, including civilians, on forced marches and in death camps.

Timeline

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1815

Indonesian volcano erupts, killing more than 100,000

On April 10, the most powerful volcanic eruption in human history begins in earnest when Indonesia’s Tambora volcano sends ash 20 miles into the atmosphere and boiling liquified rock starts streaming down its slopes. Its “cacophony of explosions” could be heard hundreds of miles away and, within hours, nearby villages ceased to exist, forests were […]

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1834

Arson uncovers torture chamber in mansion of New Orleans enslaver

On April 10, 1834, a fire at the LaLaurie mansion in New Orleans, Louisiana, leads to the discovery of a torture chamber where enslaved workers are routinely brutalized by Delphine LaLaurie. Rescuers found a 70-year-old black woman trapped in the kitchen during the fire because she was chained up while LaLaurie was busy saving her […]

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1849

Safety pin is patented, rights sold for just $400

On April 10, 1849, Walter Hunt—a mechanic and independent inventor from New York—patents his metal invention with a spring called the safety pin. Although later businessmen would make a fortune selling the ubiquitous devices, Hunt sells rights to it for just $400 and never earns anything else. Born on July 29, 1796, in Martinsburg, New […]

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1865

After surrendering to Union, General Lee gives final address to troops

One day after surrendering to Union General Ulysses S. Grant, Confederate General Robert E. Lee addresses his army for the last time. “After four years of arduous service, marked by unsurpassed courage and fortitude, the Army of Northern Virginia has been compelled to yield to overwhelming numbers and resources. I need not tell the brave […]

1866

ASPCA is founded

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) is founded in New York City by philanthropist and diplomat Henry Bergh.

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1919

Revolutionary leader Emiliano Zapata assassinated in Mexico

Emiliano Zapata, a leader of peasants and Indigenous people during the Mexican Revolution, is ambushed and shot to death in Morelos by government forces. Born a peasant in 1879, Zapata was forced into the Mexican army in 1908 following his attempt to recover village lands taken over by a rancher. After the revolution began in […]

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1942

Bataan Death March begins

The day after the surrender of the main Philippine island of Luzon to the Japanese, the 75,000 Filipino and American troops captured on the Bataan Peninsula begin a forced march to a prison camp near Cabanatuan. During this infamous trek, known as the “Bataan Death March,” the prisoners were forced to march 85 miles in […]

1:34m read

1953

First color 3-D film opens

On April 10, 1953, the horror film The House of Wax, starring Vincent Price, opens at New York’s Paramount Theater. Released by Warner Brothers, it was the first movie from a major motion-picture studio to be shot using the three-dimensional, or stereoscopic, film process and one of the first horror films to be shot in […]

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1961

South African Gary Player becomes first international Masters champion

On April 10, 1961, Gary Player, a 25-year-old South African, beats defending champion Arnold Palmer and amateur Charles Coe by a stroke to become the first international champion at the Masters. Palmer double-bogeys the 18th hole at Augusta National to give Player the win. As part of golf’s “Big Three” with Palmer and Jack Nicklaus, […]

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1963

Atomic submarine USS Thresher sinks in the Atlantic, killing all on board

On April 10, 1963, the USS Thresher, an atomic submarine, sinks in the Atlantic Ocean, killing the entire crew. One hundred and twenty-nine sailors and civilians were lost when the sub unexpectedly plunged to the sea floor roughly 300 miles off the coast of New England. The Thresher was launched on July 9, 1960, from […]

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1970

Paul McCartney announces his break from the Beatles

On April 10, 1970, when promoting the release of his forthcoming solo album, Paul McCartney announces that he is taking a break from the Beatles, the legendary rock band he had been a part of for a decade. It wasn’t that much of a surprise. The Beatles spent the better part of three years breaking […]

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1971

U.S. table tennis team visits communist China

The U.S. table tennis team begins a weeklong visit to the People’s Republic of China (PRC) at the invitation of China’s communist government. The well-publicized trip was part of the PRC’s attempt to build closer diplomatic relations with the United States, and was the beginning of what some pundits in the United States referred to […]

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1975

Lee Elder becomes first Black golfer to play in Masters

On April 10, 1975, 41-year-old Lee Elder becomes the first Black golfer to play in the Masters, considered the most prestigious event in the sport. Elder shoots 37 on the front and back nine for a 74 at the Augusta (Georgia) National Golf Club and trails leader Bobby Nichols by seven strokes. “I didn’t have […]

1:36m read

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Citation Information

Article Title: Croatia declares independence
Author: HISTORY.com Editors
Website Name: History
URL: https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/april-10/croatia-declares-independence

Date Accessed: October 21, 2026
Publisher: A&E Television Networks
Last Updated: May 28, 2025
Original Published Date: November 05, 2009

Croatia declares independence

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