Marijan Varešanin

Marijan Varešanin von Varesch (1 February 1847 – 22 April 1917) was a Croatian nobleman and general in the Habsburg monarchy imperial army service. He was the governor of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 1909 to 1911.

Baron
Marijan Varešanin
7th Governor of Bosnia and Herzegovina
In office
7 March 1909 – 10 May 1911
Appointed byFranz Joseph I of Austria
Preceded byAnton von Winzor
Succeeded byOskar Potiorek
Personal details
Born(1847-02-01)1 February 1847
Gunja, Kingdom of Slavonia, Austrian Empire
Died22 April 1917(1917-04-22) (aged 70)
Vienna, Austria-Hungary
NationalityCroat[1]
Alma materTheresian Military Academy
Kreigsschule
ProfessionSoldier
Military service
Allegiance Austrian Empire
(until 1867)
 Austria-Hungary
(1867–1911)
Branch/serviceAustro-Hungarian Army
Years of service1866–1911
RankGeneral der Infanterie
Battles/warsWorld War I

Life

Varešanin was born in Gunja in Slavonia (now Croatia) and was the son of a military officer. He attended cadet school in Rijeka and later joined Theresian Military Academy in Wiener Neustadt. On 19 August 1866, he earned the rank of lieutenant of an infantry regiment. Between 1869 and 1871, he attended Kriegsschule in Vienna and graduated with honours.

On 7 March 1909, he was named as commander of the 15th Corps stationed in Sarajevo and as governor of Bosnia and Herzegovina. On 29 July, he was named as chief inspector of military troops. Soon, the command of the 15th Corps was handed over to Moritz von Auffenberg. However, Varešanin remained the governor of Bosnia and Herzegovina and so was targeted by a lone Bosnia youth after the Austro-Hungarian annexation of Bosnia. In 1910 he was titled baron.[2]

On 10 June 1910 an assassination attempt was made on him by Bogdan Žerajić, who fired five bullets from a revolver on Varešanin and killed himself with the sixth.[3]

The assassination attempt served as inspiration for Gavrilo Princip, who visited Žerajić's grave where he promised to take revenge. He did so by killing Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo on 28 June 1914.[4]

After the assassination attempt, Varešanin started to think about retiring. On 10 May 1911, his request for dismissal as governor was accepted, and he was replaced by Oskar Potiorek. On 10 July, he officially retired, after 45 years of service.

References
Notes
  1. Pederin, Ivan. "Theresianum, počeci njemačko–hrvatskih književnih i kulturnih odnosa i ilirizam". Kolo. Matica hrvatska. Retrieved 29 December 2012.
  2. LZMK Croatian Encyclopedia (26 September 2021). "Varešanin, Marijan". Archived from the original on 2014-02-01.
  3. "North East History | World War I | the Northern Echo".
  4. Albertini 1953, p. 50.
Bibliography
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