The 7th Guards Brigade "Puma" ( Horv. 7. gardijska brigada "Pume" ) is a military unit of the Croatian National Guard (and later the Croatian Army) of the war in Croatia. During the war years she lost 97 killed and more than 500 wounded.
| 7th Guards Brigade (Croatia) | |
|---|---|
 Emblem of the 7th Guards Brigade | |
| Years of existence | December 23, 1992 - July 7, 2003 |
| A country |  Croatia |
| Subordination | Croatian National Guard, Croatian Armed Forces |
| Included in | 2nd Guards Mechanized Brigade , later as part of the Guards Mechanized Brigade |
| Type of | guard troops |
| Number | team |
| Dislocation | Varazdin |
| Nickname | "Cougars" ( Horv. Pume ) |
| Patron | George the Victorious |
| Motto | Always the first ( Latin Semper Primus ) |
| Colors | light brown |
| Participation in |
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| Marks of Excellence | light brown berets |
| Commanders | |
| Famous commanders |
|
Content
History
Battle Path
During the war, residents of Northwest Croatia were recruited into the 7th Guards Brigade. The brigade was considered the most powerful and successful unit of the Croatian army, distinguished itself in a number of battles during the war in Croatia. Participated in battles together with the 4th Guards Brigade for Western Herzegovina, Zagortsy and Klin; these battles predetermined the victory of Croatia in the war. In Bosnia and Herzegovina, the 7th Brigade took Drvar, Egg and Mrkonich Grad, after which it reached Banja Luka, stopping 7 kilometers from the city (it was after this that the Dayton Agreement was hastily concluded) .
Until May 1995, the 7th Brigade jointly operated with the 4th Guards Brigade in the Lebanese direction and Dinard, very rarely defending themselves. An example of her successful military operations was Operation Summer 95: the inspired troops launched an offensive on August 4, 1995 , and on August 5, at 18:00, they took Knin and raised the Croatian flag over the city’s fortress. The 7th Brigade was also the main participant in Operation Mistral in Glamochko-Pol, Mlinishte and Drvara in September 1995, and Operation South in the Shipov and Mrkonich-Grad areas in October 1995. Having reached the line of Malá Maniáč - Bočac, fighters of the 7th brigade joined forces with the Croatian Defense Council and went to Split, from where they returned by sea to Varazdin. Since October 17, 1995, the brigade served in the barracks of Ivan Drashkovich (Varazdin).
The brigade served for 840 days: of these, a total of 35 days she spent in attacks. She occupied 748 km² of the territory of Croatia. At the same time, the brigade was engaged in equipping soldiers with the latest weapons and equipment, as well as training new recruits and rebuilding military and civilian structures. The most accurate assessment of the actions of the 7th brigade in the war was made by the chief of staff Pavao Milyavats, who claimed that they solved any difficult task beyond the strength of other units, even despite the explosive nature of the brigade commander Ivan Corada.
As part of the reorganization of the Croatian Armed Forces, the two guards brigades of the 1st Corps, as well as the 2nd and 7th Guards Brigades, it was decided to combine in a new unit. On July 7, 2003, the brigade was officially disbanded, passing its banners to the new unit, which took the name of the 2nd brigade.
During the years of the Croatian Revolutionary War, the 7th Brigade served 4,100 conscripts and about 450 militias. She lost 97 people killed, about 100 were injured. One soldier is still missing.
Known Operations
- Operation Winter '94
- Operation Skok-1
- Operation Skok-2
- Operation Summer '95
- Operation Storm
- Operation Mistral
- Operation South
Links
- The site of the association of veterans of the brigade (Croatian.)
- 7. gardijska brigada (Croatian)
- Ratko Dragović - Klek, Pume iz Varaždina (Croatian)