Josip Broz Tito, nicknamed Tito, (May 7, 1892 – May 4, 1980) was the dictatorial leader of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, from 1945 until his death. From 1945 to 1953 he was Prime Minister, and from 1953 to 1980 he was the President. His funeral on May 4, 1980, was the largest state funeral in Yugoslavia. Tito was a controversial person, with people having strong and differing views about his leadership.

Early life
Tito was born in Komrovec, Croatia, where his parents had a small farm. He went to the village elementary school until 1905. In 1907 he was machinist's apprentice in Sisak. In 1910 he joined the union of workers and social-democratic party of Croatia and Slavonia. In 1913 he entered the Austro–Hungarian Army and later was imprisoned for anti-war propaganda. During World War I he was wounded, captured, then imprisoned by Russians. After being set free, he became active in the bolshevik movement. After the October Revolution, he joined the Red Guards (Russia). In 1920 Tito came back to the new nation Yugoslavia and joined the Communist party. This was later renamed Yugoslav Communist League in 1952. Tito (Babo) was the leader of the Communist party from 1937 until his death. In 1921 the Yugoslav communist party was banned. Tito was imprisoned from 1928 until 1933  for being a communist. In 1934 he went back to Soviet Union and he was involved as secret agent in NKVD.

Military chief
In 1937 Tito came back to Yugoslavia and during World War II, he, totally supported by Anglo-Americans and Soviet armies, organized People's Liberation Army against the Axis powers and in civil war against Yugoslav Army in the Fatherland, Serbian State Guards, Croatian Home Guard, Slovene Home Guard. In 1945, Tito ordered the end of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and created the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia with six republics: Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia and Slovenia, and two autonomous provinces in Serbia: Vojvodina in the north, and Kosovo, next to Albania.

Dictator
Tito with communist dictatorship, dramatically supported by spy ring OZNA and political police UDBA, ruled Yugoslav Republic from 1945 to 1980: he banned all monarchist and liberal parties. He, along with other political personalities in third-world countries, started the Non-Aligned Movement. When he died, the political situation was controlled by the other leaders of the Communist Party. Later, the situation would lead to the country's breakup, and to brutal and bitter wars in Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro, North Macedonia and Slovenia during the 1990s.

Death

On 7 January and again on 11 January 1980, Tito was admitted to the Medical Centre in Ljubljana, the capital city of the SR Slovenia, with circulation problems in his legs. His left leg was amputated soon afterward due to arterial blockages and he died of gangrene at the Medical Centre Ljubljana on 4 May 1980 at 3:05 pm, three days short of his 88th birthday. Many world leaders came to his funeral.

Historical criticism

Accusations of culpability are related with crimes perpetrated during WWII and during repression by Tito's communist Yugoslav Republic command, such as the massacres of Foibe and Kočevski Rog butchery. Mass graves are evidences of massacres; accusations of genocide and ethnic cleansing by historians. Accusations of guilt in the Bleiburg massacre, the repression of the Croatian Catholic Church, and the crackdown on the Croatian Spring or MASPOK.
Accusation of Vojvodina massacre consists in retaliation against Germans and Hungarians citizen and supposed Chetnik Serbs but some historians consider these incidents also ethnic cleansing against Germans and Hungarians because during World War II, the German minority in occupied Yugoslavia enjoyed a status of superiority over the Yugoslav population.
The AVNOJ Presidium issued a decree that ordered the government confiscation of all property of Nazi Germany and its citizens in Yugoslavia, persons of German nationality (regardless of citizenship), and collaborators. The decision acquired the force of law on February 6, 1945. Other accusation of crimes committed against children.

Tito's repression involved many of the dictator's old friends such as Milovan Dilas and Vladimir Dedijer, who were both imprisoned but later wrote several books with gross accusations against him; with criticism heaped on Tito's lustful lifestyle: by 1974 he had 32 official residences, one of the ten richest men in the Balkans, a communist who lived like a king. Tito constructed huge personality cult around him.

Funeral 

The funeral of Josip Tito, President of Yugoslavia, was held on 8 May 1980, four days after his death on 4 May. His funeral was visited by many world statesmen, both enemies and allies.

They included four kings, 31 presidents, six princes, 22 prime ministers and 47 ministers of foreign affairs. They came from both sides of the Cold War, from 128 different countries out of 154 UN members at the time.

Tito became ill over the course of 1979. On 7 January and again on 11 January 1980, Tito was admitted to the University Medical Centre in Ljubljana. His left leg was amputated soon afterward due to arterial blockages and he died of gangrene at the Medical Centre Ljubljana on 4 May 1980 at 3:05 pm, three days short of his 88th birthday.

The "Plavi voz" (Blue train, official presidential train) brought his body to the capital Belgrade and he laid in state in the Federal Parliament building until the funeral.

Related pages
 Yugoslavia
 Foibe massacres

References

Bibliography
 
 Dedijer, Vladimir. Tito. New York: Arno Press, 1980

Other websites

 Josip Tito Reference Archive at the Marxists Internet Archive
 Unseen pictures from US Archives 
 Sign the first virtual memorial of Marshal Tito 

1892 births
1980 deaths
Deaths from gangrene
Deaths from heart failure
Deaths from peripheral artery disease
Honorary Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany
Presidents of Yugoslavia
Former dictators
Recipients of the Decoration for Services to the Republic of Austria
People excommunicated by the Catholic Church