Ferdinand Čatloš

Ferdinand Čatloš (October 7, 1895 – August 31, 1972), born Csatlós Nándor, was a Slovak military officer and politician. Throughout his short career in the administration of the Slovak Republic he held the post of Minister of Defence. He was also the commanding officer of the Field Army Bernolák during the 15-day Slovak invasion of Poland. On 2 August 1944 he abandoned his post and joined the partisan fighters. At the conclusion of World War II, he was imprisoned for five years by the National Court of Bratislava and released in 1948. He spent the remainder of his life working as an ordinary clerk in Martin, Czechoslovakia. He then died in 1972.

On 1 September 1939, the Slovak Republic attacked Poland with three infantry divisions under his general command. They only met weak resistance, quickly overran the Polish forces and occupied parts of the Polish territory. The Slovak forces suffered relatively minor losses, with 37 killed, 114 wounded, 11 missing and 2 aircraft shot down.