Nikola Tesla and the People's Liberation War

Despite being very young when he left our country and went to America, Nikola Tesla remained firmly attached to his people and homeland. Although he visited the country only twice and was warmly welcomed by the people and the authorities, he never lost a strong bond with his native country and he would never forget to say, “I am as proud of my Serbian origin as I am of my Croatian homeland.”

It is not difficult to imagine how this great patriot felt when, in 1941, the occupiers stepped on his homeland’s soil. But grief and hopelessness did not last long.

After some time, from that far and tormented country, apart from lies about chetniks fighting and truths about atrocities committed by the occupiers, lonely and short news started to break through; news that the fight against the occupier is actually led by the fighters of the newly formed People’s Liberation Army, under the command of already legendary Marshal Tito...

Although Tesla had never been into politics, at once he was aware that those, almost bare handed people, were fighting for the creation of a society and a world that would be better and finer than the one he was living and creating in. A world in which his inventions would find understanding and appliances that would make easier and humanize every man’s life. And so this scientific visionary understood before many American citizens, journalists, politicians and soldiers who was fighting against who in Yugoslavia. He raised his voice in favor of the fighters of PLA. Despite being very old, exhausted, feeble and ill, he wrote fiery manifestos to his countrymen and the American audience in which he brought forth the truth about our fight and asked America to extend help to the PLA. Thanks to Tesla, many Americans of our origin and not only them, started to support and help our combatants who fought in Tesla’s faraway homeland. Tesla’s support at a time when our fight was not well known abroad, was of great importance and so it is no wonder that, as a tribute to our prominent scientist, one of our brigades was named after him.

Tesla died in January 1943 before he could give even more for the victory in which he believed. Tesla had died before a new society of which he had dreamed was created in Yugoslavia. But he died happy and content because he believed that this and other scientific visions of his, would be materialized.