Commanded by Divizijski đeneral Dragiša Pandurović and largely manned by Slovene troops, the division also lacked modern arms and sufficient ammunition.

It was not heavily engaged during the first few days of the invasion, but from 9 April it withdrew steadily due to retirements on the right flank of the 7th Army and in the face of the advancing German XXXXIX Mountain Corps of General der Infanterie Ludwig Kübler.

The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was created with the merger of Serbia, Montenegro and the South Slav-inhabited areas of Austria-Hungary on 1 December 1918, in the immediate aftermath of World War I.

[3] Consequently, at the time World War II broke out in September 1939, the VKJ had several serious weaknesses, which included reliance on draught animals for transport, and the large size of its formations.

[7][8] The weaknesses of the VKJ in strategy, structure, equipment, mobility and supply were exacerbated by serious ethnic disunity within Yugoslavia, resulting from two decades of Serb hegemony and the attendant lack of political legitimacy achieved by the central government.

Along the frontier with Italy in the sector of the 32nd ID, mutually supporting bunkers were established on forward slopes of the mountain ranges behind a belt of obstacles.

On 6 April, the division was located as follows:[28] The border between Italy, Germany and Yugoslavia was largely unsuitable for motorised operations due to its mountainous terrain.

[29] Due to the short notice of the invasion, the elements of Generaloberst[c] Maximilian von Weichs's invading German 2nd Army that would make up LI Infantry Corps and XXXXIX Mountain Corps had to be transported from Germany, German-occupied France and the Nazi puppet Slovak Republic, and nearly all encountered difficulties in reaching their assembly areas in time for 6 April.

[32] On the morning of 6 April, Luftwaffe (German Air Force) aircraft conducted surprise attacks on Yugoslav airfields in the 7th Army area, including Ljubljana.

[35] German and Italian air attacks interfered with the deployment of troops and command was hampered by reliance on civilian telegraph and telephone services.

By the end of the day, morale in the 7th Army had started to decline due to fifth column elements encouraging soldiers to stop resisting the enemy.

[39] In the area of responsibility of the 32nd ID, the XXXXIX Mountain Corps of General der Infanterie[e] Ludwig Kübler was significantly delayed, and did not start pushing forward until 8 April.

[44] On 10 April, as the situation was becoming increasingly desperate throughout the country, Simović, who was both the Prime Minister and Chief of the General Staff, broadcast the following message:[45] All troops must engage the enemy wherever encountered and with every means at their disposal.

Don't wait for direct orders from above, but act on your own and be guided by your judgement, initiative, and conscience.The same day, Luftwaffe reconnaissance sorties revealed that the main body of the 7th Army was withdrawing towards Zagreb, leaving behind light forces to maintain contact with the German bridgeheads.

[49] The Germans captured Celje on 11 April,[50] by which time the whole 7th Army was withdrawing in disarray, and the 14th Panzer Division of Generalmajor Friedrich Kühn was creating havoc in the rear areas.

[51] On 12 April, the 14th Panzer Division linked up with the Italians at Vrbovsko, closing the ring around the remnants of the 7th Army, including the 32nd ID, which promptly surrendered.