[2] The detachments under Novak's command were part of the wider Chetniks that included units from all over Yugoslavia that swore allegiance to Draža Mihailović.

The ranks were drawn from Slovene officers in the pre-war Royal Yugoslav Army (JV).

At first, the JV units in Slovenia that offered resistance were under the command of Jaka Avšič until his mid-1941 transfer to the Yugoslav Partisans.

Based on direct appointment of Draža Mihailović, the commander of Slovene Chetniks was Karel Novak.

When Karel Novak resigned in 1944, because the defeat in the Battle of Grčarice, Mihailović appointed Ivan Prezelj as commander.