History of modern Serbia

History of modern Serbiaormodern history of Serbiacovers the history of Serbia since national awakening in the early 19th century from theOttoman Empire,thenYugoslavia,to the present dayRepublic of Serbia.The era follows theearly modern history of Serbia.

History of Serbia (1804–1918)

1804–1876

The history of modern Serbia began with the fight for liberation from the Ottoman occupation in 1804 (Serbian Revolution). The establishment of modern Serbia was marked by the hard-fought autonomy from theOttoman Empirein theFirst Serbian Uprisingin 1804 and theSecond Serbian Uprisingin 1815, though Turkish troops continued to garrison the capital,Belgrade,until 1867. Those revolutions revived the Serbian pride and gave them hope that their Empire might come into reality again. In 1829 Greece was given complete independence and Serbia was given its autonomy, which made her semi-independent from Turkey. Serbia's first constitution, theSretenjeor Candlemas constitution, was adopted in 1835, then replaced by theConstitution of 1838.

During theRevolutions of 1848,the Serbs in theAustrian Empireproclaimed a Serbian autonomous province known asSerbian Vojvodina.By a decision of the Austrian emperor in November 1849, this province was transformed into the Austrian crownland known as theVoivodeship of Serbia and Temes Banat(Dukedom of Serbia and Tamiš Banat). Against the will of the Serbs, the province was abolished in 1860, but the Serbs from the region gained another opportunity to achieve their political demands in 1918. Today, this region is known asVojvodina.

Independence 1878

Serbia and Montenegro declared war on Turkey in 1876 and were badly defeated. Russia, inspired byPan-Slavism,decided to intervene. Thewar alongside Russiaagainst the Turks in 1877 achieved victory and brought full independence for Serbia and large territorial gains toward the south-east, includingNiš,henceforth Serbia's second largest city. Some of the gains from the preliminaryTreaty of San Stefanowere reversed by the intervention of Germany, Britain and other powers at theTreaty of Berlin (1878).^[1]

The Serbian Kingdom was proclaimed in 1882, underKing Milan I.Serbia was one of the rare countries at the time that had its own domestic ruling dynasty on the throne (similarly to Italy). However, millions of Serbs still lived outside Serbia, in Austro-Hungarian Empire (Herzegovina, Bosnia, Croatia, Dalmatia, Vojvodina, Sandžak) and the Ottoman Empire (Kosovo, Macedonia). Russia and Austria constantly became involved in Serbian domestic politics and foreign affairs.^[2]

The new country was, like most of the Balkan lands, poor and overwhelmingly agrarian, with little in the way of industry or modern infrastructure. The total population rose from a million in the early 19th century to 2.5 million in 1900, when Belgrade contained 100,000 inhabitants (northern part was held by Austro-Hungary), Niš 24,500 and half a dozen other cities 10–15,000 each.

Internal politics revolved largely around the dynastic rivalry between theObrenovićandKarađorđevićfamilies, descendants respectively of Miloš Obrenović (recognised as hereditary prince in 1829) andKarađorđe(Black George), leader of the 1804 revolt but killed in 1817. The Obrenovići headed the emerging state in 1817–1842 and 1858–1903, the Karađorđevići in 1842–1858 and after 1903. Milan I was ruler of Serbia from 1868 to 1889, first as prince (1868–1882), subsequently as king (1882–1889).

After the 1880s the dynastic issue became entwined to some extent with wider diplomatic divisions in Europe. King Milan I aligned his foreign policy with that of neighbouringAustria-Hungaryin return forHabsburgsupport for his elevation to king.

1900–1914

The Karađorđevići inclined more towardRussia,gaining the throne in June 1903 after the bloodyMay Overthroworganised by a group of Army officers led by then-CaptainDragutin Dimitrijević Apis.After the 1903 coup, Serbia was securely in the Russian camp and henceforth followed a policy of irritating Austria-Hungary at every opportunity.^{[citation needed]}

Serbian opposition to Austria-Hungary's October 1908 annexation ofBosnia-Herzegovina,a territory Serbia craved for itself, brought about theBosnian crisis:Germanand Austro-Hungarian pressure forced Russia to prevail on Serbia (March 31, 1909) to accept the annexation, but Russia undertook to defend Serbia against any future threats to her independence.

FollowingBulgaria's independence (October 1908) from Ottoman overlordship and a successful movement byGreekarmy officers (August 1909) to steer their government onto a more nationalistic course, Serbia joined with the other two countries and her Serb-populated neighbourMontenegroin invading (October 1912) Ottoman-heldMacedoniaand reducing Turkey-in-Europe to a small region aroundConstantinople(nowIstanbul).

Bulgaria failed in her subsequent attempt (July 1913) to take from her allies territory which she had originally been promised (seeBalkan Wars), and to Habsburg alarm at another near-doubling of Serbia's territory was added Bulgarian resentment at having been denied what she saw as her just share of the territorial gains.

Serbia in World War I

On June 28, 1914, a team of seven assassins awaited the heir to the throne of the Austro-Hungarian Empire,Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria,at his announced visit in Sarajevo. AfterNedeljko Čabrinović's first unsuccessful attack, the Bosnian Serb nationalistGavrilo Princip assassinatedthe Archduke and his wifeSophie Chotek.^[3]Princip, Čabrinović and their accompliceTrifko Grabežhad come from Belgrade; the three told almost all they knew to Austro-Hungarian authorities. Serbian MajorVojislav Tankosićdirectly and indirectly not only had provided six hand grenades, four Browning Automatic Pistols and ammunition, but also money, suicide pills, training, a special map with the location of gendarmes marked, knowledge of contacts on a special channel used to infiltrate agents and arms into Austria-Hungary, and a small card authorizing the use of that special channel.^[4]Major Tankosić confirmed to the historian Luciano Magrini that he provided the bombs and revolvers and was responsible for the self-avowed terrorists’ training, and that he initiated the idea of the suicide pills.^[5]From June 30 to July 6 Austria-Hungary and Germany made requests to Serbia directly and her through Serbia's ally Russia to open an inquiry into the plot on Serbian soil but were flatly rejected.^[6]In itsJuly Ultimatumfrom July 23, Austria-Hungary asked Serbia to act in conformity with its March 1909 commitment to the Great Powers to respect the territorial integrity of Austria-Hungary and to maintain good neighborly relations, giving Serbia a 48-hour time limit. Failure to accept these demands would result in the withdrawal of Austria-Hungary's diplomatic legation from Serbia. Serbia drafted a conciliatory response, accepting all the points except point #6, demanding a criminal investigation against those participants in the conspiracy that were present in Serbia, and point #7 to allow an Austrian delegation to participate in the investigation.^[7]

Prior to issuing its reply to the Austrian Note, the Serbian army was mobilized. In response, Austria-Hungary withdrew its ambassador. It was reported that Serbian reservist soldiers on tramp steamers fired on Austro-Hungarian troops nearTemes-Kubinin Hungary, on July 27. This report was false.^[8]However, together with the unsatisfactory Serbian reply to the Austrian Note and the fact that Serbia had mobilized its army before sending the reply, the report convinced the Austrian Foreign Minister, Berchtold, that the problem of Austro-Serbian tension could only be solved by war. War was formally declared on Serbia at noon on July 28, 1914, even though Serbia was not a signatory to the international convention which required this step.

Serbia repulsed three Austro-Hungarian invasions (August, September and November–December 1914), in the last of which Belgrade was held temporarily by the enemy. But during 1915 an epidemic oftyphusdecimated the Serbian army, and renewed invasion in early October, this time involving also German and Bulgarian forces, resulted in the occupation of the whole country. The remnants of Serbia's armed forces retreated intoAlbaniaand Macedonia, where British and French forces had landed atThessaloniki.Persecutions and deaths followed.

The period of government exile inMacedoniawas marked by a significant shift in the balance of political forces.Black Handleaders were arrested, tried, convicted (confessing their roles in the assassination) and in three cases executed on false charges (overturned posthumously). Military circles would henceforth be dominated by the royalist "White Hand"faction of Gen. Petar Živković, later prime minister (1929–32) of an extra-constitutional monarchicalregime.

A successful Allied offensive in September 1918 secured first Bulgaria's surrender and then the liberation of the occupied territories (November 1918). On November 25, the Assembly ofSerbs,Bunjevci,and other nations ofVojvodinainNovi Sadvoted to join the region to Serbia. Also, on November 29 theNational Assembly of Montenegrovoted for union with Serbia, and two days later an assembly of leaders of Austria-Hungary's southern Slav regions voted to join the newState of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs(see alsoHistory of Yugoslavia). Comparing to the other European countries Serbia had by far the greatest casualties in the war, having over 30% (1,3 million) of its total population perished.

History of Serbia since 1918

After the military victory overAustria-Hungaryin theFirst World War,theKingdom of Serbiawas restored and was joined with otherSouth Slaviclands formerly administered by Austria-Hungary into the newly formedKingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes(which was renamed toYugoslaviain 1929). This new South Slavic kingdom was created on December 1, 1918, and de facto existed until theAxisinvasion in 1941 (de jure until the proclamation of the republic on November 29, 1945).

From 1918 to 1941, Serbia did not exist as a political entity, since the SCS Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later theKingdom of Yugoslavia) was a centralist country divided into administrative provinces that were not created in accordance with ethnic or historical criteria. However, the country was ruled by a Serb king and dominated by a Serb political elite. This triggered resentment among theCroats,whose politicians demanded federalization of the country. A Serb-Croat political compromise was achieved in 1939 when a new province known as theBanovina of Croatiawas created. Some Serb intellectuals also demanded that the rest of the Yugoslav provinces (excluding theDrava Banovina) be joined into the newBanovina of Serbia,^[9]but this political project was never realized.

In 1941, after the Axis invasion and occupation of Yugoslavia, German occupational authorities created an occupied territory namedSerbiaand installed a Serbian puppet government there.^[10]^[11]Occupied Serbia included much of the territory of the present-dayRepublic of Serbia,excluding some areas that were occupied and annexed by theIndependent State of Croatia,Hungary,Bulgaria,andItaly.TheBanatregion, which was part of occupied Serbia, had a special autonomous status and was governed by its ethnicGerman minority.Besides the armed forces of the Serbian pro-Axis puppet regime, two anti-Axis resistance movements operated in the territory of Serbia: the royalistChetniksand the communistPartisans.The two resistance movements also turned one against another, which resulted in a general armed civil war in Serbia. Temporarily, in the autumn of 1941, the communist resistance movement created a short livedRepublic of Užicein south-western Serbia,^[12]but this entity was soon destroyed by the joint efforts of Axis troops and pro-Axis Serbian armed forces.

In 1944, theSoviet Red ArmyandYugoslav Partisansexpelled all Axis troops from Serbia and the area was included into the restored Yugoslavia. Unlike pre-war Yugoslavia, which had a centralist system of government, the post-war Yugoslavia was established as a federation of six equal republics. One of the republics wasSerbia,which had two autonomous provinces:VojvodinaandKosovo.From the 1974 Yugoslav constitution, the autonomous provinces of Serbia gained extensive political rights and were represented separately from Serbia in some areas of federal government, although they were still de jure subordinated to Serbia.

The new Serbian constitution from 1990 greatly reduced the autonomy of Kosovo and Vojvodina and strengthened the central government in Serbia. After the breakup of theSocialist Federal Republic of Yugoslaviain 1991–1992, Serbia and Montenegro formed a new federation of the two republics naming it theFederal Republic of Yugoslavia.Following the clashes between theKosovo Liberation Armyand Serbian and Yugoslav authorities, as well as theNATO bombing of Yugoslaviain 1999, Kosovo became anUN protectorate.In 2003, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was transformed into the State Union ofSerbia and Montenegro,and following the Montenegrin Independence Referendum of 2006,SerbiaandMontenegrowere transformed into two independent states. In 2008Kosovodeclared independence from Serbia and this was subsequently recognized by the majority of other countries in Europe and the World.

References

^Vaso Trivanovitch, "Serbia, Russia, and Austria during the Rule of Milan Obrenovich, 1868-78."Journal of Modern History3.3 (1931): 414-440.Online
^Charles Jelavich,Tsarist Russia and Balkan nationalism: Russian influence in the internal affairs of Bulgaria and Serbia, 1879-1886(U of California Press, 1958).
^Vladimir Dedijer (1966).The Road to Sarajevo.Simon and Schuster. p. 493.
^William A. Dolph Owings (1984).The Sarajevo trial.Documentary Publication. pp. 40–41, 46, 59, 93–94, 106, 109–110.ISBN 9780897121224.
^Luciano Magrini (1929).Il Dramma di Seraievo: origini e responsabilità della Guerra europea.Edizioni Athena. pp. 94–95.
^Albertini, Luigi.Origins of the War of 1914,Oxford University Press, London, 1953, Vol II pp. 189-190,273
^Luigi Albertini (1965).The Origins of the War of 1914: The crisis of July 1914. From the Sarajevo outrage to the Austro-Hungarian general mobilization.Oxford University Press. pp. 364–371.
^Herwig, Holger H.The Marne, 1914,Random House Digital, Inc., 2009, pp 10
^Dr Tomislav Bogavac, Nestajanje Srba, Niš, 1994, page 122.
^"Yugoslavia after Axis conquest 1941-1945".US Department of State, Documents on German Foreign Policy.USGPO. 1962. Archived fromthe originalon 2015-09-24.Retrieved2014-08-05.
^"Archived copy".Archived fromthe originalon 2014-03-22.Retrieved2015-12-15.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
^"Opstina Uzice".RPK Uzice.Retrieved2014-03-21.

History of modern Serbia

History of Serbia (1804–1918)

1804–1876

Independence 1878

1900–1914

Serbia in World War I

History of Serbia since 1918

See also

References

Further reading

Historiography

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