Yugoslav Question

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In Yugoslavia, nationalism is intertwined with religious, linguistic, cultural and economic aspects Yugoslavs do not constitute a distinct nationality The Serbs, Croats and Slovenes shared significant political and geostrategic interest and economic aspirations they were drawn towards each other in the late 19th Century. Yugoslavism propounded a theory of common identity espoused by the Southern Slavs Yugoslavism deeply intertwined with Croatian, Serbian and Slovene nationalism but after WWII overshadowed them Before the 20th century there was very little nationalism present here because the nations were simply tools for the large empires (Habsburg and Ottoman) to extract economic resources and manpower from. There was some movements around early 19th century, i.e. the First Yugoslav experiment (1830s and 1840s) but little realisation of nation state boundaries. Population mainly illiterate Gellner and Anderson, argument that literacy is essential to nationalism

Creation of Yugoslav State Whilst not created by Versailles, the creation of the Yugoslav state did owe its existence to 3 circumstances Military victory of the Entente o If Central Powers had won, no independent Yugoslavia could emerge o London Treaty of 1915 promised Italy substantial Yugoslav territories o By their adherence to Wilsonian principles, the Entente legitimised the creation of Yugoslavia Inability of Vienna to conclude a separate peace treaty in 1918 Wartime activities of Yugoslav leaders in the West

National and Regional Problems Yugoslavian citizenship is not synonymous with Yugoslavian nationalism

The Slovene feels himself to be first a Slovene and then a Yugoslav etc.

Economic-cultural-political contest between Serbs and Croats served to weaken the harmony of the state in the 1960s but didnt destroy Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia, 1804-1849
Serbia 1804-1848

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Initial revolt under Karadjordje was unsuccessful (1804), subsequent revolt under Obrenovic was able to secure Ottoman recognition in 1830 Was of decisive importance to Serbian nationalism Common linguistic bond was created between Croats and Serbians due to the phonetic style of their language Karadzic argued that everyone who spoke the Serbian dialect was therefore Serb and as such all the lands were Serbian too. o This was incorporated into the Serbian textbooks and psyche Croatia, 1790-1848 Croatian leaders had to fight to preserve their autonomy from Hungarian pressure New generations took over this national cause o The Illyrian movement Ljudevit Gaj o Belief that all Blakan Slavs were descendents of the same Illyrian race this basis existed for future political unity Again influence of the Stokavian dialect being adopted in the intelligentsia of Croatia, as in Serbia 1847 Croatian declared official language of the nation o in textbooks Croatians were urged to respect languages and culture of the Serbs

South Slav Conflict

Serbian Nationalism

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Bosnia and Herzegovina the primary goals but Macedonia and Old Serbia also potential ideas. Conflict with Bulgaria over Macedonia prompted war in 1885 Increased general awareness of the Serbian national program despite the defeat of Serbia This nationalism was fostered through Serbian ledership and through state education Came into conflict with Croats over national aspirations on territory. Croatian Nationalism Croatian nationalism fuelled by conflict with Serbs Also by efforts of Khuen-Herdervary: he sought to thwart Hungarian national goals such as the effort to unite Dalmatia with Croatia-Slavonia His regime catered to the Serbian interests of education and religion in return for support o His actions strengthened political sentiments and support

for the Party of the Right Croatians also concerned about the increasing population of Serbs in Croatia following border readjustments of the population was Serbian in 1881

Re-emergence of Yugoslav Idea

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1. The death of Obrenovic of Serbia in a coup meant that the throne went to Peter Karadjordjevic: more sympathetic to idea of South Slav cooperation 2. In Croatia, Khuen-Gerervary was replaced as Ban after 2 decades of orchestrated hostility between the Croats and Serbs 3. New youth movements, mainly containing students, influenced by people such as Masaryk were urged towards Yugoslav idea. Serbia 1903-1914 After the accession of the new dynasty in 1903, major attention of the political leaders was directed towards the achievement of the national programs The annexation of Bosnia-Herzegovina by Austria was viewed as a disaster However, this was partially assuaged by the territorial gains in the Balkan Wars of 1912-1913 o State now included Macedonia, Old Serbia and Kosovo o Led to the repetition in Vardar (popular editorial) that Croatian and other South Slav lands were Serbian

First goal of the Black Hand organisation was the unification of Serbia South Slav unity not even considered Majority of the population was behind pan-Serbian goals However, there were some groups who wanted South Slav unity based on egalitarian concepts mainly student groups On the other hand, there were those that were suspicious of the South Slav concept. Argued that it was possible that the South Slavs of the dual monarchy would unite and this could lead to the potential absorption of Serbia something both Croatia and Slovenia favoured There were still many differences between the nations In Serbia the Latin alphabet wasnt taught in schools until 1914 The Gregorian calendar was not adopted until after WWII Pasic was pragmatic and realistic towards the idea of unity.

Followed the Serbian-Croatian coalition but didnt want its

activities to impact on the relationship with Austria-Hungary o Recognised that South Slav unity represented war with the Habsburgs There were attempts to bring more liberals into the government structure through the university system but this was interrupted by WWI Croatia In contrast to Serbia, there was a resurgence in reviving Serbo-Croat cooperation Calls to return to the 19th century ideals of joint protection of scholarly and political ideas However, this was not to be at the expense of Croatia, unity could be achieved only through political and cultural egalitarianism This manifested itself in the 1905 formation of the Croatian-Serbian Coalition Considered that the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes constituted 3 peoples but one nationality of Yugoslavia They wanted a South Slav state at the expense of the Habsburg Monarchy Popularity of the Coalition was seen in the next election, where it gained 42% of the vote in 1906 Many university students in Croatia became ardent Serbophiles o Some radicals even favoured the absorption of Croatia and Slovenia into a Serbian nation However, Serbs and Croats did no share the same interests over the fate of Bosnia-Herzegovina Croats imagined a future political unit encompassing BosniaHerzegovina o This would create a Croat dominated Yugoslav nation Biggest opposition to the Yugoslav program came from the Frankovites Opposed to Hungarian control as well as cooperation with Serbia

 Slovenes

They attacked Serbs for the use of its coat-of-arms as well as their use of Cyrillic Not massively popular but a constant presence

Yugoslav movement always considered the idea that the Slavs, Croats and Slovenes unite. However, their dialect was not that of Stokavian the dialect of the Serbs and Croats o The preservation of this had become a central tenet in the Slovene national consciousness Slovenes were largely more concerned with the unity of their own people in one unit o Before this there were 4 distinct provinces: Carniola, Styria, Carinthia and the Adriatic Littoral. Education in Slovenia was governed by Austrian education laws This was not so much an issue where there were majority Slovenes but in Styria and Carinthia they only held about 40% of the population South Slav Unity in 1914 No one embraced the concept universally Looked to their own nations achievements to provide inspiration for future progress Some Serbs believed that all South Slavs were Serbs and vice versa with some Croats Key differences surfaced concerning Bosnia-Herzegovina Most enthusiastic patrons were students: ignored the histories of politics Serbs, Croats and Slovenes would have to make religious, cultural and economic sacrifices for the common good.