Yugoslavia: A Concise History

Leslie Benson is the Senior Lecturer of Politics and Sociology at University College Northampton, United Kingdom. In Yugoslavia: A Concise History, Professor Benson provides his readers with a straightforward, meticulously researched, and informatively narrated historical study of the fierce ethnic rivalries that have hallmarked the Balkans and frequently erupted into horrific episodes of militant barbarism and the kinds of "ethnic cleansing" atrocities that shocked late twentieth century Europe and America. A thorough examination seeking to the reveal roots of bitter clashes and struggles, Yugoslavia: A Concise History is especially recommended introductory reading for non-specialist general readers with an interest in Yugoslavian history and acquiring a basic understanding of the historical background to the contemporary antagonisms that have so scarred the peoples and territories that once comprised the multi-ethnic nation of Yugoslavia.

The history of the area known as Yugoslavia is so complicated that the average person will throw up his hands in trying to understand the reasons for Milosevic's ethnic cleansing, NATO's 1999 air strikes against Kosovo and Serbia and the uneasy peace today. As the Ottoman Empire began to crumble, various elements saw their opportunity to hasten the Ottoman withdrawal and grab land and power. The turning point came in October 1912 when Montenegro declared war on Turkey, with the Serbs crushing an Ottoman army in a massed battle at Kumanovo in Northern Macedonia and taking Kosovo. A policy of terror designed to alter the ethnic composition of Kosovo and strengthen Serbia's claims to the province followed, leading to the massacre of about 20,000 Kosovar Albanians followed by torture, maiming, and forced conversions. In May 1913 Serbia and Greece, supported by Montenegro and Romania defeated Bulgaria; Serbian nationalist fervor boiled over as Old Serbia had been recovered, the battle of Kosovo was avenged and the Turk routed. On 28 June 1914 the Archduke Ferdinand was assassinated in Sarajevo by a Bosnian Serb; Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia triggering World War I in which 40% of the Serb armed forces and 25% of the total Serb population perished. Serbia was too weak to claim a seat at the diplomatic table when the secret 1915 Treaty of London gave Serbia Bosnia-Herzegovina and a portion of southern Dalmatia where there was a concentration of Orthodox Christians. The abdication of the Russian Tzar in February 1917 robbed Serbia of its most powerful support. Following the war, seven treaties settled various territorial claims, Albania became an Italian protectorate, the Kosova Albanians revolted against Serbian rule, the Yugoslav Communist Party was formed, Tito returned from Russia where he had been a prisoner of war exposed to ideas and methods of the October Revolution, intrigue abounded everywhere jousting for power or justice, anarchy and murder ruled, people profiteered while others went hungry. Drained of blood and treasure, Serbia struggled to make good its claims against hostile Italian diplomacy while trying to integrate minorities none of which welcomed rule from Belgrade. The communists gained power in local elections and 16 parties were represented in the 1920 elections to choose a constituent assembly. The electoral success of the Communist party with an appeal well beyond the numerically tiny working class, exceeded the worst fears in government circles. "The kingdom of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes could hardly have got off to a worse start. Of the three founder-peoples, two were recalcitrant joiners. Now a rump 'Serbia' Assembly had passed a law giving apparently limitless power to the executive. The scene was set for two decades of political paralysis, which ended (when it was too late to make any difference) with the partitioning of the state and the outbreak of Hitler's war in the Balkans."Hitler's plans entailed picking