A History of Yugoslavia, Part Two
By Russell Shortt

The beginning of the nineteenth century saw the burgeoning of a Pan-Slavic movement that sought Slavic unity. In the 1860s, the movement became popular in Russia, to which Pan-Slavs looked for protection from Turkish and Austro-Hungarian domination. The Balkan territories were massively re-defined by the Treaty of Berlin in 1878; Serbia, Montenegro and Romania became independent and the principality of Bulgaria was created. The Treaty also represented a turning point in European history as it marked the ending of the Three Emperor's League of Germany, Austria and Russia and thus renewing Austro-Russo rivalry in the Balkans, it also marked the beginning of Britain's re-emergence in European affairs after years of isolation under Gladstone.

At the turn of the twentieth century, the Ottoman Empire went into serious decline, sensing an opportunity a wave of nationalism swept across the Balkans. War broke out in 1912, when Montenegro invaded the Ottoman Empire and were soon joined by Serbia, Bulgaria and Greece. They drove the Turks out of Kosovo, Albania and Macedonia, which all declared their independence. However, the Serbs turned against Bulgaria and occupied Kosovo and Macedonia. Austria-Hungary had annexed Bosnia-Herzegovina in 1908; in 1914 the Emperor's heir Archduke Franz Ferdinand arrived in the region attempting to quell the unrest. He was promoting the idea of southern Slavs playing a greater role in the empire as a bulwark against Serbian expansionism. However he was assassinated in Sarajevo by Serbian nationalist, Gavrilo Princip, leading to a war between Austria-Hungary and Serbia which escalated into the horror of World War One.

Russell Shortt is a travel consultant with Exploring Ireland, the leading specialists in customised, private escorted tours, escorted coach tours and independent self drive tours of Ireland. Article source Russell Shortt, http://www.exploringireland.net

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