History UsefulNotes / Yugoslavia

The idea of a united South Slavic state has its roots in the Pan-Slavic ideology that emerged in the late 17th century, but only gained prominence in the 19th century, when it was called the "Illyrian movement" (after a popular theory - later discredited - that the Slavs are the descendants of the ancient Illyrians).

While the South Slavs are ethnically and linguistically very closely related, their unification was made difficult by the fact that they have substantially different cultural and historical heritages. For example, the Croats and Slovenes are mostly Catholic, the Serbs, Macedonians and Montenegrins mostly Orthodox Christians, and the Bosniaks are predominantly Muslim; the Croats, Slovenes, and Bosniaks use the Latin script, while the eastern nations use the Cyrillic one; Slovenia and most of Croatia spent most of their history as part of the Habsburg Empire, the Adriatic Coast was under Venetian influence for centuries, while the other countries as well as part of Croatia were conquered and ruled by the Ottomans for centuries, etc.

Unfortunately for the king, his measures served only to further alienate the non-Serbs from the idea of unity. Furthermore, the king's pro-French stance served to alienate him both from Mussolini and from Stalin. Alexander was assassinated during an official visit to France in 1934 by a member of the Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization, a Macedonian national liberation movement. However, the operation was masterminded and assisted by the Ustaše ("Oostashe"), a Croatian fascist movement that had its stronghold in UsefulNotes/FascistItaly. As an aside, this was the first assassination of a head of state to be caught on film.

[[caption-width-right:343:CIA map of Yugoslavia. Note that Montenegro and Kosovo are now independent states (though the independence of the latter is disputed by some countries)]]

Hitler, content that the Balkans were now secure, then turned his attention to his old nemesis: Stalin's Soviet Union. Little did he know, however, that the Reich's problems in Yugoslavia were only beginning.

Yugoslavia had a vibrant cultural scene that included writers such as the Nobel Prize winner Ivo Andrić, Miroslav Krleža, Mešha Selimović, Branko Ćopić and others. The most prominent sculptor was Antun Augustinchich who made a monument standing in front of the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. The pianist Ivo Pogorelić and the violinist Stefan Milenkovich were internationally acclaimed classical music performers, while Jakov Gotovac was a prominent composer and a conductor. The Yugoslav pop and rock music was also a very important part of the culture. The Yugoslav New Wave was an especially productive musical scene, as well as the authentic subcultural movement called New Primitives.

%%Yugoslavia is still the subject of controversy among the people of ex-Yugoslav countries, so please keep in mind the Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment when editing this article, and avoid Flame Bait.

%%Yugoslavia is still the subject of controversy among the people of ex-Yugoslav countries, so please keep in mind the Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment when editing this article, and avoid Flame Bait.

A significant number of people in ex-Yugoslav countries are nostalgic about the old state; this regional variety of WhyWeAreBummedCommunismFell is known as "Yugonostalgia". For example, in northern Serbia one man has set up Yugoland, a place dedicated to Tito and Yugoslavia, while Tito's birthday is still celebrated in Kumrovec, Tito's village of birth (in Croatia, right next to the Slovenian border).

Yugoslavia is still the subject of controversy among the people of ex-Yugoslav countries, so please keep in mind the Administrivia/RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment when editing this article, and avoid Flame Bait.

Yugoslavia is still the subject of controversy among the people of ex-Yugoslav countries, so please keep in mind the RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment when editing this article, and avoid Flame Bait.

Yugoslavia ('''Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene:''' ''Jugoslavija, Југославија'') was a name given to three different states that existed on the western part of the Balkan peninsula during most of the 20th century. The name is a portmanteau of "jug" (south) and "slaveni" (Slavs), as the majority of people in these three states spoke South Slavic languages.

Yugoslavia is still the subject of controversy among the people of ex-Yugoslav countries, so please keep in mind the RuleOfCautiousEditingJudgment when editing this article, and avoid FlameBait.

Yugoslavia ('''Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian, Slovene:''' ''Jugoslavija, Југославија'') was a name given to three different states that existed on the western part of the Balkan peninsula during most of the 20th century. The name is a portmanteau of "jug" (south) and "slaveni" (Slavs).

The South Slavic people include the following: the [[UsefulNotes/{{Serbia}} Serbs]], the [[UsefulNotes/{{Croatia}} Croats]], the [[UsefulNotes/{{Slovenia}} Slovenes]], the [[UsefulNotes/{{Bulgaria}} Bulgarians]], the [[{{UsefulNotes/Macedonia}} Macedonians]], the [[UsefulNotes/{{Bosnia}} Bosniaks]] and the [[UsefulNotes/{{Montenegro}} Montenegrins]]. Yugoslavia also included several minorities, of which the Albanians, Italians and Hungarians were the most prominent.

A significant number of people in the ex-Yugoslav countries are nostalgic about the old state , and this phenomenon is called "Yugonostalgia". For example, in northern Serbia one man has set up Yugoland, a place dedicated to Tito and Yugoslavia, while Tito's birthday is still celebrated in Kumrovec, Tito's village of birth (in Croatia, right next to the Slovenian border).

Alexander was succeeded by his 11-year-old son Petar II, with his cousin, Prince Pavle, acting as regent. This was an unfortunate turn of events, since the political scene of Europe was set to explode into WW2. The French attempts to build an anti-German and anti-Italian bloc failed, as one by one Hungary, Romania and Bulgaria fell under the influence of the Axis powers. When Czechoslovakia was dismembered and annexed by Nazi Germany and Albania turned into an Italian protectorate, Yugoslavia was left surrounded by enemies.

After the end of WorldWarOne, all the south Slavic peoples, with the notable exception of the Bulgarians, were united under the rule of the Serbian royal dynasty, the Karađorđevićs (pronounced "Karageorgevich"). The resulting state was called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.

Yugoslav cinema featured many notable actors, and had it's own sub-genre of war movies, called Partisan Movies (similar to the Soviet Osterns, but also combining elements of Spaghetti Westerns and Hollywood war movies). Being cheap and much more open than the Eastern Bloc countries, Yugoslavia was a popular place for Western companies to produce their movies. Films such as ''Film/GenghisKhan'' (1965), ''Film/KellysHeroes'', ''Film/FiddlerOnTheRoof'', ''Film/CrossOfIron'' and the ''Literature/{{Winnetou}}'' series of westerns were filmed party or wholly in Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia also had a strong sports scene, especially football, basketball, volleyball and waterpolo.

Yugoslav cinema featured many notable actors, and had it's own sub-genre of war movies, called Partisan Movies (similar to the Soviet Osterns, but also combining elements of Spaghetti Westerns and Hollywood war movies). Being cheap and much more open than the Eastern Bloc countries, Yugoslavia was a popular place for Western companies to produce their movies. Films such as ''Film/GenghisKhan'' (1965), ''Film/KellysHeroes'', ''FiddlerOnTheRoof'', ''Film/CrossOfIron'' and the ''Literature/{{Winnetou}}'' series of westerns were filmed party or wholly in Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia also had a strong sports scene, especially football, basketball, volleyball and waterpolo.

The death of Tito in 1980 left the country without strong leadership to hold it together, and by 1990 the economic problems were becoming severe. National tensions flared, especially between the Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo. Soon, the elites in Belgrade (led by Slobodan Milošević) started pursuing an aggressive nationalistic policy, refusing to acknowledge the autonomy of Kosovo and Vojvodina, and outright refusing Croatian and Slovenian requests for greater autonomy. One thing led to another and, by 1991 UsefulNotes/TheYugoslavWars had started. See that page for more details. After the dust had settled, all that was left of Yugoslavia was Serbia (including Kosovo and Vojvodina) and Montenegro.

The death of Tito in 1980 left the country without strong leadership to hold it together, and by 1990 the economic problems were becoming severe. National tensions flared, especially between the Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo. Soon, the elites in Belgrade (led by Slobodan Milošević) started pursuing an aggressive nationalistic policy, refusing to acknowledge the autonomy of Kosovo and Vojvodina, and outright refusing Croatian and Slovenian requests for greater autonomy. One thing led to another and, by 1991 TheYugoslavWars had started. See that page for more details. After the dust had settled, all that was left of Yugoslavia was Serbia (including Kosovo and Vojvodina) and Montenegro.

After the end of WorldWarOne, all the south slavic peoples, with the notable exception of the Bulgarians, were united under the rule of the Serbian royal dynasty, the Karadordevics (pronounced "Karageorgevich"). The resulting state was called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes.

Alexander attempted to create a strong, centralized Yugoslav state and, in order to implement his reforms, took drastic measures. In 1929 he forced a new Constitution, abolished the historical administrative boundries, banned all national political parties and had many of their leaders arrested and ruled as de facto dictator. He also banned the Communist Party, whose leaders (including Tito) went into hiding.

'''World War II: Partisans, Ustashe and Chetniks'''

While the new government tried to assure Hitler that nothing had changed, the Fuhrer would have nothing of it: on the 6th of April 1941 combined Axis forces from Germany, Italy and Hungary invaded Yugoslavia and crushed the already demoralized Yugoslav army in less than two weeks.

The Axis powers occupied Yugoslavia and divided it among themselves, with parts annexed by Germany, Italy, Hungary and Bulgaria. Small rump-states were created in Serbia and Montenegro, run by puppet regimes. But by far the largest puppet state was the Independent State of Croatia, run by the Ustaše leader Ante Pavelić, who had by now become a fully-fledged Nazi.

These measures, as well as the fact that Pavelić was forced to give a large part of the Croatian coastline to Italy, turned more and more people against the Ustaše. Soon, two resistance movements had taken form: the monarchist and pro-Serb Chetniks and the pan-Yugoslav and pro-communist Partisans (the latter were led by Tito). The Partisans initiated a guerrilla campaign that developed into the largest resistance army in occupied Western and Central Europe. The Chetniks were initially supported by the exiled royal government as well as the Allies, but they soon focused increasingly on combating the Partisans rather than the occupying Axis forces. By the end of the war, the Chetnik movement had transformed into a collaborationist Serb nationalist militia completely dependent on Axis supplies. The highly mobile Partisans, however, carried on their guerrilla warfare with great success. Most notable of the victories against the occupying forces were the battles of Neretva and Sutjeska.

The Yugoslav Partisans were able to expel the Axis from Serbia in 1944 and the rest of Yugoslavia in 1945. Tens of thousands of Axis prisoners and collaborators, real or imagined, were imprisoned or executed. The Red Army provided limited assistance with the liberation of Belgrade and withdrew after the war was over. Western attempts to reconcile the Partisans with the royalist government (who had fled to London back in 1941) failed, and Tito was elected by a referendum to lead the new independent communist state, starting as a prime minister.

Tito and the Communist Party of Yugoslavia soon took all power into their own hands, and tried to form a union with Bulgaria, but Stalin's intervention prevented it. Finally, increasing conflicts between the two leaders led to the Tito-Stalin split in 1948. After that, the country criticized both Eastern bloc and NATO nations and, together with other countries, started the Non-Aligned Movement in 1961, which remained the official affiliation of the country until it dissolved. Democratic reforms were not implemented, however, and the country remained a one-party state, with Tito having the final say in most things. Political dissidents (particularly Stalinists) were often dealt with harshly.

After the Tito-Stalin Split, the economy was re-organized along the principles of "workers' self-management", as advised by Tito's vice president, Milovan Djilas, in which the state enterprises were run by the employees in the manner of a cooperative. At first it worked, and Yugoslavia's economy soon recovered and greatly surpassed pre-war levels. This system was later re-organized in an attempt to improve its efficiency, but the market-orientated reforms introduced in the late seventies - and especially during the eighties - led to increasing unemployment and reliance on IMF debts (there is evidence that the U.S. government was deliberately intervening to move the country away from socialism). Unlike the people of the Eastern Bloc, Yugoslavs were allowed to emigrate freely, and this caused many to find work in Western Europe, notably Germany, with the money they brought home also helping the Yugoslav economy. Indeed, a number of North American actors, such as Creator/StanaKatic and Creator/SashaAlexander, were born to these emigrants or in some cases (Željko Ivanek) are these emigrants.

Yugoslavia had a vibrant cultural scene that included writers such as the Nobel Prize winner Ivo Andrich, Miroslav Krlezha, Mesha Selimovich, Branko Chopich and others. The most prominent sculptor was Antun Augustinchich who made a monument standing in front of the United Nations Headquarters in New York City. The pianist Ivo Pogorelich and the violinist Stefan Milenkovich were internationally acclaimed classical music performers, while Jakov Gotovac was a prominent composer and a conductor. The Yugoslav pop and rock music was also a very important part of the culture. The Yugoslav New Wave was an esspecially productive musical scene, as well as the authentic subcultural movement called New Primitives.

Yugoslav cinema featured many notable actors, and had it's own sub-genre of war movies, called PartisanMovies (similar to the Soviet Osterns). Being cheap and much more open than the Eastern Bloc countries, Yugoslavia was a popular place for Western companies to produce their movies. Films such as ''Genghis Khan'' (1965), ''Kelly's Heroes'', ''FiddlerOnTheRoof'', ''Cross of Iron'' and the ''Literature/{{Winnetou}}'' series of westerns were filmed party or wholly in Yugoslavia. Yugoslavia also had a strong sports scene, especially football, basketball, volleyball and waterpolo.

The death of Tito in 1980 left the country without strong leadership to hold it together, and by 1990 the economic problems were becoming severe. National tensions flared, especially between the Serbs and Albanians in Kosovo. Soon, the elites in Belgrade (led by Slobodan Milosevich) started pursuing an aggressive nationalistic policy, refusing to acknowledge the autonomy of Kosovo and Vojvodina, and outright refusing Croatian and Slovenian requests for greater autonomy. One thing led to another and, by 1991 TheYugoslavWars had started. See that page for more details. After the dust had settled, all that was left of Yugoslavia was Serbia (including Kosovo and Vojvodina) and Montenegro.

After the Tito-Stalin Split, the economy was re-organized along the principles of "workers' self-management", as advised by Tito's vice president, Milovan Djilas, in which the state enterprises were run by the employees in the manner of a cooperative. At first it worked, and Yugoslavia's economy soon recovered and greatly surpassed pre-war levels. This system was later re-organized in an attempt to improve its efficiency, but the market-orientated reforms introduced in the late seventies - and especially during the eighties - led to increasing unemployment and reliance on IMF debts (there is evidence that the U.S. government was deliberately intervening to move the country away from socialism). Unlike the people of the Eastern Bloc, Yugoslavs were allowed to emigrate freely, and this caused many to find work in Western Europe, notably Germany, with the money they brought home also helping the Yugoslav economy. Indeed, a number of North American actors, such as Creator/StanaKatic, were born to these emigrants.

After the Tito-Stalin Split, the economy was re-organized along the principles of "workers' self-management", as advised by Tito's vice president, Milovan Djilas, in which the state enterprises were run by the employees in the manner of a cooperative. At first it worked, and Yugoslavia's economy soon recovered and greatly surpassed pre-war levels. This system was later re-organized in an attempt to improve its efficiency, but the market-orientated reforms introduced in the late seventies - and especially during the eighties - led to increasing unemployment and reliance on IMF debts (there is evidence that the U.S. government was deliberately intervening to move the country away from socialism). Unlike the people of the Eastern Bloc, Yugoslavs were allowed to emigrate freely, and this caused many to find work in Western Europe, notably Germany, with the money they brought home also helping the Yugoslav economy. Indeed, a number of North American actors, such as StanaKatic, were born to these emigrants.

After the Tito-Stalin Split, the economy was re-organized along the principles of "workers' self-management", as advised by Tito's vice president, Milovan Djilas, in which the state enterprises were run by the employees in the manner of a cooperative. At first it worked, and Yugoslavia's economy soon recovered and greatly surpassed pre-war levels. This system was later re-organized in an attempt to improve its efficiency, but the market-orientated reforms introduced in the late seventies - and especially during the eighties - led to increasing unemployment and reliance on IMF debts (there is evidence that the U.S. government was deliberately intervening to move the country away from socialism). Unlike the people of the Eastern Bloc, Yugoslavs were allowed to emigrate freely, and this caused many to find work in Western Europe, notably Germany, with the money they brought home also helping the Yugoslav economy.