A couple weeks ago I visited Kansas City with my parents and despite the very hot weather we had a good time right downtown. My dad and I visited their WWI museum, which happens to be the biggest WWI museum in the country. I walked out of that place quite inspired seeing the artifacts, uniforms, and weapons that were actually on the battlefield. So naturally I decided to start yet another WWI appreciation phase and got a book on the topic. This time however I was most intrigued by the start of WWI and have thus started reading, The Sleepwalkers by Christopher Clark. The book gives a very detailed start of the diplomatic and political events leading up to 1914.
The cause of WWI was one of the more complex historical events of this modern era. At the turn of the century Europe was booming with industrial advancements and thus began a power shift. A new system of alliances was created to support one another in the case of a conflict. The German Empire was at the heart of this power struggle and had made strong allies with the Austro-Hungarian Empire and Ottoman Empire (known as the Central Powers). On the other side were the Triple Entente which consisted of Great Britain, France, and Russia. All that was really needed was a spark to ignite the conflict and this did not occur within the homeland of the main powers. Instead it occurred in the southeastern region of Europe known as the Balkans.
The nations that make up the Balkans consist of Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Albania, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Croatia, and Kosovo (sometimes Greece, Slovenia, Romania, and Turkey are included in this group). At the center of the region are the Balkan Mountains, hence the name. I know very little about these nations, aside from tennis great Novak Djokovic and Croatia's talented soccer team. The region was once at the center of it all during the Greek and Macedonian Empires, however has later taken a back seat to modern history. Perhaps its greatest claim to fame in the last 100 years was giving birth to WWI. However it still has a unique and diversified population which I would like to better understand thru it's history.
Greco-Persian Wars
The Balkan tribes and territory was first conquered by King Darius the Great in 513 BC. During his Scythian Campaign he pushed his forces from Turkey, northward, along the Black Sea capturing territory on the eastern coast of the Balkans and southern regions of Ukraine and Russia. In order to defend their lands the local Scythians (who were Iranian immigrants) used scored earth tactics so the Persians would not have resources. Darius decided not to push too far inland into Europe, and built defensive lines throughout his captured territory near the Black Sea.
The Persian Empire continued it's conquest of the Balkans throughout the 6th and 5th century and began capturing territory in Macedonia., Greece, and Thrace (modern day Bulgaria). By 499 BC the Ionian Revolt in northern Turkey against Persian occupancy gave way to the Greco-Persian Wars. The Greek states had organized a powerful coalition to aid the revolts and resist the Persian conquest. This conflict went on for nearly 50 years mostly fought in Greece, Bulgaria, and northern Turkey. In 492 Darius invaded Greece and was able to capture Thrace and Macedonia, however not it's capitol of Athens. Several years later Darius' son Xerxes continued his father's conquest by invading Greece a 2nd time in 480 BC. This time however both Sparta and Athens were able to defeat the Persians, most notably at the Battle of Thermopylae.
The Macedonian Empire
The Greco-Persian Wars weakened both the Persian and Greek Empire and gave way to a new rising power in the Balkans, the Macedonians. However before the Macedonians could secure control of the region they had to defeat the formidable Illyrians. The Illyrians were based in the western regions of Albania and Montenegro founded by their war chief, Bardylis. In 359 BC the Illyrians killed the Macedonian king Perdiccas III, which brought on the wrath of his brother Philip II. Within a year Philip had reclaimed land from the Illyrians and also strengthened ties with the Greeks. During his reign Macedonia became the new central power in the Balkans.
This of course gave way for his son Alexander the Great, who would become the greatest conqueror in world history. Before Alexander began his eastward push thru Persia and into India he was able to crush the Illyrian forces by 335 BC. The conquests of Alexander brought upon a new fusion of European, Middle-eastern, and Asian culture that later became known as the Hellenistic age. After Alexander's death in 323 BC, the mighty Macedonian Empire crumbled into smaller parts. Greek states and the Illyrians once again returned to control the Balkans. However they were all later crushed by the new coming power from Italy, the Romans.
The Roman Empire
From 229-219 BC the Romans and Illyrians battled one another in the Illyrian Wars for control of the Balkan region. The last king of Illyria and Macedonia were both defeated in 168 BC which brought on a new era of Roman control. The Balkan region was broken up into Roman Provinces; Macedonia, Epirus, and Achae were based in the southern region of modern day Greece. Thracia was the province to the east, where it's capital city of Byzantium was formed. Here was the gateway of Europe and Asia where modern day Bulgaria and Turkey met. At it's core was the central region of Moesia, present day Serbia. To the north was the region of Dalcia which made up present day Romania and northern Serbia. To it's west were the regions of Illyricum, Pannonia, and Dalmatia where the Illyrians once ruled. It was the mightiest of the regions that would later become modern day Bosnia, Albania, and Montenegro.
While the Roman Empire was centralized in Italy most of it's mainland was in the Balkans and remained so until it's collapse in 500 AD. It was perhaps the final remaining territory of the Roman Empire that became host to new barbaric invaders such as the Goths and the Huns. The Roman Empire eventually collapsed in western Europe however was able to restructure itself into a new empire in the eastern Balkan region. This was centralized in the city of Byzantium, which later became renamed Constantinople as the capitol city of the Byzantine Empire.
The Byzantine Empire
The period after the Roman Empire is often referred to as the Dark Ages across Europe where there really wasn't an advancing civilization. Most of Europe consisted of Barbaric tribes and warlords vying for territory. However the new spread of Christianity became the light, and the Roman emperor Constantine established the city of Constantinople as a new religious capitol. Once again the Balkan territory made up the mainland of the Byzantine Empire, with it's central activity happening in northern Turkey. The empire flourished during the Macedonian Renaissance of 867-1065 AD. Some of the most iconic art and architecture was created during this age, that introduced a new style of mosaics.
However the region of the Balkans once again became battlegrounds between the east and the west, during the Crusades. The Empire suffered it's first devastating loss at Constantinople in 1071 to the Seljuk Turks. They were sacked once again in 1204 by the western Latin Christian army. The Empire briefly recovered in 1267 under the Palaiologos dynasty and withstood continuous assaults from the Turkish Muslims. However they soon began to experience internal conflict with the rise of the Bulgarian Empire and the Serbian Empire. Little by little the empire shrunk in seize due to these internal civil conflicts, the spread of the Black Death, and Muslim raids on it's eastern front. Eventually Constantinople would fall to the Ottoman Empire in 1453.
Slav Migration, Bulgarian Empire, Serbian Empire
The region of the Balkans is made up of various ethnic groups that have inhabited the area throughout history. This primarily breaks down into the Greek/Roman ethnicities along the Adriatic Sea; The Arab/Turkish people along the Black Sea; and the Slavs that migrated from northern Europe and Russia. This massive migration began in the early middle ages from the 6th to the 7th century, after the fall of the Roman Empire. Similar to the Vikings (but maybe not as violent), these Slavic tribes were seeking warmer climates. They scattered all across Europe, the ones who settled in the Balkans were referred to as the South Slavs. They mostly inhabited the regions of Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia, and Montenegro. Today they are the predominant ethnicity in the Balkan territory.
The first major Balkan civilization to arise was the Bulgarian Empire in 681 AD. The region was made up of Slavs and Turks, established by Khan Asparuh who defeated the Byzantine Empire. The Bulgarian Empire remained the dominant force in the mainland Balkans for nearly 400 years. They converted to Christianity by the 800s and resisted many attacks from the Byzantine Empire, Hungarians, and Turkish. Their greatest leader was Simeon I of Bulgaria, who ruled from 893 to 927 and led the empire to it's greatest expansion with victories over the Byzantines and neighboring warlord tribes. This was the golden age of the Bulgarian Empire, however it's conflicts with Byzantine continued for many years after. The Bulgarian Empire was eventually swallowed up by the Ottoman Empire in 1396.
Another Balkan civilization to break away from the Byzantine Empire, was the Serbian Empire in 1346. This was brought about thanks to a Civil War in the region from 1341-1347. Stefan Dusan the Mighty became the first king of the Serbian Empire and established a new power in the Balkans. Dusan promoted the Christian church as well as a new legal system that became known as the Dusan's Code. He was able to conquer land in Macedonia, Albania, and Greece and stretched his empire as far south as the Gulf of Corinth. He however fell short of conquering land from the Bosnians. In 1355 Stefan died, and shortly after the Serbian Empire was weakened. In 1389 the Serbians wer defeated at the Battle of Kosovo by the new superpower from the east, the Ottoman Empire. It was not much long after that Constantinople would fall, and the Ottomans would possess the entire Balkan region.
The Ottoman Empire
Centralized in the capitol city of Constantinople the Ottoman Empire became a diverse civilization of Turk Arabs and European Slavs. In the late 1480s this empire consisted mostly of Turkey and the Balkan territory. However by the 1680s it expanded it's territory up into Hungary and Ukraine and along the northern coast of Africa. Constantinople became the capitol of the world and the Balkan territory was once again at the heart of a mighty empire. The Ottoman monarchy was however very tolerant of different religions and cultures and welcomed the continued practice of Christianity in the Balkan region.
During this time, the Balkans were made up of provinces that answered to the Ottoman Empire however were also granted liberties to govern themselves. One of the notable new sovereignties to arise during this time was the Republic of Ragusa, based in Dubrovnik, Croatia. The Ottoman Empire aided Ragusa in it's conflicts with the Republic of Venice. During this time many Turks migrated into the Balkan territory settling in Bulgaria, Serbia, Macedonia, and Greece. For the most part the Balkans managed themselves quite freely, aside from some taxes to be paid the Ottoman Empire. However by the early 1800s, a new wave of nationalism arose in the region. Perhaps inspired by the American and French Revolutions.
Balkan Independence Movements
This notion of a national awakening spread all throughout the Ottoman Empire during the early 1800s. This growing ideological storm supported by Europe would slowly tear away at the Ottoman's administrative millet system. Perhaps the most rebellious state in the Balkans during this time was the Serbians, who eventually gave way to an uprising in 1804. This revolution went thru two major phases, led by different leaders, with hopes to break away from the Ottomans and re-establish their Serbian Empire. The 1st uprising was led by Dorde Petrovic (better known as Karadorde) yet was squashed in 1814. The Second Serbian Uprising was led by Milos Obrenovic and this time they achieved their liberty and established their own Principality of Serbia in 1817.
The Serbian Revolution caught on like a wildfire throughout the Balkans, and soon after the Greeks also achieved their independence in 1829 (after a ten year struggle). The Bosnians also initiated a major uprising in 1831-1832 and in 1875 however both were suppressed. These cries for nationalist awakening were eventually heard by the new emerging Russian Empire in the east. The Russo-Turk Wars of 1877-1878 opened the doors for Balkan independence. Much of the Balkan states allied with Russia to fight the Ottomans in this decisive battle located in the Caucasus Region. Thru this conflict Bulgaria, Romania, and Montenegro were able to break free and establish their own principalities.
After Russia's victory over the Ottoman Empire, Germany came in as a neutral to discuss the treaty terms. The Congress of Berlin in 1878, headed by German Chancellor Otto Van Bismark, is seen as a turning point in Balkan history, where new sovereignties were officially recognized. This established new territory lines within the Balkans in which Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, Greece, Montenegro, and Bosnia now all had their own states. The Ottoman Empire was left with some territory in Albania and Macedonia however this no doubt marked their decline and eventual collapse. Despite this successful treaty, the stabilization was rather short lived and territorial disputes arose amongst the newly established Balkan states. This was even further ignited by the interests of the major world powers of Germany, France, Britain, Russia, and Austro-Hungary.
The Bosnian Crisis and the Balkan Wars
Following the Congress of Berlin, there was still much animosity over the distribution of territory within the Balkans. The Russian Empire felt they were robbed of territory, having been the ones who defeated the Ottoman Empire. Germany and Austria-Hungary seized much of the land particularly in Bosnia. Bosnia became the black sheep of the Balkan region, with it's allegiance to the Austro-Hungarian empire in the north. Many Serbs and Slavs felt this territory should be united with Serbia and thus the tension spread during the early 1900s. It especially began in 1903 with a coup d'état in Serbia where King Alexander Obrenovic was assassinated. A new dynasty came to power in Serbia, with strong ties to Russia and severe hostility towards Austria-Hungary. This tension grew even hotter when Austria-Hungary annexed Bosnia in 1908. This not only infuriated Seria, but also Russia and Italy.
As the tension boiled with Bosnia, Serbia and Bulgaria became the key leaders of the Balkan region. In 1912 they supported Albania and Macedonia's push for independence. A Balkan League was thus created and waged war once again against the Ottoman Empire to drive them out completely of the Balkan region. Following this conflict however, Bulgaria was still dissatisfied with the land distribution and turned on it's Balkan allies in the Second Balkan War of 1913. However Bulgaria was defeated by Serbia who had emerged as the new leader of the group with intentions to unify the Balkans into one Slavic state known as Yugoslav (supported by the Russians). Meanwhile frustrated with their defeat Bulgaria established a new alliance with Germany and Austro-Hungary.
The July Crisis of 1914 and WWI
The Yugoslav nationalist movement had grown quite radical throughout Serbia, and even had conspirators within Bosnia. They had established a secret military society known as the Black Hand with intentions to unify all South Slavs. It was the Black Hand that organized the assassination of Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo, heir to the Austria-Hungary throne in July of 1914. Although Serbia claimed to be unaware of this assassination plot, they were still blamed for their political hostilities towards Austria-Hungary. The aftermath of this assassination was a domino effect of tactical alliances leading towards war known as the July Crisis.
What should have been a straight forward dispute between Serbia and Austria-Hungary snowballed into a much wider conflict pertaining to the global powers. Austria-Hungary would have easily crushed Serbia, however Serbia had strong support from the mighty Russia. Henceforth Austria called upon Germany to support them in their call for war against Serbia and Russia. France was bound to Russia in an alliance and the two nations believed that Germany had orchestrated the whole affair as a power grab in Europe. Britain was the last of the main powers to chose a side, and while they had good relations with Germany, they decided they had an obligation to defend Belgium and support their allies in France. So by late July of 1914 all of Europe was engulfed in the most atrocious and deadliest war in history.
While Germany invaded Belgium and France, Austro-Hungary invaded Serbia. Surprisingly the Serb Army was able to repel the first invasion and were victorious at the Battle of Cer in August of 1914, often considered as one of the biggest upsets in modern military history. The following year however the Germans launched a second invasion of Serbia, and this time the Serbians were forced to retreat into Greece. By 1915 Bulgaria decided to join the side of the Central Powers, having loss the Balkan Wars to Serbia a year earlier. They were able to make some advances into Romania and Macedonia, however their success was short-lived due to a poor economy and growing anti-war communist sentiments. The Balkans were occupied by the Austro-Hungarians for most of the war, until the Allied Vardo Offensive in 1918. The French, Serbian, and Greek forces were able to drive the Germans and Bulgarians out of Macedonia. This was a decisive victory in the Balkan theatre and by this point Austro-Hungary and Germany were defeated in the western theatre by Britain, Germany, and the United States.
Establishment of Yugoslavia
The aftermath of WWI was felt all throughout Europe and completed changed the balance of power. The Ottoman Empire and the Austro-Hungarian Empire were disbanded, the Russian Empire was dissolved from within by a Communist revolution, meanwhile the Balkan territory was completely restructured. Despite their economic peril Serbia had achieved it's pre-war ambitions when a new nation of Yugoslavia was established. This included the regions of Serbia, Bosnia, Croatia, Slovenia, and Montenegro into one nation. Greece, Albania, and Bulgaria became their own independent nations. Much ethnic cleansing went on during this period so that inner conflicts would subside, and many Turks were expelled from the Balkans.
King Alexander established a new Yugoslav dictatorship in 1929 with the goal to implement a nationalized and unified Yugoslav ideology. In 1934 however King Alexander was assassinated by a Macedonian Revolutionary outfit, and the state went thru a period known as it's regency. At the outbreak of WWII, Yugoslavia was too weak to offer any counter to the rising threat of Nazi Germany, and signed a cooperation deal with the Axis Powers. Despite this arrangement, the Nazis still invaded Yugoslavia in April of 1941 and easily conquered it. Meanwhile Albania and later Greece were conquered by Nazi's allies in Italy. Bulgaria once again sided with Germany hoping to strengthen their position in the Balkans. The Nazis occupied most of the Balkans until the end of the war.
After WWII, Yugoslavia regained it's liberation however this time it was now under the heavy influence of the Soviet Union. Communist Russia now had influence over Bulgaria, Yugoslavia, and Albania however this was short-lived. In 1948 Yugoslavia's president Josip Broz Tito broke away from the Soviet Union to manage their own independent socialist nation. During WWII Tito was a leader of the Yugoslav Partisans and considered a hero to their people. He lead the nation thru many global political reforms and established the non-alignment movement (nations that did not support the Eastern Communist Bloc nor the Western NATO Bloc). Although he was a dictator he oversaw a peaceful era in the Balkan region that continued to unify the ethnicities.
The Yugoslav Wars
Following the death of Josip Tito in 1980, the presidency was alternated among different ethnicities within Yugoslavia so as to keep the peace. However the tension returned in 1990 after the fall of the Soviet Union. Much of this tension arose from the province of Kosovo who had begun to demand it's own state. The ethnic tensions boiled over into separate independence movements that eventually led to the fall of Yugoslavia. From 1991-1995 were a series of armed revolutionary conflicts against Serbia and Montenegro who intended to withhold the state of Yugoslavia. First it began with Slovenia, then Croatia, then Bosnia, Kosovo, Albania, and Macedonia all achieving their independence.
By 2001 the Yugoslav Wars had come to an end and the Balkans were divided up into various independent sovereignties. The wars caused much economic damage and racial animosity due to many cases of war crimes and even genocides. To this day there is still some tension in the Balkan region particularly in Kosovo who has still not been officially recognized as it's own independent state. Most of the Balkan states eventually joined with the NATO Bloc, except for Bosnia and Serbia who still support Tito's neutrality alignment. While the Balkan territory is not quite at the center of current global affairs, it still has a very rich history.
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