A bit of history

The process of settlement of the southern and coastal territories of the Balkans by Slavic tribes began with the Vikings and Byzantine rule in the sixth century. The Slavic state of Duklja (named after the Roman city of Doklea, located not far from the present Podgorica), was founded at the beginning of the 7th century on the territory of the former Roman province of Prevalis, within the borders and under the formal control of the Vyzantine Empire.

With the advent of the Slavs, the demography and state structure of Prevalis underwent radical changes. Duklja was located in a compact, isolated area in the Skadar Lake, surrounded by mountain ranges. This region was destined to become the base for further socio-political and state development of the history of Montenegro, which was, in fact, many century-old struggle for independence and autonomy. This struggle has become a distinctive feature of the existence of the Montenegrin people.

Having settled in the Balkans, the Slavs adopted Christianity, which contributed to their ethnic, cultural and political integration with the Romans, Illyrians and other non-Slavic populations. Reliable information about Duklja and its rulers is extremely scarce until the moment Prince Vladimir become ruler (end of the 10th century). The legend about Prince Vladimir and his martyrdom is described in the Chronicle of Pop Duklyanin of the 12th century, as well as in folk tales and is preserved in modern religious rites. During the reign of Vojislav, Vladimir’s nephew, Duklja won a big victory over the Vyzantine army near the city of Bar in 1042, which led to further strengthening of its positions.

This victory forced the Vyzantine emperor to conclude an alliance with Mihailo, the son of Vojislav. Thus, Dukla was the first of the Balkan states to receive independence from Vyzantium. From about that time, the country began to be called Zeta – this name gradually replaced the former in Vyzantine sources. It came from the Slavic word “reaper”, which is still used in the areas of compact residence of the Slavs in East Germany.

In 1077, Mihailo received a blessing to reign from Pope Gregory VII, and Zeta was proclaimed a kingdom. His successor Bodin (1083-1101) continued to fight against Vyzantine dominance in the Balkans, and during his reign Zeta’s territory and influence extended to neighboring Raska, Bosnia and Bulgaria.

After the death of the last ruler from the dynasty of Vladimir (called the Vojislavljevic), a period of struggle for the throne began, which Vyzantium took advantage of, and in 1185 Zeta was annexed to the Serbian region of Raska, which was under Vyzantine control. At the same time, all coastal cities were destroyed, except for Kotor. The Serbian Nemanjić dynasty, which ruled Raska as part of its “Kingdom of Diocletia and Dalmatia”, did not change the state system created by its predecessors.

During the reign of the dynasty, roads were built from the coast to Serbia, trade and crafts developed, which led to significant progress and an increase in the welfare of coastal cities. Kotor played a special role in trade between the countries of the Balkan Peninsula and Italy.

In the second half of the 14th century, Zeta became independent from the central government in Serbia and continued to exist as an independent feudal state, first under the control of the Balsic dynasty, and then under the Crnojevic dynasty. The Balsici significantly expanded the territory of their state as a result of constant wars both with their neighbors – Albanian, Bosnian, Serbian feudal lords, and with the growing strength of Venice and Turkey. With the increasing power of the Crnojevic, Zeta (or Montenegro – this name appeared during their reign) became a country whose state system was a mixture of feudal and communal-tribal systems.

During this period, the raids of the Turks became more frequent. The territory of the country decreased, the population retreated to the mountains of Lovcen. Ivan Crnojevic chose Cetinje as the new capital of the country, where he built his palace and monastery. Cetinje was destined to become the state and spiritual center of the Montenegrins, supporting them in their quest for freedom in the next five long centuries.

With the financial support of Ivan Crnojevic’s son, Djuradj, the first printing house in the South Slavic lands began its work in Cetinje. In 1493, five church books printed in Cyrillic were published.

After the short reign of Djuradj, the country was under the rule of the Turks (1496). Since 1513, Montenegro has been singled out as a special administrative-territorial unit within the Ottoman Empire, with a high degree of autonomy, having its own government, judiciary and a standing army. This situation in the country persisted until the Candian War (1645-1669), after which the territory around the Lovcen mountains regained full independence.

The supreme power, both spiritual and secular, belonged to the Cetinje Bishops. The organs of state power were the General Montenegrin Assembly and the Council of Heads of Tribes. At lower levels, leadership was exercised by tribal councils. In 1697, the Montenegrin assembly elected Danilo I, the first ruler of the Petrovic dynasty, as bishop. Danilo began an organized struggle for the political and religious unification of the country, undermined by inter-clan conflicts and the Islamization of the population carried out by the Turks on the borders of the country. The year 1712 went down in the history of the Montenegrin people as the year of one of the greatest victories of the country’s army over the Bosnian vizier Ahmed Pasha in the battle of Carev Laz.

United by the efforts of Bishop Peter I Petrovic (1784-1830) – in many opinions the most prominent figure in the history of Montenegro – the country embarked on the path of strengthening its sovereignty. After a series of great victories over the superior Turkish armies in 1796, Turkish influence was limited and Montenegro became a de facto independent state. The merit of Peter I there was also an overcoming of a protracted internal crisis: he united the Montenegrin tribes, established strong ties with the inhabitants of the coast, which was under the occupation of Austria. He issued laws that ensured the departure from the traditional, clan organization of society and the introduction of modern state institutions and management methods.

Peter II Petrovic Njegos (1830-1851), a famous poet and philosopher, was the last ruler who combined secular and spiritual powers. During his twenty-year reign, he continued the successful development of Montenegro, establishing judicial, administrative and military authorities. In his trips around Europe, Njegos met with many political leaders, dignitaries, famous people, contributing to the formation of a positive foreign policy image of Montenegro. The establishment of borders with Austria, which he was able to achieve in 1841, led to the recognition of Montenegro by the leading world powers as an independent state, with defined borders and territory.

Negosh’s successor, Danilo Petrovic (1851-1860), was the first secular ruler since the time of Ivan Crnojevic. Under him, a significant part of the former Montenegrin lands was liberated. Prince Danilo also paid great attention to establishing relations with the West. After a great military victory over the Turks in Grahovac (1858) and the establishment of the state borders of Montenegro, which were recognized as the largest states at the Constantinople Conference, the country officially consolidated its sovereignty.

Nikola Petrovic (1860-1918) inherited the throne during the years when the “Eastern question” was again raised in the European political arena. During the Eastern Crisis of 1875-1878, Montenegro defeated the Ottoman troops in the battles of Vuciji Do and Fundina. As a result of these victories, Montenegrin politicians achieved many goals, including the full international recognition of the country at the Berlin Congress, the return of the cities of Bar and Ulcinj (which meant access to the sea), as well as the cities of Podgorica, Niksic and Kolasin.

Thus, Montenegro has increased its territory, population and acquired certain economic benefits. At the same time, the Montenegrins showed great tolerance towards the local population, so that many Muslims and ethnic Albanians remained to live in Montenegro and received all civil rights and freedoms. Many representatives of these population groups have taken high positions in government and military service.

The struggle of the small Montenegrin people, who – the only one in the Balkans – managed to successfully resist the centuries-old domination of the powerful Ottoman Empire, brought them the sympathy and support of the rest of Europe. In 1910, remembering the papal blessing of the 11th century, Prince Nikola proclaimed himself king, and the country began to be called a kingdom.

Montenegro entered the First World War immediately after its announcement and fought together with Serbia on the side of the Entente against Germany and its allies. After the defeat of the Serbian army, Montenegro capitulated, and King Nikola left the country on January 6, 1916. After the end of the war, which ended with the victory of the Entente countries, the Serbs raised the issue of uniting the two states. On November 26, 1918, the Great National Assembly of Montenegro decided to depose King Nikola and the dynasty as a whole.

Sharp criticism was caused by the flight of the monarch and the fact that the son of Nikola, the prince Mirko, became the temporary puppet ruler of the occupied kingdom. So the Njegos-Petrovic dynasty was compromised in the eyes of its own people and its allies. The king and members of his family were forbiden to enter the country. For the first time in centuries-old history, the name of Montenegro disappeared from the political map of Europe, the country became part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (since the mid-20s – the Kingdom of Yugoslavia).

The last king of Montenegro died on February 16, 1921 in the city of Antibes in southern France. He was buried in a Russian church in the Italian city of San Remo. In 1989, the remains of King Nikola and Queen Milena were transferred to Montenegro and on October 1, solemnly reburied in Cetinje.

The Yugoslav authorities made attempts to suppress the dissatisfaction of many Montenegrins with their position in the Kingdom by changing the administrative-territorial organization of the region – the formation of the so-called provinces and the introduction of governors. However, these changes did not have the desired effect and political conflicts became more and more acute.

Immediately after the outbreak of World War II, the country was attacked by Italy. During the war, 10% of the population of Montenegro was killed in battles with the invaders and local nationalist and fascist groups. The love of freedom of the Montenegrin people widely manifested itself during the armed popular uprising on July 13, 1941, which made a huge contribution to the anti-fascist movement in Yugoslavia. The fight against fascism during the war allowed Montenegro to restore its state status and in 1946 it became one of the six equal republics of the socialistialist Yugoslav federation.

The nature of the internal political system of the federation in the early post-war period made the constitutional and legal possibilities of the republics, including Montenegro, more formal than real. But in the 1970s, a significant movement towards decentralization and democratization began, which strengthened the position of the republics. However, as a result of the death of Josip Broz Tito, who concentrated all power in the country in his hands, the inability and unwillingness of the republican leaders to start a series of political reforms and democratically resolve the issue of maintaining or dissolving the federation led to the fact that Yugoslavia was engulfed in a bloody civil war that ended in early 1990s by the secession of Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

In 1992, Montenegro, together with Serbia, formed a new state – the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. However, due to disagreements between the republics, the FRY lasted a little over 10 years and was liquidated on February 4, 2003. On the same day, the formation of the State Community of Serbia and Montenegro was proclaimed.

Both republics became independent states, but with some restrictions. Thus, a common parliament and government were created from five ministries: foreign affairs, defense, economy, international economic relations, protection of human rights and minorities. Three years later, a referendum was held by each of the member countries of the Community on full independence.

On May 21, 2006, in a referendum, 55.5% of Montenegrins voted to leave the federation with Serbia, and on June 3, 2006, Montenegro declared its independence, and on June 15, Serbia recognized Montenegro’s independence. Thus, Montenegro again became an independent state.