History History

The Romans arrived in Illyria in 229 B.C. to fight against the acts of piracy carried out by the Illyrians. In 168, Illyria became a Roman province. At the beginning of our era, the current territory of Montenegro corresponds to the Roman province of Dalmatia, part of the Illyricum which covers the whole of the Balkans. In 285, the Roman emperor Diocletian, of Dalmatian origin, established the system of tetrarchy to try to control the vast empire.

In 395, the "Theodosian line", which divided the Roman Empire in two, started vertically from the Montenegrin coast: the future historical centre of Montenegro was then in the Eastern Empire. In 626, the Avars were pushed back to Illyria by the Byzantine emperor Heraclius. Byzantium favoured the settlement of Slavic populations (Croats and Serbs) to supplant the Avars. Finally, the province of Dioclea was removed from the control of the Bishop of Rome and placed under the authority of the Patriarch of Constantinople in the year 732

For the area of Montenegro, the main source of invasion was supplied by the Goths; among them the Ostrogoths and their leader Theodoric (474-526) succeeded in creating the so-called Ostrogothic Kingdom (covering Italy, Sicily and Dalmatia) at the expense of Rome and, it seems, with the blessing of the Byzantine Empire.

Before the end of the 7th century, Byzantium favoured the installation of Slavic populations to supplant the Avars in the Balkans. These Slavic populations, originating from Poland and the Ukraine, were made up of two main groups in the Balkans, the Croats and the Serbs. The first settled in the north and the second in the east and south.

Dioclea was originally one of the four principalities of the Roman province of Dalmatia. Covering the lake of Skadar, the mouths of Kotor and part of the river Zeta, its original core corresponds fairly well to the territory of Montenegro. Dioclea was originally a principality of the great Serbian principality of Rascia, itself more or less vassal according to the times of the Byzantine Empire

At the beginning of the 11th century, Dioclea was only a part of Serbia (an administrative and military district within the Byzantine Empire). King Stefan Vojislav, however, tried to free himself from Serbian and Byzantine rule and to establish a dynasty. His descendant, Mihailo, extended the kingdom to the northwest, and was called King of Dioclea and Dalmatia. His son Constantine Bodin, king of Dioclea from 1081 to 1101, was short-lived tsar of Bulgaria in 1072. The maximum expansion of Dioclea then included part of Bosnia and Rascia (eastern Serbia)

The name Crna Gora (Black Mountain or Montenegro) appeared during the 13th century. In 1166, Stephen Nemanja, appointed by Constantinople to manage Rascia, emancipated himself from this supervision. In 1189, he annexed Zeta, which remained under Serbian rule until 1355. His son was crowned by the Pope. The Nemanja dynasty reached its apogee with Stephen Dushan (1331-1355) who, after conquering Macedonia, was named emperor of the Serbs and Greeks. His empire, "Greater Serbia", also covered Albania and Epirus. Upon his death, the empire became fragmented and began to be coveted by the Turks.

The Ottoman thrust was felt in the Balkans from 1354. While Serbia became a vassal of the Turks in 1389 after the battle of the Field of Blackbirds (Kosovo), Zeta succeeded for nearly a century in keeping itself away from the Turks under the dynasty of the Balsić, Branković and Crnojević (1360 to 1496). These three families would succeed by forging ties with Venice to protect themselves from the Turkish push, hence the name Montenegro as the "Serbian Sparta".

The Turks did not really succeed in exercising their authority over the mountain tribes and clans. Power was then passed on from one bishop to another for almost three centuries

Until the end of the First World War, the system of prince-bishops placed Montenegro in the Orthodox world. This system makes it possible, by making the temporal power emanate from the person who holds the religious power, to sanctuarize the former and to make it immiscible with the Turkish and Muslim world. The great divergence of the Serbian and Montenegrin histories is situated at this pivotal moment when Serbia is occupied by the Ottomans and Montenegro succeeds in setting up the perennial system of prince-bishops

Danilo Petrović Njegoš became prince-bishop of Montenegro. He succeeded in truly establishing his power by federating the Montenegrin tribes and fighting against the most resistant villages, such as the Turks or Albanians from the eastern mountains of the country. In 1711, Prince-Bishop Danilo I established relations with the Orthodox Russia of Peter the Great, which would bring the benevolent protection of the Russian big brother for three centuries. Danilo I is therefore considered the father of the Montenegrin nation. Shortly before his death in 1735, he succeeded in getting the rule of transmission by the nephew accepted and in federating the main Montenegrin tribes, which would bring the stability of the Petrović dynasty, which would rule until 1914 over the small Montenegro.

At the Congress of Vienna, Montenegro obtained an extension of its territory to the north-east

The London Conference recognizes a new state, Albania; Montenegro is forced to leave Shkodra to it.

Following the Treaty of Bucharest, Montenegro extended to the north over part of the sandjak of Novi Pazar and the Metohia plain

On June 28, 1914, the attack against the crown prince of Austria-Hungary François-Ferdinand was perpetrated by Gavrilo Princip, a Serbian student from Bosnia, in the name of the unity of all Serbs. This led Montenegro to declare war on Austria-Hungary on August 8, 1914, in solidarity with Serbia.

The 40,000 Montenegrin peasant-soldiers, hardened by the Balkan wars, were incorporated into the Serbian army and took part in the Battle of Belgrade. But in January 1916, faced with the Austro-Hungarian thrust, the Montenegrin army was dissolved and the king went into exile in Italy.

The turbulent people of Montenegro have traditionally been divided between pro-independence greens and pro-union whites. On November 30, 1918, a large National Assembly formed in Podgorica around the white movement voted to unite with Serbia in the new Yugoslavia, as well as to dismiss the Njegoš dynasty. The king of Montenegro, Nikola ^I, abdicated in favor of his son-in-law, Alexander Karađorđević, who became king of Yugoslavia. Supporters of an independent Montenegro, gathered around the Green movement, organized the response. The first Montenegrin revolt directed against Serbian state rule dates back to Christmas 1918, led by the former Minister of the Interior, Jovan Plamenac. Plamenac led an insurrection of green militias against the town of Cetinje, which was quickly suppressed by the Serbian army and white Montenegrin militias. At the end of 1918, the Montenegrin Assembly, after the November elections, decided to dismiss the Niegoš dynasty and to attach Montenegro to Serbia. Montenegro became part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes of Peter ^I, King of Serbia. A climate of guerrilla warfare between Montenegrins and Serbs prevailed until 1924, despite the international recognition of the existence of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes at the Congress of Versailles, and thus the integration of Montenegro into this state. The death of King Nikola ^I in France on¹ March 1921 left the government in exile without an organized will, and opposition to Serbian rule crystallized into a political movement, the Montenegrin Federalist Party, which won 23 per cent of the vote in the March 1923 parliamentary elections. This party was the basis for the development of the Communist Party in Montenegro.

Death of Nicholas I and abdication of his son Danilo, marking the end of the dynasty. The Constitution ruled out the idea of a federal state and Alexander I (son of Peter I of Serbia) became King of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes on 16 August 1921

Adoption of the name of Kingdom of Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia is attacked by Axis troops.

Montenegro was placed under Italian rule after Prince Michael refused the throne offered to him by Mussolini. The coastal strip was "entrusted" by the new Croatian state to Italy, which thus controlled the entire Adriatic coast (including Montenegro and Albania). In November 1942, a common political entity, the Anti-Fascist Liberation Council of Yugoslavia (AVNOJ), was created by the communists and gave Montenegro the title of republic in the future Yugoslavia. In September 1943, the German authorities decided to attach the area of the mouths of Kotor to Montenegro; this attachment was ratified in the federal structure of Yugoslavia after the war and has not been contested since.

In 1944-1945, the Montenegrin communists were the most fervent supporters of Stalin. The latter was seen as the liberator of the peoples of the whole world, while Tito was seen as the instigator of a national communism. Vlade Dapčević, very young returned to the Yugoslav Communist Youth, is with his brother Peko one of the main leaders of the Montenegrin communist movement between 1941 and 1944. But while Peko became chief of staff of the Yugoslav army by pledging allegiance to Tito, Vlade was sent in 1950 to the Titist prison of Goli Otok, because he had voted for the integration of Yugoslavia into the Cominform. He was released in 1954 and, believing that Tito's Yugoslavia had already been sold to the West, he recreated a Yugoslav Communist Party in exile in Paris. In 1975 the UDBA, the Titist political police, arrested him in Romania and sent him back to the Titist jails for fourteen years. A hero of the Second World War and a fervent communist, Vlade Dapčević joined the tradition of revolt against the established order and the taste for independence of Montenegrins.

Proclamation of the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia

Death of Tito.

The Communist League of Yugoslavia is disintegrating. The first free post-war parliamentary elections were held in the six republics of the federation. The Montenegrins remained aloof from these movements that would lead to the explosion of the federation, and in fact fought in the Serbian army against the Croats in Dubrovnik. In March 1992, a referendum was held on whether Montenegro should remain in Yugoslavia. The result was a 96% vote in favour of remaining in Yugoslavia, placing the Republic of Montenegro on the same level as Serbia. But in the late 1990s, Montenegro will distance itself somewhat from the policies of Slobodan Milošević, president of the Federation since July 1997. At the end of 1999, Montenegro adopted the German mark as its official currency, and in 2000 it adopted the euro. The second event was the rejection in July 2000 of a federal reform wanted by Serbia, which would have strengthened the federal power.

Serbia and Montenegro are working on a new draft constitution under the aegis of the European Union.

Birth of the Union of Serbia and Montenegro which means the definitive disappearance of Yugoslavia.

Referendum on independence: the turnout was 85% and 55.5% of the votes were in favour of independence. The choice of independence was thus narrowly defeated (more than 55% of votes in favour were required for independence to be ratified). The Parliament of Montenegro proclaimed independence on 3 June 2006.

The historical leader Milo Djukanović is reappointed as Prime Minister.

After several years of negotiation, Montenegro is joining NATO's integrated structure. The country is still negotiating to join the European Union.

At the major NATO summit in Madrid, the Secretary General reaffirmed his commitment to Montenegro. The contribution of Podgorica is considered "not negligible".

An example that reveals the political reality of the Balkans. A freeway linking the Adriatic Sea to Serbia will probably never see the light of day. The debts are colossal, the contracts opaque and the tenders non-existent. China, which won the contract, seems to be stalling the work so that the time limits can be met. A classic technique that has not fooled any official in the Podgorica government. What is the main clause to be activated in case of non-payment? The sale of any land in the country outside military and diplomatic zones. This is how Beijing had its eye on the deep water port of Bar... Montenegro simply organized the sale of the port through this contract which was not meant to be honored. In the end, it is the French who will pay the bill for the highway. Why is this? The first reason is that the British and the Americans let us pay the bill. Serbia buys a lot of military equipment from France. The treasury is somewhat amortized. France has no great desire to see the only access to the Serbian sea in the hands of China. By erasing Montenegro's debt, China cannot enforce the clauses of the contract in case of non-payment. The reader will appreciate the comicality of the situation.