Montenegrin Federalist Party
Encyclopedia
The Montenegrin Federalist Party (sometimes known plainly as the Montenegrin Party) (Montenegrin
: Црногорска федералистичка странка, Crnogorska federalistička stranka) or Montenegrin Peasants' Federalist Movement (Montenegrin
: Crnogorski seljački federalistički pokret/Црногорски сељачки федералистички покрет) was a Montenegrin
political party
in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Yugoslavia) that stood for preservation of Montenegrin autonomy and a decentralized federalized Yugoslavia, best known as the fascist
puppet-state Independent State of Montenegro and collaboration with the Axis forces and especially Ustašas in World War II
. It was a prominent political factor of the Independent State of Croatia
and Axis coalition in the war. It pursued the policy of the Greens
who lost the Christmas Uprising
, but on the political and social scene. It was destroyed and banned by the Allies
. Its long-term leader was Sekula Drljević
.
mostly became a part of the Zeta Area, Sekula Drljević and other prominent supporters of the last, dethroned and in exile, Montenegrin King Nikola I
gathered and organized a political party to pursue their goals of a distinct Montenegrin autonomy for its preservation within the Yugoslav monarchy, centering around federalization of the state. It sought for a pacifist way to resolve the Montenegrin question, as contrary to the extremist and violent Greens who sought through a minor and failing guerrilla tactics to achieve their common goals by force.
The Montenegrin Federalist Party gradually voiced in support of the self-styled Montenegrin Army in Exile, aiding them, and its members filled with their ranks after the Greens officially dispersed in 1926. The Montenegrin Party ran on elections in 1923 and 1925, but it didn't receive much support, as the Serb
parties enjoyed most the support from the electorate the Montenegrin Federalists were counting on. In 1927 the party gradually lost influence, and never came out independently. It initially survived on the list of the Croatian Peasant Party
and Stjepan Radić
. Afterwards, the Party joined the Croatian Peasant Party and the Independent Democratic Party
in their influential Peasant-Democratic Coalition and became its minor member.
, who became the chief ideologue of the Montenegrin Federalist Party. The party pointed out that Montenegro unjustly lost its independence thanks to Serbia and the Allies, claimed that Montenegro was the leader amongst the Serbs and Yugoslavs rather than Serbia and called upon Montenegrin historical statehood. By 1938, the Party joined the Unified Opposition and closely associated with Vlatko Maček, a coalition of the entire Yugoslavian opposition bent on establishing a more democratic society. As time passed by the Montenegrin Federalist Party became more extreme and distanced from its original views, becoming a supporter of an independent Montenegro and a promoter of extreme Montenegrin nationalism.
The Party also made close links with the underground Communists on local basis. Afterwards it became much more radical in its pursuits and associated mostly with the Croatian Party of Rights, and much rarer with the Serbian opposition. The Montenegrin Party remained in opposition to every other Yugoslav force after the Cvetković-Macek Agreement in 1939, and anticipated World War II
as a way to gain power.
in Herzegovina to Mata in Albania; it would also include Metohija
and Sandžak
. A much smaller in territorial size "Independent State of Montenegro" was proclaimed on Saint Peter's Congress in 12 July 1941, with the Ustaše
and Albanians being much more favored by the Nazis. Nicholas' grandson and successor as heir to the throne Prince Michael of Montenegro
was invited to be its King and head of state, but he vigorously refused claiming that he will never cooperate with Nazis, criminals and traitors of the Serbian people
. The restored Montenegro lost Metohija and its eastern lands to a Greater Albania, but managed to gain the Serbian part of Sandžak. All other political parties were outlawed and a dictatorship of Sekula Drljević
under Italian protection was proclaimed. The nominal ecclesiastical leader became the uncanonical Croatian Orthodox Church
. It received a split on two wings, with a most extremist one opposing the current state borders of Montenegro, especially Albanian expansion and claimed the Bocca. That wing held links to an extent with the party's mortal enemies, the Partisans
, to assist the rebellion against the Italians and the Ustashas in the Bay of Kotor, as well as when assistance was needed to fend off the royalists, who managed to get ever-more control over Montenegro, and to whom the Communist Partisans just opened civil war.
In 1941 the Partisans
raised a rebellion and managed to liberate much of Montenegro, and the Montenegrin Federalist Army went to exile. It reorganized in Zagreb, the Independent State of Croatia
's capital, a Montenegrin State Council aimed at eventually creating an independent and large national state of the Montenegrin people. Out of Chetniks
it formed its own Montenegrin People's Army. It closely associated itself with the Ustashas and aided their regime greatly, with its prominent members became leading Nazi and genocide ideologues. Throughout the WWII the party would lead to the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent people. With the impending Allied victory in 1945, the party dispersed retreating with other Axis collaborators in late 1945, after its own Montenegrin Army turned against itself.
Montenegrin language
Montenegrin is a name used for the Serbo-Croatian language as spoken by Montenegrins; it also refers to an incipient standardized form of the Shtokavian dialect of Serbo-Croatian used as the official language of Montenegro...
: Црногорска федералистичка странка, Crnogorska federalistička stranka) or Montenegrin Peasants' Federalist Movement (Montenegrin
Montenegrin language
Montenegrin is a name used for the Serbo-Croatian language as spoken by Montenegrins; it also refers to an incipient standardized form of the Shtokavian dialect of Serbo-Croatian used as the official language of Montenegro...
: Crnogorski seljački federalistički pokret/Црногорски сељачки федералистички покрет) was a Montenegrin
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
political party
Political party
A political party is a political organization that typically seeks to influence government policy, usually by nominating their own candidates and trying to seat them in political office. Parties participate in electoral campaigns, educational outreach or protest actions...
in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Yugoslavia) that stood for preservation of Montenegrin autonomy and a decentralized federalized Yugoslavia, best known as the fascist
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
puppet-state Independent State of Montenegro and collaboration with the Axis forces and especially Ustašas in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. It was a prominent political factor of the Independent State of Croatia
Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia was a World War II puppet state of Nazi Germany, established on a part of Axis-occupied Yugoslavia. The NDH was founded on 10 April 1941, after the invasion of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers. All of Bosnia and Herzegovina was annexed to NDH, together with some parts...
and Axis coalition in the war. It pursued the policy of the Greens
Zelenaši
The Zelenaši were a group of Montenegrin dissidents, most notable for instigating the 1919 Christmas rebellion and later for supporting the existence of the fascist Kingdom of Montenegro during World War II....
who lost the Christmas Uprising
Christmas Uprising
The Christmas Uprising or Christmas Rebellion refers to the uprising of Montenegrin guerrilla fighters aimed against the planned unification of Montenegro with the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes...
, but on the political and social scene. It was destroyed and banned by the Allies
Allies of World War II
The Allies of World War II were the countries that opposed the Axis powers during the Second World War . Former Axis states contributing to the Allied victory are not considered Allied states...
. Its long-term leader was Sekula Drljević
Sekula Drljevic
Sekula Drljević, also transcribed as Sekule Drljević , was a WWII Montenegrin Nazi-fascist collaborator....
.
In the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes
After the abolition of divisional historical entities in 1922, when MontenegroMontenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
mostly became a part of the Zeta Area, Sekula Drljević and other prominent supporters of the last, dethroned and in exile, Montenegrin King Nikola I
Nicholas I of Montenegro
Nikola I Mirkov Petrović-Njegoš was the only king of Montenegro, reigning as king from 1910 to 1918 and as prince from 1860 to 1910. He was also a poet, notably penning "Onamo, 'namo!", a popular song from Montenegro.-Early life:Nikola was born in the village of Njeguši, the ancient home of the...
gathered and organized a political party to pursue their goals of a distinct Montenegrin autonomy for its preservation within the Yugoslav monarchy, centering around federalization of the state. It sought for a pacifist way to resolve the Montenegrin question, as contrary to the extremist and violent Greens who sought through a minor and failing guerrilla tactics to achieve their common goals by force.
The Montenegrin Federalist Party gradually voiced in support of the self-styled Montenegrin Army in Exile, aiding them, and its members filled with their ranks after the Greens officially dispersed in 1926. The Montenegrin Party ran on elections in 1923 and 1925, but it didn't receive much support, as the Serb
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
parties enjoyed most the support from the electorate the Montenegrin Federalists were counting on. In 1927 the party gradually lost influence, and never came out independently. It initially survived on the list of the Croatian Peasant Party
Croatian Peasant Party
The Croatian Peasant Party is a center and socially conservative political party in Croatia.-Austria-Hungary:The Croatian People's Peasant Party was formed on December 22, 1904 by Antun Radić along with his brother Stjepan Radić. The party contested elections for the first time in the Kingdom of...
and Stjepan Radić
Stjepan Radic
Stjepan Radić was a Croatian politician and the founder of the Croatian Peasant Party in 1905. Radić is credited with galvanizing the peasantry of Croatia into a viable political force...
. Afterwards, the Party joined the Croatian Peasant Party and the Independent Democratic Party
Independent Democratic Party
Independent Democratic Party may refer to:*Democratic Party *Independent Democratic Party of Russia*Independent Democratic Party...
in their influential Peasant-Democratic Coalition and became its minor member.
In the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
In 1929, a dictatorship was brought by King Alexander, changing the name of the country to Yugoslavia officially. But after his assassination in Marseilles in 1934, the new government wanted pacification, so they rehabilitated and released the imprisoned former Green rebel Novica RadovićNovica Radovic
Novica Radović was a Montenegrin politician.Radović took part in 1919's Christmas Uprising with the Zelenaši, an armed rebellion opposed to Montenegro's unification with Serbia in 1918...
, who became the chief ideologue of the Montenegrin Federalist Party. The party pointed out that Montenegro unjustly lost its independence thanks to Serbia and the Allies, claimed that Montenegro was the leader amongst the Serbs and Yugoslavs rather than Serbia and called upon Montenegrin historical statehood. By 1938, the Party joined the Unified Opposition and closely associated with Vlatko Maček, a coalition of the entire Yugoslavian opposition bent on establishing a more democratic society. As time passed by the Montenegrin Federalist Party became more extreme and distanced from its original views, becoming a supporter of an independent Montenegro and a promoter of extreme Montenegrin nationalism.
The Party also made close links with the underground Communists on local basis. Afterwards it became much more radical in its pursuits and associated mostly with the Croatian Party of Rights, and much rarer with the Serbian opposition. The Montenegrin Party remained in opposition to every other Yugoslav force after the Cvetković-Macek Agreement in 1939, and anticipated World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
as a way to gain power.
Fascism
With the April War and the fall of Yugoslavia to Axis forces, the Montenegrin Federalist Party offered to collaborate with the Italian Fascists of Benito Mussolini, demanding a Greater Montenegro from the river of NeretvaNeretva
Neretva is the largest river of the eastern part of the Adriatic basin. It has been harnessed and controlled to a large extent by four HE power-plants with large dams and their storage lakes, but it is still recognized for its natural beauty, diversity of its landscape and visual...
in Herzegovina to Mata in Albania; it would also include Metohija
Metohija
Metohija , is a large basin and the name of the region covering the southwestern part of Kosovo.It encompasses three of the seven districts of Kosovo, namely the historical :* District of Peć * District of Đakovica * District of Prizren...
and Sandžak
Sandžak
Sandžak also known as Raška is a historical region lying along the border between Serbia and Montenegro...
. A much smaller in territorial size "Independent State of Montenegro" was proclaimed on Saint Peter's Congress in 12 July 1941, with the Ustaše
Ustaše
The Ustaša - Croatian Revolutionary Movement was a Croatian fascist anti-Yugoslav separatist movement. The ideology of the movement was a blend of fascism, Nazism, and Croatian nationalism. The Ustaše supported the creation of a Greater Croatia that would span to the River Drina and to the border...
and Albanians being much more favored by the Nazis. Nicholas' grandson and successor as heir to the throne Prince Michael of Montenegro
Prince Michael of Montenegro
Prince Michael Petrović-Njegoš of Montenegro was the third son of Prince Mirko Petrović-Njegoš, Grand Voivode of Grahovo and Zeta , and Natalija Konstantinovic, a cousin of Aleksandar Obrenović of Serbia...
was invited to be its King and head of state, but he vigorously refused claiming that he will never cooperate with Nazis, criminals and traitors of the Serbian people
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
. The restored Montenegro lost Metohija and its eastern lands to a Greater Albania, but managed to gain the Serbian part of Sandžak. All other political parties were outlawed and a dictatorship of Sekula Drljević
Sekula Drljevic
Sekula Drljević, also transcribed as Sekule Drljević , was a WWII Montenegrin Nazi-fascist collaborator....
under Italian protection was proclaimed. The nominal ecclesiastical leader became the uncanonical Croatian Orthodox Church
Croatian Orthodox Church
The Croatian Orthodox Church was a religious body created during World War II by the Ustasha regime in the Independent State of Croatia .The reason for formation of this church was that Orthodox Christian Churches are state-based...
. It received a split on two wings, with a most extremist one opposing the current state borders of Montenegro, especially Albanian expansion and claimed the Bocca. That wing held links to an extent with the party's mortal enemies, the Partisans
Partisans (Yugoslavia)
The Yugoslav Partisans, or simply the Partisans were a Communist-led World War II anti-fascist resistance movement in Yugoslavia...
, to assist the rebellion against the Italians and the Ustashas in the Bay of Kotor, as well as when assistance was needed to fend off the royalists, who managed to get ever-more control over Montenegro, and to whom the Communist Partisans just opened civil war.
In 1941 the Partisans
Partisans (Yugoslavia)
The Yugoslav Partisans, or simply the Partisans were a Communist-led World War II anti-fascist resistance movement in Yugoslavia...
raised a rebellion and managed to liberate much of Montenegro, and the Montenegrin Federalist Army went to exile. It reorganized in Zagreb, the Independent State of Croatia
Independent State of Croatia
The Independent State of Croatia was a World War II puppet state of Nazi Germany, established on a part of Axis-occupied Yugoslavia. The NDH was founded on 10 April 1941, after the invasion of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers. All of Bosnia and Herzegovina was annexed to NDH, together with some parts...
's capital, a Montenegrin State Council aimed at eventually creating an independent and large national state of the Montenegrin people. Out of Chetniks
Chetniks
Chetniks, or the Chetnik movement , were Serbian nationalist and royalist paramilitary organizations from the first half of the 20th century. The Chetniks were formed as a Serbian resistance against the Ottoman Empire in 1904, and participated in the Balkan Wars, World War I, and World War II...
it formed its own Montenegrin People's Army. It closely associated itself with the Ustashas and aided their regime greatly, with its prominent members became leading Nazi and genocide ideologues. Throughout the WWII the party would lead to the deaths of tens of thousands of innocent people. With the impending Allied victory in 1945, the party dispersed retreating with other Axis collaborators in late 1945, after its own Montenegrin Army turned against itself.
See also
- The GreensZelenašiThe Zelenaši were a group of Montenegrin dissidents, most notable for instigating the 1919 Christmas rebellion and later for supporting the existence of the fascist Kingdom of Montenegro during World War II....
(Montenegrin Army in Exile) - Sekula DrljevićSekula DrljevicSekula Drljević, also transcribed as Sekule Drljević , was a WWII Montenegrin Nazi-fascist collaborator....
- Independent State of Montenegro
- Petrović-Njegoš dynastyHouse of Petrovic-NjegošThe House of Petrović-Njegoš was the Royal House of Montenegro from 1696 to 1918. Montenegro had enjoyed de facto independence from the Ottoman Empire from 1711 but only received formal international recognition as an independent principality in 1878.Montenegro was ruled from inception by...