South Slavic Union
Encyclopedia
The South Slavic Union was a late 19th to early 20th century idea of a federation encompassing all South Slavic states.
prior to World War I
, Serbia
and Bulgaria
had gained independence and were looking to form a greater entity that would strengthen their international position. Disputes over territorial possessions within the federation, however, resulted in the Balkan Wars
and World War I. Hostilities diminished and the movement was reinvigorated during the inter-war period, after several more states had gained independence as a result of the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The planned South Slavic Union would have encompassed all of what later became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, plus Greater Bulgaria. Some also hinted toward incorporation of Albania into the South Slavic Union, since a big portion of it was already within the borders of Serbia, as the autonomous republic of Kosovo. The original plan was to include all of Greater Bulgaria as well, which features all of present-day Bulgarian territory, plus expansions to the North (Romanian-controlled Dobrudzha and Northern Black Sea coast), the Southeast (Ottoman-controlled Odrine territories) and South (Greek Controlled Aegean Coast). It was agreed that Macedonia was to be included in the federation as an autonomous republic, thus the controversy as to which state should incorporate it was settled. Eventually, as Europe was on its way to World War II, Western Slavic people realized that the suggested by Eastern Slavs (Bulgarians) Eastern Borders of the South Slavic Union, or Greater Bulgaria would never come to reality. The temptation of the South Slavic Union having an Aegean coast and greater Black Seas coast, was seen as unrealistic by them. The Union was to be a democratic federation of states, which would have a great amount of autonomy, however, a dispute arose between Serbia and Bulgaria as to where the capital should be - Sofia or Belgrade. In the end, Serbia and Bulgaria could not agree on which should be the dominant power in the union, even though given the nature of the union, that question would not have arisen, but realists claim that power politics played a greater role in this case. Bulgaria would have had significantly more territory and possibly controlled all the Black Sea and Aegean ports of the country, while a Serbian-dominated West would have had a higher population, and greater say over the Adriatic coast and Northwestern affairs. In addition, smaller South Slavic nations were not very fond of having a bipolar federation in which they would hold very little or now say. Eventually, the two countries agreed that such a union would not function well and would end up splitting up between Bulgaria and the Western Balkans, and decided not to form a federation. Instead, Yugoslavia was formed to incorporate only Southwestern
Slavic nations.
, Serbia
, Macedonia
, Montenegro
, Bosnia, Croatia
, Slovenia
, Vojvodina
, Kosovo
and possibly Albania
. It would have had a larger area than that of present-day Germany and a population of about 35 million people. It would have featured almost all of the Eastern Adriatic Coast, almost all of the Western Black Sea coast and a significant portion of the Aegean coast. It would have had a number of major cities, including Belgrade
, Sofia
, Sarejevo, Zagreb
, Skopje
, Plovdiv
, Varna
, Tirana
, Podgorica
, Ljubljana
, etc.
As all of the aforementioned countries' economies are currently growing and all are either in or on the path to entry in the European Union, the idea of a South Slavic Union to be formed as a higher-integrated sub-entity within the European Union has been once again addressed. Due to the recent collapse of Yugoslavia, however, as well as Bulgarian-Macedonian tensions, resulting from different interpretations of history, as well as Albanian-Serbian tensions, resulting from the Kosovo war, such a sub-union is thought to not be possible at least for another few decades.
History
Following the weakening of the Ottoman EmpireOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
prior to World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
and Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
had gained independence and were looking to form a greater entity that would strengthen their international position. Disputes over territorial possessions within the federation, however, resulted in the Balkan Wars
Balkan Wars
The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe in 1912 and 1913.By the early 20th century, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia, the countries of the Balkan League, had achieved their independence from the Ottoman Empire, but large parts of their ethnic...
and World War I. Hostilities diminished and the movement was reinvigorated during the inter-war period, after several more states had gained independence as a result of the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. The planned South Slavic Union would have encompassed all of what later became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, plus Greater Bulgaria. Some also hinted toward incorporation of Albania into the South Slavic Union, since a big portion of it was already within the borders of Serbia, as the autonomous republic of Kosovo. The original plan was to include all of Greater Bulgaria as well, which features all of present-day Bulgarian territory, plus expansions to the North (Romanian-controlled Dobrudzha and Northern Black Sea coast), the Southeast (Ottoman-controlled Odrine territories) and South (Greek Controlled Aegean Coast). It was agreed that Macedonia was to be included in the federation as an autonomous republic, thus the controversy as to which state should incorporate it was settled. Eventually, as Europe was on its way to World War II, Western Slavic people realized that the suggested by Eastern Slavs (Bulgarians) Eastern Borders of the South Slavic Union, or Greater Bulgaria would never come to reality. The temptation of the South Slavic Union having an Aegean coast and greater Black Seas coast, was seen as unrealistic by them. The Union was to be a democratic federation of states, which would have a great amount of autonomy, however, a dispute arose between Serbia and Bulgaria as to where the capital should be - Sofia or Belgrade. In the end, Serbia and Bulgaria could not agree on which should be the dominant power in the union, even though given the nature of the union, that question would not have arisen, but realists claim that power politics played a greater role in this case. Bulgaria would have had significantly more territory and possibly controlled all the Black Sea and Aegean ports of the country, while a Serbian-dominated West would have had a higher population, and greater say over the Adriatic coast and Northwestern affairs. In addition, smaller South Slavic nations were not very fond of having a bipolar federation in which they would hold very little or now say. Eventually, the two countries agreed that such a union would not function well and would end up splitting up between Bulgaria and the Western Balkans, and decided not to form a federation. Instead, Yugoslavia was formed to incorporate only Southwestern
Slavic nations.
Members
Had the South Slavic Union formed, the federation would have encompassed: BulgariaBulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
, Montenegro
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...
, Bosnia, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
, Vojvodina
Vojvodina
Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad...
, Kosovo
Kosovo
Kosovo is a region in southeastern Europe. Part of the Ottoman Empire for more than five centuries, later the Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija within Serbia...
and possibly Albania
Albania
Albania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
. It would have had a larger area than that of present-day Germany and a population of about 35 million people. It would have featured almost all of the Eastern Adriatic Coast, almost all of the Western Black Sea coast and a significant portion of the Aegean coast. It would have had a number of major cities, including Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
, Sofia
Sofia
Sofia is the capital and largest city of Bulgaria and the 12th largest city in the European Union with a population of 1.27 million people. It is located in western Bulgaria, at the foot of Mount Vitosha and approximately at the centre of the Balkan Peninsula.Prehistoric settlements were excavated...
, Sarejevo, Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, Skopje
Skopje
Skopje is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia with about a third of the total population. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre...
, Plovdiv
Plovdiv
Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe...
, Varna
Varna
Varna is the largest city and seaside resort on the Bulgarian Black Sea Coast and third-largest in Bulgaria after Sofia and Plovdiv, with a population of 334,870 inhabitants according to Census 2011...
, Tirana
Tirana
Tirana is the capital and the largest city of Albania. Modern Tirana was founded as an Ottoman town in 1614 by Sulejman Bargjini, a local ruler from Mullet, although the area has been continuously inhabited since antiquity. Tirana became Albania's capital city in 1920 and has a population of over...
, Podgorica
Podgorica
Podgorica , is the capital and largest city of Montenegro.Podgorica's favourable position at the confluence of the Ribnica and Morača rivers and the meeting point of the fertile Zeta Plain and Bjelopavlići Valley has encouraged settlement...
, Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
, etc.
As all of the aforementioned countries' economies are currently growing and all are either in or on the path to entry in the European Union, the idea of a South Slavic Union to be formed as a higher-integrated sub-entity within the European Union has been once again addressed. Due to the recent collapse of Yugoslavia, however, as well as Bulgarian-Macedonian tensions, resulting from different interpretations of history, as well as Albanian-Serbian tensions, resulting from the Kosovo war, such a sub-union is thought to not be possible at least for another few decades.