The History of Yugoslavia, Part 1: Origins and Growth

Summary

The video chronicles the turbulent history of the Balkan region and Yugoslavia from 1914-1980, beginning with rising nationalism and geopolitical tensions leading to WWI and the establishment of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes in 1918. It covers Yugoslavia in WWII, the socialist Yugoslav republic established under Josip Broz Tito after the war, Tito's split with Stalin, and the relative stability and prosperity of socialist Yugoslavia until Tito's death in 1980, after which the economy and unity of the southern Slavic peoples began to unravel.

Takeaways

• 😳 Rising nationalism and secret alliances threatened stability of European empires in 1914, especially Austria-Hungary due to South Slavic nationalism
• 😱 Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand triggered start of WWI in July 1914
• 😠 Austria-Hungary failed 3 times to invade Serbia in 1914 despite having larger army
• 👍 With help of allies, Serbia and Montenegro liberated from Central Powers occupation by November 1918
• 🎉 State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs declared sovereignty and joined Serbia to form Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes in 1918
• 😨 During WWII occupation, Croatia was German puppet state led by fascist Ustaše movement
• 😡 Communist resistance movements gained strength during WWII occupation
• 🤝 After liberation, Yugoslavia formed as socialist republic led by Josip Broz Tito
• 🙂 Tito kept peace between ethnic groups and distanced Yugoslavia from Soviet Union
• 😢 After Tito's death in 1980, Yugoslavia's economy and unity collapsed, leading to civil war

Q & A

What event triggered the start of World War I?

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, heir to the Austro-Hungarian throne, by Bosnian Serb nationalists on June 28, 1914.

Why did Austria-Hungary have trouble invading Serbia in 1914?

Despite having much smaller armies, Serbia and Montenegro were able to successfully repel Austria-Hungary's invasion attempts three times in 1914.

What territories did Bulgaria annex from Serbia during WWI?

Bulgaria briefly annexed around two-thirds of Serbian territory during WWI.

How was Yugoslavia formed after WWI?

The State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs joined with Montenegro, Serbia, and the region of Banat to form the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, later renamed Yugoslavia in 1929.

Who was the first king of Yugoslavia?

Peter I, who was previously the King of Serbia, became the first King of Yugoslavia.

What led to Germany invading Yugoslavia in 1941?

After Prince Regent Paul signed Yugoslavia to the Axis powers, a pro-British coup overthrew him. Germany invaded 10 days later.

What was unique about Josip Broz Tito's rule of communist Yugoslavia?

Tito broke from Soviet domination and implemented market socialist elements in Yugoslavia's economy, rather than following a strictly socialist model.

Why did Tito want to integrate Albania into Yugoslavia?

Not for ethnic reasons, but because of Albania's geopolitical importance as an ally of the Soviet Union that could be used for leverage against Yugoslavia.

How did Tito help unify Yugoslavia?

By creating a common Yugoslav identity and keeping the peace between various South Slavic groups in the country.

What led to the collapse of Yugoslavia after Tito's death?

The deteriorating economy and weakening of the framework that had kept the country united caused calls for individual ethnic groups to form their own nations.

Outlines

00:00

😦 The Balkans Before WWI and How It Led to Conflict

This paragraph provides background on the Balkan region in 1914, describing growing nationalism and tensions, especially amongst Slavic groups under Austria-Hungary's rule. It highlights Serbian nationalism and resentment towards Austria-Hungary. The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand is noted as the spark that began WWI. The paragraph then details Austria-Hungary's failed attempts to invade Serbia in 1914 despite having a larger army.

05:04

😌 Yugoslavia Formed from WWI's Aftermath and Tito's Unique Leadership

This paragraph jumps ahead to the end of WWI, explaining how the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes was formed from the formerly Austrian-controlled southern Slavic territories as well as Serbia and Montenegro. It then summarizes key events and figures in the kingdom's early history up through WWII. After liberation, Yugoslavia is proclaimed a socialist republic under Josip Broz Tito, who worked to unify Yugoslavia's ethnic groups. Tito also took a independent path from the Soviet communist model.

Keywords

💡Yugoslavia

Yugoslavia refers to the country in the Balkans that was formed after World War I and existed until the 1990s. The video provides a history of Yugoslavia, including its formation, leadership under Tito, non-alignment policy during the Cold War, and eventual dissolution in civil war in the 1990s.

💡South Slavs

The South Slavs refer to the Southern Slavic ethnic groups in the Balkans, including Serbs, Croats, Slovenes, Macedonians and Bosniaks. A goal of Yugoslavia was to unite these South Slavic peoples, except for Bulgaria, into a common state after World War 1.

💡Tito

Josip Broz Tito was the longtime leader of socialist Yugoslavia after World War 2. He helped unify the country and established a unique form of market socialism and non-alignment in the Cold War. Many Yugoslavs mourned his death in 1980.

💡World War 1

World War 1 began with the assassination of Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914 and pitted the Allied Powers against the Central Powers. The war led to the collapse of empires in Europe like Austria-Hungary and directly enabled the later formation of Yugoslavia.

💡World War 2

In World War 2, Yugoslavia was quickly invaded and occupied by Axis powers like Germany and Italy after a coup overthrew a government that signed on to the Axis alliance. Partisan resistance to occupation was fierce during the war.

💡Socialist Republics

The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia formed after WW2 was based on 6 socialist republics: Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia, Serbia, Montenegro and Macedonia. There were also autonomous regions like Kosovo within Serbia.

💡Non-Aligned Movement

The Non-Aligned Movement led by Tito distanced Yugoslavia from allegiance to either the Western or Soviet blocs during the Cold War, giving it an independent voice in world affairs.

💡Civil War

After Tito's death and economic collapse, Yugoslavia dissolved in brutal civil war during the 1990s as ethnic tensions erupted and republics sought independence from the fracturing federation.

💡Independence

The video traces the desire for independence among South Slavs from empires like Austria-Hungary during WW1 which led to the formation of Yugoslavia, through to the independence sought by former Yugoslav republics in the 1990s civil war.

💡Balkans

The Balkan region of Southeastern Europe, including countries like Yugoslavia, has historically been an intersection of empires, cultures and ethnicities that has endured much conflict over nationalism and sovereignty.

Highlights

In 1914 Europe was in turmoil, with imperialism, nationalism, and secret alliances threatening empires.

Rising South Slavic nationalism in Austria-Hungary pushed the empire to the brink of collapse.

The assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand ignited World War I, which began officially on July 28, 1914.

Despite having smaller armies, the Slavic nations successfully repelled Austria-Hungary's invasion attempts.

The Central Powers eventually overpowered Serbia and Montenegro with Germany's help.

On October 29, 1918, the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs declared sovereignty.

In 1929 the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes became Yugoslavia, ruled by King Peter I.

After a coup in 1941, Yugoslavia quickly fell to Axis control under German occupation.

Communist movements gained steam during WWII occupation.

The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia formed in 1945 led by Josip Broz Tito.

Tito resisted Soviet hegemony and implemented market socialism.

Tito was widely popular for unifying South Slavs and maintaining peace.

After Tito's death in 1980, Yugoslavia's economy and unity collapsed.

Many wished to build their own independent nations after Tito.

The next video will cover the fall of Yugoslavia, the civil war, and aftermath.

Transcripts

in 1914 europe was in turmoil

imperialism nationalism and the creation

of secret alliances threatened the

framework that kept many of europe's

empires together

a group particularly divided by the

empires of europe were the slavs

with russia bulgaria serbia and

montenegro being the only independent

slavic states in 1914.

one empire in particular that was on the

brink of collapse was austria-hungary

due in part to the south slavic

nationalism rising in their borders

the south slavs wish to have their own

independent states

and the serbs of austria-hungary aspired

to reunite with the rest of serbia

however all of this nationalism in

nation building would have been nothing

if it weren't for a certain gavrilo

principe on the 28th of june 1914 the

bosnian serb nationalists assassinated

the heir to the austro-hungarian throne

archduke franz ferdinand after a

months-long turmoil

the war which would become known as the

first world war officially began on july

28th of the same year

further documenting the incompetence of

austria-hungary at this time

the empire tried to invade serbia three

times in 1914

but were repelled successfully by the

serbs and the montenegrins each time

despite the slavic nations having much

smaller armies

despite this the central powers were

ultimately successful

in overpowering serbia and montenegro

with the invasion being commanded by

germany

with the help of bulgaria as well

bulgaria briefly annexed around

two-thirds of the serbian territory

and the rest of the country along with

montenegro were under austrian

administration

the war would eventually turn for the

allies and by 1918

with the help of french and greek forces

serbia and montenegro and albania

were liberated from the central powers

by the 11th of november 1918

all of the central powers had

surrendered and the victorious allies

met to determine the fate of the central

powers

however we will not look at these

treaties just a few days before the end

of the war

on october 29th the state of slovenes

croats and serbs declared sovereignty

they along with montenegro and the

region of benat

in modern-day voy vodna joined serbia to

create the kingdom of slovene's croats

and serbs

which in 1929 officially became renamed

the kingdom of yugoslavia the first king

of yugoslavia was peter the first

who was previously king of serbia after

his death in 1921

the kingdom was ruled by alexander the

first who was previously the prince

regent of yugoslavia

his reign was cut short in 1934 during a

diplomatic visit to france

where he was assassinated by the

bulgarian vlado chennozimski

who advocated for the independence of

the people who were living in the vardar

province of yugoslavia

though peter ii alexander's eldest son

was in position to become the next king

he was only 11 at the time of his

father's assassination

so his cousin prince paul became prince

regents of the country until 1941.

another major conflict was brewing in

europe around this time

world war ii by march 1941

hitler's armies had already ran through

poland denmark norway

the low countries and france and italy

was

unsuccessfully waging war against greece

from albania

neighbors hungary romania and bulgaria

had already joined the axis powers

prince regent paul was under immense

pressure from his neighbors to sign

yugoslavia to the axis powers as well

so that's what he did however on march

27th

a pro-british coup d'etat overthrew paul

and peter ii was declared of age

and became the king ten days later

yugoslavia was invaded

and the country quickly fell to axis

control

within the occupation croatia became a

fascist puppet state to germany

led by the ustashe montenegro became an

italian puppet

and much of yugoslavia's borderlands

were ceded to its neighbors

serbia remained as a german puppet the

occupation was wracked by war crimes

which truly deserve a video of their own

due to their miserably large scale

however the yugoslavs proved to be

effective partisans before

and during the allied liberation of the

country as the axis received stiff

resistance from them during the

occupation

communist movements had gained steam

during the occupation also

and after yugoslavia was liberated the

monarchy was abolished

with peter ii being deposed and moving

to the united states

a socialist republic replaced the

kingdom and was initially led by none

other than joseph

rosito on the 29th of november 1945

the socialist federal republic of

yugoslavia was proclaimed

with six socialist republics forming the

federation slovenia

croatia bosnia serbia montenegro

and macedonia within the serbian

republic there were also two autonomous

regions

kosovo and voivoda yosi prostito

worked to create a common yugoslav

identity himself being of both croat and

slovene ancestry

despite being president of the league of

communists in yugoslavia

he stood up to stalin in the soviet

union's hegemony in the communist world

and he broke off ties with other

communist states

his economic policy was also different

from that of other eastern bloc states

as he implemented elements of market

socialism into the economy

rather than being a strictly socialist

state

though he also hoped to integrate

albania into yugoslavia

not because it was south slavic but

because of its geopolitical importance

it was a warsaw pact member allied with

the soviet union

who could use yugoslavia's neighbors

like bulgaria for leverage against

yugoslav ambitions

therefore it was never integrated tito

was widely popular within his country

and across both cold war camps even in

the soviet union after stalin's death

he was seen as a man who unified all the

south slavs except bulgaria

into one state and kept peace between

them

tito also led the non-aligned movement

an organization whose members sought to

distance themselves from both the united

states and the soviet union and their

allies

he would ultimately pass on though dying

in slovenia on the 4th of may 1980 at

the age of 87

many in the country mourned his death

after this yugoslavia's economy

and the framework that kept the people

united began to collapse

and many in the country wish to build

their own nations

but this video is beginning to get

pretty long especially in comparison to

what you guys are used to seeing on my

channel

so i have decided to make this history

of yugoslavia a two-part series

in next week's video i will look at the

fall of yugoslavia

the civil war that came after and where

the former yugoslav states are today

thank you all for watching be sure to

like subscribe and share this video with

all of your friends

i will be starting a patreon soon so be

sure to look out for that in the coming

weeks

we are within 100 subscribers of

reaching the huge milestone of 1000

so every way you can help share my

content is greatly appreciated

thanks again and i'll see you next time