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Principality of Monte Negro
AD 1697 - 1918
In 1875 an anti-Ottoman rebellion started in
Bosnia and quickly spread to
Bulgaria. The
Ottoman
Turks brutally suppressed the rebellions and in the process aroused strong
European opinion. After a spell of dithering,
Russia declared war on Turkey.
At the end of a victorious campaign, the Treaty of San Stephano ended the war
and freed large swathes of the Balkans. This threatened to upset the European
balance of power, so the Congress of Berlin redressed the balance a little.
Serbia,
Rumania, and Monte Negro all
became independent, with increased territory, but Bulgaria was divided, with
the major portion (the northern segment) being allowed autonomy. Bosnia,
Herzegovina, and Novipazar were made protectorates of
Austria.
The name Monte Negro originates from an Italian version of its Serbo-Croat
original, and means 'Black Mountain'. The region possessed one
of the earliest traditions of local autonomy under Ottoman rule. |
1697 - 1737 |
Danilo I
Petrovich Njegosh |
Prince-Bishop (Vladika).
Petrović Njegoš. |
1737 - 1782 |
Sava Petrovich |
Nephew. Prince-Bishop.
Died 1782. |
1744 - 1766 |
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Vasili Petrovich |
Nephew.
Coadjutor. |
1766 - 1774 |
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Stephen the Little |
Coadjutor. |
1774 - 1782 |
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Sava |
Nephew of Vasili.
Coadjutor. |
1782 - 1830 |
Peter I |
Brother.
Prince-Bishop. |
1830 - 1851 |
Peter II |
Nephew. Son of
Sava. Prince-Bishop. |
1851 - 1860 |
Danilo II |
Prince-Bishop (1851-1852).
Prince (1852-1860). |
1851 - 1854 |
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Peter |
Regent. |
1860 - 1918 |
Nicholas
I |
Prince (1860-1910).
King (1910-1918). |
1918 |
On 28
November 1918 Monte Negro is forcibly united to the kingdom of
Serbia.
King Nicholas is thrown out, ending both Monte Negro's absolute monarchy and
its independence. Three days later, on 1 December 1918, it is incorporated
into the 'Kingdom of
Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes'. |
1918
- 1921 |
Nicholas
I |
Deposed king and claimant to the title. |
1921 |
Danilo III |
Son.
Crown Prince of Montenegro. Abdicated after 1 week. |
1921 - 1986 |
Michael / Mihajlo |
Grandson of Nicholas. Son of Mirko.
Prince of Montenegro. |
1963 - 1990 |
The Socialist
Republic of Croatia is
established as part of communist-governed
Yugoslavia. A growing
movement for independence results in the Croatian Spring of 1971, which is
suppressed by the authorities. The 1974 Yugoslav constitution does provide
its federal divisions with more autonomy. In the 1980s the situation becomes
more unstable, with nationalist sentiment being fanned by the Serbian SANU
Memorandum in 1986 and then the 1989 coups in Kosovo, Montenegro, and
Vojvodina. |
1986 - Present |
Nicholas II |
Son.
Prince of Montenegro. |
2006 |
Serbian-dominated
Yugoslavia loses
Montenegro (which is how the name is usually shown in modern texts),
following a vote in the latter for full independence, and thereby completing
the break-up of the Yugoslav state. |
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Modern Montenegro
AD 2006 - Present Day
Following a century of dominance by
Serbia, Montenegro
emerged as a sovereign state after just over fifty-five per cent of the
population opted for independence in a May 2006 referendum. This Western
Balkans state is neighboured to the north by
Bosnia-Hercegovina,
to the east by Serbia and the autonomous region of Kosovo, and to the south
by Albania, while
Italy lies across the
Adriatic Sea.
This final split completed the break-up of the former
Yugoslav
state. Technically, the Yugoslav state had been terminated three years
before, in 2003 when the Union of Serbia and Montenegro had replaced it as
an acceptance that Serbia had certainly lost its former dominance over the
other constituent parts of the kingdom. The EU-brokered deal that formed the
union was intended to stabilise the region by settling Montenegrin demands
for independence from Serbia and also to prevent further changes to Balkan
borders. The same deal also contained the seeds of the union's dissolution.
It stipulated that after three years the two republics could hold referenda
on whether to keep or scrap it. Montenegro opted for the latter.
Montenegro (or Monte Negro until the twentieth century) means 'black
mountain'. About half of the country is covered in thick forest while the
rest of it encompasses an Adriatic coastline, lowlands, and high mountain
ranges. The River Tara canyon is the deepest and longest in Europe, while
the capital is Podgorica. Modern claimants to the lost Montenegrin throne
are shown with a shaded background.
(Additional information from External Links:
Government of Montenegro, and
BBC Country Profiles.) |
1986 - Present |
Nicholas II |
Prince of
Monte Negro. |
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Boris
of Montenegro |
Son and heir apparent. Born 1980. |
2006 |
In
the lead-up to the vote on independence, that had been fears of unrest in
areas of Montenegro in which ethnic Serbs, who make up roughly a third of
the country's population, had formed a majority opposition to separation
from Serbia. Most ethnic Montenegrins and ethnic Albanians living in
Montenegro had supported the move. In the event, no such unrest takes
place.
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Unlike much of the separation of the Balkan states from Serbia,
Montenegro's course towards independence was free of violence
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2011 |
On 12
July the Montenegrin parliament passes the 'Law on the Status of the
Descendants of the Petrović Njegoš Dynasty'. It serves to rehabilitate the
former royal house of Montenegro and, in effect, enables a limited
parliamentary monarchy to exist which could succeed the former absolute
monarchy that existed until 1918. In its own words, the law 'governs the
important issues regarding the status of the descendants of the Petrović
Njegoš dynasty [for the historical and moral rehabilitation of the
Petrović-Njegoš dynasty], whose dethroning was contrary to the Constitution
of the Principality of Montenegro, a violent act of annexation in the year
1918'.
In practical terms the law provides a pension for the representative of the
royal dynasty (ie. its current claimant to the title), which shall be taken
from the monthly income of the new republic's presidential office, along with
supplying official representation and official residences. The royal house is
essentially being invited to participate in representing the country without
infringing upon the running of the republic or raising any claim to assume
the power of the president or any office. |
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