Austro-Hungarian occupation of Montenegro 1916–1918

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Kingdom of Montenegro 1914

The Austro-Hungarian occupation of Montenegro from 1916 to 1918 during the First World War (officially Military General Gouvernement of Montenegro ) lasted from 1916 to 1918.

history

On August 9, 1914, the Kingdom of Montenegro joined the First World War on the side of the Entente . The country fought together with the Kingdom of Serbia against Austria-Hungary . After Bulgaria entered the war on October 15, 1915 and the complete occupation of Serbia by the Central Powers in December 1915, Austria-Hungary began the campaign in Montenegro on January 6, 1916 , against the parts of the Serbian army that had receded into the country. On January 16, all of Montenegro was occupied and capitulated on January 23. King Nikola I and his government fled into exile via Italy to France.

The Austro-Hungarian occupying power established a general government, based on the model in Serbia, which was also occupied. The occupation lasted until the end of World War I in November 1918. After that, the country became part of what would later become the Kingdom of Yugoslavia .

Regarding Austrian plans to allow Montenegro to exist as a miniaturized satellite state within the borders of 1878, the German State Secretary for Outer Affairs Jagow said that Montenegro would be mutilated in such a way that “only a sterile heap of stones, not viable”, would remain. Chief of Staff Conrad demanded complete annexation, or Montenegro should “lose its effective independence” and retain “only a nominal sham sovereignty”. The Montenegrin western boundary should be moved as far (line northwestern tip Skadar Lake -Podbozur-Goransko) that even the capital Cetinje would not be located more in the area of the shrunken remainder of Montenegro. This demand, which amounted to an annexation, was rejected by Foreign Minister Burián and Emperor Franz Joseph I in order not to impede the possible peace with other states. The historian Gerhard Ritter saw in the unsuccessful attempts at special peace with Serbia and Montenegro a “planned violent peace”, which shows that there was “especially in Austria” the willingness to “ruthlessly exploit military victories to expand power, without much in the opinion of the world 'and the prolongation of the war'.

To dominate the mountainous, impassable country, the Austro-Hungarian military administration with over 40,000 men needed more than twice as many occupation troops as for Serbia. There was also a guerrilla movement from the beginning of 1918 . Economically, the General-Gouvernement was not a profit for the occupying power, the country could hardly feed itself.

Montenegro lost 20,000 soldiers in the World War, 40% of all mobilized and 10% of the total population. Other data even speak of 39,000 and 16% total casualties, making Montenegro the worst affected participant in the war.

Governors General

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Gerhard Ritter : Staatskunst und Kriegshandwerk. The problem of "militarism" in Germany. Volume 3: The tragedy of statecraft. Bethmann Hollweg as war chancellor (1914–1917). Munich 1964, ISBN 3-486-47041-8 , p. 106.
  2. ↑ Helmut Rumpler: The war aims of Austria-Hungary in the Balkans 1915/16. In: Austria and Europe. Ceremony for Hugo Hantsch. Böhlau, Vienna / Graz / Cologne 1965, pp. 465–482, here: p. 472.
  3. ^ Gerhard Ritter: Staatskunst und Kriegshandwerk. The problem of "militarism" in Germany. Volume 3: The tragedy of statecraft. Bethmann Hollweg as war chancellor (1914–1917). Munich 1964, ISBN 3-486-47041-8 , p. 107.
  4. ↑ Manfried Rauchsteiner : The death of the double-headed eagle. Austria-Hungary and the First World War. Böhlau, Vienna / Graz / Cologne 1993, ISBN 3-222-12454-X , p. 467.
  5. ^ Theodor von Zeynek, Peter Broucek : Theodor Ritter von Zeynek. An officer in the General Staff Corps remembers. Böhlau, Vienna 2009, ISBN 978-3-205-78149-3 , p. 315.
  6. ↑ Šerbo Rastoder: Montenegro 1914–1991 . In: Österreichisches Ost- und Südosteuropa-Institut (Ed.): Serbia and Montenegro: Space and Population, History, Language and Literature, Culture, Politics, Society, Economy, Law. Lit, Münster 2006, ISBN 3-825-89539-4 , pp. 315-332, here p. 319.
  7. ^ Arnold Suppan : Yugoslavia and Austria 1918–1938. Bilateral foreign policy in the European environment. Verlag für Geschichte und Politik, Vienna 1996, ISBN 3-486-56166-9 , p. 30.