Herzegovina - History

History

History of Herzegovina
Hum and Travunia (9th–14th century)
Duchy of Saint Sava (1448–1483)
Sanjak of Herzegovina (1462–1851)
Pashaluk of Herzegovina (1833–1851)
Herzegovinian rebellion (1875)

Main article: History of Herzegovina See also: History of Bosnia and Herzegovina

In the early Middle Ages, the territory of modern Bosnia and Herzegovina was divided into many smaller more or less independent territories. Herzegovina encompasses the regions then known as the land of Hum or Zahumlje and Travunija, through the late Middle Ages belonging to the Serbian kings of the Nemanjić dynasty. The westernmost parts of Herzegovina belonged to the Kingdom of Croatia until its union with Kingdom of Hungary in 1102. Bosnian Ban Stjepan II Kotromanić and King Tvrtko I Kotromanić adjoined these regions to the Bosnian state in the 14th century.

Following the weakening of the Bosnian crown after the death of Tvrtko I, powerful noblemen of the Bosnian Kosača family, Grand Duke Sandalj Hranić and his nephew, Herzog Stefan Vukčić, ruled the Hum region independently, only nominally recognizing the overlordship of the Bosnian kings. In a document sent to Frederick III on January 20, 1448, Bosnian duke Stjepan Vukčić Kosača called himself Herzog (duke) of Saint Sava, lord of Hum and Primorje, great duke of the Bosnian kingdom and so the lands he controlled became (much later) known as Herzog’s lands or Herzegovina.

In 1482, the lands of Herzog Stefan's successors were occupied by Ottoman forces. In the Ottoman Empire, Herzegovina was organized as a Herzegovina Sanjak within the Bosnia Eyalet. From 1833 to 1851, Herzegovina was the separate Herzegovina Eyalet ruled by vizier Ali-paša Rizvanbegović. After his death, the eyalets of Bosnia and Herzegovina were merged. The new joint entity was after 1853 commonly referred to as Bosnia and Herzegovina. Throughout the mid-19th century, Herzegovina was a target of expansion of the young Montenegrin state in the name of the liberation of the Serbian people from Ottoman rule. Herzegovinian Serbs and Croats actively participated in the Montenegrin efforts to liberate them and to that end, they frequently rose in rebellion against the Ottoman rule. These efforts culminated in 1875 and 1876, during the Herzegovinian rebellion (Nevesinjska puška) uprising. Montenegro did succeed in liberating and annexing large parts of Herzegovina before the Berlin Congress of 1878, including the Nikšić area.

In 1878, Herzegovina, along with Bosnia, was occupied by Austria-Hungary, only nominally remaining under Ottoman rule. This caused great resentment among its populace which resisted the invaders in small flare-ups of rebellious activity that ended in 1882. The Serbian population of Herzegovina and Bosnia had hoped that the province would be divided and annexed to Serbia and Montenegro. The occupation caused a temporary rift in the Serbo-Austrian relations and threatened to grow into an open conflict.

In 1908, Austria-Hungary annexed the province, leading to the Bosnian Crisis, an international dispute which barely failed to precipitate a world war immediately, and was an important step in the buildup of international tensions during the years leading up to the First World War. The assassination of the Archduke Franz Ferdinand came as a direct result of the resentment of the Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina against Austro-Hungarian rule.

During World War I, Herzegovina was a scene of inter-ethnic conflict. During the war, the Austro-Hungarian government formed Šuckori, Muslim and Croat militia units. Šuckori units were especially active in Herzegovina.

In 1918, Herzegovina became a part of the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later renamed Kingdom of Yugoslavia). In 1941 Herzegovina fell once again under the rule of the fascist Independent State of Croatia. From 1941 to 1945, Herzegovina was a battle ground for conflicts between Croatian Ustaše, Serbian Četniks, and the pan-Yugoslav Partisans. In 1945, Bosnia and Herzegovina became one of the republics of SFR Yugoslavia. It remained so until the breakup of Yugoslavia in the early 1990s.