Serbian Armed Forces - History

History

The first military formation in Serbia dates over 1,500 years ago when Vlastimir of Serbia formed the first medieval Serbian state of Raška in the seventh century. Over the following centuries it would evolve into the Serbian Empire, one of the largest states in Europe at the time.

Moravian Serbia was governed by Stefan Lazarević who introduced modern military tactics and firearms to his army however the new technology failed to defeat the superior numbers of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottomans had suppressed the formation of a Serbian state along with its military from 1540 until 1804, the year of the first Serbian uprising.

The 1804 Serbian Revolution, started with a Serbian rebellion against the Ottoman occupation of Serbia. The victories in the battles of Ivankovac, Misar, Deligrad and Belgrade, led to the establishment of the Principality of Serbia in 1817. The subsequent Second Serbian Revolution led to full recognition of Serbian independence, establishment of the Kingdom of Serbia and weakened the Ottoman dominance in the Balkans. In 1885 Serbia have a war against Bulgaria.In 1912 First Balkan War, (Serbia, Greece, Montenegro and Bulgaria) against the Ottoman Empire. The victories in the battles of Battle of Kumanovo, Battle of Prilep, Battle of Monastir, Battle of Adrianople, Siege of Scutari. 1913 is the second Balkan war broke out because of Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece,Bulgaria has suffered great losses by Serbia in the Battle of Battle of Bregalnica, the war was over by the Bulgarian defeat and signed the Treaty of Bucharest (1913).

Serbia's independence and growing influence threatened neighboring Austria-Hungary which lead to the Bosnian crisis of 1908-1909. Consequently, since 1901, all Serbian males between the ages of 21 to 46 were liable for general mobilization. In 1914, Austria-Hungary declared war on Serbia, following the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria, marking the start of the First World War. Serbia repelled 3 consecutive invasions by Austria, winning the first major victories of the war for the Allies, but was eventually overwhelmed by the combined forces of the Central Powers.