Serbian revolution

Serbian Revolution
Part of Modern Serbia
250px Flag of Revolutionary Serbia
Date 1804 – 1817 Location The Balkans (mainly Serbia and Bosnia) Result Serb victory, establishment of the Principality of Serbia.
Combatants
Template:Country data SRB Serb revolutionaries Volunteers from Habsburg Empire Russian Empire	Flag of Ottoman Empire Ottoman Empire First French Empire
Commanders
Template:Country data SRB Karađorđe Petrović Template:Country data SRB Miloš Obrenović Template:Country data SRB Mateja Nenadović Template:Country data SRB Veljko Petrović Template:Country data SRB Stanoje Glavaš	Flag of Ottoman Empire Sultan Selim III Flag of Ottoman Empire Marashli Pasha Flag of Ottoman Empire Sultan Mahmud II Napoleon Bonaparte
Strength
80,000 Serbs[citation needed]	300,000 Ottomans[citation needed]
Casualties
50,000 Serbs[citation needed]	75,000 Ottoman[citation needed]

Serbian revolution or Revolutionary Serbia refers to the national and social revolution of the Serbian people between 1804 and 1817, during which Serbia managed to fully emancipate from the Ottoman Empire and exist as a sovereign European nation-state. The term was invented by a famous German historian Leopold von Ranke in his book Die Serbische Revolution, published in 1829. These events marked the foundation of modern Serbia.

The abovementioned timeframe covers several phases of the revolution:

• First Serbian Uprising (1804- 1813), led by Karađorđe Petrović
• Hadži Prodan's revolt (1814)
• Second Serbian Uprising (1815) under Miloš Obrenović

The Proclamation (1809) by Karadjordje in the capital Belgrade represented the peak of the revolution. It called for unity of the Serbian nation, emphasising the importance of freedom of religion, Serbian history and rule of law- all of which Ottoman Empire couldn't- or has denied to provide, beeing a non-secular Muslim state. It also called on Serbs to stop paying taxes to the Porte because they were based on religious affiliation.

The ultimate result of the uprisings was Serbia's suzerainty from the Ottoman Empire. Principality of Serbia was established, governed by its own Parliament, Government, Constitution and its own royal dynasty. Social element of the revolution was achieved through introduction of the bourgeois society values in Serbia, which is why it was considered the world's easternmost bourgeois revolt, which culminated with the abolition of feudalism in 1806- just 15 years after the French revolution. First constitution in the Balkans and its oldest university- Belgrade's Great Academy (1808) added to the achievements of the young Serb state. De jure independence of the Principality was internationally recognized during the second half of the 19th century.

Background (1791-1804)

The withdrawal of the Austrians from Serbia in 1791 marked the end of the Kočina Krajina Serb rebellion, which was ignited by Austria. Ottoman Empire annexed the Pashaluk of Belgrade, retaliated against the perpertrators of the uprising and their families, thus forcing thousands into exile in Austria. Reforms made by the Porte to ease the pressure on Serbs were only temporary; by 1799 the Janissary corps have returned, suspended the Serb autonomy and drastically increased taxes, enforcing martial law in Serbia.

Serb leaders from both sides of the Danube began to conspire against the dahias. When they found out, they rounded up and murdered tens of Serbian noblemen on the main square of Valjevo in an event known today as Seča knezova (Massacre of Serbian knights on February 4, 1804). The massacre outraged the Serbian people and incited the revolt across the Pashaluk of Belgrade. Within days, in the small Šumadija village of Orašac, the Serbs gathered to proclaim the uprising, electing Karađorđe Petrović as the leader. That afternoon, a Turkish inn (caravanserai) in Orašac was burned and its residents fled or were killed, followed by similar actions country-wide. Soon the cities Valjevo and Požarevac were liberated, and the siege of Belgrade launched.

Revolution erupts: First Serbian Uprising

Karadjordje Petrovic, leader of the 1st Serbian Uprising

During almost 10 years of the First Serbian Uprising (1804-1813), Serbia perceived itself as an independent state for the first time after 300 years of Ottoman and short-lasting Austrian occupations. Revolutionary Serbia responded to the Ottoman Massacre of Serbian knights by establishing its separate institutions, such as the government (Praviteljstvujusci Sovjet), Serbian Prince, Parliament (Zbor) and University of Belgrade. Following the French invasion in 1812 the Russian Empire witdrew its support for the Serb rebels; unwilling to accept Ottoman conditions, Serbs were fought into submission following the brutal Ottoman incursion into Serbia.

Hadži Prodanova buna

File:Serbia1809.png

Revolutionary Serbia in 1809

Despite the lost battle, the tensions nevertheless persisted. In 1814 an unsuccessful Hadži Prodan's revolt was launched by Hadži Prodan Gligorijević, one of the veterans of the First Serbian Uprising. He knew the Turks would arrest him, so he thought it would be the best to resist the Ottomans; Milos Obrenović, another veteran, felt the time was not right for an uprising and did not provide assistance.

Hadži Prodan's Uprising soon failed and he fled to Austria. After the failure of this revolt, the Turks inflicted more persecution against the Serbs, such as high taxation, forced labor, and rape. In March 1815, Serbs had several meetings and decided upon a new revolt.

Second Serbian Uprising

Milos Obrenovic, leader of the Second Serbian Uprising and first Prince of Serbia

Principality of Serbia in 1817

The Second Serbian Uprising (1815-1817) was a second phase of the national revolution of the Serbs against the Ottoman Empire, which erupted shortly after the brutal annexation of the country to the Ottoman Empire and the failed Hadži Prodan's revolt. The revolutionarry council proclaimed an uprising in Takovo on April 23 1815, with Milos Obrenović chosen as the leader. When the Ottomans discovered this they sentenced all of its leaders to death. The Serbs fought in battles at Ljubic, Čačak, Palez, Požarevac and Dublje and managed to reconquer the Pashaluk of Belgrade.

Negotiations with the Porte

In mid 1815, the first negotiations began between Obrenović and Marashli Ali Pasha, the Ottoman governor. The result was acknowledgment of a Serbian Principality by the Ottoman Empire. Although a suzerain of the Porte (yearly tax tribute), it was, in most means, an independent state.

Template:History of Serbia

By 1817, Obrenović succeeded in forcing Marashli Ali Pasha to negotiate an unwritten agreement, thus ending the Second Serbian uprising. The same year, Karadjordje, the leader of the First Uprising (and Obrenović's rival for the throne) returned to Serbia and was assassinated by Obrenović's orders; Obrenović consequently received the title of Prince of Serbia.

The Convention of Ackerman (1828), the Treaty of Adrianople (1829) and finally, the Hatt-i Sharif (1830), formally recognised the suzerainty of Principality of Serbia with Miloš Obrenović I as its hereditary Prince.

References

• Cox, John K. 2002. The history of Serbia. The Greenwood histories of the modern nations. Westport, CT: Greenwood Press.ISBN 9780313312908
• Forbes, Nevill, Arnold Joseph Toynbee, David Mitrany, and D. G. Hogarth. 1915. The Balkans; a history of Bulgaria, Serbia, Greece, Rumania, Turkey. Oxford: Clarendon Press New York.ISBN 9780404024574
• Jelavich, Barbara. 1991. Russia's Balkan entanglements, 1806-1914. Cambridge [England]: Cambridge University Press.ISBN 9780521401265
• Kardosch, Velizar M. 1996. The principality of Serbia: postal history and postage stamps, 1830-1882. Romanshorn, Switzerland: V.M. Kardosch.ISBN 9783952108314
• Pavlowitch, Stevan K. 2002. Serbia: the history of an idea. New York: New York University Press.ISBN 9780814767085
• Petrovich, Michael Boro. 1976. A history of modern Serbia, 1804-1918. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.ISBN 9780151409501

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