Capital: Belgrade
The Serbs are descended from the Slavs who moved into the area
from the C6th onwards. These South Slavs mostly settled between
the Drina and Ibar rivers but later moved towards the Adriatic
coast where the winter pastures and trading opportunities were
better.
By the C10th, they had converted to Orthodox Christianity and
their clan leaders or zupani were growing strong enough
to challenge Byzantine authority. In 1180, one zupan, Nemanja
from Raska (now Kosovo), founded an independent state later incorporating
Zeta (approximately modern Montenegro) and part of the coast beyond
Dubrovnik. In 1196, his son Stefan became the first crowned Serbian
King and Serbia's independence from Constantinople was recognised
by the pope. In 1219, another son, later known as Saint Sava,
founded a separate Serbian church which followed Orthodox rituals
using a Cyrillic alphabet and Slavic liturgy and was also recognised
by Constantinople.
Subsequent rulers allowed feudal clan chieftains too much authority
to enable them to form a central government and one noble, Stefan
Dusan or Dushan, took over the throne. He doubled the size of
Serbia, creating an empire reaching from the Mediterranean coast
near Corfu to Salonika and controlling the Bulgarian hinterland
and was crowned Tsar of the Serbs and Romans (actually Greeks)
at Skopje in 1346. Dusan established a legal system based on that
of Byzantium - a highly centralised state and an Orthodox Church
which refused to accept any Latin influence. During the later
C14th the Serbian Princes lost much of the Adriatic coast to the
Principality of Albania.
In 1389, a combined Serbian force was narrowly defeated by the
Ottoman Turks at Kosovo. (This battle entered Serbian folklore
as a defeat to be avenged). The Serbs never regained their strength
and resistance to the Ottoman advance was limited with the capital
retreating north to Belgrade in 1429 and then to Smerderevo which
fell in 1459, ending the medieval state. Many Serbs emigrated
to Bosnia, Hercegovina and Montenegro, leaving empty land in Kosovo
which was settled by Albanians. Few Turks moved into Serbia however,
and rural leaders retained control of their communities. The church
was allowed to remain independent under Ottoman rule with the
first Patriarch appointed in 1557 at Pec in Kosovo.
During the later C14th the Serbian Princes lost much of the Adriatic
coast to the Principality of Albania and by the end of the C15th
the whole area was part of the Ottoman Turkish Empire. With Hungary,
it was to remain under Turkish control until the C18th when some
of the northern part came under Russian, Austrian and Prussian
rule.
In 1690, the Patriarch led the Great Migration of at least 30
000 Serbian villagers to the new Habsburg conquest of Vojvodina,
north of the Sava and Danube rivers, to escape punishment from
the Turks for supporting a Habsburg invasion. It became a base
for the Serbian Orthodox church after Pec was given to the Greek
Orthodox in 1766. Serbia was occupied by Habsburg forces in 1718
but the Turks regained control in 1739 causing more Serbs to leave
for Vojvodina where they were joined by Germans, Slovaks, Romanians,
Croats and Hungarians enticed by free land, tax exemptions and
religious freedom.
The First Uprising (1804-13) was led by the border trader Karadjordje
(Black George) who declared himself hereditary ruler in 1811 but
it was totally destroyed by Ottoman forces in 1813. The Second
Uprising began in 1814, led by Milos Obrenovic, and managed to
gain some autonomy. Obrenovic had Karadjordje killed in 1818,
and when the Russo-Ottoman war broke out in 1828, he managed to
achieve formal autonomy through diplomatic means.
During the C19th, a nation state began to be developed. Serbia
was the only one of the Yugoslav territories to do this, forming
a civilian bureaucracy and a modern army. Autonomous Serbia grew
in size and population, becoming about 90% Serbian after the Greeks
left and some Albanians, Turks and Bosnian Muslims were forced
out. Milos was exiled by the council after being forced to agree
to a form of constitution and Karadjordje's son, Aleksandar Karajordjevic,
was recognised as king in 1842 after the council ended the short
reign of Milos' own son. He was not a strong king and it was his
ministers, such as Ilija Garasanin, who governed. Milos returned
briefly in 1859, and his son Michael succeeded to the throne the
year after, re-asserting the position of the monarchy. He was
assassinated in 1868 leaving his fourteen year old nephew, Milan,
as heir. The liberals took power from the conservatives, passing
a new constitution in 1869, and political parties began to develop.
After the Turkish defeat in the Russo-Ottoman wars of 1877-8,
it was recognised as independent under the Treaty of San Stefano.
The idea of a 'Greater Serbia' which would incorporate Bosnia-Hercegovina,
Macedonia, Montenegro, Kosovo and part of Albania began to be
formed. It would respect ethnic differences and allow religious
freedom but the Serbs would be the leaders. As King Milan Obrenovic
grew old enough to gain power in the 1880s, he replaced the liberals
with the 'young conservatives' who formed the Progressive Party.
Towards the end of the C19th, they were ousted by the Radical
Party, led by Nikola Pasic, which advocated local self government
and deposed Milan in 1889. Their constitution was abandoned by
the next king, Aleksandar, when he reached his majority in 1894.
He was assassinated in 1903 and Karadjordje's grandson, Petar,
was recalled from exile to become constitutional monarch at the
age of fifty-nine.
As the C20th began, the idea of a unified Yugoslav state was gathering
support. Serbia won the two Balkan Wars of 1912-3, taking over
Macedonia and Kosovo. It was probably partly as a result of this
increased Serbian power that in 1908 Austria formally annexed
the province of Bosnia-Hercegovina which had a population that
was 43% Serbian. Austro-Serbian antagonism helped to cause the
First World War after the Bosnian Serb, Gavrilo Princip, assassinated
the Austrian heir, Archduke Franz Ferdinand in Sarajevo in 1914.
Princip was a member of a group of young students under the influence
of Black Hand officers who shot the Archduke by mistake when trying
to kill General Potiorek.
After the war, the first Yugoslav state was formed with the Serbian
ruler, Alexander Karadjordjevic, proclaimed King of the Serbs,
Croats and Slovenes in 1918. This lasted until WWII when the monarchy
was deposed and the second Yugoslavia was founded after further
Balkan conflict in 1945-6 as the Federal People's Republic of
Yugoslavia under Josip Broz Tito, a Croatian. There were six republics:
Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, Slovenia, Macedonia and Montenegro, and
two autonomous regions, Kosovo and Vojvodina.
The Communist state, against expectation, outlasted the death
of Tito in 1980. There was much rivalry amongst the various Communist
parties of the different republics and the collapse of the Soviet
Union in 1989 further weakened and eventually destroyed the single
League of Communists.
The Belgrade party chief, Slobodan Milosevic, and the Bosnian Serb leader, Radovan Karadzic, convinced many Serbs that they were under serious threat from the Croats and a long period of conflict began.
| Aca | Aleksandar | Arso | Asim | Boguljub | Bora |
| Boris | Borisav | Bosko | Branislav | Cedomil | Dejan |
| Dimitrije | Djordje | Dobrica | Dositej | Dragisa | Dragoljub |
| Dragutin | Draza | Dusan | Dushan | Dzevat | Gavrilo |
| Hurem | Ilija | Ivan | Jasa | Jovan | Koviljko |
| Lazar | Ljuba | Marko | Mijalko | Milan | Milo |
| Milorad | Milos | Milovan | Milutin | Misa | Momcilo |
| Murat | Nebosja | Nermin | Niko | Nikola | Ognjeslav |
| Ostoja | Pacu? | Pavle | Pedrag | Petar | Punisa |
| Rade | Radoje | Radovan | Rajko | Ratko | Rudjer |
| Semi | Sima | Slavko | Slobodan | Srdjan | Sreten |
| Stanislav | Stevan | Svetozar | Tomislav | Vasa | Velimir |
| Veljko | Vladimir | Vladislav | Vojislav | Vuk | Zeljko |
| Zivojin |
| Aleksa | Ana | Biljana | Budislavka | Danica | Grada |
| Jasminka | Jovana | Jovanka | Latinka | Milja | Mira |
| Mirjana | Natasa | Natka? | Navenka | Tatijana | Tomka |
| Vera | Vsna |
| Aleksic | Anastasijevic | Andjelic | Andric | Antic | Babic |
| Bajic | Belic | Blagojevic | Bogdanovic | Boskovic | Brkic |
| Bulatovic | Buturovic | Cavoski | Celebic | Chacic | Cicic |
| Cosic | Cubrilovic | Curuvija | Cvetkovic | Cvijic | Danicic |
| Davidovic | Djilas | Djukanovic | Djuretic | Drach? | Draskovic |
| Drljaca | Erkocevic | Garasanin | Gavrilovic | Gorkic | Grlic |
| Grol | Grujic | Gvero? | Hrnjak | Jeftanovic | Jevtic? |
| Jovanovic | Jovic | Jugovic | Kadijevic | Kajosevic | Kandic |
| Karadzic | Karkunica | Koljevic | Kontic | Kordic | Kraljevic |
| Lilic | Ljotic | Lovre | Macura | Mamula | Maricic |
| Marinkovic | Markovic | Martic | Mihailovic | Mihajlovic | Mijatovic |
| Miletic | Milic | Milosevic | Minic | Mirkovic | Misic |
| Mladic | Mladjenovic | Moljevic | Mrdja | Nedic | Nemanjic |
| Nikezic | Nikolic | Nusic | Obradovic | Obrenovic | Omeragic |
| Opacic | Ostrozinska | Panic | Pasic | Pejovic | Perovic |
| Plavsic | Pograjac | Popov | Popovic | Pribicevic | Princip |
| Prodanovic | Prpos | Pupovac | Racic | Radanovic | Radoncis |
| Ralevic | Rankovic | Raskovic | Raznjatovic | Roganovic | Sainovic |
| Sekulic | Seselj | Sibincic | Simic | Simovic | Skerlic |
| Sljivancanin | Srebov? | Srskic | Stambolic | Stanjevic | Stojadinovic |
| Stojanovic | Stojsic | Subasic | Sujic | Suljic | Svetozar |
| Tadic | Telacevic | Todorovic | Tucovic | Tukovic | Udovicki |
| Unkovic | Uskokovic | Utjesenovic | Uzunovic | Vasic | Veselin |
| Vujica | Vukmanovic | Vukovic | Zebic | Zecevic | Zivkovic |
| Zoric | Zujovic | Zukic | Zupljanin | Zuzoric |
| Stefan Nemanja | 1180-96 abd | from Rascia | |
| Stefan/Stephen | 1196-1228 | son of S. Nemanja | |
| Stephen Uros I | 1243-76 | son of S. Nemanja | |
| Stephen Dragutin | 1276-82 | son of Stephen Uros I | |
| Stephen Uros II | 1282-1321 | brother of Stephen Dragutin | |
| Stephen Uros III | 1321-36 | son of Stephen Uros II | |
| Stephen Uros IV Dusan | 1336-55 | son of Stephen Uros
III | |
| Lazar Hrebeljanovic? | c 1389 | ||
| Milosh Obrenovic | 1815-39 abd. | ||
| Milan | 1839 | son of Milosh | |
| Michael | 1839-42 | son of Milosh? | |
| Aleksandar Karadjordjevic | 1842-58 | son of Karadjordje | |
| Michael II | 1859-68 | son of Milosh | |
| Milan IV | 1868-89 abd | nephew of Michael II | |
| Alexander I | 1889-1903 killed | son of Milan IV | Draga |
| Peter I Karadjordjevic | 1903-21 | Karadjordje's grandson | dau of Nikola of Montenegro |
| Alexander | 1921-34 | son of Peter I? | Dau Marie of Romania |
| Paul/Pavle | 1934-41 regent | son of Peter I | |
| Peter II | 1934-45 | son of Alexander |
This collection of names compiled by Kate Monk. Copyright January
1997, Kate Monk. Last updated November, 97. Copies may be made
for personal use only.