Balkan Nationalism + Significance for AH + Russia

• There was a Serbian military coup, in May 1903, in which the pro-Austrian King and Queen were killed and replaced by the pro-Russian Paul I and the Karageorgevic dynasty
• This new ruler was the start of a new aggressive Serbian foreign policy

  ▪ King Paul encouraged the growth of nationalism
• The Serbs wanted to form a united Slav state, Yugoslavia, including many nationalities

  ▪ These nationalities including Croats and Slovenes

  ▪ At this time the Black Hand emerged
• The Black Hand

  • They had unofficial links to the Serbian military
  • They were willing to use terrorism and assassination
• After the Coup in 1903 Austria-Hungarian policy towards Serbia became very hostile in the hope it would crush nationalism in the Balkan state
• The AH Empire contained around 7 million Croats and Serbs
• In Vienna, a faction led by Chief of General Staff, Conrad von Hotzendorf, championed an aggressive approach towards Serbia and had declared war on them 20 times by 1914
• In 1906 Count Aehrenthal became foreign minister of Austria-Hungary

  • In an attempt to curb Serbian ambitions, he didn’t renew their tariff agreements
  • This led to ‘The Pig War’ of 1906-8
• Instead of the Pig WAR crippling the Serbian economy it led to the Serbs finding new export markets including France and Germany, these actually increased their output
• The Austria-Hungarian policy (Count Aehrenthal) was actually counterproductive as it also reduced Serbian dependence on Austria-Hungary
• Paul and his government encouraged the growth of Serb nationalism and were far less concerned about maintaining friendly relations with AH than their predecessors.
• The Serbs saw themselves as champions of the Southern Slavs and wanted to form a united Slav state called Yugoslavia.
• AH + RUS Agreement 1897:

  • Neither power would attempt to alter the balance of power within the Balkans
  • If the Ottoman Empire (Turkey) collapsed, AH could annex the provinces of Bosnia and Herzegovina, as formally agreed in 1878
  • Both accepted that the Black Sea Straits were closed to warships when Turkey was at peace
  • Both powers would oppose any other power which tried to gain territory in the Balkans
• Previously, the AH + RUS had experienced tense relations with one another as each bordered the Balkan region and had conflicting interests there, however, by 1897 there was a sort of detente between the powers
• Russian FMs realised that lending support for Serbia's Yugoslav ambitions would lead to further conflict and disputes with AH, and with AH and Germany drawing closer in response to Serbia's rise and the exposure of Russian military weakness in the war against Japan, Russia knew that it had to proceed with caution.
• As it held the role of "protector of the Slavs", Russia knew Serbia would expect support for its Yugoslav ambitions.
• Pan-Slavism became a more powerful force after the Russo-Japanese war.
• After the Serbian coup in 1903, AH policy became increasingly hostile in the hopes of crushing Balkan nationalism once and for all whilst bolstering the prestige of the Habsburg monarchy.
• AH saw the growth of Serbian nationalism as a threat to the integrity of their empire, which contained around 7 million Serbs and Croats.
• AH were particularly concerned about Serbia's ambitions for Bosnia and Herzegovina, provinces which AH had hoped to incorporate into their empire. 
• Croatia and Slovenia were a part of the Habsburg Empire, and nationalists from the Balkan states called for independence, leading AH to fear that a strong and increasingly assertive Serbia would inspire and support Croatian and Slovene nationalism.
• Balkan Conflicting Aims:

  • to push back Turkish control altogether
  • how to peacefully settle strong tensions and rivalries between the Balkan countries themselves