The Balkans: A History of Bulgaria—Serbia—Greece—Rumania—TurkeyHogarth, D. G. (David George)
History
The Balkans: A History of Bulgaria—Serbia—Greece—Rumania—Turkey
Hogarth, D. G. (David George)
Balkan Peninsula -- History; Eastern question (Balkan)
from one inch of the territory which had been conquered and occupied at
such cost, and those who noticed it were astonished at the evacuation
by it of the _sandjak_ of Novi-Pazar. At the same time Baron Achrenthal
little foresaw what a hornet’s nest he would bring about his ears by
the tactless method in which the annexation was carried out. The first
effect was to provoke a complete boycott of Austro-Hungarian goods and
trading vessels throughout the Ottoman Empire, which was so harmful to
the Austrian export trade that in January 1909 Count Achrenthal had to
indemnify Turkey with the sum of £2,500,000 for his technically stolen
property. Further, the attitude of Russia and Serbia throughout the
whole winter remained so provocative and threatening that, although war
was generally considered improbable, the Austrian army had to be kept
on a war footing, which involved great expense and much popular
discontent. The grave external crisis was only solved at the end of
March 1909; Germany had had to deliver a veiled ultimatum at St.
Petersburg, the result of which was the rescue of Austria-Hungary from
an awkward situation by the much-advertised appearance of its faithful
ally in shining armour. Simultaneously Serbia had to eat humble pie and
declare, with complete absence of truth, that the annexation of Bosnia
and Hercegovina had not affected its interests.
Meanwhile the internal complications in the southern Slav provinces of
Austria-Hungary were growing formidable. Ever since the summer of 1908
arrests had been going on among the members of the Croato-Serb
coalition, who were accused of favouring the subversive Pan-Serb
movement. The press of Austria-Hungary magnified the importance of this
agitation in order to justify abroad the pressing need for the formal
annexation of Bosnia and Hercegovina. The fact was that, though
immediate danger to the monarchy as a result of the Pan-Serb agitation
was known not to exist, yet in the interests of Austrian foreign
policy, the Serbs had to be compromised in the eyes of Europe, the
Croato-Serb coalition within the Dual Monarchy had to be destroyed to
gratify Budapest in particular, and the religious and political discord
between Croat and Serb, on which the foundation of the power of
Austria-Hungary, and especially that of Hungary, in the south rested,
and which was in a fair way of being eliminated through the efforts of
the coalition, had to be revived by some means or other. It is not
possible here to go into the details of the notorious Agram high
treason trial, which was the outcome of all this. It suffices to say
that it was a monstrous travesty of justice which lasted from March
till October 1909, and though it resulted in the ostensible destruction
of the coalition and the imprisonment of many of its members, it
defeated its own ends, as it merely fanned the flame of nationalistic
feeling against Vienna and Budapest, and Croatia has ever since had to
be governed virtually by martial law.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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