Podgorica Assembly

1918 popular assembly in Montenegro

The Great People's Assembly of the Serb People in Montenegro , commonly known as the Podgorica Assembly (Подгоричка скупштина, Podgorička skupština), was an ad hoc popular assembly convened in November 1918, after the end of World War I in the Kingdom of Montenegro. The assembly was organized by a committee supported by and coordinating with the government of the Kingdom of Serbia. The committee convened the assembly with the aim of facilitating an unconditional union of Montenegro and Serbia and removing king Nikola I of Montenegro from the throne. The unification preceded the establishment of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes as a unified state of South Slavs by mere days. The unification was justified by the need to establish a single Serbian state for all Serbs, including Montenegro whose population as well as its king felt that it belonged to the Serbian nation and largely supported the unification. The manner in which the Podgorica Assembly was elected and its resolutions on unification and the removal of King Nikola from the throne were criticized as unlawful and illegitimate by the king, his government in exile situated in France at the time, and opponents of the unconditional union in the country known as the Greens. The Greens, earning that moniker after the color of paper used to print Podgorica Assembly candidate lists containing pro independence candidates, supported either full independence of Montenegro or a federation or a confederation with Serbia and other South Slavs where Montenegro would be an equal partner. Following the resolutions on the unification and the deposition of the king, the Greens resorted to insurrection to fight pro unionist Whites, likewise named after the color of the paper used to print Podgorica Assembly pro unionist candidate lists. The ultimately unsuccessful insurrection became known as the Christmas Uprising. Some of the Greens continued their political struggle for a federal common South Slavic state through the establishment of the Montenegrin Federalist Party in 1923. The issue of the legality and legitimacy of the Podgorica Assembly has been debated since its convening. The resolution of the Podgorica Assembly was annulled by the Parliament of Montenegro following the breakup of Yugoslavia and the 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum. In its resolution, the parliament declared the Podgorica Assembly unlawful and illegitimate, describing the unification resulting from the Podgorica Assembly as a coup d'état.

The Kingdom of Montenegro was an independent country in the Balkans until World War I. Ruled by King Nikola, who wielded practically absolutist powers, Montenegro was considered by the king as the remnant of the medieval Serbian Empire left unconquered following the expansion of the Ottoman Empire in Europe. He viewed the Montenegrins as free Serbian people who would eventually defeat the Ottomans in the context of resolving the Eastern question and revive the Serbian medieval empire in the Balkans, with him as the supreme leader of the South Slavs inhabiting the area. The king firmly believed that Montenegro and the Kingdom of Serbia should unite, a view shared by a slim majority of the country's population. The prevailing sentiment in the country was that Montenegro should lead the unification. Contemporary writers Simo Matavulj and Marko Car likened Montenegro's role in the South Slavic unification to the leading role of Piedmont in the Unification of Italy. King Nikola's support for unification was tempered by his desire to ensure the continued rule of his Petrović Njegoš dynasty and to expand Montenegro before any unification, the latter intended to ensure a better negotiating position for Montenegro as an equal partner to the territorially larger Serbia. Following the Assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand and the subsequent July Crisis and Austro Hungarian declaration of war against Serbia, Montenegro witnessed widespread popular support for Serbia. In response, Montenegro entered into a military treaty with Serbia on 4 August 1914, just two days before declaring war on Austria Hungary. According to the treaty, the Montenegrin Army fell under the command of the Royal Serbian Army's High Command, with King Nikola retaining a nominal position as supreme commander. The treaty mandated that two thirds of Montenegro's forces be stationed in Pljevlja in the north to support a Serbian offensive aimed at capturing Sarajevo, while the remainder defended the country's borders. Additionally, Serbia was to receive and distribute aid from the allied Entente powers. Serbia outlined its war aims in the Niš Declaration, emphasizing the post war unification of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, which marginalized Montenegro in the proposed state building process. In 1915, Montenegro sought support from the Russian Empire for its aspirations to expand along the Adriatic Sea and its hinterland between the Mat and Neretva rivers, encompassing Herzegovina, southern Dalmatia, and the city of Shkodër, but these efforts were unsuccessful. The Entente pressured Montenegro to align its war aims with those of Serbia and abandon any separate ambitions.

From the outset of the war, Montenegro faced shortages of equipment and food. The first clash of interests between Montenegro and Serbia occurred in June 1915 when King Nikola ordered the army to capture Shkodër. Although the Serbian government disapproved of this move, it refrained from confronting King Nikola to avoid potentially increasing support for him among the Montenegrin population. After Serbia's military defeat in the 1915 Serbian campaign, the Royal Serbian Army suffered significant losses, reducing its size to a level comparable to that of the Montenegrin forces. To prevent the Montenegrin allies from becoming the senior Entente allied fighting force in the area, Serbia sought to weaken the Montenegrin army similarly. Consequently, the bulk of the Montenegrin forces were ordered by the Royal Serbian Army's High Command to move to the north of Montenegro, concentrating around the Sandžak region. This left the southern border, including the Lovćen Mountain between the Austro Hungarian Bay of Kotor and the Montenegrin capital, thinly defended. In November–December 1915, while the Montenegrin forces shielded the Royal Serbian Army during its Great Retreat from Serbia through Montenegro and Albania to Greece, Austro Hungarian forces advanced across Lovćen in the Montenegrin campaign. Towards the end of December, anticipating the imminent loss of the city, the king, government officials, members of parliament, representatives of the Serbian High Command, and foreign embassies were evacuated from the nation's capital of Cetinje to Podgorica. On 19 January, the king and most of the government left the country. Acting against the king's instructions, the remaining government ministers declared themselves the new government and surrendered to Austria Hungary. They later attributed the surrender to the king's departure. Accusations regarding the surrender were exchanged between members of the government in exile and the king. Prime Minister Lazar Mijušković resigned from his post after one such dispute, expressing support for union with Serbia over the preservation of Montenegrin independence. Andrija Radović was appointed by the king to succeed him. Throughout the war, most Entente powers did not completely trust Montenegro as an ally due to persistent rumours of covert diplomatic arrangements. These rumours were encouraged by Serbia, which even used a forged agreement alleged to have been concluded by Montenegro and Austria Hungary. Instead of confronting King Nikola for fear of pushing Montenegro to the opposing camp, the Central Powers chose to work to channel their support through Serbia. The Kingdom of Italy, despite being part of the Entente, supported Montenegrin independence, viewing the prospective unified South Slavic state as a threat to its interests in the Balkans and the Adriatic. Italy exploited the so called Montenegrin question to extract concessions from Serbia. The United States did not proactively engage in the issue of Montenegrin independence before the Paris Peace Conference of 1919, failing to obtain international support for the restoration of Montenegro's independence. By 1918, King Nikola shifted his approach to Yugoslavism, advocating first for a Yugoslav federation and then a confederation as the common South Slavic state, with Montenegro as one of its constitutive elements. In an interview in the final days of the war, the king expressed hope that U. S. President Woodrow Wilson would ensure Montenegro's independent political future.

In August 1916, Radović drafted a memorandum to the king proposing the unification of Montenegro and Serbia, arguing that independent Montenegro could not sustain itself after an Entente victory. Radović's plan suggested that the king renounce his throne in favor of Prince Regent Aleksandar of Serbia, who would then be succeeded by Nikola's son, Danilo, Crown Prince of Montenegro. The proposal envisioned alternating rulers from the Serbian and Montenegrin royal dynasties on the throne of the proposed union state. Initially hesitant, King Nikola eventually received encouragement from Italy (whose king, Victor Emmanuel III, was his son in law) to reject the offer. The king ultimately declined to endorse the memorandum in January 1917, leading to Radović's resignation. He then emerged as a prominent advocate for unification. Radović expressed his determination to sway Montenegrins against King Nikola to Serbia's ambassador to Paris, Milenko Radomar Vesnić. Subsequently, Radović collaborated with Serbia to establish the Montenegrin Committee for Unification. Its inaugural proclamation was submitted for approval to Serbia's prime minister, Nikola Pašić, who advised Radović to avoid mentioning Yugoslavia as the new state and instead suggested using the term "other Serbian lands." Initially, the committee comprised former government ministers Pero Vučković, Danilo Gatalo, and Janko Spasojević, along with district court member Miloš Ivanović.

In September 1918, the Entente powers initiated their northward advance at the Salonica front, gradually displacing the Central Powers and reclaiming the territory of the occupied Kingdom of Serbia. Upon the insistence of General Louis Franchet d'Espèrey, the Royal Serbian Army was positioned on the western flank of the advance after reaching Skopje. This strategic maneuver aimed to ensure the army's arrival in Montenegro ahead of either supporters of King Nikola or Italian forces, perceived as a threat by Serbia due to Italy's demand for the establishment of an Italian condominium in Montenegro, excluding Serbian presence. The Royal Serbian Army contingent assigned Colonel lt=Dragutin Milutinović the task of gaining control of Montenegro. Milutinović's force, initially known as the Scutari Troops (Skadarske Trupe), later adopted the name Adriatic Troops (Jadranske Trupe), named after the city of Shkodër. The Adriatic Troops were composed of soldiers from the Yugoslav Division (recruited from Austro Hungarian lands) and Serbian paramilitaries from the Kosovo region, under the leadership of Kosta Pećanac. Milutinović, instructed by Prince Regent Aleksandar, was tasked with preventing the return of King Nikola to Montenegro by any means necessary. Accompanied by Spasojević, a member of the Montenegrin Committee, and Svetozar Tomić, head of the Montenegrin section of the Serbian Foreign Ministry, Milutinović established the Central Executive Committee for the Unification of Serbia and Montenegro in Berane on October 28. This committee, comprising Spasojević, Tomić, and Berane mayor Milosav Raičević, was responsible for organizing a popular assembly and establishing the rules for the election of assembly delegates. In the latter part of October, while the Adriatic Troops were stationed in Berane, Montenegrin insurgents (komite) under the leadership of Jovan Radović gained control of much of the countryside. The Adriatic Troops advanced towards Podgorica, defeating an Austro Hungarian force on the city outskirts on October 30–31. Two days later, Radović's insurgents seized Nikšić. Austro Hungarian forces abandoned the Montenegrin capital and withdrew from the country on November 4, two days before the Adriatic Troops reached Cetinje. After securing Cetinje, they proceeded to Nikšić, Kolašin, and Bar. The tense atmosphere at political rallies promoting unification prompted Milutinović to request reinforcements to maintain order during the election. Milutinović ordered the disbanding of the insurgents on November 12.

The election witnessed the emergence of two distinct camps. Unionists advocated for an unconditional and immediate merger with Serbia, while their counterparts, the independents, opposed the proposed union's terms. Instead, they advocated for a partnership where Montenegro would maintain equal status, constituting an integral part of the union state rather than merely a province of Serbia. Unionists framed their call for unconditional unification as a test of patriotism and moral obligation necessary to achieve longstanding state building goals. Financial support for the unionists came from Serbia. Candidate lists were visually differentiated by being printed on different types of paper: white for the unionists and green for the independents. Consequently, they were commonly referred to as the Whites (bjelaši) and the Greens (zelenaši) respectively. This division built upon existing political rifts within Montenegro, primarily revolving around the People's Party (known as the klubaši) and the True People's Party (known as the pravaši). These groups enjoyed varying levels of support across different regions of the country. While urban populations predominantly backed the Whites, except in Cetinje, the Whites also garnered more support than the Greens among educated individuals, youth, craftsmen, tradesmen, and administrative staff. The election, held on November 19, resulted in a significant majority for the Whites within the newly elected assembly. There were allegations that the Royal Serbian Army obstructed supporters of independence from returning from abroad, thereby interfering with the electoral process. Similarly, the French authorities prevented King Nikola from returning to Montenegro from his exile in Neuilly sur Seine. Notably, voting did not take place in the town of Ulcinj, the nearby village of Vladimir, and the regions of Skadarska Krajina and Mrkojevići.

The Great People's Assembly convened in the hall of the Tobacco Monopoly in Podgorica on 24 November 1918. Initially, Savo Cerović and Lazar Damjanović were elected as its president and vice president, respectively. The following day, the assembly appointed a twenty member committee and charged it with preparing a draft resolution for the assembly's consideration and adoption, despite an already prepared draft by Tomić being distributed to the delegates. Concurrently, the assembly articulated the unification of Montenegro and Serbia as its primary objective. On 26 November, the assembly proceeded to read the proposed resolution, despite some individual complaints about the lack of debate on the resolution. The draft was read aloud, accompanied by occasional cheering and singing of the Serbian national anthem, "Bože pravde." The resolution comprised four points. Firstly, it declared the removal of King Nikola and the Petrović Njegoš dynasty from the Montenegrin throne. Secondly, it specified that Montenegro and Serbia would be united under Serbia's ruling Karađorđević dynasty, joining the common state of the "three named people" (Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes). The third point called for the election of a five member executive committee to coordinate the unification efforts. Finally, the resolution envisaged sending notices of the resolution to the former king, the Serbian government, as well as allied and neutral countries. The decision was unanimously adopted, with three delegates absent from the vote. In four additional sessions held by 29 November, the assembly appointed Damjanović along with Vojvoda Stevo Vukotić (brother of Queen Consort Milena), Marko Daković, Spasoje Piletić, and Risto Jojić as the executive committee members. They debated the committee's tasks and appointed a fifteen member delegation led by Bishop Gavrilo Dožić, tasked with traveling to Belgrade and presenting the resolution to Prince Regent Aleksandar. There was also a discussion on the fate of the property of the king and the Montenegrin Orthodox Church, which was confiscated in the immediate aftermath of the assembly meetings. Finally, the assembly decided to confiscate the king's property and prohibit his family from returning to Montenegro. The assembly reconvened on 29 April 1919 in Podgorica to dismiss the executive committee and transfer its powers to Ivo Pavićević as the Serbian administrator for Montenegro.

The unification of Serbia and Montenegro, based on the assembly's resolution, strengthened Serbia's political position shortly before the proclamation of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later renamed Yugoslavia) on 1 December 1918. However, the assembly's approach was later criticized by some unionists as overly forceful. A month later, King Nikola expressed a wish for Montenegro to preserve its autonomy and customs within the new state, emphasizing his call for a Yugoslav confederation. The Montenegrin government in exile rejected the assembly resolutions, arguing that they were unlawful and the body itself illegitimate. Initially, the Entente powers generally overlooked the passing of the resolutions, tacitly allowing Serbia to establish the new status quo. The fate of Montenegro was discussed at the Paris Peace Conference, where the government in exile and King Nikola were not involved in decision making. The conference only invited a representative of the government in exile to present their position, at King Nikola's insistence. Although Montenegro was formally granted a seat at the conference, it remained vacant due to disagreement over the selection of its representative. Montenegro's government in exile proposals were rejected by Serbia, backed by France. In early 1919, Montenegro was divided into French, British, Italian, US, and Serbian occupation zones. However, by mid year, the entire territory came under Serbian control, renamed the Yugoslav Occupational Forces in Montenegro. France severed diplomatic ties with Montenegro on 20 December 1920 following the Constitutional Assembly election in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. The United Kingdom and the United States followed suit in January 1921, effectively removing Montenegro from international affairs.

A portion of Montenegro's population became dissatisfied with the political developments following the Podgorica Assembly, leading to an insurrection in January 1919. The ultimately unsuccessful rebellion, known as the Christmas Uprising, was instigated by the Greens and led by Krsto Popović and Jovan Plamenac. According to the British Military Mission to Montenegro, approximately one fifth of the population supported the rebels. Historian Ivo Banac suggested that the Greens enjoyed support from a larger proportion of the population but were comparably poorly organized, indecisive, and politically divided. While some fought for full independence and the return of King Nikola to the country, others supported union with Serbia, objecting only to Montenegro's unequal status in such a union. Contemporary Western media reported heavy fighting during the uprising. The Entente occupation troops in Montenegro pursued individual national interests and policies, with the French giving Serbia a free hand, while Italian troops supported the rebels. Italy initially supported the Montenegrin government in exile during negotiations over borders with the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes as part of the resolution of the Adriatic question. However, after the issue was settled by the 1920 Treaty of Rapallo, Italy agreed to withdraw its support. In 1923, some of the Greens established the Montenegrin Federalist Party led by Sekula Drljević, shifting to political struggle and advocating for Montenegrin statehood within the proposed Yugoslav federation.

Following the collapse of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in World War II and the subsequent establishment of the Communist ruled federal Yugoslavia in 1945, the People's Republic of Montenegro was established as one of its constituent elements. According to a decision of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia, all citizens of the People's Republic of Montenegro were to be recorded in censuses as Montenegrins, even though most of the population identified themselves as both Montenegrins and Serbs. This decision led to accusations against Montenegrin communist leader Milovan Djilas, alleging that he "invented the Montenegrin nation," and resulted in a series of censuses where the majority (though not all) of the population of Montenegro declared themselves as Montenegrins. Following the breakup of Yugoslavia in 1991–1992, Montenegro and Serbia remained in a rump state known as the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (renamed Serbia and Montenegro in 2003). In 2006, Montenegro regained its independence through a referendum. In 2018, the Parliament of Montenegro voted to annul the 1918 resolution of the Podgorica Assembly on union with Serbia. The annulment resolution stated that independent Montenegro became part of the Kingdom of Serbia through a coup d'état because the Podgorica Assembly was an illegal and illegitimate body that did not reflect the will of the country.