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Kosovo vilayet in Austria-Hungary’s plans 1896–1908
Косовски вилајет у плановима Аустроугарске 1896–1908
Зарковић, Весна
Summary: Austria-Hungary took the first significant step in the Balkans and in the direction of the southeast since the Austro-Turkish wars at the end of the 18th century at the Congress of Berlin. With the help of other great powers, it suspended the decisions of the Peace of San Stefano and organized a new gathering of powerful people on which the image of the Balkans was shaped. The attitudes and decisions of the great powers at the Berlin Congress in 1878 introduced Austria-Hungary to the Balkan Peninsula, which gained the right to occupy Bosnia and Herzegovina. Unlike this territory, Old Serbia and Macedonia still remained under Ottoman rule. Many contradictions and internal struggles in the Ottoman Empire at the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century hinted at the disintegration of the state. The uncertain situation in which the Turkish Empire found itself aroused the increasing interest of Austria-Hungary, which saw in it a favorable opportunity to achieve its goals. The resulting crisis in the Ottoman Empire was used by the Albanians in the Kosovo vilayet, which became the center of daily violence against the Serbian population. Austria-Hungary managed to win over some important Albanian leaders, known for violence against Serbs. That is why a large number of its agents resided in Kosovo vilayet, which it saw as a suitable territory for propaganda work. Secret agents, as well as Austro-Hungarian consuls in Mitrovica, Skopje and Prizren contributed to the spread of propaganda. The Austro-Hungarian authorities in Pljevlje and the Roman Catholic clergy acted with the same goal, at whose persuasion the Turks and Albanians persecuted, killed, robbed and displaced the Serbian population. They were rewarded for various crimes by Austria-Hungary, and many of them received a certain amount of money every month. In addition to the bishop of Prizren, the agas and beys were on the payroll, as well as most of the Turkish officials, starting with those from Constantinople, via Priština and Pljevlja. A lot of money was invested in that propaganda. It was obvious that Austria-Hungary’s interest in events in the Kosovo vilayet was increasing. This is indicated by the fact that it has increased the number of its representative offices over time. This assertion is supported by the fact that the number of reports from these regions sent to Vienna multiplied and after 1908 became the daily work of its diplomats who served in Prizren, Skopje and Mitrovica. At the end of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century in the European part of the Ottoman Empire, there were various disturbances and rebellions, behind which stood the Dual Monarchy. The Turkish authorities, with their policy of pandering and impunity to Albanian miscreants, contributed to the creation of anarchy that benefited only the Austro-Hungarian agents. Such a state of affairs destroyed the reputation of the Empire and thinned out the Serbian population. An increasing number of Albanians accepted the Austro-Hungarian propaganda and believed that the occupation, based on the decisions of the Berlin Congress and the fact that there were Austro-Hungarian garrisons in Pljevlje, Prijepolje and Priboj, was increasingly likely. Austria-Hungary saw the Kingdom of Serbia's plans related to the Kosovo vilayet as an obstacle to the realization of its goals, so it tried to slow down its economic development and prevent it from acting in the direction of Old Serbia. It planned the construction of a railway line from the border of Bosnia on the Drina to Kosovska Mitrovica. With that railway, which is called Novi Pazar Railway in the literature, she wanted to connect to the existing Mitrovica - Thessaloniki railway and prevent the merger of Serbia and Montenegro. Work on that project was stopped by the Young Turk Revolution, but Austria-Hungary continued to insist on the issue until 1912. This insistence was followed by already started action and propaganda, as evidenced by the reports of the Serbian and Russian consuls. It aspired to make the bad situation in the Ottoman Empire even worse and thus create the conditions to, as at the Congress of Berlin, put a new territory under its administration with a mandate from the great powers.
Апстракт: Територија Косовског вилајета се због свог геостратешког положаја намеће као једно од приоритетних питања у спољној политици балканских држава, али и великих сила. Међу њима је предњачила Аустроугарска, чији је циљ да изађе на топла мора био израженији после 1878. године. С обзиром на чињеницу да се Косовски вилајет у то време налазио под османском влашћу, Двојна монархија је користила различита средства за јачање утицаја на овом простору. Главно упориште је нашла међу појединим Арбанасима који су, стављајући се у њену службу, чинили репресалије над српским становништвом и, истовремено, агитовали међу сународницима. У раду се кроз бројне примере указује на аустроугарску пропаганду која је тежила да за циљеве своје државе придобије што већи број присталица широм Косовског вилајета, преко којих би припремила терен за даљу експанзију.
srpski
2023
© All rights reserved
Кључне речи: Косовски вилајет, Аустроугарска, Османско царство, Срби, Арбанаси, планови, пропаганда.
Key words: Kosovo vilayet, Austria-Hungary, Ottoman Empire, Serbs, Albanians, plans, propaganda.
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