The flag of Yugoslavia: history

For a long time the South Slavic peoples differed in their desire to unite in a single state. In the middle of the XIX century in Vienna, between the representatives of the Serbs and Croats, an agreement was signed, on the basis of which the Serbo-Croatian literary language was legalized. And already in 17 of the XX century an attempt was made to create a single state that united representatives of four nationalities: Serbs, Croats, Slovenes and Montenegrins. Everyone remembers these momentous moments of history, but not everyone knows what the flag of Yugoslavia looks like. Therefore, in this article we will try to talk about this in detail.

The thorny path

By the end of 1918, unity took place when the Austro-Hungarian empire collapsed, and Montenegrin and Serbian territories were liberated from occupation. The Commonwealth of States includes the above-mentioned countries and the Herzegovina and Bosnia that joined them. The newly created association became known as the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Later, the state of Yugoslavia appeared.

In the spring of 1941, an attack by the army of German-Italian invaders dismembered the country into separate parts. This marked the beginning of the liberation movement led by the Communists. However, when fascism was defeated, fraternal peoples once again formed a republic. In 1945, the Democratic Republic of Yugoslavia appeared. In 1946 it became People's, and in 1963 - Socialist.

The nineties

In the 90-ies of the XX century in all the republics of the former Kingdom of Yugoslavia, the mood of the separatists was aggravated. Leaders of all five countries had to agree to the formation of independent states, separate from each other without changing the state borders. In turn, Serbia and Montenegro, disagreeing with the division, could not leave the federation. In 1992, the creation of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) was announced.

In the late 90's in Montenegro, the democrats-socialists disintegrated. This led to disagreements between the leaders of the two states. The decisions of the Federation Parliament ceased to be recognized in Montenegro, and the election of the head of the state in 2000 was boycotted. Negotiations between the leaders of the countries did not yield any results. But the focus of both republics on the European future forced their ruling circles to compromise under the pressure of the Union of Europe. They created a community of Montenegro and Serbia. The agreement was signed in Belgrade in 2002. Every state in Europe wanted to defend its independence. In the summer of 2006, the Federation of South Slavic peoples ceased to exist when Montenegro left the community.

The flag of Yugoslavia: the beginning

The basis of each of the Yugoslav flags is the union of three colors - red, blue and white. These shades were used by all Slavic peoples. They were approved in 1848 at the Prague Congress. The colors symbolized the unification of the South Slavic peoples in a single state. The tricolor came after the fierce struggle of Serbia and Montenegro against the Ottoman Empire for its independence. The flag of Yugoslavia did not exist at that time. But as a basis elements are taken, which changed in connection with the change of power.

Then on the flags of both states, on the background of the red, blue and white stripes, their symbols flaunted. The gold of the crown on the shield played in the feathers of a silver eagle about two heads, warming the heart of the cross. It was a symbol of independent Serbia. Montenegro crowned the canvas of its tricolor with the crown of the principality of red color. This is how the Pan-Slavic colors, as they were later called, turned out to be in the Balkans.

Royal flag

After the unification of independent countries in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, there was no question of choosing colors for the flag. It was decided only to change the order of the tricolor bands, so as not to repeat any of the state flags in the Kingdom. Now the main color is blue, the center is white, the base is red. In the middle of the canvas was the coat of arms of Yugoslavia.

The official confirmation of the flag took place after the adoption of the Constitution in 1921. Despite the coup d'état, which took place in early January 1929, the military-monarchist dictatorship that brought the flag of the kingdom of Yugoslavia remained the same. So it was before the Second World War. Some historical events entailed changes in state symbols.

The Acts of Communists

Until September 1941, the flag of Yugoslavia remained unchanged. After the beginning of the people's struggle for liberation, his appearance became somewhat different. The communist government approved a tricolor without a coat of arms, a red star with five rays was added to the center. It became a symbol of the national struggle, the path to socialism and the unity of the national spirit. When Yugoslavia became the Socialist Republic and the Constitution was amended, dated 1963, the state flag also changed its former form. Now on the background of the red canvas was the state emblem. He occupied the center of the banner.

At the suggestion of the deputies, another kind was planned for the flag. On the canvas of red color, the state tricolor was to be on the upper left. However, the decision was not accepted, and therefore returned the state tricolor with a star in the center. The only change and addition to the design was the golden edging of the five-pointed symbol. The flag of Yugoslavia in this form lasted until the next coup d'état.

Final version

When in 1992 it was announced the appearance of the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, which included Montenegro and Serbia, the flag again changed its appearance. Now the countries have returned to the state banner in the form of three bands of red, white and blue. Each of them occupied the same space on the canvas, and the five-pointed star, as an echo of the "partisan", was decided to be removed. This was the final version of the flag of Yugoslavia, which remained unchanged until 2006. This year there was a complete and irrevocable collapse of it. The state in Europe ceased to exist, breaking up into six countries: Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Slovenia and Macedonia.