Petrovic Njegos (Petar II)

Prince-Bishop from 1830 to 1851, known for his courage in fighting and defeating the Turks, a victory named "the crown of the mountains." He endowed the royal house with a court, an army, and a senate. In 1851, he died, succumbing to tuberculosis. He now rests in a mausoleum erected on the ruins of the chapel where he was buried in 1974. This mausoleum is located on Mount Jezerski, at an altitude of 1657 m in Lovcen National Park.

A long history of several centuries

Montenegro was initially a principality and then a kingdom from 1878 to 1918.

The defeat of the Montenegrin army against the Austrians in 1916 forced Nikola Petrovic to seek refuge in France. His descendants still live in the country, and a renowned architect is his worthy heir.

During the Second World War, Montenegro fought alongside the Allies.

The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1945-2002)

Montenegro was one of the countries that formed the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia in 1945. Podgorica was renamed Titograd in 1946.

Yugoslav means "Slave of the South." Yugoslavia existed from 1918 to 1991. Formerly a kingdom, it became a republic on November 29, 1945.

Encompassing the present-day states of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, Slovenia, and Kosovo, Yugoslavia represented an area of ​​255,803 km².

Tito's regime

After being a major resistance fighter during the Second World War, Marshal Tito, born in Croatia, was appointed Prime Minister of Yugoslavia.

In 1953, he became President. He amended the constitution in 1963 and changed the name to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

Under the Tito era, Yugoslavia aimed to be completely neutral and autonomous. It even refused to engage in the Cold War. Tito maintained good relations with Russia but asserted his independence.

However, Tito joined the United Nations in the embargo imposed on arms supplies to North Korea and the People's Republic of China. Tito continued to maintain skillful relationships with Western Europe, the United States, China, and non-aligned countries.

The last years of Josip Broz (Tito) in Yugoslavia were marked by a severe economic and social crisis. The Serbian and Croatian conflict escalated in the early 1970s. Yugoslavia, then consisting of six republics - Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Slovenia - granted autonomy to Kosovo in 1974.

Josip Broz died in Ljubljana, Slovenia, on May 4, 1980.

Towards Independence...

From Tito's death in 1980 to January 1990, the constitution system of 1974 did not alleviate the deep economic, social, and political crisis of Yugoslavia.

Slovenia and Croatia demanded their independence, followed by Bosnia. On April 27, 1992, a referendum held in Montenegro forced Serbia and Montenegro to form the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia without the other four states. Civil war broke out. The federation of the two countries was renamed in 2003 to the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro.

In 2006, a referendum for the independence of Montenegro was organized. The people wanted to separate from Serbia, with 56%. On June 3, 2006, Montenegro declared its independence, and the United Nations recognized Montenegro as the 192nd state.

On June 22, Montenegro became the 56th member of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe.

On December 15, 2008, Montenegro applied for European Union membership.

On June 5, 2017, it became the 29th member of NATO.