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Russia and Montenegro: A History of Common Ties, Part 1

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Russia and Montenegro: A History of Common Ties, Part 1

24.12.2008

The history of Montenegro dates back to the end of the 5th century and the beginning of the 6th century when Slavic tribes began to settle the Balkan Peninsula. In the Middle Ages, the Principality of Zeta became one of the hotbeds of Slavic culture. It was here, for example, that the first book in Cyrillic was printed in 1493. At the end of the 15th century, the plains of Zeta were seized by the Ottoman Empire, which forced the local Orthodox population to leave for the impregnable mountain areas called Black Mountain (literally “black, dense forests”). Since then, the name Montenegro has stuck, replacing Zeta. Taking shelter in a small area surrounded by mountains, Montenegrins have shown fierce resistance to aggressors. By taking advantage of natural conditions and through their own courage, the small nation has been able to protect itself against foreign invaders and preserve its unique culture.

Despite the rich history of both countries, relations between Russia and Montenegro began only in the 18th century. Under the formal jurisdiction of the Ottoman Empire, Montenegro had a unique form of autonomy that combined elements of a theocracy a patriarchal system. In 1711, ambassadors from Russia paid a visit to the Metropolitan of Montenegro, Danilo I Љжepиev Petroviж-Njegoљ, in order to hand a message from Peter the Great regarding the latter’s proposal for a joint struggle against Turkey.

Peter the Great’s appeal was met with enthusiasm in this mountainous country. For Montenegro, which was literally sandwiched on all sides by enemies, the mere presence of a great Slavic and Orthodox power was of great importance. In any event, Montenegrins were encouraged to accept the proposal and oppose the Ottoman forces. But soon a message arrived telling of Peter the Great’s ill-fated Prut Campaign and the signing of a peace agreement with the Turks, and the Montenegrins had to face a strong enemy alone.

Nevertheless, on July 17, 1712, 8,000 Montenegrins won against a 50,000-strong Turkish army at Tzarevlatz. This victory was the most famous Montenegrin victory over the Turks, although after two years the Ottoman Turks took brutal revenge on the Montenegrins when 120,000 Turks invaded Montenegro and burnt the country to the ground. Prince Danilo miraculously escaped to a mountain cave where he announced his foreign policy agenda: “I am – Moscow, Moscow, Moscow!”

In 1715, having slipped through the Turkish cordons, Danilo arrived in Russia. Peter the Great expressed his regret at the casualties suffered by Montenegro. He wrote a letter in which he wrote about the merits of the Montenegrin people in a common struggle against the Turks and promised to provide generous assistance as soon as the Great Northern War ended. As a sign of support, the Russian czar sent substantial material assistance to Montenegro for the restoration of Orthodox churches.

That visit played an historic role in the development of Russian-Montenegrin relations. Danilo was the first Montenegrin ruler to establish a direct relationship with Russia. Moreover, the Montenegrin Metropolitan’s voyage to St. Petersburg signaled the beginning of a sincere friendship between the two Orthodox nations. During the 18th and 19th centuries, the relationship continued to strengthen. Love for Russia became an integral part of the identity of this small nation that numbered just several tens of thousands. A cult of sorts surrounding Russia developed, and even the saying “We and the Russians – 200 million” could be heard.

The Montenegrins’ Russophilism, incidentally, led to one of the most interesting phenomena in world history. In 1766, one Stephen the Small appeared in Montenegro. He was a mysterious intruder, posing as the Russian Emperor Peter III who had miraculously escaped death in 1762. According to eyewitnesses, the man apparently quite similar to Peter III, spoke several languages and had a very sharp mind.

Having never seen Peter III, the Montenegrins nevertheless acknowledged Stephen the Small as the Russian tsar. He very quickly became the sovereign ruler over the whole of Montenegro. We should note that Stephen the Small – Peter was a very strong ruler who cleaned up the country by introducing the death penalty for blood feuds, establishing a court, taking steps to establish a regular army, undertaking road construction, etc.

Of course, the events in Montenegro were carefully monitored in St. Petersburg. Russian Empress Catherine II, to put it mildly, was disappointed that there was someone in the Balkans impersonating her husband (albeit deceased). During the summer of 1768, Catherine sent to Montenegro an adviser from the Russian embassy in Vienna, Captain G. Merka, with an official document calling for the impostor to be put on trial. For a variety of reasons, however, the document never reached its addressees.

Moreover, under new plans to combat the Ottoman Empire, in which Montenegro played a central role, Catherine II changed her attitude toward Stephen the Small. In August 1769, Prince Dolgorukov arrived in the Montenegrin capital of Cetinje with a shipment of arms and a letter from Catherine with an appeal for arms to be taken against the Turks (nothing was said of Stephen the Small). Prior to his departure, Dolgorukov even gave the Montenegrin ruler a Russian officer's uniform, embraced him and kissed him goodbye. Thus, the impostor, posing as Russian Emperor Peter III, was not only never caught and executed, but he was recognized by Russia as the ruler of Montenegro and was even given an officer’s rank.

It is not surprising that after these events Russia’s influence in Montenegro strengthened even more. An event that occurred some months after Dolgorukov’s departure is telling. In a letter to a senior Venetian official, Montenegrin leaders wrote: “Did you know, Sir, that we are Russians today? Whoever stands against Russia stands against us.”

At the beginning of the 19th century Montenegro was in need of Russian military assistance. To defend the coast of Dalmatia and Montenegro from the Napoleonic troops, Emperor Alexander I sent Admiral Senyavin’s fleet to the Adriatic Sea, which was under the general command of Admiral Fyodor Ushakov. Relying on Russian power, Petar I Petroviж Njegoљ, developed a plan in 1807 to create a new state by combining several Yugoslav lands, the center of which would be the city of Dubrovnik. This state, according to the Montenegrin ruler, would be placed under the exclusive authority of the supreme Russian Emperor Alexander I and would be governed by a “natural Russian” president.

Not all the plans were implemented, but in general, the military actions of the Russians and their Montenegrin allies were successful. They gained control over a significant part of the Adriatic coast, which came under total domination by the Russian navy. The Russian-Montenegrin military brotherhood helped to further strengthen the friendship between the two peoples, although the Peace of Tilzit that was signed in 1807 canceled many of the Montenegrins’ hopes and dreams. When Admiral Senyavin’s fleet left, military and political relations between Montenegro and Russia began to slip.

Still, relations between Russia and Montenegro were not broken off completely. Alexander I approved a personal pension for the Montenegrin ruler, and ecclesiastical contacts never stopped. Peter the Great’s will to Njegoљ contained the following words: “Whoever among you, Montenegrins, who thought to move away from our patronage and hopes for a united Russia has to live with the meat falling from your bones, and you will be so deprived of any benefits in this life, and the hereafter.”

Indeed, Russia’s military and political power allowed the Montenegrins to achieve their long-awaited freedom. As a result of the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878, a centuries-old heroic struggle ended in victory for the Montenegrin people and the proclamation of an independent Montenegro, which was recognized de jure by the international community.

All this time, as noted above, only a few Russians had settled in Montenegro. It was only in the 1920s when a true Russian diaspora began to emerge in the country. Is not difficult to guess that the reason for the birth of the Russian community was the tragic events taking place in Russia following the October Revolution. Tens of thousands of Russian immigrants arrived in the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, most of whom were part of Vrangel’s army. Montenegro was no exception.

In Montenegro, as well as in Serbia, Russians were met with warmth and understanding. The authorities allowed them to establish their own school system, women's gymnasium and even a cadet corps. In response, Russian immigrants, including many intellectuals and highly qualified specialists in different fields, made a tremendous contribution to the development of education, culture and the economy in their brotherly host country.

Herceg Novi became one of the centers of the Russian йmigrй community in Montenegro. By the 1930s, a Russian cemetery had already been organized on the outskirts of the city. The cemetery’s obelisk that was erected by the Montenegrins read: “You are at rest in the land of a brotherly people.” Among the 600 graves in the cemetery, the tombs of ten generals from the Russian Imperial Army can be found, as well as those of several university professors and priests who had a significant impact on culture and education not only in Herceg Novi, but also in the whole of Montenegro.

After the onset of the Second World War, the Russian diaspora in Montenegro split and began to decline rapidly (in 1941 and throughout Yugoslavia a total of about 25,000 Russian emigrants remained). Part of the Russian Montenegrin community became collaborators and entered Hitler’s Russian Guard Corps. Others formed the Union of Soviet Patriots and joined the People's Liberation Movement of Yugoslavia.

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