View source for Yugoslavia

{{Short description|1918–1992 country in Southeastern Europe}}
{{Other uses}}
{{For|the 1992–2006 federation and confederation between Montenegro and Serbia|Serbia and Montenegro}}
{{pp|small=yes}}
{{pp-move}}
{{missing information|overall statistics on religion, ethnicity, and language|date=April 2022}}{{coord|44|49|N|20|27|E|type:country_source:kolossus-hewiki|display=title}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=August 2021}}
{{Infobox former country
| conventional_long_name = Yugoslavia
| native_name            = {{lang|sh-Latn|Jugoslavija}}<br />{{lang|sh-Cyrl|Југославија}}
| common_name            = Yugoslavia
| era                    = 
| life_span              = 1918–1992<br />{{nowrap|{{small|{{nobold|1941–1945: [[Axis occupation of Yugoslavia|Axis occupation]]}}}}}}
| p1                     = Kingdom of Serbia{{!}}Serbia
| flag_p1                = State Flag of Serbia (1882-1918).svg
| p2                     = Kingdom of Montenegro{{!}}Montenegro
| flag_p2                = Flag of the Kingdom of Montenegro.svg
| p3                     = State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs
| flag_p3                = Flag of the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs.svg
| p4                     = Austria-Hungary
| flag_p4                = Flag of Austria-Hungary (1867-1918).svg
| p7                     = Free State of Fiume{{!}}Fiume
| flag_p7                = Flag of the Free State of Fiume.svg
| s1                     = Croatia
| flag_s1                = Flag of Croatia (1990).svg
| s2                     = Slovenia
| flag_s2                = Flag of Slovenia.svg
| s3                     = North Macedonia{{!}}Macedonia
| flag_s3                = Flag of Macedonia (1992–1995).svg
| s4                     = Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina{{!}}Bosnia and Herzegovina
| flag_s4                = Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992-1998).svg
| s5                     = Serbia and Montenegro{{!}}Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
| flag_s5                = Flag of Serbia and Montenegro (1992–2006).svg|
| image_flag             = Flag of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.svg
| image_flag2            = Flag of SFR Yugoslavia.svg
| flag_type              = [[Flag of Yugoslavia|Top: Flag (1918–41)<br />{{nowrap|Bottom: Flag (1946–92)}}]]
| flag_border            = 
| image_coat             = [[File:Coat of arms of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia.svg|70px]] [[File:Emblem of Yugoslavia (1963–1992).svg|70px]]
| symbol_type            = [[Coat of arms of Yugoslavia|Top: Coat of arms<br />(1918–41)<br />Bottom: Emblem<br />(1963–92)]]
| image_map              = Yugoslavia location map.svg
| image_map_caption      = Yugoslavia during the [[Interwar period]] (top) and the [[Cold War]] (bottom)
| national_motto         = 
| national_anthem        = <br>"[[National Anthem of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia]]" (1919–1941){{parabr}}[[File:Himna Kraljevine Jugoslavije.ogg|center]]"[[Hey, Slavs]]" (1945–1992){{parabr}}[[File:Hey, Slavs 1930s instrumental.ogg|center]]
| capital                = [[Belgrade]]
| coordinates            = {{coord|44|49|N|20|27|E|type:city_source:kolossus-hewiki|display=inline}}
| largest_city           = capital
| demonym                = [[Yugoslavs|Yugoslav]]
| official_languages     = [[Serbian language|Serbo]]-[[Croatian language|Croato]]-[[Slovene language|Slovene]] {{small|(before 1944)}} <br/> [[Serbo-Croatian]] {{small|(de facto; from 1944)}}
| government_type        = [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Hereditary monarchy]]<br>(1918–1941)<br/>[[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia|Federal republic]]<br>(1945–1992)
{{Collapsible list
|title = Details
|bullets = yes
|[[Unitary state|Unitary]] [[constitutional monarchy]] {{Clear}}{{small|(1918–1929, 1931–1939)}}
|[[Unitary state|Unitary]] [[absolute monarchy]] under a [[6 January Dictatorship|royal dictatorship]] {{small|(1929–1931)}}
|[[Federal monarchy|Federal]] [[constitutional monarchy]] {{Clear}}{{small|(1939–1941)}}
|[[Government-in-exile]] {{small|(1941–1945)}}
|[[Provisional government|Provisional]] [[Socialist state|socialist government]] presiding over [[Democratic Federal Yugoslavia|liberated territories]] {{small|(1943–1945)}}
|[[Federalism|Federal]] [[Marxism-Leninism|Marxist–Leninist]] [[One-party state|one-party]] [[Socialist state|socialist republic]] {{small|(1945–1948)}}
|[[Federal republic|Federal]] [[Titoism|Titoist]] [[One-party state|one-party]] [[Socialist state|socialist republic]] {{small|(1948–1990)}}
|[[Federal republic|Federal]] [[Parliamentary republic|parliamentary]] [[constitutional republic]] {{small|(1990–1992)}}
}}
| title_leader           = 
| leader1                = 
| year_leader1           = 
| event_start            = [[Creation of Yugoslavia|Creation]]
| date_start             = 1 December
| year_start             = 1918
| event1                 = [[Invasion of Yugoslavia|Axis invasion]]
| date_event1            = 6 April 1941
| event2                 = [[United Nations Charter|Admitted]] to the UN
| date_event2            = 24 October 1945
| event3                 = [[Peter II of Yugoslavia#Deposition and exile|Abolition of monarchy]]
| date_event3            = 29 November 1945
| event_end              = [[Breakup of Yugoslavia|Disintegration]]
| date_end               = 27 April
| year_end               = 1992
| stat_year1             = 1955
| stat_pop1              = 17,522,438<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G1955/Pdf/G19552002.pdf|title=Statistical yearbook of Yugoslavia, 1955}}</ref>
| stat_year2             = 1965
| stat_pop2              = 19,489,605<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G1965/Pdf/G19652001.pdf|title=Statistical yearbook of Yugoslavia, 1965}}</ref>
| stat_year3             = 1975
| stat_pop3              = 21,441,297<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G1975/Pdf/G19752003.pdf|title=Statistical yearbook of Yugoslavia, 1975}}</ref>
| stat_year4             = 1985
| stat_pop4              = 23,121,383<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G1985/Pdf/G19852003.pdf|title=Statistical yearbook of Yugoslavia, 1985}}</ref>
| stat_year5             = 1991
| stat_pop5              = 23,532,279<ref>{{cite web|url=https://publikacije.stat.gov.rs/G1991/Pdf/G19912003.pdf|title=Statistical yearbook of Yugoslavia, 1991}}</ref>
| cctld                  = [[.yu]]
| calling_code           = 38
| currency               = [[Yugoslav dinar]]
| footnotes              = 
| footnotes2             = 
| today                  = [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]]<br />[[Croatia]]<br />[[Kosovo]]<br />[[Montenegro]]<br />[[North Macedonia]]<br />[[Serbia]]<br />[[Slovenia]]
}}

'''Yugoslavia''' ({{IPAc-en|ˌ|j|uː|ɡ|oʊ|ˈ|s|l|ɑː|v|i|ə}}; {{lang-sh-Latn-Cyrl|separator=" / "|Jugoslavija|Југославија}} {{IPA-sh|juɡǒslaːʋija|}}; {{lang-sl|Jugoslavija}} {{IPA-sl|juɡɔˈslàːʋija|}}; {{lang-mk|Југославија}} {{IPA-mk|juɡɔˈsɫavija|}};{{efn-ua|{{lang-sq|Jugosllavia}}; {{lang-rup|Iugoslavia}}; {{lang-hu|Jugoszlávia}}; {{lang-rue|label=[[Pannonian Rusyn]]|Югославия|translit=Juhoslavija}}; {{lang-sk|Juhoslávia}}; {{lang-ro|Iugoslavia}}; {{lang-cs|Jugoslávie}}; {{lang-it|Iugoslavia}}; {{lang-tr|Yugoslavya}}; {{lang-bg|Югославия|Yugoslaviya}}}} {{Literal translation|Land of the [[South Slavs]]}}) was a country in [[Southeast Europe|Southeast]] and [[Central Europe]] for most of the 20th century. It [[Creation of Yugoslavia|came into existence]] in 1918{{efn-ua|The [[Yugoslav Committee]], led by [[Dalmatia]]n [[Croats|Croat]] politician [[Ante Trumbić]], lobbied the Allies to support the creation of an independent [[South Slavs|South Slavic]] state and delivered the proposal in the [[Corfu Declaration]] on 20 July 1917.<ref name="Spencer Tucker 2005">Spencer Tucker. ''Encyclopedia of World War I: A Political, Social, and Military History''. Santa Barbara, California, USA: ABC-CLIO, 2005. Pp. 1189.</ref>}} following [[World War I]], under the name of the ''[[Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes]]'' from the merger of [[Kingdom of Serbia]] with the provisional [[State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs]] (which was formed from territories of the former [[Austria-Hungary]]), and constituted the first union of the South Slavic people as a [[sovereign state]], following centuries in which the region had been part of the [[Ottoman Empire]] and Austria-Hungary. [[Peter I of Serbia]] was its [[List of heads of state of Yugoslavia#Kingdom of Yugoslavia|first sovereign]]. The kingdom gained international recognition on 13 July 1922 at the [[Conference of Ambassadors]] in [[Paris]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.orderofdanilo.org/en/family/index.htm|title=orderofdanilo.org|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090516203805/http://www.orderofdanilo.org/en/family/index.htm|archive-date=16 May 2009}}</ref> The official name of the state was changed to ''[[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]]'' on 3 October 1929.

The Kingdom was [[Invasion of Yugoslavia|invaded]] by the [[Axis powers]] on 6 April 1941. In 1943, a [[Democratic Federal Yugoslavia]] was proclaimed by the [[Yugoslav Partisans|Partisan resistance]]. In 1944, King [[Peter II of Yugoslavia|Peter II]], then living [[Yugoslav government-in-exile|in exile]], recognised it as the legitimate government. The monarchy was subsequently abolished in November 1945. Yugoslavia was renamed the [[Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia]] in 1945, when a [[League of Communists of Yugoslavia|communist government]] was established. It acquired the territories of [[Istria]], [[Rijeka]], and [[Zadar]] from [[Kingdom of Italy|Italy]]. Partisan leader [[Josip Broz Tito]] ruled the country as [[President of Yugoslavia|president]] until [[Death and state funeral of Josip Broz Tito|his death]] in 1980. In 1963, the country was renamed again, as the [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]] (SFRY).

The six constituent republics that made up the SFRY were the [[Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina|SR Bosnia and Herzegovina]], [[Socialist Republic of Croatia|SR Croatia]], [[Socialist Republic of Macedonia|SR Macedonia]], [[Socialist Republic of Montenegro|SR Montenegro]], [[Socialist Republic of Serbia|SR Serbia]], and [[Socialist Republic of Slovenia|SR Slovenia]]. SR Serbia contained two Socialist Autonomous Provinces, [[Socialist Autonomous Province of Vojvodina|Vojvodina]] and [[Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo|Kosovo]], which after [[1974 Yugoslav Constitution|1974]] were largely equal to the other members of the federation.<ref>{{cite book |last=Huntington |first=Samuel P. |title=The clash of civilizations and the remaking of world order |publisher=Simon & Schuster |isbn=978-0-684-84441-1 |year=1996 |page=[https://archive.org/details/clashofciviliza00hunt/page/260 260]|title-link=The Clash of Civilizations }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/special_report/1998/kosovo/110492.stm |title=History, bloody history |work=BBC News |date=24 March 1999 |access-date=29 December 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090125151232/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/special_report/1998/kosovo/110492.stm |archive-date=25 January 2009 |url-status=live }}</ref> After an economic and political crisis in the 1980s and the rise of [[nationalism]], Yugoslavia [[breakup of Yugoslavia|broke up]] along its republics' borders, at first into five countries, leading to the [[Yugoslav Wars]]. From 1993 to 2017, the [[International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia]] tried political and military leaders from the former Yugoslavia for [[Yugoslav Wars#War crimes|war crimes]], genocide, and other crimes committed during those wars.

After the breakup, the republics of [[Republic of Montenegro (1992–2006)|Montenegro]] and [[Republic of Serbia (1992–2006)|Serbia]] formed a reduced federative state, the [[Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]] (FRY), known from 2003 to 2006 as [[Serbia and Montenegro]]. This state aspired to the status of sole [[Succession of states|legal successor]] to the SFRY, but those claims were opposed by the other former republics. Eventually, it accepted the opinion of the [[Badinter Arbitration Committee]] about shared succession<ref name="EBRD Country Promotion Programme">{{cite web|title=FR Yugoslavia Investment Profile 2001|url=http://www.fifoost.org/jugoslaw/yugo.pdf|publisher=EBRD Country Promotion Programme|page=3|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110928025829/http://www.fifoost.org/jugoslaw/yugo.pdf|archive-date=28 September 2011}}</ref> and in 2003 its official name was changed to ''Serbia and Montenegro''. This state [[2006 Montenegrin independence referendum|dissolved]] when [[Montenegro]] and [[Serbia]] each became independent states in 2006, with [[Kosovo]] having an [[Political status of Kosovo|ongoing dispute]] over its [[2008 Kosovo declaration of independence|declaration of independence]] in 2008.

==Background==
{{Main|Creation of Yugoslavia}}
The concept of ''Yugoslavia'', as a single state for all [[South Slavs|South Slavic]] peoples, emerged in the late 17th century and gained prominence through the [[Illyrian Movement]] of the 19th century. The name was created by the combination of the Slavic words "jug" (south) and "slaveni" (Slavs). Moves towards the formal [[creation of Yugoslavia]] accelerated after the 1917 [[Corfu Declaration]] between the [[Yugoslav Committee]] and the government of the [[Kingdom of Serbia]].

==Kingdom of Yugoslavia==
{{Main|Kingdom of Yugoslavia}}
{{multiple image
|align=right
|direction=vertical
|width=210
|header=
|image1=
|image2=Banovine Jugoslavia.png|caption2=[[Subdivisions of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Banovinas]] of Yugoslavia, 1929–39. After 1939 the Sava and Littoral banovinas were merged into the [[Banovina of Croatia]].
}}

The country was formed in 1918 immediately after World War I as the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes by union of the [[State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs]] and the [[Kingdom of Serbia]].<ref>{{Cite journal|last=Fenwick|first=Charles G.|date=1918|title=Jugoslavic National Unity|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/1945848|journal=The American Political Science Review|volume=12|issue=4|pages=718–721|doi=10.2307/1945848|jstor=1945848|s2cid=147372053 |issn=0003-0554}}</ref> It was commonly referred to at the time as the "[[Treaty of Versailles|Versailles]] state". Later, the government renamed the country, leading to the first official use of ''Yugoslavia'' in 1929.

===King Alexander===
{{see also|6 January Dictatorship}}
On 20 June 1928, Serb deputy [[Puniša Račić]] shot at five members of the opposition [[Croatian Peasant Party]] in the [[National Assembly of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia|National Assembly]], resulting in the death of two deputies on the spot and that of leader [[Stjepan Radić]] a few weeks later.{{sfn|Ramet|2006|p=73}} On 6 January 1929, [[King of Yugoslavia|King]] [[Alexander I of Yugoslavia|Alexander I]] got rid of the [[Vidovdan Constitution|constitution]], [[Nonpartisanism|banned national political parties]], [[Absolute monarchy|assumed executive power]], and renamed the country Yugoslavia.<ref>{{cite web |url =http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1929.htm |title =Chronology 1929 |author =[[Indiana University]] |publisher =indiana.edu |date =October 2002 |access-date =8 February 2014 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20150222035557/http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1929.htm |archive-date =22 February 2015 |url-status =live }}</ref> He hoped to curb separatist tendencies and mitigate nationalist passions. He imposed a [[1931 Yugoslav Constitution|new constitution]] and relinquished his dictatorship in 1931.<ref>{{cite web |url =http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1931.htm |title =Chronology 1929 |author =[[Indiana University]] |publisher =indiana.edu |date =October 2002 |access-date =8 February 2014 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20140222001410/http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1931.htm |archive-date =22 February 2014 |url-status =live }}</ref> However, Alexander's policies later encountered opposition from other European powers stemming from developments in Italy and Germany, where Fascists and [[Nazism|Nazis]] rose to power, and the [[Soviet Union]], where [[Joseph Stalin]] became absolute ruler. None of these three regimes favored the policy pursued by Alexander I. In fact, Italy and Germany wanted to revise the international treaties signed after World War I, and the Soviets were determined to regain their positions in Europe and pursue a more active international policy.

Alexander attempted to create a centralised Yugoslavia. He decided to abolish Yugoslavia's historic regions, and new internal boundaries were drawn for provinces or banovinas. The banovinas were named after rivers. Many politicians were jailed or kept under police surveillance. During his reign, Communist ideas were banned.

The king was assassinated in [[Marseille]] during an official visit to France in 1934 by [[Vlado Chernozemski]], an experienced marksman from [[Ivan Mihailov]]'s [[Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization]] with the cooperation of the [[Ustaše]], a Croatian fascist revolutionary organisation. Alexander was succeeded by his eleven-year-old son [[Peter II of Yugoslavia|Peter II]] and a regency council headed by his cousin, [[Prince Paul of Yugoslavia|Prince Paul]].

===1934–1941===
The international political scene in the late 1930s was marked by growing intolerance between the principal figures, by the aggressive attitude of the [[Totalitarianism|totalitarian]] regimes, and by the certainty that the order set up after World War I was losing its strongholds and its sponsors their strength. Supported and pressured by [[Italian fascism|Fascist Italy]] and [[Nazi Germany]], Croatian leader [[Vladko Maček]] and his party managed the creation of the [[Banovina of Croatia]] (Autonomous Region with significant internal self-government) in 1939. The agreement specified that Croatia was to remain part of Yugoslavia, but it was hurriedly building an independent political identity in international relations. The entire kingdom was to be federalised, but World War II stopped the fulfillment of those plans.

Prince Paul submitted to fascist pressure and signed the [[Tripartite Pact]] in Vienna on 25 March 1941, hoping to continue keeping Yugoslavia out of the war. However,  this was at the expense of popular support for Paul's regency. Senior military officers were also opposed to the treaty and launched a coup d'état when the king returned on [[Yugoslav coup d'état|27 March]]. Army General [[Dušan Simović]] seized power, arrested the Vienna delegation, exiled Prince Paul, and ended the regency, giving 17-year-old [[Peter II of Yugoslavia|King Peter]] full powers. [[Adolf Hitler|Hitler]] then decided to attack Yugoslavia on 6 April 1941, followed immediately by an invasion of Greece where [[Benito Mussolini|Mussolini]] had previously been repelled.<ref>A. W. Palmer, "Revolt in Belgrade, March 27, 1941,"''History Today'' (March 1960) 10#3 pp 192–200.</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www1.yadvashem.org.il/about_holocaust/month_in_holocaust/april/april_chronology/chronology_1941_april_06.html|title=6 April: Germany Invades Yugoslavia and Greece|website=arquivo.pt|url-status=dead|archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20091015085557/http%3A//www1.yadvashem.org.il/about_holocaust/month_in_holocaust/april/april_chronology/chronology_1941_april_06.html|archive-date=15 October 2009}}</ref>

==World War II==
{{main|World War II in Yugoslavia}}
[[File:Stjepan Stevo Filipović.jpg|thumb|right|upright=0.7|[[Yugoslav Partisans|Partisan]] [[Stjepan Filipović]] shouting "Death to fascism, freedom to the people!" shortly before his execution (1942)]]

At 5:12&nbsp;a.m. on 6 April 1941, [[Nazi Germany|German]], [[Italian fascism|Italian]] and Hungarian forces [[Invasion of Yugoslavia|invaded Yugoslavia]].<ref>{{cite web |url =https://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/partisan_fighters_01.shtml |title =Partisans: War in the Balkans 1941–1945 |author =Dr. Stephen A. Hart |author2 =[[British Broadcasting Corporation]] |publisher =bbc.com |date =17 February 2011 |access-date =8 February 2014 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20111128065207/http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/worldwars/wwtwo/partisan_fighters_01.shtml |archive-date =28 November 2011 |url-status =live }}</ref> The German Air Force (''[[Luftwaffe]]'') bombed [[Belgrade]] and other major Yugoslav cities. On 17 April, representatives of Yugoslavia's various regions signed an armistice with Germany in Belgrade, ending eleven days of resistance against the invading German forces.<ref>{{cite web |url =http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/yugoslavia-surrenders |title =Apr 17, 1941: Yugoslavia surrenders |author =[[History (U.S. TV channel)|History Channel]] |publisher =history.com |year =2014 |access-date =8 February 2014 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20140221215720/http://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/yugoslavia-surrenders |archive-date =21 February 2014 |url-status =live }}</ref> More than 300,000 Yugoslav officers and soldiers were taken prisoner.<ref>{{cite web |url =http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1941.htm |title =Chronology 1929 |author =[[Indiana University]] |publisher =indiana.edu |date =October 2002 |access-date =8 February 2014 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20141027024429/http://www.indiana.edu/~league/1941.htm |archive-date =27 October 2014 |url-status =live }}</ref>

The [[Axis Powers]] occupied Yugoslavia and split it up. The [[Independent State of Croatia]] was established as a [[Nazi]] satellite state, ruled by the fascist militia known as the [[Ustaše]] that came into existence in 1929, but was relatively limited in its activities until 1941. German troops occupied [[Bosnia (region)|Bosnia]] and [[Herzegovina]] as well as part of [[Serbia]] and [[Slovenia]], while other parts of the country were occupied by [[Bulgaria]], Hungary, and Italy. From 1941 to 1945, the Croatian [[Ustaše]] regime [[Genocide of Serbs in the Independent State of Croatia|persecuted and murdered]] around 300,000 Serbs, along with at least 30,000 Jews and Roma;<ref>{{cite book |last1=Goldberg |first1=Harold J. |title=Daily Life in Nazi-Occupied Europe |date=2019 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=9781440859120 |page=22 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h5q1DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA22}}</ref> hundreds of thousands of Serbs were also expelled and another 200,000-300,000 were forced to convert to [[Catholicism]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Tomasevich |first1=Jozo |editor1-last=Vucinich |editor1-first=Wayne S. |title=Contemporary Yugoslavia: Twenty Years of Socialist Experiment |date=2021 |orig-year=1969 |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=9780520369894 |page=79 |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1FXuDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA79 |chapter=Yugoslavia During the Second World War}}</ref>

From the start, the Yugoslav resistance forces consisted of two factions: the communist-led [[Yugoslav Partisans]] and the royalist [[Chetniks]], with the former receiving Allied recognition only at the Tehran conference (1943). The heavily pro-Serbian Chetniks were led by [[Draža Mihajlović]], while the pan-Yugoslav oriented Partisans were led by [[Josip Broz Tito]].

The Partisans initiated a [[guerrilla warfare|guerrilla]] campaign that developed into the largest resistance army in occupied Western and Central Europe. The Chetniks were initially supported by the exiled royal government and the [[Allies of World War II|Allies]], but they soon focused increasingly on combating the Partisans rather than the occupying Axis forces. By the end of the war, the Chetnik movement transformed into a collaborationist Serb nationalist militia completely dependent on Axis supplies.<ref>David Martin, Ally Betrayed: The Uncensored Story of Tito and Mihailovich, (New York: Prentice Hall, 1946), 34.</ref> The Chetniks also [[Chetnik war crimes in World War II|persecuted and killed]] [[Bosniaks|Muslims]] and [[Croats]],<ref>{{cite book|last=Redžić|first=Enver|title=Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Second World War|year=2005|publisher=Tylor and Francis|location=New York|isbn=978-0-7146-5625-0|page=155|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pVCx3jerQmYC&pg=PA155|access-date=18 August 2021|archive-date=18 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210818050246/https://books.google.com/books?id=pVCx3jerQmYC&pg=PA155|url-status=live}}</ref> with an estimated 50,000-68,000 victims (of which 41,000 were civilians).<ref name="Geiger">{{cite journal|first=Vladimir|last=Geiger|publisher=Croatian Institute of History|title=Human Losses of the Croats in World War II and the Immediate Post-War Period Caused by the Chetniks (Yugoslav Army in the Fatherand) and the Partisans (People's Liberation Army and the Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia/Yugoslav Army) and the Communist Authorities: Numerical Indicators |journal=Review of Croatian History |volume=VIII |issue=1 |date=2012 |url=https://hrcak.srce.hr/103223?lang=en|page=117|access-date=25 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117064114/https://hrcak.srce.hr/103223?lang=en|archive-date=17 November 2015|url-status=live}}</ref> The highly mobile Partisans, however, carried on their guerrilla warfare with great success. Most notable of the victories against the occupying forces were the battles of [[Battle of Neretva|Neretva]] and [[Battle of Sutjeska|Sutjeska]].

On 25 November 1942, the [[AVNOJ|Anti-Fascist Council of National Liberation of Yugoslavia]] was convened in [[Bihać]], modern day [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]]. The council reconvened on 29 November 1943, in [[Jajce]], also in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and established the basis for post-war organisation of the country, establishing a federation (this date was celebrated as Republic Day after the war).

The [[Yugoslav Partisans]] were able to expel the Axis from Serbia in 1944 and the rest of Yugoslavia in 1945. The [[Red Army]] provided limited assistance with the liberation of [[Belgrade]] and withdrew after the war was over. In May 1945, the Partisans met with Allied forces outside former Yugoslav borders, after also taking over [[Trieste]] and parts of the southern Austrian provinces of [[Styria]] and [[Carinthia (state)|Carinthia]]. However, the Partisans withdrew from Trieste in June of the same year under heavy pressure from Stalin, who did not want a confrontation with the other Allies.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Buchanan |first1=Andrew N. |title=World War II in Global Perspective, 1931-1953: A Short History |date=2019 |publisher=John Wiley & Sons |isbn=978-1-1193-6607-2 |page=189}}</ref>

Western attempts to reunite the Partisans, who denied the supremacy of the old government of the [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]], and the émigrés loyal to the king led to the [[Tito-Šubašić Agreement]] in June 1944; however, [[Marshal of Yugoslavia|Marshal]] Josip Broz Tito was in control and was determined to lead an independent communist state, starting as a prime minister.  He had the support of Moscow and London and led by far the strongest Partisan force with 800,000 men.<ref>Michael Lees, ''The Rape of Serbia: The British Role in Tito's Grab for Power, 1943–1944'' (1990).</ref><ref>{{cite book|author1=James R. Arnold|author2=Roberta Wiener|title=Cold War: The Essential Reference Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XRd6Y-oiFPAC&pg=PA216|date=January 2012|publisher=ABC-CLIO|page=216|isbn=978-1-6106-9003-4|access-date=17 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101214426/https://books.google.com/books?id=XRd6Y-oiFPAC&pg=PA216|archive-date=1 January 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

The official Yugoslav post-war estimate of [[World War II casualties|victims]] in Yugoslavia during World War II is 1,704,000. Subsequent data gathering in the 1980s by historians [[Vladimir Žerjavić]] and [[Bogoljub Kočović]] showed that the actual number of dead was about 1 million.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Byford |first1=Jovan |title=Picturing Genocide in the Independent State of Croatia: Atrocity Images and the Contested Memory of the Second World War in the Balkans |date=2020 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-3500-1597-5 |page=158 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N8LkDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA158}}</ref>

==FPR Yugoslavia==
{{Main|Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia}}
On 11 November 1945, [[1945 Yugoslavian parliamentary election|elections]] were held with only the Communist-led [[People's Front of Yugoslavia|People's Front]] appearing on the ballot, securing all 354 seats. On 29 November, while still in exile, [[King of Yugoslavia|King]] [[Peter II of Yugoslavia|Peter II]] was deposed by Yugoslavia's [[Constituent Assembly]], and the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia was declared.<ref name=Jes>{{cite book |last1=Jessup |first1=John E. |title=A Chronology of Conflict and Resolution, 1945–1985  |year=1989  |publisher=Greenwood Press |location=New York  |isbn=978-0-313-24308-0  }}</ref> However, he refused to abdicate. Marshal Tito was now in full control, and all opposition elements were eliminated.<ref name="books.google.com">{{cite book|author1=Arnold and Wiener|title=Cold War: The Essential Reference Guide|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XRd6Y-oiFPAC&pg=PA216|year=2012|page=216|isbn=9781610690034|access-date=17 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101214426/https://books.google.com/books?id=XRd6Y-oiFPAC&pg=PA216|archive-date=1 January 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

On 31 January 1946, the new [[1946 Yugoslav Constitution|constitution]] of the [[Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia]], modelled after the [[1936 Soviet Constitution|constitution of the Soviet Union]], established [[Republics of Yugoslavia|six republics]], an autonomous province, and an autonomous district that were part of Serbia. The federal capital was Belgrade. The policy focused on a strong central government under the control of the Communist Party, and on recognition of the multiple nationalities.<ref name="books.google.com"/> The flags of the republics used versions of the red flag or [[Pan-Slavic colors|Slavic tricolor]], with a [[red star]] in the centre or in the canton.

{{clear}}
{|class="wikitable"
! [[List of sovereign states|Name]] !! Capital !! [[Flag]] !! [[Coat of arms]] !! Location
|-
|[[Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina]]
|style="width:7em; font-size:90%;"|[[Sarajevo]]
|style="width:6em;"|[[File:Flag of SR Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg|center|70px|border]]
|style="width:4em;"|[[File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg|center|40px]]
! rowspan="6" style="width:4em; background:#fff;"|{{SFRY map|float=center}}
|-
|[[Socialist Republic of Croatia]]
|style="font-size:90%;"|[[Zagreb]]
|[[File:Flag of SR Croatia.svg|center|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Croatia.svg|center|40px]]
|-
|[[Socialist Republic of Macedonia]]
|style="font-size:90%;"|[[Skopje]]
|[[File:Flag of North Macedonia (1946–1992).svg|center|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of arms of Macedonia (1946-2009).svg|center|40px]]
|-
|[[Socialist Republic of Montenegro]]
|style="font-size:90%;"|[[Titograd]]
|[[File:Flag of the Socialist Republic of Montenegro.svg|center|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Montenegro.svg|center|40px]]
|-
|[[Socialist Republic of Serbia]]
: {{smaller|[[Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo|SAP Kosovo]]}}
: {{nowrap|{{smaller|[[Socialist Autonomous Province of Vojvodina|SAP Vojvodina]]}}}}
|style="font-size:90%;"|[[Belgrade]]
: [[Priština]]
: [[Novi Sad]]
|[[File:Flag of SR Serbia.svg|center|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Serbia.svg|center|40px]]
|-
|[[Socialist Republic of Slovenia]]
|style="font-size:90%;"|[[Ljubljana]]
|[[File:Flag of Slovenia (1945-1991).svg|center|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia.svg|center|40px]]
|}

Tito's regional goal was to [[Balkan Federation|expand south]] and take control of Albania and parts of Greece. In 1947, negotiations between Yugoslavia and Bulgaria led to the [[Bled agreement (1947)|Bled agreement]], which proposed to form a close relationship between the two Communist countries, and enable Yugoslavia to start a [[Greek Civil War|civil war in Greece]] and use Albania and Bulgaria as bases. Stalin vetoed this agreement and it was never realised.  The break between Belgrade and Moscow was now imminent.<ref>{{cite book|author1=John O. Iatrides|author2=Linda Wrigley|title=Greece at the Crossroads: The Civil War and Its Legacy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Vv1t3D_3vjkC&pg=PA267|year=2004|publisher=Penn State University Press|pages=267–73|isbn=9780271043302|access-date=17 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160101214426/https://books.google.com/books?id=Vv1t3D_3vjkC&pg=PA267|archive-date=1 January 2016|url-status=live}}</ref>

Yugoslavia solved the national issue of nations and nationalities (national minorities) in a way that all nations and nationalities had the same rights. However, most of the [[Danube Swabians|German minority]] of Yugoslavia, most of whom had collaborated during the occupation and had been recruited to German forces, were expelled towards Germany or Austria.<ref>{{cite journal |last1= Portmann|first1= Michael |date= 2010|title= Die orthodoxe Abweichung. Ansiedlungspolitik in der Vojvodina zwischen 1944 und 1947|journal= Bohemica. A Journal of History and Civilisation in East Central Europe|volume=50 |issue=1 |pages=95–120 |doi=10.18447/BoZ-2010-2474| name-list-style=vanc }}</ref>

=== The 1948 Yugoslavia–Soviet split ===
{{Further|Tito–Stalin Split}}

The country distanced itself from the Soviets in 1948 (cf. [[Cominform]] and [[Informbiro]]) and started to build its own way to socialism under the political leadership of Josip Broz Tito.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Niebuhr |first1=Robert Edward |title=The Search for a Cold War Legitimacy: Foreign Policy and Tito's Yugoslavia |date=2018 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-9-0043-5899-7 |page=178 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=asZKDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA178}}</ref> Accordingly, the constitution was [[1953 Yugoslav constitutional amendments|heavily amended]] to replace the emphasis on [[democratic centralism]] with [[workers' self-management]] and [[decentralization]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Čubrilo |first1=Jasmina |editor1-last=Garcia |editor1-first=Noemi de Haro |editor2-last=Mayayo, Jesús Carrillo |editor2-first=Patricia |editor3-last=Carrillo |editor3-first=Jesús |title=Making Art History in Europe After 1945 |date=2020 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-8153-9379-5 |pages=125–128 |chapter=The Museum of Contemporary Art in Belgrade and Post-Revolutionary Desire}}</ref> The Communist Party was renamed to the [[League of Communists of Yugoslavia|League of Communists]] and adopted [[Titoism]] at its [[6th Congress of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia|congress the previous year]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Zimmerman |first1=William |title=Open Borders, Nonalignment, and the Political Evolution of Yugoslavia |date=2014 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-1-4008-5848-4 |page=27 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=TfX_AwAAQBAJ&pg=PA27}}</ref>

All the Communist European Countries had deferred to Stalin and rejected the [[Marshall Plan]] aid in 1947. Tito, at first went along and rejected the Marshall plan. However, in 1948 Tito broke decisively with Stalin on other issues, making Yugoslavia an independent communist state. Yugoslavia requested American aid. American leaders were internally divided, but finally agreed and began sending money on a small scale in 1949, and on a much larger scale 1950–53. The American aid was not part of the Marshall plan.<ref>{{cite book|author=John R. Lampe|title=Yugoslav-American Economic Relations Since World War II|url=https://archive.org/details/yugoslavamerican00lamp|url-access=registration|year=1990|publisher=Duke University Press|pages=[https://archive.org/details/yugoslavamerican00lamp/page/28 28]–37|display-authors=etal|isbn=978-0822310617|access-date=17 October 2015}}</ref>

Tito criticised both [[Eastern Bloc]] and [[NATO]] nations and, together with India and other countries, started the [[Non-Aligned Movement]] in 1961, which remained the official affiliation of the country until it dissolved.

In 1974, the two provinces of Vojvodina and Kosovo-Metohija (for the latter had by then been upgraded to the status of a province) were granted greater autonomy, along with greater rights for the Albanians of Kosovo and Hungarians of Vojvodina.<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Paulston |editor1-first=Christina Bratt |editor2-last=Peckham |editor2-first=Donald |title=Linguistic Minorities in Central and Eastern Europe |date=1998 |publisher=Multilingual Matters |isbn=978-1-8535-9416-8 |page=43 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sHB1kFCB4wYC&pg=PA43}}</ref> Both provinces were afforded much of the same status as the six republics of Yugoslavia, though they could not secede.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Ker-Lindsay |first1=James |title=The Foreign Policy of Counter Secession: Preventing the Recognition of Contested States |date=2012 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=9780199698394 |page=33 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4PwmeRG9QsUC&pg=PA33}}</ref> [[Socialist Autonomous Province of Vojvodina|Vojvodina]] and [[Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo|Kosovo-Metohija]] formed the provinces of the [[Socialist Republic of Serbia|Republic of Serbia]] but also formed part of the federation, which led to the unique situation in which [[Central Serbia]] did not have its own assembly but a joint assembly with its provinces represented in it. [[Albanian language|Albanian]] and [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]] became nationally recognised minority languages, and the Serbo-Croat of Bosnia and Montenegro altered to a form based on the speech of the local people and not on the standards of Zagreb and Belgrade. In Slovenia the recognized minorities were Hungarians and Italians.

==SFR Yugoslavia==
{{Main|Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia}}
[[File:Josip Broz Tito uniform portrait.jpg|thumb|upright=0.7|right|Marshal [[Josip Broz Tito]]]]

On 7 April 1963, the nation changed its official name to [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]] and Josip Broz Tito was named [[President for life]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Tito is made president of Yugoslavia for life |url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/tito-is-made-president-for-life |website=History.com}}</ref> In the SFRY, each republic and province had its own constitution, supreme court, parliament, president and prime minister. At the top of the Yugoslav government were the President (Tito), the federal Prime Minister, and the federal Parliament (a collective Presidency was formed after Tito's death in 1980). Also important were the [[Communist Party of Yugoslavia|Communist Party]] general secretaries for each republic and province, and the general secretary of Central Committee of the Communist Party.

Tito was the most powerful person in the country, followed by republican and provincial premiers and presidents, and Communist Party presidents. Slobodan Penezić Krcun, Tito's chief of secret police in Serbia, fell victim to a dubious traffic incident after he started to complain about Tito's politics. Minister of the interior [[Aleksandar Ranković]] lost all of his titles and rights after a major disagreement with Tito regarding state politics. Some influential ministers in government, such as [[Edvard Kardelj]] or [[Stane Dolanc]], were more important than the Prime Minister.

First cracks in the tightly governed system surfaced when [[1968 student demonstrations in Belgrade|students in Belgrade and several other cities joined]] the worldwide [[protests of 1968]]. President Josip Broz Tito gradually stopped the protests by giving in to some of the students' demands and saying that "students are right" during a televised speech. However, in the following years, he dealt with the leaders of the protests by sacking them from university and Communist party posts.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Žilnik |first=Želimir |url=http://www.ghi-dc.org/files/publications/bu_supp/supp006/bus6_181.pdf |title=Yugoslavia: "Down with the Red Bourgeoisie!" |issue=1968: Memories and Legacies of a Global Revolt |journal=Bulletin of the GHI |year=2009 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131004072155/http://www.ghi-dc.org/files/publications/bu_supp/supp006/bus6_181.pdf |archive-date=4 October 2013}}</ref>

A more severe sign of disobedience was so-called [[Croatian Spring]] of 1970 and 1971, when students in Zagreb organised demonstrations for greater civil liberties and greater Croatian autonomy, followed by mass protests across Croatia.<ref name="Minahan">{{cite book |last1=Minahan |first1=James B. |title=The Complete Guide to National Symbols and Emblems [2 volumes] |date=2009 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-0-3133-4497-8 |page=366 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jfrWCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA366}}</ref><ref name="Lalić & Prug">{{cite book |editor1-last=Lalić |editor1-first=Alenka Braček |editor2-last=Prug |editor2-first=Danica |title=Hidden Champions in Dynamically Changing Societies: Critical Success Factors for Market Leadership |date=2021 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-3-03065-451-1 |page=154 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mUIsEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA154}}</ref> The regime stifled the public protest and incarcerated the leaders, though many key Croatian representatives in the Party silently supported this cause.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Horowitz |first1=Shale |title=From Ethnic Conflict to Stillborn Reform: The Former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia |date=2005 |publisher=Texas A&M University Press |isbn=978-1-5854-4396-3 |page=150 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=XjbDX9MVKWwC&pg=PA150}}</ref> As a result, a new [[1974 Yugoslav Constitution|Constitution]] was ratified in 1974, which gave more rights to the individual republics in Yugoslavia and provinces in Serbia.<ref name="Minahan" /><ref name="Lalić & Prug" />

===Ethnic tensions and economic crisis===
After the [[Yugoslav Partisans]] took over the country at the end of WWII, nationalism was banned from being publicly promoted. Overall relative peace was retained under Tito's rule, though nationalist protests did occur, but these were usually repressed and nationalist leaders were arrested and some were executed by Yugoslav officials. However, the Croatian Spring protests in the 1970s were backed by large numbers of Croats who demanded that Yugoslavia remained a Serb hegemony and that Serbia's powers be reduced.

Tito, whose home republic was Croatia, was concerned over the stability of the country and responded in a manner to appease both Croats and Serbs: he ordered the arrest of the Croat protestors while at the same time conceding to some of their demands. In 1974, Serbia's influence in the country was significantly reduced as autonomous provinces were created in ethnic Albanian-majority populated Kosovo and the mixed-populated Vojvodina.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bell |first1=Jared O. |title=Frozen Justice: Lessons from Bosnia and Herzegovina's Failed Transitional Justice Strategy |date=2018 |publisher=Vernon Press |isbn=978-1-6227-3204-3 |page=40 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0biEDwAAQBAJ&pg=PA40}}</ref>

The fact that these autonomous provinces held the same voting power as the republics but unlike other republics could not legally separate from Yugoslavia satisfied Croatia and Slovenia, but in Serbia and in the new autonomous province of Kosovo, reaction was different. Serbs saw the new constitution as conceding to Croat and ethnic Albanian nationalists.<ref name="Malley-Morrison">{{cite book |editor1-last=Malley-Morrison |editor1-first=Kathleen |title=State Violence and the Right to Peace: An International Survey of the Views of Ordinary People, Volume 1 |date=2009 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |isbn=978-0-2759-9652-9 |page=28 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hV-y4BNWTt0C&pg=RA1-PA28}}</ref> Ethnic Albanians in Kosovo saw the creation of an autonomous province as not being enough, and demanded that Kosovo become a constituent republic with the right to separate from Yugoslavia. This created tensions within the Communist leadership, particularly among Communist Serb officials who viewed the 1974 constitution as weakening Serbia's influence and jeopardising the unity of the country by allowing the republics the right to separate.<ref name="Malley-Morrison" />

According to official statistics, from the 1950s to the early 1980s, Yugoslavia was among the fastest growing countries, approaching the ranges reported in South Korea and other miracle countries.<ref name="Baten">{{cite book |editor1-last=Baten |editor1-first=Joerg |title=A History of the Global Economy |date=2016 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-1071-0470-9 |page=64 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gmOKCwAAQBAJ&pg=PA64}}</ref> The unique socialist system in Yugoslavia, where factories were [[worker cooperative]]s and decision-making was less centralized than in other socialist countries, may have led to the stronger growth. However, even if the absolute value of the growth rates was not as high as indicated by the official statistics, both the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia were characterized by surprisingly high growth rates of both income and education during the 1950s.<ref name="Baten" />

The period of European growth ended after the oil price shock in 1970s. Following that,  an economic crisis erupted in Yugoslavia due to disastrous economic policies such as borrowing vast amounts of Western capital to fund growth through exports.<ref name="Baten" /> At the same time, Western economies went into recession, decreasing demand for Yugoslav imports thereby creating a large debt problem.

In 1989, 248 firms were declared bankrupt or were liquidated and 89,400 workers were laid off according to official sources{{who|date=September 2020}}.  During the first nine months of 1990 and directly following the adoption of the IMF programme, another 889 enterprises with a combined work-force of 525,000 workers suffered the same fate. In other words, in less than two years "the trigger mechanism" (under the Financial Operations Act) had led to the layoff of more than 600,000 workers out of a total industrial workforce of the order of 2.7&nbsp;million.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Eade |first1=Deborah |title=From Conflict to Peace in a Changing World: Social Reconstruction in Times of Transition |date=1998 |publisher=Oxfam |isbn=978-0-8559-8395-6 |page=40}}</ref> An additional 20% of the work force, or half a million people, were not paid wages during the early months of 1990 as enterprises sought to avoid bankruptcy.<ref name="Chossudovsky">{{cite journal |last1=Chossudovsky |first1=Michel |title=Dismantling Former Yugoslavia: Recolonising Bosnia |journal=Economic and Political Weekly |date=1996 |volume=31 |issue=9 |pages=521–525 |jstor=4403857 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4403857}}</ref> The largest concentrations of bankrupt firms and lay-offs were in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia and Kosovo. Real earnings were in a free fall and social programmes collapsed; creating within the population an atmosphere of social despair and hopelessness.<ref name="Chossudovsky" /> This was a critical turning point in the events to follow.{{citation needed|date=September 2020}}

==Breakup==
{{Main|Breakup of Yugoslavia}}
{{more citations needed section|date=September 2020}}
[[File:Breakup of Yugoslavia-TRY2.gif|thumb|right|upright=1.15|Breakup of Yugoslavia]]

After Tito's death on 4 May 1980, [[Ethnic hatred|ethnic tensions]] grew in Yugoslavia. The legacy of the [[1974 Yugoslav Constitution|Constitution of 1974]] threw the system of decision-making into a state of paralysis, made all the more hopeless as the conflict of interests became irreconcilable. The Albanian majority in Kosovo demanded the status of a republic in the [[1981 protests in Kosovo]] while Serbian authorities suppressed this sentiment and proceeded to reduce the province's autonomy.<ref>John B. Allcock, et al. eds., ''Conflict in the Former Yugoslavia: An Encyclopedia'' (1998)</ref>

In 1986, the [[Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts]] drafted a memorandum addressing some burning issues concerning the position of Serbs as the most numerous people in Yugoslavia. The largest Yugoslav republic in territory and population, Serbia's influence over the regions of Kosovo and Vojvodina was reduced by the 1974 Constitution. Because its two autonomous provinces had de facto prerogatives of full-fledged republics, Serbia found that its hands were tied, for the republican government was restricted in making and carrying out decisions that would apply to the provinces. Since the provinces had a vote in the Federal Presidency Council (an eight-member council composed of representatives from the six republics and the two autonomous provinces), they sometimes even entered into coalitions with other republics, thus outvoting Serbia. Serbia's political impotence made it possible for others to exert pressure on the 2 million Serbs (20% of the total Serbian population) living outside Serbia.

After Tito's death,  Serbian communist leader [[Slobodan Milošević]] began making his way toward the pinnacle of Serbian leadership.<ref name=":0">{{Cite book|title=The World Transformed 1945 to the Present|last=Hunt|first=Michael|publisher=Oxford University Press|year=2014|isbn=978-0-19-937102-0|location=New York|pages=522}}</ref> Milošević sought to restore pre-1974 Serbian sovereignty. Other republics, especially Slovenia and Croatia, denounced his proposal as a revival of [[greater Serbia]]n hegemonism. Through a series of moves known as the "[[anti-bureaucratic revolution]]", Milošević succeeded in reducing the autonomy of [[Vojvodina]] and of [[Kosovo]] and Metohija, but both entities retained a vote in the Yugoslav Presidency Council. The very instrument that reduced Serbian influence before was now used to increase it: in the eight-member Council, Serbia could now count on four votes at a minimum: Serbia proper, then-loyal Montenegro, Vojvodina, and Kosovo.

As a result of these events, [[Albanians in Kosovo|ethnic Albanian]] miners in [[Kosovo]] organised the [[1989 Kosovo miners' strike]], which dovetailed into an ethnic conflict between the Albanians and the non-Albanians in the province. At around 80% of the [[Demographics of Kosovo#1968-1989: Autonomy|population of Kosovo in the 1980s]], ethnic-Albanians were the majority.  With Milošević gaining control over Kosovo in 1989, the original residency changed drastically leaving only a minimum number of Serbians in the region.<ref name=":0" /> The number of [[Slavs]] in Kosovo (mainly Serbs) was quickly declining for several reasons, among them the ever-increasing ethnic tensions and subsequent emigration from the area. By 1999, Slavs comprised as little as 10% of the total population in Kosovo.

Meanwhile, [[Slovenia]], under the presidency of [[Milan Kučan]], and [[Croatia]] supported the Albanian miners and their struggle for formal recognition. Initial strikes turned into widespread demonstrations demanding a Kosovan republic. This angered Serbia's leadership which proceeded to use police force.  Later, even the [[Yugoslav People's Army|Federal Army]] was sent by order of the Serbia-held majority in the Yugoslav Presidency Council.

In January 1990, the extraordinary 14th Congress of the [[League of Communists of Yugoslavia]] was convened. For most of the time, the Slovene and Serbian delegations were arguing over the future of the League of Communists and Yugoslavia. The Serbian delegation, led by Milošević, insisted on a policy of "''one person, one vote''", which would empower the plurality population, the [[Serbs]]. In turn, the Slovenes, supported by Croats, sought to reform Yugoslavia by devolving even more power to republics, but were voted down. As a result, the Slovene and Croatian delegations left the Congress and the all-Yugoslav Communist party was dissolved.

The constitutional crisis that inevitably followed resulted in a rise of nationalism in all republics: Slovenia and Croatia voiced demands for looser ties within the Federation.  Following the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, each of the republics held multi-party elections in 1990. Slovenia and Croatia held the elections in April since their communist parties chose to cede power peacefully. Other Yugoslav republics—especially Serbia—were more or less dissatisfied with the democratisation in two of the republics and proposed different sanctions (e.g. Serbian "customs tax" for Slovene products) against the two, but as the year progressed, other republics' communist parties saw the inevitability of the democratisation process. In December, as the last member of the federation, Serbia held parliamentary elections confirming the rule of former communists in the republic.

Unresolved issues remained. In particular, Slovenia and Croatia elected governments oriented towards greater autonomy of the republics (under [[Milan Kučan]] and [[Franjo Tuđman]], respectively), since it became clear that Serbian domination attempts and increasingly different levels of democratic standards were becoming increasingly incompatible. Serbia and Montenegro elected candidates who favoured Yugoslav unity.

The Croat quest for independence led to large Serb communities within Croatia rebelling and trying to secede from the Croat republic. Serbs in Croatia would not accept the status of a national minority in a sovereign Croatia since they would be demoted from the status of a constituent nation in the entirety of Yugoslavia.

===Yugoslav Wars===
{{Main|Yugoslav Wars}}
{{more citations needed section|date=September 2020}}

The war broke out when the new regimes tried to replace Yugoslav civilian and military forces with secessionist forces. When, in August 1990, Croatia attempted to replace police in the Serb populated Croat Krajina by force, the population first looked for refuge in the Yugoslav Army barracks, while the army remained passive. The civilians then organised armed resistance. These armed conflicts between the Croatian armed forces ("police") and civilians mark the beginning of the Yugoslav war that inflamed the region. Similarly, the attempt to replace Yugoslav frontier police by Slovene police forces provoked regional armed conflicts which ended with a minimal number of victims.<ref name="Allcock, 1998">Allcock, et al. eds., ''Conflict in the Former Yugoslavia: An Encyclopedia'' (1998)</ref>

A similar attempt in Bosnia and Herzegovina led to a war that lasted more than three years (see below). The results of all these conflicts were the almost total emigration of the Serbs from all three regions, the massive displacement of the populations in Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the establishment of the three new independent states. The separation of Macedonia was peaceful, although the Yugoslav Army occupied the peak of the Straža mountain on Macedonian soil.

Serbian uprisings in Croatia began in August 1990 by blocking roads leading from the Dalmatian coast towards the interior almost a year before Croatian leadership made any move towards independence. These uprisings were more or less discreetly backed by the Serb-dominated federal army (JNA). The Serbs in Croatia proclaimed "Serb autonomous areas", which were later united into the [[Republic of Serb Krajina]]. The federal army tried to disarm the territorial defence forces of Slovenia (the republics had their local defence forces similar to the Home Guard) in 1990 but was not completely successful. Still, Slovenia began to covertly import arms to replenish its armed forces.

Croatia also embarked upon the illegal importation of arms, (following the disarmament of the republics' armed forces by the federal army) mainly from Hungary.  These activities were under constant surveillance and produced a [[Špegelj Tapes|video of a secret meeting]] between the Croatian Defence minister Martin Špegelj and two unidentified men.  The video, filmed by the Yugoslav counter-intelligence (''KOS, Kontra-obavještajna služba''), showed Špegel announcing that they were at war with the army and giving  instructions about arms smuggling as well as methods of dealing with the Yugoslav Army's officers stationed in Croatian cities. Serbia and JNA used this discovery of Croatian rearmament for propaganda purposes. Guns were also fired from army bases through Croatia. Elsewhere, tensions were running high. In the same month, the Army leaders met with the Presidency of Yugoslavia in an attempt to get them to declare a [[state of emergency]] which would allow for the army to take control of the country. The army was seen as an arm of the Serbian government by that time so the consequence feared by the other republics was to be total Serbian domination of the union. The representatives of Serbia, Montenegro, Kosovo, and Vojvodina voted for the decision, while all other republics, Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, voted against. The tie delayed an escalation of conflicts, but not for long.<ref name="Allcock, 1998"/>

Following the first multi-party election results, in the autumn of 1990, the republics of Slovenia and Croatia proposed transforming Yugoslavia into a loose [[confederation]] of six republics. By this proposal, republics would have right to self-determination. However [[Slobodan Milošević|Milošević]] rejected all such proposals, arguing that like Slovenes and Croats, the Serbs (having in mind Croatian Serbs) should also have a right to self-determination.

On 9 March 1991, demonstrations were held against Slobodan Milošević in [[Belgrade]], but the police and the military were deployed in the streets to restore order, killing two people. In late March 1991, the [[Plitvice Lakes incident]] was one of the first sparks of open war in Croatia. The [[Yugoslav People's Army]] (JNA), whose superior officers were mainly of Serbian ethnicity, maintained an impression of being neutral, but as time went on, they became increasingly more involved in state politics.

On 25 June 1991, Slovenia and Croatia became the first republics to declare independence from Yugoslavia. The federal customs officers in Slovenia on the border crossings with Italy, Austria, and Hungary simply changed uniforms since most of them were local Slovenes. The following day (26 June), the Federal Executive Council specifically ordered the army to take control of the "internationally recognized borders", leading to the [[Ten-Day War]]. As Slovenia and Croatia fought towards independence, the Serbian and Croatian forces indulged in violent and perilous rivalry.<ref name=":0" />

The [[Yugoslav People's Army]] forces, based in barracks in Slovenia and Croatia, attempted to carry out the task within the next 48 hours. However, because of misinformation given to the Yugoslav Army conscripts that the Federation was under attack by foreign forces and the fact that the majority of them did not wish to engage in a war on the ground where they served their conscription, the Slovene territorial defence forces retook most of the posts within days with minimal loss of life on both sides.

There was, however, evidence of a suspected war crime.  The Austrian [[ORF (broadcaster)|ORF TV network]] showed [[Ten-Day War#Holmec incident|footage]] of three Yugoslav Army soldiers surrendering to the territorial defence force when  gunfire was heard and the troops were seen falling down. None were killed in the incident, yet there were numerous cases of destruction of civilian property and civilian life by the Yugoslav People's Army, including houses and a church. A civilian airport, along with a hangar and aircraft inside the hangar, was bombarded; truck drivers on the road from Ljubljana to Zagreb and Austrian journalists at the [[Ljubljana Airport]] were killed.

A ceasefire was eventually agreed upon. According to the [[Brioni Agreement]], recognised by representatives of all republics, the international community pressured Slovenia and Croatia to place a three-month [[Debt moratorium|moratorium]] on their independence.

During these three months, the Yugoslav Army completed its pull-out from Slovenia, but in Croatia, a bloody [[War in Croatia|war]] broke out in the autumn of 1991. Ethnic Serbs, who had created their own state [[Republic of Serbian Krajina]] in heavily Serb-populated regions resisted the police forces of the Republic of Croatia who were trying to bring that breakaway region back under Croatian jurisdiction. In some strategic places, the Yugoslav Army acted as a buffer zone; in most others it was protecting or aiding Serbs with resources and even manpower in their confrontation with the new Croatian army and their police force.

In September 1991, the [[Republic of Macedonia]] also declared independence, becoming the only former republic to gain sovereignty without resistance from the Belgrade-based Yugoslav authorities. 500 US soldiers were then deployed under the UN banner to monitor Macedonia's northern borders with the Republic of Serbia. Macedonia's first president, [[Kiro Gligorov]], maintained good relations with Belgrade and the other breakaway republics and there have to date been no problems between Macedonian and Serbian border police even though small pockets of Kosovo and the [[Preševo]] valley complete the northern reaches of the historical region known as Macedonia (Prohor Pčinjski part), which would otherwise create a border dispute if ever Macedonian nationalism should resurface (''see [[Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization|VMRO]]''). This was despite the fact that the Yugoslav Army refused to abandon its military infrastructure on the top of the Straža Mountain up to the year 2000.

As a result of the conflict, the [[United Nations Security Council]] unanimously adopted [[UN Security Council Resolution 721]] on 27 November 1991, which paved the way to the establishment of [[peacekeeping]] operations in Yugoslavia.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u911127a.htm |title=Resolution 721 |date=25 September 1991 |work=N.A.T.O. |access-date=21 July 2006 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060629130641/http://www.nato.int/ifor/un/u911127a.htm |archive-date=29 June 2006 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In Bosnia and Herzegovina in November 1991, the Bosnian Serbs held a referendum which resulted in an overwhelming vote in favour of forming a Serbian republic within the borders of Bosnia and Herzegovina and staying in a common state with Serbia and Montenegro. On 9 January 1992, the self-proclaimed Bosnian Serb assembly proclaimed a separate "Republic of the Serb people of Bosnia and Herzegovina". The referendum and creation of SARs were proclaimed [[Constitutionality|unconstitutional]] by the government of Bosnia and Herzegovina and declared illegal and invalid. In February–March 1992, the government held a national referendum on Bosnian independence from Yugoslavia. That referendum was in turn declared contrary to the BiH and the Federal constitution by the federal Constitutional Court in Belgrade and the newly established Bosnian Serb government.

The referendum was largely boycotted by the Bosnian Serbs. The Federal court in Belgrade did not decide on the matter of the referendum of the Bosnian Serbs. The turnout was somewhere between 64 and 67% and 98% of the voters voted for independence. It was not clear what the two-thirds majority requirement actually meant and whether it was satisfied. The republic's government declared its independence on 5 April, and the Serbs immediately declared the independence of ''Republika Srpska''. The [[Bosnian war|war in Bosnia]] followed shortly thereafter.

===Timeline===
Various dates are considered the end of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia:

* 25 June 1991, when [[Croatia]] and [[Slovenia]] declared independence<ref name="Meier">{{cite book |last1=Meier |first1=Viktor |title=Yugoslavia: A History of its Demise |date=2005 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-1346-6510-5 |page=xiv |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ef4OS4ZYZKUC&pg=PR14}}</ref>
* 8 September 1991: following a referendum the [[Republic of Macedonia]] declared independence which was ratified by the Assembly of Macedonia on 17 September<ref>{{cite book |last1=Vidmar |first1=Jure |title=Democratic Statehood in International Law: The Emergence of New States in Post-Cold War Practice |date=2013 |publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing |isbn=978-1-7822-5090-6 |page=98 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=g4bbBAAAQBAJ&pg=PA98}}</ref>
* 8 October 1991, when the 9 July moratorium on Slovene and Croatian secession ended and Croatia restated its independence in the Croatian Parliament (that day is officially considered the date of Independence)<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Stelkens |editor1-first=Ulrich |editor2-last=Andrijauskaitė |editor2-first=Agnė |title=Good Administration and the Council of Europe: Law, Principles, and Effectiveness |date=2020 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-1988-6153-9 |page=689 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YSX3DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA689}}</ref>
* 6 April 1992: full recognition of [[Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina|Bosnia and Herzegovina]]'s independence by the European Union followed by the U.S.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Calic |first1=Marie-Janine |editor1-last=Ingrao |editor1-first=Charles W. |editor2-last=Emmert |editor2-first=Thomas Allan |title=Confronting the Yugoslav Controversies: A Scholars' Initiative |date=2013 |publisher=Purdue University Press |isbn=978-1-5575-3617-4 |page=124 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IDMhDgCJCe0C&pg=PA124}}</ref>
* 28 April 1992: the [[Serbia and Montenegro|Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]] is formed
* 14 December 1995: the [[Dayton Agreement]] is signed by the leaders of FR Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Croatia

==New states==
===Succession, 1992–2003===
{{multiple image
|align=right
|direction=vertical
|width=250
|header=
|image1=Map of war in Yugoslavia, 1992.png|caption1=Yugoslavia at the time of its dissolution, early 1992
|image2=Former Yugoslavia 2008.PNG|caption2=The state of affairs of the territory of the former Yugoslavia, 2008
}}
As the [[Yugoslav Wars]] raged through Croatia and Bosnia, the republics of Serbia and Montenegro, which remained relatively untouched by the war, formed a [[rump state]] known as the [[Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]] (FRY) in 1992. The Federal Republic of Yugoslavia aspired to be a sole [[Succession of states|legal successor]] to the [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]], but those claims were opposed by the other former republics. The United Nations also [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 777|denied its request to automatically continue the membership of the former state]].<ref name="mpil.de">{{cite book|chapter-url=http://www.mpil.de/shared/data/pdf/pdfmpunyb/wood_1.pdf|title=Max Planck Yearbook of United Nations Law|chapter=Participation of Former Yugoslav States in the United Nations|pages=241–243|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100613083054/http://www.mpil.de/shared/data/pdf/pdfmpunyb/wood_1.pdf|archive-date=13 June 2010}}</ref> In 2000, Milošević was prosecuted for atrocities committed in his ten-year rule in Serbia and the Yugoslav Wars.<ref name=":0" />&nbsp;Eventually, after the [[overthrow of Slobodan Milošević]] from power as president of the federation in 2000, the country dropped those aspirations, accepted the opinion of the [[Badinter Arbitration Committee]] about shared succession, and reapplied for and gained UN membership on 2 November 2000.<ref name="EBRD Country Promotion Programme"/> From 1992 to 2000, some countries, including the United States, had referred to the FRY as ''Serbia and Montenegro''<ref name="Serbia and Montenegro">1999 [[CIA]] [[World Factbook]]: [http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact99/265.htm Serbia and Montenegro] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110917015632/http://www.umsl.edu/services/govdocs/wofact99/265.htm |date=17 September 2011 }}</ref> as they viewed its claim to Yugoslavia's successorship as illegitimate.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.cia.gov:80/cia/publications/factbook/sr.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000816214535/http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/sr.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=16 August 2000|title=CIA – The World Factbook 1999 – Serbia and Montenegro|date=16 August 2000|access-date=26 August 2018}}</ref> In April 2001, the five successor states extant at the time drafted an [[Agreement on Succession Issues of the Former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]].<ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.dipublico.com.ar/english/yugoslav-agreement-on-succession-issues-2001/ |title = Yugoslav Agreement on Succession Issues (2001) |access-date = 14 June 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120526192918/http://www.dipublico.com.ar/english/yugoslav-agreement-on-succession-issues-2001/ |archive-date = 26 May 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="Successor agreement">{{cite journal|journal = International Legal Materials|volume = 41|issue = 1|pages = 3–36|jstor = 20694208|year = 2002|doi = 10.1017/s0020782900009141|title = Agreement on Succession Issues Between the Five Successor States of the Former State of Yugoslavia|last1 = Arthur|first1 = Watts|s2cid = 165064837}}</ref> Marking an important transition in its history, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was officially renamed [[Serbia and Montenegro]] in 2003.

According to the Succession Agreement signed in Vienna on 29 June 2001, all assets of former Yugoslavia were divided between five successor states:<ref name="Successor agreement"/>

{|class="sortable wikitable"
! [[List of sovereign states|Name]]
! Capital
! [[Flag]]
! [[Coat of arms]]
! Declared date of independence
! United Nations membership<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.un.org/en/member-states/ |title=Member States |publisher=United Nations |access-date=29 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170627130318/http://www.un.org/en/member-states/ |archive-date=27 June 2017 |url-status=live }}</ref>

|-
|[[Serbia and Montenegro|Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]]{{efn|Later renamed to [[Serbia and Montenegro]] in 2003.|name=|group=upper-alpha}}
|[[Belgrade]]
|[[File:Flag of Serbia and Montenegro.svg|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of arms of Serbia and Montenegro.svg|40px]]
|{{dts|27 April 1992}}{{efn|Date of the proclamation of the FR of Yugoslavia.|name=|group=upper-alpha}}
|{{dts|1 November 2000}}{{efn|Membership succeeded by [[Serbia]] on {{dts|3 June 2006}}.|name=|group=upper-alpha}}

|-
|[[Croatia|Republic of Croatia]]
|[[Zagreb]]
|[[File:Flag of Croatia.svg.png|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of arms of Croatia.svg|40px]]
|{{dts|25 June 1991}}
|{{dts|22 May 1992}}

|-
|[[Slovenia|Republic of Slovenia]]
|[[Ljubljana]]
|[[File:Flag of Slovenia.svg|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of arms of Slovenia.svg|40px]]
|{{dts|25 June 1991}}
|{{dts|22 May 1992}}

|-
|[[North Macedonia|Republic of Macedonia]]{{Efn|Name changed to the Republic of North Macedonia in 2019 as a result of the [[Prespa Agreement]].|group=upper-alpha}}
|[[Skopje]]
|[[File:Flag of Macedonia (1992–1995).svg|70px|border]]
|[[File:Coat of arms of Macedonia (1946-2009).svg|40px]]
|{{dts|8 September 1991}}
|{{dts|8 April 1993}}
|-
|[[Bosnia and Herzegovina|Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina]]
|[[Sarajevo]]
|style="width:6em" |[[File:Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1998).svg|70px|border]]
|style="width:4em" |[[File:Coat of arms of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1998).svg|40px]]
|{{dts|3 March 1992}}
|{{dts|22 May 1992}}
|}

===Succession, 2006–present===
In June 2006, [[Montenegro]] became an independent nation after the results of a [[2006 Montenegrin independence referendum|May 2006 referendum]], therefore rendering Serbia and Montenegro no longer existent. After Montenegro's independence, Serbia became the [[Succession of states|legal successor]] of Serbia and Montenegro, while Montenegro re-applied for membership in international organisations. In February 2008, the [[Republic of Kosovo]] declared independence from Serbia, leading to an ongoing dispute on whether Kosovo is a legally recognised state. Republic of Kosovo is not a member of the United Nations, but a number of states, including the United States and various members of the [[European Union]], have [[International recognition of Kosovo|recognised]] Republic of Kosovo as a sovereign state.

{| class=wikitable
!
! [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]]
! [[Croatia]]
! [[Kosovo]]
! [[Montenegro]]
! [[North Macedonia]]
! [[Serbia]]
! [[Slovenia]]
|-
! Flag
| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|Bosnia and Herzegovina|size=45px}}
| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|Croatia|size=45px}}
| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|Kosovo|size=45px}}
| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|Montenegro|size=45px}}
| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|North Macedonia|size=45px}}
| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|Serbia|size=45px}}
| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|Slovenia|size=45px}}
|-
! Coat of arms
| style="text-align:center" | {{Coat of arms|Bosnia and Herzegovina|size=45px|text=none}}
| style="text-align:center" | [[File:Coat of arms of Croatia.svg|54x54px]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{Coat of arms|Kosovo|size=45px|text=none}}
| style="text-align:center" | [[File:Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg|54x54px]]
| style="text-align:center" | [[File:Coat of arms of North Macedonia.svg|45px]]
| style="text-align:center" | [[File:Coat of arms of Serbia.svg|45px]]
| style="text-align:center" | {{Coat of arms|Slovenia|size=45px|text=none}}
|-
! Capital
| [[Sarajevo]]
| [[Zagreb]]
| [[Pristina]]
| [[Podgorica]]
| [[Skopje]]
| [[Belgrade]]
| [[Ljubljana]]
|-
! Independence
| 3 March,<br /> 1992
| 25 June,<br /> 1991
| 17 February,<br /> 2008
| 3 June,<br /> 2006
| 8 September, <br /> 1991
| 5 June,<br /> 2006
| 25 June,<br /> 1991
|-
! Population (2018)
| 3,301,779
| 4,109,669
| 1,886,259
| 622,359
| 2,068,979
| 6,988,221
| 2,086,525
|-
! Area
| 51,197&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
| 56,594&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
| 10,908&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
| 13,812&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
| 25,713&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
| 88,361&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
| 20,273&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>
|-
! Density
| 69/km<sup>2</sup>
| 74/km<sup>2</sup>
| 159/km<sup>2</sup>
| 45/km<sup>2</sup>
| 81/km<sup>2</sup>
| 91/km<sup>2</sup>
| 102/km<sup>2</sup>
|-
! Water area (%)
| 0.02%
| 1.1%
| 1.00%
| 2.61%
| 1.09%
| 0.13%
| 0.6%
|-
! GDP (nominal) total (2023)
| $24.531&nbsp;billion
| $73.490&nbsp;billion
| $9.815&nbsp;billion
| $6.674&nbsp;billion
| $15.024&nbsp;billion
| $68.679&nbsp;billion
| $65.202&nbsp;billion
|-
! GDP (PPP) per capita (2023)
| $18,956
| $40,484
| $15,398
| $27,616
| $21,103
| $25,718
| $52,517
|-
! [[Gini coefficient|Gini Index]] (2018<ref>[[List of countries by income equality|GINI index]]</ref>)
| 33.0
| 29.7
| 23.2
| 33.2
| 43.2
| 29.7
| 25.6
|-
! [[Human Development Index|HDI]] (2021)
| 0.780 ([[Developed country|High]])
| 0.858 ([[Developed country|Very High]])
| 0.750 ([[Developed country|High]])
| 0.832 ([[Developed country|Very High]])
| 0.770 ([[Developed country|High]])
| 0.802 ([[Developed country|Very High]])
| 0.918 ([[Developed country|Very High]])
|-
! Internet [[Country code top-level domain|TLD]]
| .ba
| .hr
| .xk
| .me
| .mk
| .rs
| .si
|-
! [[List of country calling codes|Calling code]]
| +387
| +385
| +383
| +382
| +389
| +381
| +386
|}

===Yugo-nostalgia===
{{main|Yugo-nostalgia}}
Remembrance of the time of the joint state and its positive attributes is referred to as ''[[Yugo-nostalgia]]''.
Many aspects of Yugo-nostalgia refer to the socialist system and the sense of social security it provided. There are still people from the former Yugoslavia who self-identify as [[Yugoslavs]]; this identifier is commonly seen in demographics relating to ethnicity in today's independent states.

==Demographics==
{{Main|Demographics of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia|Demographics of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia}}
{{missing information|section|overall statistics on religion, ethnicity, and language|date=April 2022}}

[[File:Yugoslavia ethnic map.jpg|thumb|upright=1.3|Ethnic map of Yugoslavia based on 1991 census data, published by CIA in 1992]]
Yugoslavia had always been a home to a very diverse population, not only in terms of national affiliation, but also religious affiliation. Of the many religions, Islam, Roman Catholicism, Judaism, and Protestantism, as well as various [[Eastern Christianity|Eastern Orthodox]] faiths, composed the religions of Yugoslavia, comprising over 40 in all. The religious demographics of Yugoslavia changed dramatically since World War II. A census taken in 1921 and later in 1948 show that 99% of the population appeared to be deeply involved with their religion and practices. With postwar government programs of modernisation and urbanisation, the percentage of religious believers took a dramatic plunge. Connections between religious belief and nationality posed a serious threat to the post-war Communist government's policies on national unity and state structure.<ref name="atheism.about.com">{{cite web |url=http://atheism.about.com/library/world/KZ/bl_YugoReligionDemography.htm |title=Yugoslavia – Religious Demographics |publisher=Atheism.about.com |date=16 December 2009 |access-date=22 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130424102013/http://atheism.about.com/library/world/KZ/bl_YugoReligionDemography.htm |archive-date=24 April 2013 |url-status=dead }}</ref> Although Yugoslavia became a ''de facto'' [[state atheism|atheist state]], in contrast to other [[socialist state]]s of the time, Catholic Church maintained an active role in society of Yugoslavia,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lZUBZlth2qgC&pg=PA513 |title=The Encyclodedia of Christianity |volume=5 |editor-first1=Erwin |editor-last1=Fahlbusch |editor-first2=Jan |editor-last2=Milic Lochman |editor-first3=Geoffrey William |editor-last3=Bromiley |editor-first4=John |editor-last4=Mbiti |editor-first5=Jaroslav |editor-last5=Pelikan |editor-first6=Lukas |editor-last6=Vischer |translator-first1=Geoffrey William |translator-last1=Bromiley |publisher=[[William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company]] |year=2008 |isbn=9780802824172 |page=513 |article=[[Evangelisches Kirchenlexikon]] |access-date=30 July 2022}}</ref> the [[Holy See]] normalized its [[Holy See–Yugoslavia relations|relations with Yugoslavia]] by 1967 and worked together on stopping the [[Vietnam War]].<ref name="Jutarnji">{{cite web |url=https://www.jutarnji.hr/vijesti/svijet/detalji-neocekivane-suradnje-dviju-suprotstavljenih-strana-kako-su-tito-i-sveta-stolica-dosli-na-ideju-da-zajedno-pokusaju-zaustaviti-rat-u-vijetnamu-6920370 |title=DETALJI NEOČEKIVANE SURADNJE DVIJU SUPROTSTAVLJENIH STRANA Kako su Tito i Sveta Stolica došli na ideju da zajedno pokušaju zaustaviti rat u Vijetnamu |date=11 January 2018 |publisher=[[Jutarnji list]] |first=Hrvoje |last=Klasić |author-link=Hrvoje Klasić |access-date=9 February 2021}}</ref> Likewise, the [[Serbian Orthodox Church]] received favorable treatment, and Yugoslavia did not engage in anti-religious campaigns to the extent of other countries in the [[Eastern Bloc]].<ref name=":2">{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=VxM04Jdr1NEC&dq=yugoslavia&pg=PA44|title=Expanding Religion: Religious Revival in Post-communist Central and Eastern Europe|last=Tomka|first=Miklós|date=2011|publisher=Walter de Gruyter|isbn=9783110228151|pages=44|language=en}}</ref>

After the rise of communism, a survey taken in 1964 showed that just over 70% of the total population of Yugoslavia considered themselves to be religious believers. The places of highest religious concentration were that of [[Kosovo]] with 91% and [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] with 83.8%. The places of lowest religious concentration were [[Slovenia]] 65.4%, [[Serbia]] with 63.7% and [[Croatia]] with 63.6%. Religious differences between Orthodox [[Serbs]] and [[Macedonians (ethnic group)|Macedonians]], Catholic [[Croats]] and [[Slovenes]], and Muslim [[Bosniaks]] and [[Albanians]] alongside the rise of nationalism contributed to the collapse of Yugoslavia in 1991.<ref name="atheism.about.com"/>

The [[Kingdom of Yugoslavia]] had unitary policies, suppressed autonomy and proclaimed the official ideology to be that Serbs, Croats, Bosniaks, Montenegrins, Macedonians and Slovenes were tribes of one nation of [[Yugoslavs]] (see [[Yugoslavism]]), to the heavy disagreement and resistance from Croats and other ethnic groups; this was interpreted as gradual [[Serbianization]] of Yugoslavia's non-Serb population. The ruling [[Communist Party of Yugoslavia|Communist Party]] of the [[Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia]] was ideologically opposed to ethnic unitarism and royal hegemony, and instead promoted ethnic diversity and social [[Yugoslavism]] within the notion of "[[brotherhood and unity]]", while organizing the country as a federation.<ref>{{cite book|editor-first = Dejan|editor-last = Djokić|editor-link = Dejan Djokić (historian)|first = Xavier|last = Bougarel|chapter = Bosnian Muslims and the Yugoslav Idea|pages = 100–114|title = Yugoslavism: Histories of a Failed Idea, 1918-1992|url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ZMyZdvTympMC|publisher = [[C. Hurst & Co.]]|location = London|year = 2003|isbn = 1-85065-663-0}}</ref>

===Languages===
The three major languages in Yugoslavia were [[Serbo-Croatian]], [[Slovene language|Slovenian]], and [[Macedonian language|Macedonian]].<ref name="magner1967">{{cite journal |last1=Magner |first1=Thomas |title=Language and Nationalism in Yugoslavia. |journal=Canadian Slavic Studies |date=Fall 1967 |volume=1 |issue=3 |pages=333–347 |url=https://archive.org/details/ERIC_ED024915/page/n3/mode/2up |language=english}}</ref> Serbo-Croatian, the only language taught all across former Yugoslavia, remained the [[second language]] of many [[Slovenes]]<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6YuBEAAAQBAJ&dq=%22Od%20Vardara%20pa%20do%20Triglava%22&pg=PA198 |last=Törnquist-Plewa |first=Barbara |title=The Balkans in Focus: Cultural Boundaries in Europe |date=2002 |page=198 |editor-last=Resic |editor-first=Sanimir |publisher=Nordic Academic Press |location=Lund, Sweden |isbn=9789187121708 |oclc=802047788}}</ref> and [[Macedonians (ethnic group)|Macedonians]], especially those born during the time of Yugoslavia. After the breakup of Yugoslavia, Serbo-Croatian has lost its unitary codification and its official unitary status and has since [[Language secessionism#In Serbo-Croatian|diverged into four standardized varieties]] of what remains one [[pluricentric language]]: [[Bosnian language|Bosnian]], [[Croatian language|Croatian]], [[Montenegrin language|Montenegrin]] and [[Serbian language|Serbian]].

==See also==
*[[History of the Balkans]]

==Notes and references==

===Notes===
{{notelist-ua}}
{{Notelist}}

===References===
{{Reflist|30em}}

==Further reading==
{{refbegin|2}}
* Allcock, John B. ''Explaining Yugoslavia'' (Columbia University Press, 2000)
* Allcock, John B. et al. eds. ''Conflict in the Former Yugoslavia: An Encyclopedia'' (1998)
* Bezdrob, Anne Marie du Preez. ''Sarajevo Roses: War Memoirs of a Peacekeeper''. Oshun, 2002. {{ISBN|1-77007-031-1}}
* {{Cite book|editor-last=Bataković|editor-first=Dušan T.|editor-link=Dušan T. Bataković|title=Histoire du peuple serbe|trans-title=History of the Serbian People|language=fr|date=2005|location=Lausanne|publisher=L’Age d’Homme|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=a0jA_LdH6nsC|isbn=9782825119587}}
*Chan, Adrian. ''Free to Choose: A Teacher's Resource and Activity Guide to Revolution and Reform in Eastern Europe''. Stanford, CA: SPICE, 1991. ED 351 248
*Cigar, Norman. ''Genocide in Bosnia: The Policy of Ethnic-Cleansing''. College Station: Texas A&M University Press, 1995
*Cohen, Lenard J. ''Broken Bonds: The Disintegration of Yugoslavia''. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1993
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20060627040113/http://easyweb.easynet.co.uk/conversi/german.html Conversi, Daniele: ''German -Bashing and the Breakup of Yugoslavia'', The Donald W. Treadgold Papers in Russian, East European and Central Asian Studies, no. 16, March 1998 (University of Washington: HMJ School of International Studies)]
*[[Milovan Djilas|Djilas, Milovan]]. ''Land without Justice'', [with] introd. and notes by [[William Jovanovich]]. New York: Harcourt, Brace and Co., 1958. 
*Dragnich, Alex N. ''Serbs and Croats. The Struggle in Yugoslavia''. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1992
*Fisher, Sharon. ''Political Change in Post-Communist Slovakia and Croatia: From Nationalist to Europeanist''. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2006 {{ISBN|1-4039-7286-9}}
*[[Misha Glenny|Glenny, Mischa]]. ''The Balkans: Nationalism, War and the Great Powers, 1804–1999'' (London: Penguin Books Ltd, 2000)
*[[Misha Glenny|Glenny, Mischa]]. ''The fall of Yugoslavia: The Third Balkan War'', {{ISBN|0-14-026101-X}}
*Gutman, Roy. ''A Witness to Genocide. The 1993 Pulitzer Prize-winning Dispatches on the "Ethnic Cleansing" of Bosnia''. New York: Macmillan, 1993
* Hall, Richard C., ed. ''War in the Balkans: An Encyclopedic History from the Fall of the Ottoman Empire to the Breakup of Yugoslavia'' (2014) [https://www.amazon.com/dp/1610690303#reader_1610690303 excerpt]
*Hall, Brian. ''The Impossible Country: A Journey Through the Last Days of Yugoslavia'' (Penguin Books. New York, 1994)
*Hayden, Robert M.: Blueprints for a House Divided: The Constitutional Logic of the Yugoslav Conflicts. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press, 2000
*Hoare, Marko A., ''A History of Bosnia: From the Middle Ages to the Present Day''. London: Saqi, 2007
* Hornyak, Arpad. ''Hungarian-Yugoslav Diplomatic Relations, 1918–1927'' (East European Monographs, distributed by Columbia University Press; 2013) 426 pages
*[[Barbara Jelavich|Jelavich, Barbara]]: ''History of the Balkans: Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries'', Volume 1. New York: American Council of Learned Societies, 1983 ED 236 093
*[[Barbara Jelavich|Jelavich, Barbara]]: ''History of the Balkans: Twentieth Century'', Volume 2. New York: American Council of Learned Societies, 1983. ED 236 094
*Kohlmann, Evan F.: ''Al-Qaida's Jihad in Europe: The Afghan-Bosnian Network'' Berg, New York 2004, {{ISBN|1-85973-802-8}}; {{ISBN|1-85973-807-9}}
*[[Lampe, John R]]: ''Yugoslavia As History: Twice There Was a Country'' Great Britain, Cambridge, 1996, {{ISBN|0-521-46705-5}}
*Malesevic, Sinisa: Ideology, Legitimacy and the New State: Yugoslavia, Serbia and Croatia. London: Routledge, 2002.
*Owen, David. ''Balkan Odyssey'' Harcourt (Harvest Book), 1997
* Pavlowitch, Stevan K. ''The improbable survivor: Yugoslavia and its problems, 1918–1988'' (1988). [https://archive.org/details/improbablesurviv0000pavl  online free to borrow]
* Pavlowitch, Stevan K. ''Tito—Yugoslavia's great dictator : a reassessment'' (1992) [https://archive.org/details/titoyugoslaviasg00pavl  online free to borrow]
* Pavlowitch, Steven. ''Hitler's New Disorder: The Second World War in Yugoslavia'' (2008) [https://www.amazon.com/Hitlers-New-Disorder-Yugoslavia-Columbia/dp/0231700504/  excerpt and text search]
* {{cite book
  |last = Ramet
  |first = Sabrina P.
  |year = 2006
  |title = The Three Yugoslavias: State-Building and Legitimation, 1918–2005
  |publisher = Indiana University Press
  |location = Bloomington
  |isbn = 978-0-253-34656-8
  |url = https://books.google.com/books?id=FTw3lEqi2-oC
 }}
* [[Walter Roberts (writer)|Roberts, Walter R.]]: ''Tito, Mihailovic, and the Allies: 1941–1945''. Duke University Press, 1987; {{ISBN|0-8223-0773-1}}.
* Sacco, Joe: ''Safe Area Gorazde: The War in Eastern Bosnia 1992–1995''. Fantagraphics Books, January 2002
* Silber, Laura and Allan Little:''Yugoslavia: Death of a Nation''. New York: Penguin Books, 1997
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20070930093531/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,796967,00.html "New Power"] at [[Time (magazine)|''Time'' magazine]] (reprinted from 4 December 1944)
* [[Rebecca West|West, Rebecca]]: ''Black Lamb and Gray Falcon: A Journey Through Yugoslavia''. Viking, 1941

===Historiography===
* Perović, Jeronim.  "The Tito-Stalin split: a reassessment in light of new evidence." ''Journal of Cold War Studies'' 9.2 (2007): 32–63. [https://www.zora.uzh.ch/id/eprint/62735/1/Perovic_Tito.pdf online]
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Yugoslavia}}
{{wikiquote|Yugoslavia}}
{{wiktionary|Yugoslavia}}
{{EB1922 Poster}}
* {{wikiatlas|Yugoslavia}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120212164932/http://www.ohr.int/ohr%2Dinfo/maps/ Maps]
* {{Cite Americana|wstitle=Jugoslavia|author-link1=Milivoy Stoyan Stanoyevich|author=Milivoy S. Stanoyevich |short=x}}
* [https://books.google.com/books?id=-84_kkgMf2QC&q=yugoslavia ''The First Yugoslavia: Search for a Viable Political System''], by Alex N. Dragnich
* [http://vlib.iue.it/history/europe/yugoslavia.html European University Institute Yugoslavia]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20121110192905/http://www.foia.cia.gov/CPE/ESAU/esau-46.pdf "Yugoslavia: the outworn structure"]—[[CIA]] report from November 1970
* [http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/world/europe/4997380.stm Timeline: Break-up of Yugoslavia] at [[BBC News]]
* [http://www.ericdigests.org/1995-2/bosnia.htm Teaching about Conflict and Crisis in the Former Yugoslavia]
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20121215042159/http://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/552526 Video on the Conflict in the Former Yugoslavia] from the [https://repository.library.georgetown.edu/handle/10822/552494/browse?type=title Dean Peter Krogh Foreign Affairs Digital Archives]
* [http://chnm.gmu.edu/1989/exhibits/collapse/essay The collapse of communist Yugoslavia]

{{Yugoslavia topics|state=collapsed}}
{{Yug-timeline}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Yugoslavia| ]]
[[Category:Former countries in the Balkans]]
[[Category:Former monarchies]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1918]]
[[Category:States and territories disestablished in 1992]]
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