At the same time of the turn of the nineteenth century that Franz Ferdinand and Sophie Chotek of Austria-Hungary were attempting to convince Emperor Franz Josef that their marriage would not lead to the end of the Empire, another culturally inappropriate marriage was taking place between Alexander I of Serbia and Draga Lunjevica Mašin.  Draga, …

Tags

Read more

Historical fiction can be the a fantastic way to ingrain history events as long as it doesn’t deviate too far from the dry and dusty demands of factual “truthiness”, and in the vein The Second Seal by Dennis Wheatley is an excellent primer for the dabbler who wants to get started in the area World …

  • May 7, 2021
  • Reading , Review
  • Comments Off on A Fiction About a Fact

Tags

Read more

World War I nearly started in 1909 over Bosnia and Herzegovina.  Worried about a changing circumstance in Europe after the Young Turk Revolution and increasingly bothered by the rhetoric from Serbia, Austria-Hungary felt it had to act in order to preserve the integrity of its borders and its empire.  On 6 October 1908, they announced …

  • May 3, 2021
  • Comments Off on Almost the First World War

Tags

Read more

Jelena of Serbia, described as “plain”, but also quiet and amiable by the nanny of the Romanov children whose friendship she shared, was not what the rest of Europe’s nobility pictured when told of someone demanding the release of the Tsar and his family.  And yet, Jelena was the only member of the Royal Family …

  • March 12, 2021
  • Comments Off on The Story of a Balkan Princess

Tags

Read more

The crises in the Balkans jumped one to the next as the 1800s turned into the 1900s.  Royal assassinations turned into paradigm shifts, causing strikes against the status quo.   No longer wanting to be a dependent satellite of Austria-Hungary, Serbia turned toward Russia and began attempting to diversify their economics.  Sensing the threat to …

  • March 5, 2021
  • Comments Off on The Crisis Before the War

Tags

Read more

The Pig War was not actually a war, and the weapons that started it were purchased, not shot.   Nevertheless, when the Austro-Hungarians decided to teach Serbia a lesson, it was triggered by Serbia’s decision to purchase weapons from outside the Habsburg sphere of influence.  The weapons were French, not coincidentally a treaty-partner to the …

Tags

Read more

When Serbia, which had long been considered a satellite of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, began attempting to branch out their economic and trade relationships, Austria-Hungary reacted decisively in an attempt to quell any thoughts of an independent Slavic Balkans. The result, on 1 March 1906, was the Pig War of 1906-1908.  The Pig War was not …

  • March 1, 2021
  • Interesting
  • Comments Off on Not Quite a War Over Pigs

Tags

Read more

“I am the wife of a Romanov interned at Alapayevsk, and I am also the daughter of the King of Serbia.  As a relative of the Emperor, I have come to get news of him and ask to be allowed to see him.” Jelena of Serbia stood at the main gate of Ipatiev House in …

  • February 26, 2021
  • Serbia
  • Comments Off on A Princess Most Brave

Tags

Read more

The last thousand years of Balkan history is a tale of three powers pulling on the limbs of an infant, as in the Biblical parable of Solomon’s wisdom.  The Balkan baby is yanked first toward Austria, then toward Russia, and all the while the Ottoman Empire is pulling steadily on its legs.  The arguments between …

Tags

Read more
Translate »

Sign In Red Africa Travel

For faster login or register use your social account.

[fbl_login_button redirect="" hide_if_logged="" size="large" type="continue_with" show_face="true"]
or

Account details will be confirmed via email.

Reset Your Password