PLJEVALJSKA BITKA- UVOD U GRAĐANSKI RAT
Battle of Pljevlja - a prelude to the civil war

Summary/Abstract: With the general uprising of July 13, 1941, the people of Montenegro rejected Italian policy, which sought to include Montenegro in the sphere of interest of Italy by creating an independent Montenegrin state. The breadth of the uprising, its unexpectedness and the strength of the first coup paralyzed the Italian occupation administration. The logical sequenceof events from this uprising, which was suppressed in August 1941, is the Battle in Pljevlja on December 1 of the same year. This battle has attracted the attention of domestic and foreign historiography for decades. Differences in data are evident. The expected conquest of Pljevlja did not take place. The city was defended by fighters of the elite Italian division „Pusteria”. Huge omissions in the tactical sense were punished by a large number of victims, while the reprisals against the innocent population were horrific. The defeat in Pljevlja was a sad sign of hopelessness, an introduction to the atmosphere that once again justified the forces of political realism. The road to acomplishing that right was hard. If the suppression of the July uprisingshook the people‘s faith in the possibility of expelling the occupiers, the terrible consequences of the Battle of Pljevlja buried the last hope for a speedy liberation. Unfortunately, the scenes of panicked retreat and mass desertion brought great unrest. The people became aware that they were endangeredby this adventure. The disappointment was huge.

• Details
• Contents