ЖЕЛЕЗНИЧКА АФЕРА: ФИНАНСИЈСКИ И КОРУПЦИЈСКИ СКАНДАЛ (1881–1891)
THE RAILWAY AFFAIR: A FINANCIAL AND A CORRUPTION SCANDAL (1881–1891)

Summary/Abstract: The article examines a major financial and corruption scandal in the Kingdom of Serbia in the 1880s – the railway affair. In addition to financial miscalculations and corruption, the scandal ignited debates about rules and dominant values in the society. It was fuelled by the Radical Party, supported by the peasants, which feared foreign capital and political influence and sabotaged the progressive government, which was leading a rapid modernisation of Serbia, emulating the countries of Western Europe and using the financial support of France and Austria. The progressives chose a French company to finance and construct the first Serbian railway. The bankruptcy of the French company during the construction of the Serbian railway caused a great financial scandal. The first part of the article deals with the railway affair as a financial scandal. After disappearing from the Serbian public, the railway affair resurfaced in 1889 as a major corruption scandal. The second part of the article deals with the corruption scandal, caused by the pamphlet Bombs. The article examines the affair’s narrative, its underlying causes, and its role in the political battle between the progressives and the radicals.

• Details
• Contents