Nicholas Petrović-Njegoš in the Eyes of Austrian Leaders , 1908-1914
Nicholas Petrović-Njegoš in the Eyes of Austrian Leaders , 1908-1914

Summary/Abstract: In conclusion, during the period 1860-1914, Austro-Hungarian leaders considered Prince/later King Nicholas to be, more often than not, a thorn in their side. They were continually irritated by Nicholas attempts to alter the Balkan status quo to his advantage. On numerous occasions, the Austrian political leadership attempted to pry Montenegro away from its traditional Russophilic stance and to bring the Nicholas Petrović-Njegoš in the Eyes of Austrian Leaders ... 59 principality -- later kingdom -- into a pro-Habsburg orbit -- but only with very limited, temporary success. In the words of Kuhn von Kuhnenfeld, Nicholas was considered a realistic politician who was interested first and foremost in two things: the expansion of Montenegrin territory and the enhancement of his own position in Montenegro and in the Balkans in general. For Giesl, he was an exasperating „dreamer and a chauvinist.” As noted by both Austrian representatives in Cetinje, Nicholas could be gracious and charming. By the same token, he could be brusque, abrupt, and almost insulting in his dealings with Habsburg representatives. This was especially in case with Giesl during his tenure here in Cetinje. Nicholas could run „hot and cold.” Still his moods swings, as irritating as they were to the Austrian ministers, were in fact almost totally predictable -- a function of the prevailing political winds and public pressures. Austrian diplomats realized that Nicholas was caught between a rock and a hard place: between a general Serbophilia on the part of a large part of his population (not to mention his own pro-Serb pronouncements and literary creations) and his own desire to maintain his throne and dynasty. For most of the period under discussion, the Austro-Hungarian government did what it could to frustrate Nicholas the dreamer. Only at the end, in 1914, as the prospects for an even greater Serbia under the scepter of the Karadjordjević grew, did Vienna begin to consider Nicholas as the lesser of two evils -- and contemplated promoting rather than frustrating the Montenegrin ruler in at least some of his territorial desiderata. Indeed, in July 1914 the Austro-Hungarian foreign minister finally contemplated issuing a guarantee to an independent Montenegrin state and promising to support additional Montenegrin territorial expansion into the Sandžak and, yes, even northern Albania. But it was too little, too late.

• Details
• Contents