All efforts of Serbia to reach a peaceful agreement with Muslim Albanian leaders in Old Serbia before the First Balkan War had ended in failure. The position of Christian Orthodox Serbs, who accounted for a half of the population at the end of the nineteenth century, was dramatically aggravated due to Muslim Albanians' tribal anarchy, Austria-Hungary's pro-Albanian agitation and, after 1908, frequent Albanian rebellions.

The religious antagonism between Muslims and Christians expanded into national conflict after the 1878 Albanian League had claimed the entire “Old Serbia for Greater Albania”. Old Serbia (from 1877 onwards the vilayet of Kosovo) was dominated by local Albanian pashas, whereas the Christian Orthodox Serbs and their villages were attacked and pillaged by Muslim Albanian brigands. One of quests to solve is the 'war of numbers' such typical for Balkan region (concerning Great Serb migration from 40.000 to 500.000) and how is the Serb migration perceived in modern European historiography – primarily Czechoslovak, Albanian and Anglo-American compared to traditional and modern Serbian.Ībstract: After the restoration of Serbia in 1830, the areas of medieval Serbia left out of her borders were dubbed Old Serbia – Kosovo, Metohija, Rascia (the former sanjak of Novi Pazar and the neighbouring areas). The main aim of this paper is to provide the scholars and public with a new unbiased view of Serb migration 1690 and its place in national identity and myths. This is called the Great Migration or in Serbian Velike seobе Srba (Велике сеобе Срба), the main area to settle for Serbs was current territory of Vojvodina, but they were moving also to present day Hungary and Romania. In June 1690, as a result of Great Turkish War, from 30 to 40,000 Serbs gathered in Belgrade led by the patriarch Arsenije III.

Such phenomenon is clearly visible in the course of 19th century (Russo-Turkish wars, Berlin congress, shaping of modern Balkan states), but it has roots in older periods. The results of such a policy was a constant need to revenge, we mean Balkan nations wanted to revenge on Turks and vice versa. However, it was the Balkans - the region which due to Ottoman expansion and its revision suffered numerous migrations (voluntary and involuntary) and relocations (frequently forced) of its inhabitants. Europe has been challenged with the waves of migrations recently, but such a phenomenon is not a newborn aspect of 'our' European identity.

Drugi kosovski boj pdf