On the 28th of June 1914, Gavrilo Princip went down in history as the assassin of Archduke Franz Ferdinand. This essay is about how Gavrilo Principe's legacy has changed over the past 110 years. During Communist Yugoslavia, he was viewed as fighting the bourgeois capitalist elite. Currently, Serbian nationalists have claimed that Gavrilo Princip was a symbol for Serbian independence. However, if we look at the facts, we see that he was actually fighting for the unity of all southern Slavs, but he isn't remembered this way today.
From the 1940s to '80s, one of the prevailing views of Princip was that he was fighting for communism and against the Austro-Hungarian capitalists. Gavrilo Princip was born into a Bosnian Serb peasant family and was one of nine children, only three of which survived. During his trial, Princip said, "I am the son of a peasant; I know how people live in the villages, and that is why I wanted revenge." At the end of World War II, the Partizans, a communist guerrilla group who fought the Nazis, took over Yugoslavia. The communist ideology is based on the fact that a revolution of the proletariat against the bourgeois is inevitable, and that after said revolution the new proletarian dictatorship will have control of the means of production, and distribute wealth equally. Therefore, communists would use Princip to promote their ideology of fighting against bourgeoisie capitalists. Tito's regime erected a plaque in the 1960s in Sarajevo that stated, “From this place, 28 June 1914, Gavrilo Princip with his shooting expressed the people’s protest against tyranny and centuries long aspiration of our people for freedom”. The plaque states "the people" which is referring to the masses, or the proletariat. This shows a sense of unity against the bourgeoisie who in this case was the Austro-Hungarian elite. The plaque is a form of propaganda to unite communist Yugoslavia against capitalist countries. We further see the promotion of Princip as a socialist in an article in the New York Times in 1964, on the 50 year anniversary of the assasination. The article describes how at a commemoration event the speakers made sure to link Gavrilo Princip and his fellow assassins to the “working class” and as “Socialists”. In the '80s and '90s though communism collapsed and the countries in former Yugoslavia were ready for a fresh start. When interviewing our guide, Adis, class conflict did not come up. The idea of Gavrilo Princip starting a proletariat revolution is less common due to the transition to a capitalist society and government.
Recently, Serbian nationalists have been vocal in their beliefs that Gavrilo Princip was a freedom fighter and a martyr for freeing Serbs in Bosnia. However, this is not a new idea. The Serbian monarch, Peter II, who ruled Yugoslavia from the end of World War I to the start of World War II, put up a plaque honoring Gavrilo Princip for declaring "freedom" from the Austro-Hungarians. The plaque also states that Princip died like the martyrs on Vidov Dan, a Serbian holiday celebrating the martyrs at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 – the assaasination actually took place on the anniversary. This battle is an important part of Serbia's national and ethnic identity. Linking Princip to the Battle of Kosovo is like saying Gavrilo Princip is now part of that national identity. We see resurgence of this view especially since Bosnia and Herzegovina is so divided due to the breakup of Yugoslavia and the creation of a smaller Serbian republic within the country. In 2014, on the Serb side of Sarajevo, there was an unveiling of a monument to Princip. During the ceremony there was a reenactment of the assasination. According to Wtopnews, when the performance was done, the crowd shouted "Shoot at Nato" and "Shoot at the EU". Princip's legacy has become one of resistance for the Serbs in Bosnia. They believe they are fighting a similar battle as Princip, but now they are fighting the West instead of Austro-Hungary. There was another statue unveiled to Gavrilo Princip, this time in Belgrade by the Serbian government. The Serbian President Tomislav Nikolik described Princip as a "freedom fighter and a hero". However, many Croats and Bosnians do not have this view believing that Princip only wanted Serbia to occupy Bosnia. While walking around Belgrade, we saw Gavrilo Princip's face on socks, t-shirts, and walls. This paraphernalia was not sponsored by the government; it was made by people of their own free will. We also visited the Belgrade park where Princip had shooting practice trained by the Black Hand. In the park there was a life sized statue to Gavrilo Princip, put up by the Serbian government. So it is both the government and the general public in Serbia who view Princip as a hero. When I interviewed our guide in Belgrade, he agreed that Princip is regarded as a hero in Serbia, but he personally views him as somewhere in between hero and terrorist. Ultimately, the main view of Gavrilo Princip since the '90s is that he was a Serbian nationalist. However, many academics disagree with this view as we will learn in the next paragraph.If you look at the facts from an objective view you will see he had many motives, but the main one being freedom for all southern Slavs. Our guide Anya, who grew up in Yugoslavia, claims that the government by the '80s was not emphasizing class conflict, instead emphasizing Princip being a freedom fighter for south Slavs. Our next tour guide, Adis, was a former teacher; he also believes that Gavrilo Princip was fighting for south slavs. Adis explained that most people don't do enough research on Princip and are misinformed on what he stood for. In the book Trigger by Tim Butcher states on page 267:
So if these well informed people agree that Princip supported the idea of Yugoslavia, why is he a figurehead for Serbian nationalism? Well, people don't support the idea of Yugoslavia anymore. The majority of people are disillusioned with the idea of unity, due to the long bloody breakup of former Yugoslavia. There are no major groups trying to get south Slavs to unite. Princip's memory has been twisted to fit Serb ideology, and the general public has accepted this, because Serbian nationalists are the loudest voice.
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This project was interesting because I got to see how people have such different views on the same event. It is so fascinating how current events shape how we look at history. So how do we know if our view of historical events is true? A simple question can lead to very complicated conversations about the difference between history and memory. I think memory is a subjective way of viewing the past through our own experiences. Whereas, history is the study and interpretation of the facts through evidence. Unfortunately, history might be impossible to do because everybody has an ingrained bias.
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