Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1903-06-18

Servia, Its History and People.


Inc oeINldn people, VINO June IL
murdered their king, queen and cabi-
net, are ranked among the Slayonic
tribe OF the Caucasian family. Their
language, together with the Russian
and the Bulgarian, forms the eastern
step of the Slavic languages. 1t is a
euphonic and picturesque language,
replete with idiom and adapted to lit
erature.
AS early as the twelfth century the
Servian monks of the Roman Catholic
church were credited with having pro-
duced or compiled an extensive Ser
Wan literature. The chief seats OF
Servian literature are Pesth. Bel
grade and Neusatz. Toward the close
OF the fifteenth century the city of
Ragusa, in Dalmatia, became a sort of
lllyrian Athens and produced many dis
tlnguished authors, especially poets.
The original inhabitants of Servia
were chiefly Thracians conquered by
the Roman arms during the early
period of the empire. Servia formed
part of Illyrcum under the name of
Moesia Superior. During the great
migration of nations it was overrun
by the Huns, Ostrogoths and other bar
garians. Subsequently it was under
Byzantine rule from the middle of the
sixth till early in the seventh century.
when it was devastated by the Avars.
The latter were driven out by the
Serbs (Servians), Slavic people, who
had been living north of the Carpath-
ians and whose aid had been invoked
by the Emperor Heraclius, whose
death occurred in GAL. Under Her
aclius the depopulated regions were
allotted to them and the emperor in
troduced Christianity among them.
Servia long remained a vassal state
of the emperors of the east, but a
spirit of liberty was fostered by power
full and well organized local govern
ments, whose chiefs repeatedly at
tempted to make themselves altogeth-
er Independent and shake off the Byz-
antine yoke. But the imperial author
ity was fully restored in the latter
part of the ninth century by Basil l,
the Macedonian.
Subsequently the Bulgarians held
the ascendency in Servia for a long
period, but their power was broken by
John Zimisces and finally destroyed
by Basil II in 1918 Stephen Bogislas
was the first Serb to found an indie
pendent principality. This he did
about 1043.
His son Michael styled himself king
(kraD and was recognized as such by
the holy see. Under Michael's success
the contests with the Byzantine en-
perors of Constantinople continued and
Stephen Nemania founded a new dy-
nasty in 1165. This monarch con.
quered Bosnia and acquired much ter
ritory, but was unable to overthrow
the Byzantine power. In 1917 his son
Stephen was crowned king of Servia
and his successors acquired much ad-
ditional territory Perhaps the most
illustrious of them was Stephen Dus-
han Q336-1356), who had himself
crowned car.
During the years in which this dy-
nasty ruled there were many assassi-
nations and revolutions and finally the
Turkish sultan, Mahomed II, incor-
porated Servia with Turkey, excepting
Belgrade, which was held by the Bull
garians until taken by Solyman the
Magnificent in 1921. The Turks re-
sented the heroic resistance of Servia
by sending 100000 of her citizens in
to captivity and by exterminating
whole families, while others emigrat-
ed to Hungary and rapacious pashas
ruled abomniably for several years
and reduced the country almost to a
wilderness.
Belgrade and most of northern Ser
via were given to Austria at the close
of the war with Turkey in 171S, but
the peace of Belgrade Q739) restored
the Turkish domination and the Ser.
vians were again subjected to dire ca
lamities, especially by the excuses
of the janissaries.
Their repeated applications for re.
dress having been unheeded at Con.
stantinople, the people arose against
the Turks in 1906. 1t was then that
"Black George" the swineherd, came
upon the scene, leading a successful
army against the sultan, who in 1907
was compelled to recognize the swine
herd as the chief OF the Servian peo-
pie, whose dynasty has been closely
connected with the fortunes of Servia
for nearly century.
The Greek Catholic religion is pro-
fessed by nearly all the inhabitants.
though there are many Catholics ODE
dent to the Roman sect and Jews in
the country, and to them is accorded
complete religious liberty.
In 1882 Servia was still paying a
yearly tribute of 100000 piasters to
Turkey, but since 1884 the country en-
joyed perfect autonomy, which was
confirmed by the treaty of Paris in
1856 and guaranteed by the European
powers. The right of garrisoning Bel
orada and other Seryian cities was