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Bosnian War: A History from Beginning to End
Discover the tragic history of the Bosnian War...
In the annals of modern history, few episodes cast a darker shadow than the Bosnian War. It was during this war that the world became acquainted with the chilling term “ethnic cleansing,” a phrase that encapsulates the unspeakable acts of mass deportation, imprisonment, rape, and murder perpetrated against civilians based on their religious and ethnic identities. During the Bosnian War, the media bombarded the global audience with nightmarish images of brutal massacres, mass graves, and undeniable evidence of heinous crimes against humanity. Yet, for many observers, the roots and reasons behind this war remain enigmatic and elusive.
Yugoslavia was a nation deeply fractured by ethnic and religious divisions. The iron grip of Josip Broz Tito’s communist dictatorship, established after World War II, momentarily silenced these tensions, but upon Tito’s death and the subsequent disintegration of the communist regime in Yugoslavia, these dormant fissures erupted once more, giving rise to a period of anarchy, violence, and conflict known as the Yugoslav Wars. The Bosnian War was not a single, isolated conflict but rather formed part of this wider series of wars. To unravel the complexities of the Bosnian War, one must delve into the intricate web of connections with these other conflicts and the fragmentation of Yugoslavia itself. Even then, it is essential to recognize that the root causes of this war still linger.
This is the story of the complex, horrifying, and brutal human tragedy that became known as the Bosnian War.
Discover a plethora of topics such asWorld War The Creation of Socialist YugoslaviaRise of Nationalism in YugoslaviaViolence BeginsBosnian Ethnic CleansingSrebrenica MassacreInternational InterventionAnd much more!
So if you want a concise and informative book on the Bosnian War, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button!
In the annals of modern history, few episodes cast a darker shadow than the Bosnian War. It was during this war that the world became acquainted with the chilling term “ethnic cleansing,” a phrase that encapsulates the unspeakable acts of mass deportation, imprisonment, rape, and murder perpetrated against civilians based on their religious and ethnic identities. During the Bosnian War, the media bombarded the global audience with nightmarish images of brutal massacres, mass graves, and undeniable evidence of heinous crimes against humanity. Yet, for many observers, the roots and reasons behind this war remain enigmatic and elusive.
Yugoslavia was a nation deeply fractured by ethnic and religious divisions. The iron grip of Josip Broz Tito’s communist dictatorship, established after World War II, momentarily silenced these tensions, but upon Tito’s death and the subsequent disintegration of the communist regime in Yugoslavia, these dormant fissures erupted once more, giving rise to a period of anarchy, violence, and conflict known as the Yugoslav Wars. The Bosnian War was not a single, isolated conflict but rather formed part of this wider series of wars. To unravel the complexities of the Bosnian War, one must delve into the intricate web of connections with these other conflicts and the fragmentation of Yugoslavia itself. Even then, it is essential to recognize that the root causes of this war still linger.
This is the story of the complex, horrifying, and brutal human tragedy that became known as the Bosnian War.
Discover a plethora of topics such asWorld War The Creation of Socialist YugoslaviaRise of Nationalism in YugoslaviaViolence BeginsBosnian Ethnic CleansingSrebrenica MassacreInternational InterventionAnd much more!
So if you want a concise and informative book on the Bosnian War, simply scroll up and click the "Buy now" button!
- GenresNonfictionHistoryWar
113 pages, Hardcover
Published July 3, 2023
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Hourly History
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Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
May 26, 2026
5 stars
short review for busy readers:
A very clear and well-explained chronological overview of the extremely messy and confusing collapse of Yugoslavia, the resulting violence known as the Bosnian War (1991-1995) and the aftermath.
**Highly Recommended** for those who lived through the time of that conflict, but never really understood what was going on.
in detail:
Like so many other modern conflicts, the Bosnian War was about political power, ethnic and religious supremacy, and the terror the majority feels when minorities attempt to gain rights and equality (hate spin).
Former Yugoslavia/the Balkans was settled over the centuries by several different ethnic groups with their own cultures, languages and religious beliefs. That's always made it into Europe's powder keg, as German Chancellor Bismark noted all the way back in the 1880s when he predicted WW1 would start there a good 30 years before it actually did.
For most of the 20th century, those different ethnic groups were held in check by a strong central authority under ethnic Serbs, semi-independent of Moscow. With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the East Block, Serbian domination was seriously threatened.
The main problem became the fact that the dominant group -- the Serbs -- lived scattered throughout the various Yugoslavian republics. When local/regional minorities began to think of independence or gaining political equality with the dominant Serbs, it terrified the local Serbs who believed they would be murdered in their beds if other ethnicities were allowed to gain any power.
This fear led the leadership in Belgrad to crack down hard on independence movements to keep Serbian supremacy in place and protect its own people. This led to "ethnic cleansing" campaigns and mass slaughters of uppity non-Serbian ethnicities.
It was when Croats grew strong enough to challenge the central government in Belgrad that open war started.
Other major players:
Slovenia was able to become independent only after 10 days of conflict with Belgrad because it only had a statistically insignificant 2% Serbian population. No Serbs, no problems.
Kosovo was seen as Serbian territory, although 80% is Albanian (Muslim). Serbs claimed Albanian discrimination and attempted genocide (again), which led to the Kosovo War that broke out after the Bosnian War ended...and which is still not concluded.
This Hourly History volume goes into great chronological detail on the progress of the War as well as the UN military intervention and peace keeping forces, the Dayton Peace Accord, and the current status of peace in the area (fragile).
Both Slovenia and Croatia are now independent and prosperous countries, but the rest of the Balkans is still a powder keg waiting to explode again.
short review for busy readers:
A very clear and well-explained chronological overview of the extremely messy and confusing collapse of Yugoslavia, the resulting violence known as the Bosnian War (1991-1995) and the aftermath.
**Highly Recommended** for those who lived through the time of that conflict, but never really understood what was going on.
in detail:
Like so many other modern conflicts, the Bosnian War was about political power, ethnic and religious supremacy, and the terror the majority feels when minorities attempt to gain rights and equality (hate spin).
Former Yugoslavia/the Balkans was settled over the centuries by several different ethnic groups with their own cultures, languages and religious beliefs. That's always made it into Europe's powder keg, as German Chancellor Bismark noted all the way back in the 1880s when he predicted WW1 would start there a good 30 years before it actually did.
For most of the 20th century, those different ethnic groups were held in check by a strong central authority under ethnic Serbs, semi-independent of Moscow. With the collapse of the Soviet Union and the East Block, Serbian domination was seriously threatened.
The main problem became the fact that the dominant group -- the Serbs -- lived scattered throughout the various Yugoslavian republics. When local/regional minorities began to think of independence or gaining political equality with the dominant Serbs, it terrified the local Serbs who believed they would be murdered in their beds if other ethnicities were allowed to gain any power.
This fear led the leadership in Belgrad to crack down hard on independence movements to keep Serbian supremacy in place and protect its own people. This led to "ethnic cleansing" campaigns and mass slaughters of uppity non-Serbian ethnicities.
It was when Croats grew strong enough to challenge the central government in Belgrad that open war started.
Other major players:
Slovenia was able to become independent only after 10 days of conflict with Belgrad because it only had a statistically insignificant 2% Serbian population. No Serbs, no problems.
Kosovo was seen as Serbian territory, although 80% is Albanian (Muslim). Serbs claimed Albanian discrimination and attempted genocide (again), which led to the Kosovo War that broke out after the Bosnian War ended...and which is still not concluded.
This Hourly History volume goes into great chronological detail on the progress of the War as well as the UN military intervention and peace keeping forces, the Dayton Peace Accord, and the current status of peace in the area (fragile).
Both Slovenia and Croatia are now independent and prosperous countries, but the rest of the Balkans is still a powder keg waiting to explode again.
December 10, 2023
The Gordian Knot of the Balkans
This is an excellent essay that brings us up to 21/22. It helped me understand the religious and cultural differences that led to the war. Nothing explains the rapes and atrocities which were primarily undertaken by Serbian forces (although this was also perpetrated by opposition forces to a much lesser degree.) And denied by Serbs regardless of the evidence. But then the Serbs support Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, a sovereign nation, and Russia denies its war crimes there. While others still deny the Holocaust and the Holodomor. So why should I be surprised at Serbian intransigence? Our whole world is in denial.
Recommended to help the reader untie the Gordian knot of conflict and ongoing tension in the Balkans.
This is an excellent essay that brings us up to 21/22. It helped me understand the religious and cultural differences that led to the war. Nothing explains the rapes and atrocities which were primarily undertaken by Serbian forces (although this was also perpetrated by opposition forces to a much lesser degree.) And denied by Serbs regardless of the evidence. But then the Serbs support Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, a sovereign nation, and Russia denies its war crimes there. While others still deny the Holocaust and the Holodomor. So why should I be surprised at Serbian intransigence? Our whole world is in denial.
Recommended to help the reader untie the Gordian knot of conflict and ongoing tension in the Balkans.
October 24, 2024
Assim como o livro sobre a Yugoslavia, é uma interessante fonte de informação, fatos narrados de maneira bastante objetiva e imparcial. Mesmo sendo capítulos curtos conta os principais detalhes sobre esse sangrento conflito e permite que conheçamos fatos históricos tão recentes de uma forma bastante clara, concisa e nos faz refletir sobre tais conflitos e os riscos que qualquer pequeno desequilíbrio e desentendimento dos acordos firmados podem vir a gerar
July 12, 2023
When I saw the horrific images of the Bosnian war on television years ago and read the reports in the newspaper, it seemed that the war would never end. The war was a result of ethnic and religious differences. There was unimaginable violence in the name of “ethnic cleansing.”
The book gives us a lot of information and I enjoyed it because it was concise, clear and very interesting.
The book gives us a lot of information and I enjoyed it because it was concise, clear and very interesting.
March 26, 2024
Fast informative read if you want a fast summary on the Bosnian war during the 90s and why there is still tension and why they haven't been allowed into NATO due to influences around.
Recommend if you are interested in a quick learning summary.
Recommend if you are interested in a quick learning summary.
October 18, 2024
High level overview, probably over simplified, but a satisfactory outline of a very complicated history.
June 15, 2026
Through the years, I had heard bits and pieces about the Bosnian war. This book fills in the blanks for me. I am guessing that it will do the same for you, as well.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews