Apis : čovjek koji je izazvao Prvi svjetski rat : život pukovnika Dragutina T. Dimitrijevića

by David MacKenzie

Politička biografija Dragutina Dimitrijevića Apisa, šefa srpske vojne obavještajne službe, ali i tajne terorističke organizacije Crna ruka. Sudjelovao je u provedbi Majskog prevrata 1903. godine, čime je došlo do trajne izmjene dinastija u Kraljevini Srbiji. Također, pripisuje mu se odgovornost u organizaciji Sarajevskog atentata 1914. godine, koji će u povijesti postati izravnim povodom izbijanju Prvog svjetskog rata. U ovom opsežnom djelu iznesen je Apisov cjelokupan životni put: od djetinjstva, preko napredovanja u vojnoj karijeri i stjecanja zavidne političke moći, pa sve do montiranog procesa i strijeljanja u Solunu.

Genres: History

399 pages, Paperback

First published May 15, 1989

Reviews

[Vedran Karlić · Rating 4 out of 5]

U konačnici, bila je ovo zanimljiva knjiga. Jedno od glavnih pitanja koje sam imao prije nego sam je krenuo čitati je kako je napisana – da li je jako stručna ili je više napisana za šire mase. Odgovor je negdje u sredini. Prilično lako se čita, no ima i puno imena koja su mi bila potpuno strana pošto nisam upoznat s time tko je tko iz toga doba, niti koliko važnu ulogu ima / će imati osoba koja se pojavljuje. Izuzev par imena svi ostali su mi bili nepoznanica, i možda nije za pohvalu, no odlučio sam ih tako tretirati, bez da uopće probam shvatiti tko i što su oni i za što su važni.

Čak i uz takav sistem bilo je ovo prilično zanimljivo štivo, o time kako su niži časnici skinuli kralja i doveli dinastiju koju su htjeli na prijestolje, o tome kako je započeo Prvi svjetski rat, o apsurdnom suđenju koje je definicija montiranog procesa, te o ironiji kako je Srbija zapravo odradila sve ono što je nakon smrti prestolonasljednika Austro-Ugarska od nje tražila, samo tri godine kasnije, kada je rat bio diljem Europe.

Kada već govorimo o sredini, njena sredina mi je bila najnapornija. Imala je vrlo dobar početak i vrlo dobar kraj, no nekako mi je bilo dosadno sve što se između događalo. Pisac je htio stručno ispričati priču, kazati sve, no taj dio mi nije sjeo.

[Gordan Karlic · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is why I love history.
Apis - Kingslayer.
Apis - man that started WWI
Before reading this book I though that Apis wanted to play the big game and in the end, he got what he deserved.
But in the last chapter (probably best chapter I ever read) I found myself feeling sorry for him and his associates.
Put that in perspective, feeling sorry for the man that indirectly cause the death of 20 million deaths.

[Miroslav Mlinarček · Rating 4 out of 5]

I pored nekih nedostataka i ličnih zaključaka autora, ova knjiga može vrlo dobro poslužiti da se bliže upoznamo sa Dragutinom Dimitrijevićem Apisom. Smatram da može poslužiti i kao polazna tačka za ozbiljnije proučavanje ove i danas tajanstvene ličnosti iz srpske istorije. Apisova uloga u dešavanjima u srpskoj istoriji početkom 20. veka i danas nije skroz razjašnjena, a to da li će se o njemu pisati kao o heroju ili kao o ubici zavisi i od toga ko je na vlasti odnosno "s koje strane će da duva vetar".

Velika zamerka ide izdavaču ove knjige. Toliko štamparskih grešaka... nedopustivo!!!

[Socraticgadfly · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book should definitely be given a read by any deep buff of World War I. Apis, the head conspirator in the eventually organized plot to assassinate Austrian Archduke Franz Ferdinand at Sarajevo in 1914, is eventually put on trial in early 1917 by the then-battered rump of the government of Serbia on trumped-up charges of attempting to assassinate Regent Alexander. That trial is the denouement of this book.

(My eye had originally been caught by a second book by David MacKenzie, written six years later in 1995, “Black Hand on Trial: Salonika 1917,” per the bio on Wiki’s page on the assassination, but that was unavailable on interlibrary loan. Having read the book at hand — thanks, Marquise — I suspect that book is not much more than a narrowed version of this, with a few more bits on 1914 co-conspirators also named in the 1917 Salonika trial, and any new files that came open after the fall of old Yugoslavia. [MacK confirms plans for that book in notes for Chapter 1 of this, so may not have been specific to post-Yugoslavia new files.])

To cut to the chase? Five stars for effort and for putting a lot of Serbian and Yugoslav writings, even if some were already in English, into the hands of new readers, but lesser stars for many issues and problems.

Final vote? 2.5 stars, rounded down, with recommendation against reading other books by MacKenzie.

Big issues? The biggest is whitewashing Apis over Sarajevo and really whitewashing him. See the details further below.

Repeated gay smears of Regent Alexander. No documentation. That and other things around the edges cost almost a full star right here. As for the claim he had a gay relationship with Petar Zivkovic, a foe of Apis’ starting perhaps already at the 1903 coup, and certainly developed before Sarajevo, and that Zivkovic used this to manipulate him? Even if such a relationship existed (it didn’t) it might not have been based on manipulation. Even if such manipulation exists, it might have been a two-way street.

An interesting one. Throughout the book, Skopje is spelled “Skoplje.” Apparently that’s what it is in Serbo-Croatian, but, are we going to spell every city by its language of origin? No, only South Slav ones. MacKenzie has “Vienna” instead of Wien, for example.

Related? “Vojvoda,” a titular term in Serbia for the army chief of staff, is used untranslated.

Further related? His transliteration system from Serbo-Croatian to English is at times idiosyncratic, or at least “old style.” Take the ruling dynasty. He uses “Karadjordjevic .” Wiki uses “Karađorđević.” It does allow his version as a Romanized variant or also the Anglicized Karageorgevitch. Some of this is further compounded by the Serbian half of Serbo-Croatian being in Cyrillic.

Calls Shkodër in Albania by Serbo-Croatian name Skadar. Calls Durrës by “Drac.” Apparently Shëngjin, Albania is what he means by San Giovanni, which would be specifically, San Giovanni di Medua, an old Italian name. Detecting anti-Albanian bias by author, either directly or in poor use of sources. Let’s not forget that Serbia wanted Albania in the two Balkan Wars and was very frustrated when Austria insisted on a separate, independent Albania. (Italy might have supported that, too.)

Indeed, given material in later chapters of the book, MacKenzie seems to write halfway in the mindset of a Serbian terrorist conspiracist, turned conspiracy theorist. Some somewhat stilted writing at times also makes me wonder if he’s some some semi-literalistic, non-idiomatic translations from Serbian sources written in Serbo-Croatian.

A number of “assumption” words here and there.

First, Apis himself at least seemed to want “greater Serbia,” not “Yugoslavia.” And there was — and is — a difference. At his firing squad, he reportedly called for both.

Second, the regent, Gen. Zivkovic and above all, Pasic, from what I had grokked before this book, were afraid that Apis might upset the applecart of the “Sixtus” peace talks between the Dual Monarch and France, via Kaiser Karl’s Bourbon-Parma cousin Sixtus. This would confirm what I have read elsewhere, that Karl might have approached Serbia, too. Wiki says more at the tail end of its article on Franz Ferdinand. Per later parts of this book, Petar Zivkovic was apparently Regent Alexander’s envoy, detailed to Geneva. See Wiki's subpage on the Salonika trial for basic backgrounding.

Not an issue, but just a note. Of the three executed, Rade Malobabić was almost certainly innocent of the assassination in Sarajevo.

Above is from Chapter 1: Introductory: Apis, Martyr or Murderer, and Chapter 2, Facing Their Open Graves.

Skipping ahead to ...

Chapter 25: The Verdict of History. On the last page of the book proper, MacKenzie claims: “Apis’ political significance … was based far more on his execution at Salonika than on his role at Sarajevo. … Had the Serbian exile regime followed the advice of some of its members … his prominence would swiftly have faded. ... Instead, the Radicals and Alexander provided him with a halo of martyrdom.”

Tosh and tommyrot! And by jumping ahead, I know now why MacKenzie’s Chapter 12, “Sarajevo,” is so thin on the actual plotting and organization. He’s trying to whitewash Apis.

“Apis’ role in the Sarajevo assassination was secondary and far smaller than he himself claimed in his report to the Salonika court. The initiative for the murder stemmed from the revolutionary ‘Young Bosnia.’”

More tosh and tommyrot and also bending to his general pro-Serbia angle IMO. In reality, yes, Young Bosnia had done some planning, but Serbia did as well, and co-opted Young Bosnia. After all Pasic discussed the idea with his cabinet in May! This is attested by Albertini.

Goes on to claim that Apis was more Yugoslav and less Greater Serbian than either Regent/King Alexander or Prime Minister Pasic. Especially vis-a-vis the former, I find that laughable. That said, as we get in the body of the book, other authorial claims about Alexander, per above, are also laughable.

Finally, MacKenzie never clearly addresses the issue of whether the trumped-up trial began with rising personal pique by Alexander that then merged with the perceived need to throw Apis to the wolves because of peace talks, or whether that was its starting point.

The book is exhaustive, but has two clear biases. It may have filled a niche when written, but badly needs something new to replace it. Three stars, but only because of the thoroughness, including bringing many Yugoslav and Serbian sources to light in English and the big picture. On the treason trial? Surely 4, maybe 4.25 on fractional stars, but can’t go five. Sarajevo and the whitewashing? A generous two stars, if not less. Generous. The Alexander smears and Serb bias issues? Flat three stars, maybe 2.75. On a back-of-envelope calculation, that puts us at 2.5 stars rounded down, with the admonition to not read MacKenzie, and to look for a better book about the Salonika trial itself.

Marquise, others, I was going to dump my full notes behind spoiler alert, but that puts me WAY over Goodreads' word limit, the second time this year that's happened! I'll post a partial, and you'll have to see my blog site for more. I'll drop what I can, within word count limits:

Chapter 5: The coup. Some details were new to me. Col Peter Misic, who was being recruited (per Chapter 4) to deliver a regiment of support, apparently got cold feet, though his troops showed up belatedly at the palace.. I don’t know if he’s the same as Wiki’s Živojin Mišić. Its piece notes he was forced into resignation by the Black Hand shortly after the coup. His age and connections point to yes. Zivkovic, then a lieutenant, was part of the palace guard. Badly affected by nerves, he fumbled in opening the gates. Troops pouring through knocked him over. Apis was solicitous but Zivkovic apparently never forgot.

Apis was fairly severely wounded. Alt-history: What if he dies?

Some plotters halfway considered a republic, but thought it had no chance in general and specifically that Austria would crush it.

Chapter 7, Apis and the Black Hand, 1908-12: Founding of the Black Hand, along with Narodna Odbrana. Claims Austria pushed Serbian government to forcibly make NO more pacifistic. Black Hand was formed in response to this. Dispute over how much Apis was or was not in on the ground floor.

Apis himself claimed he was just another guy and not a founder. Claimed Black Hand worked only outside Serbia. Claimed these external operations had been planned with government’s foreknowledge and approval. Claimed situation in Macedonia prevented registration as government organization.

Chapter 8, Zivkovic and the White Hand: Formation of White Hand and related issues. Internally, contra Apis above, Black Hand recognizes problems with heir to throne, Prince Djordje and talks about “what to do” well before he renounces his claim. In 1909, Peter Zivkovic reportedly was ready to lead effort to kill him. Supposedly told Prince Alexander. When Apis heard about this he said no way. After his valet dies a few months later, with public blame on Djordje, he renounces. Author calls Prince Alexander credulous. Says King Peter said so. This is supposedly how Zivkovic turned him against Apis. Claims Zivkovic had a gay relationship with Alexander. (I can find no attestation for this anywhere, or even for Alexander being gay at all. That said, Zivkovic’s Wiki page has plenty of goods on him. MacKenzie footnotes claim by a duty officer to the Regent, Major Panta Draskic, but that’s only him saying Alexander was “not a ladies man” and nothing more. And this is only from what appears to be a file from the Serbian Academy of Arts and Sciences. And he just served Alexander only 3 years; his Wiki page talks ONLY of his World War II service.) Claims he got Alexander to put into writing his role in plot against Djordje as blackmail tool. Zivkovic claimed to Alexander that Apis had inflicted on him the typhus he contracted in 1912. Apis gets King Peter to send Zivkovic out of the court and to country duty. Zivkovic’s charges against Apis investigated late 1911. White Hand forms at this time.

Chapter 11: May Crisis. Early 1914, split between Apis and allies, and Pasic and civilians, starts to widen. Tussle over whether army or civilians would take the lead in the governance of the new southern territory. Interior Minister Protic firmly says civilians in April; chapter note 23 says this almost triggered a coup and almost toppled Pasic’s cabinet. Protic forbids Piedmont from circulating in Macedonia. Skopje’s military governor ignores the civilian-first “Priority Decree.” Tensions rise more. Officers Club in Belgrade next locus of tensions. Pasic wants new election; Prince Alexander says only if you toss Protic. He says no. Radomir Putnik, army chief of staff, backs Piedmont et al. At this point Apis joins in, as intermediary between Putnik et al in old Serbia and the officers in Macedonia. The military brass, going past Regent Alexander, start directly pushing King Peter to rescind the Priority Decree. Cracks within the army arise. Putnik says he doubts the King will overturn it, saying War Minister Dusan Stepanovic and officers hostile to Apis oppose this. MacKenszie claims this was also part of the Salonika trial backstory. Apis then starts talking to politicians in the official opposition.

Chapter 12, Murder in Sarajevo. Pasic warned Putnik in 1913 about Apis’ connections to Young Bosnia. Apis himself told a Croatian politician that Serbia needed more years of peace. See notes 4-7. I also saw Note 1: His top source on Sarajevo is Vladimir Dedijer, “The Road to Sarajevo.” (A later 2-volume update came out; MacK seems to indicate in notes to Chapter 1 that it’s not really updated, which is contra at least one reviewer.) Had Ferdinand really decided to try to recreate the Dreikaiserbund? News to me. Re Serbia, he was generally anti-expansionist. There’s good indication he had abandoned trialism before his assassination, not just due to the impracticality of forcing it on Budapest, but also the possibility of Czechs pushing for Quadrilateralism. That said, he, like nephew Karl, still favored some sort of federalism, it would seem.

Alexander Blagojevic claims he, not Rade Malobabic, encouraged Apis to get the deed done. Later slurs claim that Apis also wanted to kill Wilhelm II.

Some claim that “Young Bosnians” like Vladimir Gaćinović planned the assassination on their own. That said, he himself was a Black Hand member. And, he was poisoned, by parties unknown, in Switzerland in 1917. Apis supposedly wanted to use more seasoned guerrillas trained by Tankosic. Supposedly, THIS may be why Apis, via Djuro Ŝarac, ordered Ilic to recall Princip et al. But Princip and Grabez refused to back off.

Next, MacKenzie says Apis backed the assassination because he thought Franz Ferdinand had designs on Serbia. If true, this shows the narrowness of his political nous. In all of the above three paragraphs, he appears to be following very much to Dedijer, who claims Young Bosnia would have tried something without Apis.

Chapter 17: On the Salonika Front, 1916. Apis helped plan 1916 attack. Hides Malobabic from Serbian authorities after having freed him from torturous arrest in 1915. Aug. 29/Sept. 11 New Style, Alexander’s car reportedly fired on in Ostrovo area. Later, comes the accusation, and per the above, Malobabic is supposedly Apis’ agent. At trial, Apis claims date means nothing to him, and he talked to neither Malobabic nor Mehmehbasic at that time. Draskic, still with Alexander at this time, claims the Regent was light-hearted on Aug. 29 about any firing in his area. (A new Allied offensive began Aug. 30 so his mind would have been elsewhere anyway.) Gen. Vasic, 3rd Army commander, was very negative about Apis’ staff work, but MacKenzie claims he had been a foe since 1903. McK says he had been appointed to this position in August to spy on Apis. That probably wasn’t the actual reason, though. Plus, MacK undercuts himself at start of next chapter by listing Vasic’s predecessor, Gen. Pavle Jurisic-Sturm, as part of the “Committee of Ten for the Liquidation of Colonel Apis.” The army had taken heavy casualties and was being reorganized.

December, the first rumors of peace talks start. Karl had taken the throne in November (not mentioned here by MacK). First contact with Sixtus was March 23, 1917.

Chapter 18: The Conspiracy against Colonel Apis. The list of 10 comes from Dedijer. He also has a list of “associates,” led by Interior Minister Ljubomir Jovanovic-Patak. MacKenzie claims that Alexander wanted to oust Apis the moment he became regent, June 24, 1914. Really? That was just four days before Sarajevo. So, in one of the four days before the assassination, he was already plotting this. Or, in the four weeks between that and Austria’s July 23 ultimatum, he was plotting this?

Chapter 21: In Courtroom and Prison Cell, March-April 1917. March 27, Malobabic and also Mehmedbasic charged with shooting at Alexander at Ostrovo on Apis’ order. Supposedly, the alleged attempt had not been revealed in court before then and prosecutors, MacKenzie said, were trying to bolster a shaky case. Apis tells court he can only explain his relationship with Malobabic by referencing Sarjevo. Trial chairman Misic appeals to his patriotism to not go there in open court. He agrees. Apis eventually submits a written report fessing up. (MacKenzie, as noted above, will go on to reject his plotting leadership anyway.) Apis thinks this will save him. He later writes Alexander, noting he has authority to quash the court’s eventual verdict, and seeking a reconciliation. Letter discusses Black Hand’s history in detail, etc.

Marquise, and any other followers, I am getting near the limit, I think, so you'll have to wait for my yet-deeper review. But, you have plenty here on the book, my thoughts about it and my thoughts about MacKenzie.