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The Balkan Wars
In this riveting new history of the Balkan peoples, André Gerolymatos explores how ancient events engendered cultural myths that evolved over time, gaining strength in the collective consciousnesses of Orthodox Christians and Muslims alike. In colorful detail, we meet the key figures that instigated and perpetuated these myths--assassin/heroes such as Milos Obolic and Gavrilo Princip and warlords such as Ali Pasha. This lively survey of centuries of strife finally puts the modern conflicts in Bosnia and Kosovo into historical context, and provides a long overdue account of the origins of ethnic hatred and warmongering in this turbulent land.
331 pages, Paperback
First published March 1, 2002
About the author
André Gerolymatos
12 books5 followersAndré Gerolymatos was a Greek-Canadian Professor of History.
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Displaying 1 - 29 of 29 reviews
October 14, 2020
THE BALKAN WARS (2002) examines the problems of religion, nationalism, ethnic hatred and history in the turbulent, warmongering southeastern corner of Europe. André Gerolymatos, a Hellenic studies professor of Balkan descent, describes the wars that allowed the Ottoman Empire to ascend in the Balkans and then, centuries later, expire. He explains in detail several major events such as the 1389 Battle of Kosovo, the 1453 fall of Constantinople, the 1821-30 Greek civil war, Archduke Franz Ferdinand's assassination on June 28, 1914 and the creation of the modern Greek state among many others.
This book covers a lot of ground, and yet it is accessible, it provides all the needed context required throughout the narrative, and it is ideal for non-specialists. The inclusion of maps would have been very useful, though, hence the four stars.
This book covers a lot of ground, and yet it is accessible, it provides all the needed context required throughout the narrative, and it is ideal for non-specialists. The inclusion of maps would have been very useful, though, hence the four stars.
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November 30, 2018A discussion of the national character of the Balkan peoples as developed by the last half-millennium of more or less constant warfare. I thought the arrangement was a little peculiar—it’s almost but not quite chronological—and there is an uneven dedication to the specifics of the various conflicts which are kind of confusing. But it’s well-written and pretty-even handed, almost an impossible task when discussing the dozen competing national groups taking part in the tableau.
September 18, 2015
One reviewer described this book as "Not sufficiently anti-Serb for the Ministry of Truth." That's more profound than he realized. Gerolymatos argues that the Kosovo myth functions as a prism through which Serbia would forever understand its struggles with outsiders (Gerolymatos 8). He makes the neat argument that even after the Battle of Kosovo and the death of Holy Prince Lazar, Serbs and Greeks had numerous opportunities to annihilate the Ottomans. Not simply win battles, but to eradicate them from the planet. When Timur the Lane destroyed most of the Ottoman empire, the creme of officials and army were trapped at the Straits. Greeks and Serbs rallied them across. Even Timurlane couldn't imagine why they let that chance slip by. That wouldn't be true if Kosovo were indeed the final point of medieval Serbian independence.
Ottoman Era: Creating a Mythology
The sack of Constantinople ended a “universal Hellenism” and began to create a specifically Greek consciousness (69-70).
He argues that the Ottoman rule actually made the Greek Church (better called the Phanariot Church) more powerful. Other Orthodox jurisdictions temporarily disappeared, leaving the Phanariot Patriarch as Patriarch over all the East (Russia excluded). Indeed, the Patriarch assumed the role of a vizier. Of course, it also made the Patriarchate dependent on the Sultan for its survival (sort of throws a new light on the “Caesaropapism” charge).
Most importantly, no matter how brutal the Ottomans were (and he doesn’t pull punches), there was always collusion between between Muslim and Christian (81). This is best illustrated in the person of Ali Pasha, the Ottoman strongman who was by far the most interesting persona in the book. Pasha’s life represents the problem of the Balkans: he exploited divisions and weaknesses to make himself more powerful. This meant, ironically, defending and strengthening some Christian communities (if only to weaken his Ottoman rivals).
Modern Failures
Among the many reasons modern Western politicians fail to understand the Balkan crisis is the critical role of “land” (167). Men die and identify themselves for what they believe in, who they are, and where they are--and not for pious platitudes chanted on CNN.
One key failure, perhaps earlier than the “Modern” period, was the Great Powers’ ignoring of Macedonia. According to the author, “Macedonia was a microcosm of the Balkans” and a strategic pathway for all cardinal directions (207). The Powers gave it back to the Ottoman Empire without regard for future upheavals.
He sees economic success as the only way to combat the fatigue of war (245). Time will tell.
Conclusions
I enjoyed the endnotes almost as much as anything else in the book. They were a veritable bibliographic feast. If you read this book you will know infinitely more political science than the news anchors on CNN.
Criticisms:
Some of these criticisms might seem overly nitpicky, but that’s only because this book is so good and well-written.
*He notes that the Koran said a city that did not surrender would be subject to three days of pillaging (253 n2). I don’t dispute that, but where is that referenced?
*He is more or less fair in his handling of Kosovo. He acknowledges Milosevic engaged in cruelties but points out America’s own role in intervening: a) establishing an anti-Russian, anti-Serb state in the heart of the Balkans, b) conveniently allowing transit to Western and Central Asia. Serbia had to be destroyed for the Neo-Con/Neo-Lib world order to flourish.
Ottoman Era: Creating a Mythology
The sack of Constantinople ended a “universal Hellenism” and began to create a specifically Greek consciousness (69-70).
He argues that the Ottoman rule actually made the Greek Church (better called the Phanariot Church) more powerful. Other Orthodox jurisdictions temporarily disappeared, leaving the Phanariot Patriarch as Patriarch over all the East (Russia excluded). Indeed, the Patriarch assumed the role of a vizier. Of course, it also made the Patriarchate dependent on the Sultan for its survival (sort of throws a new light on the “Caesaropapism” charge).
Most importantly, no matter how brutal the Ottomans were (and he doesn’t pull punches), there was always collusion between between Muslim and Christian (81). This is best illustrated in the person of Ali Pasha, the Ottoman strongman who was by far the most interesting persona in the book. Pasha’s life represents the problem of the Balkans: he exploited divisions and weaknesses to make himself more powerful. This meant, ironically, defending and strengthening some Christian communities (if only to weaken his Ottoman rivals).
Modern Failures
Among the many reasons modern Western politicians fail to understand the Balkan crisis is the critical role of “land” (167). Men die and identify themselves for what they believe in, who they are, and where they are--and not for pious platitudes chanted on CNN.
One key failure, perhaps earlier than the “Modern” period, was the Great Powers’ ignoring of Macedonia. According to the author, “Macedonia was a microcosm of the Balkans” and a strategic pathway for all cardinal directions (207). The Powers gave it back to the Ottoman Empire without regard for future upheavals.
He sees economic success as the only way to combat the fatigue of war (245). Time will tell.
Conclusions
I enjoyed the endnotes almost as much as anything else in the book. They were a veritable bibliographic feast. If you read this book you will know infinitely more political science than the news anchors on CNN.
Criticisms:
Some of these criticisms might seem overly nitpicky, but that’s only because this book is so good and well-written.
*He notes that the Koran said a city that did not surrender would be subject to three days of pillaging (253 n2). I don’t dispute that, but where is that referenced?
*He is more or less fair in his handling of Kosovo. He acknowledges Milosevic engaged in cruelties but points out America’s own role in intervening: a) establishing an anti-Russian, anti-Serb state in the heart of the Balkans, b) conveniently allowing transit to Western and Central Asia. Serbia had to be destroyed for the Neo-Con/Neo-Lib world order to flourish.
October 13, 2023
This is very good narration of history, BUT, it is clearly focusing on Greek history and partially Serbia. The name suggests a more broad Balkan overview. In addition, it is failing to capture the historical viewpoint of Albania. The author is also claiming that Albania had nationalistic tendencies, by aiming for Great Albania, which was not the case. So, overall, it would have been an excellent history book if it weren’t for the Greek centrism and the anti-Albanian sentiment in certain chapters.
October 5, 2023
Decently fair book, obviously has Mr Gerolymatos has a Greco-Serb bias but he strays away from a historically inaccurate nationalism. As an Albanian I did not agree with everything, but I will give credit where it is due.
June 20, 2017
I gave this book two stars and I would add another half star. Most of the book contained a great deal of interesting information- particularly for someone who's knowledge of the history of that part of the world is fairly sparse. In the first part of the book where parallels were drawn between the War of Kosovo in the 14th Century to Gavrilo Princep's assassination of Archduke Ferdinand in Sarajevo in 1914.
The book was confusing because just as the reader becomes comfortable with the person or event at hand, without warning, the author is onto someone else at another time. Further, although the book is well sourced, the vast majority of the sources are secondary- never a good sign from a historian. By the time he reached the Balkan Wars of the early 20th Century, it seems that the author had gotten tired of analysis because there is no analysis of the wars to speak of. Instead, there is a play by play of seemingly every shot fired in both wars which, in the reader's opinion, was unnecessary and made the book drag. At the end of a book, a wedding in Sarajevo is recounted, perhaps to hold out hope for a brighter future in the countries of the Balkan. But it is done without conviction because as the author tells us, over and over again, he sees only more bloodshed and war in the future. There have to be better books on this subject than this one.
The book was confusing because just as the reader becomes comfortable with the person or event at hand, without warning, the author is onto someone else at another time. Further, although the book is well sourced, the vast majority of the sources are secondary- never a good sign from a historian. By the time he reached the Balkan Wars of the early 20th Century, it seems that the author had gotten tired of analysis because there is no analysis of the wars to speak of. Instead, there is a play by play of seemingly every shot fired in both wars which, in the reader's opinion, was unnecessary and made the book drag. At the end of a book, a wedding in Sarajevo is recounted, perhaps to hold out hope for a brighter future in the countries of the Balkan. But it is done without conviction because as the author tells us, over and over again, he sees only more bloodshed and war in the future. There have to be better books on this subject than this one.
September 8, 2012
A nice collection of counterpoints to works such as "Heavenly Serbia". Some might consider it as the "Greek viewpoint" in defense of Serbs. However, calling Greek revolutionary heroes such as the Souliotes as "Christian Albanians" won't win him any fans among hardcore Greek nationalists. So there is at least an attempt to be objective here.
May 20, 2017
This is a hard book to categorize. At times it seems to be a general history which jumps back and forth through the centuries, at other times an investigation into folk literature, at others an examination of crime, and, finally, a blow-by-blow account of a war. All in all, if you are looking for information about the latest, 1990s, Balkan War, you could end up disappointed; I had expected that that is what this book was about when I began, but quickly determined that that was not the case - but I was happy for that, because the earlier history of the Balkans is far more interesting and yet almost impossible to find.
However, while there are times when this book is very enjoyable - that is, the discussion of history ranging from around 1200-1850 - the rest of the book is quite boring. The penultimate chapter (including the epilogue) is merely a blow-by-blow account of the Balkan war of the early 1900s. This chapter would better have been removed; were I to rate the rest of the book, I'd give it a 4-star, but this one damages the whole.
Considering the history of the Balkans, one must ask oneself: What have they contributed to humankind? History is the record of both the crimes, follies, and errors of humanity, as well as humanity's achievements. But there seems to be far more crime, folly, and error in the Balkans than anywhere else in the world, while also almost no achievement. And my god, those crimes! Little children running around the streets with guns and knives, killing anybody of the wrong ethnicity upon whom they cross; militants setting fire to a city, killing hundreds of thousands of people; an Ecumenical Patriarch being set loose on the crowd to be torn to pieces, literally. And the most shameful, at least so far as the rest of Europe must be concerned, is that the Dutch, French, Brits, Italians, and Americans were each present at various points, witnessing but taking no part whatsoever in stopping or ameliorating, these indescribably evil atrocities. That in itself is a great evil upon the "Great Powers".
However, while there are times when this book is very enjoyable - that is, the discussion of history ranging from around 1200-1850 - the rest of the book is quite boring. The penultimate chapter (including the epilogue) is merely a blow-by-blow account of the Balkan war of the early 1900s. This chapter would better have been removed; were I to rate the rest of the book, I'd give it a 4-star, but this one damages the whole.
Considering the history of the Balkans, one must ask oneself: What have they contributed to humankind? History is the record of both the crimes, follies, and errors of humanity, as well as humanity's achievements. But there seems to be far more crime, folly, and error in the Balkans than anywhere else in the world, while also almost no achievement. And my god, those crimes! Little children running around the streets with guns and knives, killing anybody of the wrong ethnicity upon whom they cross; militants setting fire to a city, killing hundreds of thousands of people; an Ecumenical Patriarch being set loose on the crowd to be torn to pieces, literally. And the most shameful, at least so far as the rest of Europe must be concerned, is that the Dutch, French, Brits, Italians, and Americans were each present at various points, witnessing but taking no part whatsoever in stopping or ameliorating, these indescribably evil atrocities. That in itself is a great evil upon the "Great Powers".
August 3, 2026
"When defining truth within the Balkan context, and by extension, distinguishing the myriad shades of meaning underwriting Balkan history, we must remember that truth was a luxury limited to those with power." -93
A great introduction piece to the history of the Balkans, I was just shocked that the ending note brought up the solution of economic peacekeeping without further development on how that could possibly look and work beyond more European powers meddling in the Balkans. I don't think it's a bad suggestion, but given the many historic and contemporary examples Gerolymatos cited about European (and US/Russia) meddlings in the Balkans for personal gain, I would have liked a little more beyond the countries joining the European Union.
March 22, 2025
An interesting though awkwardly organized read. I was hoping for a continuation into the conflicts of 90s, so was sadly disappointed by their brief treatment in the epilogue. I felt the author also assumes of his readers a level of knowledge of the region that I didn’t quite have. In the end, while it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting, I still enjoyed the read.
November 23, 2024
Really interesting look at the rise, and fall of the Ottoman empire in relation to the Balkans. The heterogeneity of the population has caused this region to be unstable. Accounts like this might be able to prevent future turmoil. If only those in charge would study and learn.
September 21, 2019
Very rich with historical details, cultural knowledge, and different approaches to understanding the Balkans, but disorganized, making it extremely difficult to follow.
December 6, 2019
This is a great read. Perfect for research about the development of the culture of conflict in SE Europe and the cultural seeds of war that exist into today.
February 14, 2025
Amazingly comprehensive book on the balkans all the way back to the ottomans and all the way up to the breakup of yugoslavia. I especially liked the fear of rabbits from greek bandits.
October 1, 2019
This is more of a social history of the Balkan Wars. I'm not sure why it's labeled as beyond the twentieth century, as it stops after the Second Balkan War. It's not an in-depth historical look, but more of an overall painting of the various social factors that were in play. He spends a lot of time detailing the various legends that influenced the Balkan nationalities, and also describing the influence of the robber society on the economy, the governments, and the peasants.
September 9, 2016
Skipping around the last 500 years or so of history in a region that spent more than its fair share trying to fit multiple ethnic groups into limited amount of space and governments, Gerolymatos makes the case that the warfare we saw in the 1990s was rooted in ancient enmities between peoples who all had plenty of reasons to seek revenge. It's not a straight-forward history book, nor a simple analytical one, either. Instead, it zooms into details on the reasons for the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand in 1914, on the role of the Great Powers in the many revolutions in the Balkans over the years, and on the battle details of the 1912-1913 Balkan Wars. It's a challenge for me to keep all the place names straight, but I learned more about the other side of the story from the Ottoman Empire history I read a few weeks ago.
October 7, 2015
I give this book a solid 3.5. It really was a fascinating look at how memory can replace history and how myth is built up over time. It is also an incredibly depressing book. My Grandma's family came from the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the Balkans have been in near-constant warfare. Statistics get mind-numbing after a while. One of my problems is a personal quirk, but I prefer some order, whether chronological or by region. Also, the author looked at several wars over the history in the Balkans, but really only goes into detail of the last one.
November 30, 2015
A fine little book about the Balkan wars, but more importantly for me, about the context: why are these states so damn troublesome. An economically challenged past for all of the states with ethnic/religious communities swirled together. And even the Ottoman Empire's tolerance exacerbated or encouraged discord once they were gone.
Sometimes the facts overwhelm a clear view of the explication of why the region is like it is. Some explanation about particular battles or events doesn't tie off to finish the analysis. But by and large, a perfect book to understand the region.
Sometimes the facts overwhelm a clear view of the explication of why the region is like it is. Some explanation about particular battles or events doesn't tie off to finish the analysis. But by and large, a perfect book to understand the region.
August 21, 2007
As much as I like to think I don't have a bias when it comes to the wars in the former Yugoslav republics, this books gives a face to Serbia and Serbians that I can appreciate. It is a bit "fact"-heavy for those not particularly enraptured by non-fiction but a phenomenal resource for those studying the region, past and present.
September 21, 2014
This one was ok. I thought that the coverage of the topics was superficial and could have been done at much more depth. The author assumes the reader has much more understanding of the periods discussed since there is little coverage of them. Overall I believe the author tried to cover too much of a time period in one setting hence my points about depth. Overall an average for me.
October 4, 2014
Very interesting history of the Balkans. Gives a lot of background to the Balkan wars and puts the tensions and overlapping claims into context. However, I found it to be poorly organized as it kept jumping back and forth in history.
June 30, 2014
The matters of Balkan war in this book has been explained quiet well, although the timeline is pretty messed up so it could be a bit confusing. But overall, this book is okay, after reading the book, you'll understand how the conflict in Balkan is complicated to explain in the first place.
January 2, 2023
brutal
The history of this area especially once the Ottomans and the Muslim faith entered and thereby exacerbated an already volatile environment. This book covers this in depth and is very informative. Definitely worth a read if this area is new to you.
The history of this area especially once the Ottomans and the Muslim faith entered and thereby exacerbated an already volatile environment. This book covers this in depth and is very informative. Definitely worth a read if this area is new to you.
January 26, 2017
I needed to start curing my raging ignorance on issues related to the Balkans, and this book helped with that. The vast historical perspective is helpful. In my opinion it only started to drag during the blow-by-blow account of the Balkan Wars in 1912-13, which fortunately was at the end.
November 4, 2010
This book will give you an understanding of the causes and effects of The Balkan Wars.
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August 11, 2011Ever wonder how the balkan issues look to a pure greek eye? What they teach kids in greece? Be sure of as much shit as they teach in Turkey. Read it all here.
June 9, 2014
Very confusing. Lacks structure. Good description of the siege of Constantinople, good description how the Ottomans conquered the Balkans and how they installed the millet system.
February 5, 2021
Surprisingly readable if not a little dry in stretches, and filled with rich history on the region's tumultuous times.
January 2, 2014
Dobra knjiga
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