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This article is about the history of the Balkan country which now refers to itself as the "Republic of Macedonia", known internationally as the "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia". For history of the wider Macedonian region, of which the Republic of Macedonia forms only a small part, see Macedonia.

1912-1944

The valley of the river Vardar, which was later to become the central area of the Republic of Macedonia, was ruled by the Ottoman Empire prior to the First Balkan War of 1912. It was captured by Serbia during that war and was subsequently annexed to Serbia in the post-war peace treaties. It had no administrative autonomy and was called Južna Srbija ("Southern Serbia") or Stara Srbija ("Old Serbia").

After the First World War, the Kingdom of Serbia joined the newly formed Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. In 1929, the kingdom was officially renamed Yugoslavia and divided into provinces called banovina. The territory of the modern Republic of Macedonia became a part of the Province of Vardar (Vardarska Banovina).

During World War II, the Province of Vardar was occupied between 1941 and 1944 by Italian-ruled Albania, which annexed the Albanian-populated western regions, and pro-German Bulgaria, which occupied the remainder. The occupying powers imposed a harsh regime on the province's inhabitants, which prompted many of them to join the Communist resistance movement of Josip Broz Tito.

1944-1949

Following World War II, Yugoslavia was reconstituted as a federal state under the leadership of Tito's Yugoslav Communist Party. When the former Vardar province was liberated in 1944, most of it was made into a separate republic while the northernmost parts of the province remained with Serbia. In 1946, the new republic was given federal status as an autonomous "People's Republic of Macedonia" within the new Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. In the 1963 Constitution of Yugoslavia it was slightly renamed, to bring it into line with the other Yugoslav republics, as the "Socialist Republic of Macedonia".

Greece was offended by the Yugoslav government's actions. It had its own province of Macedonia around Thessaloniki and believed that Tito was attempting to make claims on Greek territory. The Yugoslav authorities also promoted the development of the Macedonian ethnic identity and Macedonian language. This angered both Greece and Bulgaria; the Greeks considered the name "Macedonians" to be exclusively associated with the Greek nation, and the Bulgarians considered the Macedonians to be part of the Bulgarian nation rather than a distinct ethnic group in their own right.

During the Greek Civil War (1944-1949), many Macedonians (regardless of ethnicity) participated in the ELAS resistance movement organized by the Greek Communist Party. ELAS and Yugoslavia were on good terms until 1949, when they split due to Tito's lack of allegiance to Stalin (cf. Cominform). After the end of the war, the ELAS fighters who took refuge in southern Yugoslavia and Bulgaria were not all permitted to return to Greece: only those who considered themselves Greeks were allowed, whereas those who considered themselves Bulgarians or Macedonians were barred. These events also contributed to the bad state of Yugoslav-Greek relations in Macedonia.

1990s

On September 17, 1991, the former Socialist Republic of Macedonia declared independence from Yugoslavia, under the name of the Republic of Macedonia. Bulgaria was the first country to recognize the Republic of Macedonia under its constitutional name. However, international recognition of the new country was delayed by Greece's objection to the use of what it considered a Hellenic name and national symbols, as well as controversial clauses in the Republic's constitution. To compromise, the United Nations recognised the state under the name of the "Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia" in 1993.

Greece was still dissatisfied and it imposed a trade blockade in February 1994. The sanctions were lifted in September 1995 after the Republic of Macedonia changed its flag and the constitution. The two countries agreed to normalize relations but the state's name remains a source of local and international controversy. The usage of each name remains controversial to supporters of the other.

After the state was admitted to the United Nations under the temporary reference "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia", other international organisations adopted the same convention. Slightly more than half of the UN's member states have recognised the country as the Republic of Macedonia, while the rest use the temporary reference "the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia". A permanent agreement in Greece on the Republic of Macedonia's name has not yet been reached.

In 1999, the Kosovo War led to nearly 400,000 Albanian refugees from Kosovo fleeing into the Republic of Macedonia, greatly disrupting normal life in the region and threatening to upset the balance between Macedonians and Albanians. Refugee camps were set up in the Republic of Macedonia and Greek Macedonia was used as a transit corridor for NATO forces moving to the region ahead of a possible invasion of Serbia. The Republic itself did not become involved in the conflict.

In the event, Serbian president Slobodan Milošević capitulated and the refugees were allowed home under UN protection. However, the war increased tensions across the region. Relations between Ethnic Macedonians and Albanian Macedonians became strained, while in Greece the overwhelming popular opposition to the war led to a strong reaction against NATO and the United States in particular.

2000s

In the spring of 2001, ethnic Albanian rebels calling themselves the National Liberation Army (some of whom were former members of the Kosovo Liberation Army) took up arms in the west of the Republic of Macedonia. They demanded that the constitution be rewritten to enshrine certain ethnic Albanian interests such as language rights. The guerillas received support from Albanians in NATO-controlled Kosovo and ethnic Albanian guerrillas in the demilitarized zone between Kosovo and the rest of Serbia. The fighting was concentrated in and around Tetovo, the second largest city in the republic.

After a joint NATO-Serb crackdown on Albanian guerillas in Kosovo, European Union (EU) officials were able to negotiate a cease-fire in June. The government would give ethnic Albanians greater civil rights, and the guerilla groups would voluntarily relinquish their weapons to NATO monitors. This agreement was a success, and in August 2001 3,500 NATO soldiers conducted "Operations Essential Harvest" to retrieve the arms. Directly after the operation finished in September, the NLA officially dissolved itself. Ethnic relations have since improved significantly, although hardliners on both sides have been a continued cause for concern and some low level violence continues particularly directed against police.

On February 26, 2004, President Boris Trajkovski died in a plane crash on the territory of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The results of the official investigation revealed that the cause of the plane accident was procedural mistakes by the crew, committed during the approach to land at Mostar airport.

In March 2004, the Republic of Macedonia submitted an application for membership of the EU. On December 17th, 2005 EU Presidency conclusions enlisted Republic of Macedoina as an accession candidate. It is expected that the EU will announce in late 2006 the date for EU accession negotiations.

See also

• Republic of Macedonia
• Yugoslavia
• History of the Balkans
• History of Europe

• Macedonian history
• History of Europe