Владан Ђорђевић и Ивањдански атентат

Abstract

Рад представља анализу политичког деловања Владана Ђорђевића у време настанка личног режима из октобра 1897, као и преглед догађаја везаних за Ивањдански атентат из 1899. године. Посебно поглавље посвећено је настанку разних репресивних механизама у Србији, устројених ради заштите династије Обреновића. Реч је о институцијама попут преког суда и политичке полиције, основаних током 1899. године. Тумачење сложених маневара Владана Ђорђевића, као и његових покушаја да очува своје политичке позиције дистанцирањем од прекомерне употребе силе над ухапшеним радикалима, централни је део овог рада. Завршно поглавље посвећено је контроверзном наслеђу Октобарског режима, као и реакцијама домаће књижевности, која је у Ђорђевићевом репресивном режиму нашла плодан материјал за најбоља дела наше сатиричке прозе. Радило се о оштрој критици једног насилног политичког поретка, који се заснивао на страху, удвориштву и доушништву, као и на разгранатој мрежи агената-провокатора.

Vladan Đorđević’s regime was established in October 1897. It was an ambitious attempt at returning to autocracy in Serbia, and at the same time it was an attack on the already weakened Radical Party. His regime reached its highest achievement in 1898, when, after scoring a complete triumph in the parliamentary elections, many institutions were shut down, which guaranteed the freedom of public speech, party association, as well as municipal self-government. With its new program, the government sought to completely exclude the Radicals from political life, as well as to permanently establish the dominance of the royal court in the political life of the country. From the outside, the October regime seemed stable and secure. However, the sudden assassination attempt against King Milan in Belgrade downtown in mid-1899, spotlighted the actual weakness of the regime. Court-martial and a state of emergency, which were soon introduced, failed to consolidate the power. On the contrary, mass police arrests and threats of retaliation against the Radicals made by the royal court only weakened the regime’s position in the eyes of European public opinion. At the same time, foreign diplomats put strong pressure on the Serbian royal court to abandon extreme measures, especially carrying out death sentences on the Radicals. The fact that the investigation failed to establish the guilt of the assassinator and additional repressive measures only deepened the crisis that threatened to cause the fall of Đorđević’s cabinet. The solution was found in an unusual compromise, for which credit went to the new Minister of Interior, Đorđe Genčić. On that occasion, he had recourse to artifice and deception to extort a written confession from Nikola Pašić, as the main suspect. Having been subjected to threat and intimidation, the leader of Radicals publicly admitted the alleged responsibility for antidynastic conduct of some members of the Radical Party before Court-martial. It was a rigged trial, but also a great success of the royal court shrinking from no means to avoid the crisis of government and the consequences for the Obrenović dynasty. Nevertheless, these semi measures were not enough for the regime, and it soon established the secret political police, in charge of setting up surveillance on the real and imaginary enemies of the dynasty. Many denunciators and agents-provocateurs cruised Serbia, spreading fear and mistrust among the citizens. Even though Đorđević stood aside during the investigation, he still did not escape the deserved criticism of the Serbian public, given that he headed a very unpopular regime. His sudden fall ensued in mid-1900, after the announcement of King Aleksandar’s engagement to the former court lady Draga Mašin. The unexpected turn of events forced all members of Đorđević’s cabinet to offer their resignation. Đorđević was remembered as a supporter of extremely reactionary and undemocratic ways of government. His later attempts to justify at least to some extent his own participation in the regime of the last Obrenovićs were doomed to failure. On the contrary, his regime served as an inspiration to an entire generation of Serbian satirists, who subjected his government to thorough criticism. Vladan Đorđević’s regime soon became a synonym for a difficult and authoritarian order, as that emerging in Serbia at the turn of the 20th century.