The border between the Venetian Republic and the Austrian Empire around 1800
The border that until 1797 divided the Venetian and Austrian territories dates back to the Worms Contract from 1521 between Emperor Charles V of Habsburg and Doge Leonardo Loredano, and will last until the collapse of the Venetian state.
The main feature of the border is the presence of some important enclaves along the western coast of the Adriatic, which broke through the territorial continuity of the two countries.
The northern part of the border followed the Carniolan Alps including the valleys of the Degano, Collina, But and Pontebbana rivers, then twisted towards the city of Pontebba to the Julian Alps, and then after a ridge to the south with the peaks of Cergnala, Kanina, reached the Matajur mountain. The territory of the Venetian Republic after the break in the Trieste area expanded in the northeastern part of the Adriatic with the larger (coastal) part of the Istrian coast and the islands of Kvarner.
The Pazin County (inner central part of Istria) remained under the rule of the Counts of Gorizia until 1516, when, by inheritance, it passed into the possession of Austria.
In the mid-18th century, several attempts to regulate and simplify the border in the area of Gorica and Udine gave no result, except for solving the border markings. After the general Treaty between Austria and Venice signed in Gorica in 1756, a minimum exchange of territory was finally agreed, as well as an agreement on occasional border surveillance.
In the northeastern Adriatic, the Kingdom of Croatia, which was part of the Hungarian component of the Habsburg Monarchy, borders the south of the region with Venice Dalmatia, while the city of Rijeka has a special status, as a free port since 1719, and was recognized as a Corpus separatum adnexum under the rule of the Hungarian crown by Maria Theresa in 1779.
The Age of Napoleon
The Arrival of the French Army Napoleon Bonaparte On the territory of northern Italy, the defeat of Austria and the signing of the Treaty of Campoformid (17 October 1797), causes the disappearance of the Republic of Venice and stops the further expansion of the Habsburgs in Venice, Istria and Dalmatia.
The boundaries change again in 1805. After the defeat of Austria; the peace signed in Bratslava (Pressburg), allows all conquered territories to be added to the Kingdom of Italy under Napoleon's administration. The border between Austria and the Kingdom of Italy follows the course of the Soča River and then continues along the old Venetian border. New changes were made in 1809 with the establishment of Napoleon's the Illyrian Provinces . After Napoleon's defeat in 1813 at the Battle of Leipzig, the Habsburgs took control of the Illyrian provinces, and in 1816 they founded in their territory the Kingdom of Illyria.
Austrian Littoral, 1815 1918-1918
the Austrian Littoral As an administrative Austrian province, it was founded after the Congress of Vienna (1815) marked the end of Napoleon's previous territorial organization called the Illyrian Provinces.
In addition to the complex and time-consuming process of integration between the Austrian hereditary territories (Gorica, Trieste, Istria with its internal territory and headquarters in Pazin, Rijeka) and the territories that once belonged to the Venetian Republic (the coasts of Istria, Monfalcone, Grado), between 1814 and 1860 the Austrian authorities finally defined the administrative borders of the Austrian Littoral (or simply the Coast).
In the years 1861-1918, three autonomous units were formed from a political-administrative point of view:
– City of Trieste (has had autonomy since 1825);
– Kneževskogrofovija Gorica and Gradiška , with their administrative seat in Gorica;
– Markgrofovija Istria , based in Pula.
Since 1867. The Habsburg monarchy received a new constitutional order with a division into the Austrian Empire and the Hungarian Kingdom. The Austrian littoral belonged to the Austrian part of the Monarchy (as part of Carinthia and Carniola), while Croatia and the autonomous city of Rijeka became part of Hungary.
Treaty of London 1915.
Treaty of London is a secret alliance agreement between Great Britain, France, Russia and Italy, to which Italy accedes with the promise of entering into war with the Central Powers. The Treaty provides for territorial compensation in favour of Italy to the detriment of Austria-Hungary: Trentno and South Tyrol (Alto Adige), Trieste, Gorica, Istria and Dalmatia, but excludes Rijeka.
The agreement also envisions Italian participation in the partition of Albania and the possible partition of Turkey as well as German colonies in Africa.
Borders after the First World War in 1918
https://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rapalski_ugovorIn November 1918, after the end of the First World War, the Habsburg Monarchy ceased to exist and new states were formed in its territories, including Hungary and Yugoslavia (then called: Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, or Kingdom of S.H.S. for short). The definition of the new borders between Austria and Italy was finally established at the Paris peace conference. Treaty of St. Germain (09.10.1919). The Treaty of Rapallo (12.11.1920) regulates the border between Italy and the Kingdom of S.H.S.
Italy renounced the annexation of Dalmatia (with the exception of the city of Zadar and its immediate surroundings), but conquered all other territories provided for by the Treaty of London. Negotiations lasted more than a year because of Italy's intransigence and ambition to appropriate the entire former territory inhabited by Italian minorities, although the prevailing population was of Slavic origin.
Even after the US president's proposal, the difficulties have not been overcome. Woodrow Wilson 's, about the border line based on the ethnic structure of the population (Wilson line) and because of the increasing tendency of British, French and American diplomacy to yield to Italian demands ended up unfavorably for the Kingdom of S.H.S.
Boundary between 1924 and 1941
Further border changes in the northern Adriatic include the annexation of Rijeka to the Kingdom of Italy, in accordance with the Treaty of Rome.Treaty of Rome) January 27, 1924.11, between the Kingdom of Italy and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. Under the new agreement, part of the northern area of the Free State of Rijeka and the ports of Baross were ceded to Yugoslavia, while the area of the city and the small coastal strip were annexed to Italy.
The new acquisitions have led to changes in the administrative set-up of the Venezia-Giulia province; The province of Rijeka was founded in 1924, which consists of the territories annexed to Rijeka, as well as some municipalities that previously belonged to the province of Pula. More detailed maps from that period are part of the holdings of the Drenova Regional Museum and are exhibited in the museum's premises.
From 1924 to 1941 the border was unchanged, but neighboring countries changed their name and even ideological sign: Between 1929 and 1929, the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes became the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, while the Republic of Austria was annexed by the Third Reich in 1938 with the name Ostmark.
Province of Ljubljana, 1941
The attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia began on 6 April 1941. (Italy with its allies Germany, Hungary and Bulgaria), marked the next stage of Italian expansion to the east.
The Italian military occupation of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia was marked by a large territorial expansion, as on March 5, 1941, large parts of Slovenia and Dalmatia were annexed. The cities of Ljubljana, Novo Mesto and Kočevje, with most of Gorski Kotar, form “Italian” in addition to the previously occupied areas. the Province of Ljubljana.
German occupation in 1943. 1945
Since September 1943. Italy was no longer an occupying power in the northern Adriatic, German forces occupied northern Italy, thus excluding the provinces of Udine, Trieste, Gorica, Pula, Rijeka and Ljubljana from political and military control by the Italian authorities. the Italian Social Republic under the leadership of Benito Mussolini. The newly created German province ’Operational zone Adriatic coastIt is administered directly by the German authorities, headed by High Commissioner Friedrich Rainer.
Allied military operations and the liberation of Yugoslav territory (April-May 1945)
The final phase of the Second World War in the northern Adriatic lasted from April to May 1945, and was marked by a race of two groups of armies opposite the coast to larger urban centers: from the Balkans is IV. The Yugoslav Army advanced rapidly towards Trieste and Gorica, while the collapse of the Gothic Line on 19 April 945 enabled the strong advance of the Anglo-American forces, with strategic goals that were not limited only to northern Italy or Venezia-Giulia, but also to the territory of southern Austria and Germany.
Aided by the Partisan uprising against the forces of Nazi Germany, on 1 May the soldiers of the Fourth Army of Yugoslavia occupied Trieste, Gorica and the Soča Valley. British forces arrived in the same area on May 2. The control of the cities of Gorica and Trieste was left to the JNA, which arrived first, but some more precisely
No demarcations of allied armies have been made.
The Morgan Line
The division of territory between the victorious armies is defined as the Morgan Line. The first provisional agreement led to the division of the Venezia-Giulia area into two parts: the western part was assigned to the administration of the Anglo-American Army (zone A); and the eastern part was assigned to the administration of the Yugoslav Army (Zone B). Zone A is also the City of Pula with its surroundings.
This demarcation was confirmed at a meeting held in Belgrade on June 9, 1945 between representatives of Great Britain and the United States of America with the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Yugoslavia. The Belgrade agreement is a condition for Anglo-American control of the rail and road network from Trieste to Austria, and included the cities of Gorica, Caporeto and Tarvisio. The treaty became enforceable on 12 June 1945, when Yugoslav soldiers withdrew from Pula, Trieste, Gorica and further north along the left bank of Soca.
The demarcations agreed by the Morgan Line ended on 10 February 1947, with the conclusion of the Paris peace talks, and were definitively abandoned until 15 September 1947, when the new border was sealed.
Border lines proposed at the Paris Peace Conference (1946-1947)
On 10 February 1947 a treaty was signed in Paris establishing a new border between the Republic of Italy, the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia and the Republic of Austria.
Discussions during the negotiations focused on creating new frontier lines in favour of the winner of the war – Yugoslavia.
The most prone to punishing Italy were representatives of the Soviet Union who moved the border line far to the west (around the border from 1866), with the argument that these are areas with a significant share of the Slovenian population. The English and the Americans proposed border lines with similar arguments (the presence of the Italian population in the coastal area of Istria), but they predicted that the Italians would leave Rijeka and Zadar. The French proposal in the northern part followed the English proposal, while in the southern part it reduced the territory to the Mirna and Novigrad rivers. The Italian government proposed a border line that referred to the second proposal of US President Wilson in 1919, with the abandonment of Rijeka and Zadar. There was no change in the border between Italy and Austria.
Free Territory of Trieste (STT) 1947
At the proposal of France on the demarcation of 1946, it was formed on 15 September 1947. The Free Territory of Trieste, and it is envisaged that the Governor will be appointed by Italy and Yugoslavia, while the United Nations Security Council will guarantee territorial integrity and independence.
The agreement on the appointment of a joint governor was never implemented, and the Free Territory of Trieste was divided into two parts during its term: Zone A under the temporary administration of the Allied Military Government (AMC) and Zone B under the temporary administration of the Yugoslav Military Government (VUJA).
The London Memorandum (1954) and subsequent treaties
Among the conditions that led to the abolition of the Free Territory of Trieste, a key role should be attributed to the change of relations in the communist states of Eastern Europe; Especially in 1948, when relations between the Soviet Union and Yugoslavia broke down.
The new international scenario was a visibly different attitude of world powers interested in a lasting solution to border issues in the northern Adriatic. If in March 1948 Britain, the US and France were inclined to return the entire territory of the STT to Italy, after June (that is, the break in relations between Stalin and Tito) they no longer advocated such an opinion.
In Zone B, customs barriers with Yugoslavia were abolished and Yugoslav laws were introduced, stressing the intention of annexing the area. At the end of 1951 in Paris, a series of direct meetings was held between Italy and Yugoslavia, but no solution was reached.
A new escalation of the border conflict began in 1953. As a result of military pressure along the border, the authorities of the United States and Great Britain issued a statement of intent to withdraw their military units from Zone A of the Free Territory of Trieste (Two-Day Declaration of October 8, 1953), by which they urged the Italian side to reach a compromise solution, despite the large protests of the local population in Trieste in November 1953.
It was finally signed in London on 5 October 1954. Memorandum between Italy and Yugoslavia, according to which, with minor modifications in the municipality of Muggia, the Italian administration was assigned Zone A and the entire Zone B to the Yugoslav administration, which was operationally implemented in October 1954. The final outcome of the border issue between Yugoslavia and Italy has been resolved the Treaty of Osimo (11.10.1975), which marked the end of 20 years of uncertainty.
New Borders in the Northern Adriatic (1991-2013)
The formation of new states on the territory of Yugoslavia after 1991 did not result in changes of borders with the Republic of Italy or the Austrian Republic, but with the emergence of new states the interrepublican borders become state borders. Unfortunately, the border line between Croatia and Slovenia has not been fully established, and parts of Istria are the subject of a dispute before an international court, although it is actually a border line established back in 1954.
New significant changes in relations between the Northern Adriatic countries are related to the European Union, to which Italy (member since 1958 - European Economic Community), Austria (since 1 January 1995) and Slovenia (since 1 May 2004) belong.
Since 20 December 2007, the border between Italy and Slovenia has lost the character of a bureaucratic filter (the abolition of customs supervision and the removal of most of today's obstacles at border crossings (barriers, caraules, etc.).
Since 1 July 2013, the Republic of Croatia has also joined the European Union, making all the borders of the northern Adriatic countries the internal borders of the EU.
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