SIGNIFICANCE OF THE COAL MINES OF PÉCS IN THE POLITICS OF THE KINGDOM OF SERBS, CROATS AND SLOVENES FROM 1918 TO 1921

Abstract

An interpretation of the historical significance of the coal mines of Pécs in the politics of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes from 1918 to 1921. The topic is addressed in Yugoslav and post-Yugoslav historiography. However, no comprehensive analysis of the question has been published to date. Furthermore, some of the interpretations and hypotheses presented are incorrect, either because of inadequate contextualisation or because of flawed interpretations of the problem’s origins. Most importantly, previous research has overlooked the connection between the economic interests of the Kingdom in the mines and the policies which it implemented in Baranja from 1919 onwards, besides its unlikely cooperation with the Socialists and Communists of Pécs, until the episode in which the so-called Baranja Republic was proclaimed. Accordingly, the aims of the present research are to delineate precisely the context of the question, to reinterpret some of the existing hypotheses, and to analyse the connections between representatives of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and political circles in Pécs. Attempts by the Yugoslav state to maintain control of the mines and their operations — despite the decisions of the Paris Peace Conference of (1919-1920) and pressure by the Allied powers for military and civilian authorities to be withdrawn from those parts of Baranja which had been assigned to Hungary under the terms of Trianon — provoked an international scandal and corresponding loss of face for the Kingdom, particularly among the populace of Baranja.