Free State of Fiume
45°21′11″N 14°26′34″E / 45.3531°N 14.4429°E
Free State of Fiume | |||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1920–1924 | |||||||||
Capital | Fiume (Rijeka) | ||||||||
Common languages | official Italian · Hungarian · German regional Venetian · Chakavian Croatian | ||||||||
Government | Republic | ||||||||
President | |||||||||
• 1921–22 | Riccardo Zanella | ||||||||
• 1922–23 | Giovanni Giuriati | ||||||||
Military Governor | |||||||||
• 1923–24 | Gaetano Giardino | ||||||||
Historical era | Interwar period | ||||||||
12 November 1920 | |||||||||
• Control established | 30 December 1920 | ||||||||
3 March 1922 | |||||||||
• Annexed by the Kingdom of Italy | 22 February 1924 | ||||||||
Currency | Fiume krone (until 1920) Italian lira (after 1920) | ||||||||
| |||||||||
Today part of | Croatia |
The Free State of Fiume (pronounced [ˈfjuːme]) was an independent free state that existed between 1920 and 1924. Its territory of 28 km2 (11 sq mi) comprised the city of Fiume (today Rijeka, Croatia) and rural areas to its north, with a corridor to its west connecting it to the Kingdom of Italy.
In the 19th century, the city was populated mostly by Italians, and as minorities by Croats and Hungarians, and other ethnicities. National affiliations changed from census to census, as at that time "nationality" was defined mostly by the language a person spoke. The special status of the city, being placed between different states, created a local identity among the majority of the population.[citation needed] The official languages in use were Italian, Hungarian, and German; most of the business correspondence was carried out in Italian, while most families spoke a local dialect, a blend of Venetian with a few words of Croatian.[1] In the countryside outside the city, a particular kind of Croatian Chakavian dialect with many Italian and Venetian words was spoken.[2]
Politics
After World War I and the demise of Austria-Hungary, the question of the status of Fiume became a major international problem. At the height of the dispute between the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later called Kingdom of Yugoslavia) and the Kingdom of Italy, the Great Powers (the United Kingdom, France and the United States) advocated the establishment of an independent buffer state. U.S. President Woodrow Wilson became the arbiter in the Yugoslav–Italian dispute over the city.[3] He suggested that Fiume be set up as an independent state, and indeed as the potential home for the League of Nations organisation.[4]
The dispute led to lawlessness, and the city changed hands between a South-Slav National Committee and an
On 12 November 1920, the Kingdom of Italy and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes signed the Treaty of Rapallo by which both parties agreed to acknowledge "the complete freedom and independence of the State of Fiume and oblige to respect it in perpetuity".[5] With this act the eternal "Free State of Fiume" was created, which, it turned out, would exist as an independent state for about four years. The newly created state was immediately recognized by the U.S., France and the United Kingdom. D'Annunzio refused to acknowledge the Agreement and was expelled from the city by the regular forces of the Italian Army, in the "Bloody Christmas" actions from 24 to 30 December 1920.[6]
In April 1921, the electorate approved the plan for a free state and for a consortium to run the port.[7] The first parliamentary elections were held, contested between the autonomists and the pro-Italian National Bloc. The Autonomist Party, which was supported by votes from the majority of the Croats, gained 6,558 votes, while the National Bloc, composed of Fascist, Liberal and Democratic parties, received 3,443 votes. The leader of the Autonomist Party, Riccardo Zanella, became the President.
Control over the Free State was in an almost constant state of flux. Following the departure of d'Annunzio's troops in December 1920, the Italian National Council of Fiume re-assumed control and appointed a provisional government. A pact with the local Italian commander handed control to the military on 18 January 1921.
A group of d'Annunzio loyalists seized part of the town until they were in turn pushed out in September. In October the autonomist
After the proclamation of the Rapallo Treaty, the
On 27 January 1924, the Kingdom of Italy and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes signed the
Aftermath
With the surrender of Italy in the
The
See also
- Italian Regency of Carnaro
- Charter of Carnaro
- Province of Fiume
- List of governors and heads of state of Fiume
- Postage stamps and postal history of Fiume
- TIGR
- Free Territory of Trieste
- Free City of Danzig
References
- ^ Il nuovo Samani: Dizionario del dialetto fiumano (Rome: Società di Studi Fiumani, 2007)
- ^ I. Lukežić: Trsatsko-bakarska i crikvenička čakavština. Izdavački centar Rijeka, Rijeka 1996.
- ^ Harold G. Nicolson, Peacemaking, 1919 [permanent dead link]
- ^ Ljubinka Toševa-Karpowicz, D'Annunzio u Rijeci : mitovi, politika i uloga masonerije, Rijeka, Izdavački centar Sušak, Biblioteka Dokumenti; sv. 23, 2007. The author, however, does not quote any source for this claim.
- ^ Treaty of Rapallo, Article 4
- ^ International Law Reports by H. Lauterpacht, C. J. Greenwood, p. 430
- ^ Adrian Webb, Routledge Companion to Central and Eastern Europe Since 1919
- ^ International Law Reports by H. Lauterpacht, C. J. Greenwood, pp. 430–431
- ^ Mihael Sobolevski, Luciano Giuricin, Il Partito Comunista di Fiume, (1921–1924): Documenti-Građa, Centro di ricerche storiche Rovigno, Fiume: Centar za historiju radničkog pokreta i NOR-a Istre, 1982, pp. 20–21.
- ^ League of Nations Treaty Series, vol. 24, pp. 32–89.
- ^ Massagrande, Danilo L., Italia e Fiume 1921–1924: dal 'Natale di sangue' all'annessione, Milano, Cisalpino – Goliardica Istituto Editoriale, 1982.
- ^ Liburnia was the designation of the region in Antiquity.
- ^ Plovanić, Mladen: Liburnisti i autonomaši 1943–1944, Dometi god. XIII. br. 3-4-5, pp. 51–54 and nr. 6, pp. 68–96, Rijeka 1980.
- ^ Ballarini, Amleto. L’antidannunzio a Fiume – Riccardo Zanella, Trieste: Edizioni Italo Svevo, 1995.
- ^ E.Primeri, La questione di Fiume dal 1943 al 1945, Rigocamerano 2001 Archived 7 September 2008 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ M.Dassovich, 1945–1947, anni difficili (...), Del Bianco 2005
- ^ G. Rumici, Infoibati (1943–1945): i nomi, i luoghi, i testimoni, i documenti, Mursia 2002
- ^ Treaty of Peace with Italy, Signed in Paris, on 10 February 1947, Part I, Section I, Article 3, La frontiere entre l'Italie et la Yougoslavie.
Further reading
- Reill, Dominique Kirchner. The Fiume Crisis: Life in the Wake of the Habsburg Empire (2020) online review[dead link]
External links
- (in English) The Charter of Carnaro
Works related to Constitution of Fiume at Wikisource