Attempts of self-presentation and introspection of the political elite representatives of the Principality of Montenegro (to the question on peculiarities of political culture of Montenegrins at the turn of the XIX – XX centuries)

Abstract

History of the Principality of Montenegro, proclaimed after several centuries of consistent struggle with the Ottoman Empire, was quite short. As an independent state, it existed from 1878 to 1918. The reasons are explained by the political culture and level of professional qualifications of the Montenegrin elite, which had to resolve most difficult challenges dictated by the delayed and accelerated modernization of the country. The goal of this article consists in determination of significant characteristics of the Montenegrin ruling class, which substantiate the successes and failures of the principality. Two most prominent Montenegrin politicians of this time, Crown Prince Nicholas of Montenegro and Foreign Minister Gavro Vuković attempted to assess the results that were achieved, as well as their role in the political processes. A comparative analysis carried out on their narrative heritage, assessments given by the contemporaries, and archival materials led to the conclusion that the supreme leaders of Montenegro to the fullest extent possessed the qualities that were inherent to the people as a whole. Political culture of the Montenegrins, which has not previously become the subject of research within the Russian science, remained patriarchal and retained vestiges of tribal structure that impeded establishment of the state of modern type. Several centuries of hostile encirclement and permanent war, put the Montenegrins noticeably behind with regards to the development of education. Therefore, there was a severe shortage of managerial human resources. The low level of professional competence of the elite was compensated by placing emphasis on the military past and traditional values. However, the excessive warlike attitude led to reassessment of their powers, mismanagement with regards to domestic and foreign policy, as well as impeded the development of statehood of Montenegro. The acquired results may be valuable for culturologists and political scientists as the empirical material for studying such complicated concept as the political culture.