Herzegovina Uprising (1875-1878)

Herzegovina Uprising (1875-1878)

The Herzegovina Uprising of 1875-1878 (Serbo-Croatian: Hercegovački ustanak, Serbian Cyrillic: Херцеговачки устанак) was an uprising led by Serbs against the Ottoman Empire, firstly in Herzegovina (hence its name) and then in Bosnia. It is the most significant of the rebellions against Ottoman rule in Herzegovina. The uprising was precipitated by the harsh treatment under the beys and aghas of the Ottoman province of Bosnia.

The reforms announced by the Turkish Sultan Abdülmecid I, involving new rights for Christian subjects, a new basis for army conscription, and an end to the much-hated system of tax-farming, were either resisted or ignored by the powerful Bosnian landowners. They frequently resorted to more repressive measures against their Christian subjects. The tax burden on Christian peasants constantly increased. Over 200,000 Christian fugitives was a result of Turkish and Bosnian Muslim atrocities in 1877.

The rebels were aided with weapons and volunteers of Montenegro and Serbia which led to the Serb-Turkish War and Great Eastern Crisis. A result of the uprisings and wars was the Berlin Congress in 1878, which gave Montenegro and Serbia independence and territorial expansion, while Austro-Hungary occupied Bosnia and Herzegovina for 30 years, while being de jure Ottoman territory.