Glancing at the Troubled History of Pale
Many people have described Pale as being on the crossroads of the East and West. That much is certainly true, and it is what helped trade thrive in Pale at various points of time.
Unfortunately, this strategic location has been as much a bane as it is a blessing.
Over the years, Pale has had to endure many hardships – and has often ended up being occupied throughout the course of history.
In the Middle Ages, Pale was ruled by the Pavlovic house of feudal Bosnia. Back then, it enjoyed a period of prosperous trade – but that began to end when the Bosnian King died. In the ensuing power struggle, the various houses pit themselves against each other, with some even reaching outside the country to gather support.
The Pavlovic house that ruled Pale asked the Ottoman Empire for help – and that turned out to truly be a grave error. Eventually, it culminated with the outright conquest of Bosnia by the Ottoman Empire.
From that point on, Pale and the rest of Bosnia would fall under the Ottoman’s domain for the hundreds of years!
It was only when the Ottoman Empire began to crumble that this would change. In 1878 the Berlin Congress was held, and it was decided there that Bosnia would be administered by Austria Hungary.
Some people consider this swapping one foreign ruler for another, but the fact of the matter is that Pale truly did prosper for a time under the administration of Austria Hungary. In fact, it is that administration that was largely responsible for introducing the lumber and logging trade to the area.
When World War I broke out, Pale once again ended up facing tough times. The Serbs and Montenegrins entered Pale but had to withdraw when the Austrians showed up in force. With the army went most of the local populace, and those who did not escape were sent to harsh detention camps.
After the war, Pale joined the newly formed Kingdom of Yugoslavia, but when World War II broke out it once again found itself occupied – this time by Nazi forces. During this time, there were a number of revolts, and even a massacre, all of which continued the troubled history of Pale.
In more recent times, the Bosnian War once again added a chapter to Pale’s troubled history. Being the administrative center for the Srpska Republic, Pale and its surrounding area saw many battles – and until recently some of the surrounding mountains still contained land mines!
Right now you should be starting to see just how much this one small town has had to endure over the years. Still, it has stood the test of time and remains to this day, a testament to its hardy nature.
Truly, there are few towns so small that have had such a large significance in history.
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on May 21 2011. Filed under About Pale, Pale History.
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