Pregledni rad
https://doi.org/10.22586/csp.v56i2.34179
Ante Trumbić as Head of the Croatian Peasant Party (July 1933 – December 1934)
Frano Bilić
; Split, Hrvatska
Sažetak
In 1931, the 67-year-old Ante Trumbić joined the Croatian Peasant Party (Croatian: Hrvatska seljačka stranka – HSS). Although he was in his later years, Trumbić’s rich political experience (as chief of the WWI Yugoslav Committee and Minister of Foreign Affairs, to name but a few of his positions), proved to be a vital HSS asset during the long years of King Aleksandar’s dictatorship. Trumbić’s established political significance together with the fact that he was the mastermind behind the party’s political platform called the Zagreb Points, led to his rapid rise through the party ranks, eventually becoming a regular member of the HSS leadership. Trumbić’s political abilities and personal integrity were put to test in 1933, when the party president Vladko Maček was sentenced to a 3-year-long term of imprisonment under the trumped-up charges of advocating separatist ideas. Following Maček’s decision, Trumbić became his substitute, i.e. temporary party leader which was a huge deal considering his relatively short involvement with HSS. During his time as HSS leader, Trumbić was met with multiple challenges coming from both outside and within the party. The proposals/threats of the dictator King Aleksandar were all met with a simple and unwavering response that can be paraphrased as „no deal until Maček is set free”, thus continuing the „policy of passivity” which had been the key HSS doctrine since the proclamation of the dictatorship in 1929. The insistence on passivity in regards towards the regime in Belgrade was also the main „stumbling block” with the HSS's coalition partner SDS (English: Independent Democratic Party) whose leaders wanted to move to a more active negotiation position, calling into question even the federalist premise of the Zagreb Points. These ideas were out of the question for Trumbić whose unwillingness to compromise kept HSS out of any reckless combinations during his leadership. Eventually, problems arose even among high-ranking party members, such as August Košutić and Juraj Krnjević, who were not enthusiastic about Trumbić's role as Maček's replacement. A far more serious threat came from Vladimir Radić, the son of the late HSS president Stjepan Radić, who expressed his intention to replace Maček as the new party leader. Despite the challenges, Trumbić succeeded in maintaining stability in the party until Maček’s release. That, along with the Zagreb Points, was Trumbić’s greatest achievement in HSS.
Ključne riječi
Ante Trumbić; Vladko Maček; Aleksandar Karađorđević; Kingdom of Yugoslavia; Croatian Peasant Party; dictatorship
Hrčak ID:
326058
URI
Datum izdavanja:
31.12.2024.
Posjeta: 0 *