Miloš Trifunović (politician)
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Miloš Trifunović ( sr-Cyrl, Милош Трифуновић; 30 October 1871 – 19 February 1957), also known as Miša Trifunović, was a Serbian and Yugoslav Radical Party politician who held several important offices in the
Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 ...
and briefly served as the
Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...
of the
Yugoslav government-in-exile The Government of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in Exile ( sh, Vlada Kraljevine Jugoslavije u egzilu / Влада Краљевине Југославије у егзилу) was an official government of Yugoslavia, headed by King Peter II. It evacu ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. Before becoming a member of Parliament in 1903, he was a professor at Užice Gymnasium, a Serbian high school. During
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
, he was appointed the Minister of Education. During his tenure, he focused on improving the education of Serbs abroad. He served as the Minister of Education of Yugoslavia multiple times and also held several other ministerial positions. When King
Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
established a royal dictatorship in 1929, Trifunović was one of the leaders of the Radical Party who opposed the new regime. Two years after the establishment of the dictatorship, Trifunović participated in negotiations with the king. However, after the establishment of the
1931 Yugoslav Constitution The 1931 Yugoslav Constitution, also known as September Constitution or Octroic constitution, was the second and final Constitution of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. It was issued by decree on September 3. Background Article 76 of the Constitution ...
and the
Yugoslav National Party The Yugoslav National Party ( sh, Jugoslavenska nacionalna stranka, Југославенска национална странка, JNS; sl, Jugoslovanska nacionalna stranka), established as Yugoslav Radical Peasants' Democracy ( sh, Jugoslavensk ...
, Trifunović decided to remain in the opposition. He also participated in creating a joint document of condemnation of the regime by the major opposition parties. During World War II, Trifunović served as the Minister of Education of the Yugoslav government-in-exile between March 1941 and June 1943. On 26 June 1943, he was appointed Prime Minister. During his brief term, the government wanted to help the Chetniksthe
Serbian nationalist Serbian nationalism asserts that Serbs are a nation and promotes the cultural and political unity of Serbs. It is an ethnic nationalism, originally arising in the context of the general rise of nationalism in the Balkans under Ottoman rule, und ...
movement in
Axis An axis (plural ''axes'') is an imaginary line around which an object rotates or is symmetrical. Axis may also refer to: Mathematics * Axis of rotation: see rotation around a fixed axis * Axis (mathematics), a designator for a Cartesian-coordinat ...
-occupied Yugoslavia. The government developed a plan to create an army which would land in Yugoslavia, but this plan was rejected by the
Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
. After about a month, Trifunović resigned because of disputes between the Croat and Serb members of the government-in-exile. He returned to Yugoslavia in 1945, where he planned to run on a joint opposition ticket with
Milan Grol Milan Grol (12 September 1876 – 3 December 1952) was a Serbian literary critic, historian and politician. He was also director of the National Theatre of Serbia. Biography Milan Grol was born in Belgrade on 12 September 1876. He completed hi ...
, but they ended up boycotting the
elections An election is a formal group decision-making process by which a population chooses an individual or multiple individuals to hold Public administration, public office. Elections have been the usual mechanism by which modern representative ...
that year. Trifunović was arrested in 1947 on charges of espionage and was sentenced to eight years' imprisonment, but was released after serving two-and-a-half years. He died in Belgrade on 19 February 1957.


Early life

Trifunović was born in
Užice Užice ( sr-cyr, Ужице, ) is a city and the administrative centre of the Zlatibor District in western Serbia. It is located on the banks of the river Đetinja. According to the 2011 census, the city proper has a population of 59,747. The C ...
, where he completed his primary and secondary education. He graduated from the
Faculty of Philosophy A faculty is a division within a university or college comprising one subject area or a group of related subject areas, possibly also delimited by level (e.g. undergraduate). In American usage such divisions are generally referred to as colleges ...
of
Belgrade higher school The University of Belgrade ( sr, / ) is a public university in Serbia. It is the oldest and largest modern university in Serbia. Founded in 1808 as the Belgrade Higher School in revolutionary Serbia, by 1838 it merged with the Kragujevac-b ...
; afterward, he became a teacher at the Užice Gymnasium. In 1902, he was appointed as a professor of
zoology Zoology ()The pronunciation of zoology as is usually regarded as nonstandard, though it is not uncommon. is the branch of biology that studies the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and ...
and
botany Botany, also called , plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term "botany" comes from the Ancient Greek w ...
at the same school. He abandoned his career in education when he became a member of parliament of the Kingdom of Serbia in 1903.


Political career before the 6 January Dictatorship


Minister of Education of Serbia

On 30 June 1917, Trifunović was appointed as the Minister of Education and Religious Affairs, replacing the acting minister,
Momčilo Ninčić Momčilo Ninčić ( – 23 December 1949) was a Serbian and Yugoslav politician and economist, president of the League of Nations from 1926 to 1927. Early life and education Momčilo Ninčić was born in Jagodina on to Aaron and Paula Nin ...
, in Prime Minister
Nikola Pašić Nikola Pašić ( sr-Cyrl, Никола Пашић, ; 18 December 1845 – 10 December 1926) was a Serbian and Yugoslav politician and diplomat who was a leading political figure for almost 40 years. He was the leader of the People's Radical ...
's 10th Cabinet. In August 1917, the Serbian government-in-exile, headquartered on the island of Corfu, decided to open a Serbian school in
Volos Volos ( el, Βόλος ) is a coastal port city in Thessaly situated midway on the Greek mainland, about north of Athens and south of Thessaloniki. It is the sixth most populous city of Greece, and the capital of the Magnesia regional unit ...
. Trifunović ordered 30 teachers to be withdrawn from the army to teach at the new school. He also dispatched seven professors and
docent The title of docent is conferred by some European universities to denote a specific academic appointment within a set structure of academic ranks at or below the full professor rank, similar to a British readership, a French " ''maître de con ...
s, who were also in the army, to France to help with the education of Serbian students in that country. On 17 December 1917, the Ministry of Education opened the Serbian Boarding School in
Salonika Thessaloniki (; el, Θεσσαλονίκη, , also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece, with over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area, and the capital of the geographic region of ...
. Trifunović remained the Minister of Education for most of World War I and was succeeded by
Ljubomir Davidović Ljubomir Davidović (24 December 1863 – 19 February 1940) was a Yugoslav and Serbian politician who served as prime minister (1919–1920 and 1924) of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (later called Yugoslavia). Biography Davidovi ...
on 3 November 1918.


Minister of Education of Yugoslavia

Trifunović served as Minister of Education from 30 June 1917 to 3 November 1918, 19 February to 17 May 1920, 16 December 1922 to 2 May 1923, from 15 April 1926 to 4 February 1927 and finally from 27 March 1941 to 26 June 1943. During this time Trifunović advocated for increasing the number of primary schools in the country and extending compulsory education from four to eight years of schooling. During his term in 1926, Trifunović introduced a nationwide curriculum for high schools. He added minor revisions to the curriculum proposed by the previous minister, Svetozar Pribićević, and added a detailed
program Program, programme, programmer, or programming may refer to: Business and management * Program management, the process of managing several related projects * Time management * Program, a part of planning Arts and entertainment Audio * Progra ...
. The curriculum and the program met fierce criticism from Yugoslav teachers, who denounced it for being unclear, superficial, and written without consulting pedagogues and teachers.


Other offices held

Trifunović also served as the Minister of Construction in 1924 and the Minister of Religious Affairs from 1924 until 1926.


6 January Dictatorship

On 6 January 1929,
Alexander Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
, King of the Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, abolished the
constitution A constitution is the aggregate of fundamental principles or established precedents that constitute the legal basis of a polity, organisation or other type of entity and commonly determine how that entity is to be governed. When these princ ...
and instituted a royal dictatorship. Trifunović was at the time one of the leaders of the
People's Radical Party The People's Radical Party ( sr, Народна радикална странка, Narodna radikalna stranka, abbr. НРС or NRS) was the dominant ruling party of Kingdom of Serbia and later Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes from the l ...
( sh, Narodna radikalna stranka, NRS) who opposed the dictatorship. Following a large amount of criticism of the dictatorship, Alexander decided to open negotiations with NRS leaders
Aca Stanojević Aleksa "Aca" Stanojević (Knjaževac, Principality of Serbia, 1852 - SFR Yugoslavia, 1947) was a Serbian and Yugoslav politician, one of the founders and leaders of the People's Radical Party. Stanojević was a member of the People's Radical Part ...
and Trifunović, as well as with the leader of the Slovene People's Party,
Anton Korošec Anton Korošec (, ; 12 May 1872 – 14 December 1940) was a Yugoslav politician, a prominent member of the conservative People's Party, a Roman Catholic priest and a noted orator. Early life Korošec was born in Biserjane (then Duchy of Styr ...
. Following negotiations in the middle of 1931, in September the King issued a new constitution which introduced a bicameral legislature. Following the passage of the constitution, a new ruling party named the
Yugoslav Radical Peasants' Democracy The Yugoslav National Party ( sh, Jugoslavenska nacionalna stranka, Југославенска национална странка, JNS; sl, Jugoslovanska nacionalna stranka), established as Yugoslav Radical Peasants' Democracy ( sh, Jugoslavensk ...
was created, and while some veterans of the NRS chose to join it, Trifunović remained in the opposition. Vladko Maček, leader of the
Croatian Peasant Party The Croatian Peasant Party ( hr, Hrvatska seljačka stranka, HSS) is an agrarian political party in Croatia founded on 22 December 1904 by Antun and Stjepan Radić as Croatian Peoples' Peasant Party (HPSS). The Brothers Radić believed that t ...
was arrested in January 1933. Two months later, while Maček's trial was still ongoing,
Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...
leaders proposed that opposition politicians issue a joint condemnation of the regime. In order to protest Maček's trial and issue this condemnation more generally, a committee of the representatives of the Agrarian Union, the Radical and the Democratic parties was formed. The leaders of the Agrarian Union and the Democratic Party, Ljubomir Davidović and Jovan Jovanović, signed the proposed text prepared by
Milan Stojadinović Milan Stojadinović ( sr-Cyrl, Милан Стојадиновић; 4 August 1888 – 26 October 1961) was a Serbian and Yugoslav politician and economist who served as the Prime Minister of Yugoslavia from 1935 to 1939. He also served as Fore ...
,
Milan Grol Milan Grol (12 September 1876 – 3 December 1952) was a Serbian literary critic, historian and politician. He was also director of the National Theatre of Serbia. Biography Milan Grol was born in Belgrade on 12 September 1876. He completed hi ...
and . Trifunović and Stojanović refused to sign it. Trifunović wrote a counter-proposal in which all references to the trial of Maček were removed. He and Stojanović also objected to the idea that the condemnation should be released not only to the public of Yugoslavia but also abroad. Nevertheless, the three parties managed to issue a joint protest of Maček's trial at the end of April, although the protest did differ from the one written in March. In May, the three opposition parties finally made a joint statement committing themselves to the struggle to restore civic liberties, free parliamentarianism, and the reform of the constitutional order.


Yugoslav government-in-exile

Trifunović was appointed as the prime minister of the
Yugoslav government-in-exile The Government of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia in Exile ( sh, Vlada Kraljevine Jugoslavije u egzilu / Влада Краљевине Југославије у егзилу) was an official government of Yugoslavia, headed by King Peter II. It evacu ...
by King
Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...
following the resignation of the previous prime minister,
Slobodan Jovanović Slobodan Jovanović ( sr-Cyrl, Слободан Јовановић; 3 December 1869 – 12 December 1958) was a Serbian and Yugoslav writer, historian, lawyer, philosopher, literary critic, diplomat, politician and one of the most prominent int ...
. On 26 June 1943, Trifunović formed his cabinet. The most important change in the cabinet was the removal of
Radoje Knežević Radoje Knežević ( sr-Cyrl, Радоје Кнежевић; 20 August 1901 – 22 June 1983) was a key member of the group that organised the Yugoslav coup d'état of 27 March 1941 that deposed the regency of Prince Paul, Dr. Radenko Stanković a ...
from the position of Minister of the Royal Court. Knežević was appointed as chargé d'affaires at the Yugoslav legation in Lisbon while a professional diplomat, Niko Mirošević, assumed his previous position. Trifunović's cabinet tried to support the Chetniks significantly from abroad. On 14 July, the acting Minister of the Army, Navy and Air Force,
Petar Živković Petar Živković ( sr-cyr, Петар Живковић; 1 January 1879 – 3 February 1947) was a Serbian military officer and political figure in Yugoslavia. He was Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia from 7 January 1929 until 4 Apr ...
, drafted plans for the creation of an army of around 100,000 soldiers from outside Yugoslavia. This army would be created from the Yugoslav prisoners of war held by Italy, combined with the
Slovenes The Slovenes, also known as Slovenians ( sl, Slovenci ), are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Slovenia, and adjacent regions in Italy, Austria and Hungary. Slovenes share a common ancestry, culture, history and speak Slovene as their na ...
and
Croats The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, ...
captured by the British forces while fighting for Italy in Africa. It was envisioned that the
Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
would maintain and supply this army, which would land in Dalmatia and fight alongside the Chetniks under the command of the Allies. The plan was subsequently submitted to the Big Three Allied leaders, who rejected it. Following constant squabbles between Serbian and Croatian members of the cabinet, Trifunović resigned on 10 August 1943. He was succeeded by
Božidar Purić Božidar Purić ( sr-Cyrl, Божидар Пурић; 19 February 1891 – 28 October 1977) was a Serbian and Yugoslav politician and diplomat. Between 1928 and 1934 he was a chargé d'affaires in the Embassy of Kingdom of Yugoslavia in the United ...
.


Life after World War II

Trifunović returned to Yugoslavia in 1945. He and the president of the Democratic Party,
Milan Grol Milan Grol (12 September 1876 – 3 December 1952) was a Serbian literary critic, historian and politician. He was also director of the National Theatre of Serbia. Biography Milan Grol was born in Belgrade on 12 September 1876. He completed hi ...
, planned to jointly oppose Josip Broz Tito and the Communist Party of Yugoslavia in the parliamentary elections of November 1945. That August, Grolwho was the
Deputy Prime Minister of Yugoslavia The Deputy Prime Minister of Yugoslavia was the official Deputy of the Prime Minister of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, SFR Yugoslavia and later Prime Minister of FR Yugoslavia, from 1939 until 2003. History of the office The office of the Deputy Prim ...
resigned in protest against the communist regime's undemocratic actions. He and Trifunović decided to boycott the elections. In December 1946, Trifunović and seven others were brought to trial for having allegedly furnished military and political information to the American embassy in Belgrade. Trifunović was found guilty and sentenced to eight years' imprisonment. He was released after serving two-and-a-half years. He died in Belgrade on 19 February 1957.


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* * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Trifunović, Miloš 1871 births 1957 deaths Serbian politicians Politicians from Užice Prime Ministers of Yugoslavia World War II political leaders Yugoslav politicians