History of Montenegro

History of Montenegro:
Formerly tributary to the Byzantine Empire and the later medieval Serbian kingdom, the independent principality of Zeta (now Montenegro) asserted itelf towards 1360. Never fully conquered by the Ottoman Empire which controlled the lands to the south and east from the 15th century, Montenegro in 1516 came under the rule of the prince-bishop (vladika) of Cetinje[?], a position held from 1697 by the Petrovic family.

The reign of Nicholas I[?] (1860 - 1918) saw the doubling of Montenegro's territory and international recognition of her independence (1878), the country's first constitution (1905), the ruler's elevation to the rank of King (1910), and further territorial gains following the Balkan Wars (1913), though the newly-captured city of Shkoder[?] had to be given up for inclusion in Albania at the insistence of the great powers.

After Montenegro's entry into World War I on the side of Serbia (August 1914), her occupation by German and Austro-Hungarian forces (January 1916) foreshadowed the end of independence: accused of seeking a separate peace with the enemy, Nicholas was deposed by the National Assembly after the country's liberation and union with Serbia proclaimed (November 29, 1918).

As a matter of trivia, the term Montenegro derives from the Venetian "black mountain", the black appearance of Mount Lovcen[?] inspiring early Venetian conquerors. Crna Gora calques Monte negro in Serbian. The earlier term "Zeta" is the name of a river flowing near the capital and etymologically finds its root in an old-slavonic word for harvest. The earliest known name from Montenegro was Doclea[?] after an ancient Illyrian tribe. Under Roman rule, an "i" was added, creating "Dioclea".

• Serb Land of Montenegro Guardian of Montenegro's Magnificent Heritage (http://www.njegos.org)