LEGITIMITET VIDOVDANSKOG USTAVA – IDEALIZAM BEZ REALNOG UPORIŠTA

The Constitution of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (KSHS) of 1921 had for its goal to constitutionalize the organization of the new state, created after the end of the First World War: its organization of government, human and minority rights and freedoms, etc. and also to establish a new nation – the so called "nation with three names" or "three-tribe nation", i.e. – Yugoslavs, as the bearer of the identity of the new state. KSHS was to reconcile not only the nations with different history, mentality and language, but also nations who fought each other fiercely just until a few years back before the adoption of the Vidovdan Constitution. The constitutionalization of a unitary state in which the official language is "Serbo-Croatian-Slovenian" (which as such simply does not exist), ignored clear signals that the essential legitimacy for such state does not exist in a significant part of the country. The analysis of the political activities of the parties, their programs and the election results in the western territories of what was soon to become KSHS (especially in Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia – back then within the Austro-Hungary) shows a distinct anti-Serbian and especially anti-Yugoslav narrative since the middle of the 19th century and the political actions of Ante Starčević, Eugen Kvaternik, later Ivo Pilar and others. It is also clear that such chauvinist, extreme political standpoints, present to a far greater extent to be simply ignored, would turn out to be too much of a burden for the new state and nation, as well as for the Vidovdan Constitution itself, indirectly leading to its infamous end, declaration of dictatorship, assassination of King Alexander Karađorđević and finally the disintegration of the state and horrendous atrocities and genocide against Serbs in the Independent state of Croatia (NDH). In a certain way, the Vidovdan Constitution, due to the shortcomings in its legitimacy, traced the road to hell – paved with good intentions.