Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo

The Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo, referred to as simply Kosovo, was one of the two autonomous provinces of the Socialist Republic of Serbia within Yugoslavia (the other being Vojvodina), between 1945 and 1990, when it was renamed Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija. Between 1945 and 1963 it was officially named the Autonomous Region of Kosovo and Metohija, with a level of self-government lower than that of the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina. In 1963 it was granted the same level of autonomy as Vojvodina, and accordingly its official name was changed to Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija. In 1968 the term "Metohija" was dropped, and the prefix "Socialist" was added, changing the official name of the province to Socialist Autonomous Province of Kosovo. In 1974 both autonomous provinces (Vojvodina and Kosovo) were granted significantly increased levels of autonomy. In 1989, under the presidency of Slobodan Milošević, that level of autonomy was reduced. In 1990 the term "Metohija" was reinserted into the provincial name, with "Socialist" being dropped. From that point on the official name of the province was once again Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija, as it had been between 1963 and 1968. Background Until 1912, the region of Kosovo was under Ottoman rule. After the First Balkan War it was incorporated into the Kingdom of Serbia by the Treaty of London. At the time that Serbia annexed Kosovo (1912–1913), the 1903 constitution was still in force. This constitution required a Grand National Assembly before Serbia's borders could be expanded to include Kosovo; but no such Grand National Assembly was ever held. Constitutionally, Kosovo should not have become part of the Kingdom of Serbia. It was initially ruled by decree. Serbian political parties, and the army, could not agree on how to govern the newly conquered territories; eventually this was solved by a royal decree.<ref>Olga Popović-Obradović, The Parliamentary System in Serbia 1903–1914.</ref>