Slovenia has been a member of the EU since 2004. In contrast, in Belgrade, the first democratic head of government, Zoran Djindjic, was assassinated a year earlier. Such extremely different developments point to the complex historical background of the former multi-ethnic state of Yugoslavia, which was violently ended in the last decade of the 20th century through four wars. This handbook serves as both a reference work and an informative reading book on this complex subject: in encyclopedic essays, 37 international authors illuminate the long history of all components of the former unified state and the developments in the 20th century that led to its establishment and dissolution. The editor has conceptually adapted it for the new edition, expanded it to include two chapters—one concerning the war crimes tribunal in The Hague—and thoroughly revised it.