Abstract
The essay comments on the emergence of Protestant communities on the territory of the future Federative Republic of Yugoslavia from its genesis in the 16th century until 1953, when Yugoslavia passed a law on religious organisations. Protestant churches spread over the Yugoslav territory from as early as the 16th century.
Reformist ideas spread entirely through foreign, non-South-Slav national groups. As a matter of fact, these national groups have been the greatest protagonists of Protestantism on the Yugoslavian territory up to present time.
The German Lutheran Church was the most significant Protestant church in Yugoslavia up to World War II, when it was succeeded by the Slovakian Evangelist Church. Although they were not very numerous, the Protestant churches received great attention due to their contact with foreign countries; some of them became partly discredited by their collaboration with occupants.
For this reason they were regarded as unreliable by the communists and closely watched.