The earliest recorded human settlement in the area of Bobota dates back to
classical antiquity with the northeast archeologically site of Staro Ljeskovo containing
IV century Roman bricks marked with "I H" inscription. Those bricks indicate the presence of the
Legio VI Herculia's station in the area at that time. During the
Ottoman–Hungarian wars the village was conquered in 1526 after the fall of Vukovar but it remained inhabited in 1558. The village was liberated from the Ottoman rule in 1687 remaining uninhabited for the following ten years. The first 14 Serb families subsequently settled in the abandoned village building their homes close to the old village. Following Ottoman retreat from the region, the
Lordship of Vukovar was established, and the village became part of its domain in 1725. In following years Serb settlement continued with families arriving from
Bačka,
Mačva,
Montenegro and
Baranya so that in 1736 there was already 82 households. The oldest book about Bobota was published in 1750.
Jewish family Wellisch (Velić) moved from Vukovar to Bobota in 1850s where they initiated their trade business with Leopold Wellisch (Lavoslav Velić) being born in the village in 1861 and died in
Vienna in 1914. From 27 December 1920 (when they arrived in Vukovar) soldiers and families of the
White Russian émigrés who were followers of
Pyotr Wrangel settled in Bobota,
Pačetin, Trpinja and Vera. Bobota was the first village in Vukovar region where
Yugoslav Partisans resistance was organized during the
World War II in Yugoslavia. In the Vukovar area,
Ustaša authorities did not immediately launch large-scale killings against Serb communities in the first mass killing phase from April to May 1941 which targeted area that lacked significant economic value. Wealthier regions such as Vukovar saw a more restrained approach, as peace and order were crucial for the continuity of industry and agriculture. Mass shootings in town began in late July 1941 after the first act of resistance in Bobota. The following day, the Ustaša forces encircled the village, interrogated and terrorized the inhabitants, and arrested 45 people. Thirty of them were sent to the
Jadovno concentration camp, while 15 were sentenced to death by a hastily convened traveling summary court and execution being carried at the Dudik site. Over 500 people will be executed at the site during the war with the place being turned into the
Dudik Memorial Park subsequently. On 26 August 1941 local
Ustaše representative was attacked under the leadership of
Đoko Patković. Represion led to further resistance and imprisonment of 500 residents of Bobota,
Trpinja and
Vera in September of 1941. 96 residents of Bobota lost they lives during the World War II resulting in post-war reputation of the village as a regional stronghold of the resistance movement. In the first years following the World War II in Yugoslavia and before 1948
Tito–Stalin split the new Yugoslavia implemented a number of policies copied from the
Soviet Union including some aspects of
collectivization in the Soviet Union. Rural resistance to this policy led to an incident in Bobota in 1945 when an anonymous humorous
graffiti appeared in the village subsequently described by new authorities as an "enemy act by
kulak elements". The inscription, which
rhyme in original language, stated "
Kralju Petre, dođi nam do žetve, jer nam Tito odnese sve žito" or in English "
King Peter, come before our harvest, because Tito took away all of our grain". ==Population==