The Battle of Deligrad was fought between

Serbian revolutionaries Serbian may refer to: * someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe * someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people * Serbian language * Serbian names See also * * * Old Serbian (disambiguation) ...

and an army of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

, and took place in December 1806 during the

First Serbian Uprising The First Serbian Uprising ( sr, Prvi srpski ustanak, italics=yes, sr-Cyrl, Први српски устанак; tr, Birinci Sırp Ayaklanması) was an uprising of Serbs in the Sanjak of Smederevo against the Ottoman Empire from 14 February 1 ...

. A 55,000-strong Ottoman army commanded by Albanian Pasha of Scutari Ibrahim Pasha was decisively defeated with heavy casualties and the loss of nine guns by Karađorđe Petrović's 30,000 Serbian rebels at Deligrad in Serbia.

Background

The

had begun in 1804 with the expulsion of the ruling

janissary A Janissary ( ota, یڭیچری, yeŋiçeri, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman Sultan's household troops and the first modern standing army in Europe. The corps was most likely established under sultan Orhan ...

elite and the proclamation of an independent

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin and the Balkans. It shares land borders with Hungar ...

n state by the revolution's leader,

Karađorđe Đorđe Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Ђорђе Петровић, ), better known by the sobriquet Karađorđe ( sr-Cyrl, Карађорђе, lit=Black George, ; – ), was a Serbian revolutionary who led the struggle for his country's independ ...

. The Ottoman Sultan, Selim III sent a huge Turkish force to quell the uprising. The Serbian high command decided to meet the Turkish force under

Ibrahim Bushati Ibrahim Bushati or Ibrahim Bushat Pasha ( tr, Buşatlı İbrahim Paşa; died 1810) was a noble of the Bushati family in Ottoman controlled Albania near the city of Shkodër. Brother of Kara Mahmud Bushati, the Ottoman appointed governor of Shkod ...

, pasha of Shkodër, at Deligrad.

Battle

The Serbian right wing numbered 6,000 men under the command of

Mladen Milovanović Mladen Milovanović ( sr-cyrl, Младен Миловановић; – 1823) was a Serbian merchant and politician who served as the prime minister of Serbia from 1807 to 1810 and again from 1813 to 1814. A notable voivode during the First Serb ...

at Bela Palanka. The center consisted of 18,000 troops which would be placed at the Kunovaci mountain. The left wing would be composed of 6,000 men under the command of

Milenko Stojković Milenko Stojković ( sr-cyr, Миленко Стојковић; 1769, Kličevac, Požarevac – 1831, Bakhchysarai, Crimea) was a Serbian revolutionary and ''bimbaša'' in the First Serbian Uprising early in the 19th century. He is most fa ...

with an additional 4,500 reserve troops to guard from any possible Turkish flank attack from

Niš Niš (; sr-Cyrl, Ниш, ; names in other languages) is the third largest city in Serbia and the administrative center of the Nišava District. It is located in southern part of Serbia. , the city proper has a population of 183,164, while ...

. Stanoje Glavaš would command the elite and cavalry troops whose job was to delve deep into enemy territory and harass them as much as possible.

Tomo Milinović Tomo Đurov Milinović ( sr-cyr, Томo Ђуров Милиновић; 1770–1846) or Tomo Milinović (), nicknamed Morinjanin () and Toša (), was a Serbian writer and revolutionary, a ''vojvoda'' under Karađorđe Petrović during the First Serb ...

was a head of artillery and made significant effort by good positioning and frequent relocation of the cannons. The Turkish Army consisted of 55,000 regular Nizam troops with additional

auxiliary Auxiliary may refer to: * A backup site or system In language * Auxiliary language (disambiguation) * Auxiliary verb In military and law enforcement * Auxiliary police * Auxiliaries, civilians or quasi-military personnel who provide support of ...

and

Janissary A Janissary ( ota, یڭیچری, yeŋiçeri, , ) was a member of the elite infantry units that formed the Ottoman Sultan's household troops and the first modern standing army in Europe. The corps was most likely established under sultan Orhan ...

support. The Serbian army withstood several enemy offensives. The Serbian rebels also attacked the Turkish positions numerous times and managed to capture nine Turkish cannons. Meanwhile, the elite troops of Stanoje Glavaš effectively liberated

Prokuplje Prokuplje ( sr-cyrl, Прокупље, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Toplica District in southern Serbia. According to 2011 census, the city urban area has a population of 27,333 inhabitants, while the administrative area has 4 ...

thereby splitting the Turkish army in two. The Turkish

wing A wing is a type of fin that produces lift while moving through air or some other fluid. Accordingly, wings have streamlined cross-sections that are subject to aerodynamic forces and act as airfoils. A wing's aerodynamic efficiency is e ...

under the command of Pazvanoglu was swiftly defeated by

and the Ottoman force was

rout A rout is a panicked, disorderly and undisciplined retreat of troops from a battlefield, following a collapse in a given unit's command authority, unit cohesion and combat morale (''esprit de corps''). History Historically, lightly-e ...

ed.

Aftermath

The battle provided a decisive victory for the

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are the most numerous South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans in Southeastern Europe, who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history and language. The majority of Serbs live in their na ...

and bolstered the morale of the outnumbered Serbian rebels. To avoid total defeat, Ibrahim Pasha negotiated a six-week

truce A ceasefire (also known as a truce or armistice), also spelled cease fire (the antonym of 'open fire'), is a temporary stoppage of a war in which each side agrees with the other to suspend aggressive actions. Ceasefires may be between state act ...

with Karageorge.

Gallery

File:Front of Deligrad.jpg, Front of the Deligrad fortress File:Deligrad battle sconce remains.jpg, Remains of the Deligrad fortress File:Deligrad inside.jpg, Inside the Deligrad fortress File:First Serbina uprising weapons.jpg, Some weapons used

Citations

References

* Esdaile, Charles, ''Napoleon's Wars'', (Viking Adult, 2008). {{DEFAULTSORT:Battle Of Deligrad

Deligrad Deligrad, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (Jabukovac ) is a village in the municipality of Aleksinac, Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in S ...

First Serbian Uprising Conflicts in 1806 1806 in the Ottoman Empire 1806 in Europe December 1806 events