Jovan Petrović ( sr-cyr, Јован Петровић, 1768–16 August 1813), known as Jovan Kursula (Јован Курсула), was a Serbian ''vojvoda'' (commander) that participated in the

Serbian Revolution The Serbian Revolution ( / ') was a national uprising and constitutional change in Serbia that took place between 1804 and 1835, during which this territory evolved from an Sanjak of Smederevo, Ottoman province into a Revolutionary Serbia, reb ...

Biography

Petrović was born in Donja Gorevnica, in the Rudnik ''okrug'', near

Čačak Čačak ( sr-Cyrl, Чачак, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Moravica District in central Serbia. It is located in the West Morava Valley. According to the 2022 census, the city itself has a population ...

, at the time part of the

Sanjak of Smederevo The Sanjak of Smederevo (, ), also known in historiography as the Pashalik of Belgrade (, ), was an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman administrative unit (sanjak) centered on Smederevo, that existed between the 15th and the outset of the 19th centuries. It ...

(now Serbia). Both his parents, Velimir and Magdalena, had ancestry from

Drobnjaci Drobnjaci ( sr-Cyrl, Дробњаци, ) was a tribe and historical region, Drobnjak, in Old Herzegovina in Montenegro (municipalities from Nikšić to Šavnik, Žabljak and Pljevlja). Its unofficial centre is in Šavnik. The Serb Orthodox ...

in what is today

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

. After his father's death his mother remarried in the village of

Cvetke Cvetke is a village in the municipality of Kraljevo, western-central Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , i ...

near Kraljevo, bringing Jovan with her. Kursula had brown hair, light skin, full cheeks, youthful looks, broad shoulders. He did not carry his

sabre A sabre or saber ( ) is a type of backsword with a curved blade associated with the light cavalry of the Early Modern warfare, early modern and Napoleonic period, Napoleonic periods. Originally associated with Central European cavalry such a ...

from his waist, as did most others, but "over his shoulder, as it was easier to pull out", as he was a master of

swordsmanship Swordsmanship or sword fighting refers to the skills and techniques used in combat and training with any type of sword. The term is modern, and as such was mainly used to refer to smallsword fencing, but by extension it can also be applied to an ...

. He was one of the Rudnik ''nahija'' commanders, alongside Lazar Mutap,

Arsenije Loma Arsenije Loma ( sr-cyr, Арсеније Лома; 1768–1815) was a Serbian ''voivode'' (military commander) in the First and Second Serbian Uprising of the Serbian Revolution (1804–1817). He was appointed by Karađorđe to command Kačer ...

Milić Drinčić Milić Drinčić (Teočin, Rudnička Nahiye (Ottoman), Nahiye, 1775Dublje (Svilajnac), Dublje, 14 July 1815) was a duke and revolutionary who participated in the First Serbian Uprising and Second Serbian Uprising. Biography At the beginning of th ...

and Milan Obrenović. At the Battle of Varvarin he had a

duel A duel is an arranged engagement in combat between two people with matched weapons. During the 17th and 18th centuries (and earlier), duels were mostly single combats fought with swords (the rapier and later the small sword), but beginning in ...

against an Ottoman commander known as the "Black Arab" (Crni arapin). He died from wounds from the Battle of Deligrad. Kursulina ulica

Legacy

Yugoslav Partisan The Yugoslav Partisans,Serbo-Croatian, Macedonian language, Macedonian, and Slovene language, Slovene: , officially the National Liberation Army and Partisan Detachments of Yugoslavia sh-Latn-Cyrl, Narodnooslobodilačka vojska i partizanski odr ...

detachment in

Kraljevo Kraljevo ( sr-Cyrl, Краљево, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Raška District in central Serbia. It is situated on the confluence of West Morava and Ibar River, Ibar, in the geographical region of ...

named after him was established in 1941. He has several primary schools named after him throughout Serbia, as well as streets in

Vračar Vračar ( sr-Cyrl, Врачар, ) is an affluent urban area and Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality of the city of Belgrade known as the location of many embassies and museums. According to the 2022 census results, the municipality has a popul ...

Niš Niš (; sr-Cyrl, Ниш, ; names of European cities in different languages (M–P)#N, names in other languages), less often spelled in English as Nish, is the list of cities in Serbia, third largest city in Serbia and the administrative cente ...

Užice Užice ( sr-cyr, Ужице, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative centre of the Zlatibor District in western Serbia. It is located on the banks of the river Đetinja. According to the 2022 census, the city proper has a popu ...

Gornji Milanovac Gornji Milanovac ( sr-Cyrl, Гoрњи Милановац, ) is a town and municipality located in the Moravica District of central Serbia. The population of the town is 23,109, while the population of the municipality is 38,985 (2022 census data). ...

Zaječar Zaječar ( sr-Cyrl, Зајечар, ; or ) is a city and the administrative center of the Zaječar District in eastern Serbia. According to the 2022 census, the city administrative area had a population of 48,621 inhabitants. Zaječar is widely ...

and

Zrenjanin Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; ; ; ; ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. The city urban area has a population of 67,129 inh ...

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kursula, Jovan 19th-century Serbian people Serbian revolutionaries People of the First Serbian Uprising Military personnel from Čačak People from Kraljevo Swordfighters 1768 births 1813 deaths Deaths from bleeding Serbian military leaders Serbian people of Montenegrin descent

Biography

Legacy

See also

References

Sources