Mila Gojsalić (died 1530) is a Croatian legendary

folk hero A folk hero or national hero is a type of hero – real, fictional or mythology, mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in Folk music, folk songs, folk tales ...

ine from small region of Poljica, situated between

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

and

Omiš Omiš () is a town and port in the Dalmatia region of Croatia, and a municipality in the Split-Dalmatia County. The town is approximately south-east of Croatia's second largest city, Split (city), Split, where the Cetina River meets the Adriatic ...

in present-day Croatia. According to tradition, her origins are from the village of Kostanje in the

Dalmatian hinterland The Dalmatian Hinterland () is the southern inland hinterland in the historical Croatian region of Dalmatia. The name means 'beyond (the) hills', which is a reference to the fact that it is the part of Dalmatia that is not coastal and the existe ...

, and allegedly she was a distant descendant of Croatian

king King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

Gojslav. The legend started evolving around time of the Ottoman wars in Croatia, and it is possibly modeled on that of

Marko Marulić Marko Marulić Splićanin (; ; 18 August 1450 – 5 January 1524), was a Croatian poet, lawyer, judge, and Renaissance humanist. He is the national poet of Croatia. According to George J. Gutsche, Marulić's epic poem '' Judita'' "is the first ...

's heroine

Judita ''Judith'' () is one of the most important Croatian literary works, an epic poem written by the "father of Croatian literature" Marko Marulić in 1501. Editions The work was finished on April 22, 1501, and was published three times during Mar ...

herself. The basic narrative revolves around the legendary battle, placed in 1530, and the tale of Ottoman commander, Ahmed

Pasha Pasha (; ; ) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitary, dignitaries, and others. ''Pasha'' was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of ...

, who allegedly gathered an army of 10,000 men with a goal to conquer Poljica, while setting up a camp in a place called Podgrac. Mila Gojsalić went on to lose her virginity to Ahmed Pasha in order to be able to infiltrate the Ottoman camp and blow up the munitions stockpile, killing Ahmed Pasha, numerous officers and soldiers, and herself.

Ivan Meštrović Ivan Meštrović (; 15 August 1883 – 16 January 1962) was a Croatian and Yugoslav sculptor, architect, and writer. He was the most prominent modern Croatian sculptor and a leading artistic personality in contemporary Zagreb. He studied at Pa ...

sculptured the statue of her, installed above the town of

, while

Jakov Gotovac Jakov Gotovac (; October 11, 1895October 16, 1982) was a Croatian composer and conductor of classical music. His comedic opera, '' Ero s onoga svijeta'' (''Ero the Joker''), Croatia's best-known opera, was first performed in Zagreb in 1935. ...

composed the opera to her honour.

August Šenoa August Ivan Nepomuk Eduard Šenoa (; originally Schönoa; 14 November 1838 – 13 December 1881) was a Croatian novelist, playwright, poet, and editor. Born to an ethnic German and Slovak family, Šenoa became a key figure in the developmen ...

also wrote about her. In her birthplace, every summer there is a cultural manifestation called the Days of Mila Gojsalić. Her house is still in the village and is completely renewed.

References

External links

Kulturno ljeto: DANI MILE GOJSALIĆ - Kostanje 2007.
{{Slavic mythology Croatian folklore Fictional Croatian people Legendary Slavic people

See also

References

External links