Staniša Marković ( sr-Cyrl, Станиша Марковић; 1664–1740), known as Mlatišuma (Млатишума), was a Habsburg Serbian '' obercapitain'' of

Kragujevac Kragujevac ( sr-Cyrl, Крагујевац, ) is the List of cities in Serbia, fourth largest city in Serbia and the administrative centre of the Šumadija District. It is the historical centre of the geographical region of Šumadija in central Se ...

. He had joined the Austrians in the Austro-Turkish War of 1716–18, and after the victorious war and occupation of central Serbia (the

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Principality was ruled by the Obrenović dynast ...

) he was given the rank of ''Obercapitain'', governing Kragujevac, and commanding the

Serbian Militia (1718–46) Following the successful Austro-Turkish War of 1716–1718, and Treaty of Passarowitz, signing of peace, the Habsburgs established the Kingdom of Serbia (1718–1739) and appointed the first command cadre of the Serbian National Militia, composed o ...

alongside

Vuk Isaković Vuk Isaković ( sr-cyr, Вук Исаковић; fl. 1696–1759) was a Serb military commander in Austrian service during the Austrian-Ottoman Wars. He was the inspiration for the main character, Vuk Isakovič (Вук Исакович), in the ''S ...

. In peace-time, he was sent to 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 ...

to incite an anti-Ottoman rebellion; a short-lived uprising broke out in which his personal unit participated. In 1734–35 he founded the

Drača Monastery Drača () is a village in the municipality of Stanovo, Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map ...

. When the Austro-Russian–Turkish War (1735–39) broke out, Serbs were mobilized and Mlatišuma led forces in numerous campaigns. He is regarded as a hero and enumerated in

Serbian epic poetry Serbian epic poetry () is a form of epic poetry created by Serbs originating in today's Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and North Macedonia. The main cycles were composed by unknown Serb authors between the 14th and 19th centu ...

Early life

According to

Sima Milutinović Sarajlija Simeon "Sima" Milutinović "Sarajlija" ( sr-cyr, Симеон "Сима" Милутиновић "Сарајлија", ; 3 October 1791 – 30 December 1847) was a Serbian poet, hajduk, translator, historian and adventurer. Literary critic Jova ...

, Staniša Marković was born in a village below the

Ostrog monastery The Ostrog Monastery (, ) is a monastery of the Serbian Orthodox Church situated against an almost vertical background, high up in the large rock of Ostroška Greda, in Montenegro. It is dedicated to Saint Basil of Ostrog (''Sveti Vasilije Ostro ...

, in

Bjelopavlići Bjelopavlići ( cyrl, Бјелопавлићи, ; ) is a historical tribe (pleme) of Albanians, Albanian origin and a valley in the region of the Brda (Montenegro), Brda, in Montenegro, around the city of Danilovgrad. Geography The ''Bjelopavl ...

(present day

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 ...

). His family hailed from

Novi Pazar Novi Pazar ( sr-cyr, Нови Пазар) is a List of cities in Serbia, city located in the Raška District of southwestern Serbia. As of the 2022 census, the urban area has 71,462 inhabitants, while the city administrative area has 106,720 inha ...

. With the failure of the Austro-Serbian campaign during the

Great Turkish War The Great Turkish War () or The Last Crusade, also called in Ottoman sources The Disaster Years (), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League (1684), Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lith ...

(1683–99), a large migration of Serbs ensued into Habsburg territories in 1690.

Career

Austro-Turkish War of 1716–18

He joined the Habsburg side during the Austro-Turkish War of 1716–18, which saw the second occupation of central Serbia (

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 ...

) after the

Habsburg-occupied Serbia (1686–91) Habsburg Serbia may refer to several periods and territories in the history of Serbia: * Habsburg-occupied Serbia (1686–1691), temporary Habsburg occupation of central Serbia (1686–1691) * Kingdom of Serbia (1718–1739), crown land of the Habs ...

. The Serbs established a Hajduk army that supported the Austrians. Upon the

peace treaty A peace treaty is an treaty, agreement between two or more hostile parties, usually country, countries or governments, which formally ends a declaration of war, state of war between the parties. It is different from an armistice, which is an ag ...

and establishment of the

Kingdom of Serbia (1718–39) The Kingdom of Serbia was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Principality was ruled by the Obrenović dynasty (replaced by th ...

, Mlatišuma received the rank of ''Obercapitain'' (First Captain) of

in payment for his services.

Interwar period

The Kragujevac district, one of the most important and dangerous in the Serbian Military Frontier (Militärgrenze) due to its proximity to the Ottoman border, was put under Mlatišuma's command together with one of the hajduk companies in charge of direct border protection. In addition, he was also the second highest authority of the whole Serbian militia below the supreme commander Major Vuk Isaković. He was responsible for reporting to the Central Command in Belgrade the outbreak of an alleged

vampire A vampire is a mythical creature that subsists by feeding on the Vitalism, vital essence (generally in the form of blood) of the living. In European folklore, vampires are undead, undead humanoid creatures that often visited loved ones and c ...

epidemic in Kragujevac that is dated to April 1725, making it the first official report of vampirism in the Military Frontier. In other parts of Habsburg ruled Kingdom of Serbia similar cases followed, in which at least one Mlatišuma was involved, after which the

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

word vampir entered

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

and later other world languages. He was sent to the Highlands (''Brda''), to incite rebellion in eight tribes: Vasojevići (led by ''vojvoda'' Vuksan Bojović),

Bratonožići The Bratonožići ( sr-Cyrl, Братоножићи, ) is a historical tribe (''pleme'') of Albanian origin in the Brda region of Montenegro. It appeared during the Ottoman period and was a captaincy of the Principality of Montenegro in the 19 ...

Drekalovići The Drekalovići ( cyrl, Дрекаловићи; ) are a historical union of brotherhoods of Kuči. Their patron saint ( slava) is St. Nicholas (Nikoljdan), the old tradition of Orthodox Serbs. They were part of a wave of settlement in the mid 16 ...

(led by

Radonja Petrović Radonja Petrović ( sr-cyr, Радоња Петровић; b. 1670, Kosor, Kuči – d. 1737 Stari Vlah), known as Vojvoda Radonja (војвода Радоња) was the vojvoda of the Kuči tribe and a commander of the Drekalovići during the ...

), Piperi, Rovce,

Pješivci Pješivci ( Serbian and Montenegrin: Пјешивци; ) was a historical tribe and region in Montenegro, consisting of numerous brotherhoods of mutual origin. It was one of the largest tribe from the area of Katunska nahija of Old Montenegro. ...

, and Lutovci. Petrović was according to sources the leader of these tribes, who could ready 2,000 men in one day. Mlatišuma arrived in Kuči in 1729. He met with Radonja Petrović with whom he sought to mobilize Brda against the Ottomans. When talks were underway between Radonja Petrović and the Austrian ''feltmarschal'', an uprising broke out in Montenegro. Radonja's rebels and Serbian troops, and an auxiliary force of Mlatišuma, attacked the local Muslims. According to the Serbian plan, they were to take over

Rožaje Rožaje ( Bosnian: ''Rožaje''; , ; , ) is a town located in the Northern Region of Montenegro, situated along the Ibar river. The town is the cultural center of the Bosniaks in Montenegro. As of 2023, the town has a population of 13,608 inhabi ...

Bijelo Polje Bijelo Polje (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бијело Поље, ) is a town located in the Northern Montenegro, Northern Region of Montenegro, situated along Lim (river), Lim River. It has an urban population of 12,900 (2011 census). It is the ad ...

and

Peć Peja or Peć, ), is the fifth most populous city in Kosovo and serves as the seat of the Peja Municipality and the District of Peja. It is located in the Rugova (region), Rugova region on the eastern section of the Accursed Mountains along the ...

. He founded the Monastery of Drača in

, completed on 5 October 1734. There is a

ktetor ''Ktetor'' () or ''ktitor'' (; ka, ქტიტორი ; ), meaning 'founder', is a title given in the Middle Ages to the provider of funds for construction or reconstruction of an Eastern Orthodox church or monastery, for the addition of icons ...

portrait of him.

Austro-Russian–Turkish War (1735–39)

A new war broke out, and the Serbian Militia and Mlatišuma were mobilized. The Military Governor notified the people of the organization of the Militia in Serbia to set up outposts along the Habsburg–Ottoman border. The population quickly responded, and, beside the regular army under the two ''ober-kapetans'' and fifteen ''(unter-)kapetans'', 13 companies of "

hajduks A hajduk (, plural of ) is a type of Irregular military, irregular infantry found in Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and parts of Southeast Europe from the late 16th to mid 19th centuries, especially from Hajdú–Bihar Count ...

" were collected, who were to be used for protection of the border and other services. The army was divided into 18 companies, in four groups. The most notable obercapitains were

from Crna Bara, Mlatišuma and

Kosta Dimitrijević Kosta may refer to: __NOTOC__ People * Kosta (given name), a list of people with the given name or nickname * Kosta (surname), a list of people Places * Kosta, Estonia, a village * Kosta, Greece, a community * Kosta, Sweden, a village Other use ...

from

Paraćin Paraćin ( sr-Cyrl, Параћин, ) is a town and municipality located in the Pomoravlje District of central Serbia. Located in the Velika Morava river valley, north of Kruševac and southeast of Kragujevac, the town had a population of 22,349 ...

. In Kragujevac, there were two companies of 500 soldiers each. His forces attacked

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 ...

. Mlatišuma's forces liberated Kruševac on 20 July 1737 and carried much cattle. Colonel Lentulus ordered that part of the cattle be returned to the population, the second part was sent to Sekendorf, the third held by the colonel to the need of his army. On 7 January 1739 he led attacks in Morava and Rudnik. He had settled 1,000 Christians in Habsburg territory after the war, during what is known as the "

Second Great Migration In the context of the 20th-century history of the United States, the Second Great Migration was the migration of more than 5 million African Americans from the South to the Northeast, Midwest and West. It began in 1940, through World War II, and ...

". He was imprisoned in 1740, and is believed to have died the same year.

Legacy

He is enumerated in

, collected by

Vuk Karadžić Vuk Stefanović Karadžić ( sr-Cyrl, Вук Стефановић Караџић, ; 6 November 1787 (26 October OS)7 February 1864) was a Serbian philologist, anthropologist and linguist. He was one of the most important reformers of the moder ...

(1787–1864).

(1791–1847) wrote about him. The Šumanović brotherhood in Crna Bara claim kindred.

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mlatišuma 1664 births 1741 deaths 18th-century Serbian people Serbian military leaders Hajduks Habsburg Serbs Serbs of Montenegro Military personnel from Kragujevac Refugees of the Great Turkish War Austro-Turkish War (1716–1718)