TO HIS HIGH COUNTLY
BRILLIANCE
OF HER IMPERIAL
MAJESTY
THE AUTOCRAT OF ALL RUSSIA
to the state
vice-chancellor
true secret advisor, bearer of various orders
MIKHAIL ILARIONOVICH
VORONTSOV
To my gracious lord
TO THE BRIGHTEST COUNT,
GRACIOUS LORD,
MIKHAIL ILARIONOVICH
Finding myself at the most illustrious court of HER IMPERIAL MAJESTY, I, a humble shepherd of the Slavo-Serbian Montenegrin people, awaiting graciously the return to my homeland and to my spiritual flock, I dared to offer this description of the position and former rulers of our Montenegrin land, with an appendix of the holy Serbian kings and despots, who they are and whence they came, earnestly to Your High Countly Excellency, as a hardworking minister interested in foreign peoples, as clearly evidenced by Your earlier visits to foreign lands; with the hope that it would please Your High Countly Excellency to have it printed so that our Montenegrin people and other Slavo-Serbian peoples might have the most earnest wishes towards the highly glorious Russian Empire. I have the honour to present this brief historical work to Your High Countly Excellency, for which I most humbly request that You accept it, forever committing myself to mercy.
To Your High Countly Excellency,
gracious lordship,
humble Metropolitan of Montenegro, Skenderija, and the Littoral, and of the Serbian throne Exarch
VASILIJE PETROVIĆ
March 10, 1754,
in Moscow
PREFACE
TO THIS STORY IN BRIEF
By the righteous permission of God, for our committed sins, the Turks came to rule, though not entirely, over Serbian lands; and especially the most merciful God was angered by the murder of the righteous Young Emperor Uroš. After that, certain unknown men began to appear in the Empire and other lands, proclaiming themselves as descendants of the noble families of Serbian despots and counts, among them a Bosniak, Đorđe Branković, who called himself the Serbian despot, even daring to declare himself the commander of Montenegro, for which he was imprisoned in Prague by the command of Emperor Leopold, where he also died. There he had previously written many histories about the Serbs, especially praising his own family, which remained in great contempt and shame among the Serbs because of the betrayal of Prince Lazar.
After that, many other Turkish subjects, especially Bosnians and Herzegovinians by origin, declared themselves nobles and bought certificates from the Ragusans with money, which they obtained from trade. After that, Mavro Orbini, a Ragusan archimandrite, wrote a history of the Slavs, in which he praises Ragusa above all others and claims that the supposedly glorious Nemanjić dynasty, the emperors of the Serbs, originated from the lowly family of priest Stefan from Pljevlja in Herzegovina.
Contrary to this, many old histories, especially those that are still found in the Holy Mountain of Athos in Hilandar, and in Serbia in the Studenica Monastery, in Dečani, in the Serbian Peć Patriarchate, in the Montenegrin Cetinje Metropolitanate, consistently state that Simeon Nemanja was born to Prince Bela Uroš, and this Bela Uroš descends from the family of Licinius the Tormentor and the sister of Constantine the Great, Theodora. This Bela Uroš lived in Zeta where today the town of Spuž is located, and there he fathered three sons, David, Constantine, and Stefan Nemanja, who was later named Simeon in monasticism.
After that, in the year 1737, Bogić Vučković from Herzegovina bought a certificate from the Ragusans that he was a Montenegrin from the Stracimirović family and went to the Roman Caesar, announcing that he had mobilised the Montenegrin people to help the Caesar and that because of this he had completely ruined himself, as the Turks had taken all his villages, although he had nothing but himself. Despite this, the Caesar rewarded him with money and gifted him a possession, good land in Hungary, and there many peasants now settled.
For this reason, some Herzegovinians in Russia received awards and favours for the merits of the Montenegrin people, which we do not envy, but are amazed at how they use the merits of others for their own benefit. Therefore, I briefly provide this history, written from many of the aforementioned Serbian histories found in the listed monasteries, which speak of the Serbian emperors and Montenegrin dukes (voivodes); after that, in reality, only individuals were present before our emperors, and partly we saw with our own eyes.
In addition, I briefly explained the position of that country, the peoples in it, and from which families the main officers come, especially so that impostors could not enter the state under the name of honest people, and everyone should be satisfied with their own name.
HISTORY OF MONTENEGRO
This land was formerly known by the singular name of Zeta, a name given after the river called Zeta, which springs in the north at the top of the land of Zeta and flows southward. Opposite it from the east flows another river, Morača, between Montenegro and the Highlanders, and it joins the river Zeta below Vrtograd, where Diocletian was born and where he built a great city, naming it after himself as Dioclea. Subsequently, the name of the land was changed from Zeta to Diocletian’s land. This city was later destroyed by Simeon Nemanja, which will be discussed later. These two rivers merge and the river that flows through the plains is called by the singular name Morača, flowing straight south and emptying into a lake that extends from the Zeta Plain to the very mouth of the river Bojana, which flows from the lake westward into the Adriatic Sea. In this lake, there are several islands, and on each island, there is a monastery built by the lords of Zeta and Montenegrin herzogs. Turning towards Bojana, on the right side of that lake lies the fertile land known as Šestani region, to the north of which is the province of Crmnica, rich in various fruits, with water springs nourishing the fields everywhere; there, the grain and wine are of the finest quality. West of Crmnica is the Coastal region, where various fruits grow, particularly oil and wine, including the two districts of Spič and Šušanj, and the province of Paštrovići. From Paštrovići, west of the Katun province, is the district of Mahine; there lies the splendid monastic palace of the Montenegrin metropolitan, and fields planted with various fruits and vineyards, producing fine wine. West of Mahine is the province of Grbalj, fields and hills rich in wine, grain, and oil. North of Grbalj is the peninsula, on which are three districts, Luštica, Krtoli, and Lješevići; from there to the east is the Solijecko field, where Montenegrin herzogs obtained salt; there stood the famous monastery of Archangel Michael, built by Stefan the Second, the Serbian emperor, son of Simeon Nemanja. In that monastery, people of the Roman law from the city of Kotor fatally poisoned 72 monks at dinner in the year 1443, after the Serbs subsequently lost the battle against the Turks at the field of Kosovo (63 years later). The city of Kotor had earlier been annexed by the Montenegrins who established 70 noble families’ houses there; in it, Serbian emperors built many churches and their palaces, most notably by the Stefan the MIghty; and later, in the year 1443, the city was placed under Venetian protection. From Solila is the district of Njegoš, where the city of Njegoš is located, home to the chief Montenegrin officers, the families of Petrović, Radonjić, and Bogdanović. South of Njegoš is the mountain Lovćen, a pleasant and elevated place where previously Montenegrin herzogs resided over the summer; there are medicinal springs there, and now also the metropolitan’s monastic palace. From that place, waters and rivers flow into the coastal region of Grbalj. On the other side, north of Njegoš, there are many districts: Ćeklić, Bjelica, the renowned Ozrinić, Cuca, Orahovac, and the provinces of Grahovo, Dvrsno, Krivošije, and Trešnjevo, and this province was liberated by the Montenegrins from the Turks in the year 1711. East of Njegoš lies Cetinje, the residence of the Metropolitan, and further east from Cetinje is the Rijeka province and the town of Rijeka, named after the river that springs from there and flows directly into the aforementioned lake. This town and the entire Župa were liberated from the Turks by the Montenegrins in the year 1711. From Župa towards the summer east [northeast] stretches the Lješan province up to the previously mentioned river Morača. North of this province, and from the Katun province towards the summer east, lies the Plješivac province up to the river Zeta from the east; there is the Metropolitan’s boat [gaz], where excellent trout are caught, such as we have seen nowhere else. East, on the other side of the river Zeta, lies the Bjelopavlić province. North from there is a mountain called Ostrog; atop this Ostrog, a stone line has long been placed, which divides Montenegro and Herzegovina from Ostrog on the north side to the top of Golija. South of Ostrog is the Bjelopavlić province and east of Bjelopavlić is the Piper province, and east of Piper are the Rovca; there flows the river Morača, which flows into the river Zeta, and from there into the aforementioned lake. On the other side of the Morača River, from the Pipers towards the winter east (southeast), lies the district of Bratonožićs, with the province of Vasojevićs on the left side, and the provinces of Kuč, Kliments, Kastrati, Tuzi, Škrijeli, and Grude on the right side. These provinces and districts mentioned here are all free peoples, all of our Eastern Orthodoxy, except for the Klimente and Kastrati, who are Catholics. In this land once lived noble lords: Bela Uroš, who fathered Simeon Nemanja, and this Simeon, before becoming a monk, was Stefan, the founder of the Serbian empire, who ruled successfully for 46 years; he also destroyed the city of Diocletia, so that Christians would not live there, as can still be seen to this day, and left the empire to his son Stefan the Second. Envying him, his brother Prince Vukan started a war against his emperor brother. At that time, their brother Saint Sava from Mount Athos brought the relics of their father Saint Simeon Nemanja, and reconciled Vukan with Emperor Stefan, and from that time Prince Vukan lived in Zeta; from this family stem the Zetan and Montenegrin herzogs. There in Zeta, Saint Sava also appointed the first archbishop, Ilarion Šišojević, in the year 6723 (note – according to the old reckoning of time which starts in 5508 BC). It is impossible to describe the fragrant air of this land, the beautiful waters, the aforementioned river and other smaller rivers that flow into the mentioned lake, where there are plenty of various excellent fish that are salted, dried, and transported to Venice, to Pula and Dalmatia; there, Serbian emperors have often chosen to reside during the winter. From there, Stefan the Fifth became emperor with these people and killed his half-brother, who did not want to live with him but instead threatened him with war, and his army surrendered to Stefan. From there, Stefan the Sixth, a mighty emperor, conquered many lands with these people: Bulgaria, Greece, Slavonia, and Croatia, part of Hungary and all of Istria; Venice and Naples were under his protection. With him was Vukan Mrnjavčić; the prince of the Bulgarian nation, whom Emperor Stefan dearly loved. Sensing his impending death, the emperor crowned the seven-year-old boy Emperor Uroš and handed over the administration of the empire to Prince Vukan. After that, Emperor Stefan the Mighty died, and the empire began to be governed by Vukan, who, seeing himself in high power, began to contemplate the imperial authority itself, if he were to kill young Uroš. Flattering him, he lured him into the Kosovo forest and killed him with his own hand, and the news spread that Emperor Uroš had fled to Mount Athos. That same year, the Turks advanced on Gallipoli, and Prince Vukan, along with his brother Gojko, other dukes, and a selected Serbian army of 60,000, marched to battle them. The Turks heard of the Serbian army encamped in Macedonia by the Marica River. Seeing this, the barbarians were greatly afraid and sent their emissaries to Prince Vukan to seek peace, agreeing even to pay tribute. However, Prince Vukan, maddened by a righteous divine wrath due to the murder of Emperor Uroš, would not agree to peace, and he did not know how to lead the army; they stood without guards, indulging in revelries and drunkenness, while their horses grazed unattended in the fields. The Turkish emissaries reported everything to their emperor Orkan, who unexpectedly attacked the Serbs by night: Prince Vukan and his family were killed, and many of the Serbian army perished, which caused his son Marko to flee to the Turkish emperor, and the Serbs appointed Prince Lazar as their ruler. At this election, all the Serbian lords were present, except for the Herzog of Zeta and Montenegro, who at that time was Baoša, son of Stracimir, and the duchy was later taken over by herzog Jovan I, who was descended from the family of Prince Vukan, son of Simeon Nemanja, and was called Jovan I Crnojević. It is suspected that he died from the deadly poison of Prince Vukan Mrnavčić; he left behind a young son, Stefan, aged three. At that time, Baoša was the Herzog of Zeta, but he refused to join forces with the emperor’s assassin, Prince Vukan, in battle against the Turks, and seldom did the Serbs win a battle without the Montenegrins and the Highlanders. Baoša refused to recognize Prince Lazar as the great lord of the Serbs and autocrat, and because of this, Prince Lazar waged war against Baoša three times, but was defeated by Baoša on all three occasions. Eventually, Baoša, a young man undefeated in war, was conquered by the young maiden, the beautiful Marija, daughter of Prince Lazar, whom he married and acknowledged the patronage of Prince Lazar. But the barbaric Turks took Adrianople from the Greeks and concluded peace, and began to devise plans to conquer the Serbian state and subjugate those brave peoples as soon as possible. Then, the Turkish Emperor Murad I began to gather a large army from Asia and marched directly into Serbian territory. The Serbian autocrat, Prince Lazar, did not expect this and thus sent envoys to plead for peace, but Murat would not even entertain the idea of peace. Prince Lazar immediately began to gather an army, to confront Sultan Murat on the field of Kosovo as soon as possible. From the south stood the Turkish army, and from the north, the Serbian army faced the Turks like a river against a great sea. The Serbian forces were led by the renowned vojvoda Miloš Obilić, Prince Lazar’s son-in-law; and the Bosnian cavalry was led by another son-in-law of Prince Lazar, vojvoda Vukan Branković, a deceiver who had negotiated with Sultan Murat and promised to betray Prince Lazar, yet he feared vojvoda Miloš Obilić, whom he constantly slandered. However, his righteous lord, Prince Lazar, would not believe these accusations, awaiting the arrival of the Duke of Zeta, Lord Baoša, who had not yet arrived but was gathering forces and moving towards Prince Lazar. Then, Prince Lazar regretted that Vuk Branković continuously slandered Miloš. He called his vojvodas to a dinner to rejoice together with him. The lords sit around the dining table: Vuk Branković to the left, and the elder Vratko Bogdanović to the right of Prince Lazar, Vojvoda Miloš at the end of the table opposite Prince Lazar, with two vojvodas on either side, Miloš Topličanin and Ivan Kosančić. Then the treacherous Vuk Branković spoke: “Look, great lord, Prince Lazar, those three are speaking of your doom, plotting to execute you on the field of Kosovo.” At that moment, Prince Lazar held a cup full of wine in his right hand, but he could not drink, as tears washed over him, nor could he utter a word, barely managing to speak the following: “Never before in the Serbian nation has there been treachery against one’s lord, and now I hear that a new betrayal is devised by my son-in-law, vojvoda Miloš Obilić, to whom I entrusted all my army, and he has even persuaded my two loyal vojvodas, Miloš Topličanin and Ivan Kosančić. Be well, my son-in-law Miloš, drink the wine, and accept this goblet as a gift!” Miloš stood up and bowed respectfully to the prince, saying: “Gracious lord, I am faithful to you, so help me God against Sultan Murat, whom I shall kill tomorrow and show my loyalty to the whole world, and I surrender all the army to you, my gracious lord, but beware, my lord, of the treachery of Vukan Branković, who deceives you and slanders us. I will leave early, I will kill Sultan Murat, and after that, I do not know what will happen.” At that moment, from behind the dining table, he emerged with both commanders, Miloš Topličanin and Ivan Kosančić, and they mounted their fine horses early and rushed towards the Turkish camp. The Turkish guards informed Sultan Murat, and he thought they were coming to convert to Islam, and he was very pleased with Miloš Obilić, as the main commander of Prince Lazar. Miloš Obilić entered the tent alone and the sultan said to him: “Welcome, Miloš, you will find plenty of mercy with me!” Miloš said, “I have enough of every mercy from my lord, the glorious Prince Lazar!” And at that moment, he thrust his sword into the heart of Sultan Murat, who fell backwards dead. Miloš also killed the chief [grand] vizier and the sultan’s treasurer. Obilić Miloš, like lightning, exited the tent, saddled his horse, and said to his two comrades, “We must carve our path with the sword!” The Turks shouted, “Miloš has killed the sultan!” Many Turks attacked them, and three vojvodas mercilessly slew many Turks, quickly trying to break back through the Turkish camp to inform Prince Lazar that Sultan Murat had been killed. At that moment, the Turks killed both vojvodas, Topličanin and Kosančić. Seeing his comrades had fallen, Obilić again charged into battle and killed many more Turks. The Turks around him thrust their spears into the ground, tips upwards, causing Obilic’s horse to impale itself on the spears. Vojvoda Miloš supported himself with his spear three times, leaping first about 20 paces, then 25, and a third time 40 paces, about which signs still remain on the field of Kosovo to this day. Miloš’s spear broke, and he was surrounded by a multitude of Turks, who captured him alive and took him to the Sultan’s son, Bayezid I; Bayezid was emboldened and then with all his army advanced towards the Serbian camp. Prince Lazar himself commanded the army, while the traitor Vuk Branković fled from the Serbian camp to the side and led away 12,000 excellent Bosnian cavalrymen. Prince Lazar said: “Whoever loves Christ and desires the mercy of God, let him come with me to shed blood for the faith and the church, for the fatherland and glory; and whoever does not want the mercy of God, let him follow the accursed Vukan Branković!” And in the second hour of the day, the battle began and by noon the Serbs had slain many Turks and killed six pashas with all their forces. And had the traitor not fled with 12,000 cavalrymen, they could have defeated all the Turkish forces that day. But after noon, the Serbs began to diminish. On that day, all Serbian lords perished before the eyes of their master, Prince Lazar, who, while changing tired horses, was captured alive by the Turks, along with a multitude of nobility, and by the order of Murat’s son Bayezid, they were all beheaded, first Prince Lazar, and then Miloš Obilić. Thus, the Serbian empire, which had flourished for two hundred and thirty years, was diminished. It was founded by Simeon Nemanja in the year 6663, and the first emperor was Simeon, followed by his son Stefan, after Stefan his son Radosav, after Radosav his brother Vladislav, after Vladislav his son Dragutin, after Dragutin his brother Milutin, after Milutin his son Stefan, after Stefan his son Stefan the Strong the Sixth, and after him the young Uroš (I do not mention Prince Vukašin and the murderer), and after Uroš, Prince Lazar. All of them ruled righteously, and God acknowledged their righteousness, as their holy and healing relics are still seen to this day. After them, the despots ruled over the Serbian lands: Lazar’s son Stefan, followed by his nephew Đorđe (Đurađ) Vuković, who gave his daughter in marriage to Murat II, for which he was despised by the Serbs. After him, his sons one after another, Grigorije [Grgur] the Blind and Lazar the Younger, and Stefan the Blind went to Montenegro to Herzog Ivan Crnojević, who married him to his niece Lady Anđelija, who bore him two sons: Archbishop Maksim and Despot Jovan. And after him, the last Serbian despot was Vuk Ognjeni, son of Grigori the Blind, and this despot Vuk was killed in Bosnia, in the town of Jajce, by his coachmen, the two Miloradović brothers, for which they were rewarded by the Turks, and cursed and exiled by the Christians (the aforementioned brothers Grigorije and Stefan were blinded by their son-in-law, the Turkish Emperor Murat II), and with him ended that illustrious line of despots, leaving the Duchy of Montenegro. Baoša, whom I mentioned earlier, arrived in Kosovo on the third day after the battle, which took place in the year 6897 since the creation of the world, and from the birth of Christ, 1389, on the 15th day of June. Baoša, deeply saddened that he did not make it to the battle, was furious with the traitor Vuk Branković, whom he later killed with his own hands. Baoša ruled Zeta until his son Jovan Crnojević came of age. This Jovan married Marija, the daughter of Jovan Kastrioti-Emacija, prince of Menestra and Kastoria, who bore him a son, Stefan Crnojević. This Stefan began to rule Zeta and Montenegro in the year 1421. It was then that Baoša passed away. That same year, Stefan Crnojević went to Naples to negotiate with the King of Naples and spent 2 years there; he returned to his homeland in 1423. He married Vojisava, the daughter of Đorđe (Đerđ) Kastrioti, known as Skanderbeg, and together with Skanderbeg, they fought against the Turks for 24 years, defeating the Turks in 63 battles, as the history of Skanderbeg recounts. Herzog Stefan died, and after him his son Ivan Crnojević ruled with his brother Đorđe, who lost a battle in 1450 in the field of Ćemovsko against the Turkish Emperor Mehmed the Mighty. In that battle, Đorđe Crnojević was killed; he was married to Vojisava, the daughter of Prince Luka Dukagjin, and she bore him a son, Stefan, and the aforementioned daughter Anđelija, who was married to the blind despot Stefan. Herzog Ivan Crnojević married Marija, the daughter of Ban Stefan of Bosnia, and this Stefan waged war against his son-in-law Ivan Crnojević, who could not be opposed, and Ivan Crnojević took under his authority Risan, Dračevica, Konavle, Trebinje, and Popovo from Stefan’s rule, and in this they reconciled. He had two sons, Đorđe and Staniša, and an only daughter Ana, who was married to the Wallachian lord Radul-bey. Ivan Crnojević’s first son, Đorđe, married the daughter of the Venetian Doge Mocenigo; his second son, Staniša, was given as a hostage to the Turkish Emperor Mehmed II to preserve peace, but the treacherous Mehmed converted the young man to Islam and named him the second Skanderbeg. Seeing the expansion of the Ottoman Empire, Herzog Ivan Crnojević moved his court from Zeta to Montenegro, to the field of Cetinje, where he also established and built a splendid residence for the Metropolitan. At that time, there was no Greek Orthodox church in Venice, and the Venetians allowed Ivan Crnojević to build one in the name of Saint George of Cappadocia, which to this day is maintained by the Greeks; he also raised his own court in Venice. He died at his court in Cetinje. After him, his son Đorđe (Đurađ), who died childless, ruled. After him, his cousin’s brother Stefan, son of Đorđe (Đurađ) Crnojević, who was killed by the Turks in the battle mentioned in the year 1450, ruled. And Stefan had a son, Jovan Crnojević, who ruled in Montenegro after his father’s death until the year 1516. Afterwards, he was a Venetian nobleman, his wife was Katarina Oria, from whom Đorđe Crnojević, a Venetian nobleman, descended. He had three sons: Konstantin, Solomon, and Ilija. In Hungary, the Venetian nobleman Konstantin Crnojević passed away, his wife was a Venetian noblewoman from the Contarini family, from them came Jovan Crnojević, a Venetian nobleman; his wife was the Venetian noblewoman Oresta Valeris, from them came Viktor Crnojević; his wife was Jelena Balba, a Venetian noblewoman, from them came Jovan Crnojević, a Venetian nobleman, renowned in 1621. In Montenegro, the Crnojević dukes ruled until the year 1516. From that same year, instead of herzogs, the metropolitans governed, and many times they assisted the Venetians against the Turks during the wars in Cyprus, Crete, and the Morea. Particularly, the Venetians captured Castelnuovo (Herceg Novi) with the help of the Montenegrins, who defeated the entire Bosnian and Herzegovinian army that came to aid Castelnuovo in the year 1687. Because of this, the Turkish army attacked Montenegro several times, led by the famous Suleiman Pasha of Albania, causing considerable damage to the Montenegrins. And after that, in the year 1699, heroes from Albania and Herzegovina, who had fled their homeland, faithfully served the Venetians in battles, and upon the conclusion of peace, instead of a reward, the Venetians sent them to a maritime island in Istria, where within one year, along with their wives and children, they all perished due to the unhealthy air. Following that, in the year 1711, that great lord whose memory is eternally worthy of praise, Tsar Peter the First, the autocrat of all Russia, having heard of the glorious and brave exploits of the Montenegrin people, deigned to send them his charters, praising their loyalty and steadfastness, encouraging in them a zeal for the Christian faith to take up arms in aid of His Majesty against the barbaric Turks. Thus did the Great Lord write to other Christian nations, and no one dared to raise arms against the Ottoman Porte, except the Montenegrins alone, under the leadership of their Metropolitan Danilo Šćepčević of Njeguši Petrović. He indeed had illustrious military leaders, including: firstly from Njeguši his own brother vojvoda Radule Petrović, with his nephew Serdar Sava Petrović, Serdar Vuk Radonjić, Vučeta Radonjić, knez Marko Bogdanović, vojvoda and governor Vukota Vukašinović, knez Kojica Nikolić, vojvoda Vuk Mićunović, knez Stanko Kovačević, knez Vukosav Ivanović, Vuksan Milić, knez Petar Vučetić, vojvoda Nikola Martinović, knez Stanoje Martinović, knez Ivan Vuletić, knez Martin Brajić, knez Luka Mahina, knez Nikola Pobor, governor Nikola Lazarević, serdar Vuk Mirković, vojvoda Vuk Radanov Paštrović, vojvoda Mašan Boljević, vojvoda Ilija Dupilo, knez Nikola Klisić, knez Vuk Bulanović (Vulanović), knez Mihajlo Ivanović, knez Stefan Vulović, vojvoda Vuk Đurašković, knez Vuliša Ražunatović (Ražnatović), knez Ivan Ljubotinja, knez Vuk Vujović, Nikola Svjetloća, vojvoda Boško Stjepanović (Šćepanović), Vuk Radović, knez Pileta Radulović, knez Rade Gvozdenović, vojvoda Mijuško Plješivčević, vojvoda Jezdimir Bljelopavlići, vojvoda Ćetko Piletić Piper, vojvoda and governor Radonja Drekalović, vojvoda Miloš Vasojević, vojvoda Miloš Bratonožić, vojvoda Đon Stale Kliment. With boldness and great will, they advanced with weapons in hand against the Ottoman Porte and defeated the barbarians. Consequently, following the peace agreement with Russia, the Porte decided to send a large army to Montenegro under the command of Serasker Ahmet Pasha, who with 60,000 Turkish troops attacked Montenegro in the year 1712, but was completely routed by the Montenegrins. After this victory, the Ottoman Porte decided that for its own good it should seek peace from the Montenegrins, but they, having promised to fulfil the high order of His Majesty Tsar Peter the Great and having no orders to do otherwise, did not attempt to renounce their loyalty and refused peace to their enemies. Following this, in the year 1714, the Ottoman Porte sent more than 100,000 troops to Montenegro, under the command of Vizier Numan Pasha Ćuprilić. The Montenegrins, abandoned by their allies, the Serbs who were subjects of the Turks, found themselves also at war with the Herzegovinians, whom the Turks never allowed to bear arms except when they went to war against Montenegro. Vizier Ćuprilić cunningly preferred deceit to bravery through various promises, just as the Montenegrins had received news of the peace treaty with the Turks by Tsar Peter the Great, whose blessed and eternally praiseworthy memory they were willing to honour by agreeing to peace. Trusting in the vizier’s oath, the Montenegrin leaders were not cautious enough to avoid entering the Turkish camp, and their men, dishonourably and treacherously, were imprisoned. Then, unexpectedly from all sides, they struck Montenegro, which was unprepared for the attack, consigning a fifth of the land to fire and sword, capturing many people, and hanging the aforementioned leaders. Then, in the year 1716, two Bosnian and Herzegovinian pashas, the Čengićs, along with Bey Ljubović and other surrounding pashas with a strong army, attacked the Montenegrins. With God’s help, the Montenegrins, using their weapons, defeated and slew them, and the pashas along with Bey Ljubović and other leaders were captured and beheaded. Again, in the years 1717 and 1718, the Venetians waged war against Albania, attacking the towns of Intivari (Bar) and Ulcinj, and they requested assistance from Metropolitan Danilo Petrović, who provided them with five thousand five hundred men. These men preserved the cannons and other Venetian weapons from the Albanian pasha, who with a strong army attacked the Venetian forces, but the Montenegrins repelled and dispersed the Turks, a fact which the Venetians have documented in writing, which still exists to this day, and for which they thanked Metropolitan Danilo. When they are not in need, the Venetians forget the initial good that the Montenegrins had done for them. Then, in the year 1727, Bećir-paša Čengić with a large army attacked Montenegro, but his forces were utterly defeated, and he himself narrowly escaped thanks to the swiftness of his horses, fleeing with a small number of troops. Later, he was killed by the Russian imperial army near Ochakov. Subsequently, in 1732, Topal Osman-paša, whom Sultan Mehmed V had appointed as the governor-general of Macedonia, Albania, and Bosnia, arrived in Albania and attempted to test his luck against the Montenegrin people. He sent a considerable number of Macedonians, Albanians, and Bosniaks to the Piper province, where, with the help of the Kučs, they were all slaughtered. It is marvelled that at the beginning of this battle, these Christians saw before them a man on a white horse, resembling the great martyr Saint George, who first frightened the Turks, causing Osman Topal-paša himself to flee from the fortress of Podgorica to Albania, and he later died in a battle with the Persians. Again, in the year 1739, Vizier Hodaverdi-pasha Mahmudbegović, along with eight pashas and a numerous army, attacked the house of vojvoda Drekalović, and waged war for 7 years. Afterwards, the Turkish army was defeated by our forces, and the leaders along with 70 prominent Turks, who had barricaded themselves in a tower, were burned alive. Furthermore, in the year 1750, the Turkish army, composed of Bosniaks and Herzegovinians, suddenly struck at the Montenegrin border, but was defeated by a small number of our troops. Alongside these victories of this people, not including many others in various military events, I briefly mention the fortune that God bestowed upon their arms; and had these peoples not defended themselves so vigorously with arms, they would surely have fallen into slavery, like the rest of Serbia. Additionally, the Turkish Sultan stationed a permanent army around Montenegro, providing it with substantial funds every year, and this army never allowed the Montenegrins any peace or rest.
I will not miss the opportunity here to mention another brave people who live around us, who today belong to the Turkish region, but were previously under the rule of the herzogs of Zeta and Montenegro: specifically Mrkojevićs has and Bijelo Polje, as well as other peoples who live around and who are naturally warlike, and are located up to the river Drin, and this river Drin divides the duchy of Zeta and Albania. These peoples are not completely under Turkish rule, as are other peoples, which is clearly evidenced by the fact that in the past years <and> recently among these peoples it happened that they killed the pashas appointed by the sultan in the governorates, namely: in 1741, the three-horse-tail pasha Mehmudbegović, in 1748, Yusuf-pasha Čaušagić, in 1749, Muftar-pasha Čaušagić, two-horse-tail, in 1750, Kaimak-pasha Mahmudbegović, two-horse-tail, and his own brother. From this, it can be seen about this people, although it is considered to be in the Turkish region, how great their bravery is and [how] free they are, they were not afraid to kill so many distinguished and famous Turkish pashas.
It is also necessary to know how much the Montenegrin people were of use to the Austrian court through their natural [national] patriarch Arsenije Crnojević, who responded to the gracious written invitation of the Roman Caesar Leopold I, in which, praising the glorious and chosen Albanian nations, he sent promises full of various satisfactions to them and other Illyrian-Serbian peoples. Then, Serbian Patriarch Arsenije the Montenegrin fled from the Turkish territory to his homeland Montenegro, and the Montenegrins escorted him through Bosnia to the imperial army near the Danube. Then, in the year 1689, along with Patriarch Arsenije, more than 80,000 Serbian families moved from Turkish territory to Hungary, to the imperial region, under the privileges granted to Patriarch Arsenije by Emperor Leopold. Again, in the year 1737, Serbian Patriarch Arsenije Jovanović fled from the city of Peć, the patriarchal residence (after the Turks wanted to hang him), whom the Kuči and Vasojevići escorted to the emperor’s army in the city of Niš, and on their return, they burned and plundered the entire Turkish province of Bihor and baptised the daughters of the Turkish lords and married them.
That same year, the Bosniaks found themselves in extreme distress, surrounded on all sides, with no food reserves; the Montenegrins did not allow them to bring in supplies from Albania, only the French managed to ship flour by boats to Ragusa, and from Ragusa by caravan to Sarajevo. But there too, the Montenegrins ambushed the Turks: they seized the caravan with the flour, and killed the Turks. Such were the services rendered to the emperor by the Montenegrin people, and for these services, they did not seek any reward from the emperor.
I briefly wrote this report about our Montenegrin people, describing their previous condition and the services they willingly provided to the emperors of the Christian name, from which one can sufficiently assess the loyalty and steadfastness of this nation, which considers it their sole honour to serve the Christian lord with their weapons.
B.M.P.M.Ch.Z.S.
P. I S.E.V.P.
March 10, 1754,
in Moscow
NUMBER OF SERBIAN ARCHBISHOPS alongside the Montenegrin Metropolitan
1. Archbishop of Peć and Patriarch all of Serbia, Bulgaria, the Littoral, Dalmatia, Bosnia, both sides of the Danube, and the whole of Illyricum
2. Bishop of Bosnia
3. Bishop of Herzegovina
4. Bishop of Raška and Novi Pazar
5. Bishop of Užice
6. Metropolitan of Belgrade
7. Bishop of Niš
8. Bishop of Kosovo
9. Bishop of Ištib (Štip)
10. Bishop of Kyustendil
11. Bishop of Skopje
12. Bishop of Prizren
These twelve bishops live in poverty, as Turkish subjects, and are most angered by the Greeks, as happened in the past war of 1737. In Constantinople, the Greek Karadz-Joanikije submitted a written petition to the Sultan claiming that the Serbs, with their natural [national] patriarch and bishops, have always been traitors to the Turkish empire, sometimes to Russia, sometimes to the Caesar, occasionally to the Venetians. Upon this petition, the current Sultan Mehmed allowed Karadz-Joanikije to become the Serbian patriarch, who inflicted a great deal of harm on the Serbian people, travelling with the Sultan’s decree throughout Serbian lands, appointing Greeks as bishops, tormenting the people, and forcibly taking money. It was his fortune that he greatly bypassed Montenegro. Nevertheless, in the end, he fled from the Serbian people to Constantinople, with great wealth, having plundered the holy churches and the Serbian people, and particularly stripped the Peć Patriarchate to its bare walls, leaving nothing there but the holy relics that rest there. Afterwards, the Serbs appointed their own natural [national] patriarch, as before.
13. The Dalmatian archbishopric, with Dalmatia under Venetian rule, which does not allow an Orthodox archbishop there, but a Uniate, to mention the Pope’s name and believe that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son, who would believe in purgatory, unleavened bread as well as leavened, for the communion of the consecrated body of Christ, and who would want to confess with an oath and a handwritten signature.
Serbian Bishops in the Imperial Region
1. Metropolitan of Karlovac and Syrmia
2. Bishop of Bačka
3. Bishop of Timișoara
4. Bishop of Caransebeș
5. Bishop of Arad
6. Bishop of Budapest
7. Bishop of Slavonia
8. Bishop of Kostajnica
9. Bishop of Croatian and Karlovac
These 9 bishops are quite wealthy.
Ragusa is located on the Adriatic Sea, between Montenegro and Dalmatia. It was previously under the rule of Serbian emperors, later accepting Turkish vassalage and protection; they are all Catholics. And when the Turks completely conquered Bosnia and Herzegovina, several Christians of the Greek faith came to Ragusa with their property to preserve themselves here. However, on Easter in the church of Saint Nicholas, the Ragusans suddenly attacked and killed all these Christians, and seized their property, and from that time they do not allow any Christian of our faith to live among them, nor do they have in their state our churches or people. If someone dies, they do not allow them to be buried in their land; such are they, the ultimate enemies of our Orthodoxy. The only yoke they bear is from the Montenegrins, who press the Ragusans, especially because the Ragusans bribe the Turks against the Montenegrins. Last year, 1752, the Ragusans captured a Montenegrin who had come to Ragusa for trade with the Venetians and handed him over to the Turks in Trebinje; the Montenegrins immediately captured a very wealthy Ragusan nobleman and wanted to behead him, but he, poor man, gave the Montenegrins both that Montenegrin and a thousand gold ducats, and freed himself.
The history of the Turkish monarchy in Chapter 4 on page 30 clearly states that the Montenegrin people are free. When Sultan Ibrahim was killed and his son Sultan Mehmed the Fourth was placed on the throne, a famous rebel named Kudkegaj planned to flee with great wealth to the inaccessible Albanian mountains, which the Turks have never been able to subdue – this implicitly refers to Montenegro, located in the Albanian region, since the Turks had conquered Albania, but Montenegro distinctly defends its name and freedom with courage and arms against enemies, as even the Turks themselves reluctantly call it Kaur Karadag, that is, Montenegro.
END
Translated by Books of Jeremiah
