Battle of Grahovo was fought on 26 August 1836 between the Ottoman Empire and

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

, and was a prequel to the more famous

Battle of Grahovac The Battle of Grahovac took place in the eponymous village of Grahovac from 11 to 13 May 1858, when the Montenegrin Grand Duke Mirko Petrović-Njegoš led the army of Principality of Montenegro against the Ottomans, ending in a decisive Mont ...

(1858). The battle ended in Ottoman victory, and was most notable for the death of nine members of the ruling

House of Petrović-Njegoš A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condit ...

, including Joko Petrović-Njegoš, brother of the prince-bishop Petar II and Stevan Petrović-Njegoš, brother of Grand Duke

Mirko Mirko (Cyrillic script: Мирко) is a masculine given name of South Slavic origin. By Slavic etymology, the name is composed of the root ''mir'' (meaning peace) and hypocoristic suffix ''-ko'' usual in South Slavic languages, which together me ...

Background

After the rise of

Petar II Petrović-Njegoš Petar II Petrović-Njegoš ( sr-cyrl, Петар II Петровић-Његош, ; – ), commonly referred to simply as Njegoš (), was a Prince-Bishop (''vladika'') of Montenegro, poet and philosopher whose works are widely considered ...

to power in the

Prince-Bishopric of Montenegro The Prince-Bishopric of Montenegro ( sr, Митрополство Црногорско, Mitropolstvo Crnogorsko) was an ecclesiastical principality that existed from 1516 until 1852. The principality was located around modern-day Montenegro. It ...

, members of Grahovo tribe, led by vojvoda Jakov Daković refused to pay

haraç Haraç ( hy, խարջ, kharj, mk, арач, arač, gr, χαράτσι, charatsi, sh-Cyrl-Latn, харач, harač) was a land tax levied on non-Muslims in the Ottoman Empire. ''Haraç'' was developed from an earlier form of land taxation, '' ...

to the Ottoman authorities and joined the rest of

Montenegrins Montenegrins ( cnr, Црногорци, Crnogorci, or ; lit. "Black Mountain People") are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common Montenegrin culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro. Genetics Accordin ...

in guerrilla warfare in Ottoman-controlled

Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia. It has never had strictly defined geogra ...

, expressing the desire to unite with Montenegro. In response, Ali-paša Rizvanbegović, vizier of Herzegovina, attacked Grahovo in 1836 and occupied the town.

Battle

The battle that ensued took place when a band of around 300 young men led by Joko Petrović-Njegoš, arrived at Grahovo and decided to attack the Ottoman army without waiting for reinforcements. The Ottomans retreated at first, and then ambushed the Montenegrins near the Čelina stream (''Čelinski potok''), resulting with Ottoman victory and 70 Montenegrin casualties, including nine members of the

, including the Prince-Bishop's teenage brother.

Aftermath

In 1838, a treaty was signed which declared Grahovo to be a neutral zone under a hereditary ''Voivode'' (Duke) which his dignity was confirmed by the Montenegrin Prince and Ottoman Governors. Four years after the Montenegrin defeat at Grahovo, seeking revenge for the death of his brother, Njegoš plotted the assassination of Smail-aga with the assistance of the local Christians from Herzegovina who lived on the territory under Smail-aga's control. Njegoš ordered a Montenegrin tribal leader,

Novica Cerović Novica Cerović ( sr-Cyrl, Новица Цepoвић; 1805–1895) was a Montenegrin '' vojvoda'' (duke) of the Drobnjak clan, who is noted as having defeated and killed a local Ottoman tyrant, Smail-aga Čengić, on the auspices of Petar II Petr ...

, to ambush Smail-aga Čengić, the Ottoman commander who was responsible for killing Njegoš's brother Joko. In late September 1840, Montenegrins attracted Čengić and his army deep into their territory, organized an ambush and murdered them by attacking their camp during the night. The assault occurred in the village of Mljetičak, north of

Nikšić Nikšić ( cnr, Никшић, italic=no, sr-cyrl, Никшић, italic=no; ), is the second largest city in Montenegro, with a total population of 56,970 located in the west of the country, in the centre of the spacious Nikšić field at the foot ...

. In the ensuing clash, Smail-aga was shot and killed, after which his severed head was brought to

Cetinje Cetinje (, ) is a town in Montenegro. It is the former royal capital (''prijestonica'' / приjестоница) of Montenegro and is the location of several national institutions, including the official residence of the president of Montenegro ...

. As a sign of his gratitude, Njegoš made Cerović a senator.

References

Bibliography

{{Cite book , last=H.M. Stationery Office , title=Handbooks Prepared Under the Direction of the Historical Section of the Foreign Office: The Balkan states , publisher= , year=1920 , edition=2nd , location=London , language=English Grahovo Grahovo Grahovo Grahovo Ottoman period in the history of Montenegro Prince-Bishopric of Montenegro August 1836 events