Janko Vukotić ( sr-cyr, Јанко Вукотић; 18 February 1866 – 4 February 1927) was a Montenegrin

serdar Serdar may refer to * Serdar (given name) * Serdar (surname) * SERDAR, a stabilized remote-controlled Ukrainian weapon station * Serdar (city) in Turkmenistan, the capital of Serdar District * Serdar (Ottoman rank), a military and noble rank of the ...

, general in the armies of the

Principality A principality (or sometimes princedom) can either be a monarchical feudatory or a sovereign state, ruled or reigned over by a regnant-monarch with the title of prince and/or princess, or by a monarch with another title considered to fall under ...

and

Kingdom of Montenegro The Kingdom of Montenegro ( sr, Краљевина Црна Горa, Kraljevina Crna Gora) was a monarchy in southeastern Europe, present-day Montenegro, during the tumultuous period of time on the Balkan Peninsula leading up to and during World ...

in the

Balkan Wars The Balkan Wars refers to a series of two conflicts that took place in the Balkan States in 1912 and 1913. In the First Balkan War, the four Balkan States of Greece, Serbia, Montenegro and Bulgaria declared war upon the Ottoman Empire and defe ...

and

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Biography

Vukotić was born in Čevo, belonging to the Vukotić brotherhood; he was related to

Petar Petar ( sr, Петар, bg, Петър) is a South Slavic languages, South Slavic masculine given name, their variant of the Biblical name Petros (given name), Petros cognate to Peter (given name), Peter. Derivative forms include Pero (given name) ...

and Milena Vukotić. He studied at the lower gymnasium at

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 ...

, and at the

Military Academy of Modena The Military Academy of Modena ( it, Accademia militare di Modena) is a military university in Modena, northern Italy. Located in the Palazzo Ducale in the historic center of the city, it was the first such military institution to be created in ...

in Italy.

Politics

Vukotić served as Minister of Defence of

in the periods of 1905–1907, 1911–1912 and 1913–1915, and as

Prime Minister of Montenegro The prime minister of Montenegro ( cnr, Премијер/Премијерка Црне Горе, Premijer/Premijerka Crne Gore), officially the president of the Government of Montenegro (), is the head of the government of Montenegro. The role ...

in 1913–1915.

Balkan Wars

Vukotić commanded the Montenegrin Eastern Army during the

First Balkan War The First Balkan War ( sr, Први балкански рат, ''Prvi balkanski rat''; bg, Балканска война; el, Αʹ Βαλκανικός πόλεμος; tr, Birinci Balkan Savaşı) lasted from October 1912 to May 1913 and invo ...

and the Montenegrin division of the First Serbian Army during the

Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of the First Balkan War, attacked its former allies, Serbia and Greece, on 16 ( O.S.) / 29 (N.S.) June 1913. Serbian and Greek armies r ...

, in which he distinguished himself at the

Battle of Bregalnica The Battle of Bregalnica was fought between the Kingdom of Bulgaria army and the Kingdom of Serbia during the Second Balkan War The Second Balkan War was a conflict which broke out when Bulgaria, dissatisfied with its share of the spoils of th ...

World War I

During the First World War, Vukotić was the Chief of Staff of the Montenegrin Army and the Commander of the Sandžak Army of Montenegrin forces. He is most famous for winning the

Battle of Mojkovac The Battle of Mojkovac was a World War I battle fought between 6 January and 7 January 1916 near Mojkovac, in today's Montenegro, between the armies of Austria-Hungary and the Kingdom of Montenegro. It ended with a decisive Montenegrin victory ...

, in which his daughter, the only female participant, Vasilija Vukotić was assigned to his headquarters to conduct correspondence. Despite frequent writings, he was not taken prisoner after the fall of Montenegro in January 1916. According to information from his son, Vukasin Vukotic, after the fall of Montenegro, a treaty was signed with the Austrians and the Montenegrins went home. Later there were uprisings in the north, attacks on Austrian troops and slaying of Austrian officers. When they requested he subside the attacks of komits in the north who assaulted Austrian officers, he refused explaining that they had a right to do so because the Austrians were occupants. He was interned - house arrest with his family - in Bjelovar because he refused to cooperate with the Austrian authorities. In his free time there he wrote his memoirs, the text beginning with: "Today in Bjelovar..."

Later years

After the war, Vukotić served as a general in the Royal Yugoslav Army until his death in 1927. He is interred in the

Belgrade New Cemetery The New Cemetery ( sr, Ново гробље, ''Novo groblje'') is a cemetery complex in Belgrade, Serbia, with a distinct history. It is located in Ruzveltova street in Zvezdara municipality. The cemetery was built in 1886 as the third Christia ...

References

Sources

* 1866 births 1927 deaths Military personnel from Cetinje 19th-century military history of Montenegro 20th-century military history of Montenegro People of the Principality of Montenegro People of the Kingdom of Montenegro Politicians from Cetinje Montenegrin soldiers Serbs of Montenegro Dukes of Montenegro 20th-century Serbian people Serbian military leaders Serbian military personnel of the Balkan Wars Serbian military personnel of World War I Montenegrin military personnel of the Balkan Wars Montenegrin military personnel of World War I World War I prisoners of war held by Austria-Hungary Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Burials at Belgrade New Cemetery Defence ministers of Montenegro {{Serbia-bio-stub