}; sq, Lala Drekali) was a
vojvoda of the
Kuči tribe in eastern Montenegro in the first half of the 17th century.
Life
His father was
Drekale and his mother was the daughter of a vojvoda of
Old Kuči.
He had a brother, Nikolla who died with his father in a raid by
Kelmendi
Kelmendi is a historical Albanian tribe (''fis'') and region in Malësia ( Kelmend municipality) and eastern Montenegro (parts of Gusinje Municipality). It is located in the upper valley of the Cem river and its tributaries in the Accursed Mo ...
. The memory of the event has been retained in the folk poem and song ''
Pogibija vojvode Drekala i njegova osveta'' (The death of vojvoda Drekale and his revenge) that was recorded in the 1930s. A gravestone was placed in 1979 in Rikavačko Jezero, very close to the Montenegro-Albania border, where he is thought to have died.
The earliest description of him is in the report of the Venetian
Mariano Bolizza
Mariano Bolizza or Marin Bolica (1603 – 27 November 1643) was a nobleman and writer from Cattaro.
Biography
Bolizza was born in Kotor, at the time part of the Republic of Venice (now Montenegro). He studied at the University of Padua and, ha ...
, who travelled in the lands of modern Montenegro and northern Albania to document possible trade routes to Istanbul. In his report, Bolizza notes that ''Lale Drecalou'' and ''Nico Raizcou'' (Niko Rajckov) were the commanders of the Catholic Albanian Kuči (''Chuzzi Albanesi'') which had 490 households and 1,500 men-in-arms described as ''very war-like and courageous''. This community had settled in the area of Kuči in the 16th century under Drekale's command.
They were among the highland communities that actively fought against the Ottoman Empire; others included
Vasojevići
The Vasojevići ( sh, Васојевићи, ) is a historical highland tribe (''pleme'') and region of Montenegro, in the area of the Brda. It is the largest of the historical tribes, occupying the area between Lijeva Rijeka in the South up to ...
,
Bjelopavlići
Bjelopavlići ( cyrl, Бјелопавлићи; sq, Palabardhi), ) is a historical tribe (pleme) of Albanian origin and a valley in the Brda region of Montenegro, around the city of Danilovgrad.
Geography
The ''Bjelopavlići'' valley (also kn ...
,
Kelmendi
Kelmendi is a historical Albanian tribe (''fis'') and region in Malësia ( Kelmend municipality) and eastern Montenegro (parts of Gusinje Municipality). It is located in the upper valley of the Cem river and its tributaries in the Accursed Mo ...
and
Hoti. He appears to have taken part in various assemblies of coordination against the Ottomans.
In 1608, he participated in a meeting of
Serbian Patriarch
This article lists the heads of the Serbian Orthodox Church, since the establishment of the church as an autocephalous archbishopric in 1219 to today's patriarchate. The list includes all the archbishops and patriarchs that led the Serbian Ortho ...
Jovan II Kantul in the
Morača monastery.
In 1614, he was one of the chief participants and organizers of the
assembly of Kuči. In that assembly 44 leaders mostly from northern Albania and Montenegro took part to organize an insurrection against the Ottomans and ask for assistance by the Papacy.
Gjon Renësi had undertaken the task of presenting the decisions of the assembly to the Papacy. It was followed by an assembly in
Prokuplje
Prokuplje ( sr-cyrl, Прокупље, ) is a city and the administrative center of the Toplica District in southern Serbia. According to 2011 census, the city urban area has a population of 27,333 inhabitants, while the administrative area has 4 ...
in 1616 and another one in 1620 in
Belgrade, where he appears as one of the participants.
He is buried in the courtyard of the church of Ljes, in Kuci. A
turkey oak Turkey oak is a common name for several species of oaks and may refer to:
*''Quercus cerris'', native to southeastern Europe and Asia Minor
*''Quercus laevis
''Quercus laevis'', the turkey oak, is a member of the red oak group of oaks. It is n ...
tree stands on his grave. Folk tradition maintains that it was planted the day he was buried. That is why it's called ''Ljaljev cer'' (Lale's cerrus).
Conversion
Lale Drekalov was born and raised as Roman Catholic. At some point in the first half of the 17th century he converted to Orthodoxy. The actual date of his conversion is a matter historical dispute.
Marko Miljanov
Marko Miljanov Popović ( sr-Cyrl, Марко Миљанов Поповић, ; 25 April 1833 – 2 February 1901) was a Brda chieftain and Montenegrin general and writer.
He entered the service of Danilo I, the first secular Prince of Monteneg ...
, himself a direct descendant of Lale Drekalov through the Popovići brotherhood, mentions that he converted after an agreement with
Ruvim III, Metropolitan of Cetinje.
[Marko Miljanov, Drekalovići - porijeklo, Vojvoda Drekale](_blank)
/ref> As Ruvim III lived after the probable life span of Lale Drekalov, Rufim Njeguš
Rufim Njeguš ( sr-Cyrl, Руфим Његуш; 1594–1631) was the Metropolitan of Cetinje between 1594 and 1636. He succeeded the Metropolitan duo of Nikanor and Stevan (s. 1591–93). Rufim Njeguš and Metropolitan Visarion of Trebinje (s. ...
who played a key role in the conversion of Kuči and Bratonožići to Orthodoxy is the more historically grounded alternative as Jovan Erdeljanović and Sima Milutinović Sarajlija have pointed out. Drekalov's conversion was soon followed by a gradual conversion of all Catholics of Kuči. As Francesco Bolizza notes in a letter to Cardinal Caponi in 1649, about three or four Catholic villages remained in Kuči under the jurisdiction of the Franciscan mission of Gruda.
The date of conversion also coincides with his second marriage. He was first married to unnamed woman from Kastrati with whom he had one son, Vuko. He then married a relative of the 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 ...
vojvoda. In the more historically grounded version she was the daughter of vojvoda Stanoje Radonjin and sister of Pejo Stanojev Balević. With his second wife had four sons: Vujoš, Iliko, Čejo and Mijo, progenitors of the big Kuči brotherhoods: Vujoševići, Ilikovići. Čejovići and Mijovići. The brotherhood of Ilikovići was further diversified thus the surname disappeared, whilst Vuko because of the dispute with his half-brothers settled in Podgorica
Podgorica (Cyrillic: Подгорица, ; lit. 'under the hill') is the capital and largest city of Montenegro. The city was formerly known as Titograd (Cyrillic: Титоград, ) between 1946 and 1992—in the period that Montenegro form ...
and converted to Islam, his descendants being known as Turkovići. Lale Drekalov was first succeeded by his oldest son Vujoš as Voivode, but the position was later transferred to Iliko. After his death begins the branching of the ''Drekalovići'' into a union of brotherhoods as opposed to being a single brotherhood.
The event of the wedding has also been recorded as folk story with a metaphorical segment where the vojvoda of Bratonožići presents Lale with his famous mace as a gift, only to be later warned by his kinsmen that with the mace he handed over all the prosperity of the Bratonožići tribe to Lale as well. The story illustrates the exploits of Lale, since under him and his sons Kuči became the largest and most powerful tribe in the Montenegrin Highlands.Jovan Erdeljanović, Pleme Bratonožići
/ref>
Sources
{{DEFAULTSORT:Drekalov, Lale
Converts to Eastern Orthodoxy from Roman Catholicism
Eastern Orthodox Christians from Montenegro
16th-century births
17th-century deaths