Nikac Tomanović ( sr, Никац Томановић; 1755–56), known in epic poetry as Nikac of Rovine (Никац од Ровина/Nikac od Rovina), was Montenegrin ''

harambaša Harambaša ( sr-cyr, Харамбаша) was the rank for a senior commander of a ''hajduk'' band (brigand gangs). Etymology It is derived from Turkish word for bandit leader ( tr, haramibaşı; - "Bandit" + - "Head"), and was like some other Ot ...

'' in Nikšić and contemporary of

Sava Petrović Njegoš The Sava (; , ; sr-cyr, Сава, hu, Száva) is a river in Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. It flows through Slovenia, Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally th ...

(1735–1782).

Life

Primary sources

The history of Nikac is known by poems collected by

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

and

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 ...

, the Prince-Bishop of Montenegro (1830–1851), and subsequently collected epic poems.

Early life

Nikac was born in Rovine, of the

Sanjak of Herzegovina The Sanjak of Herzegovina ( tr, Hersek Sancağı; sh, Hercegovački sandžak) was an Ottoman administrative unit established in 1470. The seat was in Foča until 1572 when it was moved to Taşlıca (Pljevlja). The sanjak was initially part of ...

of the Bosnia Eyalet,

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

(now western

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

). He was the son of Vuk Tomanović, of the

Cuce Cuce (Cyrillic: Цуце, ) is a historical tribe (''pleme'') and region in Montenegro, located in the area of the Katunska nahija from Old Montenegro. History The toponym ''Cuce'' is first mentioned in 1431 in documents from Kotor, then again i ...

tribe, a contemporary of

Danilo I, Metropolitan of Cetinje Danilo I Petrović-Njegoš (; 1670 – 11 January 1735) was the Metropolitan of Cetinje between 1697 and 1735, and the founder of the House of Petrović-Njegoš, which ruled Montenegro from 1697 to 1918. He was also known by the patronymic Dani ...

(1696–1735). Vuk was not a ''glavar'' (head) in the Montenegrin tribal assembly. The Tomanović hailed from Old Kuči (eastern Montenegro).

Stories

In ca. 1750 Nikac and his 40 companions penetrated through an Ottoman army base of 30,000 men, killed the Osman-Kaiha Pasha, and Nikac succeeded, though wounded, to "cutting his way back" with a few surviving men. It is said that he and his 40 men came to surrender themselves to the pasha, then killed him in his own tent, like

Miloš Obilić Miloš Obilić ( sr-cyr, Милош Обилић, ) was a legendary Serbian knight who is reputed to have been in the service of Prince Lazar during the Ottoman invasion of Serbia in the late 14th century. He is not mentioned in contemporary sou ...

had done to the sultan. According to another story a general with 45,000 men invaded Montenegro but was defeated by vladika Vasilije Petrović and killed by Nikac, who gave the general's sabre to Vladika Sava. He was then sent to

Dobrota Dobrota ( Montenegrin and Serbian: Доброта) is a town in the municipality of Kotor, Montenegro. Although administratively a separate settlement, it is ''de facto'' a part of Kotor as it encompasses most of Kotor's residential area, whi ...

, near Kotor, to heal his wounds. According to an epic poem, he murdered Odo Beg Mušović. Nikac took a charge of the collected

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, '' ...

(tax) to Hamza Pasha. As Nikac was feared by the Turks, Hamza accepted this. Jašar Babić however, disapproved, and went with his armed band to steal Nikac's livestock. Early at dawn, Nikac and Jašar met and fired their guns at the same time, killing each other. According to another story, Nikac stops the stealing, recovers the sheep, kills thirty Turks, and takes seven or eight prisoners.

Legacy

During his rule,

vladika Vladika or Wladika ( sr, владика) is a Slavic title and address of bishops in the Eastern Orthodox Church. In Old Church Slavonic, the meaning of the word is ''Mr.'' From the early-16th to the mid-19th century in Montenegro, the title r ...

of Montenegro wanted to establish a medal for heroism, named after Nikac. However, senators Filip Đurašković and Stevan Vukotić suggested that the medal be named after

instead, as he had killed the

sultan Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...

and Nikac killed a

pasha Pasha, Pacha or Paşa ( ota, پاشا; tr, paşa; sq, Pashë; ar, باشا), in older works sometimes anglicized as bashaw, was a higher rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, gener ...

. Therefore, the medal established in 1847 as the highest military decoration in

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

became known as the

Obilić medal The Obilić Medal ( sr, Обилића медаља) or Medal for Bravery "Miloš Obilić" was a medal established by Petar II Petrović-Njegoš as the highest military decoration in Montenegro, based on the cult of national hero Miloš Obilić. ...

. Milutin Tomić, Serbian poet, used the pseudonym "Nikac od Rovina".

Epic poetry

*''Haračlija Crnogoraca'' (1833) by

Sima Milutinović Sima Milutinović ( sr-cyr, Сима Милутиновић, 12 July 1899 – 11 December 1981), was a Yugoslav mechanical engineer and a professor at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, at the University of Belgrade, the most prolific Yugosla ...

*''Nikac od Rovina'', in ''The Serbian Mirror'' (1835) by

*''Ovce Nikca od Rovina'' *''Smrt Nikca od Rovina'' *''Babić Jašar i Nikac od Rovaca''

References

Secondary sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Tomanovic, Nikac 18th-century deaths Ottoman period in the history of Montenegro Military personnel from Nikšić Characters in Serbian epic poetry Hajduks Montenegrin soldiers