Pavle Matejić ( sr-cyr, Павле Матејић; 1770–1816), known as Paulj (), was a

Serbian Revolution The Serbian Revolution ( sr, Српска револуција / ''Srpska revolucija'') was a national uprising and constitutional change in Serbia that took place between 1804 and 1835, during which this territory evolved from an Ottoman prov ...

ary that participated in the

First Serbian Uprising The First Serbian Uprising ( sr, Prvi srpski ustanak, italics=yes, sr-Cyrl, Први српски устанак; tr, Birinci Sırp Ayaklanması) was an uprising of Serbs in the Sanjak of Smederevo against the Ottoman Empire from 14 February 18 ...

(1804–13). Starting out as a captain under the command of

Petar Dobrnjac Petar Teodorović ( sr-cyr, Петар Теодоровић; 1771–1831), known as Petar Dobrnjac (Петар Добрњац) was a Serbian Vojvoda in the First Serbian Uprising. He was born in the Požarevac nahija, in the village of Dobrnje, ...

, Paulj was elevated to ''vojvoda'' (general) in the Gornja Mlava region upon showing his courage. He took part in the successful campaigns in the eastern parts of the

Belgrade Pashaluk The Sanjak of Smederevo ( tr, Semendire Sancağı; sr, / ), also known in historiography as the Pashalik of Belgrade ( tr, Belgrad Paşalığı; sr, / ), was an Ottoman administrative unit (sanjak), that existed between the 15th and the out ...

, and the campaign to take

Niš Niš (; sr-Cyrl, Ниш, ; names in other languages) is the third largest city in Serbia and the administrative center of the Nišava District. It is located in southern part of Serbia. , the city proper has a population of 183,164, while ...

(1809).

Life

He was born in the village of Melnica, at that time part of the

Požarevac Požarevac ( sr-cyr, Пожаревац, ) is a city and the administrative centre of the Braničevo District in eastern Serbia. It is located between three rivers: Danube, Great Morava and Mlava and below the hill Čačalica (208m). As of 2011, ...

nahiya A nāḥiyah ( ar, , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level division w ...

'' in the

Sanjak of Smederevo The Sanjak of Smederevo ( tr, Semendire Sancağı; sr, / ), also known in historiography as the Pashalik of Belgrade ( tr, Belgrad Paşalığı; sr, / ), was an Ottoman Empire, Ottoman administrative unit (sanjak), that existed between the 1 ...

("Belgrade Pashaluk"). He became a ''buljubaša'' (captain) already by the beginning of the uprising, appointed by

. For his courage and other great traits, he was later appointed ''vojvoda'' (general) in Gornja Mlava. Paulj Matejić participated in the victories in the eastern parts of the

that strengthened rebel holding. A rebel army led by commanders Miloje Todorović,

, Ilija Barjaktarović, Paulj Matejić, Stevan Sinđelić and

Veljko Petrović Veljko Petrović ( sr-cyr, Вељко Петровић, ; c. 1780 – 1813), known simply as Hajduk Veljko (Хајдук Вељко, ǎjduːk v̞ɛ̌ːʎkɔ, was one of the '' vojvodas'' (military commanders) of the Serbian Revolutionary force ...

arrived on 1809 outside

. During preparations for the takeover of Niš, Paulj made a

trench A trench is a type of excavation or in the ground that is generally deeper than it is wide (as opposed to a wider gully, or ditch), and narrow compared with its length (as opposed to a simple hole or pit). In geology, trenches result from eros ...

above the village of Kamenica. The trench, above the church, had two cannons. It was one of eleven or twelve rebel trenches around the city. On , when the Ottomans rushed on the Čegar hill defended by Stevan Sinđelić, and ''vojvoda'' Miloje did not let anybody aid them, Paulj decided against the command and went for Čegar. Paulj did not reach in time; when the Ottomans had surrounded and overtook Sinđelić's trench, he decided to blow up the gunpowder magazine and kill everyone on the hill. Paulj and his small unit were defeated and forced to retreat, as others, to

Deligrad Deligrad, United States National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency (Jabukovac ) is a village in the municipality of Aleksinac, Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in S ...

. He mostly stayed in Deligrad after this. The Serbian Ruling Council appointed Paulj the first permanent commander of Gurgusovac (Knjaževac) after the

Treaty of Bucharest (1812) The Treaty of Bucharest between the Ottoman Empire and the Russian Empire, was signed on 28 May 1812, in Manuc's Inn in Bucharest, and ratified on 5 July 1812, at the end of the Russo-Turkish War of 1806–1812. The Ottomans had done poorly in ...

. In the 1812–13 ''Protocol'' of

Karađorđe Đorđe Petrović ( sr-Cyrl, Ђорђе Петровић, ), better known by the sobriquet Karađorđe ( sr-Cyrl, Карађорђе, lit=Black George, ; – ), was a Serbian revolutionary who led the struggle for his country's independ ...

, there are ten numbers written for Paulj. In 1813, he fled to the

Habsburg monarchy The Habsburg monarchy (german: Habsburgermonarchie, ), also known as the Danubian monarchy (german: Donaumonarchie, ), or Habsburg Empire (german: Habsburgerreich, ), was the collection of empires, kingdoms, duchies, counties and other polities ...

, while the Austrians sent him to stay in

Leoben Leoben () is a Styrian city in central Austria, located on the Mur river. With a population of about 25,000 it is a local industrial centre and hosts the University of Leoben, which specialises in mining. The Peace of Leoben, an armistice bet ...

for a time. He returned to Serbia in 1815, and died in his home village. He begged for the hand of the daughter of

Momir of Lučica Momir of Lučica ( sr-cyr, Момир из Лучице; 1804–13) was a Serbian Revolutionary commander who participated in the First Serbian Uprising (1804–13). He was born in Lučica, at that time part of the Požarevac ''nahiya'' in the Sa ...

for his son Budimir, and they married.

Legacy

There is a Serbian cultural association named after him. A statue of his was erected in his home village Melnica in 2004. A water mill in his ownership is today a recognized

cultural monument A national heritage site is a heritage site having a value that has been registered by a governmental agency as being of national importance to the cultural heritage or history of that country. Usually such sites are listed in a heritage regist ...

References

Sources

* * * * * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Matejic, Paulj 1770 births 1816 deaths 19th-century Serbian people Serbian revolutionaries People of the First Serbian Uprising People from Petrovac, Serbia Serbian military leaders

Life

Legacy

See also

References

Sources