Petar Mrkonjić (before 1645 – after 1669) was a legendary

hajduk A hajduk (, plural of ) is a type of Irregular military, irregular infantry found in Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and parts of Southeast Europe from the late 16th to mid 19th centuries, especially from Hajdú–Bihar Count ...

from the

Imotski Imotski () is a small town on the northeastern side of the Biokovo massif in the Dalmatian Hinterland of southern Croatia, near the border with Bosnia and Herzegovina. The town has a generally mild Mediterranean climate which makes it a popular ...

region in the

Dalmatian Hinterland The Dalmatian Hinterland () is the southern inland hinterland in the historical Croatian region of Dalmatia. The name means 'beyond (the) hills', which is a reference to the fact that it is the part of Dalmatia that is not coastal and the existe ...

, in modern-day

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

, active during the Cretan War (1645–1669) between the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

and

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

as a guerrilla leader serving Venice.

History

Vuk Stefanović Karadžić VUK or Vuk may refer to: *Vuk (name), South Slavic given name ** Vuk, Ban of Bosnia (), a member of the Kotromanić dynasty ** Vuk Karadžić (1787–1864), Serbian language reformer and folklorist, often referred to simply as Vuk * ''Vuk'' (film) ...

had found no historical documents on Petar Mrkonjić. Folklorist Stjepan Grčić did not believe Petar Mrkonjić was a historical figure. According to Anđelko Mijatović, it is generally believed that the epic personality of Petar Mrkonjić is a historical figure, and that he was born in

; he is possibly the same person as ''Petar Imoćanin'' ("Petar from Imotski"), who lived in the mid-17th century and is said to have greatly damaged properties of the

Republic of Ragusa The Republic of Ragusa, or the Republic of Dubrovnik, was an maritime republics, aristocratic maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik (''Ragusa'' in Italian and Latin; ''Raguxa'' in Venetian) in South Dalmatia (today in southernmost ...

, after which the Ragusans urged the Venetians to stop him, as he was a Venetian subject.

Legacy

Mrkonjić has become the subject of poems and Croatian patriotic songs. One of the earliest mentions of Mrkonjić were written by the Venetian-Croatian friar and poet

Andrija Kačić Miošić Andrija Kačić Miošić (; 17 April 1704 – 14 December 1760) was a Croatian poet and Franciscan friar, as well as a descendant of the Kačić noble family, one of the oldest and most influential Croatian noble families. Biography Born in ...

(1704-1760) in ''Vitezovi Imotske krajine''. In

Serbian epic poetry Serbian epic poetry () is a form of epic poetry created by Serbs originating in today's Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Montenegro and North Macedonia. The main cycles were composed by unknown Serb authors between the 14th and 19th centu ...

, he has a hero status along with other hajduks such as Starac Vujadin,

Pecija Petar Popović ( sr-cyr, Петар Поповић; 1826 – 29 August 1875), known as Pecija (Пеција), was a Serb ''hajduk'' (brigand) and rebel leader in two uprisings against the Ottoman Empire in the Bosanska Krajina region, one in ...

, Golub,

Starina Novak Starina Novak ( sr-Cyrl, Старинa Новак; ; , meaning "Old Novak") was a Serb ''hajduk'' (brigand and rebel) who distinguished himself in many battles against the Ottoman Empire. He is considered a national hero by both the Serbs and th ...

Bajo Pivljanin Bajo Pivljanin ( sr-cyr, Бајо Пивљанин – 7 May 1685), born Dragojlo Nikolić ( sr-cyr, Драгојло Николић), was a Serbian ''hajduk'' commander mostly active in the Ottoman territories of Herzegovina and southern Dalma ...

, and others. He is also the subject of a folk poem collected from the people's bards by Serbian linguist

(1787-1864) in ''Jaut-beg i Pero Mrkonjić''. During the

Great Eastern Crisis The Great Eastern Crisis of 1875–1878 began in the Ottoman Empire's Rumelia, administrative territories in the Balkan Peninsula in 1875, with the outbreak of several uprisings and wars that resulted in the intervention of international powers, ...

, set off by a

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...

uprising against the

in 1875 in

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

and

Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical Regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia (reg ...

(

Herzegovina Uprising (1875–77) Herzegovina uprising or Herzegovinian uprising may refer to: * Herzegovina uprising (1596–97), fought by Serbs in Herzegovina against the Ottoman Empire, 1596–1597 * Herzegovina uprising (1852–62), fought by Serbs in Herzegovina against the ...

), Prince Peter adopted the ''

nom de guerre A ''nom de guerre'' (, 'war name') is a pseudonym chosen by someone to use when they are involved in a particular activity, especially fighting in a war. In Ancien régime, ''ancien régime'' Kingdom of France, France it would be adopted by each n ...

'' of hajduk Petar Mrkonjić of

Ragusa Ragusa may refer to: Places Croatia * Ragusa, Dalmatia, the historical name of the city of Dubrovnik * the Republic of Ragusa (or Republic of Dubrovnik), the maritime city-state of Ragusa * Ragusa Vecchia, historical Italian name of Cavtat, a t ...

, and joined the Bosnian Serb insurgents as a leader of a guerilla unit. In 1925 the "Organization of Serbian

Chetniks The Chetniks,, ; formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland; and informally colloquially the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationalist m ...

- Petar Mrkonjić" was founded, though it was banned by King

Alexander I of Yugoslavia Alexander I Karađorđević (, ; – 9 October 1934), also known as Alexander the Unifier ( / ), was King of the Serbs, Croats and Slovenes from 16 August 1921 to 3 October 1929 and King of Yugoslavia from 3 October 1929 until his assassinati ...

four years later when he instituted a dictatorship. In World War II, there was a Chetnik command named "Petar Mrkonjić", with 700 fighters. Babić formed the paramilitary Petar Mrkonjić-brigade in April 1992. The "Medal of Petar Mrkonjić" was also given by

Republika Srpska Republika Srpska ( sr-Cyrl, Република Српска, ; also referred to as the Republic of Srpska or Serb Republic) is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other bein ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Mrkonjic, Petar 17th-century Croatian people 17th-century Croatian military personnel Republic of Venice military personnel Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown Characters in Serbian epic poetry