Spasa Pavlović ( sr-cyr, Спаса Павловић; ca. 1880 – November 7, 1912), known as Spasa Garda (Спаса Гарда, "Spasa the Guard") or Zmaj (Змај, "the Dragon"), was a Serbian Chetnik commander in

Old Serbia Old Serbia ( sr, Стара Србија, Stara Srbija) is a Serbian historiographical term that is used to describe the territory that according to the dominant school of Serbian historiography in the late 19th century formed the core of the S ...

during the Macedonian Struggle (1903–1908). He received his nicknames from his high stature and bravery, and could be entrusted with highly secretive missions. He was born in the village of Stanča near

Kriva Palanka Kriva Palanka ( mk, Крива Паланка ) is a town located in the northeastern part of North Macedonia. It has 14,558 inhabitants. The town of Kriva Palanka is the seat of Kriva Palanka Municipality which has almost 21,000 inhabitants. ...

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) ...

(modern

R. Macedonia North Macedonia, ; sq, Maqedonia e Veriut, (Macedonia before February 2019), officially the Republic of North Macedonia,, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Socialist Feder ...

). From 1903, he was a ''jatak'' ("

hajduk A hajduk ( hu, hajdúk, plural of ) is a type of irregular infantry found in Central and parts of Southeast Europe from the late 16th to mid 19th centuries. They have reputations ranging from bandits to freedom fighters depending on time, p ...

helper") for the Serbian bands whom he led the way in the woods and hills, and since 1904 he was a ''vojvoda'' (duke) in the Kriva Palanka area. His band defended the Kriva Palanka region from the IMRO, securing the Kriva river, which region was controlled by Serbian bands and where all villages were adhering to the Patriarchate (and not the

Bulgarian Exarchate The Bulgarian Exarchate ( bg, Българска екзархия, Balgarska ekzarhiya; tr, Bulgar Eksarhlığı) was the official name of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church before its autocephaly was recognized by the Ecumenical See in 1945 and th ...

) and included in the

Serbian Chetnik Organization Serbian may refer to: * someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe * someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people * Serbian language * Serbian names See also * * * Old Serbian (disambiguation) ...

. Spasa participated in all major battles on the left bank of the Vardar river. There, he helped destroy the local Bulgarian secret organization and Turkish (Ottoman) government. He is famed for his bravery in the battle on Paklište. After the Young Turk Revolution (1908), he returned to his village and lived a peaceful life. However, with the breakout of 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 ...

, he joined the unit of

Vojin Popović-Vuk Vojin ( sr, Војин) is a masculine given name or surname of Slavic origin. It may refer to: *Vojin Bakić (1915–1992), prominent Croatian sculptor of Serbian descent *Vojin Božović (1913–1983), Montenegrin, Yugoslav international, footbal ...

, as the Serbian

vanguard The vanguard (also called the advance guard) is the leading part of an advancing military formation. It has a number of functions, including seeking out the enemy and securing ground in advance of the main force. History The vanguard derives fr ...

, and participated in all battles from the Serbian border to

Prilep Prilep ( mk, Прилеп ) is the fourth-largest city in North Macedonia. It has a population of 66,246 and is known as "the city under Marko's Towers" because of its proximity to the towers of Prince Marko. Name The name of Prilep appear ...

. He was wounded but declined medical care. He was killed in action in the fights for Prilep, on November 7, 1912, on the Alinački vis. He was buried in Prilep.

Sources

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Garda, Spasa 1880s births 1912 deaths People from Kriva Palanka People from Kosovo vilayet Serbian rebels Serbian military leaders Serbian military personnel killed in action Serbian military personnel of the Balkan Wars 20th-century Serbian people Chetniks of the Macedonian Struggle