Đorđe Obradović ( sr-cyr, Ђорђе Обрадовић; d. 1804), better known as Đorđe Ćurčija (Ђорђе Ћурчија) or Ćurta (Ћурта), was a commander in the
First Serbian Uprising
The First Serbian Uprising (; sr-Cyrl, Први српски устанак; ) was an uprising of Serbs in Orašac (Aranđelovac), Orašac against the Ottoman Empire from 14 February 1804 to 7 October 1813. The uprising began as a local revolt ...
(1804). When he heard of the outbreak against the dahija in
Valjevo
Valjevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Ваљево, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Kolubara District in western Serbia. According to the 2022 census, the city itself has a population of 56,145 while the city admini ...
and
Šumadija
Šumadija ( sr-Cyrl, Шумадија, ) is a geographical region in the central part of Serbia. The area used to be heavily covered with forests, hence the name (from ''šuma'' 'forest'). The city of Kragujevac is the administrative center of t ...
Obradović was operating as a hajduk (highwayman) and in response he "began to attack the Turks more frequently".M. Vukićević: Karađorđe vol II, Beograd 1912, p44. He would be purged by his own side before the year was out.
As a child, he moved from his village to the Belgrade pashalik. For a while he worked as a furrier (''ćurčija'') in
Krupanj
Krupanj ( sr-cyr, Крупањ, ) is a town and municipality located in the Mačva District of western Serbia. The municipality has a total population of 14,399 inhabitants, while the town has a population of 4,134 inhabitants (2022 census).
Ge ...
, hence the
sobriquet
A sobriquet ( ) is a descriptive nickname, sometimes assumed, but often given by another. A sobriquet is distinct from a pseudonym in that it is typically a familiar name used in place of a real name without the need for explanation; it may beco ...
"Ćurčija" that became his surname. Later, he joined a group of
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 ...
s (highwaymen) and was well-liked by his fellow Serbs but feared by the Turks in
Podrinje
Podrinje ( sr-Cyrl, Подриње) is the Slavic name of the Drina river basin, known in English as the Drina Valley. The Drina basin is shared between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, with majority of its territory being located in Eastern ...
as an
Harambaša Harambaša ( sr-cyr, Харамбаша) was the rank for a senior commander of a ''hajduk'' band (brigand gangs).
Etymology
It is derived from the Turkish word for 'bandit leader' ( < 'bandit' + 'head') and, like some other
Battle of Čokešina (28 April 1804) due to a quarrel with
Jakov Nenadović
Jakov Nenadović ( sr-cyr, Јаков Ненадовић; 1765–1836) was a Serbian voivode and politician who served as the Prime Minister of Serbia, prime minister of Serbia from 31 December 1810 to 22 January 1811. He was the first Serbian in ...
, one of the most prominent leaders of the uprising in western Serbia, but soon after he fought together with others against the Turks near Belgrade and during the capture of
Požarevac
Požarevac ( sr-cyr, Пожаревац, ) is a list of cities in Serbia, 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 Čač ...
.
There he again came into conflict with Jakov Nenadović, and also with
Karađorđe
Đorđe Petrović (; ; – ), known by the sobriquet Karađorđe (; ), was a Serbian revolutionary leader who led a struggle against the Ottoman Empire during the First Serbian Uprising. He held the title of Grand Vožd of Serbia from 14 ...
, so he went to
Mačva
Mačva ( sr-Cyrl, Мачва, ; ) is a geographical and historical region in the northwest of Central Serbia, on a fertile plain between the Sava (river), Sava and Drina rivers. The chief town is Šabac. The modern Mačva District of Serbia is nam ...
with his men. He dominated Jadar, Rađevina and the scaffold towards
Sremska Mitrovica
Sremska Mitrovica (; sr-Cyrl, Сремска Митровица, ) is a List of cities in Serbia, city in Serbia. It is situated on the left bank of the Sava, Sava river. , the city has a total population of 36,764 inhabitants, while its adminis ...
and from there he led the fight against the Turks on his own.
Undisicplined by nature, his quarrel with
Nikola Grbović Nikola Grbović ( sr-cyr, Никола Грбовић; 1793–1806) was a Serbian ''obor-knez'' of the Kolubara ''knežina'' of the Valjevo '' nahija'' in the Sanjak of Smederevo, who later became a Serbian Revolutionary. He was born in Mratiši ...
and
Luka Lazarević
Luka Lazarević ( sr-cyr, Лука Лазаревић; 1774–1852), known as Pop-Luka (), was a Serbian Orthodox priest and ''vojvoda'' (commander) that participated in the First Serbian Uprising (1804–13) of the Serbian Revolution against the ...
, as well as an incursion by the Turks from the
Drina
The Drina ( sr-Cyrl, Дрина, ) is a long river in the Balkans, which forms a large portion of the border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. It is the longest tributary of the Sava River and the longest karst river in the Dinaric Al ...
, hastened the decision to remove him. Ćurčija was suddenly attacked in Novo Selo in the summer of 1804, where he was killed resisting Jakov Nenadović's men.
Đorđe Ćurčija's scribe during 1804 was
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) ...
.
See also
*
List of Serbian Revolutionaries
This is a list of Serbian Revolutionaries, participants in the Serbian Revolution (1804–1817).
See also
* Serbian revolutionary organizations
References
Sources
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{{Serbian revolutionaries
People of the Serbian Revol ...