Anđelko Aleksić ( sr-cyr, Анђелко Алексић; 1876 –

Četirce Četirce () is a village in northeastern North Macedonia, in the municipality of Kumanovo. According to the 2002 census, it had 249 inhabitants. Geography The village is located in northernmost North Macedonia, close to the Serbian border (5 kilom ...

, Ottoman Empire, 27 May 1904) was a Macedonian Serb Chetnik commander (''voivode''). He and

Đorđe Cvetković Đorđe Cvetković ( sr-cyr, Ђорђе Цветковић; 1903–d. 27 May 1904), known by the ''nom de guerre'' Drimkolski (Дримколски), was a Serbian Chetnik Organization, Serbian Chetnik ''vojvoda'' (commander) of the ''četa'' (ba ...

led the first two armed bands of the

Serbian Chetnik Organization The Serbian Revolutionary Organization () or Serbian Chetnik Organization (Српска четничка организација / Srpska četnička organizacija) was a paramilitary revolutionary organization with the aim of liberation of Old Se ...

, sent from the Kingdom of Serbia into Ottoman Macedonia to fight for the liberation of

Macedonia Macedonia (, , , ), most commonly refers to: * North Macedonia, a country in southeastern Europe, known until 2019 as the Republic of Macedonia * Macedonia (ancient kingdom), a kingdom in Greek antiquity * Macedonia (Greece), a former administr ...

Life

Anđelko Aleksić was born in

Midinci Midinci (, ) is a village in the municipality of Kičevo, North Macedonia. It used to be part of the former Zajas Municipality Zajas (, ) is a former municipality located in what is now western North Macedonia, created in a 1996 territorial re ...

, which at the time was part of the

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 ...

. He was a ''pečalbar'' (seasonal worker) in

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

, and had come since being a youngster. In 1897 he joined the

Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization The Internal Macedonian Revolutionary Organization (IMRO; ; ), was a secret revolutionary society founded in the Ottoman territories in Europe, that operated in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Founded in 1893 in Salonica, it initia ...

(IMRO), and he participated in the

Ilinden Uprising Ilinden ( Bulgarian/ Macedonian: Илинден) or Ilindan ( Serbian Cyrillic: Илиндан), meaning " Saint Elijah's Day", may refer to: Events * Republic Day (North Macedonia) Republic Day () or Ilinden () is a national holiday in North ...

(1903). After the uprising had been suppressed, Aleksić returned to wintering in Belgrade. He was working as a cook at the ''

kafana Kafana is a type of local coffeehouse, bistro or tavern, common in the countries of Southeast Europe, which originally served coffee and other warm drinks while today usually also offer alcoholic beverages and food. Many kafanas feature live mus ...

'' (restaurant) called "Orient" at the beginning of the 20th century. When the revolutionary organization known as the

was formed with the aim of liberation of

Old Serbia Old Serbia () 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 Serbian Empire in 1346–71. The term does ...

(

Kosovo Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...

) and

from the Ottoman Empire, he immediately joined the organization. On 25 April 1904, two armed groups ('' četa'') of some 20 fighters under voivodes Anđelko Aleksić and

swore oath in a ceremony of the Serbian Chetnik Committee (Dr.

Milorad Gođevac Milorad Gođevac ( sr-cyr, Милорад Гођевац, 1 March 1860 – 21 September 1933) was the organizer of the Serbian Chetnik Organization, a medical doctor by profession. Life Born in Valjevo, Principality of Serbia, he finished t ...

, Vasa Jovanović, Žika Rafailović,

Luka Ćelović Luka Ćelović also known as Luka Ćelović-Trebinjac ( sr-cyr, Лука Ћеловић; 18 October 1854 – 15 August 1929) was a Serbian businessman, merchant and rentier. At the beginning of the 20th century, he was one of the richest and in ...

, Ljubomir Kovačević,

Nikola Spasić Nikola Spasić ( sr-cyr, Никола Спасић; 2 November 1838 in Belgrade – 28 November 1916 in Corfu) was a Serbian businessman, Benefactor (law), benefactor, humanitarian, and one of the leaders of the Serbian Chetnik Organization in ...

and General

Jovan Atanacković Jovan Atanacković ( sr-cyr, Јован Атанацковић, 24 March 1848 – 9 August 1921) was a Serbian general, Minister of Defence, and president of the Central Board of Belgrade of the Serbian Chetnik Organization. Life Born in N ...

), with ''prota''

Nikola Stefanović Nikola Stefanović (born 18 January 1960) is a Yugoslav rower. He competed in the men's quadruple sculls event at the 1980 Summer Olympics The 1980 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXII Olympiad () and officially br ...

holding the prayers.Krakov, p. 150 The Committee had prepared the formation of the first bands for a number of months. The Chetniks were sent for Poreče, and on 8 May they headed out from

Vranje Vranje ( sr-Cyrl, Врање, ) is a city in Southern Serbia and the administrative center of the Pčinja District. According to the 2022 census, the city itself has a population of 55,214 while the city administrative area has 74,381 inhabitan ...

, to Buštranje, which was divided between Serbia and Turkey.

Vasilije Trbić Vasilije Trbić ( sr-Cyrl, Василије Трбић; 1881 – 1962) was a Serbian Chetnik commander in Macedonia who became a politician in the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, first representing the People's Radical Party (NRS) in ...

, who guided them, told them that the best way was to go through the Kozjak and then down to the

Vardar The Vardar (; , , ) or Axios (, ) is the longest river in North Macedonia and a major river in Greece, where it reaches the Aegean Sea at Thessaloniki. It is long, out of which are in Greece, and drains an area of around . The maximum depth of ...

. The two voivodes however, wanted the fastest route, through the

Kumanovo Kumanovo ( ; , sq-definite, Kumanova; also known by other #Etymology, alternative names) is the second-largest city in North Macedonia after the capital Skopje and the seat of Kumanovo Municipality, the List of municipalities in the Republic ...

plains and then to Četirce. They managed to enter Turkish territory but were subsequently exposed in the plain Albanian and Turkish villages, and the Ottomans closed in on them from all sides, and they decided to stay on the Šuplji Kamen, which gave them little defence instead of meeting the army on the plains; in broad daylight, the Ottoman military easily poured bombs over the hill and killed all 24 of the Chetniks (27 May 1904).Српски биографски речник, том 1, с. 8.
There was opposition to the Četnik Campaign, especially after the disaster of that first Aleksić ''četa''. The Serbian press came out against the campaign and wrote that support of the ''četas'' should be forbidden from "sending people to the slaughterhouse." The Serbian Foreign Minister felt the Četnik Campaign would upset their delicate negotiations with the

References

Sources

* * (see als
pogledi.rs/Одломак
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aleksic, Andjelko 1876 births 1904 deaths People from Kičevo Municipality People from Manastir vilayet 19th-century Serbian people 20th-century Serbian people Serbian rebels Serbian military leaders Rebels from the Ottoman Empire