Stojan Janković Mitrović ( sr-cyr, Стојан Јанковић Митровић; also known as ''Stoian Jancovich Mitrovich'', ''Stoian Mitrovich'', ''Stoiano Mitrovich''; about 1636 – 23 August 1687) was the commander of the Morlach troops in the service of 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 ...

, from 1669 until his death in 1687. He participated in the

Cretan Crete ( ; , Modern Greek, Modern: , Ancient Greek, Ancient: ) is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the List of islands by area, 88th largest island in the world and the List of islands in the Mediterranean#By area, fifth la ...

and

Great Turkish War The Great Turkish War () or The Last Crusade, also called in Ottoman sources The Disaster Years (), was a series of conflicts between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy League (1684), Holy League consisting of the Holy Roman Empire, Polish–Lith ...

, as the supreme commander of the Venetian Morlach troops, of which he is enumerated in Croatian and

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 was one of the best-known

uskok The Office for the Suppression of Corruption and Organised Crime (), better known as USKOK, is a body of the Croatian criminal justice system, attached to the State's Attorney Office and specializing in investigations related to corruption and ...

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 ...

leaders of

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

Life

Origin

Stojan was born in ca. 1636, somewhere in the mountainous Bukovica region in northern

, 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 ...

, presumably in the village of Žegar, or Zelengrad. The village itself lied above the Žegar field, from where the population had long "jumped into" (i.e.

guerilla warfare Guerrilla warfare is a form of unconventional warfare in which small groups of irregular military, such as rebels, partisans, paramilitary personnel or armed civilians, which may include recruited children, use ambushes, sabotage, terrorism ...

) the

Dinara Dinara is a mountain range in the Dinaric Alps, located on the border of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. It has four major mountains or peaks, from north-west to south-east: * Ilica or Ujilica (1,654 m) * Sinjal or Dinara (1,831 m), epony ...

, the Venetian-Ottoman border for centuries. His father was ''

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

Janko Mitrović Janko Mitrović ( sr-cyr, Јанко Митровић; 1613–1659) was a ''harambaša'' (Ottoman for "bandit leader"), and the commander of the '' Morlach army'', in the service of the Republic of Venice, from 1648 until his death in 1659. He par ...

(1613–1659), another renowned anti-Ottoman rebel in Venetian service, noted commander of the ''Morlach army'' in the

Cretan War (1645–1669) The Cretan War (; ), also known as the War of Candia () or the fifth Ottoman–Venetian war, was a conflict between the Republic of Venice and her allies (chief among them the Knights of Malta, the Papal States and France) against the Ottoman ...

. Stojan had two brothers (Ilija and Zaviša Janković) and a sister Ana. The family of Stojan Janković belonged to Serb Orthodox community and their family slava was

Đurđevdan George's Day in Spring, or Saint George's Day, is a Slavic religious holiday, the feast of Saint George celebrated on 23 April by the Julian calendar (6 May by the Gregorian calendar). In Croatia and Slovenia, the Roman Catholic version of S ...

Cretan War and peacetime

Stojan began fighting alongside his father and Ilija Smiljanić early on as a fifteen year old, in the Cretan War. Ilija, as the most experienced, was named ''

serdar Serdar may refer to * Serdar (given name) * Serdar (surname) Serdar is a surname of the following notable people: * Can Serdar (born 1996), German-Turkish football midfielder * Emerîkê Serdar (1935–2018), Kurdish-Yezidi writer from Armenia * I ...

'' in 1648 after his own father, Petar Smiljanić had died.Berber (2004), p. 3 In 1650, Stojan begins to receive a payment of 4 ducats, in 1653 the pay is raised to 6. In February 1659, at the

Cetina The Cetina () is a river in southern Croatia. It has a length of and its basin covers an area of . From its source, Cetina descends from an elevation of above sea level to the Adriatic Sea. It is the most water-rich river in Dalmatia.Naklada Nap ...

river, both leaders Janko and Ilija Smiljanić succumb to wounds after battling the Turks. The same year, the well experienced 23-year-old Stojan is chosen as leader by the band. As a leader, he constantly takes part in battles in the

Frontier A frontier is a political and geographical term referring to areas near or beyond a boundary. Australia The term "frontier" was frequently used in colonial Australia in the meaning of country that borders the unknown or uncivilised, th ...

. He was known to have defeated several Turkish contingents, and even himself slew the commanders, among which are notable: Ali-beg Durakbegović, Redžep-aga Filipović, aga Velagić, aga Pajalitović and Ibrahim-aga Kovačević. In 1666, during fighting near Obrovac, at the

Cetina River The Cetina () is a river in southern Croatia. It has a length of and its basin covers an area of . From its source, Cetina descends from an elevation of above sea level to the Adriatic Sea. It is the most water-rich river in Dalmatia.Naklada Nap ...

, where ''agas'' Atlagić, Čengić and Baraković fell, he was captured by the Ottomans and spent 14 months in Constantinople as a slave, before escaping and returning home. For his deeds, he was awarded a title and an estate in Ravni Kotari. In the peacetime between the Cretan and Great Turkish War, he was ordered to suppress anti-Ottoman operations in Venetian territory, while in the meantime his brother Ilija left Venetian service and began fighting the Ottomans - this resulted in the brief interrogation of Stojan at Venice. In 1669-1670, Venice awards him 29 ducats monthly, and among other gifts he received a golden ring ''of St. Mark'' (becoming a knight of the

Order of Saint Mark The Order of Saint Mark () was the sole order of chivalry of the Republic of Venice. It was named in honour of Venice's patron saint, Mark the Evangelist. History The Order of Saint Mark was the only chivalric order of the Republic of Venice. ...

), and his two sons became captains.Berber (2004), p. 2 He was also given a part of

Islam Grčki Islam Grčki is a village in the municipality of Benkovac, in the Zadar County, Croatia. Geography Islam Grčki is located in the Ravni Kotari area, away from Benkovac and away from Zadar. The village is also only away from the Adriatic Sea but ...

(where was built

Kula Jankovića Kula may refer to: People *Bob Kula (born 1967), American football player *Elisabeth Kula (born 1990), German politician *Irwin Kula (born 1957), American rabbi and author *Karel Kula (born 1963), Czech footballer Places * Kula, Bihać, a villa ...

), but lost it in 1671 with new border negotiations of Mahmud Pasha and Giann Battista. A truce ensured 1670-1684. In 1671 was named as the commander of

Ostrovica Fortress Ostrovica Fortress (; ) is a ruined medieval fortification on a solid rock jutting from the top of the hill above the village of Ostrovica in Zadar County, Croatia. It is located between the two historical and geographical regions, Bukovica and ...

. After the death of count Juraj Posedarski, in 1681 became the ''capo principale di Morlacchi'', transl. "'' commander-in-chief of the Morlachs''", with a monthly pay of 25 ducats. In 1683, his brother Ilija, whom the Venetians failed to implement into their military and since 1680 was banished from Venetian territories because did not respect the Venetian-Ottoman temporary peace on the boundary, instigated a revolt in Dalmatia against the Ottomans, in collaboration with

uskoks The Uskoks (, , singular: ; notes on naming) were irregular soldiers in Habsburg Croatia that inhabited areas on the eastern Adriatic coast and surrounding territories during the Ottoman wars in Europe. Bands of Uskoks fought a guerrilla wa ...

Senj Senj is a town on the upper Adriatic coast in Croatia, in the foothills of the Mala Kapela and Velebit mountains. The symbol of the town is the Nehaj Fortress () which was completed in 1558. For a time this was the seat of the Uskoks, who were ...

revolted with the Venetian and Ottoman Morlachs with the center in Ostrovica. Because of that, Stojan and Zaviša were captured in September of the same year by the Venetians, but Stojan was freed in November. Then the governor-general Lovre Donà helped Stojan, Smoljan Smiljanić, Sorić from

Zemunik Zemunik Donji is a municipality in the Zadar County in Croatia. According to the 2011 census, there were 2,060 inhabitants, 91% of whom were Croats. The municipality of Zemunik Donji is located in the Ravni Kotari region. The area of the municipa ...

, and Ivan Drašković to stop the revolt.

Morean War (Great Turkish War)

In 1684, he returned to the battlefield, liberating

Sinj Sinj () is a List of cities and towns in Croatia, town in the continental part of Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia. As of the 2021 Croatian census, 2021 census, the population was 23,500 people, of which 10,800 inhabited its urban core. Sinj is k ...

Lika Lika () is a traditional region of Croatia proper, roughly bound by the Velebit mountain from the southwest and the Plješevica mountain from the northeast. On the north-west end Lika is bounded by Ogulin-Plaški basin, and on the south-east by t ...

and

Krbava Krbava (; ) is a historical region located in Mountainous Croatia and a former Catholic bishopric (1185–1460), precursor of the diocese of Modruš and present Latin titular see. It can be considered either located east of Lika, or indeed as ...

by 1686. In 1685, helped to free

Gračac Gračac (; ) is a municipality in the southern part of Lika, Croatia. The municipality is administratively part of Zadar County. Gračac is located south of Udbina, northeast of Obrovac, northwest of Knin and southeast of Gospić. Climate Since ...

and

, participated in operations around

Zadvarje Zadvarje is a village and a municipality in the Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia. It has a population of 289 (2011 census), 99.3% of which are Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia an ...

Vrgorac Vrgorac () is a town in Croatia in the Split-Dalmatia County. Climate Since records began in 1981, the highest temperature recorded at the local weather station was , on 4 August 2017. The coldest temperature was , on 7 January 2017. Demographi ...

, Čitluk and

Ljubuški Ljubuški is a city in the West Herzegovina Canton, a federal unit of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The Kravica (waterfall), Kravica cascades lie within the city, near the settlement of Studenci, ...

. In the summer, Stojan with count Franjo Posedarski had brought 300 families with him from Lika to Dalmatia, In July 1686, with Smoljan Smiljanić, commanded 5,000 infantrymen and 1500 horsemen when successfully attacked

Livno Livno ( Serbo-Croatian Cyrillic: ''Ливно'', ) is a town and the administrative center of the Township of Livno and Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the river Bis ...

and

Glamoč Glamoč ( sr-cyrl, Гламоч) is a town and the seat of the Municipality of Glamoč in Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated in southwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina, at the fo ...

. In the same year, he was allowed to form an overseas military unit in

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

under command of his son Colonel Nikola, as well forming a cavalry unit of Croats (''compagnia de Crouati a cavallo'') under command of the other son Konstantin. He is credited for the return of the Franciscan order to

, because of which several times charged to

Prozor-Rama Prozor-Rama ( sr-cyrl, Прозор-Рама) is a municipality located in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Its seat is Prozor. Also, Ramsko lake is located in the muni ...

where were under pressure by Orthodox priests and Ottoman government. During the siege of

Herceg Novi Herceg Novi (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Херцег Нови, ) is a town in Coastal Montenegro, Coastal region of Montenegro located at the Western entrance to the Bay of Kotor and at the foot of Mount Orjen. It is the administrative center of ...

, he went with one part of the troops and pillaged the outskirt of Ottoman

Tomislavgrad Tomislavgrad ( Cyrl, Томиславград, ), also known by its former name Duvno ( Cyrl, Дувно, ), is a town and the seat of the Municipality of Tomislavgrad in Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosni ...

(Duvno), Livno and Glamoč, where he was killed on 23 August 1687. Venetians wrote of him having "bigger heart than mind", and his name was famous among Turks and Christians, especially among those of "old faith", ie. Orthodox.

Family

He was married twice, first to Vika with whom he had three children, sons Alojz (Alviža, given from the name of godfather Alvisa Contarini, son of governor-general Petar Contarini), Nikola (died 1687 in

, or 1688) and daughter Stošija (Anastazija). He murdered Vika because of alleged jealousy for possible love scam. In 1676 he married second wife Antonia Rezzi (or ''Reci'') of Greek Catholic faith from Zadar, and had sons Josip, Konstantin (d. 1692), Slobodan (d. 1866), Janko (d. 1685), Marko (d. 1686), and daughters Marija (d. 1686) and Magdalena (d. 1684). Six of his children, as well his sister Ana, were recorded in the register of the dead of the Catholic

župa A župa, or zhupa, is a historical type of administrative division in Southeast Europe and Central Europe, that originated in medieval South Slavs, South Slavic culture, commonly translated as "county" or "parish". It was mentioned for the first t ...

Zadar Cathedral The Cathedral of St. Anastasia () is the Roman Catholic cathedral of Zadar, Croatia, seat of the Archdiocese of Zadar, and the largest church in all of Dalmatia (the coastal region of Croatia). The church's origins date back to a Christian basi ...

, implying the family was of Catholic faith. Stojan was awarded a fortification (castle) which had been in the possession of a Turkish landlord named Jusuf Aga Tunić in Islam Grcki, after one of his military victories. This became the Janković family home and in 1675 he commissioned the building of a

Serbian Orthodox Church The Serbian Orthodox Church ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српска православна црква, Srpska pravoslavna crkva) is one of the autocephalous (ecclesiastically independent) Eastern Orthodoxy, Eastern Orthodox Eastern Orthodox Church#Constit ...

here in the name of

Saint George Saint George (;Geʽez: ጊዮርጊስ, , ka, გიორგი, , , died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was an early Christian martyr who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to holy tradition, he was a soldier in the ...

(

was slava of family of Stojan Janković). The estate was named "Kula Janković" and Stojan made a legal undertaking that it could not be alienated either by marriage, testament or other reason to keep it in the Janković family. His sons Nikola and Konstantin died in their military service, and as his descendants did not have any children his branch soon died out. His brother's Ilija (died poisoned in 1692, or 1694) branch also didn't have grandchildren. His sister Ana married to Dmitar Nikolić from

Bay of Kotor The Bay of Kotor ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Boka kotorska, Бока которска, separator=" / ", ), also known as the Boka ( sh-Cyrl, Бока), is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated a ...

and had daughter Ana. Brother Zaviša had sons Stojan, Ilija and daughter Jelena. All members of the family received the titles of

count Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

by the Doge of Venice

Sebastiano Mocenigo Alvise Sebastiano Mocenigo (1662–1732), sometimes enumerated Alvise III Mocenigo, was the 112th Doge of Venice from 1722 to 1732. He was also ''Provveditore Generale'' (Governor) of Venetian Dalmatia twice. Life Born into one of the most impor ...

in 1705 as the heritage of merit of the father Janko and the godfather Stojan. However, Stojan and serdar Ilija died without direct male descendants and the whole estate was inherited by Jelena who married Venetian colonel Teodor Dede, Orthodox Greek from

Heraklion Heraklion or Herakleion ( ; , , ), sometimes Iraklion, is the largest city and the administrative capital city, capital of the island of Crete and capital of Heraklion (regional unit), Heraklion regional unit. It is the fourth largest city in G ...

. As according to the original 1670 investiture the estate could not have been alienated by marriage, testament, or other, Teodor took the surname Mitrović, the transfer of the surname, nobility and estate was confirmed by Doge

Alvise Pisani Alvise Pisani (1 January 1664 in Venice – 17 June 1741 in Venice) was the 114th Doge of Venice, serving from 17 January 1735 until his death. Born as a member of Pisani family, he was a career diplomat prior to his election, serving as Venic ...

in 1739, hence creating a branch of Venetian counts Dede Mitrović. The last count was Ilija Dede Mitrović (great-great-grandson, b. in Zadar 1818, d. in

Trieste Trieste ( , ; ) is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is the capital and largest city of the Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia, as well as of the Province of Trieste, ...

1874), whose daughter Olga married Vladimir Desnica, father of Serb writer

Boško Boško (Cyrillic script: Бошко) is a Slavic male given name. It may refer to: * Boško Abramović (1951–2021), Serbian chess grandmaster * Boško Anić (born 1968), retired Croatian footballer * Boško Antić (1944–2007), Bosnian Serb fo ...

(1886-1945), and grandfather of

Vladan Desnica Vladan Desnica ( sr-cyr, Владан Десница; 17 September 1905 – 4 March 1967) was a Serbian writer and translator. Life He was born in Zadar, Austria-Hungary to Uroš Desnica (von Desnica), a politician from the noble Orthodox Serbian ...

(son of

Uroš Desnica Uroš Desnica may refer to: * Uroš Desnica (politician) (1874–1941), Croatian Serb politician, grandfather of Uroš Desnica born in 1944 * Uroš Desnica (scientist) (1944–2021), Croatian scientist, grandson of Uroš Desnica born in 1874 ...

). Boško in his archival research had open inclinations toward

Serbdom Serbian nationalism asserts that Serbs are a nation and promotes the cultural and political unity of Serbs. It is an ethnic nationalism, originally arising in the context of the general rise of nationalism in the Balkans under Ottoman rule, u ...

resulting in uncritical translation of Venetian documents (Morlachs became Serbs, family Mitrović became Janković, ignored the mention of Croatian language and name), influencing Serbian historiographical viewpoint which considers Morlachs and Uskoks almost exclusively as Serbian and Serbs.Mayhew, p. 18

In folk tradition

*He is enumerated in Serbian epic poetry (''Ropstvo Janković Stojana'', ''Janković Stojan i Smiljanić Ilija'', ''Janko kapetan i turski sužnji'', ''Ženidba Janković Stojana'' etc.), as well work ''Razgovor ugodni naroda slovinskog'' (1756) by

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 ...

. The poem ''Ženidba Janković Stojana'' (translated by Élise Voïart) was used by

Alphonse de Lamartine Alphonse Marie Louis de Prat de Lamartine (; 21 October 179028 February 1869) was a French author, poet, and statesman. Initially a moderate royalist, he became one of the leading critics of the July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe, aligning more w ...

for the writing of ''La chute d'un ange'' (1838). *He is also enumerated in ''Muslim'' (Bosniak) folk poems.
724

Notes

References

Sources

*Berber, S. 2004,
Istorijski podaci o uskočkom serdaru Stojanu Jankoviću
, Norma, vol. 10, no. 1-2, pp. 151–161. *Baština dvora Jankovića, Istorijski muzej Srbije, Beograd 2006 *Epske narodne pesme, Uskoci, str. 17-43, Beograd, 1965 *Rodoslov Jankovića i Desnica vid. Baština dvora Jankovića, Istorijski muzej Srbije, Beograd 2006, str. 92 *Tea Mayhew, ''Dalmatia between Ottoman and Venetian rule: Contado di Zara, 1645-1718'', p. 72

External links

Kula Jankovića
{{DEFAULTSORT:Jankovic, Stojan 1630s births 1687 deaths 17th-century military personnel Republic of Venice military personnel killed in action Republic of Venice people of the Cretan War Republic of Venice people of the Morean War Venetian period in the history of Croatia People from Zadar County Serbs of Croatia Characters in Serbian epic poetry 17th-century Croatian military personnel