Sulë Hotla (born Sulejman Asip Sulejmani; 1875 – 11 October 1947), was an

Albanian Albanian may refer to: *Pertaining to Albania in Southeast Europe; in particular: **Albanians, an ethnic group native to the Balkans **Albanian language **Albanian culture **Demographics of Albania, includes other ethnic groups within the country ...

rebel,

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 ...

member and a military leader of

Balli Kombëtar The Balli Kombëtar (literally ''National Front'') was an Albanian nationalist, Collaboration with Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, collaborationist, and anti-communist resistance movement during the Second World War. It was led by Ali Këlcyra a ...

, who led the Karadak-Gollak Uprising against Yugoslav and Macedonian Partisans in the Kumanovo Karadak region.

Biography

Early years

Sulë Hotla was born in 1875, in the village of Otlja in the Kaza of Kumanovo 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 ...

First Balkan War

During the First Balkan War, Hotla fought alongside

Idriz Seferi Idriz Seferi (14 March 1847 – 25 March 1927) was an Albanian nationalist, revolutionary leader and guerrilla fighter who played a prominent role in the Albanian uprisings against the Ottoman Empire, the Kingdom of Serbia and Kingdom of Bulgaria ...

in his Uprising in Karadak and in the

Battle of Kumanovo The Battle of Kumanovo (Serbian: Кумановска битка / Kumanovska bitka, Turkish: Kumanova Muharebesi), on 23–24 October 1912, was a major battle of the First Balkan War. It was an important Serbian victory over the Ottoman army ...

against Serbian forces.

World War I

In 1916, during the Bulgarian occupation of Kumanovo during the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, he joined the VMRO detachment, led by Krastyo Lazarov, to protect the Albanian population from Serbian Chetnik formations.

Yugoslavia (1922–1941)

After the end of the war,

Vardar Macedonia Vardar Macedonia (Macedonian language, Macedonian and ) is a historical term referring to the central part of the broader Macedonian region, roughly corresponding to present-day North Macedonia. The name derives from the Vardar, Vardar River and i ...

was returned to

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

and in 1922 Hotla again became a

Kachak Kachaks (, / ''kačaci'') is a term used for the Albanian rebels active in the late 19th and early 20th century in northern Albania, Montenegro, Kosovo and Macedonia, and later as a term for the militias of Albanian revolutionary organizations a ...

for about half a year in

Karadak Karadak is a village in the municipality of Raška, Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map ...

, until he was caught by the authorities and imprisoned in Kumanovo. After his release from prison in 1927, he was elected mayor of Matejče municipality, which includes most of the villages of the Kumanovo Karadak, from there remained in office until the defeat of the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

in the April War in 1941.

Bulgarian rule (1941–1944)

During the Bulgarian rule in Macedonia, the Bulgarian authorities appointed him as the chief of the police department in Matejce. Again, under the leadership of Krastjo Lazarov, Hotla with other volunteers from

helped the Bulgarians, fight the communist serb partisans in the area. Sulë Hotla together with Mullah Dula from Otlja maintained relations with other Ballist leaders in

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

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

, such as Xhem Gostivari, Mefail Zayazi, Mullah Idriz Gjilani. In 1944 He joined the Karadak-Gollak Uprising of Mullah Idriz Gjilani. He also worked closely with the military forces of the

Second League of Prizren The Second League of Prizren was an organisation founded by Albanian officials in occupied Kingdom of Yugoslavia, modern-day Kosovo in September 1943 to campaign for the ethnic unification of Albanians in Albania. From 1918, Kosovo was integrated ...

, led by

Xhafer Deva Xhafer Deva (21 February 1904 – 25 May 1978) was a fascist Kosovo Albanian politician during World War II. A notable local politician in Kosovo and in Axis-occupied Albania, he took charge of German-occupied Mitrovica and worked with the ...

In Communist Yugoslavia (1944–1947)

After the withdrawal of the Bulgarian units from

on September 7, 1944, Hotla took control over most of Karadak, raised the Albanian flag and proclaimed it a Free Zone. A large meeting of Albanian nationalist leaders was held in Sharr, which was attended by Hotla, as well as Xhem Gostivari, Gajur Derala, Mullah Idriz Gjilani and others. At the meeting, it was decided to create a volunteer army for the defense of Albanian lands. Xhem Gostivari was elected commander of the

forces in Sharr, while Hotla was appointed as the commander in

. During the Kumanovo Operation Hotla's units took part in the battles for

Skopje Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...

. From September to mid-November, the Albanian forces, numbering about 3,600 soldiers, managed to repel all military attacks of the 16th and 17th brigades of the Kumanovo Partisan Division. In the second half of November and December 1944, the communist units managed to push the Ballist Forces out of

. Sulë Hotla was captured by the Yugoslav secret service, while trying to cross into Greece. He was executed on 11 October 1947. All his properties in Otlja, Lopate and Nikushtak were confiscated.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hasa, Xhem 1875 births 1947 deaths Hotla, Sulë People from Lipkovo Municipality Hotla, Sulë Hotla, Sulë Hotla, Sulë Hotla, Sulë Hotla, Sulë Executed Albanian collaborators with Fascist Italy Executed Albanian collaborators with Nazi Germany