Vuk Mandušić ( sr-cyr, Вук Мандушић; Vučen Mandušić, ''Vucen Mandussich''; 1645 – died 13 July 1648) was the ''capo direttore'' of the Morlach army, one of the most prominent ''

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

Dalmatian hinterland The Dalmatian Hinterland () is the southern inland hinterland in the historical Croatian region of Dalmatia. The name means 'beyond (the) hills', which is a reference to the fact that it is the part of Dalmatia that is not coastal and the existe ...

, that fought 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 ...

during the

Cretan War (1645–69) Cretan War may refer to multiple wars involving the island of Crete, including: *Cretan War (205–200 BC), a war between King Philip V of Macedon and Rhodes *Cretan War (1645–1669), a war between the Republic of Venice and the Ottoman Empire Se ...

. He is one of the heroes renowned in both Croatian, Montenegrin 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 ...

. The Montenegro poet-prince-bishop Petar II Petrović Njegoš immortalized him in one of his epic poems, ''Gorski vjenac'', also known in English translation as '' Mountain Wreath''.

Early and personal life

Mandušić was one of the leaders of ''

Morlachs Morlachs ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Morlaci, Морлаци; ; ) is an exonym used for a rural Christian community in Herzegovina, Lika and the Dalmatian Hinterland. The term was initially used for a bilingual Vlach pastoralist community in the mountain ...

'' or ''

Vlachs Vlach ( ), also Wallachian and many other variants, is a term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate speakers of Eastern Romance languages living in Southeast Europe—south of the Danube (the Balkan peninsula ...

'' in Dalmatia, and his birthplace is undetermined, but it is generally considered he was born somewhere in the Dalmatian Zagora. Several localities in the hinterland of modern-day

Šibenik-Knin County Šibenik-Knin County (; ) is a county in southern Croatia, located in the north-central part of Dalmatia. The biggest city in the county is Šibenik, which also serves as county seat. Other notable towns in the county are Knin, Vodice, Drniš a ...

has been given: most commonly Rupe near

Skradin Skradin is a small town in the Šibenik-Knin County of Croatia. It is located near the Krka (Croatia), Krka river and at the entrance to the Krka National Park, from Šibenik and from Split, Croatia, Split. The main attraction of the park, Slapo ...

, according to the oral tradition preserved in the work from 1756 by Franciscan friar

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 ...

, oral tradition about the ruins of his house, and the existence of the surname Mandušić to this day; and Petrovo polje. As Mandušić was included in the 19th century work by

Petar II Petrović-Njegoš Petar II Petrović-Njegoš ( sr-cyrl, Петар II Петровић-Његош, ; – ), commonly referred to simply as Njegoš (), was a List of rulers of Montenegro, Prince-Bishop (''vladika'') of Montenegro, poet and philosopher whose ...

, under the influence of the work were given additional theories; he was from Velestovo and revolted in Kotari (Dalmatia), or that hailed from

Tetovo Tetovo (, ; , sq-definite, Tetova) is a city in the northwestern part of North Macedonia, built on the foothills of Šar Mountain and divided by the Pena (river), Pena River. The municipality of Tetovo covers an area of at above sea level, wit ...

(now in

North Macedonia North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...

), before settling in Sredska,

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 ...

, while others claim it was another person with the same name. He adopted his sororal nephew Tadija Vrančić, son of Juraj Vrančić, who later signed himself as Mandušić (''Mandussich alias Vrancich''), and replaced Vuk upon his death and was appointed commander of the Šibenik "

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 ...

Career

With the

, a solid organization was needed, with an officer commanding over several

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

Petar Smiljanić as "capo", Vuk Mandušić as "capo direttore", and Janko Mitrović as "capo principale de Morlachi", Jovan Dračevac as "governator", and many others. This "

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 ...

" or "Morlach" army had less than 1,500 fighters. In late February 1648, he "jumped into" Venetian Dalmatia with Vlachs of Petrovo polje, fighting for five months. The first information on Mandušić dates to February 1648, when mentioning the Venetian attack on

Drniš Drniš is a town in the Šibenik-Knin County, Croatia. Located in the Dalmatian Hinterland, it is about halfway between Šibenik and Knin. History The name Drniš was mentioned for the first time in a contract dated March 8, 1494. However, the ...

and

Knin Knin () is a city in the Šibenik-Knin County of Croatia, located in the Dalmatian hinterland near the source of the river Krka (Croatia), Krka, an important traffic junction on the rail and road routes between Zagreb and Split, Croatia, Split. ...

, which Mandušić played a great role. In March and May the same year, he took part in the liberation of

Klis Klis is a Croatian village and a municipality located around a mountain fortress bearing the same name. Population In the 2011 census, the municipality of Klis had a total population of 4,801, consisting of the following settlements: * Bršta ...

, and Ključ (with 175 fighters), respectively. On 3 July is mentioned in a notice by Leonardo Foscolo about the plunder of Ključ and Turkish territory. On 11 July is mentioned by Foscolo about the gold medal which received Stjepan S/Šorić in June that same year, who although ''a brave soldier and has many supporters, can not count on obedience, because with the soldiers is not generous'', while ''if for the captain Mandušić came the second medal equal to that of Šorić, and he deserves it, it would've saved him the bitterness of exclusion, and to the nation would serve as a great consolation, because he is in the Krajina appreciated more than any other''. New Bosnian Pasha, Drviš Skopljak, who went down in

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 ...

, in late July sent in

Ravni Kotari Ravni Kotari (; ) is a geographical region in Croatia. It lies in northern Dalmatia, around Zadar and east of it. It is bordered by Bukovica to the northeast, lower Krka to the southeast, and the Adriatic Sea. The largest settlement in the region ...

his Kiaya-bey, Hussein-beg, with a detachment of 4,000 people. Hussein after looting Kotari reached the Biograd and Turanj, and with enormous loot was returning to the Knin. Foscolo, powerless to prevent Hussein's hike, sent out for Ilija Smiljanić with Kotari Uskoks, and Mandušić with Šibenik Uskoks, as an attempt to cut off their retreat and snatch the loot. In the conflict near Zečevo, on 31 July, he died while fighting, along with twenty soldiers and three or four harambaša. His death was reported by three harambašas, Ilija Smiljanić, Martin Milković, and Matija Mihaljević. His body was buried at the place of death, today probably near fort Zvečevo on the same-titled high ground. On 5 August, Foscolo highly praised him and wrote ''From Šibenik arrived the confirmation on news of the death of poor Mandušić, whom let the Lord God grant heavenly abode, before he died avengeed the death of five Turks. He was indeed a brave soldier, modest and unselfishly governor, a trait that is rarely encountered in this nation, which in most can call rapacious. If he succeeded to loot something, all would share among the soldiers, who had so loved, worshiped and obeyed him as much as was afraid among the Turks. I vividly felt his loss, because of damage that will arise for the common good''. He was enumerated in Alessandro Vernino's ''Della historia delle Guerre di Dalmatia'' (1648) as "Mandusich de Murlacchi". Today, what is thought to be Mandušić's metre-long sabre is kept at Visovac Monastery

Legacy

He is mentioned in ''Cvit razgovora naroda i jezika iliričkoga aliti rvackoga'' (''The Flower of Discourse among the Illyrian or Croatian People and Language'', 1747) by Franciscan priest Filip Grabovac, and ''Razgovor ugodni naroda slovinskog'' (''Pleasant Conversation of Slavic People'', 1756) by Franciscan friar

. Miošić said of him "a mighty hero, not only praised by the Dalmatians, and exalted, furthermore also praised by Latins in their books". In Croatian historiography, he is often called a

Croat The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

. He is one of the heroes renowned in

. Epic poems starring Mandušić include ''Шеовић Осман'', ''Мустајбег лички и Вук Мандушић'', ''Удар на Вука Мандушића'', and ''Два Куртића и Бојичић Алил''. He is most notably included in ''

The Mountain Wreath ''The Mountain Wreath'' () is a poem and a play written by Prince-Bishop and poet Petar II Petrović-Njegoš. Njegoš wrote ''The Mountain Wreath'' during 1846 in Cetinje and published it the following year after the printing in an Armenian monas ...

'' (1847) by Montenegrin Prince-Bishop

. According to some Montenegrin historians of literature, Njegoš took him as a character from songs collected by

Vuk Karadžić Vuk Stefanović Karadžić ( sr-Cyrl, Вук Стефановић Караџић, ; 6 November 1787 (26 October OS)7 February 1864) was a Serbian philologist, anthropologist and linguist. He was one of the most important reformers of the moder ...

, or his name was popularized in Montenegro by contemporary Montenegrin soldiers like Bajo Pivljanin. He became an example of heroic character and behaviour of the Serbs. In Serbian historiography, he is called a

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...

. The authors of the ''Srpski list'' (late 19th century) from

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, enter ...

used names from the ''Mountain Wreath''; Vuk Mandušić was one of the pseudonyms. Serbian-Canadian writer Radoje Vukčević used his name as a pseudonym. Croatian writer Nikola Pulić in 1989 wrote a novel ''Sablja Vuka Mandušića''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mandusic, Vuk Republic of Venice military personnel Republic of Venice military personnel killed in action Republic of Venice people of the Cretan War 1648 deaths Characters in Serbian epic poetry Venetian period in the history of Croatia Venetian Slavs People from Šibenik-Knin County Hajduks