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Husein - kapetan Gradaščević (31 August 1802 – 31 August 1834) was a Bosnian Muslim general who fought for Bosnian autonomy in the Ottoman Empire. He is often referred to as "Zmaj od Bosne", meaning "Dragon of Bosnia". Gradaščević was born in Gradačac in 1802 — hence his surname Gradaščević, meaning "of Gradačac" — and grew up surrounded by a political climate of turmoil in the western reaches of the Ottoman Empire. When his brother Murat was poisoned by a rival in 1821, Gradaščević rose to the head of the Gradačac military captaincy. The young Husein developed a reputation for wise rule and tolerance and soon became one of the most popular figures in Bosnia. In 1831 Gradaščević was called upon to lead the movement for a Bosnian autonomy. He overthrew the loyalist, vizier, and other anti - rebellion figures, becoming the de facto ruler of the Ottoman Bosnia Province (eyalet) in the process. On July 18 of the same year, Gradaščević met a large force commanded by the grand vizier himself near Štimlje in Kosovo and dealt a heavy defeat to the imperial army (this is sometimes referred to as the "Third battle of Kosovo"). At that point, he decided to turn back from further campaigns and returned to Bosnia where he was proclaimed the new vizier by his soldiers on September 12. By 1832, however, the tide of the rebellion had turned. After a series of smaller clashes, the decisive battle occurred on the 17th and 18 May outside Sarajevo. Initially successful, the rebels were eventually defeated when Herzegovinian reinforcements arrived and sided with the Sultan. Although the Bosniak uprising would not be completely quelled for another 18 years, Gradaščević was forced to flee to the Austrian Empire on
May 31. From there he negotiated for his return with the Sultan and was
ultimately allowed back but barred from ever entering Bosnia again. He
moved to Belgrade and then to Constantinople, where he died under mysterious circumstances on August 17, 1834. A legend in his own time, Gradaščević is considered a Bosniak national hero and one of the most revered figures in the history of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Husein Gradaščević was an able military commander and administrator from the northern Bosnian town of Gradačac. The
first known captain of the Gradaščević captaincy in Gradačac is
Mehmed - kapetan, whose rule lasted until 1169 A.H. (1755 – 1756). The name
of his successor is unknown, although this next captain was eventually
succeeded by Mehmed - kapetan in 1765. (It was a common tradition among
Bosniaks for children to be named after their paternal grandfathers).
Mehmed - kapetan was in turn succeeded by Osman Gradaščević,
who was known to be one of the most powerful Bosnian captains of the
period. Osman - kapetan had six male heirs. In order of birth, they
were Hamza, Murat, Osman, Muharem, Husein, and H. Bećir. As Hamza died
in 1212 A.H. (1797 – 1798) it was Murat - beg Gradaščević who succeeded
him to the captaincy. Husein
was born to Osman and his wife Melek - Hanuma in 1802 in the Gradaščević
family house in Gradačac. Outside of family tradition and folklore
invented much later, little is known of his childhood. It is said that
he spent much time around the family fort while it was undergoing
renovations. He grew up during turbulent times and taking into account
his father's military experience and brother Osman's services during the
1813 war against Serbia, young Husein surely heard many first hand accounts that shaped his personality. Osman
senior died in 1812 when Husein was merely ten years old. Certain
scholars have argued that his mother was also dead by then, although
some family traditions claim otherwise. By all accounts, his mother had a
strong influence on Husein's upbringing. Upon his father's death,
Husein deferred to his eldest brother Murat because of his age and
status as successor to the Gradačac captaincy. As his status implied, Husein was well educated, learning to read and write at an early age. At sixteen he was taught Arabic calligraphy by Murat's personal scribe Mullah Mustevica, who praised his brightness and called him a "gifted child". In addition to this, Husein was taught by two Bektashi dervishes.
It is not known for certain whether Husein belonged to a dervish order
but, based on his great piety and the modest lifestyle that he would
demonstrate in the future, it is often assumed that he did. Husein married Hanifa, sister of Mahmud - kapetan of Derventa,
at an early age. Although the exact date is unknown, his son Muhamed
beg Gradaščević was probably born no later than 1822 when Husein
himself was twenty years old. The pair would also have a daughter,
Šefika, born in 1833. Neither Muhamed nor Šefika were known to have had
children themselves. He died in Constantinople in 1834 at the age of thirty - two. When
Husein took over the Gradačac captaincy, he focused most of his
attention on administration of internal affairs. It is notable that all
of Husein's construction projects were related to the city of Gradačac
and its immediate area. During his rule, Gradačac further expanded its
status as one of the most prosperous captaincies in Bosnia. The first and most notable construction was that of the Gradaščević family castle.
The fort had existed for decades and was subject to extensive
renovations since the time of Mehmed - kapetan in 1765. Husein's father
Osman and brother Murat had done some work as well, in 1808 and 1818 to
1819 respectively. However, the exact nature of Husein's contribution
to the complex is unknown. The castle's tower has long been associated
with Husein but architectural evidence points to the tower existing
alongside the rest of the complex from earlier times. It seems likely
that Husein was merely responsible for a significant renovation of the
tower that lingered in the people's memory. Husein
was certainly responsible for a completely new castle built during his
rule. By all accounts, this was a large project, which included the
construction of an artificial island surrounded by a moat up to 100
meters wide and of a great depth. The castle was named Čardak and
the surrounding village quickly derived its name from it. The walls
were of an oval shape, the entire structure being seventeen meters long
and eight meters wide. The complex and area also included a mosque, wells, a fishery, and hunting grounds. Within the Gradačac city walls Husein's most significant contribution to the city was the clock tower (Bosnian: sahat - kula)
which was built in 1824. The object's base is 5.5 by 5.5 meters, while
the height is 21.50 meters. It was the last object of this type to be
built in Bosnia. Some 40 to 50 meters outside the city walls lies Husein's greatest architectural contribution to Gradačac: the Husejnija mosque. Built in 1826, it features an octagonal dome roof and a particularly high minaret of twenty - five meters. Three smaller octagonal domes are found above the verandah. Islamic decorations
and artistry are seen on the door and surrounding wall as well as the
interior. The entire complex is surrounded by a small stone wall and
gate. Husein's rule in Gradačac was also notable because of his tolerance towards the Christian populace under his jurisdiction; both Catholic and Orthodox. Though social norms of the time dictated that the Ottoman sultan's official
approval was necessary for the construction of any non-Islamic
religious buildings, Husein approved the construction of several such
buildings without it. A Catholic school was built in the village of Tolisa in 1823, followed by a large church that could hold 1,500 people. Another two Catholic churches were built in the villages of Dubrave and Garevac, while an Orthodox church was built in the hamlet of Obudovac. During Husein's captaincy, the Christians in Gradačac were known to be the most satisfied in Bosnia. The year 1827 marked Husein's entrance into the greater Bosnian political scene. This was largely due to the impending Russo - Turkish War and his role in preparing the defense of the boundaries of the Province of Bosnia. Upon receiving orders from the Bosnian vizier Abdurahim - paša, Husein mobilized the Gradačac populace and strengthened his defenses. During talks held in Sarajevo between
the vizier and the country's captains, it is said that Husein stayed
the longest to discuss strategy. He was appointed commander of an army
that he was to mobilize from the lands between the Drina to the Vrbas.
By all accounts, he did a satisfactory job. However, in mid - June 1828,
Husein had to rush to Sarajevo with a small accompanying force to get
the vizier to safety following a revolt among the troops. By
1830, Husein had risen to new political heights as he was able to speak
on behalf of all (or at least most of) the captains of Bosnia. At that
time, he was coordinating the defense of Bosnia against a possible
invasion by Serbia, as well as taking it upon himself to address Austrian authorities and warn them against any incursion across the Sava.
The authority he wielded in the later years of his captaincy in
Gradačac explains the great role he was to have in the years to follow. In the late 1820s, Sultan Mahmud II reintroduced a set of reforms that called for further expansion of the centrally controlled army (nizam),
new taxes and more Ottoman bureaucracy. These reforms weakened the
special status and privileges of Bosnia. Many Bosniaks leaders had also
been disappointed by Ottoman negligence to the plight of the Slavic Muslim refugees arriving from the Sanjak of Smederevo. Contrary to popular belief, however, Husein Gradaščević was not greatly opposed to these reforms. In 1826, during the Auspicious Incident, Sultan Mahmud II abolished the Janissary, through use of military force, execution and exile. Mahmud II then banned the revered Bektashi Order and decreed his Turkish commanders to launch campaigns against prominent Balkan Muslim leaders causing great instability in Rumelia. During the same year the Sultan Mahmud II issued a decree abolishing the Janissary in
Bosnia, Gradaščević's immediate reaction was not unlike that of the
rest of the Bosnian aristocracy. Husein Gradaščević threatened that he
would use military force to subdue anybody opposed to the Sarajevo
Janissaries. When the Janissaries killed nakibul - ešraf Imam Nurudin effendi Šerifović,
however, his tone shifted and he rapidly distanced himself from their
cause. Husein Gradaščević did realize that economic hardship was the
main reason of Janissary dissent. For the rest of the 1820s, Gradaščević generally maintained good relations with imperial authorities in Bosnia. When Abdurahim - paša became
vizier in 1827, Gradaščević was said to have become one of his more
trusted advisors. This culminated in Gradaščević's large role in the
Bosnian mobilization for the Russo - Ottoman war. Following a riot in the
Sarajevo camp during these preparations, Gradaščević even provided
shelter for the ousted Abdurahim - paša in Gradačac before assisting him
in his escape from the country. Gradaščević was also relatively loyal to
Abdurahim's successor, Namik - paša, reinforcing Ottoman garrisons in Šabac upon his orders. The turning point for Gradaščević came with the end of the Russo - Ottoman War and the Treaty of Adrianople on September 14, 1829. According to the provisions of the treaty, the Ottoman Empire had to grant autonomy to Serbia. In a move that outraged Bosniaks and launched numerous protests, newly autonomous Serbia was also given six districts. Between
the December 20 and December 31, 1830, Gradaščević hosted a gathering
of Bosniak aristocrats in Gradačac. A month later, from January 20 to
February 5, another meeting was held in Tuzla to
prepare for the revolt. From there, a call was issued to the Bosnian
populace asking them to rise up to the defense of Bosnia. It was then
that the popular Husein - kapetan was unofficially chosen to head the
movement. Further details of this meeting are murky and disputable.
According to certain contemporary sources, the Bosniaks demanded that Constantinople: Repeal the privileges granted to Serbia and, in particular, return the six old Bosnian districts; Cease the implementation of the nizam military reforms; End
the governorship of Bosnia and accept the implementation of an
autonomous Bosnian government headed by a local leader. In return,
Bosnia would pay a yearly tribute. Upon hearing word of the oncoming force, Namik - paša is said to have gone to the Travnik fort and called the Sulejmanpašić brothers to his aid. When the rebel army arrived in Travnik they fired several
warning shots at the castle, warning the vizier that they were prepared
for a military encounter. Meanwhile, Gradaščević sent a detachment of
his forces, under the command of Memiš Ağa of Srebrenica, to meet Sulejmanpašić's reinforcements. The two sides met at Pirot, on the outskirts of Travnik, on April 7. There, Memiš - aga defeated
the Sulejmanpašić brothers and their 2,000 man army, forcing them to
retreat and destroying the possessions of the Sulejmanpašić family. On
May 21, Namik - paša fled to Stolac following a short siege. Soon afterwards, Husein Gradaščević was honorably proclaimed the Commander of Bosnia, chosen by the will of the people. Wasting
no time, Gradaščević made a call on May 31 demanding that all
aristocrats immediately join his army, along with all from the general
populace who wished to do so. Thousands rushed to join him, among them
being numerous Christians, who were said to comprise up to a third of
his total forces. Gradaščević split his army in two, leaving one part of
it in Zvornik to
defend against a possible Serbian incursion. With the bulk of the
troops he set out towards Kosovo to meet the grand vizier, who had been
sent with a large army to quell the rebellion. Along the way, he took
the city of Peć with a 52,000 strong Army and proceeded to Priština, where he set up his main camp.
The encounter with Grand Vizier Reşid Mehmed Pasha happened
on July 18 near Štimlje. Although both armies were of roughly equal
size, the Grand Vizier's troops had superior arms. Gradaščević sent a
part of his army under the command of Ali - beg Fidahić ahead to meet Rashid - paša 's
forces. Following a small skirmish, Fihadić feigned a retreat. Thinking
that victory was within reach, the Grand Vizier sent his cavalry and
artillery into forested terrain. Gradaščević immediately took advantage
of this tactical error and executed a punishing counterattack with the
bulk of his forces, almost completely annihilating the Ottoman forces.
Rashid - paša himself was injured and barely escaped with his life. Following
claims from the Grand Vizier that the Sultan would meet all Bosniak
demands if the rebel army would return to Bosnia, Gradaščević and his
army turned back home. On August 10 a meeting of all major figures in
the movement for autonomy was held in Priština. At this meeting it was
decided that Gradaščević should be declared vizier of Bosnia. Although
Gradaščević refused at first, those around him insisted and he
eventually accepted the honor. His new status was made official during an all-Bosnian congress held in Sarajevo on September 12. In front of the Tsar's Mosque, those present swore on the Koran to be loyal to Gradaščević and declared that, despite potential failure and death, there would be no turning back. At
this point, Gradaščević was not only the supreme military commander,
but Bosnia's leading civilian authority as well. He established a court
around him, and after initially making himself at home in Sarajevo, he
moved the center of Bosnian politics to Travnik, making it the de facto capital of the rebel state. In Travnik, he established a divan,
a Bosnian congress, which together with him made up the Bosnian
government. Gradaščević also collected taxes at this time, and executed
various local opponents of the autonomy movement. He gained a
reputation as a hero and a strong, brave, and decisive ruler. One
anecdote that illustrates this is Husein - kapetan's alleged response
to whether he was scared of waging war against the Ottoman Empire. God I fear slightly, Gradaščević replied, the Sultan not at all, and the Grand Vizier no more than my own horse. During
this lull in armed conflict with the Ottomans, attention was turned to
the autonomy movement's strong opposition in Herzegovina. A small
campaign was launched against the region from three different
directions: As
it happened, Namik - paša had already abandoned Stolac, so this attack
was put on hold. The attack on Gacko was a failure as the forces from
Posavina and south Podrinje were defeated by Čengić's troops. There was
one success, however; in October, an army Gradaščević had deployed under
the command of Ahmed - beg Resulbegović had taken over Trebinje from Resulbegović's loyalist cousins and other supporters of the Stolac opposition. A Bosnian delegation reached the Grand Vizier's camp in Skopje in
November of that year. The Grand Vizier promised this delegation that
he would insist to the Sultan that he accept the Bosniak demands and
appoint Gradaščević as the official vizier of an autonomous Bosnia. His
true intentions, however, were manifested by early December when he
attacked Bosnian units stationed on the outskirts of Novi Pazar.
Yet again, the rebel army handed a defeat to the imperial forces. Due
to a particularly strong winter though, the Bosnian troops were forced
to return home. Meanwhile in Bosnia, Gradaščević decided to carry on his campaign against the Ultra - Traditionalist Bosniak kapetans in Herzegovina despite the unfavorable climate, mainly due to their fervent obedience to Sultan Mahmud II. The captain of Livno, Ibrahim - beg Fidrus,
was ordered to launch a final attack against the local captains and to
thus end all domestic opposition to the autonomy movement. To achieve
this, Fidrus first attacked Ljubuški and the local captain Sulejman - beg.
In a significant victory, Fidrus defeated Sulejman - beg and secured the
whole of Herzegovina except Stolac in the process. Unfortunately, the
segment of the army that laid siege to Stolac itself met with failure in
early March of the next year. Receiving information that the Bosnian
ranks were depleted due to the winter, the captain of Stolac Ali - paša Rizvanbegović broke
the siege, counterattacking the rebels and dispersing their forces. A
force had already been sent towards Stolac from Sarajevo, under the
command of Mujaga Zlatar,
but was ordered back by Gradaščević on March 16 after he received news
of a major offensive on Bosnia being planned by the Grand Vizier. The Ottoman campaign began in early February. The Grand Vizier sent two armies: one from Vučitrn and one from Shkodër.
Both armies headed toward Sarajevo, and Gradaščević sent an army of
around 10,000 men to meet them. When the Vizier's troops succeeded in
crossing the Drina, Gradaščević ordered 6,000 men under Ali - paša Fidahić to meet them in Rogatica while units stationed in Višegrad were to head to Pale on the outskirts of Sarajevo. The encounter between the two sides finally happened on the Glasinac plains to the east of Sarajevo, near Sokolac, at the end of May. The Bosnian army was led by Gradaščević himself, while the Ottoman troops were under the command of Kara Mahmud Hamdi - paša,
the new imperially recognized vizier of Bosnia. In this first
encounter, Gradaščević was forced to retreat to Pale. The fighting
continued in Pale and Gradaščević was once again forced to retreat; this
time to Sarajevo. There, a council of captains decided that the fight
would continue. The final battle was played out on June 4 at Stup, a small locality on the road between Sarajevo and Ilidža.
After a long, intense battle, it seemed Gradaščević had once again
defeated the Sultan's army. Near the very end, however, Herzegovinian
troops under the command of Ali - paša Rizvanbegović and Smail - aga Čengić
broke through defenses Gradaščević had set up on his flank and joined
the fighting. Overwhelmed by the unexpected attack from behind, the
rebel army was forced to retreat into the city of Sarajevo itself. It
was decided that further military resistance would be futile.
Gradaščević fled to Gradačac as the imperial army entered the city on
June 5 and prepared to march on Travnik. Upon realizing the difficulties
that his home and family would experience if he stayed there,
Gradaščević decided to leave Gradačac and continue on to Austrian lands instead. If the choice to flee Bosnia was not already clear, the Sultan's furious fatwa declaring
Gradaščević "no good", an "evil-doer", a "traitor", a "gangster" and a
"rebel" may have convinced Gradaščević to leave. Due to various customs
and procedures, however, Gradaščević's departure from Bosnia was held up
for several days. After pleading with Austrian officials to ease their
restrictions, Gradaščević finally reached the Sava River boundary with a large party of followers on June 16. He crossed the river into Habsburg lands
the same day, along with some 100 followers, servants, and family.
Though he expected to be treated as a Bosnian vizier, he instead found
himself held in quarantine in Slavonski Brod for nearly a month, with his weapons and many of his possessions taken away. Austrian
officials faced constant pressure from the Ottoman government to move
Gradaščević as far away from the border as possible. On July 4 he was
moved to Osijek where
he essentially lived in internment. His communications with the rest of
his family and social circle were severely limited and he complained
about his treatment to the authorities several times. His conditions would eventually improve, and before he left Osijek he
remarked to local officials that he had enjoyed his stay there.
Although intensely homesick and only partially in control of his own
destiny, Gradaščević retained his pride and dignity. He was said to have
lived a luxurious life that included jousting competitions with his companions. In late 1832, he agreed to return to Ottoman territory to receive a ferman of pardon from the Sultan. The terms, read to him in Zemun, were very harsh, insisting that Gradaščević not only never to return to
Bosnia, but also never to set foot on the European lands of the Ottoman Empire either. Disappointed, Gradaščević was forced to obey the terms and rode on to Belgrade. He entered the city on October 14 in the manner of a true vizier, riding a horse decked out in silver and gold and accompanied by a large procession. He was greeted as a hero by the Muslims in Belgrade and treated like an equal by the local pasha. Gradaščević stayed in the city for two months, during which his health deteriorated (as was documented by local doctor Bartolomeo Kunibert). He left the city for Constantinople in December, but as his daughter was still very young, his wife remained in Belgrade, joining him in the spring of the following year. In Constantinople Gradaščević lived in an old janissary barracks at atmejdan (Hippodrome square)
while his family lived in a separate house nearby. He lived a
relatively quiet life for the next two years, the only notable event
being an offer from the Sultan for Gradaščević to become a high ranking pasha in
the Nizami army; an offer that Gradaščević indignantly refused. He died
on August 17, 1834. Legend has it that he was poisoned by imperial
authorities but, considering his long failing health, a more probable
cause might have been cholera. It claims that he was buried in Eyup Sultan Cemetery near the site of the old veterinary school, but it is not certain. Husein
Gradaščević was a living legend in his own time. Upon his death, he
also became something of a martyr for Bosnian pride. There was a
well known saying among Bosniaks that for years after his death not a single man among our people would be able to hear his name and not shed a tear. This
positive sentiment was not exclusive to the Muslim population, as
Christians from Posavina are thought to have shared a similar view for
decades. Although a majority of the Bosniaks in Herzegovina supported the cause of Husein Gradaščević, their ruling kapetans continued to fervently support Sultan Mahmud II, in the years that followed the Herzegovina kapetans suffered during the Herzegovina Uprising (1875 - 1878) mainly due to the lack of a centralized authority in the Bosnia Eyalet. The first historic literature written about Gradaščević can be found in Safvet - beg Bašagić's work from 1900, A short introduction into the past of Bosnia and Herzegovina.
However, due to historical differences between the Bašagić and
Gradaščević families, Safvet - beg's view of Husein - kapetan is somewhat
opinionated. A year later, Gradaščević was mentioned by Kunibert in his
works on the first Serbian Uprising, which painted a positive picture of Gradaščević as a tragic hero. In the years that followed, Gradaščević was mentioned, either specifically or in the context of the movement he led, by D. Pavlović, Slavko Kaluđerčić, and Hamdija Kreševljaković.
The general sentiment was that the autonomy movement was merely a
reaction to imperial reforms by the Bosnian upper class. This view
would be predominant among historians for decades. Gradaščević had a
minor resurgence during World War II when Ustaše launched a propaganda rooted proposal to bring his remains back to Sarajevo. During the time of Communist Yugoslavia,
Gradaščević and his movement were rarely mentioned. The perceived
upper class resistance to implementation of modern reforms did not go
well with communist ideology. Gradaščević was briefly mentioned in such a light by Avdo Sućeska in his 1964 work on Bosnian captains. It would be another 24 years before Gradaščević was mentioned again. This time it was in Galib Šljiva's 1988 work on Bosnia in the first half of the 19th century. Though several historiographical controversies were resolved, there was no significant shift in the perception of Gradaščević. Since the Yugoslav Wars and
the Bosniak national awakening, Gradaščević and his movement have
experienced a rebirth among historians and the common public alike.
Works by Ahmed S. Aličić, Mustafa Imamović,
and Husnija Kamberović have all cast Gradaščević in a more positive
light. Gradaščević is once again widely considered the greatest Bosniak
national hero, and is a symbol of national pride and spirit. The main
streets in Gradačac and Sarajevo are both named after him, as well as
numerous other places in Bosnia and Herzegovina. An impressive statue
and monument to Gradaščević are to be built in Gradačac sometime in the
near future. Talk of returning Gradaščević's remains to Bosnia has been
proposed, but little has come of it. |