Hadà ¾i-Prodan's rebellion () was a Serbian rebellion against the Ottoman Empire, which took place from 27 September to 30 December 1814. It occurred between the First (1804âÂÂ13) and Second (1815) uprisings of the Serbian Revolution. Despite the collapse of the First Uprising in 1813, tensions in the Sanjak of Smederevo ("Belgrade Pashalik") nevertheless persisted. In September 1814 a rebellion was launched by veteran Hadà ¾i-Prodan in the Poà ¾ega nahija. Miloà ¡ ObrenoviÃÂ, another veteran, felt the time was not right for an uprising and did not provide assistance, instead aiding in the capture of the rebels. The rebellion soon failed and Hadà ¾i-Prodan fled to Austria. After the failure of the revolt, the Ottomans inflicted more persecution against the Serbs, including higher taxation and forced labor. In March 1815, Serbs had several meetings and decided upon a new rebellion, the Second Serbian Uprising.
After the suppression of the First Serbian Uprising, Grand Vizier Hurshid Pasha sent his commander SerÃÂesma to the still rebellious parts of Serbia to return the Serbs under Ottoman suzerainty and ensure them of their rights and that the Sultan had forgiven them. SerÃÂesma went to the Rudnik and ÃÂaÃÂak nahiyas where he knew vojvoda Miloà ¡ Obrenoviàheld out. Miloà ¡ Obrenoviàsurrendered his weapons at the Takovo church to SerÃÂesma, who returned all but his sabre (to give to Hurshid as a token), as a sign of trust in him and his rule over his people in the area, upon which commanders Lazar Mutap, Arsenije Loma, MiliàDrinÃÂiàand Hadà ¾i-Prodan followed suit.
SerÃÂesma appointed Latif Agha from Slià ¡ane the mutesellim (mayor) of ÃÂaÃÂak, and Aà ¡in-beg the mutesellim of Brusnica. Miloà ¡ befriended Aà ¡in-beg. After completing his tasks, SerÃÂesma took Miloà ¡ with him to Belgrade before Hurshid Pasha, who recognized him as governor of the Rudnik nahiya. Shortly after this, Hurshid left the Belgrade Pashalik and appointed his kethüda Darendeli Ali Pasha as Vizier. Darendeli Ali Pasha was appointed the Vizier of Bosnia on 13 March 1813. Darendeli promoted Miloà ¡ to governor of the Kragujevac and Poà ¾ega nahiyas, as well. Sulejman Pasha Skopljak, the serasker of the Ottoman Bosnian cavalry, was appointed the Vizier of Belgrade at the end of October 1813, and he didn't follow Hurshid's and Darendeli's acceptable holding towards Serbs, but instead disarmed and extorted them and sent the army into Serb areas to be fed, an administration in the likes of the Dahije. A letter dated 8 August 1814 signed by Miloà ¡ Obrenoviàand other commanders that stayed in the Pashalik following the end of the uprising was sent to Matija Nenadoviàand Petar Moler demanding the revolutionary exiles to ask Russia for help regarding atrocities in Serbia. The Ottoman army brought plague into Serbia, and this, together with instances of murder, resulted in the eventual rebellion led by Hadà ¾i-Prodan.
The Hofkriegsrat was informed by general Siegenthal on 18 September about Ottoman reinforcements in Belgrade and SerbâÂÂTurk distrust, and the Belgrade Pasha's intention to imprison Serb knezes in order to weaken them.
Two of Latif Agha's men were robbed on Latif's possessions about to be transferred to the Trnava monastery below the Jelica, where Latif sought to stay clear from the plague. Hadà ¾i-Prodan's brother Mihajlo and the monk Pajsije had a fight with the two, and took them tied up into the mountains. Borislav Palaliàfrom Atenica informed Hadà ¾i-Prodan on what had happened. Upon this Hadà ¾i-Prodan went around the Trnava area and gathered men. Radoslav JeleÃÂanin was sent by Latif to Trnava and he asked Hadà ¾i-Prodan what had happened, and Hadà ¾i-Prodan told him that he was unaware of the robbery and that he had freed and returned the goods to the two. Hearing of this, Latif went to Karanovac (now Kraljevo) and sent letters to Vizier Sulejman Pasha, neighbouring Ottoman leaders and pashas to send troops, as the "Serbs had risen again". Latif feared and contemplated whether to leave for Leskovac, having gathered all Karanovac and Trstenik troops, but he decided to send those troops there and return to ÃÂaÃÂak. For two days, hajduks fought with Kara-Fejza from ÃÂaÃÂak, until both sides retreated.
The surrounding Serb areas heard of DragaÃÂevo rising up and the flight of Karanovac and Trstenik. The rebellion broke out in the ÃÂaÃÂak nahiya and echoed most strongly in the Gruà ¾a region of the Kragujevac nahiya and to a smaller extent in the Jagodina nahiya. In Gruà ¾a, the leaders Toma VuÃÂiÃÂ, Petar Tucakoviàand Stanko MiljÃÂeviàquickly gathered men and pursued the Karanovac-Trstenik column and raided them at Rataji and Lopaà ¡, taking all their weapons, leaving many dead and wounded, but only having one loss. The column was allowed to proceed to Leskovac. Latif mustered ÃÂaÃÂak troops and clashed with VuÃÂiàand Tucakoviàfor two days, but was forced to retreat to ÃÂaÃÂak. Another organizer in the Kragujevac nahiya was merchant Nikola VukiÃÂeviàfrom SvetliÃÂ. In the meantime, Miloà ¡ had been informed by hegumen Pajsije Ristiàon the robbery and was asked to join the rebellion, but he strongly refused. Among the organizers of the rebellion were the Trnava clergy of hegumen Pajsije, hieromonk Genadije, deacon Avakum and priest Radovan VujoviÃÂ. Miloà ¡ feared for atrocities and also believed that the Belgrade Turks and Sulejman were out to get him; he had wounded the latter and fought with him at Ravnje in 1813. He understood the rebellion was disorganized and too early, and that the Ottoman army was powerful and the Serbs were weak, dispersed and unorganized. Miloà ¡ told priest Radovan Vujoviàthat it was the wrong time in harsh winter and without necessities and that the rebels should go home, and Vujoviàforwarded this to Hadà ¾i-Prodan at the Ilijak hill. Hearing of the rebels, mutesellim Aà ¡in-beg of Brusnica (Rudnik nahiya) sent for Miloà ¡; in order to save the people, Miloà ¡ joined him in suppressing the rebellion.
In 2âÂÂ3 October the Hofkriegsrat was informed by general Siegenthal about the outbreak of rebellion in the ÃÂaÃÂak nahiya led by Hadà ¾i-Prodan and the Ottoman dispatch of 2,000 Arnauts (Muslim Albanians) under ÃÂaja-paà ¡a on 29 September, and about the potential that the rebellion spreads over à  umadija to the Danube. On 7 October he informed the Habsburg emperor of 3,000 rebels, the plague in Serbia and decision to not let Serb refugees into Austria. An undated Hofkriegsrat document tells of 500 refugees in Banat and failure of ÃÂaja-paà ¡a's campaign and his retreat, as well as the pause of transportation to Serbia and Bosnia. On 9 October minister Metternich stressed the need for good AustrianâÂÂOttoman relations and allowance for Ottoman troops to enter Austrian territory if needed, and the prohibition of Serbs to do so, and the need to prevent communications between Serbs and refugees and to forbid the latter to return to Serbia.
Miloà ¡ gathered men in his nahiyas and with bölükbaà Âñ (captain) ÃÂor-Zuka went to Neboà ¡-Gora (a peak of Jelica) to find Hadà ¾i-Prodan. Hadà ¾i-Prodan lost followers when Miloà ¡ appeared, and thus went to Jeà ¾evica from where he and Nikola VukiÃÂeviàrose the Rudnik nahiya and then the Gruà ¾a and Lepenica areas, upon which also the Jagodina nahiya joined. At Gruà ¾a, VukiÃÂeviàdrafted a proclamation dated 6 October, which said:
In DragaÃÂevo, Miloà ¡ and ÃÂor-Zuka killed 60 rebels and sent captives to Aà ¡in-beg in ÃÂaÃÂak. In the meantime, a large Ottoman army mustered at ÃÂaÃÂak, part gathered by Sulejman's deputy ÃÂaja-paà ¡a from Belgrade, and part gathered by Vizier Adem Pasha of Novi Pazar. ÃÂaja-paà ¡a commanded a force of 800 deli cavalry. ÃÂaja-paà ¡a imprisoned many notable Serbs in the ÃÂaÃÂak nahiya, including Pajsije, wanting to deter the Serbs from future rebellion. 78 Serbian captives from Poà ¾ega nahiya were executed in ÃÂaÃÂak by ÃÂaja-paà ¡a.
At Knià(in Gruà ¾a), the Serbian rebel trench with 200 or 1,000 men was approached by Turk troops numbering 1,000 infantry and 150 cavalry with Miloà ¡ calling them to surrender by warning them of bad consequences in further resistance and they surrendered to him "on the face and on the soul" in the same day. At KniÃÂ, Toma VuÃÂiàPerià ¡iàand Sima Paà ¡trmac surrendered to Miloà ¡, while Petar Tucakoviàrefused and went into the hills. Hadà ¾i-Prodan and VukiÃÂeviàrefused, and led a victorious skirmish the next day, but seeing that they could not resist, and that Miloà ¡ did not want to join them, they disbanded the army. Hadà ¾i-Prodan and his young brothers crossed the Sava over to Austrian territory, and VukiÃÂeviàreturned to his village, thereby ending the rebellion. According to the Memoirs of Aleksa SimiÃÂ, the Gruà ¾a leaders took to the Rudnik mountain and were safe thanks to Miloà ¡. From KniÃÂ, Miloà ¡ and Aà ¡in-beg were sent by ÃÂaja-paà ¡a to Kragujevac where they captured some and deterred the people from rebellion, then went to Jagodina, while Latif was sent to Karanovac to hold the hillfort. ÃÂaja-paà ¡a then arrived at Kragujevac where he killed 50 and put 86 in chains.
Miloà ¡ easily managed to stop the people in Kragujevac and Jagodina from joining the rebellion. ÃÂaja-paà ¡a captured Serbs in ÃÂaÃÂak, KniÃÂ, Kragujevac and Jagodina, and brought all captives, including women and children, to Sulejman in Belgrade as token of victory. VukiÃÂeviàsurrendered to ÃÂaja-paà ¡a and was at first free, but then captured with his younger brother. Adem Pasha left his army with Latif in ÃÂaÃÂak and accompanied ÃÂaja-paà ¡a to Belgrade. Miloà ¡ saw what was happening and went to Rudnik.
At the end of November 1814, Bosnian Vizier Darendeli Ali Pasha mobilized 40,000, and sent 6,000 into Serbia, to loot and take slaves. Contemporary Ibrahim Mensur Efendi wrote how Bosnian roads were filled with "herds and Serb slaves driven into Bosnia".
ÃÂaja-paà ¡a had a convoy of captives numbering over 300 with him to Belgrade. Some 100 were women; he made many slaves who he dispersed into harems. The hegumen Pajsije was tortured by Sulejman for days and then brought to the Stambol Gate (now Republic Square) where he was impaled alive. Pajsije's brother Dimitrije was also impaled alive next to him the following day, despite not being involved. Some captives were given the choice of converting to Islam or death; Genadije and his son Stojan chose conversion while Avakum refused and was impaled. Most captives were held for three months in the Fortress dungeons and then executed by beheading. The bulk of executions took place on the Serbian feast day of St. Sava, on , according to Sarajlija. People were executed at Kalemegdan, at all entrances to the city. Among notables executed were: Nikola VukiÃÂeviàand his younger brother, brothers Stevan and Jovan Jakovljeviàfrom Beluà ¡iÃÂ, and, falsely accused of participating in the rebellion, subsequently assassinated veteran leaders komandant Milija Zdravkoviàand hajduk Stanoje Glavaà ¡. Some were saved, such as Boà ¡ko, the first-born of deceased vojvoda Petar ÃÂukiÃÂ, who was exchanged with his sister by ÃÂaja-paà ¡a, and MiliàRadoviÃÂ, who was freed and hid by sipahi Hasan-beg Prajiàfrom Uà ¾ice.
The rebellion was quickly suppressed, also with the help of former rebel leader Miloà ¡ Obrenoviàwho rightly believed that it was not the right time for revolt. The atrocities that followed the rebellion sparked the Second Serbian Uprising under the leadership of Miloà ¡ ObrenoviÃÂ. It succeeded, and among participants, also active in Hadà ¾i-Prodan's rebellion, were Gruà ¾a leaders Toma VuÃÂiÃÂ, Sima Paà ¡trmac and Petar Tucakoviàwho were all included in the government of Miloà ¡ Obrenoviàin the Principality of Serbia. Hadà ¾i-Prodan did not participate in the second uprising and was in exile in the Russian protectorate of Wallachia, where he joined the Filiki Eteria, and Greek Revolution in 1821.
The National Museum in ÃÂaÃÂak has a permanent exhibition of the rebellion. Pajsije and Avakum were proclaimed New-Martyrs of the Serbian Orthodox Church with commemoration on 17 December.