| Miloš Obrenović I | |
|---|---|
 Miloš Obrenović I, 1847 | |
| Prince of Serbia | |
| Reign | 23 December 1858 – 26 September 1860 |
| Predecessor | Alexander Karađorđević |
| Successor | Mihailo III (Obrenović) |
| Reign | April 23, 1815 – 25 June 1839 |
| Predecessor | Himself (AsGrand Vožd of Serbia) |
| Successor | Milan II |
| Grand Vožd of Serbia | |
| Reign | 23 April 1815 – 6 November 1817 |
| Predecessor | Karađorđe |
| Successor | Himself (as Prince of Serbia) |
| Born | (1780-03-18)18 March 1780 Gornja Dobrinja nearPožega,Ottoman Empire |
| Died | 26 September 1860 (aged 80) Belgrade,Principality of Serbia |
| Burial | St. Michael's Cathedral, Belgrade, Serbia |
| Consort | |
| Issue | Princess Petria Princess Elisabeth Prince Milan II Prince Mihailo III Princess Maria Prince Todor Prince Gabriel |
| Serbian | Милош Обреновић I |
| House | Obrenović |
| Father | Teodor Mihailović |
| Mother | Višnja Urošević |
| Religion | Serbian Orthodox |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | Serbian Revolutionary Army |
| Battles/wars | |
Miloš Obrenović I (Serbian:Милош Обреновић I;pronounced[mîloʃobrěːnoʋit͡ɕ]; 18 March 1780 – 26 September 1860), bornMiloš Teodorović (Serbian:Милош Теодоровић;pronounced[mîloʃteodǒːroʋit͡ɕ]), also known asMiloš the Great (Serbian:Милош Велики,romanized: Miloš Veliki), was thePrince of Serbia twice, from 1815 to 1839, and from 1858 to 1860. He was an eminent figure of theFirst Serbian uprising, the leader of theSecond Serbian uprising, and the founder of thehouse of Obrenović. Under his rule,Serbia became an autonomousprincipality within theOttoman Empire.[1] Prince Miloš was an autocrat, consistently refusing to decentralize power,[2][full citation needed] which gave rise to a strong internal opposition.[3] Despite his humble background, he eventually became the most affluent man in Serbia and one of the wealthiest in theBalkans, possessing estates inVienna, Serbia andWallachia.[4][5] During his rule, Miloš bought a certain number of estates and ships from the Ottomans and was also a prominent trader.[6]
Miloš Teodorović was the son of Teodor "Teša" Mihailović (died 1802) fromDobrinja, andVišnja (died 18 June 1817).[7] His family descended from theBratonožići tribe.[8] This was the second marriage of his mother Višnja, from which also sprungJovan (1787–1850) andJevrem (1790–1856).[7] From Višnja's first marriage, with Obren Martinović (died 1780) fromBrusnica, Miloš had half-brothers Jakov (died 1811) andMilan (died 1810), and half-sister Stana.[7] After the death of Obren, Višnja moved from Brusnica and married Teodor in Dobrinja.[7]
Although many historians put 1780 as the year when Miloš was born, according to foundation plaque in the wall of the Old Church in Kragujevac, his capital, he was 35 when the church was finished in 1818, implying a birth in 1782/3. After the death of his half-brother Milan, a famed revolutionary with great reputation among the people, Miloš adopted the surname Obrenović. In official documents, his name was sometimes writtenMiloš Teodorović Obrenović (Serbian Cyrillic:Милош Теодоровић Обреновић;pronounced[mîloʃteodǒːroʋit͡ɕobrěːnoʋit͡ɕ]).[9]
Miloš fought in theFirst Serbian uprising[10] until its very end in 1813. He was wounded in the battle forUžice.[4] His half-brother Milan also took part in the uprising,[4] rising to become thevoivode of theRudnik district, until his death in 1810. After Milan's death, Miloš adopted the surname of his half-brother, Obrenović.[11] This name was thepatronymic which his half-brother derived from Obren, the first name of his own father (Miloš's step-father).[11] After the rebellion collapsed, Miloš was among the few of its leaders that remained in Serbia to face the returningOttomans.[5]
After the suppression of theFirst Serbian Uprising,Grand VizierHurshid Pasha sent his commanderSerčesma to the still rebellious parts of Serbia with a large army to return the Serbs under Ottoman suzerainty and ensure them of their rights.[12] Serčesma went to the Rudnik and Čačak nahiyas where he knewvojvoda Miloš Obrenović held out and had him surrender his weapons at the Takovo church, with Serčesma returning 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, and other commanders followed suit.[13]
Serčesma appointedLatif Agha fromSlišane themutesellim (mayor) ofČačak, and Ašin-beg themutesellim ofBrusnica.[14] Miloš befriended Ašin-beg.[14] After completing his tasks, Serčesma took Miloš with him to Belgrade before Hurshid Pasha, who recognized him as governor of the Rudnik nahiya.[14] Shortly after this, Hurshid left the Belgrade Pashalik and appointed hiskethüdaDarendeli Ali Pasha as Vizier.[14] Darendeli promoted Miloš to governor of the Kragujevac and Požega nahiyas, as well.[14] Darendeli was soon replaced withSulejman Pasha Skopljak, who 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 theDahije.[15] The Ottoman army broughtplague into Serbia, and this, together with instances of murder, resulted in a rebellion led by Hadži-Prodan.[16]
In April 1815, Prince Miloš organized and led theSecond Serbian uprising. After defeating the Turks, and Napoleon's defeat in Russia, the Turks agreed to the terms of the agreement from 1815. After the killing ofKarađorđe Petrović, in 1817, Obrenović became the leader of the Serbs. As a result of the agreement, Serbia gained some autonomy, but remained underOttoman sovereignty. Miloš Obrenović was left in power as its absolute ruler.[17]
Between the end of 1828 and the autumn of 1830, Prince Miloš created a so-called "legislative commission" to translate theCode Napoléon into Serbian and codify the laws and customs of the country. After discussing the commission, Miloš invited two distinguished legal specialists to come from Hungary to prepare a more suitable criminal and civil code of laws for Serbia. They were Vasilije Lazarević,Bürgermeister (mayor) ofZemun, andJovan Hadžić, lawyer, poet, and member of the municipal senate ofNovi Sad.[18]
In January 1831, Prince Miloš informed a great national assembly that he had obtained an imperialedict from the Sultan ending all direct obligations of Serbian peasants to their former Turkish lords, guaranteeing Ottoman recognition of Serbian autonomy in most matters of internal administration, and offering Serbia the prospect of territorial aggrandizement, as well as the express right to institute schools, courts, and a governmental administration of her own. TheSultan's decrees of 1830 and 1833 expanded the same rights to a larger territory, and madeSerbia a sovereign principality,[19] with Miloš Obrenović as hereditary prince. AMetropolitanate of Serbia was established in Belgrade as an autonomous unit of thePatriarchate of Constantinople.Russia's status as the guarantor ofSerbia's autonomy was also recognized.
The supporters of the rule of law often rebelled against Miloš's government. Following one such rebellion, he agreed to adopt a constitution, theSretenje (or Candlemas)Constitution of 1835.[20] The move was opposed by neighboringAustria, the ruling Ottoman Empire and Russia.[21] It is believed that the three great empires saw the constitution as a danger to their own autocratic systems of government.[22]Metternich's Austria particularly ridiculed the fact that Serbia had its ownflag andforeign ministry. Miloš abolished the constitution at the demand ofRussia andTurkey,[23] and it was replaced by the "Turkish"Constitution of 1838.
Miloš abdicated in 1839 in favor of his sons—Milan, who died a few weeks later, andMihailo, who then became prince. Mihailo was deposed in 1842, and the family was out of power until 1858, when it returned with Miloš restored as prince for the last two years of his life.[24]
Thanks to his good contacts during his stay in Vienna,Johann Strauss II composed theSerben-Quadrille intended for Serbian balls.[25]
Miloš Obrenović was given the epithetthe Great. He was proclaimedFather of the Fatherland by the National Assembly.[26]
Austria:Order of the Iron Crown, Knight 1st Class
Greece:Order of the Redeemer, Grand Cross[34]
Ottoman Empire:
Russia:In 1805, Miloš marriedLjubica Vukomanović (September 1785 –Vienna, 26 May 1843). The couple had eight children whose names are known.[citation needed] It is speculated that Ljubica had other pregnancies that resulted inmiscarriages,stillbirths, or children who died shortly after birth, with some sources giving a number as high as 17 pregnancies.
With mistressJelenka, he had a son who died in infancy:
С државнога балкона у згради Народне Скупштине (Велика пивара) читаше се прокламација народу српском, да је повраћен па престо отац отаџбине Велики Милош. Ко је видео како је та одлука за час угасила оне упаљене ...
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)Miloš Obrenović Born: 18 March [7 March o.s.] 1780 Died: 26 September 1860 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Grand Vožd of Serbia 1815–1817 | Title abolished proclaimed Prince of Serbia |
| New title | Prince of Serbia 1817–1839 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Prince of Serbia 1858–1860 | Succeeded by |
 Revolutionary Serbia(1804–1813) |  | |
|---|---|---|
 Principality of Serbia(1815–1882) |
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 Kingdom of Serbia(1882–1918) | ||
 PR Serbia / SR Serbia(constituent republic ofFPR Yugoslavia / SFR Yugoslavia) (1945–1992) | ||
 Republic of Serbia(constituent republic ofFR Yugoslavia / Serbia and Montenegro) (1992–2006) |
| |
 Republic of Serbia(since 2006) |
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Regents or interimpresidents are initalics | ||
