Konstantin Mihailović | |
|---|---|
| Native name | Константин Михаиловић |
| Other name | Constantine of Ostrovica |
| Born | 1430 (1430) |
| Died | 1500 (aged 69–70) |
| Known for | Memoirs of a Janissary |
Konstantin Mihailović, also known asConstantine of Ostrovica,[1] born in 1430, was aSerbian soldier and author of amemoir of his time as aJanissary in the army of theOttoman Empire.[2] Mihailović was born in the village ofOstrovica, nearRudnik in theSerbian Despotate.[3] His book,Memoirs of a Janissary (Serbian:Успомене јаничара) was written at the end of the 15th century, probably between 1490 and 1501, and provides a unique insight into life in theOttoman Army of the time. Mihailović's stated motivation in writing the book was to provide a detailed account of the Ottoman state and its military structure in order to assist the Christian powers in their struggle against the Ottomans.[3]
His memoirs give no insight into his early life. Instead, they begin in 1455, when an army under the command ofSultanMehmed II laidsiege to thecastle ofNovo Brdo for forty days. The Ottoman Army had marched fromEdirne viaSofia in a campaign to establish certain control over the area that is nowKosovo. At the time, Novo Brdo was a rich mining city forsilver. The garrison surrendered on June 1, 1455. According to Mihailović, the Sultan stood at the small gate of the castle and sorted the boys from the girls. He then sorted the women on one side of a ditch, and the men on the other. He then ordered all men of any distinguished rank or importancedecapitated. The young women and girls, some 700 of them, were taken and given to soldiers and Ottoman commanders.[4][5]
Following this, the young boys, some 320 of them including Mihailović and his two brothers, were taken to be trained as members of the janissaries.[6] He wrote later that he and nineteen other boys ran away during the night near a village calledSamokovo, only to be recaptured, bound, and beaten. He writes that one year later he was present at theSiege of Belgrade.[6] While it is likely that he was present, he had not been with the Ottomans long enough to have become a janissary by that time. Mihailović goes into great detail about that siege and the events that followed.[6]
After completing his janissary training, he next serves with the Ottoman Army during its advance againstVlad III ofWallachia, who would later be the inspiration for thenovelDracula byBram Stoker. In this segment, Mihailović confirms the use ofimpalement by Vlad III, and adds the fact that Vlad III often cut off the noses of Ottoman soldiers and sent them toHungary to show the number of enemy soldiers he had killed.[6] He states that in one battle, while the Ottomans were crossing theDanube, some 250 janissaries were killed by the Wallachians, but the sheer numbers of the Ottoman force eventually drove Vlad III's forces away.[6]
He also records that during the night the Ottomans were most fearful of Wallachian attack, and that they protected their camps with wooden stakes. This still did not prevent attacks, and they lost thousands of soldiers, as wellcamels andhorses.[6] He gives some mention of the "forest of the impaled" that has since becomelegend, but also spares details. It is possible Mihailović, being in the rear of the army, did not directly witness it.[6]
His next writings were about the campaign to takeBosnia in 1463. He details the sieges involved in that campaign, and as it comes to a close he and a garrison of janissaries are left to hold theZvečaj Castle. By this time he seems to have had a considerable rank. His force was not able to withstand a siege led byMatthias Corvinus of Hungary, and Mihailović was one of the prisoners taken. After his identity and ethnicity was discovered, he was repatriated back to his own country.[6]
Šafarik je tu rekao da je Konstantin Mihailović, odnosno po njemu Mihailo Konstantinović, rodom iz rudničke Ostrovice, da je rođen oko 1430. godine, da je "od roditelja boljeg stanja"... Taj rukopis je... postao pre 1500. godine, a po svoj prilici još za vlade Kazimira Jagjelovića (1445-1492)....Kao što smo već rekli, Konstantin Mihailović je negde između 1497. i 1501. napisao jedino svoje književno delo, koje je sačuvano u raznim prepisima sve do naših dana....delo napisano verovatno između 1490. i 1497, i to zbog toga što se u njemu Matija Korvin spominje kao već mrtav, a poljski kralj Jan Olbraht kao živ... cilj Konstantina Mihailovića bio je da što bolje prikaže tursko državno i osobito vojno uređenje, jer se - kako on kaže - samo onaj može uspešno boriti protiv Turaka ko ih dobro poznaje. Tu je misao iskazao Konstantin pišući o Skenderbegu (glava XV), a to je bila njegova osnovna misao i pri pisanju čitavoga ovoga dela.
