Major 1806 battle in the First Serbian Uprising
The Battle of Deligrad was fought between Serbian revolutionaries and an army of the Ottoman Empire, and took place in 3 September 1806 during the First Serbian Uprising. A 55,000-strong Ottoman army commanded by Albanian Pasha of Scutari Ibrahim Pasha was defeated with heavy casualties and the loss of nine guns by Karađorđe Petrović's 30,000 Serbian rebels at Deligrad in Serbia.
Background.
The First Serbian Uprising had begun in 1804 with the expulsion of the ruling janissary elite and the proclamation of an independent Serbian state by the revolution's leader, Karađorđe. The Ottoman Sultan, Selim III sent a huge Ottoman force to quell the uprising. The Serbian high command decided to meet the Ottoman force under Ibrahim Bushati, the Albanian pasha of Shkodër, at Deligrad.
Battle.
The Serbian right wing numbered 6,000 men under the command of Mladen Milovanović at Bela Palanka. The center consisted of 18,000 troops which would be placed at the Kunovaci mountain. The left wing would be composed of 6,000 men under the command of Milenko Stojković with an additional 4,500 reserve troops to guard from any possible Turkish flank attack from Niš. Stanoje Glavaš would command the elite and cavalry troops whose job was to delve deep into enemy territory and harass them as much as possible. Tomo Milinović was a head of artillery and made significant effort by good positioning and frequent relocation of the cannons.
The Turkish Army consisted of 55,000 regular Nizam troops with additional auxiliary and Janissary support. The Serbian army withstood several enemy offensives. The Serbian rebels also attacked the Turkish positions numerous times and managed to capture nine Turkish cannons. Meanwhile, the elite troops of Stanoje Glavaš effectively liberated Prokuplje thereby splitting the Turkish army in two. The Turkish wing under the command of Osman Pazvantoğlu was swiftly defeated by Mladen Milovanović and the Ottoman force was routed.
Aftermath.
The battle provided a victory for the Serbs and bolstered the morale of the outnumbered Serbian rebels. To avoid total defeat, Ibrahim Pasha negotiated a six-week truce with Karađorđe.
Citations.
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