Petar II Petrović-Njegoš
Petar II Petrović-Njegoš was born Radivoje "Rade" Petrović on in the mountain village of Njeguši, near Cetinje. His father, Tomislav "Tomo" Petrović (b. 1762–63), was a member of the Petrović clan of the Njeguši tribe of Katuni "nahiya". Njegoš's mother, Ivana Proroković, hailed from the hamlet of Mali Zalaz and was the daughter of Njeguši captain Lazo Proroković. There is no reliable information about her exact year of birth, but it is believed that she was about ten years younger than her husband. Tomo and Ivana had five children; their eldest son was Petar ("Pero"), Rade was their middle son and Jovan ("Joko") was their youngest. The couple's daughters were named Marija and Stana; Marija was married to a Montenegrin chieftain named Andrija Perović, the "serdar" (count) of Cuce, while Stana was married to Filip Đurašković, the "serdar" of Rijeka Crnojevića.
Petar II Petrović-Njegoš
In 1832, the nineteen-year-old Njegoš launched an attack against the Muslim tribes of Podgorica, who were helping the Ottomans subdue rebellions in Bosnia and neighbouring Albania. As in earlier times, when the "vladika" and "guvernadur" jointly led Montenegrin warriors into battle, Njegoš was joined by Vukotić and his men. The Montenegrins were also assisted by the rebellious Hoti clan of northern Albania. Njegoš and his forces were still at a disadvantage, as they lacked a concrete strategy for how to deal with the Ottomans and were not expecting them to bring cavalry onto the field. The Montenegrins' guerilla-like approach to warfare was ill-suited to taking a city such as Podgorica, whose high stone walls made it impenetrable from the surrounding flatlands. By launching the attack, Njegoš also risked falling out with the Russians, who at that time were allied with the Turks. Badly outmaneuvered, the Montenegrins were defeated and forced to retreat, taking with them many wounded. For Njegoš, the defeat would remain a lasting source of regret. Grand Vizier Reşid Mehmed Pasha seized on the opportunity and attacked a string of Montenegrin towns and villages in response to the attack, impaling and hanging all the Montenegrins that he captured. Subsequent political pressure from Russia discouraged Njegoš from seeking revenge.