Vojin Popović

Vojin Popović, known as Vojvoda Vuk (Serbian: Војин Поповић, војвода Вук; 9 December 1881 – 29 November 1916) was a Serbian voivode (military commander), who fought for the Macedonian Serb Chetniks (i.e. komiti) in the Struggle for Macedonia, and then the Serbian national army in the Balkan Wars and World War I.

Vojin Popović
Vojvoda Vojin Popović
Born	9 December 1881 Sjenica, Kosovo Vilayet, Ottoman Empire
Died	29 November 1916 (aged 34) Gruništa
Allegiance	Kingdom of Serbia
Years of service	1901–1916 †
Rank	Voivode (Duke) Second lieutenant
Unit	Volunteer unit
Battles/wars	Macedonian Struggle Balkan Wars World War I Battle of Kajmakčalan

Life

Monument, in Belgrade

Vojin was born on 9 December 1881 at Sjenica, Kosovo Vilayet, Ottoman Empire (present-day southwestern Serbia). Shortly after his birth, the family moved to Kragujevac, where Vojin attended school. He chose a career in the military. On 3 November 1901, he became second lieutenant. He was among the first cheta (bands, 'čete') heading for Old Serbia, i.e. Makedonia (1905).

He was killed after being shot through the heart on top of the Staravinski vis near Gruništa, Novaci Municipality in skirmishes after the Battle of Kaymakchalan on 29 November 1916 during the height of World War I. There is a Monument to Vojvoda Vuk in Belgrade.

Legacy

• There is a Monument to Vojvoda Vuk in a Belgrade park called Proleće.

See also

• List of Chetnik voivodes

References

• Anonymous, "One eyewitness of the Vojvoda Vuk`s death speaks about his last minutes", Politika, 25 October 1936.
• Anonymous, „The monument to Vojvoda Vuk – Vojin Popović was unveiled in Belgrade“, Belgrade municipal newspapers, no. 10, October 1936, 780–781
• Danilo Šarenac, Tradition of the irregular troops: the monument to Vojvoda Vuk in Belgrade, in: The Collection Premises of the Memory, 2, Department for the History of Art at the Faculty of Philosophy, the University of Belgrade, Belgrade 2013, 49–65

Sources

• Трифуновић, Илија (December 1998) [1939]. "КЛОНУ РУКА У ВОЈВОДЕ ВУКА". Srpsko nasleđe (in Serbian). НИП „ГЛАС“.