Vasojevići


The Vasojevići is a historic Montenegrin Highland tribe and a territorial unit in northeastern Montenegro, in the region of Brda. It is the largest of the historical tribes, occupying the area between Vjetarnih Lijeva Rijeka in the South and Bihor under Bijelo Polje in the North, Mateševo in the West to Plav in the East. The tribe is one of seven Highland tribes. Vasojevići is also the name of the region inhabited by the Vasojevići. Most of the tribe's history prior to the 16th century has naturally been passed on through oral history.
Although the unofficial center is Andrijevica in north-eastern Montenegro, the tribe stems from Lijeva Rijeka in central Montenegro. The tribe was formed by various tribes that were united under the rule of the central Vasojević tribe. These tribes later migrated to the Komovi mountains and the area of Lim. The emigration continued into what is today Serbia and other parts of Montenegro.
Though sense of tribal affiliation diminished in recent years, is not a thing of a past. Tribal association and organizations still exist. It could be clearly seen during the 2006 Montenegrin independence referendum with the Vasojevići united opposition. In terms of genetic genealogy, Vasojevići male lineages belong to the branch E-V13>Z1057>PH1246>BY14151 which connected them with some native brotherhoods in Herzegovina and Western Bosnia.

Geography

It occupies the area between Vjetarnih Lijeva Rijeka in the South and Bihor under Bijelo Polje in the North, Mateševo in the West to Plav in the East.

Origins

It is a tradition of all brotherhoods to show respect to ancestors by knowing precisely genealogy and the history of the tribe and a family. This also allows members of the clan to be unite, to act together and always to recognise kin.
According to a folk myth, the founder of the tribe was Vaso. According to one myth Vaso was a descendant of the medieval Serbian Nemanjić dynasty. Vaso's great-grandfather was Stefan Konstantin, the rival King, who was defeated by his half-brother Stefan Uroš III in 1322. Stefan Konstantin had a son, Stefan Vasoje, who was brought up at the court of Dušan the Mighty. Stefan Vasoje participated in the battles of Dušan, and when he had received sufficient experience, he was put by the Emperor as voivode at Sjenica. Stefan Vasoje had a son, Stefan Konstantin II, who participated in the Battle of Kosovo, where he died. is believed to be either the grandfather or great-grandfather of Vaso. The legend further alleges that Vaso, one of five sons of Stefan Konstantin II, moved to Lijeva Rijeka. After the fall of Smederevo fortress and the subsequent fall of the whole Serbian Empire, Serbs from Kosovo, Metohija and Šumadija fled from the incoming Turks to Bosna and, after its fall, into Herzegovina. Vaso, the founded of the tribe, fled along with these waves of refugees. In 1465 he moved from Herzegovina to Lijeva Rijeka in Zeta.
Vaso's descendants gradually expanded to the north-east and inhabited the region by the river Lim called Polimlje – the area around the Komovi mountains, Andrijevica and Berane
Thus, they formed the largest tribe of all seven highland tribes of Montenegro. In modern Montenegro the area of Vasojevići falls into following municipalities: Berane, Podgorica, Kolašin, Plav and Bijelo Polje. One of the highest mountains of the modern day Montenegro is named after the tribe: Kom Vasojevićki and the whole area inhabited by the tribe is frequently called "Vasojevići".
Part of the tribe that stayed free from the Turkish rule lives in the area of Lijeva Rijeka and Andrijevica – they are all called Upper Vasojevići. Lower Vasojevici inhabited the area of Berane. Most of the Lower Vasojevići were within the Turkish reign until Balkan Wars in the 20th century.
Tribe members were perceived as noblemen and rarely mingled with common folk – people who did not have a common ancestor. Vasojevići called them Ašani and today this term has come to denote Vasojevići of other origin.
In a book "Pleme Vasojevići" written in 1935, R. Vešović describes the structure of the Vasojevići. The list of families was exhausting when the book was completed but since then new families may have developed. Sometimes, with the very distant genealogy, slight variations of names, chronology and relationships exist concurrently but there is no doubt among the Vasojevići members which family belongs to which brotherhood, branch and sub-branch. Never has any family questioned the structure depicted below. The brotherhoods of Vasojevići stem from different tribes, of no common kinship and ancestry, which were united under the rule of a central tribe that extended its name to the other clans.
Modern Y-DNA research conducted by the Serbian Genealogical Society in the framework of the Serbian DNA Project shown that Vasojevići belong to the branch haplogroup E-V13, specifically to the branch E-V13>Z1057>PH1246>BY14151 which connected them with some native brotherhoods in Herzegovina and Western Bosnia. These results were significant as there were some oral traditions in Vasojevići which state that the tribe itself originated from these areas of Herzegovina.

History

Early history

The oldest mention of the Vasojevići dates to 1444, where it is described as not a tribe, but as an ethnic group. The Ragusan Senate report filed by Ragusan merchants dating to October 29, 1444, speaks of the Vasojevići, living near Medun, in Rikavac, having together with the Bjelopavlići and Piperi attacked Ragusan merchants, doing material damage. According to some historians, the fact that the Vasojevići were not mentioned in the 1455 document, points to them having migrated from Upper Zeta. According to the 1485 defter, the Vasojevići and Bratonožići were not yet established tribes.

17th century

In 1658, the seven tribes of Kuči, Vasojevići, Bratonožići, Piperi, Klimenti, Hoti and Gruda allied themselves with the Republic of Venice, establishing the so-called "Seven-fold banner" or "alaj-barjak", against the Ottomans. In 1689, an uprising broke out in Piperi, Rovca, Bjelopavlići, Bratonožići, Kuči and Vasojevići, while at the same time an uprising broke out in Prizren, Peć, Priština and Skopje, and then in Kratovo and Kriva Palanka in October.

18th century

In the 18th century the folklore of the tribe was influenced by the Orthodox millenarianism that had developed during the mid Ottoman era. According to one such folk legend, an elder of the Vasojevići, Stanj, foretold Greek priests the advent of a Serbian messiah, a dark man who would liberate the Serbs from the Turks. These myths as part of the official Serbian Orthodox doctrine provided both a de facto recognition of Ottoman rule and the denial of its legitimacy.
In 1788 and 1789, gubernator of Montenegro, Ivan Radonjić, in a couple of letters directed towards Russian empress Catherine II, mentions the tribe Vasojevići, among other tribes such as Banjani, Kuči, Piperi, Bjelopavlići, Zećani, Vasojevići and Bratonožići, as Serb tribes and asks the empress for a help in fight the against the Ottomans which they waged. After promised help, in the second letter to the empress and in the name of mentioned tribes, he pledges the allegiance for Catherine II.

World War II

During the Second World War, the Vasojevići were divided between the two armies of Serb Chetniks and Yugoslav Partisans that were fighting each other. As a result, the conflict spread within the tribal structures. The partisans formed a distinct Vasojević battalion. In battles, against Chetniks and the Fascist Italian army, it routed 200 Chetniks and 160 Italian soldiers in defense of the position of Pešića Lake during the advance of the Chetniks from Kolašin.

Montenegrin independence referendum, 2006

In May 2006, Montenegro gained independence after a referendum on the future of the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro. However, 72% of voters in Andrijevica municipality, the unofficial centre of the Vasojevići region, voted against Montenegrin independence. It was the second highest result against breaking the state union with Serbia.
The People's Assembly of Vasojevići stated many times that, apart from being Montenegrin, all Vasojevići are Serb and, thus, strongly oppose and have always opposed Montenegrin secession from Yugoslavia. The Montenegrin census of 2003 revealed that 89,81% of the Vasojevići declared themselves as Serb while 9,43% declared themselves as Montenegrin.

2010s

During the War in Ukraine, some locals of villages of Andrijevica, part of the Vasojevići tribe, decided to sell and give up land for free to Russia, stating that "we are brothers".

Brotherhoods

All people of the Vasojevići are descendants of three Vaso sons: Rajo, Novak and Mioman. Hence the three great clans of the Vasojevići:
The local legend has it that Vaso had a fourth son, by the name of Đuro, who left home and settled in Crmnica, where he founded the brotherhood of Đurovići. The legend also recounts how after the Second Battle of Kosovo, defeated Janos Hunyadi along with his wounded nephew Banovac Sekula retreated to the safety of the high Komovi mountains. There he was received by Vaso and his sons, who all gave him a gift respectively: Rajo a sword, Novak a horse, and Mijoman a gun. However, suddenly there was a shout to the arms as the enemy was approaching, and both Novak and Mijo took their gifts back. Rajo, on the other hand, did not want to, so he equipped himself with another weapon. Hynadi blessed him for this, and predicted that he and his brothers will be great heroes, as well as their descendants, but that his own will always be the largest and that they will always be the leaders of the tribe.
Rajevići is the biggest branch. It is in turn divided into three branches
.
Families that descend from Lopaćani are:
Families that are descendants of Dabetići are:
Families of Kovačevići branch are:
Novakovići is the second biggest branch.
Novak had three sons, of which all families hail from:
All the families of Novakovići brotherhood are as follows:
Miomanovići is the smallest brotherhood of the Vasojevići. The families are:
By the beginning of the World War II there were more than 3600 Vasojevići “houses” in Polimlje and Lijeva Rijeka. Many notable Serbs (or people with Serbian roots, are Vasojevići by origin, e.g.: