Mirko Petrović-Njegoš


Mirko Petrović-Njegoš was a Montenegrin military commander, diplomat and poet, belonging to the House of Petrović-Njegoš. He was given the title of veliki vojvoda of Grahovo, and is thus also known as Vojvoda Mirko. He was the father of Nikola, the future ruler of Montenegro.

Life

Mirko was born on 19 August 1820, in Njeguši, the son of Stanko Petrović-Njegoš and Krstinja Vrbica. He was the older brother of Prince Danilo I, while his uncle was Petar II Petrović-Njegoš. He is famous for winning the Battle of Grahovac on 1 May 1858, leading the Montenegrin army against the Ottoman Empire.
In 1862, after the Convention of Scutari, he was deported because he had fought against the Ottomans.
His epic corpus Junački spomenik, published in the Montenegrin capital of Cetinje in 1864, glorifies Montenegro and Montenegrins, and tells of the great victories over the Ottoman Empire.
He was married in Njeguši on to Stana Martinović.
They had three children:
His writings include this book of poetry owned by the Library of Congress in Washington, DC: