Nicifor Ducic
Encyclopedia
Archimandrite
Nićifor Dučić (Serbian
Cyrillic: Нићифор Дучић)(1832–1900), , was a member of the golden pleiad of the Serbs
from Herzegovina
, theologian, historian
and philologist who was educated in Belgrade
and Paris
, monk
who refused the title of a bishop
, devoted lover of enlightenment and patriot.
In 1848 in Žitomislić Monastery was founded the first school for education of Serbia
n children and school for education of Orthodox priest
s, which were established by monk
s of Žitomislić – Nićifor Dučić and Sirafin Perović. Archimandrite
of Herzegovina
Nićifor Dučić founded the Orthodox Seminarium
in Cetinje
in 1863. In 1880 Dučić was appointed as Museum Keeper of Serbian National Museum in Belgrade, and since 1883 as a Director of National Library of Serbia
.
Dučić's monographs about monasteries (Tvrdoš
, Žitomislić, Morača
, Ostrog
) have not lost the cultural-historical value since science must further take some studies into consideration: Christmas
in Montenegro
(1867); Boka and Zeta
(1875); Slav Manuscripts in the National Library in Paris (1889).
Between 1891-99 Dučić himself published his collected works and managed to the ninth book. The study The Old Times of Chilandar and the Monograph of Chilandar
was published in 1884 and then it was included into the fourth book of collected works in 1895.
in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina
, in 1832. He received an excellent education in Serbia
, Serbian Vojvodina
, and later in Paris
. During the 1848 Revolution he joined the Austrians as a young volunteer, and after he returned to his native Herzegovina where at the Duži Monastery he took holy orders under the guidance of his uncle, the abbot (archimandrite). In 1858 he founded with Serafim Perović a school in Duži, and taught religion and history in Mostar. From late 1858 until 1860he oversaw the Žitomislić Monastery
, situated near the River Neretva
. There he wrote several series of monographs, literary histories, archeological questions, including the history of Metox Monastery Duži and Tvrdoš, Žitomislić Monastery, Hilendar Monastery, and about the Serbian community and the Serbian Orthodoc Church of Saint Spiridon in downtown Trieste
. Dučić himself served in his youth in the Herzegovinian Uprising of 1852-1862, led by Luka Vukalović. Dučić's strength, daring and activity fitted him to shine in operations largely composed of night marches, surprises, escalades, and hand-to-hand combat. The main scene of his achievement was in Bosnia and Herzegovina and when those hostilities died down, and there was no amnesty forthcoming from the Ottoman Porte and Constantinople
as promised, Dučić left for Montenegro. He had a relation in Cetinje where he settled in 1864. There he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite, and he also helped Serafim Perović, his old friend from Duži, start a school of higher learning. When Perović opened the first seminary at Cetinje
, Dučić was named rector. He wrote and published the rules of the school. Conditions for the pupils were favourable, with particular considerations for the poorest among them. He also entered into Montenegrin service, and was immediately nominated to head a diplomatic mission as an intermediary between Cetinje and Belgrade.
Returning with Serb General Milojko Lešjanin, Nićifor Dučić, now Nicholas I of Montenegro
's envoy, exchanged copies of a treaty with Mihailo Obrenović III, Prince of Serbia
and Prime Minister Ilija Garašanin
signed October 14, 1867. Its stated purpose was to "prepare an insurrection in Turkey and unite the entire Serbian people in a single state." His pamphlets and revolutionary doctrines (that came to Austrian and Turkish attention) compelled him to leave Montenegro for Italy. In the meantime, Garašanin was preparing a general rising of all Serb lands against Turkish rule, and in 1868 Dučić was back in Belgrade. But the execution of Garašanin's plans was frustrated by the assassination of Prince Mihailo (Obrenović) on the 10th of June 1868 (or the 28th of May 1868 O.S.). Dučić was long a warm advocate of the political union of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbian Vojvodina, Kosovo Metohija, and Serbia.
With the accession of Prince Milan I of Serbia and the new prime minister, Jovan Ristić
, who knew Dučić's value, employed him and trusted him; and he took part in secret missions for them, negotiating with the Turks. During September 1873, as Ristić's envoy, Dučić held consultations with two Croatian politicians Matija Mrazović and Franjo Rački
about the unification of all Serbian people with Serbia.
Nicifor Dučić and Serdar Petar Vukotić had become enthusiastic partisans of friendship and alliance with Serbia and even favoured their complete unification. They and Prince Nicholas now believed Montenegro's policy must be subject to Serbia's and that Serbdom's salvation lay in complete unification with the rest of Serb lands. Furthermore, Filip Hristić
arrived in Cetinje from Belgrade to assure Prince Nicholas that Serbia will back Montenegro in case of war with Turkey. Soon the war was declared in 1876 by Serbia in alliance with Montenegro in order to profit by the new insurrection in the Herzegovina which had begun in the summer of 1875 at Nevesinje
. Dučić's love of adventure led him, during the First Serbo-Turkish War (1876-1878), to take the command of a brigade and enter into the fray. In this capacity he performed splendid service at Aleksinac
, where he was wounded, by delaying Turkish advance on Belgrade before a conclusion of peace could be drawn up. The final result of the war which intensified the Balkan crisis culminated in the Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878). By the settlement of the conflict Serbia and Montenegro acquired their respective and total independence from the Ottoman Empire. But Bosnia-Herzegovina was not as fortunate. It was sold to the Habsburgs by the Turks, leaving a powder keg open for ignition. His achievements , however, as archimandrite, member of parliament, historiographer, academic, soldier, negotiator, polemic and translator, showed him to be also a daring, resourceful and skilful commander, worthy to be ranked among the illustrious names of Serbian heroes. With his quill and his cross and his sword he pled for the welfare and development of the Serbian nation, leaving us his voluminous monographs, articles, pamphlets and books. He died at Belgrade in 1900.
, who encouraged him to continue to produce well-researched historical monographs for learned societies and their periodicals and journals.
Njegoš's poetic works remained practically unrecognized and unnoticed by our littérateurs for more than two decades, until Nićifor Dučić wrote: Primjetbe na "Komentar Gorskog vijenca" (Belgrade, Državna Štamparija, 1870).
Dučić once complained: The Greek metropolitans ordain as clergy even such people as can hardly read the church books. (Istorija srpske pravoslavne crkve od prvijeh desetina VII viejeka to nasih dana, Beograd, 1892).
In 1869 Dučić became a member of the a Serbian Learned Society, and for a time held the post of director (librarian) of the Serbian National Library, from 1880 to 1886.
Archimandrite
The title Archimandrite , primarily used in the Eastern Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic churches, originally referred to a superior abbot whom a bishop appointed to supervise...
Nićifor Dučić (Serbian
Serbian language
Serbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
Cyrillic: Нићифор Дучић)(1832–1900), , was a member of the golden pleiad of the Serbs
Serbs
The Serbs are a South Slavic ethnic group of the Balkans and southern Central Europe. Serbs are located mainly in Serbia, Montenegro and Bosnia and Herzegovina, and form a sizable minority in Croatia, the Republic of Macedonia and Slovenia. Likewise, Serbs are an officially recognized minority in...
from Herzegovina
Herzegovina
Herzegovina is the southern region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. While there is no official border distinguishing it from the Bosnian region, it is generally accepted that the borders of the region are Croatia to the west, Montenegro to the south, the canton boundaries of the Herzegovina-Neretva...
, theologian, historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
and philologist who was educated in Belgrade
Belgrade
Belgrade is the capital and largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers, where the Pannonian Plain meets the Balkans. According to official results of Census 2011, the city has a population of 1,639,121. It is one of the 15 largest cities in Europe...
and Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
who refused the title of a bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
, devoted lover of enlightenment and patriot.
In 1848 in Žitomislić Monastery was founded the first school for education of Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
n children and school for education of Orthodox priest
Priest
A priest is a person authorized to perform the sacred rites of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities...
s, which were established by monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
s of Žitomislić – Nićifor Dučić and Sirafin Perović. Archimandrite
Archimandrite
The title Archimandrite , primarily used in the Eastern Orthodox and the Eastern Catholic churches, originally referred to a superior abbot whom a bishop appointed to supervise...
of Herzegovina
Herzegovina
Herzegovina is the southern region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. While there is no official border distinguishing it from the Bosnian region, it is generally accepted that the borders of the region are Croatia to the west, Montenegro to the south, the canton boundaries of the Herzegovina-Neretva...
Nićifor Dučić founded the Orthodox Seminarium
Seminary
A seminary, theological college, or divinity school is an institution of secondary or post-secondary education for educating students in theology, generally to prepare them for ordination as clergy or for other ministry...
in Cetinje
Cetinje
Cetinje , Цетиње / Cetinje , Italian: Cettigne, Greek: Κετίγνη, Ketígni) is a town and Old Royal Capital of Montenegro. It is also a historical and the secondary capital of Montenegro , with the official residence of the President of Montenegro...
in 1863. In 1880 Dučić was appointed as Museum Keeper of Serbian National Museum in Belgrade, and since 1883 as a Director of National Library of Serbia
National Library of Serbia
The National Library of Serbia is the national library of Serbia, located in the city of Belgrade, .-History:...
.
Dučić's monographs about monasteries (Tvrdoš
Tvrdoš
Tvrdoš is a 15th-century Serb Orthodox monastery near the city of Trebinje, Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The 4th-century foundations of the first Roman church on the site are still visible today....
, Žitomislić, Morača
Moraca monastery
Morača is a Serbian Orthodox monastery located in the valley of the Morača River in central Montenegro. It is one of the best known medieval monuments of Montenegro. It was founded in 1252 by Stefan, son of Vukan Nemanjić, the Grand Prince of Zeta, the grandson of Stefan Nemanja...
, Ostrog
Ostrog monastery
The Monastery of Ostrog is a monastery of the Serbian Orthodox Church placed against an almost vertical background, high up in the large rock of Ostroška Greda, in Montenegro. It is dedicated to Saint Basil of Ostrog . From the monastery, a superb view of the Bjelopavlići plain can be seen...
) have not lost the cultural-historical value since science must further take some studies into consideration: Christmas
Christmas
Christmas or Christmas Day is an annual holiday generally celebrated on December 25 by billions of people around the world. It is a Christian feast that commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ, liturgically closing the Advent season and initiating the season of Christmastide, which lasts twelve days...
in Montenegro
Montenegro
Montenegro Montenegrin: Crna Gora Црна Гора , meaning "Black Mountain") is a country located in Southeastern Europe. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea to the south-west and is bordered by Croatia to the west, Bosnia and Herzegovina to the northwest, Serbia to the northeast and Albania to the...
(1867); Boka and Zeta
Zeta plain
Zeta Plain is a fertile lowland in Montenegro. It stretches from Podgorica in the north to the Skadar Lake in the south. It is the biggest plains area in Montenegro, with an average elevation around above sea level....
(1875); Slav Manuscripts in the National Library in Paris (1889).
Between 1891-99 Dučić himself published his collected works and managed to the ninth book. The study The Old Times of Chilandar and the Monograph of Chilandar
Hilandar
Hilandar Monastery is a Serbian Orthodox monastery on Mount Athos in Greece. It was founded in 1198 by the first Serbian Archbishop Saint Sava and his father, Grand Prince Stefan Nemanja of the medieval Serbian principality of Raška...
was published in 1884 and then it was included into the fourth book of collected works in 1895.
Biography
Nićifor Dučić was born in the village of Velji Lug, near VišegradVišegrad
Višegrad is a town and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is part of the Republika Srpska entity. It is on the river Drina, located on the road from Goražde and Ustiprača towards Užice, Serbia.-History:...
in eastern Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Bosnia and Herzegovina , sometimes called Bosnia-Herzegovina or simply Bosnia, is a country in Southern Europe, on the Balkan Peninsula. Bordered by Croatia to the north, west and south, Serbia to the east, and Montenegro to the southeast, Bosnia and Herzegovina is almost landlocked, except for the...
, in 1832. He received an excellent education in Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
, Serbian Vojvodina
Serbian Vojvodina
The Serbian Vojvodina was a Serbian autonomous region within the Austrian Empire...
, and later in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
. During the 1848 Revolution he joined the Austrians as a young volunteer, and after he returned to his native Herzegovina where at the Duži Monastery he took holy orders under the guidance of his uncle, the abbot (archimandrite). In 1858 he founded with Serafim Perović a school in Duži, and taught religion and history in Mostar. From late 1858 until 1860he oversaw the Žitomislić Monastery
Žitomislic Monastery
Žitomislić is а monastery of the Serb Orthodox Church located near Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Its church is dedicated to the Annunciation of the Mother of God....
, situated near the River Neretva
Neretva
Neretva is the largest river of the eastern part of the Adriatic basin. It has been harnessed and controlled to a large extent by four HE power-plants with large dams and their storage lakes, but it is still recognized for its natural beauty, diversity of its landscape and visual...
. There he wrote several series of monographs, literary histories, archeological questions, including the history of Metox Monastery Duži and Tvrdoš, Žitomislić Monastery, Hilendar Monastery, and about the Serbian community and the Serbian Orthodoc Church of Saint Spiridon in downtown Trieste
Trieste
Trieste is a city and seaport in northeastern Italy. It is situated towards the end of a narrow strip of land lying between the Adriatic Sea and Italy's border with Slovenia, which lies almost immediately south and east of the city...
. Dučić himself served in his youth in the Herzegovinian Uprising of 1852-1862, led by Luka Vukalović. Dučić's strength, daring and activity fitted him to shine in operations largely composed of night marches, surprises, escalades, and hand-to-hand combat. The main scene of his achievement was in Bosnia and Herzegovina and when those hostilities died down, and there was no amnesty forthcoming from the Ottoman Porte and Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
as promised, Dučić left for Montenegro. He had a relation in Cetinje where he settled in 1864. There he was elevated to the rank of archimandrite, and he also helped Serafim Perović, his old friend from Duži, start a school of higher learning. When Perović opened the first seminary at Cetinje
Cetinje
Cetinje , Цетиње / Cetinje , Italian: Cettigne, Greek: Κετίγνη, Ketígni) is a town and Old Royal Capital of Montenegro. It is also a historical and the secondary capital of Montenegro , with the official residence of the President of Montenegro...
, Dučić was named rector. He wrote and published the rules of the school. Conditions for the pupils were favourable, with particular considerations for the poorest among them. He also entered into Montenegrin service, and was immediately nominated to head a diplomatic mission as an intermediary between Cetinje and Belgrade.
Returning with Serb General Milojko Lešjanin, Nićifor Dučić, now Nicholas I of Montenegro
Nicholas I of Montenegro
Nikola I Mirkov Petrović-Njegoš was the only king of Montenegro, reigning as king from 1910 to 1918 and as prince from 1860 to 1910. He was also a poet, notably penning "Onamo, 'namo!", a popular song from Montenegro.-Early life:Nikola was born in the village of Njeguši, the ancient home of the...
's envoy, exchanged copies of a treaty with Mihailo Obrenović III, Prince of Serbia
Mihailo Obrenovic III, Prince of Serbia
Mihailo Obrenović was Prince of Serbia from 1839–1842 and again from 1860–1868. His first reign ended when he was deposed in 1842 and his second when he was assassinated in 1868.-Early life and first reign:...
and Prime Minister Ilija Garašanin
Ilija Garašanin
Ilija Garašanin was a Serbian politician and statesman, serving as Interior Minister and Prime Minister ....
signed October 14, 1867. Its stated purpose was to "prepare an insurrection in Turkey and unite the entire Serbian people in a single state." His pamphlets and revolutionary doctrines (that came to Austrian and Turkish attention) compelled him to leave Montenegro for Italy. In the meantime, Garašanin was preparing a general rising of all Serb lands against Turkish rule, and in 1868 Dučić was back in Belgrade. But the execution of Garašanin's plans was frustrated by the assassination of Prince Mihailo (Obrenović) on the 10th of June 1868 (or the 28th of May 1868 O.S.). Dučić was long a warm advocate of the political union of Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Serbian Vojvodina, Kosovo Metohija, and Serbia.
With the accession of Prince Milan I of Serbia and the new prime minister, Jovan Ristić
Jovan Ristic
Jovan Ristić, or Ristitch was a Serbian statesman and diplomat....
, who knew Dučić's value, employed him and trusted him; and he took part in secret missions for them, negotiating with the Turks. During September 1873, as Ristić's envoy, Dučić held consultations with two Croatian politicians Matija Mrazović and Franjo Rački
Franjo Racki
Franjo Rački was a Croatian historian, politician and writer. He compiled important collections of old Croatian diplomatic and historical documents, wrote some pioneering historical works, and was a key founder of the Yugoslavian Academy of Sciences and Arts.-Historian:Rački was born in Fužine,...
about the unification of all Serbian people with Serbia.
Nicifor Dučić and Serdar Petar Vukotić had become enthusiastic partisans of friendship and alliance with Serbia and even favoured their complete unification. They and Prince Nicholas now believed Montenegro's policy must be subject to Serbia's and that Serbdom's salvation lay in complete unification with the rest of Serb lands. Furthermore, Filip Hristić
Filip Hristić
Filip Hristić was Prince's Representative , Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Education, Governor of National Bank, permanent Extraordinary Minister Plenipotentiary of Serbia in Constantinople, Vienna, Berlin and London, and an honorary member of the Serbian Royal Academy.-Early:Filip...
arrived in Cetinje from Belgrade to assure Prince Nicholas that Serbia will back Montenegro in case of war with Turkey. Soon the war was declared in 1876 by Serbia in alliance with Montenegro in order to profit by the new insurrection in the Herzegovina which had begun in the summer of 1875 at Nevesinje
Nevesinje
Nevesinje is a town and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, located in eastern Herzegovina between Mostar and Gacko. It is administratively part of the Republika Srpska entity.-Geography:...
. Dučić's love of adventure led him, during the First Serbo-Turkish War (1876-1878), to take the command of a brigade and enter into the fray. In this capacity he performed splendid service at Aleksinac
Aleksinac
Aleksinac is a town which is a center of Aleksinac Municipality, located in the Nišava District of Serbia. According to 2011 census, the town has a population of 16,420 inhabitants, while the municipality has 51,462.-Name:...
, where he was wounded, by delaying Turkish advance on Belgrade before a conclusion of peace could be drawn up. The final result of the war which intensified the Balkan crisis culminated in the Russo-Turkish War (1877-1878). By the settlement of the conflict Serbia and Montenegro acquired their respective and total independence from the Ottoman Empire. But Bosnia-Herzegovina was not as fortunate. It was sold to the Habsburgs by the Turks, leaving a powder keg open for ignition. His achievements , however, as archimandrite, member of parliament, historiographer, academic, soldier, negotiator, polemic and translator, showed him to be also a daring, resourceful and skilful commander, worthy to be ranked among the illustrious names of Serbian heroes. With his quill and his cross and his sword he pled for the welfare and development of the Serbian nation, leaving us his voluminous monographs, articles, pamphlets and books. He died at Belgrade in 1900.
His Works
Though one of the most remarkable of Serbian writers, historians and diplomatists, Nićifor Dučić laboured for many years in comparative obscurity. Dučić began to write early, and had, according to his own account, composed several articles when he was sixteen. As a contributor to newspapers and magazines, he came under the notice of Ilarion RuvaracIlarion Ruvarac
Ilarion Ruvarac was historian and Orthodox priest, a member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts . Ruvarac introduced the critical methods into Serbian historiography. He was archimandrite of Grgeteg monastery...
, who encouraged him to continue to produce well-researched historical monographs for learned societies and their periodicals and journals.
Njegoš's poetic works remained practically unrecognized and unnoticed by our littérateurs for more than two decades, until Nićifor Dučić wrote: Primjetbe na "Komentar Gorskog vijenca" (Belgrade, Državna Štamparija, 1870).
Dučić once complained: The Greek metropolitans ordain as clergy even such people as can hardly read the church books. (Istorija srpske pravoslavne crkve od prvijeh desetina VII viejeka to nasih dana, Beograd, 1892).
In 1869 Dučić became a member of the a Serbian Learned Society, and for a time held the post of director (librarian) of the Serbian National Library, from 1880 to 1886.