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The First Serbian-Ottoman War was a military conflict fought between the Ottoman Empire and it's vasal state, Principality of Serbia.

First Serbian–Ottoman War (Serbian: Први српско-турски рат) was a military conflict between the Ottoman Empire and Principality of Serbia, Ottoman vassal state. The war begun as a Serbian intervention in the Christian uprising in Bosnia and Hercegovina (1875-1878), on June 20 1876. After a failed attempt of Serbian

In 1858. Prince Miloš Obrenović returned to power in Serbia with the support of France and Russia, who were dissatisfied with the pro-Austrian policy of the Serbian government. His son and heir, Prince Mihailo (ruled 1860-67) in 1861. doubled the size of the Regular Army and declared the foundation of the Serbian People's Militia (Serbian: Народна војска, Narodna vojska), which conscripted all the men aged 20-50 for the compulsory military service, organized into teritorial regiments. People's Militia was divided into the First (men under the age of 35) and the Second class.

Belgrade

Aleksinac

Veliki Izvor

Krevet

Kušići

Vukanja

Gramada

Lukovo

Vidin

Novi Pazar

Sjenica

Nova Varoš

Kosovska Mitrovica

Paraćin

Zaječar

Užice

Niš

Vranje

Pirot

Knjaževac

Đunis

Leskovac

Bela Palanka

Kuršumlija

Prokuplje

Adrovac

Belogradchik

Priština

Nova Varoš

Kula

Prugovac

Nova Varoš

St.Nicolas

Sokobanja

V.Šiljegovac

Šumatovac

Kruševac

Deligrad

Javor

Tresibaba

Bijeljina

Lešnica

Jankova Klisura

Mali Zvornik

Ivanjica

Babina Glava

Pandiralo

Katun

Tešica

Supovac

Derven

Tijovac

Blace

Crna Bara

Čemernica

Kalipolje

Rača

Popovi

Međaši

Batković

Ljubovija

Bujuklić ada

Mramor

Čestobrodica

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Serbian–Ottoman Wars (1876–1878) on the map of the Principality of Serbia. Locations under Ottoman rule before 1878 are marked in green.

Battle of Šumatovac

Serbian–Ottoman Wars (1876–1878)
Part of Serbian–Ottoman Wars (1876–1878)
Date 11 August 1876 Location Serbia Result Serbian victory
Belligerents
Serbia	Ottoman Empire
Commanders and leaders
Mikhail Chernyayev Živan Protić † Kosta Protić Dimitrije Antonović Holštajn	Abdülkerim Nadir Pasha Ahmed Eyüb Pasha
Strength
3,000–4,000, 40-50 cannon	30,000
Casualties and losses
240 dead and wounded	1,000 dead

Fought on August 11 1876 on the left flank of the Aleksinac fortified position.

Opposing Forces

In 1876. the Serbian army consisted of a small Regular army (2 batallions of infantry, two squadrons of cavalry and 8 artillery batteries, in all about 5,000 strong) and much larger militia force, consisting of all the men aged 20-50, organized into teritorial brigades divided into two classes: First class (soldiers aged 20-35, uniformed and armed with breachloading Peabody and Green rifles) and Second class (reservists aged 35-50, without uniforms and armed with old Russian and Belgian muzzleloading rifles). Each county in Serbia was to mobilize and equip one brigade of the First and one of the Second class, and a squadron of cavalry. In all, there were 18 brigades of the each class (36 in total, about 124,000 men) and 21 squadrons of cavalry. At the beginning of the war, some 5,000 foreign volunteers joined the the Serbian army, among them some 2,700 Russian volunteers (718 officers and 2,000 soldiers): a Russian volunteer, general Mikhail Chernyayev, was appointed as the supreme commander of the Serbian army.

Aleksinac was the main military base of the Serbian army on the Southern border, protecting the road into the Serbia proper along the South Morava river. The town was heavily fortified, defended by a ring of 20 redoubts and batteries on the sourrounding hills encompassing both sides of the South Morava, stretching from the Đunis hill on the western flank (on the left bank of Morava) to the Prugovac redoubt on the eastern flank (on the right bank of Morava). Serbian fortifications were armed with 44 cannon, 6 howitzers (Cal 160 mm), 10 mortars, 4 fixed and 2 field batteries (8 guns each), in all about 100 artillery pieces. Aleksinac was manned by 4 Serbian brigades under the overal command of colonel Kosta Protić, two of the First (Smederevo and Belgrade First class brigade) and two of the Second class (Smederevo and Kragujevac Second class brigade), as well as parts of the Šabac, Ćuprija and Combined brigade, who were retreating from the southern border. The eastern flank of the Serbian position (on the right bank of Morava) was defended by some 15-16.000 soldiers, stretched thin between Aleksinac and Prugovac, some 6 km apart. However, fortified batteries on the hills east of Aleksinac, armed with some 40-50 cannon, fully dominated the eastern bank of Morava and were well positioned to support the outlaying defences.

The eastern side of Aleksinac was defended by the strong fortifications on the Rujevica hill (armed with 8 cannon and 6 mortars), closest to the town, a small redoubt on Šumatovac hill some 2.5 km to the northeast, and a weak redoubt at Prugovac, further 3.5 km to the northeast. Between Šumatovac and Prugovac was a wooded Šumatovac hill, with no Serbian fortifications at all.

Šumatovac redoubt was a small 5-sided field fortification on a rocky outcrop, some 300 m from Šumatovac hill, that dominated the valley between Rujevica and Šumatovac hill. Rujevica was heavily fortified, while the wooded Šumatovac hill had no other Serbian positions except the small Prugovac redoubt further 3.5 km to the northeast. On the eve of battle, Šumatovac hill was defended by two companies (300-400 soldiers) of the Kragujevac Second class brigade, four 4-pounder guns and 2 howitzers.

Against these Serbian forces came the Ottoman army from Niš, some 30,000 strong, attacking the Aleksinac position from the east and forcing it's way through the valley between Rujevica and Šumatovac hill, with nothing but small Šumatovac redoubt to stop them.

Battle

In the morning of August 11, three Serbian batalions of the First class (soldiers aged 20-35, armed with breachloading Peabody and Green rifles) and one artillery battery (8 field guns) attempted to take positions on the previously unoccupied Šumatovac hill, in order to reinforce the defence of Aleksinac from the east. Unbeknownst to the Serbian command, heavily forested Šumatovac hill was already occupied by the vanguard of the Ottoman army, and the battle begun at once. Serbian forces were quickly repulsed all the way to the Šumatovac redoubt, but the reservists in the redoubt stayed firm and repulsed the first Ottoman attack with canister shot and rifle fire. As they were armed with with Russian and Belgian muzzleloading rifles, half of the men were reloading, and the best marksmen fired the guns, enabling them to sustain constant and accurate fire, inflicting heavy casualties on the attackers. As the first Ottoman attack was repulsed, the retreating Serbian battalions dug in around the redoubt, and the Serbian artillery from Rujevica and nearby hills, some 40-50 cannon strong, supported the defenders from the western flank, breaking Ottoman formations and preventing them to take the Serbian position by storm. General Chernyayev was at the redoubt at the start of the battle, but left for Aleksinac after the first assault. Commander of the redoubt, captain Živan Protić, was killed in the first attack; after that, a reserve officer named Dimitrije Antonović Holštajn, a teacher and journalist by trade, volunteered to take the command for the rest of the battle. Three more Ottoman assaults were repulsed by the evening: concentrated fire of Serbian cannon and infantry kept the Ottoman forces at bay, stoping them each time about 100 m from the redoubt and preventing them from enetering into close combat, where their supperior numbers would certainly prevail.

Aftermath

The battle was won with relatively light casualties on the Serbian side: Serbs have lost 40 men in the redoubt and 200 outside (dead and wounded), while the Ottoman forces lost more than 1.000 men killed and unknown number of wounded.