the lion of the russian army - Florida State University

impartial commission to supervise the situation in Serbia. 34 The Serbs also approached
Alexander with an offer to place Serbia under the Russian administration. They pledged
to submit to the Russian orders and fight the Turks. 35
Bagration met with the Serbian delegates in early January 1810 at Girsov, where
they delivered another petition to Alexander with similar terms. 36 In response to these
appeals, Bagration pledged to station the Russian troops in Belgrade and provide military
support against any Turkish incursion. He ignored the petition to introduce Russian
administration because he had no instructions in this respect. He urged the Serbs to
actively participate in the joint operations against the Porte and prepare supplies for the
oncoming campaign. Bagration supplied the Serbian forces with 300 puds (9,200 pounds)
of gunpowder and promised more ammunition in the near future. 37 Bagration was well
aware of Karadjordje’s attempts to approach Napoleon and Francis I of Austria and
criticized him for seeking foreign aid. He was also concerned by the peace offer of
Hurshid Pasha, Turkish governor of Rumelia. As part of this agreement, Hurshid Pasha
wanted to deploy 4,000-5,000 men at Belgrade to assure peace in the region. 38
Karadjordje promised to consider this offer with the member of the national council. The
discussion of the Turkish proposal led to a division among the Serbs, with one group
demanding to continue the fight until independence was achieved, while other preferred
228.
34 Dubrovin, “Materials for the History of Reign of Alexander,” Voennii sbornik, 2 (1865):
35 Rodofinikin to Bagration, 12 December 1809; Bagration to Rumyantsev, 10 January 1810,
Bagration’s letter had two annexes. Annex “A,” as Bagration designated it, included a letter of
Archimandrite Melentje and Milan Obrenovic, dated on 14 December 1809; annex “B” contained
a letter of 1 January 1810 with appeals for more ammunition. VPR, V, 313, 343-44, 686;
Arsenijevic-Batalaka, Istorija Prvog Srpskog Ustanka, 726-27, 731-33; Djordjevic, Politiçka
istorija Srbije, 273.
36 Serbian National Council to Alexander, 2 January 1810, Voennii sbornik, 2 (1865): 230-31.
There was one major change in the points. The Serbs understood the complications of introducing
the Russian administration in Serbia and now asked for discussion of Serbia’s status during the
peace negotiations with the Porte.
37 Bagration to Rodofinikin, 18 December 1809, VPR, V, 684.
38 Hurshid Pasha to Karadjordje, 21 November 1809, Voennii sbornik, 2 (1865): 261-62.
572