Voivod
Encyclopedia
Voivode is a Slavic
title that originally denoted the principal commander of a military force. The word gradually came to denote the governor
of a province
. The territory ruled or administered by a voivode is known as a voivodeship
. In the English language, the title is often translated as "prince
" or "duke
". In Slavic terminology, the rank of a voivode is considered equal of that of a German Herzog. Today in Poland
the term Wojewoda means the centrally-appointed governor
of a Polish province or voivodeship
. The Polish title is sometimes rendered in English as "palatine" or "prince palatine
", in charge of a palatinate.
The title was used in medieval Bulgaria
, Bohemia
, Bosnia
, Croatia
, Greece
, Transylvania
, Rugen
, Lusatia
, Poland
, Muscovy
(later Tsardom of Russia
), Serbia
, Moldavia
, Wallachia
, Halych
, Volhynia
, Novgorod Republic
, Chernigov, and Kiev. Later, voivode was the highest military rank in the principalities of Montenegro
and Serbia
, and in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
. In the Romania
n medieval principalities of Moldavia
and Wallachia
, voievode became part of the official titulature
of the sovereign prince, showing his right to lead the entire army. Voivode or vajda was also the title of the Hungarian governors of Transylvania
in the Middle Ages. Under the Ottoman Empire
the leaders of Bulgaria
's Haiduti (Хайдути) rebels were called "voevodes" (Bulgarian
, singular: войвода, voyvoda).
. The word has developed to take various forms in the modern Slavic languages
, such as wojewoda (Polish
), воевода (voyevoda, Russian), войвода or воевода (voyvoda, voevoda), Bulgarian
, воєвода (voyevoda, Ukrainian
), vévoda (Czech
) and војвода or vojvoda (Croatian
, Serbian
, Slovak
, Slovene and Macedonian
). It has also been borrowed into some non-Slavic languages, taking such forms as voievod (Romanian
), vajda (Hungarian
) and vaivads (Latvian
).
This etymology is perfectly parallel, though unrelated, to that of equivalent Germanic titles and terms like the Old English heretoga and the German Herzog, which in feudal times was equated with the Latin
dux
(originally a term for either a barbaric war leader or a Roman commanding officer and/or military governor, which later evolved into such feudal and modern titles of peerage rank as duke
). For this reason, the Slavic terms are sometimes translated as duke. However, although in some countries and periods the rank of voivode was equivalent to a Western duke, it was not universally so.
The tradition of electing a voivode is very old and dates back to the times of the early Slavs. Each tribe gathered at a veche
(congregation) to elect its own voivode. In war, he was entitled to lead the army. When the war was over, the power reverted back to the legitimate peacetime ruler — be it the veche
or a prince.
By the end of 8th century, the Slavic tribes established the first organised states in Central
and Eastern Europe
. The new situation demanded a more flexible command over the state, especially during the conflicts with Turkic, Baltic and German peoples. At that time, the power of the voivode was in most cases extended to include civil command and, in some instances, to religious authority. The chiefs of the tribes, prince
s and hospodar
s, delegated part of their authority to lower-ranking voivodes, while retaining the title of highest voivode and the positions of high priest
and supreme judge
.
With the creation of permanent Slavic states in Kievan Rus, in Bohemia and Poland
, the highest authority was passed to duke
s and prince
s. In Kievan Rus, these came from the Varangian nobles (Rurik Dynasty
), while in Bohemia (Přemyslids) and Poland (Piast Dynasty
) they were of local origin. The basis of the power of a prince was his band of warriors or druzhina
. Initially a small group of professional soldiers, the druzhina grew in order to control the vast areas under authority of the prince. In time, the need to split the army into several units became clear and the commander of such a unit was called prince's voivode.
The highest ranking of such voivodes formed the princes' courts, while others commanded the troops in distant towns and served as advisors to the prince's delegates. In medieval Russia
voyevoda was the governor of a border fortress or town. The rank was abolished by Peter the Great
in the mid-18th century.
, is the governor of a voivodeship
. Each voivodeship also has an elected assembly, called a sejmik
, and an executive board
elected by that assembly, headed by an official called the marszałek meaning marshal. For a summary of the respective competences of these authorities, see Voivodeships of Poland
.
The office was created in the Kingdom of Poland under the Piast dynasty
in 960 AD, and from the Crown of the Polish Kingdom
spread to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
after 1569, as an overseer of a voivodeship and its administration. In time, the office lost some of its importance — from "second after the ruler" to just one of several dozen important officials. In the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
, a voivode
was one of the officials
entitled to sit in the Senate of Poland
.
(woyuoda Transsiluanus or erdélyi vajda in Hungarian) was one of the barons (or chief office holders) of the Kingdom of Hungary
.
The vajda was, in effect, a territorial governor or viceroy appointed by the Hungarian crown. He was also the chief magistrate and military commander of Transylvania's counties, and this power inevitably drew the Székely and Saxon territories into his sphere of influence however these territories were governed by counts who were nominally independent of the voivode.
The title originated with the Slavic population, prior to the Hungarian conquest of the region. The Transylvanian voivodes, who were closely affiliated with the king, were often far from Transylvania, and local administration frequently fell into the hands of the vice-voivodes. However, some voivodes, such as László Kán (1297–1315), became powerful local rulers, effectively independent of the king. The Lackovic
family formed a voivodal dynasty which ruled in Transylvania in 1344–1350 and 1356–1376. The title was in use from 1167 until the Principality of Transylvania emerged in the 16th century.
In Moldavia
and Wallachia
, voievod meant the same thing as domn (lord), which was the supreme administrative leader - a term stemming from the Latin
word dominus, meaning lord or master. Both titles (and the associate offices) went by default to the ruling prince, which - as a sovereign ruler - had all land in allodium and was the chief commander of the army.
The voievod title was kept in its initial form by the Wallachian (Romanian) nobility of Ţara Haţegului
and Maramureş
(In Transylvania), where the title of voievod, together with the princely cneaz
title, had the meaning of noble or local ruler, but also leader of local armies or militias.
The last person in current-day Romania to bear the voivode title is Michael I of Romania
. Between 1930 and 1940 he had the formal title of "The Grand Voivode of Alba Iulia
", a reference to prince Michael the Brave (1593–1601).
). The title has a close similarities with the Markgrave of the Holy Roman Empire
, meaning the ruler of border territories (see Mark). The title of voyevoda became more regular from about 1550 and was divided between Regimental and City Voyevoda. Voyevoda (singular) was appointed by the Tsar's Prikaz
and confirmed by the Boyar Duma (the advisory state institution to tsar
) for the length of two to three years.
At first that position was assigned to the administrators of border territories and was similar to the later Russian Governorate-General. As the territory of the Russian State expanded the position was somewhat degraded for the territories that drifted away from the international borders. The voyevodas filled a power vacuum left by the Time of Troubles
. The early Romanov
s (1613–82) gave all their judicial and police powers to the voyevodas in an attempt to reform them, but problems remained, as their powers became too broad and invited corruption. In 1621, the voyevodas were forbidden by Tsar
Michael to take bribes as this had become a problem. Despite this, the administration remained chaotic until Peter the Great's reforms replaced the voyevodas with Burgmesters (Burgomasters, after the German) to collect the taxes.
From about 1550, a Russian Voyevoda was an official with both civil and military powers. He was originally a military commander but on the frontier, civil and military could not easily be separated. The first peace-time voyevoda (in place of the older urban Namestnik and rural Volost
el) was probably that of Murom
in 1547 facing the Kasimov Khanate. As Russian frontier expanded, by the 1570s and 80s voyevodas appeared at Kazan, Astrakhan, Kaprivna, Rylsk, Arkhangelsk, Voronezh and other places.
Since the earliest Russian entry, Siberia was administered by voyevodas. They were appointed to each significant town by the special Siberian Prikaz
usually for a term of two years. Towns and voyevodas were grouped into razryads under a principal town. Originally this was Tobolsk
for the whole of Siberia. Tomsk
was split off in 1627, Yakutsk
in 1638 and Yeniseisk was separated from Tomsk in 1676 or 1677. Verkhoturye
, which was the chief Siberian customhouse, was its own razryad from 1687 to 1693.
). The term golova (without the pismenny) appears in English sources with an uncertain meaning. A prikazshchik was a sort of sub-voyevoda who was given special powers.
Increasingly, there were Dyaks
, a sort of high clerk who supplemented a voyevoda in administrative affiars. Valid documents had to be countersigned by the Dyak. This collective administration was designed to prevent corruption. Below the Dyak was the Podyachy
or underclerk. These were often local men who might hold office for decades.
Financial affairs were managed by tselovalniks or sworn-men and kept somewhat separate to reduce corruption.
During the Middle Ages, the Vojvoda was a military commander rank and a noble titule.
In 1691, the Serbs
who lived in the Habsburg Monarchy
(now Vojvodina
province in northern Serbia
) gained from the Habsburg emperor the right to territorial autonomy within one separate voivodeship
in the Habsburg Monarchy, as well as right to be ruled by a Serb voivode - a civil and military administrator. However, the voivodeship was not formed at that time, nor was a voivode appointed, only a vice-voivode. Jovan Monasterlija
was the vice-viovode of the Serbs between 1691 and 1706. After him, no other vice-voivodes were appointed. At the May Assembly in Sremski Karlovci
(May 13–15, 1848), recalling the privilege from 1691, the Serbs proclaimed the creation of the Serbian Vojvodina
and elected Stevan Šupljikac
as voivode. These actions were later recognized by the Austrian emperor, and Šupljikac was recognized as a voivode. By a decision of the Austrian emperor, in November 1849, a new province was formed as the political successor of the Serbian voivodeship. It was known as the Serbian Voivodship and Tamiš Banat. The new voivodeship existed between 1849 and 1860 and the title of great voivode (Grosswojwod) belonged to Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria
himself, though it was ruled by an appointed governor. After the voivodeship was abolished in 1860, Franz Joseph I kept the title of great voivode of the Voivodship of Serbia until his death in 1916. His successor, Karl I of Austria
, also retained the title until the end of the monarchy in 1918.
The title was often used to designate important military commanders in the Serbian Uprising
against the Turks 1804-1815.
In the Balkan Wars
and World War I this title was used to designate the highest military rank in Serbian Army (above the General - as equalent of Field Marshal in other armies). Only five people ever officially held that military rank: Radomir Putnik
(got it in 1913), Stepa Stepanović
(1914), Živojin Mišić
(1914), Petar Bojović
(1918) and the French General Louis Franchet d'Espérey (1918). It was only an honorary rank since in 1916–1917 General Petar Bojović held the position of Chief of Staff of the Supreme Command (the highest military position in the Serbian Army) and was a superior to two army commanders who were vojvodas (Stepa Stepanović and Živojin Mišić). In the same period the Serbian paramilitary organisation Chetniks
used the title internally to designate its top commanders - Vojin Popović
, Voja Tankosić and Kosta Pećanac
being the prime examples. It was used in this manner again by the Chetniks in the Second World War.
's Dracula
(Chapter 3), as Count Dracula recounts his genealogy to Jonathon Harker, he claims that the voivode who "crossed the Danube and beat the Turk on his own ground" was a Dracula. In Chapter 18, Van Helsing
speculates that this was Count Dracula himself.
Among Russians, there are at least three significant works involving voivodes.
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
title that originally denoted the principal commander of a military force. The word gradually came to denote the governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of a province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
. The territory ruled or administered by a voivode is known as a voivodeship
Voivodeship
Voivodship is a term denoting the position of, or more commonly the area administered by, a voivod. Voivodeships have existed since medieval times in Poland, Romania, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Russia and Serbia....
. In the English language, the title is often translated as "prince
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
" or "duke
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
". In Slavic terminology, the rank of a voivode is considered equal of that of a German Herzog. Today in Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
the term Wojewoda means the centrally-appointed governor
Governor
A governor is a governing official, usually the executive of a non-sovereign level of government, ranking under the head of state...
of a Polish province or voivodeship
Voivodeships of Poland
The voivodeship, or province, called in Polish województwo , has been a high-level administrative subdivision of Poland since the 14th century....
. The Polish title is sometimes rendered in English as "palatine" or "prince palatine
Prince Palatine
Prince Palatine was a British Thoroughbred racehorse. He was named for County Palatine of Lancaster near where his breeder William Hall Walker had been raised....
", in charge of a palatinate.
The title was used in medieval Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
, Bosnia
Bosnia (region)
Bosnia is a eponomous region of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It lies mainly in the Dinaric Alps, ranging to the southern borders of the Pannonian plain, with the rivers Sava and Drina marking its northern and eastern borders. The other eponomous region, the southern, other half of the country is...
, Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
, Rugen
Rügen
Rügen is Germany's largest island. Located in the Baltic Sea, it is part of the Vorpommern-Rügen district of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern.- Geography :Rügen is located off the north-eastern coast of Germany in the Baltic Sea...
, Lusatia
Lusatia
Lusatia is a historical region in Central Europe. It stretches from the Bóbr and Kwisa rivers in the east to the Elbe valley in the west, today located within the German states of Saxony and Brandenburg as well as in the Lower Silesian and Lubusz voivodeships of western Poland...
, Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Muscovy
Grand Duchy of Moscow
The Grand Duchy of Moscow or Grand Principality of Moscow, also known in English simply as Muscovy , was a late medieval Rus' principality centered on Moscow, and the predecessor state of the early modern Tsardom of Russia....
(later Tsardom of Russia
Tsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia was the name of the centralized Russian state from Ivan IV's assumption of the title of Tsar in 1547 till Peter the Great's foundation of the Russian Empire in 1721.From 1550 to 1700, Russia grew 35,000 km2 a year...
), 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...
, Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
, Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
, Halych
Halych
Halych is a historic city on the Dniester River in western Ukraine. The town gave its name to the historic province and kingdom of Kingdom of Galicia–Volhynia, of which it was the capital until the early 14th century, when the seat of the local princes was moved to Lviv...
, Volhynia
Volhynia
Volhynia, Volynia, or Volyn is a historic region in western Ukraine located between the rivers Prypiat and Southern Bug River, to the north of Galicia and Podolia; the region is named for the former city of Volyn or Velyn, said to have been located on the Southern Bug River, whose name may come...
, Novgorod Republic
Novgorod Republic
The Novgorod Republic was a large medieval Russian state which stretched from the Baltic Sea to the Ural Mountains between the 12th and 15th centuries, centred on the city of Novgorod...
, Chernigov, and Kiev. Later, voivode was the highest military rank in the principalities of 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...
and 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...
, and in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia
Kingdom of Yugoslavia
The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a state stretching from the Western Balkans to Central Europe which existed during the often-tumultuous interwar era of 1918–1941...
. In the Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n medieval principalities of Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
and Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
, voievode became part of the official titulature
Title
A title is a prefix or suffix added to someone's name to signify either veneration, an official position or a professional or academic qualification. In some languages, titles may even be inserted between a first and last name...
of the sovereign prince, showing his right to lead the entire army. Voivode or vajda was also the title of the Hungarian governors of Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
in the Middle Ages. Under the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
the leaders of Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
's Haiduti (Хайдути) rebels were called "voevodes" (Bulgarian
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
, singular: войвода, voyvoda).
Etymology
The term derives from Slavic voi or voj (war-man) + vodi (to lead), and thus originally meant war leader or warlordWarlord
A warlord is a person with power who has both military and civil control over a subnational area due to armed forces loyal to the warlord and not to a central authority. The term can also mean one who espouses the ideal that war is necessary, and has the means and authority to engage in war...
. The word has developed to take various forms in the modern Slavic languages
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
, such as wojewoda (Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
), воевода (voyevoda, Russian), войвода or воевода (voyvoda, voevoda), Bulgarian
Bulgarian language
Bulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
, воєвода (voyevoda, Ukrainian
Ukrainian language
Ukrainian is a language of the East Slavic subgroup of the Slavic languages. It is the official state language of Ukraine. Written Ukrainian uses a variant of the Cyrillic alphabet....
), vévoda (Czech
Czech language
Czech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
) and војвода or vojvoda (Croatian
Croatian language
Croatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...
, 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....
, Slovak
Slovak language
Slovak , is an Indo-European language that belongs to the West Slavic languages .Slovak is the official language of Slovakia, where it is spoken by 5 million people...
, Slovene and Macedonian
Macedonian language
Macedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
). It has also been borrowed into some non-Slavic languages, taking such forms as voievod (Romanian
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
), vajda (Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
) and vaivads (Latvian
Latvian language
Latvian is the official state language of Latvia. It is also sometimes referred to as Lettish. There are about 1.4 million native Latvian speakers in Latvia and about 150,000 abroad. The Latvian language has a relatively large number of non-native speakers, atypical for a small language...
).
This etymology is perfectly parallel, though unrelated, to that of equivalent Germanic titles and terms like the Old English heretoga and the German Herzog, which in feudal times was equated with the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
dux
Dux
Dux is Latin for leader and later for Duke and its variant forms ....
(originally a term for either a barbaric war leader or a Roman commanding officer and/or military governor, which later evolved into such feudal and modern titles of peerage rank as duke
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
). For this reason, the Slavic terms are sometimes translated as duke. However, although in some countries and periods the rank of voivode was equivalent to a Western duke, it was not universally so.
History
Veche
Veche was a popular assembly in medieval Slavic countries.In Novgorod, where the veche acquired the greatest prominence, the veche was broadly similar to the Norse thing or the Swiss Landsgemeinde.-Etymology:...
(congregation) to elect its own voivode. In war, he was entitled to lead the army. When the war was over, the power reverted back to the legitimate peacetime ruler — be it the veche
Veche
Veche was a popular assembly in medieval Slavic countries.In Novgorod, where the veche acquired the greatest prominence, the veche was broadly similar to the Norse thing or the Swiss Landsgemeinde.-Etymology:...
or a prince.
By the end of 8th century, the Slavic tribes established the first organised states in Central
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
and Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe
Eastern Europe is the eastern part of Europe. The term has widely disparate geopolitical, geographical, cultural and socioeconomic readings, which makes it highly context-dependent and even volatile, and there are "almost as many definitions of Eastern Europe as there are scholars of the region"...
. The new situation demanded a more flexible command over the state, especially during the conflicts with Turkic, Baltic and German peoples. At that time, the power of the voivode was in most cases extended to include civil command and, in some instances, to religious authority. The chiefs of the tribes, prince
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
s and hospodar
Hospodar
Hospodar or gospodar is a term of Slavonic origin, meaning "lord" or "master".The rulers of Wallachia and Moldavia were styled hospodars in Slavic writings from the 15th century to 1866. Hospodar was used in addition to the title voivod...
s, delegated part of their authority to lower-ranking voivodes, while retaining the title of highest voivode and the positions of high 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...
and supreme judge
Judge
A judge is a person who presides over court proceedings, either alone or as part of a panel of judges. The powers, functions, method of appointment, discipline, and training of judges vary widely across different jurisdictions. The judge is supposed to conduct the trial impartially and in an open...
.
With the creation of permanent Slavic states in Kievan Rus, in Bohemia and Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, the highest authority was passed to duke
Duke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
s and prince
Prince
Prince is a general term for a ruler, monarch or member of a monarch's or former monarch's family, and is a hereditary title in the nobility of some European states. The feminine equivalent is a princess...
s. In Kievan Rus, these came from the Varangian nobles (Rurik Dynasty
Rurik Dynasty
The Rurik dynasty or Rurikids was a dynasty founded by the Varangian prince Rurik, who established himself in Novgorod around the year 862 AD...
), while in Bohemia (Přemyslids) and Poland (Piast Dynasty
Piast dynasty
The Piast dynasty was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. It began with the semi-legendary Piast Kołodziej . The first historical ruler was Duke Mieszko I . The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of king Casimir the Great...
) they were of local origin. The basis of the power of a prince was his band of warriors or druzhina
Druzhina
Druzhina, Drużyna or Družyna in the medieval history of Slavic Europe was a retinue in service of a chieftain, also called knyaz. The name is derived from the Slavic word drug with the meaning of "companion, friend". -Early Rus:...
. Initially a small group of professional soldiers, the druzhina grew in order to control the vast areas under authority of the prince. In time, the need to split the army into several units became clear and the commander of such a unit was called prince's voivode.
The highest ranking of such voivodes formed the princes' courts, while others commanded the troops in distant towns and served as advisors to the prince's delegates. In medieval Russia
Tsardom of Russia
The Tsardom of Russia was the name of the centralized Russian state from Ivan IV's assumption of the title of Tsar in 1547 till Peter the Great's foundation of the Russian Empire in 1721.From 1550 to 1700, Russia grew 35,000 km2 a year...
voyevoda was the governor of a border fortress or town. The rank was abolished by Peter the Great
Peter I of Russia
Peter the Great, Peter I or Pyotr Alexeyevich Romanov Dates indicated by the letters "O.S." are Old Style. All other dates in this article are New Style. ruled the Tsardom of Russia and later the Russian Empire from until his death, jointly ruling before 1696 with his half-brother, Ivan V...
in the mid-18th century.
Poland
In modern Poland, a voivode (wojewoda), appointed by the central government in WarsawWarsaw
Warsaw is the capital and largest city of Poland. It is located on the Vistula River, roughly from the Baltic Sea and from the Carpathian Mountains. Its population in 2010 was estimated at 1,716,855 residents with a greater metropolitan area of 2,631,902 residents, making Warsaw the 10th most...
, is the governor of a voivodeship
Voivodeships of Poland
The voivodeship, or province, called in Polish województwo , has been a high-level administrative subdivision of Poland since the 14th century....
. Each voivodeship also has an elected assembly, called a sejmik
Voivodeship sejmik
A voivodeship sejmik is a provincial-level elected assembly for each of the 16 voivodeships of Poland. Sejmiks are elected to four-year terms, decided during nationwide local elections...
, and an executive board
Voivodeship executive board
Voivodeship executive board is regional executive body of voivodeship's local self-government in Poland. Executive board consists of five members elected by regional assemblies. Executive board is chaired by the voivodeship marshal ....
elected by that assembly, headed by an official called the marszałek meaning marshal. For a summary of the respective competences of these authorities, see Voivodeships of Poland
Voivodeships of Poland
The voivodeship, or province, called in Polish województwo , has been a high-level administrative subdivision of Poland since the 14th century....
.
The office was created in the Kingdom of Poland under the Piast dynasty
Kingdom of Poland (1025–1138)
The Kingdom of Poland was the Polish state from the coronation of the first King Bolesław I the Brave in 1025 to the union with Lithuania and the rule of the Jagiellon dynasty in 1385.-Early Kingdom:The basis for the development of a Polish state was laid by the Piast, which were preeminent since...
in 960 AD, and from the Crown of the Polish Kingdom
Crown of the Polish Kingdom
The Crown of the Kingdom of Poland , or simply the Crown , is the name for the unit of administrative division, the territories under direct administration of Polish nobility from middle-ages to late 18th century...
spread to the Grand Duchy of Lithuania
Grand Duchy of Lithuania
The Grand Duchy of Lithuania was a European state from the 12th /13th century until 1569 and then as a constituent part of Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth until 1791 when Constitution of May 3, 1791 abolished it in favor of unitary state. It was founded by the Lithuanians, one of the polytheistic...
after 1569, as an overseer of a voivodeship and its administration. In time, the office lost some of its importance — from "second after the ruler" to just one of several dozen important officials. In the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
The Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth was a dualistic state of Poland and Lithuania ruled by a common monarch. It was the largest and one of the most populous countries of 16th- and 17th‑century Europe with some and a multi-ethnic population of 11 million at its peak in the early 17th century...
, a voivode
Voivodes of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
Voivodes of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth were one of the highest ranking officials who could sit in the Senate of Poland. They were the officials in charge of the voivodeships of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth. The office first appears as Palatine who was the first person after the King...
was one of the officials
Offices in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
This article discusses the organizational and administrative structure of the Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthThe Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth This article discusses the organizational and administrative structure of the Polish-Lithuanian CommonwealthThe Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth This article...
entitled to sit in the Senate of Poland
Senate of Poland
The Senate is the upper house of the Polish parliament, the lower house being the 'Sejm'. The history of the Polish Senate is rich in tradition and stretches back over 500 years, it was one of the first constituent bodies of a bicameral parliament in Europe and existed without hiatus until the...
.
Hungary
The Voivode of TransylvaniaTransylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
(woyuoda Transsiluanus or erdélyi vajda in Hungarian) was one of the barons (or chief office holders) of the Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
.
The vajda was, in effect, a territorial governor or viceroy appointed by the Hungarian crown. He was also the chief magistrate and military commander of Transylvania's counties, and this power inevitably drew the Székely and Saxon territories into his sphere of influence however these territories were governed by counts who were nominally independent of the voivode.
The title originated with the Slavic population, prior to the Hungarian conquest of the region. The Transylvanian voivodes, who were closely affiliated with the king, were often far from Transylvania, and local administration frequently fell into the hands of the vice-voivodes. However, some voivodes, such as László Kán (1297–1315), became powerful local rulers, effectively independent of the king. The Lackovic
Lackovic
The Laczkovich family is a noble family from Hungary and Croatia, which ruled Transylvania in the 14th century. The Laczkovich were the wealthiest family in 14th century Hungary, owning much of what is today Northern Croatia, Eastern Slovenia, and Western Hungary...
family formed a voivodal dynasty which ruled in Transylvania in 1344–1350 and 1356–1376. The title was in use from 1167 until the Principality of Transylvania emerged in the 16th century.
Moldavia and Wallachia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
and Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
, voievod meant the same thing as domn (lord), which was the supreme administrative leader - a term stemming from the Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
word dominus, meaning lord or master. Both titles (and the associate offices) went by default to the ruling prince, which - as a sovereign ruler - had all land in allodium and was the chief commander of the army.
The voievod title was kept in its initial form by the Wallachian (Romanian) nobility of Ţara Haţegului
Hateg
Hațeg is a town in Hunedoara County, Romania with a population of 12,507. Three villages are administered by the town: Nălațvad, Silvașu de Jos and Silvașu de Sus.Țara Hațegului is the region around Hațeg town...
and Maramureş
Maramures
Maramureș may refer to the following:*Maramureș, a geographical, historical, and ethno-cultural region in present-day Romania and Ukraine, that occupies the Maramureș Depression and Maramureș Mountains, a mountain range in North East Carpathians...
(In Transylvania), where the title of voievod, together with the princely cneaz
Knyaz
Kniaz, knyaz or knez is a Slavic title found in most Slavic languages, denoting a royal nobility rank. It is usually translated into English as either Prince or less commonly as Duke....
title, had the meaning of noble or local ruler, but also leader of local armies or militias.
The last person in current-day Romania to bear the voivode title is Michael I of Romania
Michael I of Romania
Michael was the last King of Romania. He reigned from 20 July 1927 to 8 June 1930, and again from 6 September 1940 until 30 December 1947 when he was forced, by the Communist Party of Romania , to abdicate to the Soviet armies of occupation...
. Between 1930 and 1940 he had the formal title of "The Grand Voivode of Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania with a population of 66,747, located on the Mureş River. Since the High Middle Ages, the city has been the seat of Transylvania's Roman Catholic diocese. Between 1541 and 1690 it was the capital of the Principality of Transylvania...
", a reference to prince Michael the Brave (1593–1601).
Russia
Voyevodas in Russia were the appointed administrators responsible for the regional administration, initially in charge of some military unit that defended the region (usually uyezdUyezd
Uyezd or uezd was an administrative subdivision of Rus', Muscovy, Russian Empire, and the early Russian SFSR which was in use from the 13th century. Uyezds for most of the history in Russia were a secondary-level of administrative division...
). The title has a close similarities with the Markgrave of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
, meaning the ruler of border territories (see Mark). The title of voyevoda became more regular from about 1550 and was divided between Regimental and City Voyevoda. Voyevoda (singular) was appointed by the Tsar's Prikaz
Prikaz
Prikaz was an administrative or judicial office in Muscovy and Russia of 15th-18th centuries. The term is usually translated as "ministry", "office" or "department". In modern Russian "prikaz" means administrative or military order...
and confirmed by the Boyar Duma (the advisory state institution to tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
) for the length of two to three years.
At first that position was assigned to the administrators of border territories and was similar to the later Russian Governorate-General. As the territory of the Russian State expanded the position was somewhat degraded for the territories that drifted away from the international borders. The voyevodas filled a power vacuum left by the Time of Troubles
Time of Troubles
The Time of Troubles was a period of Russian history comprising the years of interregnum between the death of the last Russian Tsar of the Rurik Dynasty, Feodor Ivanovich, in 1598, and the establishment of the Romanov Dynasty in 1613. In 1601-1603, Russia suffered a famine that killed one-third...
. The early Romanov
Romanov
The House of Romanov was the second and last imperial dynasty to rule over Russia, reigning from 1613 until the February Revolution abolished the crown in 1917...
s (1613–82) gave all their judicial and police powers to the voyevodas in an attempt to reform them, but problems remained, as their powers became too broad and invited corruption. In 1621, the voyevodas were forbidden by Tsar
Tsar
Tsar is a title used to designate certain European Slavic monarchs or supreme rulers. As a system of government in the Tsardom of Russia and Russian Empire, it is known as Tsarist autocracy, or Tsarism...
Michael to take bribes as this had become a problem. Despite this, the administration remained chaotic until Peter the Great's reforms replaced the voyevodas with Burgmesters (Burgomasters, after the German) to collect the taxes.
From about 1550, a Russian Voyevoda was an official with both civil and military powers. He was originally a military commander but on the frontier, civil and military could not easily be separated. The first peace-time voyevoda (in place of the older urban Namestnik and rural Volost
Volost
Volost was a traditional administrative subdivision in Eastern Europe.In earlier East Slavic history, volost was a name for the territory ruled by the knyaz, a principality; either as an absolute ruler or with varying degree of autonomy from the Velikiy Knyaz...
el) was probably that of Murom
Murom
Murom is a historic city in Vladimir Oblast, Russia, which sprawls along the left bank of Oka River. Population: -History:In the 9th century CE, the city marked the easternmost settlement of the Eastern Slavs in the land of the Finno-Ugric people called Muromians. The Russian Primary Chronicle...
in 1547 facing the Kasimov Khanate. As Russian frontier expanded, by the 1570s and 80s voyevodas appeared at Kazan, Astrakhan, Kaprivna, Rylsk, Arkhangelsk, Voronezh and other places.
Since the earliest Russian entry, Siberia was administered by voyevodas. They were appointed to each significant town by the special Siberian Prikaz
Prikaz
Prikaz was an administrative or judicial office in Muscovy and Russia of 15th-18th centuries. The term is usually translated as "ministry", "office" or "department". In modern Russian "prikaz" means administrative or military order...
usually for a term of two years. Towns and voyevodas were grouped into razryads under a principal town. Originally this was Tobolsk
Tobolsk
Tobolsk is a town in Tyumen Oblast, Russia, located at the confluence of the Tobol and Irtysh Rivers. It is a historic capital of Siberia. Population: -History:...
for the whole of Siberia. Tomsk
Tomsk
Tomsk is a city and the administrative center of Tomsk Oblast, Russia, located on the Tom River. One of the oldest towns in Siberia, Tomsk celebrated its 400th anniversary in 2004...
was split off in 1627, Yakutsk
Yakutsk
With a subarctic climate , Yakutsk is the coldest city, though not the coldest inhabited place, on Earth. Average monthly temperatures range from in July to in January. The coldest temperatures ever recorded on the planet outside Antarctica occurred in the basin of the Yana River to the northeast...
in 1638 and Yeniseisk was separated from Tomsk in 1676 or 1677. Verkhoturye
Verkhoturye
Verkhoturye is a historic town and the administrative center of Verkhotursky District of Sverdlovsk Oblast, Russia, located in the middle Ural Mountains on the left bank of the Tura River north of Yekaterinburg. Population: 7,815 Verkhoturye is a historic town and the administrative center of...
, which was the chief Siberian customhouse, was its own razryad from 1687 to 1693.
Voyevoda's Administration
A voyevoda would sometimes have an assistant voyevoda or a pismenny golova ("writing head" or scribeScribe
A scribe is a person who writes books or documents by hand as a profession and helps the city keep track of its records. The profession, previously found in all literate cultures in some form, lost most of its importance and status with the advent of printing...
). The term golova (without the pismenny) appears in English sources with an uncertain meaning. A prikazshchik was a sort of sub-voyevoda who was given special powers.
Increasingly, there were Dyaks
Dyak (clerk)
Dyak is a historical Russian bureaucratic occupation whose meaning varied over time and approximately corresponded to the notions of "chief clerk" or "chief of office department"....
, a sort of high clerk who supplemented a voyevoda in administrative affiars. Valid documents had to be countersigned by the Dyak. This collective administration was designed to prevent corruption. Below the Dyak was the Podyachy
Podyachy
A Podyachy or podyachiy was an office occupation in prikazes and lesser local offices of Russia in 15th-18th centuries....
or underclerk. These were often local men who might hold office for decades.
Financial affairs were managed by tselovalniks or sworn-men and kept somewhat separate to reduce corruption.
Serbia
In 1691, 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...
who lived in the Habsburg Monarchy
Habsburg Monarchy
The Habsburg Monarchy covered the territories ruled by the junior Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg , and then by the successor House of Habsburg-Lorraine , between 1526 and 1867/1918. The Imperial capital was Vienna, except from 1583 to 1611, when it was moved to Prague...
(now Vojvodina
Vojvodina
Vojvodina, officially called Autonomous Province of Vojvodina is an autonomous province of Serbia. Its capital and largest city is Novi Sad...
province in northern 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...
) gained from the Habsburg emperor the right to territorial autonomy within one separate voivodeship
Voivodeship
Voivodship is a term denoting the position of, or more commonly the area administered by, a voivod. Voivodeships have existed since medieval times in Poland, Romania, Hungary, Lithuania, Latvia, Russia and Serbia....
in the Habsburg Monarchy, as well as right to be ruled by a Serb voivode - a civil and military administrator. However, the voivodeship was not formed at that time, nor was a voivode appointed, only a vice-voivode. Jovan Monasterlija
Jovan Monasterlija
Jovan Monasterlija was a 17th-century Serbian vice-voivode and Austrian imperial officer that led a Serb army against the Ottoman Empire and other enemies of the Austrian Emperor...
was the vice-viovode of the Serbs between 1691 and 1706. After him, no other vice-voivodes were appointed. At the May Assembly in Sremski Karlovci
Sremski Karlovci
Sremski Karlovci is a town and municipality in Serbia, in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, situated on the bank of the river Danube, 8 km from Novi Sad...
(May 13–15, 1848), recalling the privilege from 1691, the Serbs proclaimed the creation of the Serbian Vojvodina
Serbian Vojvodina
The Serbian Vojvodina was a Serbian autonomous region within the Austrian Empire...
and elected Stevan Šupljikac
Stevan Šupljikac
Stevan Šupljikac, known simply as Vojvoda Šupljikac was a voivode and the first Duke of the Serbian Vojvodina, in 1848.-Life:...
as voivode. These actions were later recognized by the Austrian emperor, and Šupljikac was recognized as a voivode. By a decision of the Austrian emperor, in November 1849, a new province was formed as the political successor of the Serbian voivodeship. It was known as the Serbian Voivodship and Tamiš Banat. The new voivodeship existed between 1849 and 1860 and the title of great voivode (Grosswojwod) belonged to Emperor Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I of Austria
Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I was Emperor of Austria, King of Bohemia, King of Croatia, Apostolic King of Hungary, King of Galicia and Lodomeria and Grand Duke of Cracow from 1848 until his death in 1916.In the December of 1848, Emperor Ferdinand I of Austria abdicated the throne as part of...
himself, though it was ruled by an appointed governor. After the voivodeship was abolished in 1860, Franz Joseph I kept the title of great voivode of the Voivodship of Serbia until his death in 1916. His successor, Karl I of Austria
Karl I of Austria
Charles I of Austria or Charles IV of Hungary was the last ruler of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. He was the last Emperor of Austria, the last King of Hungary, the last King of Bohemia and Croatia and the last King of Galicia and Lodomeria and the last monarch of the House of Habsburg-Lorraine...
, also retained the title until the end of the monarchy in 1918.
The title was often used to designate important military commanders in the Serbian Uprising
Serbian Uprising
Serbian Uprising can refer to:*Serbian revolution, including:** First Serbian Uprising** Second Serbian Uprising* Banat uprising 1594...
against the Turks 1804-1815.
In the Balkan Wars
Balkan Wars
The Balkan Wars were two conflicts that took place in the Balkans in south-eastern Europe in 1912 and 1913.By the early 20th century, Montenegro, Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia, the countries of the Balkan League, had achieved their independence from the Ottoman Empire, but large parts of their ethnic...
and World War I this title was used to designate the highest military rank in Serbian Army (above the General - as equalent of Field Marshal in other armies). Only five people ever officially held that military rank: Radomir Putnik
Radomir Putnik
Radomir Putnik, also known as Vojvoda Putnik, OSS OCT OKS GCMG was a Serbian Field Marshal and Chief of General Staff in the Balkan Wars and World War I, and took part in all wars that Serbia waged from 1876 to 1917.-Biography:...
(got it in 1913), Stepa Stepanović
Stepa Stepanovic
Stepa Stepanović OSS OCT GCMG was a field marshal of the Serbian Army who distinguished himself in Serbia's wars from 1876 to 1918.Stepa Stepanović was born in the village of Kumodraž outside of Belgrade on...
(1914), Živojin Mišić
Živojin Mišic
Živojin Mišić OKS GCMG was a Vojvoda and the most successful Serbian commander who participated in all Serbia's wars from 1876 to 1918.-Early years:Misic's grandfather was born in Struganik near Mionica...
(1914), Petar Bojović
Petar Bojovic
Petar Bojović OKS GCMG was one of four Serbian vojvodas in Balkan Wars and World War I.-Early:Petar was born on July 16, 1858 in Miševići, Nova Varoš. He had distant ancestry from the Vasojevići....
(1918) and the French General Louis Franchet d'Espérey (1918). It was only an honorary rank since in 1916–1917 General Petar Bojović held the position of Chief of Staff of the Supreme Command (the highest military position in the Serbian Army) and was a superior to two army commanders who were vojvodas (Stepa Stepanović and Živojin Mišić). In the same period the Serbian paramilitary organisation Chetniks
Chetniks
Chetniks, or the Chetnik movement , were Serbian nationalist and royalist paramilitary organizations from the first half of the 20th century. The Chetniks were formed as a Serbian resistance against the Ottoman Empire in 1904, and participated in the Balkan Wars, World War I, and World War II...
used the title internally to designate its top commanders - Vojin Popović
Vojin Popović
Vojin Popović, known as Vojvoda Vuk , known as Vojvoda Vuk was a Serbian voivode , that fought for the Macedonian Serb Chetniks Vojin Popović, known as Vojvoda Vuk (Sjenica, 9 December 1881 - Kajmakčalan, 29 November 1916), known as Vojvoda Vuk was a Serbian voivode (military commander), that...
, Voja Tankosić and Kosta Pećanac
Kosta Pecanac
Kosta Milovanović Pećanac was a Chetnik voivoda during the Second World War.-Origin:Kosta Milovanović was born in 1879, the exact date is not known as his military paper only has the year of birth. His father was a guardian of the Visoki Dečani monastery. His parents both died during an attack by...
being the prime examples. It was used in this manner again by the Chetniks in the Second World War.
Voivodes in popular culture
In Bram StokerBram Stoker
Abraham "Bram" Stoker was an Irish novelist and short story writer, best known today for his 1897 Gothic novel Dracula...
's Dracula
Dracula
Dracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker.Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor...
(Chapter 3), as Count Dracula recounts his genealogy to Jonathon Harker, he claims that the voivode who "crossed the Danube and beat the Turk on his own ground" was a Dracula. In Chapter 18, Van Helsing
Van Helsing
Van Helsing is a 2004 American action horror film directed by Stephen Sommers. It stars Hugh Jackman as vigilante monster hunter Gabriel Van Helsing, and Kate Beckinsale...
speculates that this was Count Dracula himself.
Among Russians, there are at least three significant works involving voivodes.
- TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich TchaikovskyPyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky (Russian: Пётр Ильи́ч Чайко́вский ; often "Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky" in English. His names are also transliterated "Piotr" or "Petr"; "Ilitsch", "Il'ich" or "Illyich"; and "Tschaikowski", "Tschaikowsky", "Chajkovskij"...
's first opera, Voyevoda, Op.3, was based on Alexander Ostrovsky's play. - Tchaikovsky's later orchestral work, the symphonic ballad The VoyevodaThe Voyevoda (symphonic ballad)The Voyevoda, Op. 78, is a "symphonic ballad" for orchestra, written by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky in 1891. It is based on Alexander Pushkin's translation of Adam Mickiewicz's poem of that name....
, Op.78, was based on Alexander Pushkin's translation of Adam MickiewiczAdam MickiewiczAdam Bernard Mickiewicz ) was a Polish poet, publisher and political writer of the Romantic period. One of the primary representatives of the Polish Romanticism era, a national poet of Poland, he is seen as one of Poland's Three Bards and the greatest poet in all of Polish literature...
's poem. It has the same name as the opera but is otherwise unrelated to it. Anton ArenskyAnton ArenskyAnton Stepanovich Arensky -Biography:Arensky was born in Novgorod, Russia. He was musically precocious and had composed a number of songs and piano pieces by the age of nine...
later produced his own operatic adaptation of the play as A Dream on the Volga. - Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai Rimsky-KorsakovNikolai Andreyevich Rimsky-Korsakov was a Russian composer, and a member of the group of composers known as The Five.The Five, also known as The Mighty Handful or The Mighty Coterie, refers to a circle of composers who met in Saint Petersburg, Russia, in the years 1856–1870: Mily Balakirev , César...
's differently-sourced opera Pan WojewodaPan VoyevodaPan Voyevoda , is an opera by Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov. It is based on a libretto by Ilya Tyumenev. The work was completed in 1903, was first performed in October 1904, and has proved to be one of Rimsky-Korsakov's least-successful works...
, while composed to a Russian text, is set in Poland. - In Metal Gear Solid 3: Snake EaterMetal Gear Solid 3: Snake Eateris an award-winning stealth action video game directed by Hideo Kojima. Snake Eater was developed by Konami Computer Entertainment Japan and published by Konami for the PlayStation 2, and was released on November 17, 2004 in North America; December 16, 2004 in Japan; March 4, 2005 in Europe; and on...
, The Boss is referred to once as Voyevoda by President JohnsonPresident JohnsonPresident Johnson may refer to one of the following Presidents of the United States:*Andrew Johnson, 17th President of the United States, 1865-1869*Lyndon B. Johnson, 36th President of the United States, 1963-1969...
.