Herzegovina; Or, Omer Pacha and the Christian RebelsArbuthnot, George
History
Herzegovina; Or, Omer Pacha and the Christian Rebels
Arbuthnot, George
Hercegovina (Bosnia and Hercegovina) -- History; Serbia
There is little to interest the traveller in this part of the
Herzegovina, unless it be the existence of clusters of old tombstones,
which occur very frequently throughout the province. About one hour
before reaching Stolatz, which was our destination, we came upon one of
those ancient cemeteries, which is well worthy of notice from the
mammoth proportions of the tombstones. These are, as is usually the
case, adorned with primitive sculptures of men clad in armour, horses,
and dogs, and decapitated heads; dates are seldom found, but the
character of the work and the frequent occurrence of the cross confirms
the supposition that they were erected previous to the Turkish conquest.
On our approach to Stolatz we were met by a deputation of the country
people, and by bands of children sent out to greet the arrival of him
who is regarded as the general pacificator. The anxiety displayed by
these to do homage by kissing his stirrup-iron when mounted, or the hem
of his trousers, was by no means appreciated by Omer Pacha, who
possesses very Europeanised views on these subjects. The enthusiasm with
which he was received, however, could not be mistaken, and forms an
important element in his prospects of a successful termination of the
affair. Outside the walls a battalion of regulars was drawn up, and
every here and there some detachments of irregular soldiers.
Stolatz is charmingly situated on both banks of a small stream, which
are covered with fig and olive trees, and at the northern extremity of
the ravine in which it is built is the old castle for which it is
famous. This was put into repair by the rebellious Ali Pacha, and was
the last position held by him before he was taken prisoner by Omer
Pacha. It is simply a rectangular enclosure, with square towers at
intervals in place of bastions, and would afford little security against
an army provided with artillery. In addition to the weakness of its
defences, it is so situated as to be formidable only to the town which
lies beneath it, since it is commanded by several points on the
surrounding hills, where batteries might be safely erected at short
ranges. On the towers and their connecting curtains are many old guns,
some mounted, and others lying as they have probably lain for centuries.
Some of these are of the time of Maria Theresa, and nearly all were
ornamented with inscriptions and designs. The custom of naming guns or
giving them mottoes is very ancient and widely spread. I remember seeing
a number of Sardinians grouped round a gun in Capua upon the day of its
surrender to the Garibaldian and Piedmontese forces. They appeared much
amused, and on enquiring the cause of their merriment, I found it to be
the result of their appreciation of the motto upon the gun, which ran as
follows:--'Ultima ratio regum.' (the last argument of kings), an
argument which at any rate told with little effect in the case of
Francis II., for the simple reason that it was introduced at the wrong
moment.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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