Banat uprising 1594

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The Serb uprising in Banat in 1594 was one of the three largest uprisings in the Serbian history and the largest one before First Serbian Uprising lead by Karađorđe.

The Serbs in the Banat region (Then part of the Ottoman Eyalet of Temeşvar) started in 1594 a large uprising against Ottoman rule. Centre of this uprising was area around Vršac, and its leader was Teodor Nestorović, the bishop of Vršac. Two other leaders of the uprising were Sava ban and voivod Velja Mironić.

For a short time, the Serb rebels captured several cities in Banat, including Vršac, Bečkerek, and Lipova, as well as Titel and Bečej in Bačka. The size of this uprising is illustrated by the verse from one Serbian national song: "Sva se butum zemlja pobunila, Šest stotina podiglo se sela, Svak na cara pušku podigao!" ("The whole land has rebelled, a six hundred villages arose, everybody pointed his gun against the emperor").

The Serb rebels beared a flags with the image of Saint Sava, thus the rebellion had a character of a holy war. The Sinan-paša that lead the Ottoman army ordered that green flag of Muhammad should be brought from Damascus to confront this flag to the Serbian flag with Saint Sava image. Furthermore, the Sinan-paša also burned the mortal remains of Saint Sava in Belgrade, as a revenge to the Serbs.

Eventually, the Serb uprising was crushed and most of the Serbs from the region escaped to Transylvania fearing the Ottoman retaliation. However, since Banat region became deserted after this, which did not conformed to the Ottoman authorities who needed population in this fertile land, the authorities promised mercy to everybody who come back. The Serb population came back, but the mercy did not applied to the leader of the rebellion, bishop Teodor Nestorović, whose skin was striped as a punishment.