Matija Zmajević
Матвей Христофорович Змаевич
Matija Zmajević, portrait by unknown painter[1]
Born(1680-01-06)January 6, 1680
Perast, Republic of Venice
DiedAugust 23, 1735(1735-08-23) (aged 55)
Tavrov, Voronezh, Tsardom of Russia
AllegianceRussia Tsardom of Russia
RankAdmiral
Bust of Matija Zmajević in Perast, Montenegro

Matija Zmajević (also Matej Zmajević; Russian: Матвей Христофорович Змаевич, romanized: Matvei Khristoforovich Zmayevich; ; January 6, 1680 – August 23, 1735) was an admiral of the Russian Baltic Fleet[2][3] and the shipbuilder of Tsar Peter the Great, building a fleet in Voronezh.

Early life

He was born in Perast in 1680[3][4] (at the time in Venetian Albania, now Montenegro). His uncle Andrija Zmajević, was an archbishop of Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bar and a poet.[5] He was also a primate of Serbia. The family was in conflict with the Bujović, another family from Perast. After Duke Vicko Bujović was killed, Matija left Perast as he was accused of being involved in his death.[2] He escaped to the Republic of Ragusa (Dubrovnik)[2] and then to Istanbul, where he found refuge with Russian ambassador Peter Tolstoy.[6] Zmajević had known Tolstoy since a 1698 training trip the latter took to Perast.[6][7] In 1712, Tolstoy sent him with a recommendation to Peter I.[7]

Military career

Impressed with Zmajević's education and maritime skills, the Tsar accepted him into military service and sent him to Sankt Petersburg, where he became commodore captain and further rose in rank.[6][8]

Zmajević had great success in maritime battles against Sweden, against whom Russia fought the Great Northern War for supremacy on Baltic Sea. In 1714, as head of the Tsar's Baltic fleet, he achieved a victory in the Battle of Gangut for which he received the war flag of the Russian fleet.[9] In 1719, he was promoted to rear admiral and his fleet won the last naval battle of the Great Northern War, forcing the Swedes to sign the Peace Treaty of Nystad.[8]

He was subsequently promoted to the rank of vice admiral and put in charge for building the river fleet of the Don.[8] In 1725, he was given the honor of carrying the emperor's crown at the funeral of Peter the Great. Tsar's successor, Catherine I of Russia, decorated Zmajević with the Order of Alexander Nevsky. In 1727, he was awarded the ultimate rank of admiral.[2]

After the death of Catherine I in 1727, Zmajević was accused of embezzlement and sentenced to death by a court-martial.[10] He was reprieved at the last minute and relegated to the post of governor of the Astrakhan area with the rank of vice-admiral, where he spent last years of his life.[8] He worked on establishment of the Black Sea Fleet,[6] which would play a significant role in Russian expansion to the south after his death.

Zmajević made numerous donations to his hometown Perast and Boka Kotorska. He was buried with military honors in the Catholic Church of Saint Ludvig in Moscow.[11]

Legacy

The Croatian Encyclopedia describes him as a 'Croatian sailor and Russian admiral'.[8] He was depicted on a Montenegrin stamp in 2012.[12]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Portret Matije Zmajevića, XVIII vijek – OJU Muzeji Kotor". muzejikotor.me. Retrieved 9 April 2022.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Longley, Norm (2009). The rough guide to Montenegro. New York : Rough Guides : Distributed by the Penguin Group. p. 56. ISBN 978-1-85828-771-3.
  3. 1 2 Roberts 2007, p. 139.
  4. ↑ Babić 2016, p. 300.
  5. ↑ Babić 2016, p. 288–289.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Babić 2016, p. 301.
  7. 1 2 "Portret Matije Zmajevića, XVIII vijek – OJU Muzeji Kotor". Muzeji Kotor. 17 May 2020. Retrieved 12 April 2022.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 "Zmajević, Matija". Croatian Encyclopedia (in Croatian). Miroslav Krleža Lexicographical Institute. Retrieved 5 April 2022.
  9. ↑ Structure Sociale Et Développement Culturel Des Villes Sud-est Européennes Et Adriatiques Aux XVIIe-XVIIIe Siècles: Actes Du Colloque Interdisciplinaire (in German). Association internationale d'études du Sud-Est européen. 1975. p. 35. Matija Zmajević aus Perasto, der als Chef der Baltischen Flotte Peters des Großen 1714 bei Gangut einen wichtigen Seesieg über die Schweden erkämpfte und dafür die Kriegsflagge der russischen Flotte..
  10. ↑ Branko Pavic (1968). "Admiral of the Baltic". Jugoslovenska revija. p. 14. ISSN 0034-6357. Born in 1680, Matija Zmajević came from a well-known Perast family of sea-farers.. By an Imperial decree of December, 1727, Zmajević was brought before the court, charged with neglect of duty and embezzlement of state property.. The Venetians had sentenced him to death for his part in the murder of Prince Vujović.
  11. ↑ Babić 2016, p. 302.
  12. ↑ Scott 2017 standard postage stamp catalogue. Sidney, OH : Amos Media. 2016. p. 1432. ISBN 978-0-89487-507-6.

Sources

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