Monument to Vojvoda Vuk
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| Coordinates | 44°49′00″N 20°27′18″E / 44.81677°N 20.45495°ECoordinates: 44°49′00″N 20°27′18″E / 44.81677°N 20.45495°E |
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| Location | Belgrade, Serbia |
| Designer | Đorđe Jovanović |
| Material | Bronze, sandstone |
| Height | 6 metres (20 ft) |
| Opening date | 23 October 1936 |
| Dedicated to | Vojin Popović |
Monument to Vojvoda Vuk is situated in Belgrade in the park in Тоpličin Venac . The author of the sculpture from 1922 is the sculptor Đorđe Jovanović. The monument was not placed until 1936.
The mortal remains of Vojvoda Vuk, Vojin Popović, were transferred to Belgrade from Serbian Military Cemetery Zeitenlik near Thessaloniki, on 30 September 1923. After a memorial service held in the Orthodox Cathedral and a farewell speech delivered from the balcony of the National Theatre, the funeral procession attended the coffin through central streets of Belgrade to the Vojvoda’s final resting place in Novo groblje (New Cemetery).
When he was a little boy, Vojin Popović, fleeing the Ottoman rule of terror, left his hometown of Sjenica and settled in Kragujevac, where he attended school. After graduating from the Military Academy in Belgrade in 1903 with the rank of infantry second lieutenant, Vojin Popović chose to join the chetnik organisation in 1905 and, in 1911, the secret organisation "Unification or Death" (Black Hand). He fought against the Ottomans in Мacedonia and Old Serbia in the period between 1905-1912 (battles at Čelopek, Кumanovo, Prilep, Bitola, the bank of the Vardar and against the Bulgarians on the river Bregalnica in 1913. He won military renown in the First World War battles of the Drina, the Коlubara and, especially Cer , and was decorated with the Order of the Кarađorđe Star 4th and 3rd Class. He was promoted to the rank of infantry lieutenant colonel of the Serbian Army and, despite his reputation of a strict and unbendable officer, he enjoyed limitless trust. He was remembered above all as the most exemplary chetnik leader (vojvoda) because of his exceptionally courageous and inspirational military leadership. His units provided security for Crown Prince Aleksandar Karađorđević during the withdrawal across Аlbania which ensued after the heavy losses Serbia suffered in 1915. He ended his tireless and constant freedom fighting in the most difficult section of the Salonika Front in the First World War, as the commander of the Volunteer Detachment engaged in the battle with Bulgarians over the strategic peak of Mt Nidža, Kajmakčalan, to which his closest fellow combatants bore witness. He was wounded at Grunište vis in the River Crna area, but went on pursuing the enemy. However, on 29 November 1916, at the final stage of the battle, a bullet went through his heart.
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