Nikola Rašić

Kole Rašić
Kole Rašic with his awards for achievements
Birth name	Nikola Rašić
Nickname(s)	Kole
Born	ca. 1839 Niš, Ottoman Empire
Died	August 6, 1898 Niš, Principality of Serbia
Buried at	Old cemetery in Niš
Allegiance	Principality of Serbia
Service/branch	Volunteers
Years of service	1876–1878
Rank	vojvoda
Battles/wars	Serbo-Turkish War (1876–78)
Awards	Takovo Cross
Memorials	Niš
Spouse(s)	Jelena, a Greek woman from Plovdiv

Nikola Rašić (Serbian Cyrillic: Никола Рашић; ca. 1839 – August 6, 1898), known as Kole Rašić (Коле Рашић) was a Serb revolutionary and guerilla fighter, who led a cheta of 300 men between Niš and Leskovac in Ottoman areas during the Serbo-Turkish War (1876–78). He later became a politician in liberated Niš. He was a merchant by profession, who on his trip to Russia met with Miloš Obrenović and decided to stay in Niš to prepare a future liberation with the help of the Serbian Army. Rašić was one of the founders and organizers of the Niš Committee, established in 1874, with the goal of liberating the Niš Sanjak. His unit joined general Mikhail Chernyayev in 1876.

Rašić was born in Niş (Niš), part of the Sanjak of Niš, Ottoman Empire (modern Serbia), in ca. 1839. He is said to have been lively by nature and combative. A merchant by profession, he had good connections in the Principality of Serbia and Niš Eyalet. In 1858 he entered Serbia, with the intent to go to Russia, however, the dynastical change made him change his mind. While at Negotin, he heard that Miloš Obrenović would arrive, so he waited for him, and then the two spoke. Rašić, as a respectable Niš citizen, was now sent secretly by the Obrenović government to instigate revolt in the Niš area and beyond against the Ottomans. The planned operation was not implemented in 1860. It proved a long process, and Kole Rašić sought, from then on, the liberation of Niš and then the other regions under Ottoman rule.

On February 24, 1874, the "Serbian Liberation Committee for the Sanjak of Niš", known simply as the Niš Committee, was founded and organized by Kole Rašić, Todor Milovanović, Dimitrije Đorđević, Milan Novičić, Tasko Tasa Uzunović, Đorđe Pop Manić, Mihajlo Božidarac, and Todor Stanković. They gathered at Božidarac's house, and Orthodox priest Petar Ikonomović swore Oath on the Christian cross and Gospel, reminiscent of the Orašac Assembly (1804). The Niš Committee's plan was a systematic action, through local uprisings weaken the Ottomans, and with gradual arming of the people help liberate the region. Rašić was declared vojvoda. In the Ottomans' eyes, Rašić posed no threat, as he seemed to like drinking and women. However, when the Ottomans thought he was active in the han, he was around in the villages and spoke to the people about the definite liberation that they had waited for centuries. Vojvoda Kole had been sent throughout Dobrič (Donji Milanovac), Toplica and Zaplanje (where Stanko Čavdar and Srndak had revolted, before him). In 1875, the Herzegovina Uprising broke out, giving hope to the people of the Sanjak of Niš. The Ottomans saw through Rašić's real activity, and on June 25, 1875, Kole Rašić and other notable exposed Niš people crossed the border and escaped death, while further action was continued in Niš by other conspirators far less prominent.