Serbian Militia
| Serbian Militia | |
|---|---|
| Active | 1686–1704 |
| Country |
 Habsburg Monarchy
|
| Type | Cavalry and Infantry |
| Size | up to 10,000 |
| Nickname(s) | Hayduks, Husars, Rascian Militia, Monasterlija's Serbs |
| Engagements | |
| Commanders | |
| Notable commanders |
|
The Serbian Militia (Latin: Rascianica militia;Serbian: Српска Милиција or Srpska Milicija) was a military unit of the Habsburg-Austrian army consisting of Serbs, that existed in ca. 1686 — 1704.
After allied Christian forces had captured Buda from the Ottoman Empire in 1686 during the Great Turkish War, Serbs from Pannonian Plain (present-day Hungary, Slavonia region in present-day Croatia, Bačka and Banat regions in present-day Serbia) joined the troops of the Habsburg Monarchy as separate units known as Serbian Militia. Serbs, as volunteers, massively joined the Austrian side.
In the first half of 1688 the Habsburg army together with units of Serbian Militia captured Gyula, Lipova and Ineu from the Ottoman Empire. After Belgrade had been liberated from the Ottomans in 1688, Serbs from the territories in the south of Sava and Danube rivers began to join Serbian Militia units. One of the first commanders of the Serbian Militia during the Great Turkish War was Antonije Znorić. In the period 1689—1691, one of the commanders of Serbian Militia units in Banat was Novak Petrović.
The Ottoman Empire had suffered partial military collapse against the Austrians in the 1680s, most notably at the Battle of Vienna in 1683, and the loss of Belgrade to Maximilian II of Bavaria in 1688 and Bosnia in 1689. However, with the beginning of the Nine Years War in the west, the early 1690s saw an end to Habsburg conquests in the Balkans and a partial Ottoman recovery. Despite the Ottoman recovery and the weakening of the Habsburg military presence on the Danube (most Habsburg soldiers were sent to fight against the France in the War of the Grand Alliance) the Habsburg supreme command planned offensive activities against Ottomans, heavily relying on the Serb soldiers of Serbian Militia and Serb rebels in the Balkans. In 1689 Louis William was appointed as chief commander of the Imperial army in its invasion of the territory of present-day Serbia. Before the invasion Louis William recruited Serb rebels all over territory of present-day Serbia, whose infantry units were called hayduks while cavalry units of Serb rebels were called Serb husars.
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