LJEŠEV STUP and its surroundings

 

       LJEŠEV STUP is a small village which belongs to the tribe Bjelice in Katunska districts. It is located about 800 meters above sea level, at the very foot of the mountain Lisac (1154 m). It is 27 km from Cetinje, 3.5 km from the Čevo, 30 km from the Danilovgrad, and 48 km from Nikšić (over Bijele Poljane).  Through the village passes time Cetinje-Čekanje-Čevo, which was built 1902. From Čevo this road branches to Nikšić and Danilovgrad.

 Lješev Stup was first mentioned in written sources in the Turkish Defter from the 1521. in which they say about Bjelice as a village of 80 houses and four hamlets (Lješev Stup, Prediš, Resna and Slatković). In Defter from 1523. was mentioned as a village of 5 houses, and Dr. Jovan Erdeljanović in 1910. counted 23 households. "In the village live two clans: Popivode (20 "Households") and Kuzman (3 "Households")"-wrote Erdeljanović.

There is few opinions about how its name was created,. In Njeguši also exists Lješev Stup, but as the name for the land, a small plot. Erdeljanović believes that the word stup (стьлпь ) undoubtedly old, meaning the smaller and, especially tricky possession, and Lješ that it was "very old personal name of Serbia," and adds: Hence the name Lješev Stup is a memory of some ancient figure, which belonged to the country.

Reinhold Trautmann, Germany scientist, says many toponyms in whose base is Lješ (Lešnica, Lešnevo, Lešane, Lešani) and are in Polablje (formerly Slavic Labe to a region of the Baltic Sea, in today's East Germany), which is taken as Montenegrins ancestral homeland. These names, which now read as Lješnica, Lješno, Lješani and so on, associated with names in Montenegro, as Lješanska districts, Lješkopolje, Lješev stup - which should mean that the old Slavic origin .

According to Dr. Radoslav Rotković, Slavic tribes that were moved from Polablje in our regions, adopted the "swarms of old toponyms, such as in America, created 5 Belgrade or Lovćenac in Vojvodina. Thus, according to theis author, among others can be recognized tribes: Rijeka (Rečanen) Cuce (Zuzen), Bjelice (Bielitz) and many others.

Professor Andrija Lainović, in whose article in the Encyclopedia of Yugoslavia, he done the family pedigree Crnojević (Đurašević) in which is a their member Lješ (Alex) Đurašević (Crnojević), who was mentioned with his brother Đurđe 1403-1431. "Crnojević (Đurašević) feudal family in Zeta.  It was first mentioned in 1331, and held possession in Katunska districts. – said Professor Lainović.

About this family and its member Lješ a lot data found Risto Kovijanić too, based on documents from the archives of Kotor. "Aleksa Lješ Đurašević occurs 1403, together with his brother Đurđe. Together they are mentioned in the Kotor Statute (p. 315), the Venetian Senate's decision of 8. of March 1420. In the ruins of the monastery on the island Kom among Zabljak and Vranjina (on Skadar Lake, prim. VP) was found grave of Lješ Crnojević... with no inscription marks the year. Ljubomir Stojanović dated the caption "around 1420" (Notes and inscriptions, I). It would be more accurate to put around the 1425. because it is the tomb Aleksa - Lješ Đurašević - Crnojević... It is not known whether Lješ had a offspring, "- tells Kovijanić.

There is no doubt that Lješ Crnojević is historical figure from the aforementioned period, and since Crnojević "kept possession in Katunska districts," it is possible that Lješev Stup was named after Lješ, as the former landlord of land in the area. This does not mean that the residents of the settlement of his descendants, but data indicate that it is very likely that the Lješ was present there as the landlord of the country. And by the folk tradition that still lives here, this name is associated with a feudal to possess the family Crnojević, and it also can mean confirmation of Erdeljanović allegations that the name Lješev Stup "their ancient memories of a personality, which belonged to the country".

Reducing consideration of origin and meaning of these words (Lješ and Stup), with a lot of security, we can conclude that the name originated as Lješev Stup name for the land (column) that once belonged to the landlord Lješ - probably Lješ Crnojević.

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Lješev Stup area (with Kosača, highland in the hinterland) covers the area of about 7.66 square kilometres, out of which approximately 9.30 hectares of fields, around 1.75 meadows, about 51 pastures, about 440 forests  and no productive land about 264 hectares of land. From that komunica - common good of the village - covers the area of approximately 2,20 hectares.

The land is hilly, with many rocks, and rare woods. East side of the village is rich deciduous forest, which is "tame worse": hornbeam, ash, oak, dub, kun, while in the Jelinice and Kosača predominates beech. Large forest fires, which in 1981. spread on Lješev Stup side of Lisac, ruined the best part of the forest, and will take nature many years to return to original appearance of Lisac. Back 15-20 years began intensive cutting the forest in Lisac, its foot and surrounding forests in the area of village.  Modern chainsaws so rarefied it, and although it is still faster restores, since almost no more of its enemies-goats, the forest is growing smaller.  It is now used only for fuel. Woods from Jelinice to Kosača  is still preserved, because it is far from the road, and its use for now is not worth it.

Behind the Lisac, in Kosača are the best pastures and hayfields, but as the extinct animals, and the suburbs and forests wins over hayfields, its not far the day when they will "disappear" too.

In the central part of the village is the main body of land, which consists of several valleys, grouped on the narrow space (Slatkov do, tMedov do, Duboki do, Grgurov do, Stankov do). Around, as well as in Kosača, there is a lot more valleys and depressions, which were treated before mass emigration. The land is mostly fertile soil "buavica", and well born, but it asks for a lot of moisture and soil. The ground is limestone, porous, and the whole area of the village there is no one "live" spring water.

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 Old Montenegro had four district: Katunska, Riječka, Crmničku and Lješanska. More than half of entire Old Montenegrin territory is Katunska district. Today, the territory has not changed, though not pose any separate administrative unit, but its name remained to live with tradition.  

Katunska districts, as a territory, consists of nine tribes: Cetinje, Njeguši, Ćeklići, Bjelice, Cuce (Velje and Male), Ozrinići (Čevo) Pješivci (Upper and Lower), Zagarač (Upper and Lower) and Komani (Komani in the narrow sense and Bandići).

According to some authors, it was named after the former katun zetas cattle breeders. Milisav Lutovac Doctor says Katunska districts mean really rolling sea, and that the invasion of the Turks, became a permanent refuge, not only of cattle breeders but also people from Herzegovina, Bosnia, Raska, Hills and other parts of Montenegro. It also states that the time of settlement, there were two layers of the population-migrants to the end of the fifteenth century, mainly from Zeta, and later whose ancestors came during the sixteenth and seventeenth century. "Katunska district, the stone fortress in which the refuge population from various parts, was the last stronghold of the remains of medieval Nemanjic state. From there they fought continuous against the Turkish invaders to create Montenegrin state." said .- Lutovac. About the origins of the tribes from Katunska district, Risto Kovijanić said:" Based on data from Kotor archive can be concluded: that the Montenegrin tribes of Katunska district did not come from the Katun, but from rural villages.  

Rocky and the poor nature of Montenegro, in which highlights the Katunska district, was interesting for all foreign visitors. French intellectual Henry Delaire, secretary of Prince Danilo of the 1856 to 1859. wrote very picturesque about Montenegro: "Seen from Lovcen, Montenegro resembles a petrified choppy sea... According to legend, God, creating the world and scheduling the plains and mountains on the earth, was carrying the sack with stones. Since long use of the bag it rip out and stones made a huge pile later called Montenegro. Of course, this legend was created as a joke, but it, as funny and picturesque, shows a look of rocky and barren nature of the Katunska district, or Old Montenegro.

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Bjelice as a territory for the first time was mentioned 1430. according to data from Konstantin Jirček ("de Zenta Bielize"). At the same time it was mentioned in the monuments of Kotor, 1431 (Bielice). In the Turkish Defter from 1521. it is mentioned as a village with 80 houses and four hamlets (Lješev Stup, Prediš, Resna and Slatković). According to some old legends, the first residents who moved to Bjelica were from the vicinity of Gacko, the place Čarađe,  and the origin of Lješevostupac is linked to them too.

 Bjelice are located at the heart of Katunska district, surrounded the other tribes, at the South East side borders a small part with the Rijeka and Lješanska districts. Its divided  to the Upper and Lower Bjelice. This division has only orientation character, and Upper Bjelice houses to the villages: Resna (Dub), Ublice, Dide, Prediš, Pejovici, Malošin Do and Lješev Stup, and villages of Lower Bjelica are Tomici and Mikulici. In the age of Old Montenegro Bjelice  were kapetnija, and between the two World Wars, a separate municipality, as well as one time after the Second World War. Today, it is part of office of Čevo, Municipality of Cetinje, and Mikulici are administratively attached to Local office of Đinovići. Čevo and Bjelice  today make one local community.

Long time ago Bjelice had their winter houses in the Rijeka district. They used to bring cattle to the Skadar Lake, in the seventeenth century they possessed Ceklinska and Dobroska parish, almost all the way to Zabljak on Lake Skadar. Because of that they had conflicts with Ceklinjani, who after heavy fighting push them out at the first decades of the eighteenth century.