Battle of Marina 

You might find odd the fact that in the first part of the story about Battle of Marina I chose a lady to tell the story, but for the locals in Marina (Bossiglina at the time), Katarina (Kate) Despotova is a real hero. Something like Joan of Arc for the French. It is somewhat a brutal story, but it has to be told.

A Story of brave women of Bossoglina

June 26^th 1657.

My name is Katarina Despotova, I am a young widow from Bossiglina. My husband was killed by the Ottomans along with many other brave men of our village. There are few of us left alive now and this is a day when a woman cannot act as one.  That is why I am, along with thirty other woman, wearing mens clothes, a sabre and acting like a man.

Our fortress has been under siege for days now. We are hungry and filthy and tired. There are screams, blood and death at every corner. I have no time for tears, but some do run down my cheeks as I see them breaking into the Tower full of women and children. And then, a huge blast! My brave friend and companion Jele Marunova, a young girl dedicated to God, blew three barrels of gun powder and sent all the souls from the fortress to heaven. Some to God, some to Allah; none survived.

I am not afraid, I am not sad, I am not horrified. I was born to be at this place at this time. I have lived this short life to fight this battle and avenge my beloved husband. I was born to kill six Ottoman soldiers with a sabre before being captured.

I have the pleasure of seeing the shame in Ahmed-pasha’s eyes while he takes our hats off and realizes that his soldiers were fighting and being killed by the woman of my village. I have the pleasure to see them scared as they  take  us to slavery in Bosnia. A small group of women, heavily guarded by men armed with guns and sabres. 

They’ve made us slaves and no one will ever know our end. But you can bet that a woman form Bossiglina knows how to make an exit. And it never is a quiet one ;)