Nadežda Petrović, another name for humanism
Authors: Pavlović Ljiljana , Dacić Slavica , Boričić Katarina 
Published: October 2022

Nadežda Petrović belongs to the constellation of masterful human beings who are the pride of their national histories, dominating their era and radiating above and beyond it, surpassing both their immediate environment and the age they live in. These persons are instrumental in the development and growth of their people, tracing the path to be followed in their work, to catch up to future times and other cultures. A member of this constellation of extraordinary persons, Nadežda Petrović has overcome the boundaries of time, historical development, humanist ideas and local culture in her short, prematurely ended life. Superior, self-confident and tenacious, she had an unusual intelligence that was able to perceive the entire vast expanse of the world. With her love for her people, she rushed to illuminate and broaden the views of her contemporaries and clear the path for future generations with her vision, her ideals and her sacrifice. Patriotism was the deepest of Nadežda's passions. At the time of Balkan wars, Nadežda recognised her desire and her capability to help her homeland as her mission in life, staying true to her positions from 1903 and annexation crisis of 1908. She went where the situation was the direst, she worked and helped on the front lines, because her fighting spirit would not let her stay in the rear. As a volunteer nurse, Nadežda followed the soldiers from battlefield to battlefield, suffering all types of weather without complaint. She would walk and she would ride, her hospital or ambulance reaching all the places she was needed. She also dressed the wounds of captured enemy soldiers. The wounded and the sick blessed her, doctors praised and admired her. The work was too hard and in tending to others, caught in a typhoid outbreak, Nadežda fell ill and recovered slowly. The beginning of World War I was yet another summons for Nadežda, to put down her paintbrush and continue with her humanitarian work. She immediately reported to the High Command to get her marching orders. Many women tended to the wounded, but only a few were accepted into the real military medical service by the Surgeon General of the High Command. Nadežda Petrović was one of them. She was assigned to the field hospital of the Danube division. In letters written during this time, Nadežda's words are impressive, touching in their profound honesty of experiencing human helplessness in the face of the tragedy of mass deaths. Soldiers knew Nadežda from the moments that transcended the strength of ordinary humans. She was highly appreciated, her courage and self-sacrifice earned her great respect. During the periods of cease-fire, after the victory of the Serbian army in the battles of Cer and Kolubara, at the beginning of 1915, Nadežda went to Skopje where her family was located. Already in February that year, Nadežda resumed her war duties. The High Command offered her a choice of several proposed positions, and told her that she didn't have to go back to Valjevo. Without a second thought, she picked the most difficult post - her hospital in Valjevo. Following the battle of Suvobor near Valjevo, an outbreak of spotted typhus fever claimed the lives of soldiers, civilians, doctors and medics in terrifying numbers. Nadežda arrived to Valjevo from a field hospital as aid sent to the small medical team. At the end of March, Nadežda was infected with typhoid. When the infection finally caught up to her, she was completely exhausted: she would only be a patient in the Valjevo hospital for a week. Volunteer nurse of the 1st Reserve Hospital in Valjevo, Nadežda Petrović, died on 3 April 1915.