Despite Serbo-Montenegrin claims regarding the Vasojevići tribe and its alleged “Slavic” ancestry, this 1857 article from Laibacher Zeitung, citing a report from Kotor (Cattaro) by an English commissioner, shows that the Vasojevići, like other Albanian tribes of the period, recognized neither the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire nor Prince Danilo of Montenegro as sovereign.

Cited:

“Cattaro, October 2nd. Today an English commissioner arrived and went immediately to Cestinje (Cetinje). He comes from Constantinople and is the bearer of important documents for the English. The consul in Scutari and Prince Danilo, upon hearing that Halim Pasha of Scutari had decided to punish the Vasojevići tribe, who refused to recognize either the prince or the sultan as sovereign, and to invade the territory with 3,000 men, prompted the envoys of Austria and England to convene a conference. The Porte sent a friendly note requesting that conflict be avoided and a diplomatic settlement attempted.

The Porte agreed and immediately ordered Halim Pasha to resolve the dispute. However, it was already too late. The vanguard had requested passage into the fortress, and a bloody battle with the Vasojevići ensued. Prince Danilo sought a truce and sent an adjutant, Bucovic, a former Austrian officer, to the Pasha. This attempt also failed.

The invading Turks destroyed villages and fields, and the fighting continued. Senate President Mirko was arming himself with 500 Montenegrins at the border, while the English commissioner went immediately to the princely court camp. We expect more information from the Vasojevići hourly; perhaps it will still be possible to settle the bloody disputes through the efforts of the Christian powers.”

From the article:

Source

Laibacher Zeitung, 1857