Gavrilo Rodić

Who was Gavrilo Rodić?

Gavrilo or Gabriel Rodić, Freiherr von Rodich, was a Croatian general in the Austrian Empire and later the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

Rodić was born in Vrginmost raised as a devout Serbian Orthodox believer, but did not express a Serb nationality and instead devoted his life to service in the Austrian imperial army, like many others in their day.

He began his military career at the age of 14 when he was accepted into the cadet company at Graz. By 1847 he had achieved the rank of captain-lieutenant. The following year he was made a member of the Croatian ban Josip Jelačić's cabinet during the 1848 Revolutions. When the army of Croatia-Slavonia crossed the Drava to retake Međimurje, Rodić was appointed assistant to the ban's adjutant general. He later participated in fighting in Hungary. For his service during these years he received the title of Ritter in the Austrian court.

By 1859 Rodić was promoted to general-major. He was made brigade commander at Dubrovnik and later Kotor. He remained in Dalmatia until 1862. Afterwards he saw action against both Italian and Prussian forces. In the 1866 Austro-Prussian War, he was made an attached Feldmarschall-Lieutenant in the Army of the South in Italy. He commanded the V Corps in the Battle of Custoza, and after this victory he was officially promoted to the rank of Feldmarschall-Lieutenant and awarded the Knight's Cross of the Military Order of Maria Theresia.