Petar Nikolajević Moler (1775 – 1816) was a Serbian politician and revolutionary who served as prime minister of Serbia from 1815 to 1816. He participated in both the first and second uprising.

Biography

Petar Nikolajević was born in 1775. Moler was educated as a painter, known for his works in several monasteries in the pre-Uprising period, and thus earning his nickname, Moler (painter in Serbian). He was the first modern painter in Serbia. He was a nephew of Hadži-Ruvim, who was executed by the Dahije (renegade Janissaries) during the Slaughter of the knezes. In the First Serbian Uprising, Moler distinguished himself in battle near the village of Jelenča. During the uprising, he painted the church built by Karađorđe in Topola. During the defense of Loznica in 1813, because of a lack of ink, Moler wrote a letter with his blood to the leaders of the uprising. After the failure of the uprising, Moler fled to the Austrian Empire, but returned to Serbia at the start of the Second Serbian Uprising. He was President of the Serbian Government from 1815 to 1816. Moler and Bishop Melentije Simeonović Nikšić were among the first opposition leaders to Prince Miloš Obrenović, and as such were killed in 1816.