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Starina Novak (Старинa Новак; ; , meaning "Old Novak") was a Serb hajduk (brigandage and rebellion) who distinguished himself in many battles against the Ottoman Empire. He is considered a national hero by both the Serbs and the Romanians.
The oldest mention of Novak is from 1595, when he was mentioned in the forces of prince Michael the Brave. Novak joined the forces of Michael in the region of Banat, and received the rank of captain with 2,000 Serbian hajduks (brigands) under his command, set to liberate the Wallachian lands. His forces participated in the seizure of Călugăreni, and liberated Târgoviște, Bucharest, and Giurgiu in October 1595. His forces were part of the attack on Sofia which earned him great reputation after he and his 700 soldiers tricked the Turks by changing route through the Balkan mountains and successfully surprise-attacked the Turkish forces only leaving behind 8 of his soldiers and capturing vast amounts of livestock and supplies from the Ottomans. He liberated Pleven with 1,500 soldiers.
In 1598, his sizable forces, composed primarily of Serbs but also some Bulgarians, met the remaining forces of Michael the Brave, amounting to a total of 16,000 armed men. They liberated Plevna, Oryahovo, Vratsa, Vidin, and Florentin, after which the Serbs and Bulgarians of those cities gathered with his forces and had a feast. In 1599, a force of 50,000+ men under the command of Bordj Mako gathered with the forces of Novak in Ploiești, in a square with 5-6 rows in the center, before capturing Sibiu. In 1600 his forces were deployed in Banat; he was then instructed to liberate all lands to the south, also part of the uprisings in Mirăslău and nearby towns. Novak followed Michael to Vienna in December 1600.
He was falsely accused of wanting to hand over the fortresses of Lugoj and Karánsebes to the Turks, but his intention was unveiled in time. For this Novak was accused of treason by ally-turned-rival Giorgio Basta and was sent to the Hungarian authorities in Cluj-Napoca (Kolozsvár), sentenced to burning. The execution took place on 5 February 1601. Romani people prepared the fire that would be the end of Novak, two of Michael's captains, Joan Celeste and Savi Armašulu, and some Saxon priests. After being burnt alive for 1 to 5 hours (water was tossed at the bodies for a slower death), the bodies were Impalement and crows were eating from the corpses. Michael was unaware of the execution and heard of it when passing through Cluj in early August 1601; he raised a flag on the site of the execution. Giorgio Basta then ordered the assassination of Michael, which took place near Câmpia Turzii on 9 August 1601.
The song Baba Novak by the Romanian band Phoenix is about him.
In Serbia, a section of Belgrade's neighborhood of Palilula is dedicated to Starina Novak. Features bearing his name include the street, a local community (sub-municipal administrative unit), an elementary school founded in 1922, and a park. The area occupied by the park today was named Starina Novak Square until 1954. In October 2017, the city's administration announced that a monument to Starina Novak will be erected in the park.
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