Njegoš spent his early years in Njeguši shepherding his father's flock, playing the "gusle" (a traditional one-stringed instrument) and attending family and church celebrations where stories of battles and past suffering were told. His education was rudimentary; he was taught how to read and write by monks at the Cetinje Monastery when he was twelve years old, studied Italian at the Savina Monastery for a year and spent eighteen months at the Topla Monastery near Herceg Novi, learning Russian and French under the tuition of reverend Josif Tropović. In October 1827, the young Njegoš was taken under the tutelage of the poet and playwright Sima Milutinović (nicknamed "Sarajlija"), who had come to Montenegro to serve as the official secretary of Njegoš's uncle, "vladika" Petar I. A Sarajevan Serb, Milutinović introduced Njegoš to poetry and inspired him to write down Serb folk tales which had been passed down orally through the centuries. An unconventional mentor, he also taught Njegoš sports, shooting and sword-fighting.