Serbian States After The Dissolution of The Serbian Empire: PDF Generated At: Thu, 03 Mar 2011 14:37:40 UTC

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SERBIAN STATES AFTER
THE DISSOLUTION OF THE
SERBIAN EMPIRE
Contents
Articles
Moravian Serbia 1
Lazar of Serbia 4
Stefan Lazarevi 9
District of Brankovi 12
Vuk Brankovi 14
ura Brankovi 17
Lazar Brankovi 21
Stefan Brankovi 24
Principality of Zeta 27
Bala I of Zeta 35
ura I Bali 36
Bala II 39
ura II 40
Bala III 46
Stefan I Crnojevi 47
Ivan I Crnojevi 49
ura Crnojevi 51
Kingdom of Prilep 52
Prince Marko 54
Despotate of Velbazhd 69
Jovan Draga 70
Constantine Draga 71
Simeon Uro 73
John Uro 75
Thomas II Preljubovi 76
Maria Angelina Doukaina Palaiologina 78
Serbian Despotate 80
References
Article Sources and Contributors 86
Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors 88
Article Licenses
License 90
Moravian Serbia
1
Moravian Serbia

Moravian Serbia

13711403

Coat of arms
Moravian Serbia
Capital Kruevac
Language(s) Serbian
Religion Serbian Orthodox Church
Government Monarchy
Prince()
- 13711389 Lazar Hrebeljanovi
- 1389-1403 Stefan Lazarevi
History
-Established 1371
-Disestablished 1403
Currency Serbian perper
The Lordship of Serbia also Moravian Serbia (Serbian: , Moravska Srbija) refers to one of the
provinces of the Serbian Empire that dissolved in 1371, following the death of child-less Emperor Uro the Weak,
which was ruled by prince Lazar Hrebeljanovi who later fought and perished at the Battle of Kosovo.
Moravian Serbia
2
History
Lazar Hrebeljanovi, prince of Moravian Serbia
(1371-1389)
Lazar Hrebeljanovi left Prizren in the early 1370s, and devoted
himself to the consolidation of his power in the northern Serbian
regions around his court in Kruevac. Although a pledged vassal to
Stefan Uro, in 1371 he refused to participate in the Battle of
Maritsa, at which the bulk of the imperial Serbian army was
destroyed by an Ottoman force. Soon afterwards, Stefan Uro died.
He had been the last of the Nemanji emperors. Through a
combination of diplomacy, military action, and family alliances,
Lazar emerged from the resulting power vacuum as the most
powerful Serbian noble not in the Ottomans' service. He acquired
dynastic legitimacy by marrying Milica Nemanji, and despite
retaining only the minor title of knez ("prince"), he nevertheless used
the imperial name of 'Stefan' as well as the designation "autocrator".
Lazar spent his time strengthening the Serbian state, knowing fully
well that he would eventually have to face the Ottoman threat. His
rule unified most of Serbia under rule and he managed to gain the
loyalty of most Serbs. He also ceded the title "King of Serbs" to
King Tvrtko of Bosnia (who in any case had more ties to the
Nemanjic's than King Lazar). His first major military action was at
the Battle of Dubravnica where his two subjects, Crep and Vladimir
managed to decisively defeat an Ottoman army in the south of Serbia. No further recorded hostilities took place until
the Battle of Plonik where Knez Lazar managed to crush an Ottoman force and drive them back to Ni. Serbian
troops also took part in the Battle of Bilea where again he defeated the Turks.
Lazar was killed during the 1389 Battle of Kosovo along with much of Serbia's political elite.
[1]
After his death, his
son Stefan Lazarevi became a prince of Moravian Serbia in 1389. Immediately after the Battle of Kosovo, King
Sigismund of Hungary attacked from the north and ravaged Serbia. Unable to fight on two fronts, King Stefan
thwarted the Hungarians and agreed to Ottoman vassalage and participated as an Ottoman vassal in the Battle of
Karanovasa in 1394, the Battle of Rovine in 1395, the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396, and in the Battle of Angora in
1402. He became Despot of Serbia in 1402 and in 1403 proclaimed Belgrade the capital of his new state known as
the Serbian Despotate.
Fall of Serbian Empire
Moravian Serbia, Despotate (13711540)
Principality of Zeta (13561402)
Kingdom of Prilep (13711395)
Despotate of Velbazhd (1371-1395)
Moravian Serbia
3
Rulers
Lazar Hrebeljanovi (13711389)
Stefan Lazarevi (13891402)
References
[1] Bakhit, Mohammad Adnan (2000), History of Humanity-Scientific and Cultural Development: From the Seventh to the Sixteenth Century
(http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=ixCyd2lByggC& pg=PA230& dq=moravian+ serbia+ prince+ Lazar+ Hrebeljanovi& hl=cs&
ei=9hulTLyWH8yVswbw5MClCA& sa=X& oi=book_result& ct=result& resnum=1& ved=0CCsQ6AEwAA#v=onepage& q& f=false),
Unesco, p. 230. ISBN 9231028138
Lazar of Serbia
4
Lazar of Serbia
Lazar Hrebeljanovi

Knez of Serbia
"Tsar Lazar"
by Vladislav Titelbah
Reign ~13701389
Born 1329
Died June 28, 1389 (aged60)
Place of death Kosovo Polje
Predecessor Stefan Uro V of Serbia
Emperor of the Serbs and the Greeks
Successor Stefan Lazarevi
Consort Princess Milica of Serbia
Offspring Stefan Lazarevi
Royal House House of Lazarevi
Father Pribac Hrebeljanovi
Religious beliefs Serbian Orthodox
Stefan Lazar Hrebeljanovi (Serbian Cyrillic: ) (1329 June 28 [O.S. June 15] 1389),
also known as Tsar Lazar ( ), was a medieval Serbian knez, ruler of Moravian Serbia, a part of the once
powerful Serbian Empire under Duan the Mighty. Lazar led Serbian army in the Battle of Kosovo against the army
of the Ottoman Empire. He perished in the battle together with most of the Serbian nobility and Ottoman Sultan
Murad I, which eventually led to the fall of Serbia as a sovereign state and started the Turkish conquest of Serbia.
The events are regarded as highly important for Serb national consciousness and Lazar is venerated as a saint in the
Serbian Orthodox Church and a hero in Serbian epic poetry.
Lazar was the founder of the House of Lazarevi. He was succeeded by his son Stefan Lazarevi as a Knez, and later
Despot of Serbia.
Lazar of Serbia
5
Life
Lazar was born 1329 in Prilepac (near Novo Brdo) to the imperial chancellor at the court of Tsar Duan in Prizren,
Pribac Hrebeljanovi of Grbalj clan ancestry.
[1]
Lazar was educated at the court where his father held a post of high importance. He married Milica of the Serbian
house of Nemanji in ~1353.
[1]
He was given the title of knez in 1371 by the sabor (state council) of Tsar Stefan
Uro V at Ipek.
[2]
Despite his imperial title, Uro was a weak and ineffectual leader, allowing local nobles to gain
power and influence at the expense of the central authority.
However, Lazar would have to face another menace to his power. After consolidating his authority in the Hungarian
Kingdom and defeating the feudal lords, King Charles I of Hungary continued expanding his frontiers to the south,
into the Serbian regions and forced Lazar's predecessor Stephen Uro IV Duan of Serbia to resign many regions to
him. The Hungarian King conquered the Golubac Fortress in 1334 and with this, he continued expanding his
influence in the Serbian regions.
After the death of the Hungarian King, his son and successor Louis I of Hungary, continued his father's campaigns
and soon included the Bosnian and Serbian territories in the Hungarian Crown. In 1366 the Kingdom of Bosnia
recognised the Hungarian authority, but Louis had himself crowned as King of the Serbs and Bosnians.
[3]
After
facing the Hungarian King Louis I in several locations, the last military campaign of the Hungarian monarch was
successful and in 1367 Lazar recognised his authority over the Serbs.
[4]
Map of the last years of Lazar's rule
However this wasn't an impediment to Lazar, and even if he paid taxes
and conceded favours to the Hungarian monarch, he worked for
keeping stability in the Serbian power and for facing the imminent
Turkish Ottoman invasion. In the early 1370s he left Prizren and
devoted himself to the consolidation of his power in the northern
Serbian regions around his court in Kruevac. Although a pledged
vassal to Stefan Uro V, in 1371 he refused to participate in the Battle
of Maritsa, at which the bulk of the imperial Serbian army was
destroyed by an Ottoman force. Soon afterwards, Stefan Uro V died,
the last of the Nemanji emperors. With great diplomacy and military
power, Lazar emerged from the resulting power vacuum as the most
powerful Serbian noble not in the Ottomans' service. He acquired
dynastic legitimacy by marrying Milica Nemanji, and despite
retaining only the minor title of knez, he nevertheless used the imperial
name of Stefan as well as the designation autocrator. At the same time,
he took no issue with Bosnian ban Tvrtko (whose Nemanji lineage was in any case much stronger than Lazar's)
proclaiming himself King Stefan of Serbia and Bosnia. In this way Lazar could retain the de facto power, while
ceding only a ceremonial title to Tvrtko, who never managed to revive the old Nemanji institutions of central
power.
The first mention of any Ottoman movement into Lazar's territory is from a chronicle entry of 1381, when two of
Lazar's subjects, Vitomir and Crep, defeated the Turks on the Battle of Dubravnica River near Parain. After that
there is no record of any hostility between Lazar and the Turks until 1386. Lazar mobilised several other Serbian
nobles, including Tvrtko, King of Bosnia, and in 1386 smashed Murad's general Timurtash at the Battle of Plonik,
forcing the Ottomans south to Ni. In 1388, many Serbian troops were present at the Battle of Bilea where the
combined Serbian-Bosnian forces heavily defeated the Turks.
[5]
Lazar of Serbia
6
The battle of Kosovo by Adam Stefanovi (1870)
Around 1380 Lazar founded the monastery of Ravanica and
around 1388 Ljubostinja. By 1387 he was raising a massive
force to meet the invading forces of the Ottoman Empire,
which would include every Serbian knight in his kingdom.
The two large forces met in the 1389 battle of Kosovo.
Battle of Kosovo
Before the battle, Lazar rejected offers of vassalage and
peace and determined to fight to the last, not betraying the
nation.
[6]
He cursed the Serbs who did not help him against the Turks
with the so-called Kosovo curse, later inscribed in the Gazimestan, on the place he is supposed to have fallen, today a
monument to the Serbs who fought the Turks in Kosovo.
[6]
Aftermath and mythology
Kosovo curse:
Inscription of the curse on the
Gazimestan monument
"Whoever is a Serb and of Serb birth,
And of Serb blood and heritage,
And comes not to the Battle of Kosovo,
May he never have the progeny his heart desires,
Neither son nor daughter!
May nothing grow that his hand sows,
Neither dark wine nor white wheat!
And let him be cursed from all ages to all ages!"
Tsar Lazar curses those who are not taking up arms against the Ottoman Turks at the
Battle of Kosovo.
Praise to Prince Lazar
Following Lazar's death, his widow Milica assumed control of Serbia.
Lacking in military or economic strength, she pledged suzerainty to
Murad I's successor, his son Bayezid, who had taken as his wife the
daughter of Lazar. Meanwhile, Milica turned to internal matters, where
she dealt with her few remaining political opponents. It was her
propaganda campaign, via the epic poetry composed at her court, that
resulted in Lazar's quick resurrection, and the subsequent portrayal of
their son-in-law Vuk Brankovi as the traitor responsible for the
Serbian defeat.
In Serbian epic tradition, Lazar is said to have been visited by an angel
of God on the night before battle, and offered a choice between an
earthly or a heavenly kingdom, which choice would result in a peaceful
capitulation or bloody defeat, respectively, at the Battle of Kosovo.
"...the Prophet Elijah then appeared as a gray falcon to
Lazar, bearing a letter from the Mother of God that told
him the choice was between holding an earthly kingdom
and entering the kingdom of heaven..."
[7]
Lazar of Serbia
7
According to the epics, Lazar opted for the Heavenly kingdom, which will last "forever and ever",
[8]
but had to
perish on the battlefield. We die with Christ, to live forever, he tolld his soldiers. That Kosovos declaration and
testament is regarded as s covenant which the Serb people made with God and sealed with martyrs blood. Since
then all Serbs faithful to that Testament regard themselves as the people of God, Christs New Testament nation,
heavenly Serbia, part of Gods New Israel. This is why Serbs sometimes refer to themselves as the people of Heaven.
Jefimija, former wife of Ugljea Mrnjavevi and afterwards nun from Ljubostinja monastery, embroidered Praise to
Prince Lazar, one of most significat work of medieval Serbian literature.
The Serbian Orthodox Church canonised Lazar as Saint Lazar. He is celebrated on June 28 [O.S. June 15]
(Vidovdan).
[1]
Several towns and villages (like Lazarevac), small Serbian Orthodox churches and missions
throughout the world are named after him. His alleged remains are kept in Ravanica Monastery, where miraculous
cures have been attributed to them.
Marriage and progeny
Milica
Lazar married Milica in around 1353 and issued at least seven children:
1. Mara (died April 12, 1426), married Vuk Brankovi in around 1371
2. Stefan Lazarevi (around 1377 - July 19, 1427), prince (13891402) and despot
(14021427)
3. Vuk Lazarevi, prince, executed on July 6, 1410
4. Mara or Dragana (died before July 1395), married Bulgarian tsar Ivan
Shishman in around 1386
5. Teodora (died before 1405), married Nikola II Gorjanski (who died in 1433),
son of Nikola I Gorjanski, ban of Mava since 1387, ban of Croatia since 1394,
and Hungarian Palatin since 1401
6. Jelena or Jela, died March 1443, married
1. ura Stracimirovi, one of the Balis
2. Sandalj Hrani
[9]
of Kosaa family
7. Olivera Despina (1372 - after 1444), married Ottoman Sultan Bayezid I in 1390
Stefan Vuk
Lazar of Serbia
8
References
[1] Lives of the Serbian Saints (http:/ / books. google. se/ books?id=VLJF4agQd4gC) C. P. Hankey 2008, ISBN 1443716219
[2] A Short History of Russia and the Balkan States (http:/ / books. google. se/ books?id=5NyQEh8qFIQC) Donald Mackenzie Wallace, ISBN
0543933253
[3] Szalay, J. y Barti, L. (1896). A Magyar Nemzet Trtnete. Budapest, Hungary: Udvari Knyvkereskeds Kiad
[4] Hman, B. y Szekf, Gy. (1935). Magyar Trtnet. Budapest, Hungary: Kirly Magyar Egyetemi Nyomda
[5] Finkel, Caroline, Osman's Dream, (Basic Books, 2005), 2021.
[6] Kosovo: How myths and truths started a war (http:/ / books. google. se/ books?id=LbneixKK0GIC) Julie Mertus 1999, ISBN 0520218655
[7] (http:/ / www.archaeology. org/ 9909/ etc/ insight. html)
[8] "Perishable is earthly kingdom, but forever and ever is the Kingdom of Heaven!" - Serbian: " ,
!")
[9] Sandalj Hrani (around 1370-March 15, 1435) was a nephew of Vlatko Vukovi, the aforementioned participant of the Battle of Kosovo.
[Mrenovi (1987), p.108]
Further reading
Age, marriage and progeny information from The genealogy and coats of arms of Serbian dynasties and feudals
( ); editors Aleksa Ivi (1928), Duan Spasi,
Aleksandar Plavestra and Duan Mrenovi (1987); Bata, Belgrade, ISBN 86-7685-007-0 (1928), ISBN
86-7335-050-6 (1987). (Serbian)
Croats and Serbs: Chapter V - History of the Serbs in the middle ages - The Dismemberment of Dusans empire
(http:/ / www. magma. ca/ ~rendic/ chapter5. htm)
External links
Serbian Epic Poetry (http:/ / home. earthlink. net/ ~markdlew/ SerbEpic/ militsa. htm)
Stefan Lazarevi
9
Stefan Lazarevi
Stefan Lazarevi
Despot of Serbia
Fresco of Stefan Lazarevi from Manasija monastery
Reign Knez (13891402)
Despot (14021427)
Born 1374
Birthplace Kruevac
Died 1427
Place of death Glava
Buried Koporin Monastery
Predecessor Lazar of Serbia
Successor ura Brankovi
Royal House
House of Lazarevi
Father Lazar of Serbia
Mother Princess Milica of Serbia
Stefan Lazarevi (Serbian: ) known also as Stevan the Tall ( , l. 1374 19 July
1427) was a Serbian Despot, ruler of the Serbian Despotate between 1389 and 1427. He was the son and heir to
Prince Lazar, who died at the Battle of Kosovo against the Turks in 1389, and Princess Milica from the subordinate
branch of the Nemanji dynasty. His sister, Princess Olivera Despina, married the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid I, his
brother-in-law, with whom he sided in a number of battles. Despot Stefan was a poet and a moderniser. His reign and
his personal literary works are sometimes associated with early signs of the Renaissance in Serbian lands. He
introduced knightly tournaments, modern battle tactics, and firearms to Serbia.
[1]
Stefan Lazarevi
10
Life
Despot Stefan Lazarevi Memorial in the
courtyard of a church in Crkvine,
Mladenovac
Stefan was the son of Prince Lazar, whom he succeeded in 1389. He
participated as an Ottoman vassal in the Battle of Karanovasa in 1394, the
Battle of Rovine in 1395, the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396, and in the Battle of
Ankara in 1402. He became the Despot of Serbia in 1402 after the Ottoman
state temporarily collapsed following Timur's invasion of Anatolia with the
Battle of Ankara, and in 1403 proclaimed Belgrade his capital. He built a
fortress with a citadel which was destroyed during the Great Turkish War in
1690; only the Despot Stefan Tower remains today.
[1]
Stefan II became an ally of the Kingdom of Hungary and a knight of a special
order, so when the Hungarian king Sigismund renewed the Order of the
Dragon (Societas draconistrarum) in 1408, Despot Stefan Lazarevi was the
first on the list of members. In 1404, Sigismund gave Lazarevi land in the
present-day Vojvodina (and Pannonian part of present-day Belgrade),
including Zemun (today part of Belgrade), Slankamen, Kupinik, Mitrovica,
Beej, and Veliki Bekerek. In 1417, Apatin is also mentioned among his
possessions. Under his rule, he issued a Code of Mines in 1412 in Novo Brdo,
the economic center of Serbia. In his legacy, Resava-Manasija monastery (Pomoravlje District), he organized the
Resava School, a center for correcting, translating, and transcribing books.
[1]
Stefan Lazarevi died suddenly in 1427, leaving the throne to his nephew ura Brankovi. His deeds eventually
elevated him into sainthood, and the Serbian Orthodox Church honors him on August 1. Despot Stefan is buried in
the monastery Koporin which he had built in 1402., as he did the bigger and more famous Manasija monastery in
1407.. In fact, Manasija was intended as his own burial place, but due to a sudden nature of his death in perilous
times it was his brother Vuk that is buried there.
[1]
Apart from the biographical notes in charters and especially in the Code on The Mine Novo Brdo (1412)
Stefan Lazarevi wrote three original literary works:
The Grave Sobbing for prince Lazar (1389)
The Inscription on the Kosovo Marble Column (1404)
A Homage to Love (1409), a poetic epistle to his brother Vuk.
[1]
Marriage
In 1405, Stefan married Helena Gattilusio. She was a daughter of Francesco II of Lesbos and Valentina Doria. They
had no known children.
[1]
Gallery
Stefan Lazarevi
Despotate in 1422
Despot
Stefan
Lazarevi's
Seal, 1415
AD
Lazarevi
dynasty
coat of
arms
Monument
in
Despotovac
Stefan
Lazarevi
tomb in
Manasija
monastery
Stefan Lazarevi
11
References
[1] Fine, The Late Medieval Balkans (1987)
External links
Despot Stefan Lazarevi, a fresco from the monastery of Manasija from the year 1418 (http:/ / www. suc. org/
culture/ history/ Hist_Serb_Culture/ chd/ html/ Stephen_Lazarevic. html)
His listing in "Medieval lands" by Charles Cawley. (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA.
htm#StefanLazarevicdied1427) The project "involves extracting and analysing detailed information from primary
sources, including contemporary chronicles, cartularies, necrologies and testaments."
Further Lecture
Constantine the Philosopher wrote a biography to Stefan in ~1431. Constantine was a Bulgarian scholar who
following his arrival in Serbia in 1411, made a career for himself at Stefan's court.
Fine, John V.A. The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Twelfth Century to the Ottoman
Conquest. University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, 1987.
District of Brankovi
12


13711412

Coat of arms
Realm of Brankovic
Capital Pritina
Language(s) Serbian
Religion Serbian Orthodox Church
Government Monarchy
Prince()
- 13711396 Vuk Brankovi
- 1396-1412 ura Brankovi
History
-Disssolution of the Serbian Empire 1371
-Peace between Stefan and ura 1412
The District of Brankovi (Serbian: , Oblast Brankovia) or Vuk's land (Serbian:
, Vukova zemlja) was one of the short lived semi-independent states that emerged from the collapse of the
Serbian Empire in 1371, following the death of the last Emperor Uro the Weak (1346-1371). Founder and only ruler
of this realm was Vuk Brankovi, the son of sebastokrator Branko Mladenovi who governed Ohrid under Duan
13
the Mighty (1331-1346).
Through Vuk's marriage with the Mara, the daughter of Tsar Lazar, he is given substantial lands to govern in
Kosovo.
The Realm of Brankovi was located in the largest part of today's Kosovo. Vuk got areas of Raka (including the old
Serbian capital Ras) and lands in Polimlje in present day northern Montenegro. After the death of ura I Bali,
Vuk captured his cities of Prizren and Pe and the area of Metohija
[1]
. The most important cities in Vuk's Realm
were Pritina, Prizren, Pe, Skopje and Ras, as well as the rich mining settlements of Trepa, Janjevo, Gluhavica and
others.
[2]
Reference
[1] John VA Fine, The Late Mediaeval Balkans,p.389 (http:/ / www. google. com/ books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC&
printsec=frontcover#v=onepage& q=& f=false,)
[2] M. -irkovi, Vuk Toi, The Serbs,Wiley-Blackwell, 2004,p.79 (http:/ / www. google. com/ books?id=Ki1icLbr_QQC&
printsec=frontcover& source=gbs_similarbooks_s& cad=1#v=onepage& q=& f=false,Sima)
Vuk Brankovi
14
Vuk Brankovi
Vuk Brankovi
Gospodin (lord)
Coat of arms
Reign 1378-1389
Born
1345
[1]
Birthplace Kosovo
Died October 6, 1398
Place of death Kosovo
Successor ura Brankovi
Consort Marija Lazarevi
Offspring ura Brankovi
Royal House Brankovii
Father Branko Mladenovi
Religious beliefs Serbian Orthodox Christian
Realm of Vuk Brankovi in the 14th century
Vuk Brankovi (Serbian: ) (born 1345
- died October 6, 1398) was a Serbian medieval
nobleman who created semi independent feudal state in
present day south and southwestern Serbia (including
Kosovo and Metohija), the northern part of present day
Macedonia and northern Montenegro. His fief (and
later state) was known as Oblast Brankovia (District
of Brankovi) or simply as Vukova zemlja (Vuk's land)
which he held with the title of gospodin (lord, sir),
under Prince Lazar of Serbia. After the Battle of
Kosovo Vuk was briefly de facto most powerful
Serbian lord.
Vuk Brankovi
15
States in the Central Balkans (including Realm of Vuk Brankovi) in
1373-1395
History
Origins
Vuk Brankovi belonged to a noble Serbian family
which held a prominent role in 13th and 14th century
Serbia under the house of Nemanji. Vuk was a son of
Branko Mladenovi (died before 1365), who received
the high court title of sebastokrator from Emperor
Stefan Duan (1331-1355) and served as governor of
Ohrid (present day Macedonia). Vuk's grandfather was
Mladen (died after 1326), who was upan (count) in
Trebinje under king Milutin (1282-1321) and vojvoda
(duke) under king Stefan Deanski (1321-1331). Later
chronicles derived origin of Brankovi family from
Vukan Nemanji, son of the founder of Nemanji
dynasty Stefan Nemanja, however this can't be taken
with certainty.
Expansion
After their father's death, Vuk and his brothers Grgur and Radonja Nikola were forced by the usurper king Vukain
to leave their land in western Macedonia (Ohrid), and they retreated to their ancestral lands in Drenica in the area of
present day Kosovo. From there Vuk, who only held the humble title of gospodin (lord, sir), started to expand his
realm and to create his own state. He took advantage of the death of king Vukain Mrnjavevi in the Battle of
Maritsa (1371) and occupied his lands in the southern part of Kosovo and northern Macedonia with the city of
Skopje. The turning point of Vuk's ascension to power in post-Nemanji Serbia was his marriage with Mara,
daughter of the most powerful Serbian nobleman prince Lazar Hrebeljanovi, which brought him substantial lands in
Kosovo and the city of Zvean as dowry. This marriage sealed the alliance between two houses and secured Lazar's
assistance for Vuk's future plans, although Vuk in return had to acknowledge Lazar as his feuadal senior. Soon after
the marriage, Lazar, Vuk and king Tvrtko I of Bosnia attacked upan Nikola Altomanovic, who ruled in the western
part of Serbia, and conquered and divided his lands in 1373. In the partition of Altomanovi's land, Vuk got areas of
Raka (including the old Serbian capital Ras) and lands in Polimlje in present day northern Montenegro. The
formation of the Realm of Brankovi was finished in 1378. After the death of Djuradj I Bali, Vuk captured his
cities of Prizren and Pe and the area of Metohija
[2]
. At its peak, the realm of Brankovi stretched from Sjenica in
the west to Skopje in the east, with the cities of Pritina and Vuitrn serving as its capitals. The most important cities
in Vuk's Realm were Pritina, Prizren, Pe, Skopje and Ras, as well as the rich mining settlements of Trepa,
Janjevo, Gluhavica and others.
[3]
Battle of Kosovo
After the Battle of Maritza, Ottomans forced the southern Serbian feudal lords (in present-day Macedonia and
Greece), Konstantin Draga, king Marko, Toma Preljubovi and others, to become their vassals, and started to attack
the northern Serbian lands ruled by prince Lazar and Vuk. After initial Serbian successes at the battles of Dubravnica
(1381), Plonik (1386) and Bilea (1388), the Ottomans launched a full-scale attack on Serbia aiming at the very
heartland of Vuk's realm in central Kosovo. In the epic Battle of Kosovo (1389), which ended with a strategic
Serbian defeat, Vuk participated along with his father-in-law Lazar and a contingent of King Tvrtko's army. Unlike
Vuk Brankovi
16
Lazar, who died in the battle along with most of his army, Vuk managed to survive and preserve his army, which
later gave material for a popular Serbian folk tradition (represented in folk epic poems and tales) that he betrayed
Lazar in order to become supreme ruler of Serbia, a theory that is rejected by modern day Serbian historians.
[4]
Kosovo Field with probable disposition of troops
before the battle
Last Years
After the Battle of Kosovo, Vuk refused to become an Ottoman
vassal (unlike prince Stefan Lazarevi, son of prince Lazar, who
became an Ottoman vassal in late 1389), and started to plan
anti-Ottoman action together with the Hungarian king Sigismund.
However, Vuk was unable to resist the Ottomans for long. In
1392, they captured Skopje and forced Vuk to become their vassal
and pay tribute. Even after that Vuk showed some resistance to
Ottomans, refusing to participate on the Ottoman side in the battles
of Rovine (1395) and Nicopolis (1396), unlike other Serbian lords
such as prince Stefan, king Marko and Konstantin Dejanovi. He
also maintained contacts with Hungary. Finally the Ottomans ended this situation by attacking Vuk in 1395-1396,
seizing his land and giving most of it to prince Stefan Lazarevi, while Vuk himself was imprisoned and died in an
Ottoman prison. A small part of Vuk's land with the towns of Pritina and Vuitrn were given to his sons to hold it as
Ottoman vassals.
[5]
Family
He married Mara, the daughter of Lazar Hrebeljanovic and Milica Nemanji in 1371, she died on April 12, 1426.
They had three sons:
Grgur Brankovi, died 13 march 1408.
Despot Djuradj Brankovi, died 24 december 1456.
Lazar Brankovi, died 12 july 1410.
In epic poetry and popular culture
Folk tradition portraits Vuk as a traitor: supposedly, Vuk tarnished the family name when he betrayed Prince Lazar
at the Battle of Kosovo, which he survived in 1389. This tradition may be apocryphal.
[6]
References
[1] M.Spremic, Vuk Brankovic i Kosovska bitka, u : Glas CCCLXXVIII Srpske Akademije Nauka i Umetnosti , 85
[2] John VA Fine, The Late Mediaeval Balkans,p.389 (http:/ / www. google. com/ books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC&
printsec=frontcover#v=onepage& q=& f=false,)
[3] M. -irkovi, Vuk Toi, The Serbs,Wiley-Blackwell, 2004,p.79 (http:/ / www. google. com/ books?id=Ki1icLbr_QQC&
[4] M. -irkovi, Vuk Toi, The Serbs,Wiley-Blackwell, 2004,p.83-85 (http:/ / www. google. com/ books?id=Ki1icLbr_QQC&
[5] John VA Fine, The Late Mediaeval Balkans,p.409-415 (http:/ / www. google. com/ books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC&
printsec=frontcover#v=onepage& q=& f=false,).
[6] ISBN 86-447-0006-5: Duan Batakovi: The Kosovo Chronicles (http:/ / www. rastko. org. rs/ kosovo/ istorija/ kosovo_chronicles/ index.
html): Part One: History and Ideology (http:/ / www. rastko. org. rs/ kosovo/ istorija/ kosovo_chronicles/ kc_part1b. html)
ura Brankovi
17
ura Brankovi
ura Brankovi
Despot
ura Brankovi, from one of the coins he struck
Born 1377
Died 24 December 1456
Predecessor Stefan Lazarevi
Successor Lazar Brankovi
Consort Eirene Kantakouzene
Royal House House of Brankovi
Father Vuk Brankovi
Mother Mara
ura Brankovi (Serbian Cyrillic: ; Hungarian: Brankovics Gyrgy) (1377 24 December
1456), also known under the patronymic (ura) Vukovi and frequently called George Brankovi in
English-language sources, was a Serbian despot from 1427 to 1456 and a baron of the Kingdom of Hungary. He was
the first of the House of Brankovi to hold the Serbian monarchy.
Family
His father was Vuk Brankovi and his mother was Mara, daughter of Knez Lazar Hrebeljanovi, popularly known as
Tsar Lazar. His wife was a Byzantine princess, Eirene Kantakouzene, a granddaughter of Emperor John VI
Kantakouzenos.
Reign
During his reign the Serbian capital was moved to Smederevo (near Belgrade) after the Second Battle of Kosovo.
After he was appointed as a successor for his uncle, Despot Stefan Lazarevi, Brankovi's rule was marked by new
conflicts and the fall of Kosovo and Metohia to the Ottoman Empire. Brankovi allied himself with the Kingdom of
Hungary. In 1439 the Ottomans captured Smederevo, the Brankovi's capital. The prince fled to the Kingdom of
Hungary where he had large estates, which included Zemun, Slankamen, Kupinik, Mitrovica, Stari Beej, Kulpin,
urug, Sveti Petar, Perlek, Peser, Petrovo Selo, Beej, Ara, Veliki Bekerek, Vrac, etc.
ura Brankovi
18
Smederevo Fortress built by ura Brankovi in 1430
Crusade of Varna
Following the conflicts that concluded 1443, Brankovi
had a significant role in facilitating the Peace of Szeged
(1444) between Kingdom of Hungary and the
Ottomans. Murad II, who also desired peace, was
married to Brankovi's daughter Mara
[1]
. On March 6,
1444, Mara sent an envoy to Brankovi; their
discussion started the peace negotiations with the
Ottoman Empire
[2]
. This peace restored his Serbian
rule, but Brankovi was forced to bribe John Hunyadi
with his vast estates. On 22 August 1444 the prince peacefully took possession the evacuated town of Smederevo.
The peace was broken in the same year by Hunyadi and king Wadysaw during the Crusade of Varna, which
culminated in the Battle of Varna. Because of this he estranged from his Hungarian allies. A crusading army led by
Regent John Hunyadi of Hungary was defeated by Sultan Murad II's forces at Kosovo Polje in 1448. This was the
last concerted attempt in the Middle Ages to expel the Ottomans from southeastern Europe. Although Hungary was
able to successfully defy the Ottomans despite the defeat at Kosovo Polje during Hunyadi's lifetime, the kingdom fell
to the Ottomans in the 16th century. Brankovi also captured Hunyadi at Smederevo for a short time when he was
going home from Kosovo in 1448.
Return and Death
Following Hunyadi's victory over the Mehmet II at the Siege of Belgrade on 14 July 1456, a period of relative peace
began in the region. The sultan retreated to Adrianople, and Brankovi regained posession of Serbia. Before the end
of the year, however, the 91-year old Brankovi died. Serbian independence survived him for only another year,
when the Ottoman empire formally annexed his lands following dissention among his widow and three remaining
sons. Lazar, the youngest, poisoned his mother and exiled his brothers, and the land returned to the sultan's
subjugation
[3]
.
Exchequer
Brankovi was deemed by contemporaries as the richest monarch in all of Europe; the French knight Bertrand de la
Broquierre stated the despot's annual income from the gold and silver mines of Novo Brdo (near Gnjilane in Kosovo)
amassed to about 200,000 Venetian ducats. Among other of the Despot's sources of income, there are his possessions
in the Kingdom of Hungary, for which expenses were covered by the Hungarian crown. The annual income from
them alone was estimated to 50,000 ducats.
ura Brankovi
19
Marriage and children
Coat of Arms of the House of Brankovi
ura and Eirene Kantakouzene had at least six children
[4]
:
Todor Brankovi (d. before 1429). Not mentioned in the Masarelli
manuscrpipt, probably died early
Grgur (Gregory) Brankovi (c. 1415 - October 16/October 17,
1459). Mentioned first in the Masarelli manuscript. Father of Vuk
Grgurevi, also blinded with Stefan in 1441.
Mara Brankovi (c. 1416 - September 14, 1487). Mentioned second
in the Masarelli manuscript. Married Murad II of the Ottoman
Empire.
Stefan Brankovi (c. 1417 - 1476). Mentioned third in the Masarelli
manuscript. Blinded with hot irons in 1441
[1]
. Claimed the throne
of Serbia following the death of his younger brother Lazar.
Catherine Cantacuzena (c. 1418 - 1490). Married Ulrich II of Celje.
Mentioned fourth in the Masarelli manuscript.
Lazar Brankovi (c. 1421/27 - January 20/June 20, 1458). Mentioned fifth and last in the Masarelli manuscript.
Gallery
War in Serbian Despotate (Zeta)
Duchy of Stephen Vukcic Kosaca
annexed to the Upper Zeta
Podgorica and square fortress
Medun. Conquered the city of
Bar, with the fortress (now Old
Bar) in Lower Zeta.
Properties 1441st
year (after winning
with. S.V. Kosaca in
Zeta). Properties: 1 S.
V. Kosaca; 2nd
ura Brankovic, 3rd
Venice; 4th
Dubrovnik.
Venetian property,
and invasion of the
Serbian Despotate
(Djuradj Brankovic).
Attempt to capture the
town of Bar, 1448.
References
[1] Florescu, Radu R.; Raymond McNally (1989). Dracula, Prince of Many Faces: His Life and His Times. Boston: Little, Brown & Co..
[2] Imber, Colin (July 2006). "Introduction" (http:/ / www. ashgate. com/ subject_area/ downloads/ sample_chapters/ Crusade_of_Varna_Intro.
pdf) (PDF). The Crusade of Varna, 1443-45. Ashgate Publishing. pp.931. ISBN0-7546-0144-7. . Retrieved 2007-04-19.
[3] Miller, William (1896). The Balkans: Roumania, Bulgaria, Servia, and Montenegro (http:/ / books. google. com/
books?id=J98DAAAAYAAJ). London: G.P. Putnam's Sons. . Retrieved 2011-02-08.
[4] Profile of ura in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA. htm#DjuradjVukovicdied1456)
-orovi, Vladimir (1997). Istorija srpskog naroda (http:/ / www. rastko. org. rs/ rastko-bl/ istorija/ corovic/
istorija/ index. html) (Period IV, Chapter 5)
ura Brankovi
20
External links
Order of Despot ura Brankovi (http:/ / www. culture. gr/ 2/ 21/ 218/ 218do/ e218do2. html) to St. Paul's
Monastery, Mount Athos
Despot ura's Heritage, Smederevo (http:/ / www. serbianunity. net/ culture/ history/ Serb_History/ Rulers/
Djuradj-smed. html)
The Esphigmen Charter of Despot ura Brankovi (http:/ / www. rastko. org. rs/ isk/ images/
esphigmen_charter. html) issued to the monastery of Esphigmen on Mount Athos in 1429
Lazar Brankovi
21
Lazar Brankovi
Lazar II Brankovi
Despot
Lazar Brankovi from a charter held in Esphigmenou Monastery, Mount Athos
Reign 1456-1458
Birthplace Serbia
Died 20 January 1458
Predecessor ura Brankovi
Successor Stefan Brankovi
Consort to Helena Palaiologina
Father ura Brankovi
Mother Eirene Kantakouzene
Children Marija, Milica, Jerina
Religious beliefs Eastern Orthodoxy
Lazar II Brankovi (c. 1421 20 January 1458) was a Serbian despot, prince of Rascia from 1456 to 1458. He was
the third son of ura Brankovi and his wife Jerina Kantacusina. He was succeeded by his elder brother, despot
Stefan III Brankovic.
Family
Lazar and his relations are named in "Dell'Imperadori Constantinopolitani", a manuscript held in the Vatican
Library. The document is also known as the "Massarelli manuscript" because it was found in the papers of Angelo
Massarelli (15101566).
[1]
Masarelli is better known as the general secretary of the Council of Trent, who recorded
the daily occurrings of the council.
[2]
The Massarelli manuscript names him as a son of ura Brankovi and Eirene Kantakouzene. "The Byzantine Lady:
Ten Portraits 1250-1500" (1994) by D. M. Nicol questioned his maternity, suggesting ura had a prior marriage to
a daughter of John IV of Trebizond. However his theory presented no sources and failed to take into account that
John IV was born between 1395 and 1417. He would be unlikely to be a grandparent by the 1410s.
[3]
On 11 September 1429, Durad made a donation to Esphigmenou Monastery at Mount Athos. The charter for the
document names his wife Irene and five children. The Masarelli manuscript also names the same five children of
ura and Eirene. Other genealogies mention a sixth child, Todor Brankovi. He could be a child who died young
and thus not listed with his siblings.
[3]
Lazar Brankovi
22
The oldest sibling listed in the Massarelli document was Grgur Brankovi. The 1429 document mentions him with
the title of Despot. According to "The Late Medieval Balkans, A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to
the Ottoman Conquest" (1994) by J. V. A. Fine, Grgur was appointed governor of territories of southern Serbia
associated to the House of Brankovi. He was reportedly appointed by Murad II of the Ottoman Empire in 1439. In
April 1441, Grgur was accused of plotting against Murad and his governorship terminated. He was imprisoned in
Amasya and blinded on 8 May 1441.
[4]
According to "Monumenta Serbica Spectantia Historiam Serbiae, Bosniae,
Ragusii" (1858) by Franc Mikloi, Grgur and his brothers co-signed a charter by which Durad confirmed the
privileges of the Republic of Ragusa. The charted was dated to 17 September 1445.
[5]
According to the "Europische
Stammtafeln: Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der Europischen Staaten" (1978) by Detlev Schwennicke, Grgur retired
to a monastery under the monastic name "German".
[6]
According to Fine, Grgur resurfaced in 1458, claiming the
succession of the vacant throne of Rascia for himself or his son.
[7]
The Massarelli manuscript mentioned Grgur as
unwed. Later genealogies name his wife as "Jelisaveta". Vuk Grgurevi, a son of Grgur, was later a titular Serbian
despot (14711485). He was possibly an illegitimate.
[3]
The Massarelli manuscript next names an older sister of Lazar, Mara Brankovi. She was one of the wives of Murad
II.
[8]
Then are listed Stefan Brankovi and "Cantacuzina", a sister with the Latinized version of their mother's last
name. Later genealogies give her name as Katarina. She married Ulrich II of Celje. Lazar is listed fifth and last, the
youngest child of the marriage
[3]
Reign
Both Grgur and Stefan, his older brothers, were blinded by orders of Murad II in 1441. Lazar apparently became the
heir to their father as the only son not to be handicapped. ura died on 24 December 1456. Lazar succeeded him as
planned.
[3]
According to Fine, his brief reign mostly included family quarrels with his mother and siblings. In 1457, Lazar gave
an oath of subservience to Mehmed II, son and successor of Murad II. Fine considers this to be an attempt to prevent
an Ottoman invasion. His only other decision of consequence was to appoint Mihailo Anelovi, a member of the
Angelos family, as his chief official. Mihailo would briefly serve as head of a regency council following the death of
his lord.
[3]
Lazar died on 20 January 1458. George Sphrantzes recorded the date but not the cause.
[3]
In 1446, Lazar married Helena Palaiologina of Morea. She was a daughter of Thomas Palaiologos, Ruler of Morea,
and Catherine Zaccaria of the Principality of Achaea.
[9]
Her maternal grandparents were Centurione II Zaccaria and
Creusa Tocco.
[10]
They would have three daughters
[11]
:
Helen (Mary), wife of King Stephen Tomaevi of Bosnia.
Milica Brankovi, wife of Leonardo III Tocco, Ruler of Epirus.
Jerina Brankovi, wife of John Kastrioti, the son of Skanderbeg and Andronike Arianiti.
Lazar Brankovi
23
References
[1] Tony Hoskins, "Anglocentric medieval genealogy" (http:/ / newsgroups. derkeiler. com/ Archive/ Soc/ soc. genealogy. medieval/ 2008-03/
msg00384.html)
[2] "The Archives: the past & the present", section "The Council of Trent" (http:/ / asv. vatican. va/ en/ arch/ council. htm)
[3] Profile of ura and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA.
htm#DjuradjVukovicdied1456)
[4] J. V. A. Fine, "The Late Medieval Balkans, A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest" (1994), page 531
[5] Franc Mikloi, "Monumenta Serbica Spectantia Historiam Serbiae, Bosniae, Ragusii" (1858), CCCL, page 433
[6] Detlev Schwennicke, "Europische Stammtafeln: Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der Europischen Staaten" (1878), vol. 3, page 180
[8] Profile of Mara in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA. htm#Maradied1487)
[9] Profile of Helena in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ BYZANTIUM 12611453.
htm#HelenePdied1473)
[10] Profile of Thomas in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ BYZANTIUM 12611453.
htm#ThomasPdied1465)
[11] Profile of Lazar and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA.
htm#LazarBrankovicdied1458)
Stefan Brankovi
24
Stefan Brankovi
Stefan III Brankovi
Serbian Despot
Stefan Brankovi from the Esphigmenou charter (1429)
Reign January 19, 1458 - March 21, 1459
Serbian
Born c. 1417
Birthplace Belgrade
Died October 9, 1476
Place of death Belgrade Castle near Udine
Buried Kupinovo
Predecessor Lazar Brankovi
Successor Stephen Tomaevi
Consort Anelina Komnena
Offspring ore Brankovi
Jovan Brankovi
Father ura Brankovi
Mother Eirene Kantakouzene
Stefan III Brankovi (Serbian Cyrillic: ; c. 1417 9 October 1476) was briefly the despot
(ruler) of the Serbian Despotate between 1458 and 1459, member of the House of Brankovi. He is venerated as a
saint by the Serbian Orthodox Church.
Stefan Brankovi
25
The Coat-of-Arms of Stefan Brankovic
Family
Stefan and his relations are named in "Dell'Imperadori Constantinopolitani", a
manuscript held in the Vatican Library. The document is also known as the
"Massarelli manuscript" because it was found in the papers of Angelo
Massarelli (15101566).
[1]
Masarelli is better known as the general secretary
of the Council of Trent, who recorded the daily occurrings of the council.
[2]
The Massarelli manuscript names him as a son of ura Brankovi and
Eirene Kantakouzene. "The Byzantine Lady: Ten Portraits 1250-1500" (1994)
by D. M. Nicol questioned his maternity, suggesting ura had a prior
marriage to a daughter of John IV of Trebizond. However his theory
presented no sources and failed to take into account that John IV was born
between 1395 and 1417. He would be unlikely to be a grandparent by the
1410s.
[3]
On 11 September 1429, ura made a donation to Esphigmenou Monastery
at Mount Athos. The charter for the document names his wife Irene and five children. The Masarelli manuscript also
names the same five children of ura and Eirene. Other genealogies mention a sixth child, Todor Brankovi. He
could be a child who died young and thus not listed with his siblings.
[3]
The oldest sibling listed in the Massarelli
document was Grgur Brankovi. The 1429 document mentions him with the title of Despot. According to "The Late
Medieval Balkans, A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest" (1994) by J. V. A.
Fine, Grgur was appointed governor of territories of southern Serbia associated to the House of Brankovi. He was
reportedly appointed by Murad II of the Ottoman Empire in 1439. In April 1441, Grgur was accused of plotting
against Murad and his governorship terminated. He was imprisoned in Amasya and blinded on 8 May 1441.
[4]
According to "Monumenta Serbica Spectantia Historiam Serbiae, Bosniae, Ragusii" (1858) by Franc Mikloi, Grgur
and his brothers co-signed a charter by which ura confirmed the privileges to the Republic of Ragusa. The charter
was dated to 17 September 1445.
[5]
According to the "Europische Stammtafeln: Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der
Europischen Staaten" (1978) by Detlev Schwennicke, Grgur retired to a monastery under the monastic name
"German".
[6]
According to Fine, Grgur resurfaced in 1458, claiming the succession of the vacant throne of Rascia for
himself or his son.
[7]
The Massarelli manuscript mentioned Grgur as unwed. Later genealogies name his wife as
"Jelisaveta". Vuk Grgurevi, a son of Grgur, was later a titular Serbian despot (14711485). He was possibly an
illegitimate.
[3]
The Massarelli next names an older sister of Stefan, Mara Brankovi. She was one of the wives of Murad II.
[8]
Stefan himself is listed third. His younger sister is listed as Cantacuzina, the Latinized version of their mother's last
name. Later genealogies give her name as Katarina. She married Ulrich II of Celje. The last and youngest sibling
listed was Lazar Brankovi, successor to their father.
[3]
Stefan Brankovi
26
Reign
According to Nicol, Stefan had become a citizen of the Republic of Venice. He was blinded alongside his brother
Grgur in 1441.
[3]
Both blind brothers seem to have been omitted from considerations as possible heirs to their father.
They could only claim the throne in 1458, since the death of Lazar left them the only male representatives of the
Brankovi.
According to Fine, Stefan secured the throne by co-operating with his sister-in-law Helena Palaiologina, widow of
Lazar. She was a daughter of Thomas Palaiologos, Ruler of Morea, and Catherine Zaccaria of the Principality of
Achaea. Helena however arranged the marriage of one of her daughters to Stjepan Tomaevi, prince of Bosnia. She
thus managed to secure the throne for her new son-in-law.
[9]
Matthias Corvinus of Hungary and Stjepan Toma
Kotromani, King of Bosnia and father of Tomaevi, dethroned Stefan on April 8, 1459. They crowned Stjepan
Tomaevi as his replacement.
When Serbia had been lost to Ottomans, Stefan's son Jovan led Serbian refugees in southern Hungary. There Jovan
was finally recognized as Serbian Despot, with a principality called Raitzen.
In 1461, Stefan married Angjelina Arianit Komneni, daughter of Albanian voivode of Shkodr and Durrs, Gjergj
Arianit Komneni.
[10]
They had four or five children:
[9]
Jovan (d. 10 December 1502). Mentioned first in the Massarelli manuscript. Titular despot of the area of Raitzen,
Kingdom of Hungary. Married Jelena Jaksi. She is mentioned as Helena, Serbi despotissa in a charted dated
to 1502.
ore (d. 18 January 1516). Mentioned second in the Massarelli manuscript. Titular despot of the area of Raitzen,
Kingdom of Hungary. Married Isabella del Balzo, daughter of Agilberto, Duke of Nard. Later retired as a monk
under the monastic name "Maxim". Resurfaced as Metropolitan of Ungro-Wallachia from 1508 to 1521. He also
held the title of Archbishop of Belgrade.
Irene. Mentioned third in the Massarelli manuscript. Considered to have died young.
Marija Brankovi (d. 27 August 1495). Mentioned fourth and last in the Massarelli manuscript. Married Boniface
III, Marquess of Montferrat (14241494, reign 14831494).
Milica Brankovi (d. 30 January 1554). Not listed in the Massarelli manuscript, only later genealogies. Married
Neagoe Basarab, Prince of Wallachia.
References
[1] Tony Hoskins, "Anglocentric medieval genealogy" (http:/ / newsgroups. derkeiler. com/ Archive/ Soc/ soc. genealogy. medieval/ 2008-03/
msg00384.html)
[2] "The Archives: the past & the present", section "The Council of Trent" (http:/ / asv. vatican. va/ en/ arch/ council. htm)
[3] Profile of ura and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA.
htm#DjuradjVukovicdied1456)
[5] Franc Mikloi, "Monumenta Serbica Spectantia Historiam Serbiae, Bosniae, Ragusii" (1858), CCCL, page 433
[6] Detlev Schwennicke, "Europische Stammtafeln: Stammtafeln zur Geschichte der Europischen Staaten" (1878), vol. 3, page 180
[8] Profile of Mara in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA. htm#Maradied1487)
[9] Profile of Stefan and his children in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA.
htm#Stefandied1476)
[10] Profile of the Araniti family in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ ALBANIA.
htm#_Toc157144110)
Principality of Zeta
27
Zeta
Appanage of Serbian Kingdom (1186-1345)
Serbian Empire (1345-1362)
Confederation of Serbia
Administrative Unit of Serbia

11861402

Coat of arms
Lordship of Zeta
Capital Scodra
Historical era Medieval
-Autonomy
(Dissolution of Serbian Empire)
1186
-Serbian Despotate 1402
Zeta (Serbian: ) was a Province of Medieval Serbia, whose territory encompassed parts of present-day
Montenegro and Northernwestern Albania. The region and province is named after the Zeta River.
Zeta was first noted, with it's name, as an administrative unit of the Principality and Kingdom of Serbia (Rascia),
ruled by heirs to the Serbian throne from the Nemanji dynasty. When the principal heir became Grand upan of
28
Rascia or King of Serbs, the appanage would be granted to second in line.
During Emperor Stefan Duan Uro IV Nemanji the Mighty (r. 1331-1355) Upper Zeta was held by a Duke.
Lower and Upper Zeta were re-connected during the rule of House of Balsic. The gradual disintegration of the
Serbian Empire under Emperor Uro the Weak prompted the forming of several decentralized regions that were held
by different Serbian noblemen, the crown being in Moravian Serbia (where the ruler Lazar styled himself Tsar,
Emperor, after marrying Milica, a Nemanji) Zeta gained autonomy in 1362, during the gradual disintegration of the
once powerful Serbian Empire that followed the death of Tsar Stefan Duan Uro IV Nemanji (Duan the Mighty)
in 1355.
In 1296, the Upper Zeta region is mentioned as Crna Gora (15th century Venetian sources: Montenegro, "Black
Mountain")
History
Appanage of Serbia
Grand upan Stefan I Nemanja of Rascia and
Duklja/Zeta.
Serbian Prince Desa Uroevi conquered Duklja and Travunia in 1148,
combining the title as "Prince of Primorje" (the Maritime) and co-ruled
Serbia with his brother Uro II Prvoslav 11491153, alone until 1162.
In 1190, Grand upan of Rascia Stefan Nemanja's son, Vukan II,
asserted his right to the Dukljan crown. In 1219, the regent of Zeta and
King Vukan's oldest son, ore Nemanji, became king of
Duklja/Zeta. He was succeeded by his second oldest son, Uro I, who
built the 'Uspenje Bogorodice' monastery in Moraa.
Between 1276 and 1309, Zeta was ruled by Queen Jelena, widow of
Serbia's King Uro I. She restored around 50 monasteries in the
region--- most notably Saint Sr and Vakh on the Bojana River. The
name Crna Gora (Montenegro) was formally mentioned for the first
time in 1296, in the charter of St. Nicholas' monastery in Vranjina.
This charter was issued by the Serbian King Stefan Milutin Nemanji,
who was the youngest son of Uro I and Jelena Kurtene. Crna Gora
(Montenegro) was to be understood as the highland region under
Mount Loven, within the confines of Zeta. By the beginning of the
14th century, during King Milutin's reign, the Archdiocese in Bar was the strongest feudal lord in Zeta.
From 1309 to 1321, Zeta was co-ruled by the oldest son of King Milutin, Young King Stefan Uro III Deanski.
Similarly, from 1321 to 1331, Stefan's young son Stefan Duan Uro IV Nemanji, the future Serbian King and
Emperor, co-ruled Zeta with his father.
Duan the Mighty was crowned Emperor 1331, and ruled until his death in 1355. Uro the Weak succeeded him, his
epithet was given due to his weak rule of the Empire.
Head arko held the Lower Zeta region, he is mentioned in records from 1356, when he raided some traders from
Dubrovnik, not far from Sveti Sr at Lake Skadar. Zeta itself was held by the widow of Duan, Jelena, who at the
time was in Serres where she had her court. The next year, in june, arko becomes a citizen of the Republic of
Venice, where he is known as "baron lord of the Serbian King, with holdings in the Zeta region and Bojana of the
maritime".
Knight ura Iliji was "Head" (Kefalija, from Greek Cephalus) of Upper Zeta until his murder in 1362. ura had
been killed by the sons of a Bala, a nobleman that held one village during the reign of Duan.
[1]

[2]
29
The House of Bali
States in the Central Balkans (including Realm of Zeta of the House
of Bali) in the 14th century
The earliest State of Balsic
Founding
The Balii are mentioned as provincial Lords
somewhere in between in an 1360 chart issued to the
Republic of Dubrovnik by Emperor Uro the Weak (an
epithet due to his weak rule).
[3]
According to Mavro Orbin (l. 15631614), "A poor
Lord Bala", said to be ""kin to Nemanja"" held only a
village located between the Adriatic and Bojana river
during the rule of Serbian Emperor Duan the Mighty
(r. 1331-1355) but after the death of the Emperor and
following years under his son, Uro, by 1362 taken
over Lower Zeta, going on to kill voivode ura Iliji
(founder of the House of uraevi-Crnojevi), Duke
of Upper Zeta who had held the position since around
1326 (since King Stefan of Deani). Bala I, together
with his three sons Stracimir, ura I and Bala II,
conquered Upper Zeta and the towns of Skadar, Kotor
and Bar. ura I ruled until 1378 and Bala II until
1385.
[3]
ura I
ura I's rule of Zeta extended from around 1362 to
1378. During this time, he forged an alliance with King
Vukain Mrnjavevi, but Vukain Mrnjavevi was
killed soon afterwards at the Battle of Maritsa in 1371.
ura I married Vukain's daughter, Olivera.
ura I ran Zeta as a modern ruler of the time. Zeta's
institutions were functioning well, while the coastal
towns enjoyed considerable autonomy. Commerce was
well developed and enhanced by the existence of Zeta's
currency, the dinar.
ura I allied with his neighbors Prince Lazar
Hrebeljanovi of Serbia, Ban Tvrtko I Kotromani of
Bosnia, Prince Nikola I Gorjanski and King Louis I of
Hungary, to defeat the ambitious Herzegovina'a ruler Nikola Altomanovi in 1373. In spite of this, the defeated and
blinded Nikola Altomanovi found a refuge in Zeta until his death.
While he was battling in the south of Kosovo, ura's younger brother Bala II, married Komnina, a close cousin of
the mighty Tzar Duan Uro IV Nemanji's wife, Jelena. By marrying Komnina, ura II received a generous dowry
in land, including Avlona, Berat, Kanina, and some additional strategically important regions.
Upon the division of Herzegovina, the Balis took the towns of Trebinje, Konavle and Draevica. Subsequent
dispute over these towns led to a conflict between Zeta and Bosnia, led by Ban Tvrtko I. The fight was eventually
won by Bosnia, supported by Hungary, after ura's death in 1378.
30
Bala II
In 1378, following ura's death, his brother Bala II became the King of Zeta. In 1382, Ban Tvrtko I conquered
Draevica, and built the town later known as Herceg-Novi. Both Tvrtko I and Bala II aspired to ascend to the throne
of the House of Nemanji.
During his rule, Bala II's could not maintain the control of the feudal lords as his predecessor did. His power was
strong only in region around Skadar, and in the eastern part of Zeta. The most prominent feudal lords who did not
recognize Bala's rule was the House of Crnojevi, who were consistent encouraged by the Venetians to rebel against
him.
Bala II needed four attempts to conquer Dra, an important commercial and strategic center. Defeated, Karl Thopia
appealed to the Turks for help. Turkish forces led by Hajrudin Pasha inflicted heavy damage to Bala II's forces and
killed him at a major battle at Saurian Field near Berat, in 1385.
ura II
Picture of coat of arm in
silver coin ura II, about
1400 AD
The successor of Bala II, ura II Stracimirovi Bali, ruled Zeta from 1385 to 1403,
was Bala's nephew and son of Stracimir. He also had difficulties controlling the local
feudal lords, with no control over the feudal lords in the entire Upper Zeta. In addition,
the feudal lords around Onogot (Niki) accepted the Venetian protection. The most
prominent of those lords was Radi Crnojevi, who controlled the area between Budva
and Mount Loven. Moreover, a number of Arbanas feudal lords, particularly Lek
Dukagjini and Paul Dukagjini joined the conspiracy against ura II.
With this in mind as well as the constant danger from the Turks, ura II maintained
strong family ties with the Serbia's main lord of the time, Prince Lazar. To help Prince
Lazar defend the Serbian lands from Ottoman invasion, ura II sent his troops along
with Ban Tvrtko I Kotromani's forces (with whom he had a dispute over Kotor) to meet
the Ottoman army at Kosovo Polje. Despite Sultan Murad I's death, the Serbian army
suffered a defeat at the epic Battle of Kosovo in 1389. According to the sources, ura II
did not participate in the battle but was in Ulcinj in Southern Zeta.
In later years, ura II played skillful diplomatic games to enhance the rivalry between the Ottomans and the
Venetians. To that purpose, he offered Skadar to both hoping that eventually he would be able to keep it. After two
years of fighting, Turks and Venetians agreed to leave it to ura II, who was neutral in the conflict. Similarly, the
rivalry between Venetians and Hungarians brought a benefit to him. After a serious defeat of his forces by Turks
near Nikopolje, the Hungarian King Sigismund gave him the title of Prince of Arbania and the control over the
islands of Hvar and Korula.
In the feud between ura Brankovi and his uncle, Stefan Lazarevi (son of Prince Lazar), who later received the
title of Byzantine Despot, ura II sided with Stefan. Due to ura's support, Stefan defeated Turkish forces led by
ura Brankovi in the Battle of Graanica on Kosovo Field on June 21, 1402.
31
Bala III
In 1403, ura II's 17-year old son, Bala III, inherited the throne of Zeta after his father died as a consequence of
the injuries he suffered in the Battle of Graanica. As he was young and inexperienced, his main advisor was his
mother Jelena, a sister of the Serbian ruler, Stefan Lazarevi. Under her influence, Bala III declared Montenegrin
Orthodox Christianity as the official state religion; however, Catholicism was tolerated.
Bala III continued the policies of his father. In 1418, took Skadar from the Venetians, but lost Budva. In the
following year he made an unsuccessful attempt to recapture Budva. Afterwards he went to Belgrade to ask for help
from Despot Stefan, but never returned to Zeta.
Zeta in the Despotate (1421-1451)
Stefan Lazarevi
In 1421, before his death and under the influence of his mother Jelena, Bala III passed the rule of Zeta to Despot
Stefan Lazarevi. He fought Venetians and regained Bar in mid-1423, and in the following year he sent his nephew
ura Brankovi, who regaining Drivast and Ulcinium (Ulcinj).
ura Brankovi
In 1427, Despot Stefan died and Serbian was inherited by his nephew, Despot ura Brankovi who, at the time,
needed to confront the more serious threat of the Ottoman Empire, and so could not pay particular attention to Zeta.
House of Crnojevi
House of Crnojevi Coat of Arms
Ascent to Power
The House of Crnojevi began with two brothers, ura and Aleksa
uraevi-Crnojevi, from the area around Mount Loven. But far more
important roles in establishing this family's rule in Zeta were played by Stefan
I Crnojevi (14511465) and his son Ivan Crnojevi (14651490). Ivan's son
ura Crnojevi (14901496) was the last ruler from this dynasty. Beginning
with the House of Crnojevi rule, Zeta began to be referred to commonly as
Crna Gora (Montenegro).
Stefan I
Stefan I Crnojevi consolidated his power in Zeta and ruled for 14 years, from
1451 until 1465. During his rule, he saw the Despotate completely subdued by
Turkey soon after the death of Despot ura Brankovi. Under Stefan
Crnojevi, Montenegro comprised the Loven area around Cetinje, 51
municipalities which included Rijeka Crnojevia (Crnojevi River), the valley of the River Zeta and the clans
Bjelopavlii, Pjeivci, Malonsii, Piperi, Hoti, Klimenti (Kelmendi) and others. The population of the territories
controlled by Stefan was about 30,000. Total population of Zeta (including regions under the Venetian, Kosaa's and
Turkish rule), was about 80,000 people.
Capitalising on the weak position of Despot ura, the Venetians and Herzog Stjepan Vuki Kosaa of St. Sava
(the region of Herzegovina is named after him) conquered parts of his territory. Stefan I Crnojevi, who had already
established himself as the head of House of Crnojevi (around 1451) in Upper Zeta was forced to make territorial
concessions. In addition, Kosaa took Stefan's son, Ivan a hostage, hoping that this will force Stefan to side with him
when needed.
32
Stefan married Mara, a daughter of a prominent Albanian Gjon Kastrioti, whose son was the Albanian national hero,
Skanderbeg. In 1455, Stefan entered into an agreement with his ally Venice, stipulating that Zeta would recognize
the nominal supremacy of Venice while maintaining its factual independence in virtually every respect. The
agreement also stipulated that Zeta would assist Venice militarily on specific occasions in exchange for an annual
provision. But in all other respects, Stefan's rule in Zeta was undisputed.
Ivan
Ivan Crnojevi became ruler of Zeta/Montenegro in 1465. His rule lasted until 1490. Immediately after taking the
throne, Ivan attacked Venice breaking the alliance his father had forged. He fought Venice in an attempt to capture
Kotor. He had some success, gaining increasing support from the coastal Slavic tribes of Grbalj and Patrovii in his
quest to assert control over the Bay of Kotor. But when the Ottoman campaign in northern Albania and Bosnia
convinced him that the main source of danger to his country was to the East, he sought a compromise with Venice.
Ivan fought numerous battles against the Turks.
The State of Crnojevi in XV century
Zeta and Venice fought against the Ottoman Empire. The war
ended with the successful defense of Skadar, where the Venetian
and Zetan defenders fought off forces of against Turkish Sultan
Mehmed II and eventually won the war in 1474. However, this
victory was short-lived, since the Sultan's forces conquered Skadar
in 1479 and signed a peace treaty with Venice. Ivan had
aspirations to organise an anti-Turkish alliance consisting of
Napolitan, Venetian, Hungarian, and Zetan forces. However, his
dream could not be fulfilled since the Venetians did not dare to
help Ivan after their peace treaty with the Ottoman Empire in
1479. Left on his own, Ivan single-handedly managed to preserve
Zeta from frequent Ottoman offensives.
Knowing that the Ottomans would try to punish him for fighting
on the Venetian side, and in order to preserve his independence, in
1482 he moved his capital from abljak on Lake Skadar to the
mountainous area of Dolac, under Mount Loven. There he built
the Orthodox Christian monastery (Cetinje Monastery) around
which the capital, Cetinje, would emerge. This event marks the end of the history of Zeta, since the country
permanently changed its name to Montenegro during ura Crnojevi's rise to power.
ura IV
ura IV Crnojevi became ruler of Zeta in 1490. His rule lasted until 1496. ura, Ivan's oldest son, was an
educated ruler. He is most famous for one historical act: he used the printing press brought to Cetinje by his father to
print the first books in southeastern Europe, in 1493. The Crnojevi printing press marked the beginning of the
printed word among South Slavs. The press operated from 1493 through 1496, turning out religious books, five of
which have been preserved: Oktoih prvoglasnik, Oktoih petoglasnik, Psaltir, Molitvenik, and etvorojevanelje.
ura managed the printing of the books, wrote prefaces and afterwords, and developed sophisticated tables of
Psalms with the lunar calendar. The books from the Crnojevi press were printed in two colors, red and black, and
were richly ornamented. They served as models for many books printed in Cyrillic.
After the rule of Zeta was handed to ura, his youngest brother, Stania, with no chance to succeed his father, Ivan,
went to Constantinople and converted to Islam. As a loyal servant of the Sultan, Stania later became the Shkodrian
Sanjak-Bey under the name of Skender. His brothers, ura and Stefan II continued the struggle against Ottomans.
The historical facts are unclear and disputed, but it seems that the Venetians, frustrated by their own inability to
33
subdue the House of Crnojevi to their own interests, managed to kill Stefan II and deceitfully sent ura to
Constantinople. Principally, ura visited Venice to work on the wide anti-Ottoman campaign, but was kept in
captivity for some time while Stefan II was defending Zeta against the Ottomans. It is likely that upon his return to
Zeta, ura was kidnapped by the Venetian agents and sent to Constantinople under the accusation that he had been
organizing a Holy War against Islam. There are some unreliable claims that ura was given Anatolia to rule, but in
any case the reports about ura's whereabouts ceased after 1503.
The End of the Principality
After the death of ura Crnojevi, Zeta was ruled by his brother Stefan II, as an Ottoman vassal. The end of the
15th century and of Stefan's rule marked the end of the House of Crnojevi. In the new administrative division of the
Balkans, Zeta was a part of the Sanjak of kodra (Skadar) from 1499 to 1514. During this period, while Brda and
North-West of Montenegro were nominally independent, the part of Zeta under Mount Loven remained entirely
independent. By the end of the 15th century, Upper Zeta comprised Katunska, Rijeka, Crmnika, and Ljeanska
Nahijas.
In 1514, Zeta was proclaimed as the separate Sanjak of Montenegro, by the order of Sultan Beyazid II. Ivan
Crnojevi's son Stania (Skenderbeg), who converted to Islam was chosen ad the first Sanjak-Bey and governed until
1528. Despite Skenderbeg's emphasized cruelty, Ottomans did not have real power in Zeta. The real power was in
the hands of tribal heads. From 1534 onwards, there is no more mention of the Crnojevis in Zeta. They reappeared
in Montenegrin history as arnojevis. Their most prominent member was Archbishop of Pe and Patriarch of Slavs
Arsenije III arnojevi (16331706).
In 1516, there was a shift in the constitution of Zeta. The last person of the House of Crnojevi retired to Venice and
married a Venetian. This conferred the succession upon the bishops of Cetinje. In Zeta, the position of vladika, as the
prince-bishop was known, brought stability to that country's leadership. The link between church and state elevated it
in the eyes of the peasantry, gave it an institutionalized form of succession that prevented its becoming a matter of
contest between minor chieftains, and excluded the possibility of compromising alliances with the Ottomans.
The Principality of Zeta officially ended when it was turned into a theocratic state by the Vladikas (Prince-Bishops
or Prince-Episcopes) when they took over in 1516. Zeta became known internationally as "Montenegro" (meaning
black mountain) because the mountain realm, though isolated, was visible to Venetian speaking merchants and
seamen operating out of the ports of Cattaro and Ragusa on the Dalmatian coast. Indeed, access to the principality
was only possible by way of the perilous Steps of Catarro that twist their way steeply into the dark, forbidding
mountains above the town. The Ottomans had controlled a part of Zeta since 1498, that was known as the Sanjak of
Montenegro, the Republic of Venice controlled Cattaro and the Vladikas of Montenegro controlled the rest.
List of rulers
House of Nemanji
Grand Zhupan Stefan Nemanja (11861196)
Vukan II Nemanji of Duklja/Zeta and Dalmatia (11961208)
King ore Nemanji 1208-1243
King Stefan Uro I 1243-1276
Queen Helene d'Anjou (Widow of King Stefan Uro I) (12761309)
King Stefan Milutin Nemanji (13091321)
King Stefan Uro III Nemanji (St. Stefan Deanski) (13091321)
King Stefan Deanski|Stefan Uro III Nemanji (St. Stefan Deanski) (13211331)
King Stefan Duan Uro IV Nemanji (13211331)
King and Tsar Stefan Duan Uro IV Nemanji (13311355)
34
House of Bali
Bala I (13561362)
ura I (13621378)
Bala II (13781385)
ura II (13851403)
Bala III (14031421)
Despots
Despot Stefan Lazarevi (14211427)
Despot ura Brankovi (14271435)
House of Crnojevi
Stefan I Crnojevi (14511465)
Ivan Crnojevi (14651490)
ura Crnojevi (14901496)
Stefan II Crnojevi (14961498)
References
[1] Zeljko Fajfri: Sveta loza Stefana Nemanje (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ istorija/ loza_nemanjica/ fajfric-svloza_5. html) "Posle toga krenuo je sa
svojim ljudima na osvajanje Gornje Zete, koju je drao ura Iliji i njegovi roaci. uraa ubie Balini sinovi, neke njegove roake
zarobie, a ostali napustie zemlju. I tako su Balini sinovi zagospodarili i Gornjom Zetom"
[2] The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=LvVbRrH1QBgC)
[3] Zeljko Fajfric: Sveta loza Stefana Nemanje (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ istorija/ loza_nemanjica/ fajfric-svloza_5. html) (Projekat Rastko)
Chapter 44, Oblasni gospodari: "Bala o kojem emo sada govoriti bee veoma siromaan zetski vlastelin i za ivota cara Stefana drao je
samo jedno selo. Ali kad je umro car, a kako njegov sin Uro nije bio valjan vladar, poeo je s nekoliko svojih prijatelja i sa svojim sinovima
Stracimirom, urem i Balom da zauzima Donju Zetu." "Posle toga krenuo je sa svojim ljudima na osvajanje Gornje Zete, koju je drao
ura Iliji i njegovi roaci. uraa ubie Balini sinovi, neke njegove roake zarobie, a ostali napustie zemlju. I tako su Balini sinovi
zagospodarili i Gornjom Zetom" "Isto tako pali su u njihove ruke Dukaini koji su imali mnogo poseda u Zeti. Neke su poubijali, a druge
bacili u tamnicu. Pri osvajanju ovih i drugih pokrajina vie su se sluili lukavstvom i prevarama nego silom oruja"
Sources
Dr eljko Fajfri - Sveta loza Stefana Nemanje (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ istorija/ loza_nemanjica/ index. html),
1998
J. Jovanovi, Stvaranje Crnogorske Drave i Razvoj Crnogorske Nacionalnosti, 1947, Cetinje pages 18, 28, 36,
43, and 54-55
D. ivkovi, Istorija Crnogorskog Naroda, 1989, Cetinje
Bala I of Zeta
35
Bala I of Zeta
Bala
Coat of Arms
Ethnicity Serb
Title Lord of Zeta
Children ura
Stracimir
Bala II
Bala (Serbian: I) was a 14th-century Serbian provincial Lord of the Zeta region 1360-1362, subordinate the
Serbian Emperor Uro the Weak.
[1]
He is the founder of the noble House of Bali.
Bala was a petty nobleman and held only one village during the rule of Emperor Duan the Mighty (r. 1331-1355)
but manages to expand his local power sometime after the death of Duan (20 December 1355).
[1]
He begins with
taking lands previously held by Lord arko, (south of Lake Skadar, Lower Zeta
[1]
), and is recognized as Oblastni
gospodar (Lord) in charters of Emperor Uro the Weak (r. 1355-1371). In 1362 his sons kill Head of Upper Zeta
ura Iliji and expand further in Upper Zeta.
[1]
He died the same year.
He had three sons, ura, Stracimir, and Bala II, two of whom ruled Zeta: ura and Bala II.
References
[1] Zeljko Fajfric: Sveta loza Stefana Nemanje (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ istorija/ loza_nemanjica/ fajfric-svloza_5. html) (Projekat Rastko)
Chapter 44, Oblasni gospodari: "Bala o kojem emo sada govoriti bee veoma siromaan zetski vlastelin i za ivota cara Stefana drao je
samo jedno selo. Ali kad je umro car, a kako njegov sin Uro nije bio valjan vladar, poeo je s nekoliko svojih prijatelja i sa svojim sinovima
Stracimirom, urem i Balom da zauzima Donju Zetu." "Posle toga krenuo je sa svojim ljudima na osvajanje Gornje Zete, koju je drao
ura Iliji i njegovi roaci. uraa ubie Balini sinovi, neke njegove roake zarobie, a ostali napustie zemlju. I tako su Balini sinovi
zagospodarili i Gornjom Zetom" "Isto tako pali su u njihove ruke Dukaini koji su imali mnogo poseda u Zeti. Neke su poubijali, a druge
bacili u tamnicu. Pri osvajanju ovih i drugih pokrajina vie su se sluili lukavstvom i prevarama nego silom oruja"
Sources
Dr eljko Fajfri - Sveta loza Stefana Nemanje (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ istorija/ loza_nemanjica/ index. html),
1998
The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century (http:/ / books. google. com/
books?id=LvVbRrH1QBgC)
J. Jovanovi, Stvaranje Crnogorske Drave i Razvoj Crnogorske Nacionalnosti, 1947, Cetinje pages 18, 28, 36,
43, and 54-55
D. ivkovi, Istorija Crnogorskog Naroda, 1989, Cetinje
ura I Bali
36
ura I Bali
ura I
Died 13 January 1378Shkodr, Zeta
Causeof death Natural causes
Nationality Serb
Title Lord
Term 1372 - 1378
Predecessor Bala I
Successor Bala II
Religion
Serbian Orthodox
Roman Catholic
[1]
Spouse Olivera Mrnjavevi
Teodora Dejanovi Draga
Children Jelisaveta
Goisava
Jevdokija (Eudokia)
Konstantin (Kota)
ura (illegitimate)
Parents Bala I
Unknown wife
ura Bali (Serbian Cyrillic: I) was a 14th-century Serbian noble and Lord of Zeta from 1362 - 13 January
1378. He was the eldest of the three sons of Bala I, and belonged to the House of Bali.
Reign
He was the eldest son of Bala, a petty nobleman that held one village during the rule of Emperor Duan the Mighty
(r. 1331-1355), who was said to be "kin to Nemanja". The family started taking Lower Zeta sometime following the
death of Duan in 1355. In 1362 they murdered ura Iliji who was Head of Upper Zeta, the Balii are henceforth
recognized as Oblastni Gospodari (Lords) of Zeta, as evident in charters of Uro the Weak (r. 1355-1371).
Campaign against Karlo Thopia
In 1363, ura declared war against the Thopias, an Albanian noble family which controlled northern Albania. The
Matarangos, an Albanian noble family which controlled southern Albania, were allied with the Balis as a result of
a quarrel with the Thopias in the south. In the spring of 1364, Karlo Thopia took ura captive due to a skirmish,
ending Zetan involvement in the war. ura was held captive until 1366 when Republic of Ragusa mediated peace
and procured his release.
In January of 1368, a Ragusan document reported that the three Bali brothers: Stracimir, ura and Bala II, were
preparing for a campaign against Karlo Thopia. They were camped on the Mati River, of which Karlo's lands lay
south of. The fighting was apparently small-scale as two months later, Karlo had no difficulty capturing
Dyrrhachium from the Angevins.
[2]
ura I Bali
37
Siege of Kotor
Hoping to acquire suzerainty over the town, ura had waged war against Kotor in 1368. Kotor, as a result of
warfare, was suffering economic decline. Accepting Zetan rule wasn't going to aid Kotor economically either. Kotor
resisted ura's assault after seeing the town of Bar paying an annual tribute of 2,000 ducats to ura, previously
paying 100 perpers to Serbia, expecting the same fate for Kotor. Kotor sought aid from Nikola Altomanovi, but
after his major defeat in Kosovo, he could provide little assistance. Kotor sought aid from the weak Tsar Uro V and
Venice. Neither provided much help as Venice was concerned that only their warships were on the Adriatic. In fact,
Venice wrote to Tsar Uro V in 1368, complaining that Serbia's armed ships were on the Adriatic, citing Bar, Budva
nand Ulcinj to have them. They had also stated that this was also a violation of the Veneto-Serbian treaty and
threatened to treat this ships as pirate vessels. However, Uro replied to that letter, stating that these ships that
Venice were complaining about belonged to ura I Bali, lord of Zeta.
Uro was unhappy with ura's actions as they were directed against Kotor, which was under Uro' suzerainty.
Concluding that ura was a rebel, the Serbian court claimed no responsibility for ura's actions that might violate
the Veneto-Serbian treaty.
In 1369, ura laid siege to Kotor. Kotor, having no choice, turned to Hungary for support and sought for Hungarian
suzerainty. Hungary sent a nobleman from Zadar to be the Prince of Kotor. This action only increased Kotor's
troubles, as it lost its trade privileges with Serbia for a time, causing a larger economic turmoil for Kotor. By spring
1370, probably through Venetian mediation, ura had made peace with Kotor. However, in the same year, Nikola
Altomanovi attacked Kotor.
[3]
Campaign against Nikola Altomanovi
In 1371, ura announced to Ragusan
Republic that Vukain Mrnjavevi
and his son, Marko, along with their
armies, were in Scutari with ura,
preparing an attack on Altomanovi.
Dubrovnik assisted their campaign by
providing ships to transport men and
supplies, since their campaign was in
Dubrovnik's interests. However, the
campaign never took place as Vukain
and Marko went to aid Vukain's
brother, Jovan Ugljea, in a campaign
against the Turks, which ended up in
total disaster, Ugljea being killed in
the Battle of Maritsa. Altomanovi
thought was now in even more trouble.
Prince Lazar Hrebeljanovi of Serbia
and Ban Tvrtko I of Bosnia allied
themselves to defeat Nikola
Altomanovi. Desperate for a strong
ally, Altomanovi began negotiations
with ura. Most historians agree that in concluding negotiations, ura gained the towns of Trebinje, Konavle and
Draevica from Altomanovi, possibly a bribe to remain neutral within the war. Other historians, however, follow
ura I Bali
38
Mauro Orbini's account and argue that ura never concluded such an agreement, rather conquered the towns he
gained from the agreement himself after Altomanovi was defeated in 1373.
[4]
Rivalry with Prince Marko
After the Battle of Maritsa, Marko, the son of Vukain Mrnjavevi, was crowned king and gained his father's lands.
However, his friendship with the Balis soon crumbled. This was a result of ura, in 1371, expelling his first wife
Olivera, Marko's sister, and took Prizren from Marko. Lazar Hrebeljanovi, prince of Moravian Serbia, conquered
Pritina in the same year. ura took Pe a year later, stripping most of Marko's lands north of ar mountain.
[5]
Death
ura I died on 13 January 1378 in Skadar. However, recent studies now conclude that ura died in 1379 rather
than in 1378. The rule of Zeta was passed down to his younger brother, Bala II. ura's death caused quite a stir
between Zeta's neighbours. Bosnian Ban Tvrtko I annexed ura's territories bordering Dubrovnik in 1377, along
with the remainder of ura's coastal lands between the Bay of Kotor and the land previously annexed in 1377 at the
time of his death. Tvrtko secured these possessions through ura's death, free of worry of any counter-attack.
Vuk Brankovi also took this opportunity to gain ura's land. Brankovi sent his forces into Metohija and seized
Prizren, along with the rest of ura's holdings in the region.
[6]
Family and Children
ura I was married to two women: Olivera Mrnjavevi (daughter of Vukain Mrnjavevi) before 1364 and
Teodora Dejanovi/Draga (daughter of despot Dejan) after 1371. He had the following issue:
Jelisaveta (d. 1443)
Goisava (d. 1398), married Radi Sankovi, lord of Nevesinje, Popovo Polje and Konavli
Jevdokija (Eudokia), married to Esau de' Buondelmonti, despot of Epirus
Konstantin (Kota) (d. 1402), local Zetan lord
ura (illegitimate)
References
[1] The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest, page 388 (http:/ / books. google.
com/ books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC& pg=PA533& lpg=PA533& dq=svetomiholjska+ metohija& source=web& ots=8AnkP01Yen&
sig=iXrTNsrJ-ZiCTf3aGwSrGlzGl2Q#PPA388,M1)
[3] The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest, pages 376-377 (http:/ / books.
google.com/ books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC& pg=PA533& lpg=PA533& dq=svetomiholjska+ metohija& source=web& ots=8AnkP01Yen&
ura I Bali
39
Sources
Sveta loza Stefana Nemanje (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ istorija/ loza_nemanjica/ fajfric-svloza_5. html), chapter 41:
"Bala o kojem emo sada govoriti bee veoma siromaan zetski vlastelin i za ivota cara Stefana drao je samo
jedno selo. Ali kad je umro car, a kako njegov sin Uro nije bio valjan vladar, poeo je s nekoliko svojih prijatelja
i sa svojim sinovima Stracimirom, urem i Balom da zauzima Donju Zetu."
"Posle toga krenuo je sa svojim ljudima na osvajanje Gornje Zete, koju je drao ura Iliji i njegovi roaci.
uraa ubie Balini sinovi, neke njegove roake zarobie, a ostali napustie zemlju. I tako su Balini sinovi
zagospodarili i Gornjom Zetom"
The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest, John
Van Antwerp Fine, 1987
Bala II
Bala II (died September 18, 1385) was the Ruler of Principality of Zeta and a member of the House of Bali,
which ruled Shkodra and Zeta from 1356 to 1435. Balsha II was the youngest of three sons of Bala I. On January
13, 1378, he came to power in Zeta after the death of his older brother, ura I. His power was felt only in region
around Shkodra and in the eastern part of Zeta's coast. The most prominent feudal lords who did not recognize
Balsha's rule were the uraevi-Crnojevi family, encouraged by Venetians.
In 1372, Bala II married Komnina (Kanina), a daughter of John Komnenos Asen. As a dowry, Balsha gained the
cities of Berat and Kanina.
[1]
In 1382, Bala II started the war for the conquest of Durrs, taking it following four attempts. In 1385, defeated ruler
Karl Topia appealed to Murat I for assistance and Ottoman Army led by Hajredin Pasha routed the Balii the Battle
of Savra near Berat. The Turks chopped Bala's head off and sent it as an exclusive gift to Hajredin Pasha. This ends
the rule of his family over Durrs.
Bala's widow, Komnina, and their daughter Ruina, later took control of Bala's territory in southern Albania to
protect it from Turkish invaders. Komnina seemed to be the Duchy of Valona's main ruler, until her death in 1396. In
the meantime, the Muzakaj family had gained control of Berat. In 1391, however, Ruina married Mrka arkovi.
arkovi succeeded the duchy, calling himself Lord of Valona. He reigned over the city until his death in 1414.
Ruina took over her late husband's position and ruled Valona until 1417, when it, as well as its citadel in Kanina,
was seized by the Turks.
[2]
Ruina fled Albania and sought asylum in Zeta. Her nephew, Bala III, then-ruler of
Zeta, granted her asylum and entrusted her with governorship of the coastal town of Budva.
[3]
References
com/ books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC& pg=PA511& lpg=PA511& dq=drivast& source=web& ots=8BgcJY8Vam&
sig=h6vkryf786DiahzLA6wzyJDB1_M& hl=en& sa=X& oi=book_result& resnum=2& ct=result#PPA514,M1)
ura II
40
ura II
ura Stracimirovi
Born ura
Died April 1403Ulcinj
Causeof death Injuries
Resting place Church of Saint Catherine
Ethnicity Serb
Title Lord
Predecessor Bala II
Successor Bala III
Religion Roman Catholic
Spouse Jelena Lazarevi
Children Bala
Parents Stracimir Bali
Milica Mrnjavevi (d. Jerina)
ura II Stracimirovi (Serbian Cyrillic: II , Albanian: Gjergj) anglicized Djuradj, Djerdj"
or George; archaic version ure or Djurdje, Serbian: , pronounced[durad]; died April 1403) of the House
of Bali (), was a ruler of several Serbian lands from 1385 to 1403, most notably Zeta. He was the son of
Stracimir, a brother of ura's predecessor Bala II, and his wife Milica rnjavevi
[1]
(Jerina
[2]
), daughter of
fallen Serbian King Vukain Mrnjavevi.
He reigned from 1386 up to 1389 in the still officially undissolved Serbian Empire in the form of a family alliance,
then up to 1395 as an Ottoman vassal. He ruled until his death in 1403, when he was inherited by his only son, Bala
III. He contributed greatly to secularization of Zeta and its modernization as a true tiny Medieval realm.
ura II
41
Reign
Picture of coat of arms, on the silver coins of
Djuradj II Balsic (1385-1403).
In 1372 ura had succeeded his father Stracimir as the fief lord of
Upper Zeta, Serbian Empire, of the Bali family collective domain.
ura, in the standards of collective family reign, issued together with
his uncles Bala II and presiding ura I an edict in the Republic of
Ragusa on 30 November 1373. The edict confirmed the laws of Tsar
Stefan Uro from the Serbian Nemanji and gave privileges to Ragusian
traders, including imposed taxes to the Adriatic City. It also included a
unique clause, recognizing the sovereignty and territorial integrity of the
Serbian Empire even though for years without an Emperor and any form
of centralized strong authority, a note that if anyone would became the
new sovereign Emperor of the Serbs and the Serbian nobility and lands,
all the points shall be transferred from the Balis to him. ura I's
Logotet Vitko was the witness, as well as Draga Kosai
[3]
. The
collectivity of the family of the Balis marked this unique feudal system
applied to their domain.
Bala II succeeded ura, what happened precisely is not known but
from ca 1380 to Bala's death in 1385, young ura was held captive by
the reigning uncle
[1]
, possibly in order to eliminate possible pretenders.
Bala governed ura's lands himself during this period.
Establishment
On 18 September 1385, ura's uncle Bala II was
killed by the Ottoman Turks at the Battle of Savra.
Following the temporary rule of Bala's widow
Komnena, daughter of Despot of Valona Ivan
Komnenos Asen, together with her daughter
Ruina, ura inherited the parts of Zeta and
northern Albania, including the cities of Skadar,
Drivast and Lje, as per the Balis' traditional rule
of seniority, as "self-holder to the Zeta and Coast
land". ura was the governor of Ulcinj, which
henceforth became the Balis' home town. The
remainder of the Bali possessions, in southern
Albania, passed in 1391 from Ruina to her spouse
Mrka arkovi, son of Emperor Duan's
nobleman arko. The protovestijar Philip Bareli,
the Venetian trader that handled Bala's financing, who was succeeded by ura, is also mentioned.
ura had succeeded leadership in the heats of disarray. The Pal Dukagjini broke off their allegiance to ura,
taking Lje and the Drim area. Finally the Jonin family seceded with their own lands between Dra and the Drim,
causing ura to lose his very last possessions in Albania. Before even consolidating rule, Karlo Thopia conquered
Dra and assigned it to his son George, Nikola Sakat, the Kastelan of Budva, and his brother Andrija seceded the city
after 1386 and Vuk Brankovi took Pe and Prizren. ura asked Dukagjini for an advice, and according to it, he
ura II
42
had the Sakat brothers imprisoned and blinded. In the Zeta plains themselves under Loven, ura had constant
conflicts with the opposing ruler of Upper Zeta, Radi Crnojevi, whose family has just come to prominence. The
area of Onogost seceded to the Venetian side. It is thus that for a short time ura's demesne was diminishing into a
small strip of land between Lake Skadar and the Adriatic Sea with his Ulcinj as the only city. Upon proclaiming
himself the sole head of the Bali family, he issued an official edict on 28 January 1386 in the City of Skadar,
calling his reign's strength upon "..the prayers and martyrs of my holy forefathers Symeon, the Nemanya, the first
Serbian Myhrr-flowing, and Sava the Saint" of his kin
[4]
. In it he also stated that the laws of the Serbian lords, his
predecessors Stracimir, ura and Bala, and in specific of Emperor Duan, shall remain and be valid for his reign.
It was a standard remark of the ruler's calling upon divine right and inspired by the heritage of the Serbian Medieval
state, now in feudal disarray
[5]
. Mladen Ili, Logotet Butko and Duke Nikola were witnesses in the edict
[3]
.
Serbian alliance
From the start of his reign, ura faced the potential threat from the powerful expansionist Ottoman Empire. To
strengthen political links, he married Jelena (b. 1368), daughter of the Serbian Moravian lord Lazar Hrebeljanovi,
after recognizing Lazar as his sovereign in 1386. The folklore has recorded that ura was at war with Prince Lazar
for three times before a peaceful union was achieved, although there is no historical confirmation. Prince Lazar
aimed at maintaining the heritage of the dispersing Serbian Empire. ura, Lazar, and Lord Vuk Brankovi of
Kosovo formed a family alliance to govern the renewed Serbian realm, presided over by Lazar. The three also shared
the annual tax paid to Serbian lords by the Republic of Ragusa. Each member retained some autonomy, however, as
can be seen through ura's styling of himself as "I, Bali in Christ the Lord, ura, pious and autocratic lord of
the lands of Zeta and the coast." Edicts for the realm were issued commonly by all three lords, extending Serbia to
some form of a level of a Triarchy, or even Diarchy, considering Vuk's considerably subordinate status to Lazar
[6]
.
ura also maintained diplomatic relations with the Ottoman Empire. ura owes his position and everlasting
presence on the scene to his political cunningness. He succeeded the traditional rivalry between his family and
Bosnian-Serbian King Tvrtko I Kotromani, whose Serbian crown the Balis did not recognize, most probably
because of their own claims to the Serbian throne
1
. On his diplomatic initiative, the Ottomans invaded Bosnia in
1386. During a second attack, ura even sent his own troops to support the Ottoman Beylerbey of Rumelia Lala
hin Paa at the Battle of Bilea on 27 August 1388, where he suffered a defeat to the hands of Bosnian Duke
Vlatko Vukovi Kosaa. This led to the suspicion that ura was an Ottoman vassal. The Ragusan Republic was
weary of this Ottoman expansion, so they wanted to negotiate with ura some military protection. On 23 August
1388 ura sent his envoy anin Bareli, Filip's son.
[3]
.
Legends record ura running with his forces to join the Serbian allied forces at the 1389 Battle of Kosovo and
returning after he heard the news about the fall; however this is very improbable if his links to the Ottomans in that
period are accounted for. The Epic telling records "Bao" coming late on the 3rd day to the Kosovo Field after the
battle and how he was furious at the alleged traitor "Duke Vukan Brankovi". Also the wrong daughter of "Emperor
Lazar", Olivera Despina, was remembered as married to ura
2
. Some historians who support the thesis of his
involvement in the battle identify him with the Serbian hero Banovi Strahinja, while others suspect he was depicted
in the heroic Milo Obili, who allegedly killed Ottoman Sultan Murad I, as the two share deep similarities
[7]
. In any
case, after the Battle of Kosovo, the Serbian Alliance crumbled and the last remains of the Serbian Empire dispersed,
leaving ura completely on his own.
ura II
43
Zeta on its own
In 1390 Vuk Brankovi sent envoys to Zeta and offered 500 liters of silver to Philip Bareli to hand over last ura's
bastion, the City of Ulcinj. Fearing the occasion, ura had him immediately imprisoned together with his
children
[8]
.
During his rule, ura, like his predecessors, tried to find an effective modus vivendi for extending his rule over the
City of Kotor. As the richest and most economically developed city on the southern Adriatic coast close to Zeta, it
fueled the rivalry between King Tvrtko and ura. For these reasons no friendship between the two was created,
even after peaceful relations were concluded in early 1389 on mediation of the Republic of Ragusa. When Tvrtko
died in the beginning of March 1391, the opportunity arose for ura and he subsequently seized Kotor.
From the start of ura's reign he had to face with the outlaw of his cousin Konstantin, administrator of the lands in
the rivers of Bojana and Drim, who didn't accept his supremacy in the Balis' lands. It is believed that Filip Bareli
had connections with Konstantin, so he was convicted for committing the highest felony, a "crime against ura's
authority" and all of his plentiful property was confiscated by ura. Konstantin went into Ottoman service and
since 1390 under protection of Sultan Bayezid I actively works to seize power as the Head Bali. As a result, ura
came into fierce opposition to the Ottomans in 1391, converted to Catholicism, and promised his lands in heritage to
Pope Boniface IX in the case of no heir apparent. Clearly siding with the Christian coalition under the legal Papal
States in conflict with the Avignonese Antipope Clement VII, ura took the side of Louis II of Anjou in his war
against Ladislas of Naples. But the broader plans for organizing a crusade against Turks have remained but a dream.
ura received a border with the Ottoman Empire as they took the lands of Vuk Brankovi in 1392. For opposition
to Turkish influence in the region, the Sultan sent an army to invade his lands in May of 1392. At the same time in
the heat of fighting his competitors Radi Crnojevi and Konstantin Bali, ura was forced to negotiate with the
Ottomans for peace terms. He negotiated with Skopje Sanjakbey Lala hin but the talks were fruitless as the
Ottoman demanded half of all his territories around Zeta, including his seat of Ulcinj. In addition to that, in late 1392
the bey tricked him and threw him into prison. His wife Jelena Hrebeljanovi was making moves to free him, with
the help of the Venetian Republic, but they all reached a moot end. One of the main reasons for that was that his
opponent Radi Crnojevi expanded his reign vastly and became a Venetian vassal in November 1392. The
possibility of this was ura's reluctance to release Philip Bareli, a Venetian citizen, despite many pleas from the
Republic. In the heat of struggle amongst feudal lords in Zeta, Philip managed in 1392 to flee from his prison to
Durrs, coming into John Thopia's service. On the other side King Stjepan Dabia dispatched Bosnian Duke Sandalj
Hrani from the Hum to takeover ura's lands and further agitate Radi Crnojevi.
Having no other choice, ura handed over to bey hin the cities of Skadar and Drivast and the Forum of Sveti Sr
on the Bojana River to the Turks, as well as agreed to pay annual taxes in exchange for his release. Ottoman
squadrons occupied the locations in early 1393. The same year he tried to claim his old Lje which was just handed
over by the Dukagjinis to the Venetians, but Radi's support of Venetian control proved crucial. Seeing the necessity
of Venetian support, he managed to get accepted into its citizenry in May 1395. ura did not rest for long, and
already in October 1395 he broke the deal while the Ottomans were at war against the Hungarians and Wallachians,
restored Skadar and Sveti Sr and even defeated his rival Konstantin by seizing his stronghold of Danj, with
Venetian assistance. To keep his cities safe, ura relied upon the rivalry between Turkey and Venice. He handed
over the cities into Venetian administration. When Ottoman advances obviously came to a halt, the Venetians
decided to negotiate the deal. In April 1396 a contract was signed. ura handed over Skadar, the Skadar Lake with
all its islands and Sveti Sr to Venetian administration, as well as agreed to channel the income from tolls in Danj, in
exchange for 1,000 ducats every year. He also promised to give the cities support in case of a Turkish attack and was
accepted into Venetian nobility. The whole act was typical for weak lords facing the mighty Ottoman Empire in the
coastline of the western Balkans. ura remained to rule directly just a small territory west of the Bojana river with
Bar and Ulcinj as the only cities.
ura II
44
In 1396 Koja Zakarija from the Sakat family came to power in northern Albania centered in Danj, independently
from ura.
Zeta's rebirth
At the end of April 1396, Radi and his brother Dobrivoje Crnojevi had made a significant move against ura.
They took Grbalj and laid siege to Kotor. ura became disliked by the Orthodox Serb commonfolk, so the
excessively Orthodox religious Crnojevis' takeover was looked upon nicely by the people, resulting in Patrovis'
cross to Radi's side. In May 1396 they moved to battle ura himself, however ura completely defeated the
Crnojevis and killed Radi, managing to get a hold over a part of the Crnojevi domain. Soon a new enemy arose at
the west; Bosnian nobleman Sandalj Hrani Kosaa seized large parts of land quickly and conquered Budva and
Kotor, made a deal with the Patrovis, also managing to win Venetian protection, who proclaimed him the
legitimate ruler of Budva and Zeta itself. In Upper Zeta the uraevi subgroup of the Crnojevis came to
prominence, though they made an agreement and joined ura, seeing a common enemy in Duke Sandalj. They
aided him in the wars against Sandalj, taking the first fronts by retaking all the lands from Budva to Spi as well as
the Churchland of Saint Miholj in the Bay of Kotor, the Serbian Orthodox religious center in Zeta. In December
1396, the Hungarian King Sigismund lost the Battle of Nicopolis. During his return across the sea, he stayed in
ura's lands. To honor ura for his fights against the Ottomans, Sigismund made him Prince of his Dalmatian
islands of Hvar and Krula.
The Most Serene Republic of Venice led an economic policy that soon introduced Venetian monetary domination in
the region, fully replacing that of the Balis', and ever since Spring 1396 clearly showed pretensions to take the
remaining lands of ura. The Venetian monopoly introduced by lowering customs and other taxes in Skadar and
Drivast greatly diminished the Balis' income so the relations between the two deteriorated. It is so that in 1399
when in the Venetian-administered Bali lands the oppressed peasants raised a rebellion, all the guilt was attributed
to ura. As a result, in early 1401 Venice ceased paying the annual thousand ducat tribute for the lands. Another
reason claimed were the frequent robberies by suspects from ura's domain of Venetian storehouses of salt in the
region, a crucial resource in that time. This caused ura to renew links with the Ottoman Turks again, but wars in
Asia Minor have made them impossible to intervene, which finally forced ura to succumb to Venetian demands.
As per the new deal, he paid for all the damage done by the robbers and agreed to give free passage and special
privileges to Venetian traders, while Venice continued to pay the tribute for the cities. These acts introduced
Venetian presence in the region, which would henceforth remain as an important local political factor. In 1402 his
long-term Bali rival Konstantin was killed by Venetian agents in Dyrrhachium under unknown circumstances.
Returning from the Battle of Angora, ura's brother-in-law, the newly-crowned Despot Stefan Lazarevi, stayed at
his court in the late Summer of 1402. ura prepared him and organized an army to battle his rival ura Brankovi
in Ottoman service at the Battle of Tripolje near Graanica on 21 June 1402, to help his cousin with all means
possible, ending in full victory. In April of 1403, ura II Stracimirovi died of the injuries suffered in the battle. He
was buried in the Church of Saint Catherine in his hometown of Ulcinj, where he still remains. Seventeen-year-old
Bala, ura II's only child, inherited his lands. He ruled with his mother as Chief adviser until she remarried in
1411, to Bosnian Duke Sandalj Hrani from Herzegovina. She gave a significant impact to Zetan foreign policy,
tying it strongly with the newly created Serbian Despotate as a former important part of the Empire
[9]
.
Miscellaneous
ura continued using the currency of his predecessors, coins forged with the wolf, chest, and shield symbols of the
Balis,
[10]
Dinars, used in the lands of the Serbian Empire, though he didn't mint many new coins, similar to his
predecessor, due to continuous weakening of the Balis' economic power. One of the two versions featured heads of
wolves and the Balis' coat of arms, each with a surrounding inscription: "M.D. GORGI STRACIMIR" on one side,
and "S.STEFAN SCUTARI" on the other. The other version had the character "M" next to the coat of arms and the
ura II
45
presentations of Balis' patron Saint Lawrence along with an inscription below him "S LAVRENCIUS M"
[11]
.
ura founded for the Serbian Orthodox Church a Church of Saint George and its Monastery of Beski (Brezovica)
on the island of Gorica in Lake Skadar, near Starevo. After his death, his wife Jelena expanded it with her own
mausoleum, where she was buried in 1443. The monastery became a significant cultural and spiritual center of the
Serbian Church, actively working in scribing and nourishing the Nemanji heritage
[12]
. ura's wife Jelena became
a deeply religious and talented poet, writing the opus of then's Old Serb-Slavic language
[13]
.
Notes
1
it seems that in the very early stages the Balis have become family-connected to the Nemanjis, but there is no further information; the most
probably explanation is because Zeta was the cradle of the major Serbian dynasties, Nemanji and Vojislavljevi
[14]
2
according to the legend she was planned to be married to Milo Obili, thus Djuradj's possible depiction in Obilic might've caused this mixup; in
reality she was sent to Ottoman Emperor's harem and married Sultan Bayezid I
References
[1] Foundation for Medieval Genealogy, Montenegro, Balii (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ MONTENEGRO. htm#_Toc156305674)
[2] (Serbian) Genealogies of Serb dynasties in Montenegro and Serbia (http:/ / www. njegos. org/ markus/ 20. jpg) by Jovan B. Marku
[3] Nemirno doba srpskog srednjeg veka, Vlastela srpskih oblasnih gospodara. Marko uica, Belgrade, 2000.
[4] Monumenta Serbica, Franz von Miklosich
[5] History of Montenegro, Second Book, From the end of XII to the end of XV Century, Volume Two, Montenegro in the Age of Regional
Lords. Redaction for the History of Montenegro (Dr Dimitrije Vujovic, Risto Dragicevic, Nikola Djakonovic, Milinko Djurovic, Dr Mirceta
Djurovic, Dr Pavle Mijovic, Dr Djoko Pejovic, Dr Vlado Strugar), Titograd (Podgorica), 1970
[6] History of the Serbian People, Group of Authors (Sima -irkovi,....)
[7] Serbian Epic Poetry (http:/ / home. earthlink. net/ ~markdlew/ SerbEpic/ gloss. htm) Glossary
[8] Istorija Crne Gore, Ivan Boi
[9] (Serbian) Ecclesiastic Occasions in Zeta during the Age of Nikanor Jerusalem's, Momilo Spremi (http:/ / www. rastko. org. rs/
bogoslovlje/ nikon/ simposion/ mspremic-zeta_c.html)
[10] (Serbian) "Appearance and development of currency", Economic Faculty (http:/ / www. ekonomija. co. me/ ), Podgorica
[11] Perper, the Montenegrin Currency (http:/ / www. montenegrina. net/ pages/ pages1/ istorija/ cg_od_20vij_do_1_svj_rata/
perper_crnogorski_novac. htm) by Pavle V. Novakovi
[12] Ecclesiastic Occasions in Zeta during the Age of Nikanor Jerusalem's, Momilo Spremi (http:/ / www. rastko. org. rs/ bogoslovlje/ nikon/
simposion/ mspremic-zeta_c. html)
[13] Anthology of Serbian Poetry, Miodrag Pavlovi
[14] Ethnic Identity of Doclea and Zeta, Aleksandar Rakovi
External links
HISTORICAL LEXICON - BALI-I, ura II Stracimirovi Bali (http:/ / www. montenegrina. net/ pages/
pages1/ istorija/ balsici/ balsici_andrijasevic_rastoder. htm) (Serbian)
Adi, Novak. BALI-S - URA II BALI- AS ARCHITECT OF A SOVEREIGN STATE OF ZETA,
FROM 1385 TO 1403 (http:/ / montenegrina. net/ pages/ pages1/ istorija/ balsici/ balsici_novak_adzic. htm)
article for Montenegrina (http:/ / montenegrina. net/ ) (Serbian)
ura II
46
Further reading
Rastoder, erbo, Andrijaevi, ivko, Papovi, Dragutin, Foli, Zvezdan, aboti, Sait, Drobnjak, Slobodan,
Selhanovi, Jadranka, Drini, eljko and Preki, Adnan (2006). Istorijski leksikon Crne Gore, Balii, ura II
Stracimirovi Bali entry, Daily Press - VIJESTI, 2006, ISBN 86-7706-165-7
Veselinovi, Andrija & Ljui, Rado (2001). ,
(Andrija Veselinovi), , Platoneum.
Intervju - , . Special Edition 12, 16 June 1989.
Bala III
Bala III (1387 - 28 April 1421, Belgrade) was the fifth and last ruler of Zeta from the House of Bala, from April
1403 - May 1421. He was the son of ura II. His wife was Mara, the granddaughter of the Bali Family rival, Karl
Thopia.
Reign
In April 1403, ura II's 17-year old son, Bala III, inherited the rule of Zeta as his father died in consequence of the
injuries suffered in the Battle of Graanica. As he was young and inexperienced, his main advisor was his mother,
Jelena, a sister of the ruler of Serbia at the time, Stefan Lazarevi. Under the influence of his mother, Jelena, Bala
III reverted the order of the state religion, passing the law whereby declaring Christian Orthodox as the official
confession of the state, while Catholicism became a tolerant confession.
Bala III waged a 10-year war against Venice. In 1405, Ulcinj, Bar and Budva were seized by the Venetians. Bala
then became a vassal to the Ottoman Turks. In 1409, however, Venice had purchased the rights to Dalmatia from
Ladislas of Naples and began fighting for control of Dalmatian cities. After a huge effort, Bala seized Bar from the
Venetians in 1412. Venice, pressed with difficulties, had no choice but to agree to return territories it had previously
seized.
[1]
Bala had waged a new war against Venice, which was connected to the war with the Hungaians and the Turks. In
1418, he conquered Shkodr from the Venetians, but lost Budva and Lutica with its salt works. In the next year,
1419, he made an unsuccessful attempt to recapture Budva. He went to Belgrade to ask for aid from Stefan
Lazarevi, but never returned to Zeta. In 1421, before his death and under the influence of his mother Jelena, he
passed the rule of Zeta to his uncle, Despot Stefan Lazarevi.
References
[1] [[Sima -irkovi|-irkovi, Sima M. (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=Ki1icLbr_QQC& pg=PA92& dq=Balsa+ Balsic&
sig=p16KRFV5zv9II_UbIltOXZjudao#PPA92,M1)]. The Serbs, page 92, Blackwell Publishing, 2004, ISBN 0-631-20471-7
Stefan I Crnojevi
47
Stefan I Crnojevi
War in Zeta (1441-1444. Years) Duchy of Stephen Vukcic
Kosaca annexed to the Upper Zeta Podgorica and square
fortress Medun. Conquered the city of Bar, with the fortress
(now Old Bar) in Lower Zeta.
Military despots ura Brankovic is broken under the Bar, in
mid-July 1448th year: 1. Altoman (Duke ura Brankovic),
2nd Stefanica Crnojevi (Duke ura Brankovic) held the
position in the hills above the Bar, 3rd Patrovii (most) on the
side of the Serbian despot ura; 4th Mrkojevii (paid warrior
troupe of 130 homes, the parish Prapratna, between Bar and
Ulcinj) most contributed to victory Venetians; 5.Venice
properties.
Stefan a.k.a. Stefanica Crnojevi (Montenegrin/Serbian
Cyrillic: , ; 1426-1465) was
a medieval lord of the Principality of Zeta (in Old
Montenegro), from the House of Crnojevi that ruled it
from 1451 to 1465.
Stefan I Crnojevi
48
Reign
Crnojevi family properties
Stefan was born in 1426 as the third son of the Zetan
Duke ura uraevi Crnojevi and the daughter of
Albanian nobleman Koj Zakarija. He became
nicknamed "Stefanica". When Stefanica grew up, he
became one of the many noblemen who governed
parts of Zeta within the Serbian Despotate, but did
not agree with the other Crnojevi members and
pursued his goals on his own, outside the mainstream
of the family.
With the temporary Ottoman occupation of the
Serbian Despotate's main continental territories in
1441, Despot ura Brankovi came to Zeta from the Ragusian Republic to organize resistance and liberate the
occupied parts, but the attempt did not come to fruition and resulted with the blinding of the despot's two captured
sons in retaliation. With his departure back to Hungary, Stefan aligned with the Bosnian nobleman Stefan Vuki
Kosaa of Hum.
[1]
Stefanica married the oldest daughter of Albanian lord Gjon Kastrioti, Maria Kastrioti, also called Mamica. This
family link became really important when in 1443 John's son and Maria's brother, Gjergj Kastrioti Skanderbeg
rebelled in Albania against his Turkish sovereign and served as a shield against Ottoman expansion to the
Crnojevi's lands for decades. In 1444 lord Stefan Crnojevi found strong new protectors in the Venetian Republic,
but with the restoration of the Serbian Despotate after the Crusade, Stefan gave his loyalty to Despot ura
Brankovi in 1448.
After the disappearance of Stefan's brother Goycinus from political life in 1451, Stefan took over the leadership of
the house of Crnojevi and became the ruler of a large part of Zeta. Stefanica was never good with his brothers and
always led politics on his own. To strengthen his position, he decided to immediately seek foreign protection. In
1452 he gave his loyalty to Venice, and became her hired Captain, subsequently entitled Duke of Upper Zeta.
Wisely, he anticipated the downfall of the Serbian Despots, and decided to align with the Venetians. In 1455 the
Ottoman Turks invaded Serbia and conquered all of its territories south of the Western Morava river, completely
cutting Zeta off from the core of the Despotate. Therefore, Duke Stefan Crnojevi along with representatives from all
51 municipalities from Upper Zeta signed an agreement the same year with the Venetians in Vranjina, by which
Upper Zeta accepted Venetian rule. Venice came to rule only the cities, while all internal affairs were left to duke
Stefan. The Republic of Venice also bound itself not to mettle with the ecclesiastical authority Serbian Orthodox
Metropolitan of Zeta in any way.
Montenegro slowly became the name of Stefan's Zetan realm. He reigned peacefully without the intervention of
Venice and the Ottomans until his death in late 1464 or the beginning of 1465, when his son Ivan succeeded him.
References
[1] Medieval and Renaissance Studies (1978). Viator (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=v9swtfALoisC& pg=PA388& dq=Stjepan+
Vuki+ Kosaa& lr=& as_brr=3& hl=hr& cd=1#v=onepage& q=& f=false). University of California Press. pp.388389.
ISBN0-520-03608-5. .
Ivan I Crnojevi
49
Ivan I Crnojevi
Ivan I Crnojevi
Lord of the Principality of Montenegro
Reign 1465 1490
Predecessor Stefan I Crnojevi
Successor ura IV Crnojevi
Royal House House of Crnojevi
Ivan Crnojevi (names in other languages) was the medieval ruler of Zeta and first lord of the Principality of
Montenegro from 1465 to 1490.
Reign
In his youth he was in the many raids against the domains of the Bosnian nobleman Stefan Vuki Kosaa of Hum
[1]
, and on one occasion he was captured. For a very long time was he the Herzog's servant before release. Ivan married
Goislava, the sister of the Albanian lord Gjergj Arianit Komneni of the Comnenus dynasty, and became related with
Serbian titular Despot Stefan Brankovi across his wife from the same family. In the beginning of his reign Ivan was
at very bad relations with the Venetians, whom he saw as occupiers of his cities. In return, the Venetians have put a
price on his head in 1465. But thanks to moves of the Saint Abbaside Duke Stephen and Albanian Lord Scanderbey,
in 1466 he became a Duke under payment from the Venetian Republic with the capital in abljak at the Lake Skadar.
His payment was quite fair, 1,200 ducats annually. In 1469 Ivan remarried. His next spouse was Mara, the daughter
of the Herzegovinian Duke Stephen.
Ivan I Crnojevi
50
The state of Crnojevi
Ivan Crnojevi fought fearsomely for the Venetians in its wars
against the Ottomans. The Venetian Captain of Upper Zeta and
Duke was accepted thus in 1473 into the ranks of Venetian
nobility. The next 1474 he further honored his obligations and
defended Skadar from an Ottoman attack. After this success, Duke
Ivan planned to liberate Herzegovina from Ottoman occupation for
the brother of his second wife, Duke Vladislav Hercegovi.
Conflicts came out over discussions regarding the future border
between the realms of Montenegro and Herzegovina, which
allowed Sultan Mehmed II to take initiative and invade
Montenegro, and with Duke Stephen's help the Turks seize Ivan's
throne of abljak in 1478. The next 1479 Ivan gave up on
Montenegro and fled to Italy, forced to leave his realm in Ottoman
hands.
After Sultan Mehmed II's death in 1481, Ivan Crnojevi came back
to occupied Montenegro. Using the civil war that erupted between
Mehmed's heirs, Bayezid and Jem, he restored control with the
help of the people that welcomed him gladly as a liberator. The new Ottoman sultan Bayezid accepted the reality, but
Ivan-bey anyway sent his youngest son Stania in 1482 as a hostage to Istanbul as a sign of accepting vassalage,
where he naturalized as "Skander". The center of his renewed realm was at Obod above the Crnojevi River.
Wishing to preserve the realm of Montenegro and its independence from the Turks because he didn't feel safe at the
edge and the border, Ivan moved its capital deep into the hills and at the foot of Mount Loven. He also moved the
seat of the Orthodox Metropolinate to the Cetinje Monastery. He had his court built in the field of Cetinje in 1482. In
1485 Ivan built the monastery of the Mother of Christ in Cetinje as a personal endowment to the Orthodox Church. It
was known as the Monastery of Crnojevi. The new capital Cetinje that remains the Montenegrin capital to this day,
was thus founded. Ivan Crnojevi died in 1490, when he was succeeded by his son ura Crnojevi.
During his long-lasting reign, Ivan I he tried, in order to consolidate his country, to maintain good relations with the
Venetians and Turks. That way, he found favor with those two powerful countries for his successor. He brought a
range of legislative acts that was later of great importance for the legal and cultural history of a future Montenegro.
Ivan was the father of ura IV Crnojevi. Ivan has become already in his life a living legend and one of the greatest
Montenegrin national heroes.
Culture
", , , , , ! '
- , , ?"
Addressing to the Ottoman Emperor: "Alas, Emperor, wounds got thee, alive the Serbs slain thee, with thou men
chattered, Moscowans your Empire destroyed! If it is thou turcified my son - given thou him the cursed pashaluk my
lands and my states, slaughtered his children, inhuman?"
Ivan I Crnojevi
51
Names in other languages
English: John the Black
Montenegrin/Serbian: Cyrillic: je - , old-style: ; Latin: Ivan I Crnojevic
Italian: Giovanni Cernovichio
Bosnian: Ivan I Crnojevi
Croatian: Ivan I Crnojevi
Turkish & Ottoman Turkish: Ivan-bey
References
[1] Medieval and Renaissance Studies (1978). Viator (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=v9swtfALoisC& pg=PA388& dq=Stjepan+
Vuki+ Kosaa& lr=& as_brr=3& hl=hr& cd=1#v=onepage& q=& f=false). University of California Press. pp.388389.
ISBN0-520-03608-5. .
ura Crnojevi
ura Crnojevi (Montenegrin Cyrillic: () (archaic), je (modern)), the son to
Ivan Crnojevi, was the ruler of the Principality of Zeta between 1490 and 1496, the founder of the first printing
house, and identified himself as the "Duke of Zeta". He was well known by his great education, knowledge of
astronomy, geometry and other sciences.
During his short-term reign he became famous for making efforts to spread the cultural heritage rather than for his
political successes. The Turks made him leave Zeta in 1496. Although he was removed from the historical scene, his
books remained as a great contribution to the Montenegrin culture. With the help of Hieromonk Makarije he printed
five books of big importance to the Montenegrin cultural heritage.
Crnojevi Printing House
Among five major incunabula printed in the printing house of the Crnojevic family between 1493 and 1496 the most
notable are Oktoih the First Voice (Oktoih prvoglasnik), Oktoih the Fifth Voice (Oktoih petoglasnik) and the Psalter
(Psaltir sa posljedovanjem).
Oktoih the First Voice was the first book to be printed in Cyrillic letters. It was printed on January 17, 1494. 108
copies of this book survive. It contains 538 pages sized 29 x 21,6cm. It is characterized by high quality and clean
two-coloured printing, red and black, with nicely shaped letters and well placed banners and initials. These
xylographic banners and initials are made in the spirit of Renaissance with a trace of old manuscript tradition. By the
beauty of its graphic it is considered to be at the same level as Venetian productions of that time. The Djurdje
Crnojevic Central National Library published 600 copies of Oktoih the First Courier in 1987.
Oktoih the Fifth Voice, also printed in 1494, was the first illustrated South Slavic incunabulum. It was printed in
1494. Its fragments have been preserved. The longest one contains 37 pages.
What makes this incunabula special are six xylographic illustrations. The artist who engraved them managed to put
rather complex compositions with many characters on a relatively small space.
The Crnojevic Psalter was printed at Cetinje in 1495. It is not only of liturgical and conventional but also historical
and literary significance. It is decorated with three engraved banners and 27 initials repeated 221 times. There are 36
complete and partial copies preserved. The Djurdje Crnojevic Central National Library published 650 copies of its
photo-printed edition in 1986.
Kingdom of Prilep
52
Kingdom of Prilep
Province of Prilep

13711395

Coat of arms
Medieval Realm of King Marko
Capital Prilep
Language(s) Serbian
Religion Serbian Orthodox
Government Kingdom
King
- 1371-1395 Marko Kraljevi (only)
Historical era Medieval
-Marko's inheritance September 26, 1371 1371
-Subjugation by Bayezid I 1395
The Lordship of Prilep was one of the provinces of the Serbian Empire, held by Vukain Mrnjavevi, the co-ruler
of Serbia alongside child-less Uro the Weak (r. 1355-1371). Emperor Uro and Lord Vukain died at the Battle of
Maritsa, and Prilep was obtained by Marko Mrnjavevi, the son of Lord Vukain.
Since Marko is referred to as King in South Slavic folklore, (he had the personal title of young king
[1]
given by his
father), the realm is in some sources called the Kingdom of Prilep (Serbian: , Kraljevstvo
Prilep, Macedonian and Bulgarian: , Prilepsko kralstvo).
[2]
The seat was in Prilep, present-day Republic of Macedonia.
Kingdom of Prilep
53
States in the Central Balkans that emerged after
dissolution of Serbian Empire in the 14th century
The lands were held by Serbian feudal lord Vukain Mrnjavevi, who
was crowned the king of the Serbs, Macedonians and Greeks in 1365
as the co-ruler of last Serbian emperor Uro. After the death of both
Uro and Vukain in 1371, Vukain's son Marko Mrnjavevi, known
as King Marko, became the sole legal ruler of the Serbian Empire but
his power was contested by other Serbian feudal lords who gained
control over other regions leaving Marko only with the areas in
western Macedonia.
[3]
So, after his father's death, Marko became
effective ruler of the Kingdom of Prilep.
[4]
The Province was subjugated by the Sultan Bayezid I in 1395.
Reference
[1] http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=HGI0Zhj6OcIC& pg=PA38& dq=marko+
kraljevic+ young+ king
[2] The last centuries of Byzantium, (1261-1453) by Donald MacGillivray Nicol (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=y2d6OHLqwEsC&
pg=PA275& dq=KINGDOM+ OF+ PRILEP& lr=& num=50& ei=0Gz8StObGZbQNO-9vYkP& client=firefox-a#v=onepage&
q=KINGDOM OF PRILEP& f=false)
[3] J.VA Fine, The late mediaeval Balkans, p.380 (http:/ / www. google. com/ books?id=QDFVUDmAIqIC& printsec=frontcover#v=onepage&
q=Marko& f=false)
[4] History of Serbia, by Harold William Vazeille Temperley (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=lP2gAAAAMAAJ& q=KINGDOM+ OF+
PRILEP& dq=KINGDOM+ OF+ PRILEP& lr=& num=50& ei=0Gz8StObGZbQNO-9vYkP& client=firefox-a)
Prince Marko
54
Prince Marko
Marko Mrnjavevi
King
King Marko, a fresco above the south entrance to the church of Marko's Monastery near Skopje. He was a ktetor of this monastery.
Reign 1371 - 1395
Full name Marko Mrnjavevi
Died May 17, 1395
Place of death Rovine
Predecessor Vukain Mrnjavevi
Successor Position abolished
Consort to Jelena
Royal House House of Mrnjavevi
Father Vukain Mrnjavevi
Mother Alena
Marko Mrnjavevi (Serbian Cyrillic: ) (c. 13351395) was de jure the Serbian king from
1371 to 1395, while de facto he ruled only over a territory in western Macedonia centered on the town of Prilep. He
is known as Prince Marko (Serbian: , Kraljevi Marko) and King Marko (Bulgarian and
Macedonian: Ka ) in South Slavic oral tradition, in which he has become a major character during the
Ottoman occupation of the Balkans. Marko's father, King Vukain, was the co-ruler of Serbian Tsar Stefan Uro V,
whose reign was marked by the weakening of the central authority and the gradual disintegration of the Serbian
Empire. Vukain's personal holdings included lands in western Macedonia, Kosovo and Metohija. In 1370 or 1371,
he crowned Marko "young king"; this title included the possibility that Marko succeed the childless Uro on the
Serbian throne.
On 26 September 1371, Vukain was defeated and killed by the Ottomans in the Battle of Maritsa, and about two
months later Tsar Uro died. This formally made Marko the king of the Serbian land; however, great Serbian
noblemen, who had become effectively independent from the central authority, did not even consider to recognize
him as their supreme ruler. At an uncertain date after 1371, he became an Ottoman vassal. By 1377 significant parts
of the territory he inherited from Vukain, were seized by other noblemen. King Marko in reality came to be a
regional lord who ruled over the relatively small territory in western Macedonia. He funded the construction of the
Monastery of Saint Demetrius near Skopje, better known as Marko's Monastery, finished in 1376. Marko lost his life
on 17 May 1395, fighting on the Ottoman side against Wallachians in the Battle of Rovine.
Although he was a ruler of modest historical significance, Marko became a major character of South Slavic oral
tradition. In Serbian epic poetry he is named Kraljevi Marko, which is rendered as "Prince Marko" in English
Prince Marko
55
translations of the poetry; kraljevi means "king's son". He is venerated as a national hero by the Serbs and
Bulgarians, remembered in the Balkan folklore as a fearless and powerful protector of the weak, who fought against
injustice and confronted Turkish bullies during the earlier period of the Ottoman occupation.
Life
Until 1371
Marko was born in c.1335 as the first son of Vukain Mrnjavevi and his wife Alena.
[1]
The patronymic
"Mrnjavevi" comes from Mrnjava, described by 17th-century Ragusan historian Mavro Orbin as a minor
nobleman from Zachlumia (in present-day Herzegovina and southern Dalmatia).
[2]
By Orbin, Mrnjava's sons were
born in Livno in western Bosnia,
[2]
where he could have moved to after Zachlumia was annexed by Bosnia in
1326.
[3]
The Mrnjavevi family
n.b.1
may have later supported Serbian Tsar Duan in his preparations to invade
Bosnia, as did other Zachlumian nobles, and fearing punishment, emigrated to the Serbian Empire before the war
started.
[3]

[4]
These preparations possibly began two years ahead of the invasion,
[4]
which took place in 1350. From
that year comes the earliest written reference to Marko's father Vukain, denoting him as Duan's appointed upan
(district governor) of Prilep,
[3]

[5]
which had been acquired by Serbia from Byzantium in 1334 together with other
parts of Macedonia.
[6]
In 1355 the tsar suddenly died of a stroke at the age of about 47.
[7]
Duan was succeeded by his 19-years-old son Uro, who apparently regarded Marko Mrnjavevi as a man of trust.
The new tsar appointed him the head of the embassy he sent to Ragusa at the end of July 1361, to negotiate peace
between the Empire and the Ragusan Republic during the hostilities that started earlier that year. The peace was not
concluded on this occasion, but Marko successfully negotiated the release of Serbian merchants from Prizren
detained by the Ragusans. He was also allowed to withdraw the silver his family had deposited in the city. The
account of that embassy in a Ragusan document contains the earliest known undisputed reference to Marko
Mrnjavevi.
[8]
An inscription written in 1356 on a wall of a church in the Macedonian region of Tikve, mentions a
Nikola and a Marko as governors in that region, but the indentity of this Marko is disputable.
[9]
Duan's death was followed by the stirring of separatist activity in the Serbian Empire. The southwestern territories,
including Epirus, Thessaly, and lands in southern Albania, seceded already by 1357.
[10]
The core of the state
remained loyal to the new Tsar Uro. It consisted of three main regions: the western lands, including Zeta and
Travunia with the upper Drina Valley; the central Serbian lands; and Macedonia.
[11]
Nevertheless, great local
noblemen asserted more and more independence from Uro' authority even in that part of the state that remained
Serbian. Uro was weak and unable to counteract these separatist tendencies, becoming an inferior power in his own
realm.
[12]
Serbian lords also fought each other over territories and influence.
[13]
Prince Marko
56
Marko's father King Vukain, a fresco in the Psaa
Monastery, Macedonia.
Vukain Mrnjavevi was a skillful politician, and gradually
assumed the main role in the Empire.
[14]
In August or September
1365, Uro crowned him king, making him his co-ruler. By 1370,
Marko's potential patrimony increased as Vukain expanded his
personal holdings from Prilep further into Macedonia, Kosovo and
Metohija, acquiring Prizren, Pritina, Novo Brdo, Skopje, and
Ohrid.
[3]
In a charter he issued on 5April 1370, Vukain mentioned
his wife Queen Alena, and his sons Marko and Andrija, describing
himself as the Lord of the Serbian Land, of the Greeks, and of the
Western Provinces (
).
[15]
In late 1370 or early 1371, Vukain
crowned Marko "young king".
[16]
This title had been given to heirs
presumptive of Serbian kings to secure their position as successors to
the throne. Since Uro was childless, Marko could thus become his
successor, starting a newVukain'sdynasty of Serbian
sovereigns.
[3]
This would mean the end of the two-centuries-long
reign of the House of Nemanji. Most of the other Serbian lords
were not happy with this situation, which strengthened their
aspirations towards independence from the central authority.
[16]
Vukain wanted to obtain a well-connected spouse for his eldest son Marko. A girl of the Croatian House of ubi
from Dalmatia, was sent by her father Grgur to the court of their relative Tvrtko I, the ban of Bosnia, to be raised and
suitably married by Tvrtko's mother Jelena. The latter was daughter of George II ubi (Juraj II), whose maternal
grandfather was Serbian King Dragutin Nemanji.
[17]
As the ban and his mother approved of Vukain's idea to marry
the ubi girl to Marko, the wedding was about to be held.
[18]

[19]
In April 1370, however, Pope Urban V sent a
letter to Tvrtko in which he forbade him to give the Catholic lady in marriage to the "son of His Magnificence the
King of Serbia, a schismatic" (filio magnifici viri Regis Rascie scismatico).
[19]
The pope also wrote about this
impending "offence to the Christian faith" to King Louis I of Hungary, the nominal overlord of the ban,
[20]
and that
marriage never happened.
[18]
Marko married Jelena daughter of Radoslav Hlapen, the lord of Beroea and Edessa, the
major Serbian nobleman in southern Macedonia.
[21]
In the spring of 1371, Marko participated in the preparations for a campaign against Nikola Altomanovi, the major
lord in the west of the Empire. The campaign was planned jointly by King Vukain and ura I Bali, the lord of
Zeta, who was married to Olivera, the king's daughter. In July that year, Vukain and Marko camped with their army
outside Scutari, on Bali's territory, ready to make an incursion towards Onogot in Altomanovi's land. The attack
never happened, as the Ottomans threatened the land of Despot Jovan Ugljea, the lord of Serres, Vukain's younger
brother who ruled in eastern Macedonia. The forces of the Mrnjavevis were quickly directed eastward.
[22]
Having
in vain looked for allies, the two brothers finally entered with their own troops into the territory controlled by the
Ottomans. At the Battle of Maritsa on 26September 1371, the Turks annihilated the Serbian army; not even the
bodies of Vukain and Jovan Ugljea were ever found. The place where it was fought, near the village of Ormenio in
the east of present-day Greece, has ever since been called Srp Snd "Serbian Rout" in Turkish. The outcome of
this battle had serious consequencesit actually opened up the Balkans to the Turks.
[23]

[24]
Prince Marko
57
After 1371
Approximate borders of the territory ruled by King
Marko after 1377 (shown in the darker green).
When his father died, "young king" Marko legally became a king
and the co-ruler of Tsar Uro. Soon afterwards came the end of the
Nemanji dynasty, when Uro died on 2 or 4December 1371,
which formally made Marko the sovereign of the Serbian state.
Serbian lords, however, did not even consider to recognize him as
their supreme ruler,
[25]
and the separatism within the state
increased even more.
[23]
After the demise of the two brothers and
the destruction of their armies, the House of Mrnjavevi was left
without any real power.
[25]
Lords surrounding Marko took the
opportunity and seized significant parts of his patrimony. By 1372,
ura I Bali grabbed Prizren and Pe, and Prince Lazar
Hrebeljanovi took Pritina. By 1377 Vuk Brankovi acquired
Skopje, and Albanian magnate Andrija Gropa became practically
independent in Ohrid. The latter possibly remained a vassal to
Marko as he had been to Vukain.
[23]

[26]
Gropa's son-in-law was
Marko's relative Ostoja Rajakovi of the clan of Ugari from
Travunia. He was one of the Serbian nobles from Zachlumia and Travunia (adjacent principalities in present-day
Herzegovina) who had received lands in the newly-conquered parts of Macedonia during Tsar Duan's reign.
[27]
The remains of King Marko's fortress above Prilep, known as
Markovi Kuli "Marko's towers".
The only significant town that Marko kept was Prilep,
from which his father's rise had started. So, King
Marko in reality became a petty prince who ruled over
a relatively small territory in western Macedonia,
bordered in the north by Mount ar and Skopje, in the
east by the Vardar and the Crna Reka Rivers, and in the
west by Ohrid. The southern limits of his territory are
uncertain.
[21]
Marko was not the sole ruler even in this
little domain, as he shared it with his younger brother
Andrija, who had his own land in it.
[23]
Their mother
Queen Alena became a nun after Vukain's death,
taking the monastic name Jelisaveta, but she was the
co-ruler with Andrija for some time after 1371. The
youngest brother Dmitar lived on the territory
controlled by Andrija. There was yet another brother
named Ivani, about whom very little is known.
[28]
The exact date when Marko became an Ottoman vassal is
uncertain, but it probably did not happen immediately after the Battle of Maritsa.
[29]
At some point, Marko separated from his spouse Jelena and lived with Todora, the wife of a Grgur. Jelena returned
to her father Radoslav Hlapen in Beroea. Marko later sought to reconcile with her, but to get his wedded wife back,
he first had to send Todora to Hlapen. As Marko's domain was bordered to the south by Hlapen's land, this
reconciliation may have been motivated by the fact that Marko did not want an enemy in the south, after all those
territorial losses he had in the north.
[21]
That this marital episode is known is due to scribe Dobre, a subject of
Marko's. Dobre transcribed a liturgical book for the church in the village of Kaluerec,
n.b.2
and when he finished the
job, he wrote an inscription in the book which begins as follows:
[30]
Prince Marko
58
, , , .
,
, ,
,
,
.
Glory to God the Finisher for ever and ever, amen, amen,
amen. This book was written in Poreje, in the village
called Kaluerec, in the days of the pious King Marko,
when he handed over Todora the wife of Grgur to Hlapen,
and took back his first-wedded wife Jelena, Hlapen's
daughter.
The fresco ensemble above the south entrance to the church of
Marko's Monastery. It comprises the images of King Marko (left)
and King Vukain (right, rather damaged), complemented by a
semicircle of seven saintly busts, all of which frame the portrait of
Saint Demetrius.
Marko's fortress was situated on a hill to the north of
present-day Prilep. Its remains, partially well
preserved, are called Markovi Kuli "Marko's towers".
Beneath the fortress lies the village named Varothe
site of medieval Prilep. The village contains the
Monastery of Archangel Michael renovated by Marko
and Vukain, whose portraits are depicted on the walls
of the monastery's church.
[21]
Marko was the ktetor of
the Church of Saint Sunday in Prizren, which was
finished in 1371, just before the Battle of Maritsa. In
the inscription above the church's entrance, he is titled
"young king"
[31]
The Monastery of Saint Demetrius, popularly known as
Marko's Monastery, is situated at the village of
Markova Suica near Skopje. Its construction lasted
from c.1345 to 1376 or 1377. Kings Marko and
Vukain, its ktetors, are portrayed above the southern
entrance of the monastery's church.
[1]
Marko is
represented as an austere-looking man in purple
clothes, wearing a crown adorned with strings of pearls. With his left hand he holds a scroll, the text on which begins
with the words: "I, in the Christ God the pious King Marko, built and inscribed this divine temple..." In his right
hand he holds a big horn that symbolizes the horn of oil with which the Old Testament kings were anointed at their
enthronement (as described, e.g., in 1 Samuel 16:13). According to an interpretation, Marko is shown here as the
king chosen and anointed by God to lead his people in the times of crisis after the Battle of Maritsa.
[25]
Prince Marko
59
A silver coin minted by
King Marko with the
reverse depicting Christ
seated on a throne.
Marko minted his own money, as did his father and other Serbian nobles of the time.
[32]
His silver coins weighed 1.11grams,
[33]
and were produced in three types. In two of
them, the obverse contained this text in five lines:
//// "In the Christ God, the pious King
Marko". The reverse depicted Christ seated on a throne in the first type, and Christ seated
in a mandorla in the second. In the third type, the reverse represented Christ in a
mandorla, and the obverse contained the text in four lines:
/// "Pious King Marko".
[34]
With this simple title
Marko referred to himself also in the aforementioned church inscription. He did not
include any territorial designation in his title, probably in tacit acknowledgment of his
limited sway.
[21]
His brother Andrija also minted his own money; still the money supply
on the territory ruled by the Mrnjavevi brothers mostly consisted of the coins that had
been struck by King Vukain and Tsar Uro.
[35]
It is estimated that about 150 pieces of
Marko's coins are kept today in various numismatic collections.
[34]
By 1379, Prince Lazar Hrebeljanovic, the lord of Pomoravlje, emerged as the first and
most powerful among Serbian nobles. In his signatures, he titled himself as the
Autokrator of all the Serbs ( ); nevertheless, he was
not powerful enough to unite all Serbian lands under his authority. The Houses of Bali and Mrnjavevi,
Konstantin Draga (maternally a Nemanji), Vuk Brankovi, and Radoslav Hlapen, ruled in their respective domains
without consulting with Lazar.
[29]

[36]
Another king besides Marko advanced on the political scene: in 1377, the
Metropolitan of Mileeva crowned Tvrtko I, maternally related to the House of Nemanji, King of the Serbs and of
Bosnia. He had previously taken some western parts of the former Serbian Empire.
[37]
On 28June 1389, Serbian forces led by Prince Lazar, Vuk Brankovi, and Tvrtko's nobleman Vlatko Vukovi of
Zachlumia, confronted the Ottoman army led by Sultan Murad I. This was the Battle of Kosovothe most famous
battle in Serbias medieval history. The bulk of both armies was wiped out; both Lazar and Murad lost their lives.
The battle was a draw,
[38]
yet in the wake of it the Serbs were left with too few men to effectively defend their lands,
while the Turks had many more troops in the east. Consequently, the Serbian principalities that were not already
Ottoman vassals, one after the other became so in the following years.
[38]
In 1394 a group of Ottoman vassals in the Balkans decided to renounce their vassalage. Marko was not one of them,
but his younger brothers Andrija and Dmitar refused to remain under the Turkish dominance. In the spring of 1394
they left their homeland and emigrated to the Kingdom of Hungary, entering into the service of King Sigismund.
They travelled via Ragusa, where they withdrew two thirds of their late father's deposit of 96.73kilograms of silver,
the remaining third being left for Marko.
[39]
Andrija and Dmitar were the first Serbian nobles who emigrated to
Hungary: the northward migration of the Serbs would continue throughout the Turkish occupation.
[40]
In 1395 the Turks assailed Wallachia to punish its ruler Mircea I for his incursions into their territory. On the
Ottoman side fought three vassals: King Marko, Konstantin Draga, and Despot Stefan Lazarevi, the son and heir of
Prince Lazar. So it happened that Christians were forced to help the Muslim Ottomans in their fight against other
Christians. The Battle of Rovine took place on 17May 1395, and was won by the Wallachians. King Marko and
Konstantin Draga were killed in it. After their deaths, the Turks annexed their lands, and combined them into a
single Ottoman province centered in Kyustendil.
[41]
Thirty six years past the Battle of Rovine, Konstantin the
Philosopher wrote the Biography of Despot Stefan Lazarevi. In this book Konstantin recorded an account of what
Marko said to Draga on the eve of the battle: "I pray the Lord to help the Christians, no matter if I will be the first to
die in this war."
[42]
Prince Marko
60
In folk poetry
Serbian epic poetry
Marko Mrnjavevi is the most popular hero of the Serbian epic poetry,
[43]
in which he is referred to as Kraljevi
Marko; kraljevi, translated as "prince",
[43]
means "king's son". This informal title was often attached to the names of
King Vukain's sons in the contemporary sources. It was also used postpositively as a surname: Marko Kraljevi.
n.b.3
The title/surname was adopted by the Serbian oral tradition, and became an integral part of the hero's name.
[44]
A Herzegovinian sings to the gusle (drawing from
1823). Serbian epic poems were often sung to the
accompaniment of this traditional bowed string
instrument.
The poems about Kraljevi Marko are not sequels that continue the
same story linethe only thing that binds them into a single poetic
cycle is the hero himself.
[45]
His adventures are narrated with the goal
to illuminate his character and personality.
[46]
The epic Marko was
endowed with the life of 300years, and other prominent heroes from
the 14th to the 16thcenturies appear sometimes as his companions,
[45]
including Milo Obili, Relja Krilatica, Vuk the Fiery Dragon, and
Sibinjanin Janko with his nephew Banovi Sekula.
[47]
The poems
contain few historical facts about Marko Mrnjavevi, notably his
connection to the epoch of disintegration of the Serbian Empire, and
his vassalage to the Ottomans.
[45]
They were composed by
anonymous Serbian folk bards during the Ottoman occupation of their
land. American Slavicist George Rapall Noyes characterized them as
"combining tragic pathos with almost ribald comedy in a fashion
worthy of an Elizabethan playwright."
[43]
The Serbian epic poetry accords with the historical fact that King
Vukain was Marko's father. It asserts that his mother was Jevrosima,
the sister of Voivode Momilo, the lord of the Pirlitor Fortress in
Mount Durmitor (in Old Herzegovina). He is described as a man of
immense size and strength, possessing magical attributes: a winged
horse and a sabre with eyes. Vukain murdered him with the help of
the voivode's young wife Vidosava, despite Jevrosima's
self-sacrificing attempt to save her brother. Instead of marrying
Vidosava, as was the initial plan, Vukain killed the treacherous
woman. He took Jevrosima from Pirlitor to his capital city of Scutari
and wedded her, as the dying Momilo had actually advised him to do. She bore him two sons, Marko and Andrija,
and the poem recounting these events concludes with the statement that Marko took after his uncle Momilo.
[48]
This
epic character corresponds historically to the Bulgarian brigand and mercenary Momchil, who was for some time in
the service of Serbian Tsar Duan; he later became a despot and died in 1345 in the Battle of Peritheorion.
[49]
According to another account, Marko and Andrija were born by a vila (a Slavic mountain nymph), whom Vukain
wedded after he caught her by a lake and took off her wings so that she could not fly away.
[50]
Prince Marko
61
Marko Kraljevi, statue by Ivan Metrovi.
As Marko matured he developed a strong individuality, and Vukain
once declared that he had no control over his son, who went wherever
he wanted, drank and brawled. Marko grew up into an extraordinarily
large and strong man, with a rather terrifying appearance which was at
the same time somewhat comical. He wore a wolf-skin cap pulled low
over his dark eyes; his massive black mustache was as large as a
six-months-old lamb; his cloak was a shaggy wolf-pelt. A Damascus
sabre swung at his girdle and a spear was slung across his back.
Marko's six-flanged mace weighed 66okas (85kilograms), which he
hung at the left side of his saddle, balancing it with a well-filled
wineskin attached to the saddle's right side. His grip was such that he
could squeeze drops of water out of a piece of dry cornel wood. He
defeated a succession of the greatest champions, fighting triumphantly
against overwhelming odds.
[45]

[46]
The hero's inseparable companion and friend was his piebald
wonder-horse arac, who could talk. When Marko drank he always
gave arac an equal share of the wine.
[46]
The horse could leap three
spear-lengths high and four spear-lengths forward, which enabled
Marko to pursue and capture the dangerous and elusive vila called Ravijojla. She then became his sister-in-God,
promising to aid him if he should ever be in evil straits. When Ravijojla helped him to kill the monstrous,
three-hearted Musa the Outlaw, who almost defeated him, Marko grieved because he had slain a better man than
himself.
[51]

[52]
Marko is portrayed as a protector of the weak and helpless, a fighter against Turkish bullies and against injustice in
general. He acted as an ideal bearer of patriarchal and natural norms of life: amidst a Turkish military camp, he
beheaded the Turk who dishonorably killed his father; he abolished the marriage tax by killing the tyrant who
imposed it on the people of Kosovo; he saved the sultan's daughter from an unwanted marriage, after she entreated
him as her brother-in-God to help her; he rescued three Serbian voivodes, his brothers-in-God, from a dungeon; he
helped animals in trouble. He is shown as a rescuer and benefactor of people, promoter of life; "Prince Marko is
remembered like a fair day in the year," as is stated in a poem.
[45]
A striking characteristic of Marko's was his devotion to his mother Jevrosima, for whom he cherished a limitless
reverence and love. He constantly sought her advice and obeyed it even when it contradicted his own impulses and
desires. She lived with Marko at his mansion in Prilep, shining as his lodestar that led him toward the good and away
from the evil, along the path of moral improvement and Christian virtues.
[53]
Marko's honesty and high moral
courage are conspicuous in the poem in which he happened to be the only person who knew the will of the late Tsar
Duan regarding his heir. Marko refused to bear false witness in favor of the pretendershis own father and
unclesand spoke out the truth that Duan had appointed his son Uro heir to the Serbian throne. This almost cost
him life as Vukain tried to kill him.
[46]
Marko is also represented as a loyal vassal to the Ottoman sultan, fighting to protect the potentate and his empire
from dangerous outlaws. When summoned by the sultan, he participated in Turkish military campaigns.
[45]
Yet even
in this relationship, the hero's strong personality and sense of dignity were expressed. More than once the sultan
actually showed anxiety towards his burly, wayward vassal during face-to-face interactions with him.
[46]
The
interviews between Marko and his imperial master usually ended in this way:
Prince Marko
62
' , ,
;
,
,
:
", , ."
[54]
The Sultan went backwards and Marko followed after,
Until he drave him even to the wall.
Right so the Sultan put hand in pocket
And drew forth an hundred ducats,
And gave them to Kraljevi Marko.
"Go, Marko," quoth he, "drink thy fill of wine."
[55]
Marko's fealty was skilfully combined with the suggestion that the nominal servant was in reality greater than his
lord. Serbian bards thus reversed the roles and turned the tables on their conquerors. This dual aspect of Marko could
be a reason why he became a national hero of the Serbs: for them he grew into "the proud symbol expressive of the
unbroken spirit that lived on in spite of disaster and defeat,"
[46]
as stated by David Halyburton Low, translator of
Serbian epic poems.
In fights Marko used not only his strength and prowess but also cunning and trickery. Despite all the extraordinary
qualities, he was not depicted as some abstract superhero or a god, but as a mortal man. There were opponents in the
presence of whom his courage halted and those who surpassed him in strength; there were times when his spirit
quailed. He had his evil moments, when he acted capricious, short-tempered, or even with cruelty, but these were
few in number. The prevailing traits of the hero's nature were honesty, self-sacrificing loyalty, and the fundamental
goodness.
[46]
With his comically stylized appearance and behavior, and his wry remarks at opponents' expense, Marko is regarded
as the most humorous character in the Serbian epic poetry.
[45]
When a Moor smote him with a mace, the hero spoke
to the attacker laughingly, "O valiant black Moor! Are you jesting or smiting in earnest?"
[56]
Jevrosima once advised
her son to cease from his bloody adventures and to plough fields. He obeyed, but in his grimly humorous way,
[46]
ploughing the sultan's highway instead of fields. There came a group of Turkish Janissaries, who transported three
packs of gold. They shouted at him to stop ploughing the highway, to which he responded by warning them to keep
off the furrows. Marko quickly wearied of the exchange of words:
,
,
,
:
" ."
[57]
He swung plough and oxen on high,
And slew therewith the Turkish Janissaries.
Then he took the three charges of gold,
And brought them to his mother,
"Behold," quoth he, "what I have ploughed for thee this day."
[58]
The death of Prince Marko, painting by Novak Radoni (1848).
Marko, aged 300years, rode on 160-years-old arac by the
seashore towards Mount Urvina, when a vila told him that
he was going to die. Marko then stooped over a well and
saw no reflection of his head from the water, hydromancy
thus confirming the vila's words. He killed arac lest Turks
capture and use him for menial labor, and gave his beloved
companion an elaborate burial. He broke his sword and
spear and threw his mace far out into the sea, before lying
down to die. The hero's body was found seven days later by
Vaso, the abbot of the Monastery of Hilandar on Mount
Athos, and his deacon Isaija. Abbot Vaso transported
Marko to Mount Athos and buried him at the monastery,
leaving no sign of his grave.
[59]
Prince Marko
63
Epic poetry of Bulgaria and Macedonia
Krali Marko has been one of the most popular characters in Bulgarian folklore for centuries.
[60]
Bulgarian epic tales
in general and those about Krali Marko in particular are found mainly in the Southwestern part of the Bulgarian
ethnic area,
[61]
much of it on the territory of the present-day Republic of Macedonia. Therefore, the same tales are
also seen as part of the ethnic heritage of the present-day Macedonian nation, which had not yet come to be regarded
as an entity independent from the Bulgarian ethnicity at the time when most of the songs were recorded.
According to the local legends, Marko's mother was Evrosiya (), sister of the Bulgarian voivoda Momchil,
who ruled territories in the Rhodope Mountains. At the birth of Krali Marko, three narecnitsi (fate-fairies) appeared
and foretold that he would become a hero and replace his father, the king. When king Volkain heard this he threw
his son in a basket in the river to get rid of him. But a samodiva (also called samovila) named Vila found Marko and
brought him up, becoming his foster mother. Because Marko suckled the samodiva's milk, he acquired supernatural
powers. He is portrayed as a Bulgarian fighter for freedom against the Turks. He has a winged horse, called
Sharkolia (meaning Dappled) and a stepsister the samodiva Gyura. The Bulgarian legends incorporate important
fragments of pagan mythology and beliefs, even though the Marko epos itself was created as late as the 14-18th
century. Among Bulgarian epic songs, songs from the cycle about Krali Marko are particularly common and occupy
a central place in it.
[62]

[63]

[64]
Some prominent Bulgarian folklorists who collected stories about Marko are teacher
Trayko Kitanchev (in the region of Resen in Western Macedonia), and Marko Cepenkov from Prilep (in different
areas in the region).
[65]
Prince Marko is known as Deli Marko in Bulgarian tradition and Marko Viteazul in Romanian folk legends.
In legends
South Slavic legends about Kraljevi Marko or Krali Marko are mostly based on mythological motifs that are much
older than the historical Marko Mrnjavevi. There are differences between the hero's image in the legends and that
in the folk poems. In some areas he was imagined as a giant who walked stepping on hilltops, his head knocking the
clouds. It was also narrated that he helped God in shaping the Earth in ancient times, and created the river gorge of
Demir Kapija ("Iron Gate") with a stroke of his sabre. Thus he drained the sea that covered the regions of Bitola,
Mariovo, and Tikve in Macedonia, which enabled people to inhabit them. After the Earth was shaped, he took to
arrogantly showing off his strength. God took it away from him by leaving a bag as heavy as the Earth on a road:
when Marko tried to lift it, he lost his gigantic strength and became an ordinary man.
[66]
Legends also have it that the hero acquired his strength after he was suckled by a vila. King Vukain threw his little
son Marko into a river, because he did not resemble him, but the boy was saved by a cowherd who adopted him as a
son, and the vila suckled him. By other accounts, Marko was a shepherd or a cowherd who found a vila's children
lost in a mountain, and made a shade for them against the scorching son, or gave them water. As a reward, the vila
suckled him three times, after which he was able to lift and throw a huge boulder. In an Istrian version of this story,
he made a shade for two snakes instead of the children. In a Bulgarian version, each of the three draughts of milk
that he suckled from the vila's breast, turned into a snake.
[66]
He was regularly associated with huge solitary boulders and indentations in rocks. The boulders were said to be
thrown by Marko from a hill, the indentations being his footprints or those of his horse.
[66]
He was also connected
with other geographic objects, such as hills, glens, cliffs, caves, rivers, brooks, and groves, which he created or did
something memorable at. They were often named after him, so there are many toponyms from Istria in the west to
Bulgaria in the east that are derived from the hero's name.
[67]
Marko's wonder-horse was a gift from a vila by some legends, while a Serbian story gives the following account. He
was looking for a horse that could bear him. To test a steed, he would grab him by the tail and sling him over his
shoulder. Noticing a leprous piebald foal owned by some carters, he grabbed him by the tail, but could not move him
at all. Marko bought and cured the foal, naming him arac (after ara "dapple"). He grew up into an enormously
Prince Marko
64
powerful horse, becoming the hero's inseparable companion.
[68]
A legend from Macedonia has it that Marko, on a
vila's advice, captured a sick horse in a mountain and cured him. The patches on his skin that had been covered with
crusts grew white hairs, so the hero's horse became piebald. In stories from Bulgaria and Macedonia, Marko had a
sister who was as strong as he, and competed with him in throwing boulders.
[66]
According to folk traditions the hero never died, but lives on in a cave, in a den covered with moss, or in an
unknown land.
[66]
A Serbian legend recounts that Marko once fought in a battle in which so many men were killed
that the fighters and their horses ended up swimming in blood. He lifted up his hands towards heaven and said, "O
God, what am I going to do now!" God took pity on Marko transporting him and arac into a cave, where the hero
stuck his sabre into the rock and fell asleep. There is some moss in the cave, which arac eats bit by bit, while the
sabre slowly comes out of the rock. When it falls down after it completely emerges, and the horse eats all of the
moss, Marko will awake and reappear in the world.
[68]
Some people allegedly saw him after they descended into a
deep pit, where he lived in a large house in front of which his horse was also seen. Others saw him in a faraway land,
dwelling in a cave. According to a tradition from Macedonia, Marko drank of "eagle's water" which made him
immortal, and he now accompanies Prophet Elijah in heaven.
[66]
In modern culture
Literature
In 19th century, Marko was the subject of multiple dramatizations. In 1831, Hungarian drama Prince Marko was
shown in Budim, possibly written by Istvn Balog
[69]
and in 1838 Hungarian drama Prince Marko - Great Serbian
Hero by Celesztin Perg was shown in Arad
[69]
. In 1848 Jovan Sterija Popovi wrote the tragedy San Marka
Kraljevia [The Dream of Prince Marko] which has the legend of sleeping Marko as its central motif. Petar
Preradovi wrote the drama Kraljevi Marko which glorifies the strength of the South Slavs. In 1863, Francesco
Dall'Ongaro presented his Italian drama Resurrection of Prince Marko
[69]
.
American Slavicist Clarence A. Manning wrote a novelization of Marko's life Marko, The King's Son: Hero of The
Serbs, published in New York in 1932. Marko is also the titular character in Marguerite Yourcenar's short story
Marko's Smile, published in the volume Oriental Tales. His character, while showing extraordinary courage and
endurance, is at the same time portrayed as a selfish and ruthless man who does not fight for any particular ideals.
Other authors choose to parody Marko's adventures. Radoje Domanovi wrote the satirical story Kraljevi Marko po
drugi put meu Srbima [Prince Marko among the Serbs for the Second Time] in which God fulfills Marko's wish and
brings him back to life to help the Serbs who are calling him for hundreds of years. The story portrays Serbs of
Domanovi's time as unworthy of their forefathers and heroes. Multiple modern authors have carried this even
further, writing stories such as Prince Marko among the Serbs for the Third Time or Prince Marko among the Serbs
for the Fourth Time, updated with modern events. In 2006 Boris Stareina wrote the book Kraljevi Marko:
Natprirodni ciklus pjesama [Prince Marko: Supernatural Cycle of Poems], which parodies Serbian epic poems. In
Stareina's poems Marko fights aliens, samurais, canibals, Superman's great-great-grandfather, and other enemies.
Some recent Balkan epic fantasy writers also reuse Marko. Boriana Balin, a Bulgarian writer of historical and
fantasy stories has a book Vechniyat Konnik [Eternal Rider] published in Bulgarian. The book deals with the life of
Marko's father Valkashin as well as the life and death of the legendary hero himself. Similarly, Marko is one of the
principal characters of the Kosingas fantasy series by Serbian writer Aleksandar Tei.
Prince Marko
65
Visual arts
Ivan Metrovi's sculpture of Marko on arac on
50 Yugoslav dinars banknote.
Of all the epic or historical figures of Serbian history, Marko is
considered to have given the most inspiration to visual artists
[70]
. Vuk
Karadi wrote that in his childhood (late 18th century) he saw a
painting of Marko carrying an ox on his back.
[68]
19th century artists
who portrayed Marko include Mina Karadi or Novak Radoni; 20th
century Paja Jovanovi or Ivan Metrovi; all the way to modern
illustrators such as Bane Kerac.
Popular culture
Counting on the popularity of the epic hero, the Prilep brewery
introduced in 1966 a light beer called Krali Marko.
Notes
n.b.1The family name "Mrnjavevi" was not mentioned in the contemporary sources, nor was any other surname
associated with this family. The oldest known source mentioning the name "Mrnjavevi" is Ruvarev rodoslov "The
Genealogy of Ruvarac", written between 1563 and 1584. It is unknown whether it was introduced into the Genealogy
from some older source, or from the folk poetry and tradition.
[71]
n.b.2This liturgical book, acquired in the 19th century by Russian collector Aleksey Khludov, is kept today in the
State Historical Museum of Russia.
n.b.3The name Despotovi ("despot's son") was applied in a similar way to Ugljea, the son of Despot Jovan
Ugljea, King Vukain's younger brother.
[44]
[1] Fostikov 2002, pp.4950.
[2] Orbin 1968, p.116.
[3] Van Antwerp Fine 1994, pp.3623.
[4] Van Antwerp Fine 1994, p.323.
[5] Stojanovi 1902, p.37.
[8] Mihalji 1975, p.51. -orovi 2001, " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ rastko-bl/ istorija/ corovic/ istorija/ 3_9. html)".
[9] Mihalji 1975, p.77.
[10] uica 2000, p.15.
[13] uica 2000, p.19.
[14] Mihalji 1975, p.83.
[15] Mikloi 1858, p.180 (http:/ / www. archive.org/ stream/ monumentaserbic00miklgoog#page/ n200/ mode/ 1up), CLXVII.
[16] uica 2000, p.20.
[17] Fajfri (2000), " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ istorija/ zfajfric-kotromanici_c. html#_Toc486040898)".
[18] Jireek 1911, p.430 (http:/ / www.archive. org/ stream/ geschichtederser00jire#page/ 430/ mode/ 1up).
[19] Theiner 1860, p.97 (http:/ / www.archive.org/ stream/ p1veteramonument02thei#page/ 97/ mode/ 1up), CXC.
[20] Theiner 1860, p.97 (http:/ / www.archive.org/ stream/ p1veteramonument02thei#page/ 97/ mode/ 1up), CLXXXIX.
[21] Mihalji 1975, pp.1701.
[22] Mihalji 1975, p.137. Van Antwerp Fine 1994, p.377.
[24] -orovi 2001, " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ rastko-bl/ istorija/ corovic/ istorija/ 3_10. html)".
[25] Mihalji 1975, p.168.
[26] uica 2000, pp.356.
[27] uica 2000, p.42.
[28] Fostikov 2002, p.51.
[29] Mihalji 1975, pp.1645.
Prince Marko
66
[30] Stojanovi 1902, pp.589
[31] Mihalji 1975, p.166.
[32] Mihalji 1975, p.181.
[33] uica 2000, pp.1336.
[34] Mandi 2003, pp.245.
[35] Mihalji 1975, p.183.
[36] Mihalji 1975, p.220.
[39] Fostikov 2002, pp.523.
[40] Fostikov 2002, p.47.
[42] Konstantin 2000, " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ knjizevnost/ liturgicka/
konstantin-zitije_desp_stefana_c. html)".
[43] Noyes 1913, " Introduction (http:/ / www. sacred-texts. com/ neu/ hbs/ hbs04. htm)".
[44] Rudi 2001, p.89.
[45] Dereti 2000, " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ knjizevnost/ jderetic_knjiz/ jderetic-knjiz_05_c. html)".
[46] Low 1922, " The Marko of the Ballads (http:/ / www.archive. org/ stream/ balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ n35/ mode/ 2up)".
[47] Popovi 1988, pp.248.
[48] Low 1922, " The Marriage of King Vukain (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/ balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ n47/ mode/ 2up)".
[49] -orovi 2001, " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ rastko-bl/ istorija/ corovic/ istorija/ 3_7. html)".
[50] Bogii 1878, pp. 2312 (http:/ / www. archive.org/ stream/ narodnepjesmeiz00bogigoog#page/ n411/ mode/ 2up).
[51] Low 1922, " Marko Kraljevi and the Vila (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/ balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ 20/ mode/ 2up)"
[52] Low 1922, " Marko Kraljevi and Musa the Outlaw (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/ balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ 124/ mode/
2up)"
[53] Popovi 1988, pp.707.
[54] Karadi 2000, " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ knjizevnost/ usmena/ vkaradzic-pesme_II_c.
html#_Toc494261502)".
[55] Low 1922, p.73 (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/ balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ 73/ mode/ 1up).
[56] Karadi 2000, " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ knjizevnost/ usmena/ vkaradzic-pesme_II_c.
html#_Toc494261514)".
[57] Karadi 2000, " (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ knjizevnost/ usmena/ vkaradzic-pesme_II_c. html#_Toc494261518)".
[58] Low 1922, " Marko's Ploughing (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/ balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ 158/ mode/ 1up)".
[59] Low 1922, " The Death of Marko Kraljevi (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/ balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ 174/ mode/ 2up)".
[60] Volume 2 of Shaping the Superman: Fascist Body as Political Icon, p. 88. (http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=FJojVDgQt-4C&
pg=PA88& dq=krali+ marko+ Bulgarian& lr=#v=onepage& q=krali marko macedonian& f=false)
[61] 12 . 1. . (http:/ / web. archive. org/ web/ 20071015095416/ http:/ /
bulgarian-orthodox-church. org/ slovo/ narod/ bnt12_1. txt)
[62] Studies and Monographs, Textualization of Oral Epics, p.302. (http:/ / books. google. bg/ books?id=vyfOPBtlz54C& pg=PA319&
lpg=PA319& dq=krali+ marko+ Bulgarian+ epic& source=bl& ots=zXY4pwg6Ys& sig=_L-D7vYuThPMF--W7tjusUIYjio& hl=bg&
ei=iOaTSob4IZCCnQPy56WnAQ& sa=X& oi=book_result& ct=result& resnum=8#v=onepage& q=krali marko Macedonian epic& f=false)
[63] The River Danube in Balkan Slavic Folksongs, Ethnologia Balkanica (01/1997), Burkhart, Dagmar; Issue: 01/1997 , range Range: 53-60.
[64] A history of Macedonian literature 865-1944, Volume 112 of Slavistic printings and reprintings, Charles A. Moser, Publisher Mouton, 1972.
[65] ; . ( 2, . 116-120, 2 - " ").
[66] Radenkovi 2001, pp.2937.
[67] Popovi 1988, pp.412.
[68] Karadi 1852, pp.3456, s.v. " ".
[69] arenac 1996, p. 26
[70] arenac 1996, p. 06
[71] Rudi 2001, p.96.
Prince Marko
67
References
Bogii, Valtazar (1878). : , [Folk poems: from
older records, mostly from the Littoral] (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/
narodnepjesmeiz00bogigoog#page/ n9/ mode/ 2up) (in Serbian). 1. The Internet Archive.
-orovi, Vladimir (November 2001). [History of the Serbian People] (http:/ /
www. rastko. rs/ rastko-bl/ istorija/ corovic/ istorija/ index. html) (in Serbian). Project Rastko.
Dereti, Jovan (2000). [Short history of Serbian literature] (http:/ /
www. rastko. rs/ knjizevnost/ jderetic_knjiz/ index_c. html) (in Serbian). Project Rastko.
Fajfri, eljko (7 December 2000). (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ istorija/ zfajfric-kotromanici_c.
html) (in Serbian). Project Rastko.
Fostikov, Aleksandra (2002). " [About Dmitar Kraljevi]" (in Serbian).
[Historical Review] (Belgrade: Istorijski institut) 49. ISSN0350-0802.
Jireek, Konstantin Josef (1911). Geschichte der Serben [History of the Serbs] (http:/ / www. archive. org/
stream/ geschichtederser00jire#page/ n9/ mode/ 2up) (in German). 1. The Internet Archive.
Karadi, Vuk Stefanovi (1852). [Serbian dictionary]. Vienna: Vuk Stefanovi Karadi.
Karadi, Vuk Stefanovi (11 October 2000). [Serbian folk poems] (http:/ / www.
rastko. rs/ knjizevnost/ usmena/ vkaradzic-pesme_II_c. html) (in Serbian). 2. Project Rastko.
Konstantin the Philosopher (2000). Gordana Jovanovi ed. -
[Biography of Despot Stefan Lazarevi] (http:/ / www. rastko. rs/ knjizevnost/ liturgicka/
konstantin-zitije_desp_stefana_c. html) (in Serbian). Project Rastko.
Low, David Halyburton (1922). The Ballads of Marko Kraljevi (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/
balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ n7/ mode/ 2up). The Internet Archive.
Mandi, Ranko (2003). "Kraljevii Marko i Andrea" (in Serbian). Dinar: Numizmatiki asopis (Belgrade:
Serbian Numismatic Society) 21. ISSN1450-5185.
Mihalji, Rade (1975). [The end of the Serbian Empire] (in Serbian). Belgrade:
Srpska knjievna zadruga.
Mikloi, Franc (1858). Monumenta serbica spectantia historiam Serbiae Bosnae Ragusii (http:/ / www.
archive. org/ stream/ monumentaserbic00miklgoog#page/ n9/ mode/ 1up) (in Serbian and Latin). The Internet
Archive.
Noyes, George Rapall; Bacon, Leonard (1913). Heroic Ballads of Servia (http:/ / www. sacred-texts. com/
neu/ hbs/ index. htm). The Internet Sacred Text Archive.
Orbin, Mavro (1968). Franjo Barii, Radovan Samardi, Sima M. -irkovi eds. [The
Realm of the Slavs] (in Serbian). trans. Zdravko undrica. Belgrade: Srpska knjievna zadruga.
Popovi, Tatyana (1988). Prince Marko: The Hero of South Slavic Epics. New York: Syracuse University
Press. ISBN 0-8156-2444-1.
Radenkovi, Ljubinko (2001). " " (in Serbian). Svetlana Mikhaylovna Tolstaya, Ljubinko
Radenkovi eds. : [Slavic mythology: Encyclopedic
dictionary]. Belgrade: Zepter Book World. ISBN 86-7494-025-0.
Rudi, Sran (2001). "O M [On the first mention of the Mrnjavevi
surname]" (in Serbian). [Historical Review] (Belgrade: Istorijski institut) 48.
ISSN0350-0802.
Stojanovi, Ljubomir (1902). [Old Serbian inscriptions and
superscriptions] (in Serbian). 1. Belgrade: Serbian Royal Academy.
Prince Marko
68
arenac, Darko (1996) (in Serbian). [Prince Marko in
Imagination of Visual Artists]. Belgrade: BIPIF. COBISS.SR-ID 79814156. ISBN86-82175-03-5.
uica, Marko. (2000). : [The
turbulent era of the Serbian Middle Ages: the noblemen of the Serbian regional lords] (in Serbian). Belgrade:
Slubeni list SRJ. ISBN 86-355-0452-6.
Theiner, Augustin (1860). Vetera monumenta historica Hungariam sacram illustrantia (http:/ / www. archive.
org/ stream/ p1veteramonument02thei#page/ n5/ mode/ 2up) (in Latin). 2. The Internet Archive.
Van Antwerp Fine, John (1994). The Late Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Late Twelfth Century
to the Ottoman Conquest. The University of Michigan Press. ISBN 0-472-08260-4.
External links
The Ballads of Marko Kraljevi (http:/ / www. archive. org/ stream/ balladsofmarkokr00lowduoft#page/ n7/
mode/ 2up), translated by David Halyburton Low (1922).
Heroic Ballads of Servia (http:/ / www. sacred-texts. com/ neu/ hbs/ ), translated by George Rapall Noyes and
Leonard Bacon (1913).
Macedonian songs (http:/ / www. kralemarko. org. mk/ default-mk.
asp?ItemID=53A58133D6FE814E8848DA2947A7ECA4), fairy tales (http:/ / www. kralemarko. org. mk/
default-mk. asp?ItemID=DE09C3D6A0EB9945AEC37A3D011335B0) and legends (http:/ / www. kralemarko.
org. mk/ default-mk. asp?ItemID=7399614AAA7A834FA9917C1403BE6554) about Marko (Macedonian).
Bulgarian ballads (http:/ / liternet. bg/ folklor/ sbornici/ bnt/ 1/ content. htm) (also here (http:/ / web. archive. org/
web/ 20071015095416/ http:/ / bulgarian-orthodox-church. org/ slovo/ narod/ bnt12_1. txt), with more
information) and legends (http:/ / web. archive. org/ web/ 20080116080502/ http:/ / bulgarian-orthodox-church.
org/ slovo/ narod/ bnt12_11. txt) about Marko (Bulgarian).
Marko, The King's Son: Hero of The Serbs (http:/ / markokraljevic. uzice. net) by Clarence A. Manning (1932).
Web comic strip (http:/ / www. crsn. com/ studiostrip/ markokraljevic).
Videos of Serbian epic poems sung to the accompaniment of the gusle:
Prince Marko Recognises His Father's Sword (http:/ / www. youtube. com/ watch?v=n4sbBI6Rycc).
Prince Marko Abolishes the Marriage Tax (http:/ / www. youtube. com/ watch?v=VFrqUZCwTSw).
Prince Marko and the Eagle (http:/ / www. youtube. com/ watch?v=7BucosPAPG8).
Despotate of Velbazhd
69
Despotate of Velbazhd
Principality of Velbazhd (1373 - 1395)
States in the Central Balkans that emerged after
dissolution of Serbian Empire in the 14th century
The Despotate of Velbazhd (Bulgarian: , also
known as Principality) was one of the short lived independent feudal
states that emerged from the collapse of the Serbian Empire in 1371. It
got its name from its capital Velbazhd, which today is the Bulgarian
town, Kyustendil.
The principality was located between the rivers Struma and Vardar and
includes many territories from the modern countries of Bulgaria,
Serbia and the Republic of Macedonia. The Despotate was ruled by
local feudal lord Jovan Draga and his brother Constantine Draga.
[1]
After the Battle of Maritsa (1371) the brothers acknowledged Ottoman
suzerainty and ruled their lands as vassals. Velbazhd was subjugated
by the Sultan Bayezid I in 1395.
Reference
[1] The Bulgarians in their historical, ethnographical and political frontiers (http:/ /
www.promacedonia.org/ en/ dr/ dr_10-19_en.htm)
Literature
,
, , 1978, 1

, , ,
1988
Jovan Draga
70
Jovan Draga
Jovan Draga
Born Jovan Dejanovi Draga1343
Died 1378
Title Despot
Religion Serbian Orthodox Christianity
Parents Dejan Draga
Evdokija Nemanjic
Jovan Draga (Serbian: ) was a 14th-century Serbian noble that held the title of Despot
[1]
of
Kumanovo, Kocani and Strumica under his uncle Stephen Uro V of Serbia, he later became an Ottoman vassal after
the Battle of Maritsa in 1371.
His father ruled Kumanovo with a district spanning from Presevo to Velbazhd (Kyustendil). After his father's death,
the young brothers Jovan and Constantine were taken care of by Vlatko Paskai, at the order of the Mrnjavcevics,
who continued to rule the region until Jovan reached adolescense.
He began his office in ca 1365
[1]
, and ruled alongside his mother and younger brother Constantine for some years.
His uncle gave him the title of Despot, as had did his father before him (this is attested in sources dating to 1373).
[2]
After the Battle of Maritsa, the two brothers became Ottoman vassals as the Mrnjavcevics are defeated. They,
however, continued to rule their region as a semi-independent state, and managed to further expand their fathers
district, taking territory from Jovan Oliver. He issued coins that were of same design as those of Vukasin
Mrnjavcevic.
[3]
He donated the Saint Vasilii church in Shtip to the Hilandar monastery.
[4]
He died in 1378 and his brother continued to rule until 1392.
His mother Evdokija, Visoki Deani
References
[1] Rules and governments of the world: 1930 to 1975, Volume 3 (http:/ / books.
google. com/ ?id=JHCAz1b8eCgC& q=jovan+ dragas)
[2] Istorija Srpskog naroda II, ISBN 8637904769
[3] http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=-FNmAAAAMAAJ& q=jovan+ dragas
[4] http:/ / books. google. com/ books?id=ZEooAQAAIAAJ& q=jovan+ dragas
Constantine Draga
71
Constantine Draga
Constantine Draga
Born Konstantin DragaSerbian lands
Died May 17, 1395Rovine, Romania
Causeof death Battle of Rovine
Residence Kyustendil
Nationality Serbian
Other names Konstantnos Dragses
Title Despot
Term 1378-1395
Predecessor Dejan Draga
Religion Eastern Orthodoxy
Spouse Unknown
Eudokia of Trebizond
Children Helena Dragases, Jahov
Parents Dejan Draga, Theodora
Relatives Stefan Duan
Stefan Deanski
Constantine Draga (Serbian and Bulgarian: , Konstantin Draga; Greek: Kv
, Konstantnos Dragses) was a regional semi-independent lord in the fragmenting Serbian realm centered
at Velbd (Kyustendil) from 1378 until his death at the battle of Rovine on May 17, 1395.
Constantine Draga
72
Life
States in the Central Balkans, including Realm of Constantine Draga
(Principality of Velbazhd) in 13731395
Constantine was the son of the Serbian sebastokrator
Dejan Draga by Theodora (Eudokia), a sister of the
Serbian Emperor Stefan Uro IV Duan. His maternal
grandparents were Serbian king Stefan Deanski and
Theodora, daughter of tsar Smilets of Bulgaria.
Together with his brother Jovan Draga, who died in
1378/1379, Constantine governed large portions of
Slavic eastern Macedonia and middle portion of the
Struma River (Strymon) valley. Constantine's titles
vary in the sources, where he is called variously "lord"
(Serbian gospodin, Greek kyr or authents), and he may
have acquired the title of Despot (despots), by which
he is usually referred to in modern discussions, perhaps
by a grant from his son-in-law, the Byzantine Emperor
Manuel II Palaiologos.
The Draga brothers generously endowed several
monasteries on Mount Athos, including Hilandar,
Pantaleimon and Vatopdi.
After the battle of Maritsa, they were forced to become vassals of the Ottoman Empire, but they maintained close
links with their Christian neighbors, including the Byzantine Empire. In 1395, together with his neighbor and ally,
the Serbian king of Prilep Marko, Constantine Draga was killed fighting for their Ottoman overlord Sultan Bayezid
I against Mircea cel Btrn of Wallachia at Rovine, near Craiova. The Ottomans named Constantine's capital
Velbad/Velbud after him, Kstendil (now Bulgarian Kyustendil).
Family
Constantine Draga was married twice. The name of his first wife is unknown, but she is not identical with Thamar
(Tamara), the daughter of the Emperor (tsar) Ivan Alexander of Bulgaria, who had married a certain despots
Constantine. Constantine Draga married as his second wife Eudokia of Trebizond, daughter of Emperor Alexios III
of Trebizond and Theodora Kantakouzene. By his first wife, Constantine Draga had at least one daughter and
possibly a son:
1. Helena Dragases (Jelena Draga, nun Hypomone), who married the Byzantine Emperor Manuel II Palaiologos
and died on May 13, 1450. Their many children included the last two Byzantine emperors, of whom Constantine
XI added the name Draga (in Greek, Dragass) to his own.
2. (possibly) Jakov (Muslim under the name Yaqub), who succeeded as lord of Velbd (Kyustendil).
References
Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, Oxford University Press, 1991.
Simeon Uro
73
Simeon Uro
Simeon Uro
Fresco from 1346, Visoki Deani
Born
Died ~1370
Title Governor of Epirus and Thessaly
Parents Stefan Uro III Deanski and Maria Palaiologina
Simeon Uro or Sinia Uro (Serbian Cyrillic: ), in Greek Symeon Ouresis Palaiologos (
, Symen Ouress Palaiologos), was the ruler of Epirus from 1359 to 1366 and of Thessaly
from 1359 until his death in c. 1370.
Life
Simeon Uro, nicknamed Sinia, was the son of King Stefan Uro III Deanski of Serbia by his second wife, Maria
Palaiologina, the daughter of the despotes John Palaiologos, a grandson of Emperor Michael VIII Palaiologos.
When his half-brother Emperor Stefan Uro IV Duan conquered Epirus and Acarnania in 1348, he appointed as
governor of these regions Simeon Uro, whom he had granted the title of despotes traditionally reserved for
emperors' brothers and younger sons. Simeon Uro consolidated his position in relation to the local aristocracy by
marrying Thomais, the daughter of the former ruler of Epirus, John Orsini.
Simeon Uro's relatively uneventful governorship was interrupted when, shortly after Duan's death in 1355, his
brother-in-law Nikephoros II Orsini, the deposed ruler of Epirus, reappeared in Greece and gained the support of the
nobility in Thessaly and Epirus. In 1356 Nikephoros entered Epirus and forced Simeon Uro to flee to Kastoria,
where he attempted to proclaim himself "Emperor of Serbs and Greeks" in the place of his nephew Stefan Uro V.
Although he gained the support of some important magnates like John Komnenos Asen (the brother of Duan's
widow), Simeon Uro was unable to assert himself against the wishes of the nobility of Serbia proper and
Macedonia.
After he was forced to retreat from his attempt to invade Zeta (modern Montenegro) in 1358, Simeon Uro gave up
hope of asserting himself in Serbia. The next year, however, Nikephoros II Orsini was killed in a skirmish against
the Albanians, and opened up a welcome opportunity for Simeon Uro. Consequently, he rapidly swept into Thessaly
and was acknowledged as its ruler in 1359. He then invaded Epirus, where the towns, harried by the Albanian
clansmen who had taken over the countryside, also recognized his authority.
While Simeon Uro was in Epirus, Radoslav Hlapen of Vodena attempted to seize Thessaly on behalf of his stepson
Thomas Preljubovi. Simeon Uro was forced to cut his losses by recognizing Radoslav Hlapen's conquests, turning
Simeon Uro
74
over Kastoria to him, and marrying his daughter Maria to Thomas. Hlapen recognized Simeon Uro's suzerainty in at
least some of these lands and provided a buffer between him and the Serbian nobles to the north. Simeon Uro
established himself in Trikala in Thessaly, and spent the remaining decade of his reign in relative peace. He soon
recognized two of the Albanian leaders in Epirus, Gjin Bua Shpata and Peter Losha, as despotes of Arta and
Angelokastron.
[1]
In 1366 he turned over Ioannina, his last major possession in Epirus, to his son-in-law Thomas,
who reigned there as vassal despotes.
In Trikala Simeon Uro presided over a court including Byzantine, Serbian, and Albanian nobles, but he showed
preference for the Byzantine relatives of his wife. He also founded and generously endowed the monasteries of
Meteora. He died sometime between 1369 and 1371.
Family
By his marriage to Thomais Orsini, Simeon Uro had three children:
John Uro, who succeeded as ruler of Thessaly.
Stephen Uro, governor of Pharsalos.
Maria, who married Thomas II Preljubovi, who succeeded as ruler of Epirus.
References
[1] http:/ / books. google. se/ books?id=LvVbRrH1QBgC& pg=PA350
The Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium, Oxford University Press, 1991.
John V.A. Fine Jr., The Late Medieval Balkans, Ann Arbor, 1987.
George C. Soulis, The Serbs and Byzantium, Athens, 1995.
John Uro
75
John Uro
Jovan Uro
Ruler of Thessaly
Reign 1370-1373
Coronation 1359
Died 1422-1423
Predecessor Simeon Uro
Royal House House of Nemanji
Father Simeon Uro
Mother Thomais Orsini
Jovan Uro (Serbian: , John Uro) or John Ouresis Doukas Palaiologos (Greek:
, Ianns Ouress Doukas Palaiologos, ) was the ruler of Thessaly from c.
1370 to c. 1373, died 1422/3.
John Uro was the son of Emperor Simeon Uro Palaiologos by Thomais Orsini. His maternal grandparents were
John II Orsini and Anna Palaiologina.
Between 1369 and 1372 he succeeded his father as titular emperor of Serbians and Greeks and as ruler of Thessaly.
He may have been associated on the throne by his father as early as 1359/60. After reigning for an uncertain number
of years, John Uro abdicated in favor of his relative, the Caesar Alexios Angelos Philanthropenos, and became a
monk.
He joined the monastic community founded by his father at Meteora, where he is documented under his monastic
name Joasaph in 1381. Although he had surrendered political power, John Uro remained wealthy and influential. In
13841385 he helped his sister Maria govern Epirus after the murder of her husband Thomas II Preljubovi. He
endowed the monasteries at Meteora and eventually became the head of the local monastic community, rebuilding or
establishing further monasteries in the area in 1388 and 1390. In the 1390s he visited Mount Athos, but was back in
Meteora by 1401, and died there in 1422 or 1423.
John Uro was the last emperor of Serbs and Greeks and the last Serbian ruler of Thessaly. His relative Alexios
Angelos Philanthropenos succeeded him and recognized Byzantine suzerainty, and the area was lost to Bayezid I of
the Ottoman Empire by his son Manuel Angelos Philanthropenos in 1394. John Uro had a younger brother named
Stephen Uro, who may have held Pharsalos as his fief. Although he died long after his brother became monk, he did
not succeed him as ruler of Thessaly.
References
Nicholas Cheetham, Mediaeval Greece, Yale University Press, 1981.
D.I. Polemis, The Doukai, London, 1968.
Thomas II Preljubovi
76
Ruler of Epirus
Thomas and Maria Paleologina
Reign 1366-1384
Born 14th century
Died December 23, 1384
Place of death Ioannina, Epirus
Predecessor Simeon Uro
Successor Maria Palaeologina
Offspring Irene, Preljub
Father Caesar Gregorios Preljub
Mother Irene
Religious beliefs Eastern Orthodox Christian
Thomas II Preljubovi or Komnenos Palaiologos (Serbian: ; Greek:
, Thmas Komnnos Palaiologos), was ruler of Epirus in Ioannina from 1366 to his death on December
23, 1384. He also held the title of Albanian-slayer ().
[1]
Family
Thomas was the son of caesar Gregorios Preljub (Greek: Grgorios Prealimpos), the Serbian governor of Thessaly,
who died in late 1355 or early 1356. According to "The Late Medieval Balkans, A Critical Survey from the Late
Twelfth Century to the Ottoman Conquest" (1994) by J. V. A. Fine, his mother Irene was a daughter of Stefan Uro
IV Duan of Serbia and Helena of Bulgaria.
[2]
Life
After the violent death of his father, Thomas' claim to Thessaly was asserted by his mother Irene, but they were
forced to flee to Serbia by the advance of Nikephoros II Orsini in 1356. Here Irene married Radoslav Hlapen, the
ruler of Vodena, who took Thomas under his wing.
During the absence of Thessaly's new ruler Simeon Uro Palaiologos in Epirus in 13591360, Hlapen invaded
Thessaly, attempting to win it for his stepson. Although Simeon Uro managed to contain the invasion, he was
forced to cede Kastoria to Thomas and to marry him to his daughter Maria. Over the next several years, Simeon Uro
recognized that he could not assert effective authority over most of Epirus and delegated power in Arta and
Angelokastron to local Albanian chieftains. In 1366 the citizens of Ioannina, the last major fortress to remain under
Simeon Uro's control, sent him a petition to appoint a governor who could protect them from the raids of Albanian
clansmen.
77
Simeon Uro responded by designating Thomas as his governor and forwarding the Ioanninan and Vagenetian
(Thesprotian) embassy to him. Thomas entered Ioannina sometime in 1366 or 1367. Thomas' reign in Epirus is
reflected in most detail in the so-called Chronicle of Ioannina, which represents him as a cruel and capricious tyrant.
Thomas seized various properties of the Church of Ioannina and awarded them to his Serbian retainers. In 1382 a
new appointee to the local archbishopric, Matthew, was sent out from Constantinople, and invested Thomas with the
title of despotes on behalf of the Byzantine Emperor John V Palaiologos. Nevertheless, later Thomas quarreled with
the archbishop and exiled him from Ioannina.
Thomas is also accused of persecuting the local nobility and thus inspired a series of revolts against his rule. In
addition to seizing ecclesiastical and private property, Thomas established new taxes and monopolies on various
commodities, including fish and fruit. In addition to relying on his military forces to enforce these imposts, Thomas
waged continuous war against the Albanian clans and the rulers of Arta and Angelokastron.
Soon after taking possession of Ioannina, Thomas was unsuccessfully besieged by Peter Ljosha of Arta; this conflict
ended with the marriage of Thomas' daughter Irene to Peter's son John. When the Ljoshas lost Arta to John Bua
Shpata of Angelokastron, the warfare commenced anew, and was ended with a projected marriage between John and
Thomas' half-sister Helena. This arrangement also did not last, and in 1377 Thomas defeated an Albanian attack on
Ioannina. Another attack, which came close to taking the city, was repelled in 1379. Continuously harried, Thomas
turned for help to his Frankish and then his Ottoman neighbors. The latter responded promptly and dispatched an
auxiliary force in 1381. Thomas put this force to good use and conquered many fortresses from his enemies in
13811384. His ruthless successes won him the epithet "Albanian-Slayer" (, Albanoktonos).
However, Thomas had come to be on bad terms with his wife Maria, who participated in the subsequent conspiracy
against her husband. On December 23, 1384, Thomas was murdered by his guards and the happy population of
Ioannina swore allegiance to Maria and invited her brother John Uro Doukas Palaiologos to come and advise her in
the government.
Family
By an unnamed mistress, Thomas II Preljubovi had at least one daughter:
Irene, who married John Ljosha of Arta, and died in 1374/5.
By his wife Maria Angelina Doukaina Palaiologina Thomas II possibly had a son:
Preljub (Prealoupes), who must have died young.
References
[1] http:/ / www. cliohres. net/ books/ 7/ 08.pdf
[2] Profile of Stefan IV in "Medieval Lands" by Charles Cawley (http:/ / fmg. ac/ Projects/ MedLands/ SERBIA. htm#StefanDusandied1355)
Maria Angelina Doukaina Palaiologina
78
Maria Angelina Ducena Palaeologina
Basilissa of Epirus
Thomas and Maria Paleologina
Reign 1385-1386
Predecessor Thomas II Preljubovi
Successor Esau de' Buondelmonti
House House of Nemanji
Father Simeon Uro
Mother Thomais Orsini
Born 1350/51
Died December 28, 1394 Ioannina, Despotate of Epirus
Religion Eastern Orthodox Christian
Maria Angelina Doukaina Palaiologina (Greek: ) (died December 28,
1394) was ruler of Epirus from 1385 to 1386. She took the title of Basilissa of Epirus or Empress/Queen of Epirus.
Maria was the daughter of Emperor Simeon Uro Palaiologos and Thomais Orsini. Her maternal grandparents were
John Orsini of Epirus and Anna Palaiologina. In 1360 or 1366, Maria married Thomas II Preljubovi, who was
appointed governor of Epirus in Ioannina by her father. Popular with her subjects, she was apparently mistreated by
her husband and connived in his murder on December 23, 1384.
Family
The population of Ioannina acclaimed Maria as ruler. She used the title of basilissa, female form of basileus. She
summoned her brother John Uro Doukas Palaiologos (now monk under the name Joasaph) to advise her in the
affairs of state. John Uro suggested that Maria marry Esau de' Buondelmonti, one of the Latin noblemen captured
by Thomas in 1379. There is an allegation, that Maria was already enamored of the captive before the murder of her
husband, and that this affair had resulted in the assassination of Thomas.
Maria married Esau in February 1385, and survived for a further decade, dying on December 28, 1394. The
Chronicle of Ioannina, so hostile towards Thomas, describes Maria in very flattering terms; the Byzantine historian
Laonikos Chalkokondyles suggest that she was an unfaithful wife of questionable morality. Both accounts may be
biased. Maria does not appear to have had surviving children from either marriage.
79
References
Serbian Despotate
80
Serbian Despotate

Srpska DespotovinaSerbian Despotate

14021459

Coat of arms
1422
Capital Belgrade and Smederevo
Language(s) Serbian
Government Monarchy
Despot
- 1402-1427 Stefan Lazarevi
History
-Established February 22, 1402
-Disestablished November 10, 1459
The Serbian Despotate (Serbian: / Srpska despotovina) was a Serbian state, the last to be
conquered by the Ottoman Empire. Although the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 is generally considered the end of the
medieval Serbian state, the Despotate, a successor of the Serbian Empire and Moravian Serbia survived for 70 more
years, experiencing a cultural and political renaissance in the first half of the 15th century before it was conquered by
Serbian Despotate
81
the Ottomans in 1459. Even then, it continued in Hungarian exile until the mid-16th century.
History
Origin of the Despotate
After Prince Lazar was killed in the Battle of Kosovo on June 28, 1389, his son Stefan Lazarevi succeeded him.
Being a minor, his mother Princess Milica ruled as his regent. A wise and diplomatic woman, she managed to
balance the Ottoman threat as Ottoman Empire was in a turmoil after the Battle of Kosovo and killing of Sultan
Murad I. She married her daughter, Olivera, to his successor, Sultan Bayezid I
Sometime after the battle, in 1390 or 1391, Serbia became a vassal Ottoman state, so Stefan Lazarevic was obliged
to participate in battles if ordered by the Ottoman sultan. He did so in the Battle of Rovine in May 1395 against the
Wallachian prince Mircea I and the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396 against the Hungarian king Sigismund. After that,
Sultan Bayezid awarded Stefan with the majority of the Vuk Brankovi's land on Kosovo, as Brankovi sided with
the Hungarian king at Nicopolis.
When Mongols entered the Ottoman realm, Stefan Lazarevi participated in the Battle of Angora in 1402 when
Ottomans were defeated and sultan Bayezid was captured. Returning back to Serbia, Stefan visited Constantinople
where the Byzantine emperor Manuel II Palaiologos granted him the title of despot. In previous years, title would
mean that the despot would rule some vassal state, but as the Byzantine Empire was too weak to assert such a rule
and Serbia was not its vassal state, Stefan Lazarevi took this title as the personal style of the Serbian monarchs, thus
the Principality of Serbia became the Serbian Despotate.
Stefan Lazarevi
Consolidation
Already in Constantinople, Stefan had a dispute with his nephew ura Brankovi, son of Vuk Brankovi who was
accompanying him and got arrested by the Byzantine authorities. ura would later succeed Stefan. Stefan's brother
Vuk Lazarevi was also in his escort and as they were returning over the Kosovo, they were attacked by the
Brankovi army at Tripolje, near the Graanica monastery. Vuk headed the Lazarevi army, which was victorious,
but reaching Novo Brdo, the brothers had a quarrel and Vuk went to the Ottoman side, to the new sultan (actually
co-ruler with his 3 brothers) Suleyman (I) elebi.
Counting on unrests within the Ottoman empire (Ottoman Interregnum), in early 1404 Stefan accepted vassalage to
the Hungarian king Sigismund, who awarded him with Belgrade, until then in Hungarian possession, so Belgrade
became capital of Serbia for the first time in history as all the old capitals of Serbia (Skopje, Pritina, Prilep and
Kruevac) were already taken by the Ottomans.
Next few years are marked by events in Stefan's personal life. He managed to liberate his sister and Bayezid's widow
Olivera. In 1404 he made peace with his brother Vuk, in 1405 he married Katilina Gatiluzzi, daughter of Francesco
II Gatiluzzi, ruler of the Greek island of Lesbos. Also in 1405 his mother Milica died.
In 1408 brothers disputed again and Vuk, together with sultan Suleyman and the Brankovi family, attacked Stefan
in early 1409. Being besieged at Belgrade, Stefan agreed to give southern part of Serbia to his brother and to accept
again Ottoman vassalage. Suleyman's brother Musa rebelled against him and Stefan took Musa's side in the battle of
Kosmidion in 1410, near Constantinople. Musa's army was defeated and Suleiman sent Vuk and ura Brankovi's
brother Lazar to come to Serbia before Stefan returns, but they both were captured by Musa's sympathizers and got
executed in July 1410. Through Constantinople, where emperor Manuel II confirmed his despotic rights, Stefan
returned to Belgrade and annexed Vuk's lands.
Serbian Despotate
82
Serbian Despotate at the time of Stefan Lazarevic
(1422) and possession limit of Venice in Adriatic
coast.
When Musa became self-proclaimed sultan in European part of the
Ottoman empire, he attacked Serbia in early 1412 but was defeated
by Stefan near Novo Brdo in Kosovo. Stefan then invited ruler of
the Anatolian part of the empire, sultan Mehmed elebi to attack
Musa together. Securing Hungarian help, they attacked Musa at
amorlu, near the Vitosha mountain (modern Bulgaria) and
defeated him, with Musa being killed in the battle. As a reward,
Stefan received the town of Koprijan near Ni (Ni itself remained
in Ottoman hands) and the Serbian-Bulgarian area of Znepolje. For
the rest of his rule, Stefan remained in good relations with
Mehmed, which made the recovery of medieval Serbia possible.
On April 28, 1421, Stefan's nephew and ruler of Zeta, Bala III
died and bequeathed his lands to his uncle. With this and territorial
gains from the Hungarians (Belgrade, Srebrenica, etc), Serbia
restored majority of its ethnic territories it occupied before the
Battle of Kosovo.
Renaissance
The rule of the poet, thinker and artist, despot Stefan Lazarevi,
was a period of renewed artistic development in Serbia. Stefan
Lazarevi himself was a poet, writing one of the major medieval
Serbian literary works, Slovo ljubve ('The word of love') and one
of the largest libraries in the Balkans at that period. Apart from
political stability as a result of Stefan's ability to keep a distance
from both the Ottoman Empire and Hungarians, stability was also
helped by the very rich silver mines, Srebrenica and Novo Brdo, some of the wealthiest in Europe at that time.
Belgrade, at that time became one of the largest cities in Europe, numbering over 100,000 people.
ura Brankovi
First rule
As despot Stefan had no children of his own, already in 1426 he bequeathed the despotate to his nephew, ura
Brankovi who succeeded him upon his death on July 19, 1427. Already the second most important figure in the
despotate for the last 15 years, he was confirmed as despot by the Byzantine emperor John VIII Palaeologus in 1429.
As an immediate result of Stefan's death, Serbia had to return Belgrade to the Hungarians which gave it to Stefan as
a personal gift to him. As the southern wealthy cities (like Novo Brdo) were too close to the Ottomans to be declared
new capitals, ura decided to built a new one, a magnificent fortress of Smederevo on the Danube, close to the
Hungarian border. Constructed 1428-30, Smederevo was a source of many future misinterpretations of the history,
especially concerning ura's wife Jerina. Being a Greek and with her brothers very influential to the new despot,
people began to dislike her, attributing to her many vicious and evil characteristics including that building of
Smederevo was her caprice. In folk poetry she's been dubbed Prokleta Jerina (the Damned Jerina), but nothing of
this can't be confirmed from historical sources.
Serbian Despotate
83
Temporary Ottoman occupation
Period of relative peace ended in 1438 when Ottoman army, headed by the sultan Murad II himself, attacked and
sacked Serbia. Despot ura fled to Hungary in May 1439, leaving a regency of two, his son Grgur Brankovi and
Jerina's brother Toma Kantakuzin to defend the country. After three-months siege, Smederevo fell on August 18,
1439, while Novo Brdo, 'mother of all cities' was conquered on June 27, 1441. At this point the only free remaining
part of the despotate was Zeta. First Ottoman governor of Serbia was Ishak-Beg who in 1443 was replaced by
Isa-Beg.
ura Brankovi restored and reconquered
In Hungary, ura Brankovi managed to talk Hungarian leaders into expelling the Ottomans, so a broad Christian
coalition of Hungarians (under John Hunyadi), Serbs and Romanians (under Vlad II Dracul) advanced to Serbia and
Bulgaria in September 1443, and Serbia was fully restored by the Peace of Szeged on August 15, 1444. How hard it
was to balance between such a strong powers in the region may be seen from the fact that in 1447-48 despot ura
provided funds to the Byzantines to repair the city walls of Constantinople, but being officially an Ottoman vassal,
he had to send an army to help Sultan Mehmed II conquer Constantinople in May 1453. In the next year, Mehmed II
attacked Serbia, finally taking Novo Brdo in 1455, while in 1456, despot ura handed over to the Sultan the entire
southern section of Serbia, before he died on December 24, 1456 in Smederevo.
Lazar Brankovi
Despot Lazar Brankovi, who succeeded his father ura, seeing that Serbia is too weak and that it is impossible to
defeat the Ottomans on the battlefield, managed to make a deal with sultan Mehmed II on January 15, 1457.
According to this, he was granted back most of his father's lands and a promise that Serbia will not be disturbed by
the Ottomans until Lazar's death, who in turn had to pay a tribute. Being relieved of the southern threat, Lazar turned
to the north and Hungarian internal battles, managing to capture the town of Kovin on the left bank of the Danube in
1457, which was the first time in Serbian history that Serbia stretched across the Danube. Despot Lazar died on
January 20, 1458.
Regency and Stefan Brankovi
As despot Lazar Brankovi had no sons, a three-member regency was formed after his death. It included Lazar's
brother, the blind Stefan Brankovi, Lazar's widow Jelena Palaeologus and Mihailo Anelovi, the 'governor of
Rascia'. After Anelovi secretly let one company of Ottomans into Smederevo, he was imprisoned in March 1458
and Stefan became despot in his own right. Year later, Stefan opted to marry his niece, late despot Lazar's daughter,
Marija, to the heir apparent of Bosnia, Stefan Tomaevi. Even before Stefan married Marija, he declared himself
new despot on March 21, 1459 and expelled ex-despot Stefan to Hungary on April 8, 1459.
Stefan Tomaevi and fall of the Despotate
Stefan Tomaevi is considered to be the unluckiest Serbian ruler in the Middle Ages as he lost two countries to the
Ottomans: Serbia in 1459 and Bosnia in 1463. His appointment as new despot was highly unpopular but pushed hard
by his father, Bosnian king Stefan Toma. Since by this time Serbia was reduced to only a strip of land surrounding
Smederevo, sultan Mehmed II decided to conquer Serbia completely and arrived at Smederevo; the new ruler didn't
even try to defend the city. After negotiations, Bosnians were allowed to leave the city and Serbia was officially
conquered by Turks on June 20, 1459.
Serbian Despotate
84
Despotate in Hungarian exile
In 1404 Hungarian King Sigismund lend parts Syrmia to Serbian Despot Stefan Lazarevi for governing, later
succeeded by ura Brankovi
[1]
. After the Ottoman Empire conquered Serbia in 1459, the Hungarians renewed the
legacy of Despots to the House of Brankovi in exile, later to the Berislavi family, who continued to govern most of
Syrmia until the Ottoman conquest but territory has been de facto and de jure part of Hungarian kingdom. The
residence of the despots was Kupinik (modern Kupinovo). The Despots were: Vuk Grgurevi (14711485), ore
Brankovi (14861496), Jovan Brankovi (14961502), Ivani Berislavi (15041514), and Stjepan Berislavi
(15201535). The last of the titular Serbian despots in Syrmia, Stevan Berislav, moved in 1522 to Slavonia, since
Kupinik was seized by the Ottoman forces.
Rulers of the Serbian Despotate
Name Reign Remark
Stefan Lazarevi (13741427) August, 1402-July 19, 1427 Lazarevi dynasty
ura Brankovi (13751456) July 19, 1427-August 18, 1439 Brankovi dynasty
Grgur Brankovi (141659) May, 1439-August 18, 1439 co-regent for ura
Thomas Kantakouzenos May, 1439-August 18, 1439 co-regent for ura
Ishak-Beg (+1443) 14391443 Turkish governor
Isa-Beg 1443-June 12, 1444 Turkish governor
ura Brankovi (13751456) June 12, 1444-December 24, 1456 restored
Lazar Brankovi (142158) December 24, 1456-January 19, 1458 Brankovi dynasty
Mihailo Anelovi (+1464) January 19, 1458-March, 1458 co-regent
Jelena Paleolog (143273) January 19, 1458-March, 1458 co-regent
Stefan Brankovi (142076) January 19, 1458-March 21, 1459 co-regent to March 1458
Stefan Tomaevi (143863) March 21, 1459-June 20, 1459 Kotromani dynasty
Titular rulers of the Serbian Despotate in Hungarian exile
Vuk Grgurevi Brankovi (143885) 1471-April 16, 1485 "Zmaj Ognjeni Vuk"
ore Brankovi (14611516) February, 1486-July, 1497 Brankovi dynasty
Jovan Brankovi (14621502) 1492-December 10, 1502 Brankovi dynasty
Jelena Brankovi (d.1530) December 10, 15021503 Jovan's widow; acting
Ivani Berislavi (d.1514) 1503-January, 1514 Berislavi dynasty
Stefan Berislavi (150436) January, 15141536 Berislavi dynasty
Jelena Brankovi (d.1530) January, 15141522 second time; acting for her minor son Stefan
Radi Boi (d.1528) June 29, 1527-September, 1528 Boi dynasty
Pavle Baki (d.1537) September 20, 1537-October 9, 1537 Baki dynasty
Serbian Despotate
85
References
Mala Prosvetina Enciklopedija, Third edition (1985); Prosveta; ISBN 86-07-00001-2
Duan Spasi, Aleksandar Palavestra, Duan Mrenovi: Rodoslovne tablice i grbovi srpskih dinastija i vlastele,
Second edition (1991); Bata; ISBN 86-7685-007-0
Vladimir -orovi: Ilustrovana istorija Srba, Vol. III (2006); Politika NM & Narodna Knjiga; ISBN
86-331-2525-0 (NK)
Dennis P. Hupchick: The Balkans: From Constantinople to Communism; Palgrave Macmillan; ISBN
1-4039-6417-3
[1] Sve o Slankamenu (http:/ / www. slankamen. org.yu/ slankamen/ ss. html)
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Billinghurst, Bogdangiusca, Bomac, Brane.Blokar, CalJW, Casito, Catalographer, Chris the speller, Clanedstino, Crzrussian, Damjanoviczarko, Debresser, Dedokire, Delirium, Denipavlovski,
Drbreznjev, Dultz, El.tula, Evlekis, Fireaxe888, Flauto Dolce, FunkyFly, Future Perfect at Sunrise, Gfoley4, Ghirlandajo, Greier, Hadija, Jaraalbe, JavMilos, Jeff G., Jiang, Jingiby, Joy,
Jujutacular, Jusdafax, KathrynLybarger, Kbdank71, Kebeta, Keep it Fake, Kirev, Kostja, Kovac09, Krushevo komitet, Lalalalalalol, Laveol, Life of Riley, Local hero, Maed, Man vyi, Marko sk,
Martin Sulevski, MatriX, Mboverload, Mladifilozof, Mrki83, Mushroom, Nathrach, NeroN BG, Nikola Smolenski, Ninam, Ntsimp, Ostalocutanje, PANONIAN, R'n'B, RJaguar3, Raso mk,
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Vanjagenije, Velimir85, WiccaIrish, Wik, Woohookitty, X!, Xdr2011, York60, Zikicam, Zoupan, , , 280 anonymous edits
Despotate of Velbazhd Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=411354792 Contributors: Cplakidas, Jaraalbe, Laveol, Mladifilozof, Woohookitty, Zoupan, 4 anonymous edits
Jovan Draga Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=396853517 Contributors: Paulmcdonald, Woohookitty, Zoupan
Constantine Draga Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=394117759 Contributors: Againme, Ajdebre, Alexander VIII, Balkantropolis, Bbik, Brane.Blokar, Cemsentin1,
Cplakidas, CrniBombarder!!!, Deiz, Dimadick, Dr.K., DragonflySixtyseven, Evlekis, Ferred, Imladjov, JSimin, Jaraalbe, Jeanne boleyn, Laveol, Luk, McMarcoP, Mladifilozof, PANONIAN,
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Peripitus, RafaAzevedo, Rjwilmsi, TodorBozhinov, Vanjagenije, Zoupan, , 31 anonymous edits
Simeon Uro Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=396501069 Contributors: (:Julien:), Ajdebre, Alexikoua, Cplakidas, CrniBombarder!!!, Delirium, Dimadick, Djordjes, Dr.K.,
Hadija, Hectorian, Imladjov, Jaraalbe, Kedadi, Magioladitis, MarcoLittel, Rjwilmsi, Sardanaphalus, Satoran, Str1977, Vanjagenije, VirtualDelight, 6 anonymous edits
John Uro Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=395239888 Contributors: Angel ivanov angelov, Carski, Cplakidas, Dimadick, Djordjes, Erud, FeanorStar7, Hadija, Imladjov,
Jaraalbe, Sardanaphalus, Zoupan, 5 anonymous edits
Thomas II Preljubovi Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=407923160 Contributors: Ajdebre, Alexikoua, Angel ivanov angelov, Athenean, Brane.Blokar, Carski, Cplakidas,
CrniBombarder!!!, Delirium, Dimadick, Dr.K., FocalPoint, Imladjov, J04n, Jncraton, Kauczuk, MarcoLittel, PaxEquilibrium, Rjwilmsi, Shakko, Vanjagenije, VirtualDelight, Zoupan, 6
anonymous edits
Maria Angelina Doukaina Palaiologina Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=407923019 Contributors: Ajdebre, Alexikoua, Carlaude, Cplakidas, CrniBombarder!!!,
Deucalionite, Dimadick, Dr.K., Dsp13, Imladjov, InfernoXV, J04n, John of Reading, Queen Elizabeth II's Little Spy, Rjwilmsi, RogDel, Shakko, Thismightbezach, Yannismarou, 1 anonymous
edits
Serbian Despotate Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=416701013 Contributors: AjaxSmack, Akerans, Andrwsc, Antidiskriminator, Attilios, Bart133, Bbik, Bellatores,
BokicaK, Bratislav, Buttons, Catalographer, Chris the speller, Chzz, CommonsDelinker, Cplakidas, CrniBombarder!!!, DIREKTOR, Deucalionite, Deville, Djidash, Everyking, Flapdragon, Gcm,
Good Olfactory, Greenshed, Hadija, HennessyC, Hmains, Iaroslavvs, Jaraalbe, Jun Kayama, Kansas Bear, Kedadi, Kovac09, Maduixa, Milosevo, Mimihitam, Mladifilozof, Nedim Ardoa,
Nesalomivi, No such user, PANONIAN, PajaBG, PaxEquilibrium, Radu Gherasim, Rekonstruh, Rich Farmbrough, Rjecina, Serbia123, Tabletop, ThaddeusB, Theo10011, User1389, Vanjagenije,
Visitante22, Xycut, Zoupan, Zvonko, , 34 anonymous edits
Image Sources, Licenses and Contributors
88
File:Supposed Serbian Empire flag.svg Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=File:Supposed_Serbian_Empire_flag.svg License: Public Domain Contributors: User:B1mbo
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Manoliu
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