Serbia in the Middle Ages

Period of Serbian history in the 6th to 16th centuries

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Prehistory Paleolithic Mesolithic Neolithic Bronze Age Iron Age
Pre-Roman Illyrians Autariatae Dardani Triballi Moesi Scordisci Dacians
Early Roman Illyricum Pannonia Pannonia Inferior Dalmatia Moesia Moesia Superior Dacia Dacia Aureliana
Late Roman Moesia Prima Dacia Mediterranea Dacia Ripensis Dardania Praevalitana Pannonia Secunda Diocese of Moesia Diocese of Dacia Diocese of Pannonia Praetorian prefecture of Illyricum
Early Middle Ages White Serbia around 600 AD Principality of Serbia Bosnia 7th–10th century Catepanate of Ras around 969–976
High Middle Ages Grand Principality 1071–1217 Kingdom of Serbia 1217–1346 King Dragutin's realm 1282–1325 Empire Fall 1346–1371 Lordship of Prilep 1371–1395 Prince Lazar's Serbia 1371–1402 Vuk's Land 1371–1412 Despotate of Serbia 1402–1537
Koča's frontier	1788–1791

The

By the 14th century, Serbia was a fully developed feudal state.[5]^[7] Foundations were set by King Milutin (1282-1321), the most important Serbian medieval ruler, who halted expansion of state in 1299 in order to consolidate it.^[6][7] Serbia peaked during the reign of king and later Emperor Dušan (1331-55). He expanded the state to encompass modern Serbia south of the Sava and the Danube, Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, east Herzegovina, Epirus and Thessaly, organized Serbia after the Byzantine Empire, and introduced codified law.^[4]

There was a tight union of state and church which became autocephalous in 1219 under Saint Sava, and a patriarchate in 1346, rivaling the status of Ecumenical Patriarchate in Constantinople. The rulers endowed numerous monasteries, like Mileševa, Peć, Morača, Sopoćani, Visoki Dečani, Gračanica, which are today monuments with an important symbolism for Serbs. The union accelerated cultural development and moved beyond the realm of simply translating Byzantine works and established a unique Serbian civilization. Political and cultural growth was followed by economic growth. Agriculture developed; and while silver, tin and copper had been mined during the Roman era, mining vastly expanded in this period. Trade boomed as well utilizing old Roman roads.

The apex was short-lived. Dušan's death was followed by disintegration of state under rival family branches and local leaders.^[4] The last emperor, Uroš, died in 1371. The major pretender to the unified throne was King Vukašin, but he died clashing with the Ottomans in 1371. The next who appeared able to restore Serbia was Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović, ruler of the expanded Moravian Serbia.^[6] The major clash with advancing Ottomans occurred on 28 June 1389 at Kosovo Polje. Both rulers, Sultan Murad I and prince Lazar, were killed in the battle. Due to its importance, magnitude, and consequences, the battle, its participants and circumstances were enshrined and immortalized in folk poetry and literature. It transcended the historical importance, reaching a spiritual level by the 19th century, and turned Kosovo into the "Jerusalem of the Serbs".^[4] Despite the defeat,^[5] Serbia endured for another 70 years, experiencing a territorial and cultural revival under Despot Stefan Lazarević (1389-1427).^[6][7] Serbian resistance continued until the fall of Smederevo in 1459.^[4]

Despite the claimed significance in which Turkish rule shaped national consciousness of the Serbs, the fall under the Ottomans was dubbed by the Serbian historians as “Turkish night”.^[4] The conquest severed continuity of economic, social and political development,^[7] and Serbia was cut off from the European cultural and political society where it was carving its own place. When development of Serbia and the rest of Europe in the 15th and the 19th century are compared, it shows the enormous erosion and falling behind.^[8]

Introduction

Background

During the 6th century, at the beginning of the

The

After a death of the Serbian prince, his two sons took over the rule and divided White Serbs in two groups. One remained in White Serbia, while the other group migrated to the Balkans.[24]^[25] Frankish Chronicle of Fredegar mentions Dervan, chieftain of the Serbs, in c. 631, who may be the first Serb mentioned by name in history. Dervan is considered to be the father or, more likely, brother of the nameless prince who led the White Serbs into the Balkans.^[26][27][28]

Sclaveni raided and settled the western Balkans in the 6th and 7th century.

Pannonian Plain in 567 pushed the proper invasion raids. The Slavs followed the Avars in their, mostly destructive enterprises, into the Byzantine territory. They destroyed and conquered one by one city and fortress which constituted the Danubian Limes, northern border of the empire, like Sirmium (582) and Singidunum (modern Belgrade, 584). In 584 and 586 the Slavs already besieged Thessaloniki, on the Aegean Sea, raided Dalmatia in 597 while the entire limes collapsed by 602.^{[30][31][32][33]}

The decisive phase followed, mostly from 610 to 626, when the Slavs raided the inland of the Balkans, destroying large cities and ravaging the area between the Danube on the north and south of Greece, including the repeated sieges of Thessalonica in 616 and 618, and of Constantinople itself in 626. Only defeat at Constantinople stopped the raids and pacified the situation on the peninsula, but by that time large portions of the Balkans were already inhabited by the Slavs.^[34][35]

Around 640, the Avar-Slavic party raided the city of

Apennine Peninsula.^[36]

Unlike some later attacks on modern Italian soil, it is unknown which specific Slavic tribe conducted this excursion. However, with some other data (Italian monks claim that Slavs acknowledged paramount rule of the Byzantine emperor), the well equipped attack on the Lombards, main opponents of the Byzantine Empire in Italy, points to the close connections between the Slavs and the Byzantines and the Byzantine overall influence, corroborating the DAIs claim that Serbs settled in the Balkans in accordance with the Byzantine emperor.[37]

Main remains of the Slavic culture and social organization, from the 7th to the 9th century, includes several localities around

smithing workshops.^[38]

Apart from the Serbs and the Croats, some of the Slavic tribes which settled the Balkan peninsula included:[39]^[40]

Tribe	Serbian name (modern)	Regions	Modern states
Eastern Obotrites	Бодрићи (Bodrići)	Braničevo	Serbia
Braničevci	Браничевци (Braničevci)	Braničevo	Serbia
Baiounitai	Вајунити (Vajuniti)	Epirus	Albania, Greece
Belegezites	Велегезити (Velegeziti)	Thessaly	Greece
Berziti	Брсјаци (Brsjaci)	Lake Ohrid	North Macedonia
Drougoubitai	Драгувити (Draguviti)	North Macedonia	Bulgaria, Greece, North Macedonia
Ezeritai	Језерити (Jezeriti)	Central Peloponnese	Greece
Guduscani	Гачани (Gačani)	Lika-Dalmatia or Timok Valley	Croatia or Bulgaria-Serbia
Melingoi	Мелинзи (Melinzi)	East Peloponnese	Greece
Merehani	Морављани (Moravljani)	Morava Valley	Serbia
Rhynchinoi	Ринхини (Rinhini)	Central Macedonia	Greece, North Macedonia
Sagudates	Сагудати (Sagudati)	Southwest Macedonia, Thessaly	Greece
Severians	Северјани (Severjani)	Dobruja, Ludogorie	Bulgaria, Romania
Smolyani	Смољани (Smoljani)	Rhodope Mountains	Bulgaria, Greece
Strymonites	Струмљани (Strumljani)	East Macedonia	Bulgaria, Greece
Timočani	Тимочани (Timočani)	Timok Valley	Bulgaria, Serbia
Seven clans	Седам родова (Sedam rodova)	Danube Valley	Bulgaria, Romania

Early Middle Ages

See also: 9th century in Serbia and 10th century in Serbia

Early Slavs

Through linguistical studies, it is concluded that the early South Slavs were made up of a western and eastern branch, of parallel streams, roughly divided in the

Timok–Osogovo–Šar line.^[41]

According to archaeological evidence in Serbia, mainly along Morava River Basin (which was settled by Bulgarian-Slavic tribes of Timočani, Eastern Obotrites and Moravians[42]^[43]), the Slavs may have reached it earlier than thought, between late 6th and early 7th century, according many findings of fibulae and Slavic pottery at Roman forts, but "no grave has been found so far to be related to the Slavs with a degree of certainty" and "the date when the Slavs started settling in Illyricum remains a question".^[44] The number of Slavic and Pannonian Avars findings in Serbia generally are very small,^[42][43] could be traces of warrior excursions or acculturation, and only since second half of the 7th century "can be interpreted with considerable certainty as a model of Slavic colonisation". However, the area was not well re-populated by the Slavs, and settlement patterns in the 8th and 9th century show "successive population inlows from the surrounding regions" (with significant Bulgarian influence^[45][46]).^[43] The found coins indicate "renewal of life in the central Balkans from the middle of the 7th to the middle of the 9th century".^[47] The settlements were unfortified and of small size,^[48][49] at the outskirts of ancient ramparts.^[50] Numerous finds give evidence to the conclusion that a good part of native Roman population remained and continued to live within and near those ramparts.^[51] After the Christianization, under influence of Byzantine and Bulgarian Empires, since the mid-9th century the settlements number increased and became fortified, also were re-settled ancient hillforts (more than 30%) but with reduced area size.^[52][53] No cemetery has been found, showing that the burial was mainly cremation and later biritual.^[54]

Early Serbs

De Administrando Imperio on the Serbs

The history of the early medieval Serbian Principality is recorded in the DAI. The emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus assembled it from 948 to 952 for his son and heir Romanos II. The aim was to warn the young prince on the problems which might occur during his reign. The Serbs are mentioned in the total of 8 chapters, from 29 to 36. The most important is the chapter 32, which is titled "About the Serbs and the lands in which they dwell today".^[24][25]

The DAI drew information on the Serbs from, among others, Serbian sources.^[55] On the origin of the Serbs, the DAI says that "Serbs originate from the unbaptized Serbs, also called White Serbs, which live on the other side of the Turkey (i.e. Hungary), in the land which they call Bojka, close to the Frankish Empire and the great Croatia, unbaptized, also known as the White Croatia".^[24][25]

The emperor also describes how the Serbian tribe was divided in two, with one group migrating to the Balkans:

As two brothers inherited the rule over the Serbs after their father, one of them, taking a half of the people with him, migrated over to Heraclius, emperor of the Romans, who took him in, and gave him the settling location in the

Dyrrachium), the emperor settled Serbs in these lands, and they were subordinated to the emperor of the Romans, the emperor brought priests from Rome to baptize them and teach them to perform the pious duties in order, and displayed the Christian faith to them.^[25]

Another source on early medieval Serbia are the Royal Frankish Annals by Einhard, that recorded Serbs (in 822) who controlled great part of Dalmatia ("ad Sorabos, quae natio magnam Dalmatiae partem obtinere dicitur"). It was the oldest historical record which mentioned the name Serbs and gave some details about them.^[56][57]

In contemporary historiography and archaeology, the narratives of De Administrando Imperio have been reassessed as they contain anachronisms and factual mistakes. The account in DAI about the Serbs mentions that they requested from the Byzantine commander of present-day Belgrade to settle in the theme of Thessalonica, which was formed ca. 150 years after the reign of Heraclius which was in the 7th century. For the purposes of its narrative, the DAI formulates a mistaken etymology of the Serbian ethnonym which it derives from Latin servi (serfs).^[58]

The DAI mentioned that the Serbs from Polabia settled the Balkans during the reign of Emperor Heraclius (r. 610–641); however, some scholars consider that the Serbian tribe was not part of some later migration, as usually held by historiography, rather than migrating with the rest of Early Slavs.^[59][60]

Range of settling

For the first two centuries after the settlement, from the early 7th century on, there are almost no historical records about the Serbs, and the region in general, as even in the entire Byzantine Empire almost no contemporary chronicles or historical works survived. But in this period the process of resettling of the Serbs in the central region of the peninsula was finished. They inhabited the narrow valleys in the watersheds of

Pagania, Travunia and Zachlumia is based on 10th century Serbian political rule and does not indicate ethnic origin,^{[63][64][65][66][67][68][69][70]} neither a small group of people led by "Unknown Archon" could settle a large territory and they most probably arrived as a small military elite which managed to organize other already settled and more numerous Slavs.^[63][71][72]

Historical source which reappeared in the 9th century mention Serbs as a people "which is said to be holding the large part of Dalmatia", but Dalmatia in the Roman sense, as a region between the Adriatic on the south, the Sava on the north and the Drina (or

karst fields and fertile basins. Those patches of the territory had fertile land, suitable for the agriculture, while the barely accessible, some mountain regions remained uninhabited.^[35]

By the 7th century, the Serbs scattered all the way south to the

Trullan Council, held in Constantinople in 692, bishop Isidore of Gordoserba was mentioned, which is the possibly first mention of the Serbian name in the south of Europe.^[75][76]

Christianization

Main article:

Christianization of the Serbs

Prior to the migration to the south, while still living in the

Merovingian kingdom, which not only had Christianity as an official religion but also had a concept of spreading the religion. Though records mention no Christianization attempts toward the Serbs specifically, there are writings regarding the, more or less successful missionary attempts among the Bavarians and Thuringians, the neighboring Germanic tribes which were conquered by the Franks in the 6th century.^[77]

Though the DAI asserts that already during the reign of Emperor Heraclius the Serbs were Christianized and that the process was performed by the priests from

Petar Gojniković. Serbs who were relocated to Gordoserba in the Asia Minor were probably already Christianized by the end of the 7th century, as they had their bishop and were presumably part of the army of "selected peoples" (Christians) in 692.^[75][76]

From this period originates the seal of the prince

Methodius.^[83]

Numerous arguments point to the fact that the major role in the Christianization of the Serbs had priests and missionaries from Rome, rather than from the closer Constantinople. This can also be seen in the earliest Christian terms in the Serbian language which came from the Latin language (oltare from altare, altar), the earliest Christian

St. Vitus' Day (Vidovdan), Michaelmas (Miholjdan), Theodore the Studite (Mratindan). Confirmation of the early missionary work by Rome, already in the 7th century, are writings of Pope Agatho and Thomas the Archdeacon. This wasn't unusual, as, following the ancient rules, this region of the still unified church was administered by Rome. This began to change after 732, when Byzantine emperor Leo III the Isaurian began to transfer regions and cities to the jurisdiction of the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople, including some parts of the Balkans. Despite this, the division wasn't as sharp as it will become after the East–West Schism in 1054.^[84]

The most important material testimony of the Christianization of the Serbs and other Slavs is the oldest known Christian temple among in Serbian lands, the Peter's Church in Ras, built in the 7-9th century. The oldest phase of the construction of the Church of Saint Apostles Peter and Paul (Bijelo Polje) [sr] in Bijelo Polje (Montenegro) was moved also to the 8th century after the recent re-examination of the construction works and stone ornaments, and was enhanced or finished in the 12th century. Remains of the 8th-century churches, before the Christianization process was finished, include localities of Bilimišće (Zenica, previously thought to be late-Roman church from the 5th or the 6th century), Dabravine (Visoko), Mali Mošunj (Vitez), Lepenica (Kiseljak), but also in the vicinities of Stolac, Ljubuški, Livno, Glamoč, Foča, Breza (all in modern Bosnia) and Imotski (Croatia). However, though active during this period, many of them may be pre-Slavic, Roman churches.^[85]

Either through the missionary works of Roman or Byzantine monks, local remnants of the

Frankish Empire. Apart from the political implications - use of new religion for the strengthening of the central rule and concentration of the power in the hands of the ruler - there was also a cultural and spiritual dimension, which included acceptance of the basic cultural values and principles of the day, and the church was the founding stone of literacy and education in the Middle Age societies. The entire religious-cultural process spanned through three centuries.^[86]

First Serbian principalities

Initial organization

In those small, isolated areas, the Serbs formed their basic territorial and political units. Each unit comprised a small geographical area, usually a river valley or a basin with the villages in it, bounded by the surrounding hills. The unit was called

knez or prince (archon, ἄρχων in Greek; dux in Latin). The knez was the supreme elder and ruler of the entire people while župans were intermediaries between him and the people. As in the other parts of the early medieval Europe, Serbian "state" did not mean by default a rule over the territory, but over the people. So, the Serbian political organization included only areas which were populated by the Serbs, excluding the vast uninhabited areas in between. That way, the borders of the "state" cannot be accurately determined.^[87]

Early Medieval Principality of Serbia

Main articles:

Early Medieval Principality of Serbia and Vlastimirović dynasty

According to DAI, "baptized Serbia" (known in historiography also as Raška^[88]), included the inhabited cities (καστρα/kastra) of Destinikon (or Serbian Dostinika) (Δεστινίκον), Tzernabouskeï (Τζερναβουσκέη), Megyretous (Μεγυρέτους), Dresneïk (Δρεσνεήκ), Lesnik (Λεσνήκ), Salines (Σαληνές), while the "small land" (χοριον/chorion) of Bosnia (Βοσωνα), part of Serbia, had the cities of Katera (Κατερα) and Desnik (Δέσνηκ).^[89] Almost all of them, apart Salines and possibly Destinikon, are still unidentified.^[90][91] Serbian towns could have been located more to the eastern or western border, with the latter more probable localization.^[92] They were not mentioned afterwards, possibly because of remote location, lost importance or became desolated after Bulgarian Samuel's conquest in the end of the 10th century.^[92] It is considered that Destinikon was the ecclesiastical centre and capital of early medieval Serbia.^{[93][79][94][91]} There's no consensus in the scholarship whether Stari Ras was located on the Serbian or Bulgarian side of the border,^{[95][96][97][98][99][100][101]} but newer research indicates that Ras since the mid-9th century was renovated, inhabited and controlled by the Bulgarians hence being "a frontier district of Bulgaria".^{[102][103][104][105]}

The ruling princely line originated from the first archon who led the Serbs to the Balkans during the emperor Heraclius' reign. However, by the time of the emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, the names of those early princes faded from the collective memory. In the DAI, the emperor basically gives the genealogy of the first Serbian ruling dynasty: After the "Unknown Archon" of the Serbs who fled over to the emperor Heraclius, in the time when Bulgaria was under the rule of the Romans, by the inheritance (rules) his son took over the rule, then his grandson and so other archons from his family line. After a number of years, Višeslav was born who fathered Radoslav, who fathered Prosigoj, who fathered Vlastimir.^{[24][25][106]}

There are no dates in this genealogy, but some can be extrapolated. The first archon arrived during the 610-626 period, and died (long time?) before the

Ljudevit Posavski. Under the Frankish attack he left his capital Sisak and fled over to the Serbs, for which is "said to be as holding the large part of (Roman) Dalmatia": Siscia civitate relicta, ad Sorabos, quae natio magnam Dalmatiae partem obtinere dicitur, fugiendo se contulit.^{[106][107][108]} However, the mentioning of "Dalmatia" in 822 and 833 as an old geographical term by the authors of Frankish Annals was Pars pro toto with a vague perception of what this geographical term actually referred to.^[109] In the contemporary Vita Hludovici that description of the Serbs is omitted.^[70] Ljudevit later killed the local župan who took him in and temporarily took over the rule in his župa, which is estimated to be either somewhere in western, central or eastern Bosnia.^[70] Some historians pointed to the modern village of Srb in the region of Lika in modern Croatia, as the possible location as in the medieval period it was a town, described in the early 14th century as having "Serbian seat and court, like in the old times",^{[110][111][112][113]} while others opposed it.^[114][115] Frankish chronicle makes a distinctions between the settlements ruled by the Croats (referring to them as castellis, or castles) and those held by the Serbs (civitas, or city-states).^[110] Ljudevit then fled to the Croatian domain, but was soon murdered.^[116] During the 822 uprising, Serbs supported the rebellion, thus siding against the Frankish Empire and indirectly supporting the Byzantines, but it is unknown to which extent they participated in the skirmishes between two empires in the 8th and the 9th century.^[117]

War periods

In 680 the

Khan of Bulgaria, attacked the Serbs during his reign (Bulgar–Serb War (839–842)) in order to "subdue them". Unlike the tribes on the east, Vlastimir decided to stand the ground and not to lead Serbs to the west. Aside from the Bulgarians, he was surrounded by the Franks on the entire north, west and southwest side, including the vassal Zachlumia. He tried to strengthen his position by connecting with the subordinated Travunija, marrying his daughter into Travunija's ruling family. However, after the three years-long warfare, Presian didn't gain any territories and, additionally, lost the majority of its army.^{[24][118][119]}

Vlastimir died c. 850 and Presijan in 852. Serbian throne was inherited by Vlastimir's sons, Mutimir, Strojimir and

boyars. This pressured Boris to reluctantly agree to a peace treaty. As a guarantee that his son and the others will be freed, Boris asked for the Mutimir's sons to accompany the prisoners to the border. Mutimir sent his two younger sons, Bran and Stefan, while the eldest and heir to the throne, Pribislav, was precautionary kept at home. Pleased with the release of his son, Boris gave them "lush gifts", while the Serbian princes gave to Boris "two slaves, two falcons, two dogs, and 80 furs".^{[24][120][121]}

Soon after the peace was reached with Bulgaria, the internal strife hit the ruling triumvirate. Mutimir, eldest and probably the most powerful in the state, expelled his brothers Strojimir (and his son

Časlav Klonimirović.^[122]

Mutimir's eldest son, Pribislav, succeeded to the throne after his father's death in 891. This was an opportunity for the descendants of the Mutimir's brothers to take over the Serbian throne. Already in 892 Petar Gojniković returned from Croatia, expelled all three Mutimir's sons to Croatia - Pribislav, Bran and Stefan - and began his rule which lasted until 917. In this period he suppressed two attempts for his dethronement. Petar defeated and blinded Bran who tried to overthrow him in 895 attacking from Croatia while in 897 he crushed Klonomir's attempt from Bulgaria to depose him. Klonimir, probably instigated by the Bulgarians, managed to briefly capture the city of Dostinika, but was ultimately defeated and killed by Peter.[24]

During his reign, Petar kept good relations with both the Byzantine emperor

Pavle Branović, son of blinded Bran. Despite that safety was granted to Petar because of his close relations with Simeon, he was captured and sent to Bulgaria where he died imprisoned, while Pavle became the new ruler by the end of 917.^[123]

At the beginning, Pavle ruled as a Bulgarian

Zaharija Pribislavljević, who lived in Constantinople at the time, in the Romanos' court. He was defeated and Pavle sent him to Bulgaria as a prisoner. In 923 Pavle turned against his sponsors, the Bulgarians, so Zaharija was again dispatched against him, now by Simeon. This time he was successful, expelling Pavle and taking over the rule himself. But Zaharija soon switched back to his original allies, the Byzantines. Simeon sent an army to conquer the shifty archon. His troops, headed by Theodore Sigritsa and Marmais attacked the Serbs in 924, but were defeated. Both commanders were killed and their heads, so as the confiscated weapons, were sent to the Byzantine emperor as the trophies. Later that year Simeon sent much larger army. Among the soldier was Klonimir's son, Časlav Klonimirović. In front of the much larger Bulgarian army, Zaharija fled to Croatia.^[124]

Final years

The

Preslav as Serbia was turned into the badlands, to come to Serbia and restore the state. This happened "7 years later",^[126] but historians are not sure is it 7 years after the 924 expedition to Serbia or after 927 and Simeon's death, but it had to be by 933–934, at latest.^[125] DAI claims that he and his entourage of 4 encountered only "50 single men, without wives and children, who lived from hunting", it shows how thorough the destruction of Serbian state and society was by the Bulgarians, considered that "at this point, fortifications were temporarily abandoned".^[125]

Časlav recognized the supreme authority of the Byzantine emperor Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus, who became his mentor and protector. The emperor helped Časlav to restore Serbia, including the heavy financial aid. Časlav repopulated Serbia returning some of the people who fled to the neighboring countries. Serbia prospered, keeping good relations with the Byzantines and the emperor constantly pointed out the good relations with Serbia in this period. The borders of Časlav's state are uncertain, possibly expanding into Bosnia.[128] It is presumed his reign stopped or died in the 940s.^[129][125]

According to semi-fictional late 13th century

Magyar–Serb conflict, sometime between 950 and 960.^[133][134]

Časlav's death in the 940s or 960s marked the end of some 350 years of the Vlastimirović dynasty rule, the oldest Serbian ruling dynasty, which was unusually long for the period and the region. All early dynasties, so as the Vlastimirović dynasty which ruled Serbia c. 610-c. 960, are named by the modern historians, either after their progenitors or the most prominent members.

Other principalities

See also: Duklja, Narentines, Travunia, Zachlumia, and Bosnia (early medieval)

The other principalities that were more or less under Serbian political influence include

Travunija and Duklja.^{[135][68][69][70]} These polities bordered Serbia to the north,^[89] but the exact borders of the early Serbian state are unclear.^[88] The Serbian ruler was titled "Prince (archon) of the Serbs" (αρχων Σερβλίας).^[136] The DAI mentions that the Serbian throne is inherited by the son, i.e. the first-born; his descendants succeeded him, though their names are unknown until the coming of Višeslav.^{[24][25][106]}

It is possible that there were two names used for the Serbs in this period. A general one, depicting the descendants of the first settlers while the other was a regional one. By the 11th century, most of the regional names disappeared and were replaced by the ethnonym Serbs. In his work Strategikon of Kekaumenos, the 11th century Byzantine general Katakalon Kekaumenos refers to the duke of Duklja Stefan Vojislav as both "Dioclean" and "Travunian Serbian". John Skylitzes, a historian from the same period, calls Stefan Vojislav an "archon of the Serbs" and that he took over the "land of the Serbs".^[137][138]

Dioclea

The region of Duklja (Dioclea) stretched along the Adriatic coast from Bay of Kotor to the mouth of the Drin river, excluding the major seaside towns like Lezhë, Ulcinj and Bar, which remained under the Byzantine rule. It occupied the central regions of Zeta nad Morača, and, like Travunija and Zachlumia, on its northern, mountainous side, leaned on the central Serbian state under the Vlastimirović dynasty, referred to as the Baptized Serbia by Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus. On the south, it bordered the Byzantine Empire in the direction of Dyrrachium, a Slavic/Serbian-Byzantine border which constantly changed for several centuries.^[139][140]

Travunija

The region of

Čučimir also used the same title. In the DAI, emperor Constantine writes that "the archons of Travunija were always under the rule of archons of Serbia".^{[24][142][143]}

After 867, when

Basil I the Macedonian became Byzantine emperor, the Arabs in the southern Italy attacked the Dalmatian cities, including Dubrovnik. The citizens asked for Byzantine help so the emperor sent the ships headed by Niketas Ooryphas, the Droungarios of the Fleet. He forced the Arabs into retreat and made them quit the blockade, thus reinstating the Byzantine maritime control in the Adriatic after several decades. This allowed for the Byzantines to use the local inhabitants from the Croatian and Serbian lands as the auxiliary naval detachments in the ensuing Byzantine-Frankish siege of the Arabic Bari in 870–871. It was recorded that various Slavic people participated on ships dispatched by the Ragusans: Croats, Serbs, Zahumlians, Travunians, Kanalites. The Byzantines ravaged the Adriatic coast then, setting administrative and political relations in the region, ordering for the towns and islands of Split, Trogir, Zadar, Cres, Rab and Krk to pay tribute to the Croatian state, and to Ragusa to pay tribute to the Serbian states of Zachlumia and Travunija.^[144]

Zachlumia

The region of Zachlumia occupied the lower Neretva region, between the upper Neretva on the north (Baptized Serbia), the Narentians (on the west) and Adriatic coast, to Dubrovnik. There were 5 cities in the polity (Ston, Mokriskik, Josliu, Galumainik and Dobriskik), of which only the location of Ston is known as the settlement still exists, located in Croatia today.^[145][146]

After Bulgarian emperor Simeon began to crush Serbia in 925 and 926, his ally up to that point, Michael Višević of Zachlumia, changed his political orientation. In 925, he was present at the

patrikios.^[123]

Narentines (Pagania)

The region of

foedus) with Družak, Narentine chieftain. This didn't last either, and next year the dodge sent another fleet, but was defeated by the Narentines.^[147][148]

Paganija was mentioned as being subordinated to Serbia during the reign of archon Petar. However, the polity took a more independent course later. The DAI says that the Cetina river marked the extension of Paganija but that the river was also border of Croatia and Serbia, placing Paganija under the rule of prince Časlav Klonimirović, or the Baptized Serbia. He also said that the 917 meeting between prince Petar Gojniković and Byzantine strategos of Dyrrachium, Leo Rhabdouchos, occurred in Paganija, which was "under Serbian rule". However, Paganija was probably more often than not outside of the suzerainty of the Baptized Serbia. With further changes of the borders (Croatia, Zachlumia) and shifting influences (Venetians, Byzantines), Paganija was physically cut off from the central Serbian state.[148]

Bosnia

Bosnia was mentioned for the first time in the DAI (χωριον βοσονα, small land of Bosnia), as a region of Baptized Serbia.^[149][150] The 12th century Byzantine historian John Kinnamos for events dated to 1149 describes that the Drina river "divides Bosnia from the rest of Serbia. Bosnia itself is not subject to the Serbs's Grand Župan, but is a tribe which lives and is ruled separately", and to 1155 mentions the Bosnian ban Borić exarch of Bosnia "a Serbian region, who was enrolled among the Hungarian ruler's allies".^{[151][152][153]}

Restored Byzantine dominance

It is not known who inherited prince Časlav, or what were the circumstances in Serbia in this period. With the death of Časlav in c. 940s-c. 960s and Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus in 959, information about area of the former Vlastimirović Serbia faded. When the new Byzantine emperor John I Tzimiskes effectively crushed Bulgarian empire in 971, the Byzantine ("Roman") paramount rule stretched to the Danube again, for the first time in over three centuries. That way, Serbian lands came under the direct governance of the Byzantine Empire.^[27] Many coin hoards which were found show continuous conflicts between Byzantines, Bulgarians and Serbs in the end of 10th and early 11th century.^[154]

At first, instead of the local prince, central Serbia was organized as the

Basil II The Bulgar-Slayer. It is believed that this delegation came from some of the Serbian maritime states. In this period, it was recorded that the rule of Jovan Vladimir, ruler of maritime Duklja in c. 1000, stretched over the "areas of Serbia".^[27]

With the defeat of

Ljutovid was given the Byzantine title of protospatharios epi tou Chrysotriklinou (literally, "first sword-bearer") and at some point was appointed the strategos of Serbia and Zachlumia.^[27]

High Middle Ages

Vojislavljević dynasty in Duklja and inner Serbia (Raška)

Main articles:

Zahumlje, and Vojislavljević dynasty

Duklja was a medieval Serb state which roughly encompassed the territories of present-day southeastern

Skylitzes Continuatus, Katakalon Kekaumenos and Anna Komnene in her work The Alexiad. Constantine VII Porphyrogenitus doesn't give any data on the rulers of Duklja. A lead seal from the 9th or the 10th century points to a certain "Prince Peter of Duklja" but there are no other data on him.^[156][27]

Duklja's prince, Jovan Vladimir, was captured by the Bulgarians during the 998-999 attempt by the Emperor Samuil to conquer Duklja. Jovan Vladimir then married Samuil's relative

cousin-in-law of Jovan Vladimir, assassinated Jovan Vladimir in front of the church in the town of Prespa. Because of his pious life and martyr's death, Jovan Vladimir was the first Serb who became a saint, while the Byzantine sources described him as a "just man, peaceful and full of virtue".^[27]

Jovan Vladimir was succeeded by his paternal uncle Dragimir, a local prince, who died in 1018. Dragimir was succeeded by his son Stefan Vojislav, who is in the Byzantine sources variously labeled as a Serb, Travunian or Dukljan. His mother was a daughter of Ljutomir (or possibly, Ljutovid), the ruler of Raška. Stefan Vojislav was born in Brusno, in the župa of Drina, shortly after his father died. The origin of this ruling line is obscured in proper historical records, so some historians believe they are branch of the Travunian princely line.^[27]

Rise

After the collapse of the Bulgaria in 1018, Duklja became a

Theme of Dyrrhachium. He also began to attack and plunder the imperial ships on the Adriatic in the winter of 1039–1040. This prompted the next emperor, Michael IV the Paphlagonian (ruled 1034–1041), to send an expedition against Stefan Vojislav in the spring of 1040, under the command of eunuch Georgios Provatas. Provatas was heavily defeated: "arriving in the country and entering deep into the gorges, ravines and trackless lands, he lost his entire army, barely saving himself".^[157][27]

This encouraged Stefan Vojislav who continued to expand the state and to provoke Byzantine allies. New emperor Constantine IX Monomachos (ruled 1042–1055) sent a new expedition in the fall of 1042. The army was dispatched immediately after the observation of the comet on 6 October 1042. Numbering 40,000 to 60,000 soldiers, the imperial army was headed by Michael, dux of Dyrrhachium. Michael was initially successful. He entered deeply into the Stefan Vojislav's state, amassing lots of "plunder and captives" and decided to return. However, Stefan Vojislav organized an ambush in the ravines of the Rumija mountain. The attack began when the Serbs buried the Byzantines under the massive storm of stones and arrows, throwing them from the mountains above, using all possible sorts of launching weapons. Michael managed to survive, but lost 40,000 soldiers and 7 strategos. By winning this combat, which became known as the Battle of Bar, Stefan Vojislav suppressed Byzantine rule in this part of the Balkans and solidified his position as the ruler of the unified Serbian state which, for the first time since the migration, encompassed four (out of five) historical principalities: Serbia (Raška, Duklja, Travunia, Zachlumia, and stretched between the rivers of Neretva and Bojana). However, Stefan Vojislav officially kept, albeit merely symbolical, vassal relation to the Byzantine Empire.^[157][27]

First Serbian Kingdom

Mihailo Vojislavljević

. Fresco in the Church of Saint Michael in Ston

Main articles:

Mihailo I Vojislavljević and Constantine Bodin

In the mid-1040, Stefan Vojislav died and was succeeded by one of his sons,

Seljuks at the Battle of Manzikert in 1071 and general discontent with the rule of new emperor Michael VII Doukas, the Byzantine Empire abruptly weakened and the internal strife and riots broke.^[157][27]

In September 1072 a rebellion by the Bulgarian nobility from

Vojvoda Petrilo. The allied Bulgarian-Serbian forces gathered in Prizren, where Bodin was proclaimed a Bulgarian emperor and given the name Petar, after the Bulgarian emperor Petar I, son of emperor Simeon. The Byzantine imperial army was sent to crush the rebellion, but they were heavily defeated ("horrific battle and even more horrific defeat of the Romans"). Heads of the Byzantine attacking forces, Damian Dalassenos and Lombard mercenary Longibardopoulos, were captured. After this victory and conquest of Skoplje, Bodin split his army in two. He took the command over the group which headed north. towards Niš, while Petrilo headed the other group which went south, to Ohrid, Devol and Kastoria. Petrilo was defeated at Kastoria, while Bodin managed to conquer Niš. Upon the call from Voyteh, Bodin returned to re-conquer Skopje which was retaken by the new imperial army sent from Constantinople, but he was intercepted, defeated and captured in December 1072 by the Byzantines at Taonios (later Pauni field). Mihailo sent new regiments to save his son, but they failed. Longibardopoulos, who was taken by Mihailo to his court and even married Mihailo's daughter, was leading one of those rescue missions which consisted of Serbian and Lombard soldiers, but he betrayed his brother-in-law Bodin and switched back to the Byzantine side at Taonios. Bodin was taken to Constantinople and imprisoned in the Saint Sergius Monastery before being moved to Antioch. Mihailo bribed a group of Venetian merchants who saved Bodin from imprisonment and returned him to Duklja. Bodin's participation in the rule of Duklja wasn't mention before, but after his return, the sources say that Mihailo "restored his previous rule", so Bodin apparently was a co-ruler before 1072.^[157][27]

During this period of breaking ties with the Byzantines, Mihailo turned to Rome. As the time,

Investiture controversy with Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV, so they both searched for allies throughout Europe. In this vein, the pope granted the royal title of king to Demetrius Zvonimir of Croatia in 1075 and to Mihailo in 1076 or 1077, as in a letter from 9 January 1078, the pope addresses Mihailo as the King of the Slavs (Michaeli Sclavorum regi) This makes Mihailo the first Serbian ruler ever officially proclaimed a king and he was depicted as a king on the fresco from the Church of Saint Michael, his endowment in Ston. In diplomatic ways of the day, this also meant Duklja was internationally recognized as an independent state. This recognition was soon acknowledged by the Byzantine Empire which referred to Mihailo's successor Bodin as exousiastes (as for some other foreign sovereigns), instead of archon, though never referred in that way to Mihailo.^[27]

Mihailo continued to co-rule with his son Bodin until the mid-1081. After this period, only Bodin is mentioned. For a while, relations with the Byzantine Empire were good again. Historian Anna Komnene wrote that emperor Alexios I Komnenos "made Bodin and Mihailo, exarchs of the Dalmatians, his friends, gained their sympathies through letters and gifts, opening many secret doors to him (this way)". Bodin was granted the Byzantine high title of protosebastos. In the final period of his rule, Mihailo achieved good relations with the Byzantine provinces in southern Italy. As a result, Bodin married Jaquinta of Bari, daughter of Bari's governor Argyritzos. As a Norman, Argyritzos supported Norman conquest of southern Italy. The Normans then made plans to attack Byzantine domain in the Balkans. Headed by Robert Guiscard, the Normans decided to capture Dyrrachium. Bodin initially engaged Normans in several skirmishes and sided with emperor Alexios in the upcoming Battle of Dyrrhachium. The battle occurred on 18 October 1081, however Bodin didn't engage in battle at all. He kept his army aside and when he saw than Normans are winning, he returned to Duklja. He used this Byzantine defeat to renounce any formal vassal relation which Byzantine Empire still considered to exist and to attack the hinterland of Duklja, taking from the Byzantines the lands of Raška (old land of the Vlastimirović dynasty) and Bosnia, where he appointed his governors: his nephews Vukan and Marko in Raška, and Stephen in Bosnia.^[157][27]

This irremediably spoiled the relations between Alexios and Bodin. The Byzantines regained Dyrrachium in 1085, after they pushed out the Normans, weakened after the death of Robert Guiscard. New governor of Dyrrachium,

The Serbian Grand Principality, with its center in the historical region of

Uroš II succeeded his father in 1146. As a vassal, he was obliged to send troops to the Byzantines during their wars in Europe or against the Turks in Asia. Political situation in Europe changed drastically during and after the Second Crusade (1147–1149). Conrad III of Germany and Byzantine emperor Manuel I Komnenos forged an alliance. Feeling threatened, Louis VII of France made his own alliance which included the Normans from the southern Italy, Conrad's enemies in Germany and Hungarian king. Uroš joined this group in an effort to shake off Byzantine tutelage. Within the scopes of the wider Byzantine-Hungarian fightings, a war between the Serbs and the Byzantines lasted on-and-off from 1149 to 1153. Emperor Manuel personally headed the army twice as the fierce fighting occurred in 1149 and 1150. In 1149 the Byzantines took over Ras for a short while, razing the town and burning Uroš's court. They also occupied the towns of Galič and Nikava. In the late summer of 1150 a decisive battle happened, with Serbs being supported by the massive Hungarian detachments. In the Battle of Tara, small river near modern Valjevo, emperor Manuel I in his second command over the army "fought heroically, leading his army to the great victory". According to the historian John Kinnamos, after the defeat and without knowledge of the emperor, Uroš II was removed and his brother Desa was appointed as the new grand župan in November 1150. However, Manuel I restored Uroš II by 1151, who acknowledged vassalage again, accepting even more obligations.^{[170][171][169]}

Uroš attempted to restore Serbian full independence again in 1153, but even before it escalated into the fully fledged war, he again recognized the supreme Byzantine power. As the Hungarian-Byzantine clashes ended in 1155, so were Uroš's attempts to regain independence. His brother Desa dethroned him again in 1155, but being vassal of the emperor, Uroš enjoyed a certain support from Manuel. Two brothers stood in front of Manuel who again chose Uroš. Uroš remained loyal to Manuel until 1162 when he rebelled again. Manuel then finally dethroned Uroš, appointing his brother Beloš, who just returned to Serbia from Hungary. After only several months, Beloš went back to Hungary and Manuel appointed Desa as the new grand župan.^[165][172]

Before finally occupying the throne, Desa, the youngest son of Uroš I, administered the old lands of Duklja, Zachlumia and Travunija since the mid-12th century. After second unsuccessful attempt to overthrow his brother Uroš II in 1155, he was given the region of Dendra, near Niš. When Manuel appointed him to the Serbian throne in 1162, Desa promised to be loyal as long as he lives and that he would completely withdraw from Dendra, leaving it to the Byzantines. However, he refused to leave Dendra, so he had to justify himself to Manuel, when the emperor came to Niš in 1163. That same year a 5 years long war between Hungary and the Byzantine Empire broke out. Though he appeared as if trying to keep the balance between the two, Desa was more inclined to the Hungarian side, in the lasting effort to secure independence for Serbia from the Byzantines. He even tried to make contacts with the Germans and to marry some of the German princesses. Manuel wasn't satisfied with Desa's attitude during the war. After several warnings, the emperor had him seized and exiled to Constantinople, but Desa apparently managed to escape. In the end, Manuel expelled Desa in 1165, who fled to Hungary. As the new grand župan, the emperor appointed Tihomir, member of the cadet branch of the Vojislavljević and the Vukanović dуnasties, which would develop into the Nemanjić dynasty.^{[173][163][169]}

Tihomir was one of four brothers who were all local lords, but emperor Manuel appointed him as the main ruler. The other three brothers were Stracimir, Miroslav and Stefan Nemanja. They were sons of Zavida, also a local lord who was member of the ruling family, but the exact connection to the Vukanović dynasty is not known. Despite turbulent times of the last period of the Vukanović dynasty, none of the brothers had a prominent role on the state level. Tensions grew between the brothers and in 1166, a year after he was appointed, Tihomir was overthrown by Stefan Nemanja who became the sole ruler.^[172]

Late Middle Ages

Medieval Kingdom of Serbia

Grand Prince

In the first half of the 14th century Serbia flourished, becoming one of the most powerful countries in

The death of Emperor Stefan Uroš V in 1371 marked the end of the Nemanjić dynasty in Serbia. The empire in disintegration was left without an heir and regional magnates (velikaši) finally obtained the absolute rule over their provinces, completing the process of feudal fragmentation. They continued to govern as independent rulers, with titles such as gospodin, and despot, given to them during the Empire.

Serbian lands were thus divided between the regional lords: King

The period after the Battle of Maritsa (1371) saw the rise of a new threat, the Ottoman Turks. They began raiding Moravian Serbia in 1381, though the actual invasion came later. In 1386, Lazar's knights beat the Ottoman army near Pločnik,^[195] in what is today southern Serbia. Another invasion by Ottomans came in the summer of 1389, this time aiming towards Kosovo.^[196]

On 28 June 1389 the two armies met at Kosovo, in a battle that ended in a draw, decimating both armies (both Lazar and Murad I fell).^[197] The battle is particularly important to Serbian history, tradition, and national identity,^[198] as symbolized in the Kosovo Myth.^[199] By now, the Balkans were unable to halt the advancing Ottomans. Eventually, Serbian nobility became Ottoman vassals.^[200]

Serbia managed to recuperate under Despot Stefan Lazarević,^[201] surviving for 70 more years, experiencing a cultural and political renaissance, but after Stefan Lazarević's death, his successors from the Branković dynasty did not manage to stop the Ottoman advance. Serbia finally fell under the Ottomans in 1459, and remained under their occupation until 1804, when Serbia finally managed to regain its sovereignty.

Serbian Despotate

Despite the deep-seated impression that the mighty medieval Serbian state perished in one single magnificent battle, as derived from the Kosovo Myth, Serbia survived exactly 70 years after the 1389 Battle of Kosovo and perished under the Ottomans gradually languishing and shrinking. The danger was hinted already during its higher position of power, under the rule of emperor Dušan, when the Ottomans made the first permanent foothold on the European continent. Critical position was enhanced after the crumbling of the unified empire into the separate feudal states and the

In this period, during the reigns of despots Stefan Lazarević (1389-1427) and Đurađ Branković (1427-1456), Serbia cooperated with Hungary. In the second half of the 15th century, the Ottoman conquest became a major issue in the European politics. Taking Crusades as a mold, both the rulers of the European states and the church leaders forged a myriad of plans for researching and repelling the Turks. However, when the time for the serious preparations would come, the funding would turn out to be a major problem. As the feudal states engaged more and more in the mutual wars, there was no money for the operations on the east of the continent. Being on the frontline of the Ottoman expansion, Serbia and Hungary formed an alliance. The greatest fruit of this collaboration was the joint 1443 campaign which resulted in the liberation of Serbia and its reestablishment as a state after it was conquered by the Ottomans in 1439.^[202][203]

However, in the times to come, Serbia couldn't rely much on its western allies. Hungary was in the internal crisis of its own, while European courts and church provided no help, organizing instead a series of fruitless councils in

The attacks were renewed and by 1458 the Ottomans controlled the northern and central Serbia, reducing Serbia only to the strip of land with the capital Smederevo and its surroundings. Additionally, in such a diminished territory, internal strife broke out after the death of despot

The fall of the medieval Serbian despotate marked the discontinuation of the free development of society and economy based on the foundations built by the Serbian people since the period of the migration. Those foundations were, like in the rest of the Europe, feudal. Population was diversified according to the usual divisions of the societies in the period, producing numerous goods and creating huge wealth for the ruling, noble and upper classes. Wealth produced in Serbia was at the time subject of numerous stories which spread both to the east and the west of Europe, though many of them were obviously exaggerated.^[2]

With the conquest, Serbia was cut off from the European cultural and political community in which she carved its own place. Being in a region under both Byzantine and Italian cultural influence, medieval Serbia developed a significant culture of its own. Comparison of the cultural development of Serbia and the rest of Europe in the 15th and the 19th century, when Serbia regained independence from the Turks, shows the massive loss and lagging behind as a result of the 1459 events.^[8]

Society

Settlements

First settlements were the typical half-dug houses, present throughout all Slavic areas. They were located in the valleys of the major rivers, close to the water itself. By the 8th and the 9th century, population began to settle close to, and within the abandoned Roman cities and fortresses. Though the ramparts offered protection, majority of population remained in the traditional, scattered open settlements. All important centers within the walls had some administrative buildings and churches, either within the ramparts (Dabravine, Martinići) or outside of the walls (Ston, Ras, settlements in the Sarajevo Field).^[38]

Burials

One of the first changes among Slavs, which spanned jointly with the acceptance of Christianity during these centuries, were burial customs. In the 9th and 10th century, the predominant type of burial sites became the "cemeteries with burial in row" (groblje na redove). Christian influences included burying of the bodies in the stretched position, with or without a

In many cemeteries, evidence of cremation were discovered, but they make only a few percent of the graves (Gomjenica near Prijedor, Petoševci, Dvorovi, Batković, Čelarevo, Novi Slankamen). Various objects, like iron knives, were buried next to some of the urns. At the Trnovica locality, near Zvornik, the urn was buried inside the much older, prehistoric mound. Unique way of burials appeared in time, consisting of stone mounds. With the diameter of 4 m (13 ft) or more, and grouped into the collections of several dozens, they are believed to contain cremated remains. Dated from the 8th to the 11th century, only few were examined. Sparse pieces of pottery, jewelry and personal items were discovered but the origin of the practice, and if they indeed were burial sites, remains unanswered.^[38]

There is almost complete absence of expensive jewelry and personal items from this period. Those items and artifacts that were discovered, show that economic inequality among the inhabitants of one locality was quite low. Some personal items distinguished the difference, at least when it comes to the ruling family, like in the case of the Seal of Strojimir. Still, though a quality work, it is an unpretentious and typical artwork of the day. The jewelry was not distinguished from the other Byzantine-influenced Slavs. It was made in the Byzantine artisan shops and in the Byzantine manner, which in turn was Roman in origin. Main surviving artifacts include female jewelry: earrings, rings, necklaces, pendants, etc. Older pieces were simple and cast from bronze, but in time more sophisticated techniques, like filigree, granulation and gold plating, were used, while the main material switched to silver.^[38]

Social classes

As the basic social unit in Serbia was family, the dominant type of ownership was collective, or familiar, in all the classes. Furthermore, the house, or the family, was a legal entity, when it dealt with the state. It was represented by one of the family elders.^[206]

Some of the offices and social classes included:

• Nobility
  • Logotet ("
    scribes (dijak). Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović was previously logotet of Emperor Dušan. His son, Despot Stefan Lazarević had two chancellors, logotet and the Latin chancellor. Logotets were also sent on various diplomatic missions.^[207][208]
  • Čelnik or čeonik was a type of elder, a chief or head of some state institute or local administration. The title was recorded for the first time in the 11th century, during the
    Peter Delyan's rebellion of 1040–41. Emperor Dušan appointed čelniks to head cities within the empire. There was a special category of čelniks, which were employed at the royal court. Their duties included the protection of the ruler and implementation his commands and orders. In time, they became integrated into the central state administration and began to take over other duties, outside of their usual function: protectors of the church land, judges, dvorodržica, kaznac (treasurer), tepčija (majordomo of the royal lands and household), etc.^[209][210]
  • Dvorodržica ("court handler") was taking care of the royal court's management. The tenure became a norm during the rule of the
    Jovan Uglješa, Alexander Komnenos Asen, ruler of the Principality of Valona or the Bosnian kings. The permanent court was situated in Kruševac but the royal family often traversed through the country. Among the duties of dvorodržica was to set those temporary courts and organize their normal functioning. He was authorized to issue orders to the citizens all over the state in order to construct and structure the courts and providing and sustaining them. He was always present at the court and, due to its high social status, he could serve as a witness for the various documents issued by the ruler.^[211]
• Sebri - Commoner
  • Meroph (also meropah or parik, plural merops(i)) was a serf. Apart from the laboring duties to the upper feudal class, he had other tributes he had to pay. One was soća, a type of tax, which had to be paid by every house. The amount of soća was 1 perper per year and it could be paid either in money or grains. The other tribute was priselica. It consisted of meroph's duty to accommodate, feed and escort his master and the official guests and travelers: rulers, their courtiers, clerks, envoys, etc. Meroph was also obliged to sow, plow, harvest and thresh 7.5 mats of the church land. Mat was a measure for
    cereal grains, but also was a measure of area: it was a patch of land which could be seeded by a mat of cereals. Approximately, one mat was either 40 lb (18 kg) (weight) or 200 square motikas (or 1.44 ha (3.6 acres); surface).^{[212][213][214]}
• Ćеlator was a member of the poor class, who were employed by the monasteries. They worked on the monastery farms, mostly handling the smaller livestock (sheep, goats) and wool processing. They had different duties from other herders, the nomadic vlah or merops (singular meropah or meroph), the
  serfs. It was not allowed for a meroph to wed a vlah girl and to become vlah himself. If he would do that after all, the couple would be pushed back down the social ladder and would become ćelators or to the position in the society occupied by their parents. Even then, they were not allowed to be vlah soldiers. Though they shared part of the social duties with ćelators, the latter were more numerous and more poor. One joint duty they both fulfilled was bringing cheese down the mountain, to the monasteries. As ćеlators couldn't pay their duties in products, they were shearing the sheep and used wool to make blankets and thick vests (klašnja).^[215][216]

In medieval Serbia, laws were promulgated by the ruler and the state assembly, known as "Sabor", that was consisted both of secular nobles and ecclesiastical dignitaries.^[217]

Law-enforcing powers were delegated by the state to regional and village chieftains, but only as long as it is in accordance with the royal codes. The locals were strongly discouraged from enforcing justice of their own, as taking legal matters in your own hands was also against the law. Though officially judged by the magistrates, the village councils, which were to be elected to start and conduct the criminal proceedings, were the root of the inquisitor-type examinations in Serbia, which were cut with the fall of the state, and failed to develop into similar Western Europe counterpart. The proceedings were called "general investigation". Stealing was one of the major concern of the code. The council would first have to establish if the person is indeed guilty of stealing and then whether this person is a "well known thief", meaning that he has, in modern terms, "criminal history". If a village would harbor such a thief, the entire village would be resettled, and the villagers were obliged to pay the damage to the victim. The punishment for professional thieves was blinding. Thieves who were on the "lower level" were punished with some sort of body mutilation: cutting of the pieces of ears, or the entire noses and hands in some harsher or repeated crimes. Modern crime scholars consider this a rudimentary criminal records: by seeing what was cut on some criminal, you could see how far he progressed in his crimes.^{[218][219][220]}

As mirrored by modern laws, the crime was divided into individual and organized one. Criminal of the first kind was called tat (thief; tatba, robbery), while the latter would be gusar (pirate, marauder). The gusars were considered a bandits, who also loot and plunder public goods, rather than just private ones, and their crime was called najezda or grabež (raid or plunder, respectively). The horses used in the raid (najezdni konji, raid horses) were taken from the gang and divided in two: half for the state (that is, emperor) and half for the victim of the crime. As horse was an expensive commodity in medieval Serbia, it was used as a currency for damage payments. The plunderers themselves were hanged upside down. The state considered organized crime much more threatening to the society. As the horses were expensive, regular thieves could rarely organize themselves to conduct horse raids, so the concern came from the acts of the noblemen, who had resources. They would often plunder the population and take lands that are not theirs and not given to them by the emperor. The ruler didn't want to allow them to control more assets than he gave them, or to let them form their own private armies. In accordance with this, the punishments for these crimes became harsher in time, including the death penalty as the later amendments to the code recognized the crime as being premeditated. The code was specifically forbidding the noblemen to plunder their own villagers, which was a common thing at one point.^[218][219]

There was one legal institute which was left to the local lawmen to be conducted by their free will, the institute of conciliation. It involved an agreement on resolving the dispute between the plaintiff and the defendant. Though this institute exists today in numerous legal systems, legal historians consider it a forced result of the state's weakness, that is, of the internal affairs apparatus which wasn't able to conduct proper investigations and produce evidence. Especially harsh provision were for the crime of betrayal against the state, called nevera (unfaithfulness). The complete assets of the person sentenced for betrayal would be transferred to the ruler, as the entire family had to pay for the crimes. In the case of the military betrayal, the punishment was death.^[218][219]

Among provisions and institutes in the Dušan's Code, some of the today unknown or unusual are:

• Bližike; The concept of private ownership was quite different in the Middle Ages compared to the modern ideas of this institute. The titular holder of the property wasn't one person who had all the rights, but the property was owned jointly by the entire family, sometimes including the distant relatives. The circle of relatives which had the right to limit the management of the assets, including the disposition of the property, was much wider than the circle which was nominally a titular on the possessions. This prerogative of the relatives to limit each other's rights was called bližike. For example, father had no prerogative to have the disposition right on the entire property, but only on "his share", which excluded the share which belonged to his children.^[221]
• Gradozidanije; The dependent classes had to fulfill the obligation of gradozidanije. It included the construction and fortification of new towns, reconstruction and repair of the damaged and desolate forts, ramparts and towers. The peasants would transport the stones to the locations, but they also had to help with the construction works. Though present since the early days of the Serbian statehood, it became common in the 14th century, especially during the reign of emperor Dušan. As he vastly expanded the state at the expense of the Byzantine Empire, numerous abandoned, damaged and razed Byzantine forts needed to be repaired. Byzantine emperor John VI Kantakouzenos wrote that during the reconstructions of the town of Ber, 10,000 people were employed.^[214]
• Mehoskubina; It was a fine charged for the twitching of someone's beard (skubež) during the physical altercation among the lower classes. Article 98 of the Code states that mehoskubina amounts to 6
  Serbian perpers. Since Article 97 protects the dignity of the nobility and good people under the threat of severe mutilation, Article 98 continues in the same vein: the fine wasn't actually being paid to the indemnified party, but to his master cause it was his dignity that was tarnished. This is in line with the general direction of the Code, which concentrates on the fine itself rather than on the indemnifying party.^[222]
• Smuđenje; In the medieval Serbian and Dubrovnik law, there was a punishment of smuđenje, or scorching of a beard. It was a specific Serbian measure as the Byzantine law hadn't such a provision, but included the forcible cutting of a beard instead. As a nobleman's beard was a sign of dignity, it couldn't be scorched, unlike the beards of the lower classes. Dušan's Code (article 55) provided that a nobleman who insults the subordinated person should pay 100 perpers, but if a subordinated one insults the nobleman, he will pay the same amount but his beard will be scorched, too. Beard could also be scorched if a person attends the illegal assemblies or if it is a meropah (serf) who has escaped (article 69). Additionally, the leader of such an assembly or a meropah could also be punished with cutting of their noses in addition to scorching.[223]
• Sok; In Serbian medieval and customary law, there was an institute of sok. It was a secret witness, who testified in front of the judicial organs, but his testimony was secret, while his personal identity might remain secret even from the judges. Testimony of the sok was paid, and court documents contained spending for the sok fees, called sočbina, though it wasn't paid by the court but by the plaintiff. The secrecy of the testimony wasn't diminishing its value as the courts were bent on finding the guilty person as quick as possible and for the process to be short.^[224]
• Zamanica; The state of zamanica was a medieval equivalent of a modern
  chrysobull of the Banjska Monastery explains that zamanica is obligatory even for those dependent classes which are usually not mandatory to do it. On the first day, those who were capable to work with the scythe were mowing and later they would have to collect and stack the hay. Off course, they all had to do it for free.^[225]

First

In his 1601 work The Realm of the Slavs, which was published in Serbia in 1968 with critical commentaries, Ragusan chronicler Mavro Orbini writes that Emperor Dušan practiced using all available weapons at the time, and that he expected from his lords the same. Orbini says that two types of knights games were organized at that period: đostre, or tournaments, and bagorde, or duels. Despot Stefan Lazarević also organized tournaments, but on a smaller scale. He personally was a participant in the grand scale tournament in 1412 in Buda, organized by Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary. Historian Stojan Novaković, in his work "A monk and a hajduk" from 1913 describes the palace of the local lord Vitomir Gvozdenović in the 15th century: "On the convenient location, in front of the little town, there was a potecište, a place for racing and other heroic games, where men from the lord's house, and other houses, played and had fun all day long".^[227]

Chivalry games were the most popular fun among the nobility. The tracks were built in front of the castles or on the vast, low fields surrounding the settlements. The tournaments would last for several days, and could attract up to 2,000 spectators. The weaponry used in the duels was produced and forged in Serbia during the entire this period, and especially known was the famed Serbian sword or

Culture

Cultural interaction

Serbs, and other Slavic tribes encountered the Romanized population in towns after the settlement in the 7th century. The native population at first avoided the new settlers, but in time the trading and cultural ties developed, so as the mixing and blending of the population. As a result, numerous words at that time entered the Serbian language, directly from the Latin language, like the names of the plants (bosiljak, "basilicum", basil; kupus "composita", cabbage; lovor, "laurus", laurel; cer, "cerrus", Turkey oak), everyday objects (konopac, "canapus", rope; mramor, "marmor", marble; sapun, "sapo", soap; sumpor, "sulphur" sulfur; ulje, "oleum", oil) and animals (mazga, "muscus", hinny; kresta, "crista", crest). The blending of the population occurred at different pace and the Romanized population prevailed the longest in the maritime towns and locations on the Adriatic, some of which kept the original, Roman, names in Slavic rendering: Scodra = Skadar, Ulcinium = Ulcinj, Butua = Budva, Rhizon = Risan, Stagnum = Ston, Dormire = Durmitor, Visitor (from videre, vidi, visum; to see), Leotar (from leo; lion), Narenta = Neretva, Barbana = Bojana, Drinio or Dirnius = Drim, Cnetona = Cetina.^[27]

Some of the later, surviving Byzantine/Greek influences include the names of the region of Ljeviš, near Prizren (from Eleousa, Ἐλεούσα),

Dažbog, the supreme deity of the ancestors, the god of darkness and protector of the cattle and wolves, who was considered as the progenitor of the Serbs.^[228]

Discovered artifacts from the 7th to the 9th century show developed smithing of the tools. In the Batković they included knives, stone cutters, blade sharpeners and

After settling, the Slavs repopulated some of the abandoned settlements from the Late Antiquity. Apart from previously mentioned early settlements, there are also remains in the habitats of Breza and Panik, near Bileća, both in modern Bosnia and Herzegovina, with the latter being in Travunija at the time.Serbian pottery from the 8th-9th century was discovered in old Roman/Byzantine habitats, which Slavs reworked using wood and stone, in the dry stone building method. Apart from the ceramics (Mogorjelo, Gornji Vrbljani, Ston), in some larger settlements, the Slavic necropolises were discovered, like in Makljenovac. This was one of the former forts, repopulated by the Slavs, and they were mostly located at the border of the Pannonian Plain, which became the border zone with the Avars after Slavs split from them. Re-population of the forts in the eastern part of the Serbian settled areas came later, from the mid-9th century (Ras, Vrsenice (near Sjenica), Gradište (Kraljevo), Gradina (Jelica mountain), etc., which was probably a consequence of the approaching threat from the Bulgarian attacks.^[228]

In this period, western parts of the Balkan were partially held, and influenced by the Frankish Empire, leaving largest number of artifacts on the territory of early Croatian state, but also in Zachlumia, which may indicate that it accepted Frankish suzerainty. In other Serbian states, Frankish remnants and cultural influence are scarce.^[228]

In the 9th century, the Byzantine state was very engaged into the cultural and religious expansion among the newly settled people in the Balkans. In 864 they finally succeeded into Christianizing the Bulgarians, thus including them into their cultural sphere. Especially important for the history of the Serbian culture was the missionary work of

Serbian medieval

Originally, upon settling, South Slavs had no writing system, but according to the 9th century Bulgarian scholar Chernorizets Hrabar, they used "lines and cuts". Modern scholars refer to this marking system as the Slavic runes. With Christianity, Slavs of the Balkans also adopted new alphabets: in the west (Croats), the Latin script was used; in the central parts (Serbs), both Greek and Latin; in the east (Bulgarians), only Greek letters. The first attested Slavic script, Glagolitic script, was compiled by the Saint Cyril and Methodius in the 9th century. It is believed that the script reached Serbs quite early, in its both early redactions, Great Moravian and Pannonian, since Methodius was appointed to head the Archbishopric of Sirmium, which also had jurisdiction over the Serbian lands in the hinterland. Methodius was very active in promoting the script among the Slavs, organizing numerous missionary actions with his disciples in the massive effort to spread Christianity among the Slavs.^{[230][229][237]}

The oldest writing which could be originating from to the Serbian speaking region, though also claimed by other Slavic nations, is the Codex Marianus. The usage of certain letters and marks for certain sounds points to the Serbian language. The codex was written sometime between 1050 and 1075, on 174 pages of parchment. It was discovered in the 19th century at the Mount Athos and sent to Saint Petersburg, Russia, where it is still kept today. Examining the language used, just like the later, and much better known Miroslav Gospel, it obviously contains older texts written in Glagolitic and, later compiled, Cyrillic script. This points to the existence of, today unknown, Slavic literacy tradition.^[230][238]

Apart from the initial mix of scripts (Latin, Greek, Glagolitic, Cyrillic), there is one apparent historical oddity. In Breza, in central Bosnia, the inscription in Elder Futhark, variant of the Older Germanic runes, was discovered. Except for the Eastern Slavs, through the Varangian influence, Slavic people didn't use runes, especially not the South Slavs. Despite some theories, there is no universally accepted explanation. However, though discovered in the locality which corresponds to the Slavic settlement (7th-9th century), the inscription itself may predate it.^[239]

Religion

After Cyril died in 869 in Rome, Methodius continued their work on his own. He was appointed the Archbishop of Pannonia in 870, and from this period (873) comes the letter from the pope John VIII in which he invited Serbian prince Mutimir to accept the competence of Methodius, in an effort to expand the jurisdiction of Methodius' bishopric. This was in collision with the strivings of the

Population was obliged to support the church. The tax was called bir ("picked", "collected') and originally included only goods, mostly food. The tax was known as popovski bir or duhovni bir (priestly tax, or spiritual tax, respectively). In the 14th century, it was partially, and then fully, replaced with money. In the mid-14th century, during the reign of Emperor Dušan, it was recorded that Serbs pay lukno žita ili 2 dinara (one measure of grain or 2 dinars), while Albanians were paying half of that (poluknica ili dinar). It was a much lesser taxation, and easier to pay, than the vlastelinski bir or vladaočev bir (noblemen's tax and ruler's tax). The tax survived the Middle Ages. During the Ottoman occupation it reverted fully to being paid in food. It survived into the modern Serbian state after the liberation, being replaced with money again in the late 19th century. The verb ubirati, from the old bir, remained in modern Serbian language, still depicting the tax collecting (ubirati porez).[256]

Education

There were three possibilities to get educated: with priests, with monks in the monastery or with the private tutors. The surviving sources can't point to which of this possibilities was the most spread. The modern idea of the school as the central institution in the educational system differs greatly from the education in the Middle Ages. The schools developed on specific locations, where the continual meeting of the students and teachers was possible. Each school was an educational entity for itself and the level was dependent on the qualifications and training of the teacher. Some traditional educational elements, however, were applied in different schools throughout the state.^[257]

Music

Byzantine historians left testimonies about musicians, singers and players (trumpet, strings) among the South Slavs. Remains of the medieval tradition can be found in the songs and dances of the customs of

In medieval Serbia, clothing and fashion was marked by social distinctions. The most used materials among the lower classes were

There are issues with the rural garment from this period as the written and artistic sources differ visually but also show the garment from different parts of the state and from different times. Earliest Slavic dress, both for men and women, consisted of rubaš, a long shirt made of coarse linen or hemp, which was often the only item of the costume. Married women would add an apron-type skirt (ponjava) over the lower part of rubaš, while over the top they would wear different types of short dresses. In modern Serbian, ponjava (поњава) means "coarse blanket", but in the old times it meant "to understand", akin to modern Russian понимаю. Girls would be allowed to wear ponjava only when they turn 15 after reaching maturity and acknowledging that they have understood they are grown up. A special ceremony was held in presence of the parents, cousins and friends. A girl would get on a bench, and mother would held a skirt saying to her daughter to jump into it if she understands that she is grown up. A girl would pretend to hesitate for a while, and then say ponjala ("I understood") and jump into the skirt. That way, the girl would announce she is ready to get married.^[264]

Additionally, men were wearing trousers. They were of different shapes and sizes and had numerous names: gaće, pelengaće, pelengiri, benevreci, bečve. They were made from hemp or flax with some reaching the lengths of the calves, some of the knees and some would cover only the thighs. A lower dress over trousers, the only other additional part of the garment during summer, was actually a rubaš shirt, which also had numerous other names: rubina, klinara, cjelara and rebrača. They were cut in different fashions and the most simple was klinara or cjelara. It had clothespins (klin) over both the front and back sides, straight cut, untailored sleeves and knee length. It was fitted by the belt at the waist and the shirt was partially pulled out, over the belt, as a puffy girdle (bauš). Over the shirt, a textile vest was worn, called klašnja. It could be with or without sleeves, and was covered with the wool or kostret (coarse goat hairs) dress. That top dress was used in the mountains even during the summer. After the cloth which was used (sukno) and the way it was prepared, it was called suknja (if the fabric was woven) or gunj (if it was rolled). It was of different lengths. In modern Serbian language, suknja is named for the women's skirt, while gunj is a thick, leather or fur, wool-padded vest which was often decorated with silver buttons. Sheep fur and leather were the most common so as some sorts of capes, blue or green. The cape with sleeves, made of fur, was called šuba. Hats included shallow caps, proper hats and winter, šubara hat. Footwear consisted of some rudimental type of opanak.^[264]

Urban attire

The law on mines from 1412, issued by Despot Stefan Lazarević is the most important written source on the medieval Serbian urban attire. The law lists this types: (a) male and female woolen suknja (vest) with buttons; (b) male and female velvet barhan; (c) kuntuš, male top dress with hanging sleeves; (d) mrčni plašt, female top dress; (e) kavas, a suit embellished with embroidery, with hanging sleeves; and (f) svita, a ceremonial military suit. The transcription of the Law from the second half of the 16the century contains illustration with the portraits of the citizens – čelniks of the Novo Brdo mines. They wear long dresses, tall, bubble-shaped hats (klobuk) while some have insignia sticks. As they were symbol of a nobility, it appears that the top level of the citizen class were equaled with the nobility when it comes to the attire. Basic attire was similar to the rural attire. lower part attire, and of the entire body, was a linen or hemp made dress (basically, a rubaš), while the main top attire was still a sunkja, in urban attire called gonela. Another top clothing was mrčni plašt or mrčina, a type of cape with sleeves. More complex items were kuntuš and kavad, the latter better known as the part of the noble suit. Both were taken from the Byzantine fashion. Women from the cities were dressed equally to the noblewomen.^[264]

Noble attire

The most widespread clothing among the nobles was kavadion or kavad, a type of tunic. It was a tightly tailored long dress, with either long or short, narrow sleeves. It was buttoned in front, and usually had gold-woven ribbons on the collar and along the entire length. First graphical evidence of kavadion was the scene from the Sopoćani Monastery which depicts the mourners in the death scene of the queen

Agriculture

In one of the oldest Slavic settlement in the region, near

Byzantine statesmen

prunes filled with goat cheese, covered with walnuts and baked under the sač; baked apples with walnuts and honey; barley balls with dried fruit.^[274]

Wine

When Stefan Nemanja issued the founding charter for the

Saint Tryphon festivity, who is even today celebrated as the protector of wine makers. The largest wine-producing region was Metohija, and from the 14th century, the vineyards expanded to Vranje, Paraćin, Prokuplje and monasteries of Žiča, Manasija and Ravanica. Both the white and red wine were produced and the malvasia variety was among the most popular. It originated on Peloponnese but Venetians spread it along the Adriatic coast.^[275]

As wine is essential for the church rituals, monasteries had their own vineyards which were frequently mentioned in the charters. In the Law on mines, issued by despot Stefan Lazarević and dealing with the town of Novo Brdo, a tribute called psunja was to be collected for each wine brought to the city square to be sold. Only wine produced in the city metochion was freed from taxes and, apart from money collecting, the tribute served as a protective measure for the domicile wine production. Some of the even older wine provisions by emperor Dušan can be considered as the origins of the geographical indication, while mixing of wine and water was strictly forbidden.^[276]

After the expansion in the 14th century, the majority production moved to the central, Moravian Serbia. Vast patches of land were turned into the vineyards. In the 15th century, Constantine of Kostenets wrote: "many vineyards were planted, with such a great effort, in this country more than in any other", while De la Broquière noted that in the valleys of the Serbian state there are many villages and good food, and especially good wine. Turkish defters, after the Ottoman occupation in the mid-15th century, show how much the vineyards were spread and how much taxes were collected on wine and must. Fleeing from the Ottomans to the north, Serbs expanded the wine production in the area of Fruška Gora in Syrmia, which was a wine-producing region since the Roman period.^[277]

Beekeeping

Special class of the commoners were ulijars. They were the

bee keepers and collectors of the bee products on the feudal lordships. Ulijar had a duty to take care of the apiaries (ulijanik) which belonged to rulers, monasteries, churches or lords, and was relieved of all other feudal duties. It is recorded that during the establishment of the monasteries, the rulers would sometimes, among other gifts, donate ulijaniks with ulijars to take care of them. The bee keepers were much sought in this period as need for the bee products, especially the wax needed for the churches, was great and growing all the time. Also, honey and wax were expensive export goods. As ulijars were giving the 10% tribute in the products, that wasn't nearly enough for the entire state, so the number of ulijars grew. The Hilandar Monastery administered 15 apiaries throughout the state. Ulijars mostly lived within the agricultural settlements or outside of the villages, on the monastic properties suitable for the bee keeping, but a rare, small settlements consisting solely of the bee keepers also existed.^[278][279]

Tableware

Tableware was diverse, influenced by the different regions and social status of the population. The food was served at the table or at sinija, also known as sofra, a short round or square table made of wood. In oldest periods, people were eating sitting on the ground. Later, people would sit around on the small logs, tripod stools or on a cloth, but the poorest continued to sit on earth. The tables in the homes of the gentry were covered with tablecloths. Different sources list golden, gold-plated and silver glasses. Despot Đurađ Branković personally sent 50 gold-plated glasses to Dubrovnik. Cutlery consisted of spoons, forks and knives, made of iron, corals, silver or being gold-plated. It was imported but also manufactured in Serbia. First dishes and tableware were made of wood. Later, the clay and stone came into use. Originally, both the rich and the poor were using wooden spoons. It is known that at the court of king Vladislav, in the first half of the 13th century, quite simple cutlery was used, both in the sense of the materials used and the craft of making it. Half a century later, during the reign of king Milutin, the tableware was already made from silver and gold. At first, the wooden spoon was used only by the head of the housem while the rest of the household members were using fingers for eating. Fork came into use much later. The clergy declared the fork a "sinful debauchery" in the 12th century. Even the wooden ones were considered a sin. Only in the 16th century the clergy allowed the usage of fork.^[280]

Mining and money

Further information: Medieval Serbian coinage

Mining was most important in the economy of the state, though it developed only in the 13th century and fully blossomed in the 15th century, amidst the most turbulent period in the state's history. The mining intensified the trading turnover, enhanced the building and expansion of the cities and empowered the citizens' class in them. At the beginning of the 15th century, Serbian respot Stefan Lazarevć (d. 1427) issued the Mining Code. The new relations and social forces, already turning traditional in the Serbian feudal society were nipped in the bud by the Ottoman destruction of the Serbian state. For the entire economy, and especially the mining, the period of primitiveness and regression began.^{[281][282][283]}

Mining town of Novo Brdo is considered one of the major examples of this. Described by Constantine of Kostenets as a "truly gold town" in the 15th century, gold and silver mine was surrounded by the town which had a population of 40,000 in 1434 (more than London, England). Due to its size and affluence, it was nicknamed majka svih gradova ("mother of all towns"). Novo Brdo had a sewage system and street lights. Miners worked 6 hours a day, had uniforms, their own mining anthem, music and flag, while two times a year they had right to go on a vacation, in which case they were awarded 3 gold coins "for the road". In that same year, there were 125 different consuls from foreign states and cities residing in Novo Brdo. The first legal document which regulated economic relations in mediaeval Serbia (Law on Mining) was adopted in Novo Brdo, by the orders of despot Stefan Lazarević. Though close to the location of the Battle at Kosovo in 1389, it succumbed to the Ottomans only 66 years later, in 1455. Despite greatness and richness, the mine survived only until the late 16th century, when the mining completely stopped.^[284]

During the rule of the Nemanjić dynasty, minting coins was one of the ruler privileges and the state had unified monetary system. First known coins were issued by king

Zeta.^[285]

Trade and roads

Serbia inherited important Roman roads, like

Gabela-Dmitrovica Road; Bosnian Road (Jajce-Travnik-Priština-Skopje-Maritsa Valley). Trading caravans (called turma), connecting West and East, were crisscrossing the state, importing salt, spices, medicines, arms, expensive fabrics, rare furs and citrus fruit, and exporting leather, honey, cheese and wax. The main trading route was from Dubrovnik, but merchants travelling Serbia included Arabs, Venetians, Greeks, and more traders from towns of Kotor and Bar. Trade agreements with Dubrovnik included the full protection for the merchants, freedom of trade, reimbursement in case of theft but also obligatory taxes and tariffs. Still, the caravans were often looted. In the case of dispute, the joint Dubrovnik-Serbian courts held jurisdiction.^[286][287]

Emperor Dušan established priselica, an obligation to host domestic dignitaries and foreign rulers and representatives. It was obligatory only in the rural areas, as towns had inns. Innkeeper was also in charge of keeping the goods and animals. If something would be missing during caravan's stay, he was obliged to pay the damage. Prior to king Milutin, Serbian rulers had no proper palaces but smaller, humble wooden edifices which were parts of scattered royal compounds. So even when such dignitaries, like Byzantine emperors, would visit, they would be hosted in tents in the royal yard.[288]^[289]

See also

• Regional
  • History of Serbia
  • Banat in the Middle Ages
  • History of Kosovo

References

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17. ISBN 978-1-895571-19-6
    . The second detail in Constantine's account, which supposedly points to the eastern Carpathians, is his reference to a 'place called Boiki (Boiki)' on the border with the White Serbs; for a long time this was considered — and some consider it still – to be a reference to the Ukrainian Boikos. That is very unlikely, however, because the location is too far east for the Serbs, nor is there any indication that the name of the Boikos was ever in such wide usage. So all we are left with to suggest the existence of a Rus' Croatia in the Carpathians is the Primary Chronicle ... Published by H. Jireiek, the Karten zur Geschichte (1897) also show the 'Boiki' on the Dnister (map 4). It is more likely that Boiki is a distorted variant of the name Boiohem, or Bohemia, as most scholars now believe...
18. ^ Moravcsik 1949, pp. 130–131. "...should be modern Saxony, where remnants of Serbs (Sorbs) are still living. The name 'Boiki' has been much disputed over by specialists ... has proved that the 'place called Boiki' can only be Bohemia. Grégoire (L'Origine, 98) rejects Skok's proposal to read 'Boioi', and suggests 'Boimi'. C.'s account contains one serious inexactitude: namely, the statement that the Serbs lived 'in a place called by them Boiki'. Although we have documentation of Croats in Bohemia, we have none to suggest that Serbs lived there. Bohemia was in fact another neighbor of White Serbia"
19. ISBN 9789025607487
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66. ^ Živković 2012, p. 161–162, 181–196.
67. ^ Živković 2012b, p. 12–13.
68. ^ ^{a b} Gračanin 2008.
69. ^ ^{a b} Budak 1994, pp. 58–61.
70. ^ ^{a b c d e} Budak 2018, pp. 49, 51, 111, 177, 181–182.
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75. ^ ^{a b} Komatina 2014, pp. 33–42.
76. ^ ^{a b} Алексић 2020, pp. 49–56.
77. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 18–30.
78. ^ Živković 2013a, pp. 33–53.
79. ^ ^{a b} Živković 2013a, pp. 47.
80. ^ Komatina 2015, pp. 713.
81. ^ Komatina 2016, pp. 44–47, 73–74.
82. ^ Komatina 2016, pp. 45–46.
83. ^ Živković 2007, pp. 23–29.
84. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 112, 134.
85. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 134–138.
86. ^ Алексић 2020, p. 71.
87. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 11–12.
88. ^ ^{a b} Novaković 2010. sfn error: no target: CITEREFNovaković2010 (help)
89. ^ ^{a b} Moravcsik 1967, pp. 153–155.
90. ^ Bulić 2013, pp. 156, 219.
91. ^ ^{a b} Petrović 2013, p. 282.
92. ^ ^{a b} Bulić 2013, p. 219.
93. ^ Popović 1999, p. 401.
94. ^ Živković 2013b, pp. 30.
95. ^ Popović 1999, p. 37, 297–298, 400.
96. ^ Živković 2013b, pp. 28, 31, 34.
97. ^ Bulić 2013, pp. 217.
98. ^ Ćirković 2004, p. 12–15.
99. ^ Curta 2006, p. 146.
100. ^ Novaković 1981.
101. ^ Ivanišević & Krsmanović 2013, p. 450.
102. ^ Popović 1999, p. 139–161, 400–401.
103. ^ Curta 2006, p. 146–147.
104. ^ Ivanišević 2013, p. 450. sfn error: no target: CITEREFIvanišević2013 (help)
105. ^ Špehar 2019, p. 118–120, 122.
106. ^ ^{a b c} Ćirković 2004, p. 14.
107. ^ Fine 2005, p. 35.
108. ^ Curta 2006, p. 136.
109. ^ Ančić 1998, p. 32.
110. ^ ^{a b} Алексић 2020, p. 90.
111. ^ Klaić 1971, pp. 211–212.
112. ^ Goldstein 1984, pp. 243–244.
113. ^ Goldstein 1995, pp. 168–169.
114. ^ Katičić 1990, p. 67.
115. ^ Živković 2008a, p. 254.
116. ^ Алексић 2020, p. 89.
117. ^ Алексић 2020, p. 97.
118. ^ Komatina 2010, pp. 55–82.
119. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 195–196.
120. ^ Fine 1991, p. 141.
121. ^ Shepard 1995, p. 239.
122. ^ Ćirković 2004, p. 15.
123. ^ ^{a b} Uzelac 2018, pp. 236–245.
124. ^ ^{a b} Ćirković 2004, p. 18.
125. ^ ^{a b c d} Bulić 2013, p. 218.
126. ^ ^{a b c} Moravcsik 1967, p. 159.
127. ^ Curta 2006, p. 212.
128. ^ Fine 1991, p. 159–160.
129. ^ Živković 2008a, p. 255.
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131. ^ Živković 2008a, p. 220, 255.
132. ^ Živković 2009, p. 80–94. sfn error: no target: CITEREFŽivković2009 (help)
133. ^ Кунчер 2009, p. ^{[page needed]}.
134. ^ Живковић 2009, p. ^{[page needed]}.
135. ^ Curta 2006, pp. 210–211.
136. ^ Moravcsik 1967, p. 156.
137. ^ Thurn 1973, p. ^{[page needed]}.
138. ^ Wortley 2010, p. ^{[page needed]}.
139. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 24–29.
140. ^ Алексић 2020, p. 294.
141. ^ Алексић 2020, p. 198.
142. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 16–17, 24, 28.
143. ^ Алексић 2020, p. 197.
144. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 220–224.
145. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 17, 24–25, 28.
146. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 244, 278.
147. ^ Živković 2008a, pp. 250–258.
148. ^ ^{a b} Алексић 2020, pp. 177–183.
149. ^ Moravcsik 1967, pp. 153, 155.
150. ^ Živković 2010b, pp. 161–180.
151. ^ Алексић 2020, p. 303.
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155. ^ Nesbitt & Oikonomides 1991, pp. 100–101.
156. ^ Jireček 1911, p. ^{[page needed]}.
157. ^ ^{a b c d e f} Острогорски & Баришић 1966, p. ^{[page needed]}.
158. ^ Kukuljević-Sakcinski 1875, p. 239.
159. ^ Kalić 1995, pp. 147–155.
160. ^ Fine 1991, p. 225: "In the early 1090s Vukan of Raška took the title of grand (veliki) župan. His state was centered in the vicinity of modern Novi Pazar."
161. ^ Dimnik 1995, p. 268: "Vukan assumed the title grand župan and established his capital at the fortress of Ras after which Raška was named."
162. ^ Živković 2008a, p. 310: "at the time of Vukan′s rule in Serbia, when he raided the Byzantine possessions from Zvečan, prior to 1112, Ras was in his hands."
163. ^ ^{a b} Ćirković 2004, p. 34.
164. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 23–29.
165. ^ ^{a b c} Острогорски & Баришић 1971, p. ^{[page needed]}.
166. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 28–29.
167. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 29–30.
168. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 30–31.
169. ^ ^{a b c} Kalić 2016, pp. 75–96.
170. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 29–31.
171. ^ Komatina 2016b, pp. 103–107.
172. ^ ^{a b} Ćirković 2004, p. 31.
173. ^ Krekić 1992, pp. 43–52.
174. ^ Dvornik 1962, pp. 91–94.
175. ^ Fine 1994, pp. 2–9, 15, 19–20, 38–41.
176. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 31–36.
177. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 43, 68.
178. ^ Ferjančić & Maksimović 2014, pp. 37–54.
179. ^ Kalić 2017, pp. 7–18.
180. ^ Kalić 2014, p. 78.
181. ^ Krstić 2016, pp. 33–51.
182. ^ Fine 1994, pp. 217–224, 255–270.
183. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 49–52, 61–62.
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186. ^ Fine 1994, pp. 273–274.
187. ^ ^{a b} Fine 1994, p. 309.
188. ^ Fine 1994, pp. 314–317.
189. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 67–71.
190. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 77–79.
191. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 77–80.
192. ^ Mihaljčić 1975, pp. 164–165, 220.
193. ^ Ćirković 2004, p. 81.
194. ^ Ćirković 2014, pp. 107–143.
195. ^ Ćirković 2004, p. 83.
196. ^ Šuica 2017, pp. 7–23.
197. ^ Fine 1994, pp. 409–411.
198. ^ Blagojević 1993, pp. 20–31.
199. ^ Šuica 2011, pp. 152–174.
200. ^ Šuica & Rudić 2017, pp. 88–102.
201. ^ ^{a b} Ćirković 2004, pp. 88–89.
202. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 104–105.
203. ^ Spremić 2014, pp. 145–163.
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207. ^ Fine 1994, pp. 313, 624.
208. ^ Janićijević 1998, p. 589.
209. ^ Jireček 1918, pp. 10–11.
210. ^ Ćirković 2004, p. 48.
211. ^ Jireček 1918, p. 11.
212. ^ Fine 1994, pp. 318, 624.
213. ^ Ćirković 2004, p. 54.
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215. ^ Vlahović 2004, p. 96.
216. ^ Isailović 2017, pp. 25–42.
217. ^ Kršljanin 2017, pp. 1–16.
218. ^ ^{a b c} Fine 1994, pp. 313–317.
219. ^ ^{a b c} Ćirković 2004, pp. 68–71.
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221. ^ Pavković 1997, pp. 165–180.
222. ^ Krstić 1981, pp. 127–128.
223. ^ Nešović 2020, pp. 117–130.
224. ^ Ćirković 2004, p. 131.
225. ^ Ivanović 2019b, p. 396.
226. ^ ^{a b} Popović, Marjanović-Dušanić & Popović 2016, pp. 90–112.
227. ^ Орбин 1968, p. ^{[page needed]}.
228. ^ ^{a b c d} Алексић 2020, p. ^{[page needed]}.
229. ^ ^{a b c} Komatina 2015, pp. 711–718.
230. ^ ^{a b c} Bubalo 2014, p. ^{[page needed]}.
231. ^ Isailović & Krstić 2015, pp. 185–195.
232. ^ Popović, Marjanović-Dušanić & Popović 2016, pp. 219–230.
233. ^ Birnbaum 1972, pp. 243–284.
234. ^ Radošević 1986, pp. 445–451.
235. ^ Thomson 1993, pp. 103–134.
236. ^ Grickat-Radulović 1993, pp. 146–150.
237. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 232–237.
238. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 318–322.
239. ^ Алексић 2020, pp. 225–231, 318–322.
240. ^ Živković 2013a, pp. 44–46.
241. ^ Komatina 2015, pp. 713, 717.
242. ^ Komatina 2016, pp. 73–74.
243. ^ Komatina 2016, pp. 75, 88–91.
244. ^ Ćirković 2004, p. 21, 30.
245. ^ Vlasto 1970, pp. 207–209.
246. ^ Špehar 2010, pp. 203–220.
247. ^ Špehar 2015a, pp. 71–93.
248. ^ Dragojlović 1990, pp. 201–209.
249. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 22, 26–28.
250. ^ Dragojlović 1991, pp. 43–55.
251. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 20, 22, 26–28.
252. ^ Dragojlović 1993, pp. 32–40.
253. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 28, 64.
254. ^ Đurić 1993, pp. 72–89.
255. ^ Korać 1993, pp. 90–114.
256. ^ Vlahović 2004, p. 92.
257. ^ Milosavljević 2008, pp. 79–102.
258. ^ Đurić-Klajn 1972, pp. 7–20, 28–38.
259. ^ ^{a b} Jakovljević 1984, pp. 69–82.
260. ^ Ivić 1995, pp. 133–134.
261. ^ Pejović 2013, p. ^{[page needed]}.
262. ^ Njegovan 1998, pp. 125–126.
263. ^ Janićijević 1998, pp. 110, 119, 166.
264. ^ ^{a b c d} Popović, Marjanović-Dušanić & Popović 2016, pp. 153–163.
265. ^ Vlahović 2004, pp. 146–147, 373–374.
266. ^ Manojlović-Nikolić 2016, pp. 45–57.
267. ^ Njegovan 1998, p. ^{[page needed]}.
268. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 52–57.
269. ^ Njegovan 1998, pp. 47–48.
270. ^ ^{a b} Popović, Marjanović-Dušanić & Popović 2016, pp. 135–152.
271. ^ Stoianovich 1995, p. 30.
272. ^ Vlahović 2004, p. 134.
273. ^ Bataković 2005, p. 51.
274. ^ Баришић & Ферјанчић 1986, p. ^{[page needed]}.
275. ^ Njegovan 1998, pp. 6, 60–61.
276. ^ Njegovan 1998, pp. 60–61, 125.
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279. ^ Vlahović 2004, pp. 120–121.
280. ^ Bajalović-Hadži-Pešić 2003, pp. 181–190.
281. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 95, 104, 114, 123.
282. ^ Kovačević-Kojić 2014, pp. 97–106.
283. ^ Kovačević-Kojić 2019, pp. 57–71.
284. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 78, 94, 104, 123, 125.
285. ^ Ćirković 2004, pp. 55–57.
286. ^ Petrović 2013, pp. 235–287.
287. ^ Sophoulis 2020, pp. 39–55.
288. ^ Vlahović 2004, pp. 92, 94.
289. ^ Sophoulis 2020, p. 103.

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• Grickat-Radulović, Irena (1993). "Serbian Medieval Literary Language". Serbs in European Civilization. Belgrade: Nova, Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts, Institute for Balkan Studies. pp. 146–150.
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• Isailović, Neven G.; Krstić, Aleksandar R. (2015). "Serbian Language and Cyrillic Script as a Means of Diplomatic Literacy in South Eastern Europe in 15th and 16th Centuries". Literacy Experiences concerning Medieval and Early Modern Transylvania. Cluj-Napoca: George Bariţiu Institute of History. pp. 185–195.
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• Kalić, Jovanka (1995). "Rascia – The Nucleus of the Medieval Serbian State". The Serbian Question in the Balkans. Belgrade: Faculty of Geography. pp. 147–155.
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• Komatina, Predrag (2010). "The Slavs of the mid-Danube basin and the Bulgarian expansion in the first half of the 9th century" (PDF). Зборник радова Византолошког института. 47: 55–82.
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• Živković, Tibor (2012). De conversione Croatorum et Serborum: A Lost Source. Belgrade: The Institute of History.
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External links

• Media related to Middle Ages in Serbia at Wikimedia Commons