Stephen Tomašević of Bosnia
Stephen Tomašević | |
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Roman Catholic |
Stephen Tomašević or Stephen II (
Stephen's father,
Stephen succeeded his father on the throne following the latter's death in July 1461 and became the first Bosnian king to receive a crown from the
Family
Born in 1438,
King Thomas, raised as a member of the
Marriage
In the 1450s, King Thomas vigorously searched for suitable spouses for the children from his first union. Stephen's two sisters were married off in 1451, and in 1453 Stephen too entered his father's considerations. Wishing to gain control over the
The earliest source mentioning Stephen by name dates from 30 April 1455, when
When
The Hungarian king
Despotism
Stephen, accompanied by his uncle Radivoj, duly set out for Serbia but narrowly escaped imprisonment during an Ottoman raid on the Bosnian royal residence of
Stephen's marriage to Helen took place on 1 April,
It was clear from the onset that Stephen's reign in Serbia would be short-lived. The Ottoman sultan
Following the fall of the town which Pope Pius II lamentably termed "the gateway to Rascia", Stephen fled to Bosnia with his family and in-laws, seeking refuge at the court of his father.[17] The King of Hungary accused Stephen and his family of selling Smederevo Fortress to the Ottomans "for a great weight of gold", and the Pope at first believed him.[14] Pius's own investigation appears to have come to the conclusion that Stephen did not sell the fortress, as the Pope did not repeat the claim.[18] Ottoman, Bosnian and Serbian sources say nothing about the supposed betrayal, so the allegation is unlikely to be based on fact.[19] The Serbian-born janissary Konstantin Mihailović and the Byzantine Greek scholar Laonikos Chalkokondyles maintained Stephen's innocence and pointed out to the strength of the Ottoman army. Both state that the Serbs within Smederevo were so unhappy with Bosnian rule and convinced that the Ottomans would prevail (and grant them more religious tolerance than the Hungarians) that they went out to meet Mehmed and presented him with keys to the city.[18]
Kingship
Accession and coronation
King Thomas died in July 1461. According to later accounts, Thomas's death was plotted by Stephen and Radivoj, and even Matthias and Mehmed were implicated. Historians dismiss these allegations, however, pointing out that the King had been ill since June.
Immediately upon his accession, Stephen set out to resolve all disagreements within the royal family in order to strengthen his own position. His relations with his stepmother, the 37-year-old Queen Catherine, had been strained during his father's lifetime, but he now guaranteed that she would retain her title and privileges. Her father, Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, wrote to Venetian officials that the King had "taken her as his mother",[23] Vojača having already died by the time he ascended the throne.[23] Kosača was the kingdom's most powerful nobleman, and had been engaged in a never-ending conflict with Stephen's father. Stephen Tomašević took the Venetians' advice to make peace with his stepgrandfather, thus finally ensuring the nobility's absolute support of their king.[21][24] He then focused on improving Bosnia's economy, which became stronger than ever during his reign, and ensuring that the state would collect more profit from the flourishing metalworking trade.[21]
Problems rose soon already in the summer of 1461, when
King Stephen wasted no time to solidify his relations with the
The belated attempt at
Ottoman invasion
By the spring of 1462, it was known that Mehmed had decided to conquer Bosnia. Stephen and Kosača desperately sought help from Christian rulers. The King maintained contact with the Pope, who had his legates stay permanently at the Bosnian royal court and who strived to concentrate as many soldiers and as much weapons as possible in the threatened kingdom. The authorities of the neighbouring Republic of Ragusa were enlisted to secure the support of the Albanian ruler Skanderbeg, who was subsequently allowed by the Venetians to pass with his army through Venetian Albania on their way to Bosnia. Venice itself promised no assistance, suggesting instead that Stephen and Kosača should trust in their own forces. Others, such as King Ferdinand I of Naples, cited domestic issues and offered nothing more than moral support.[26]
While doing everything possible to secure foreign aid, King Stephen found that there was little will to resist within the country.
Encouraged by Matthias's commitment to help and possibly by the Bishop of Modruš, Stephen Tomašević made an imprudent and fatal decision in June 1462. Pope Pius wrote in his diary that, "relying on one knows what hope", the King "refused the tributes which his ancestors had long been used to pay the Ottomans and had stormed the town which the enemy had built at the confluence of Sava and Bosna to put fear into the Hungarians and Slavs."[30] According to Chalkokondyles, Stephen invited the Ottoman ambassador to his treasure house and showed him the money set aside as tribute, but informed him that he would rather use it to fight off an Ottoman attack or to live off it in exile.[31][24] Mehmed the Conqueror was enraged by Stephen's insubordinance and audacity. The Pope recounts how,[30] hearing of the Sultan's vow to conquer his kingdom and destroy him,[21][30] Stephen summoned the Bishop of Modruš and blamed him for infuriating the Sultan. He commanded Nicholas to go to Hungary and seek immediate action against the Ottomans, but no help ever arrived to Bosnia from Christendom.[30] Matthias, Skenderbeg and the Ragusans all failed to carry out their promises.[21]
"I am the first to expect the storm. [...] My father predicted to your predecessor, Nicholas V, and the Venetians the fall of Constantinople. He was not believed. [...] Now I prophesy about myself. If you trust and aid me I shall be saved; if not, I shall perish and many will be ruined with me." |
Excerpts from King Stephen's letter to Pope Pius[32] |
In the spring of 1463, Mehmed gathered an army of 150,000 men in
Capture and death
Contrary to Stephen Tomašević's expectations, Bobovac fell within days. The King had already realized that he had no choice but to take refuge in the neighbouring Croatia or Dalmatia. Angelović tirelessly pursued him, and caught up with him in
Stephen sought to ingratiate himself with Mehmed by sending out orders to commanders and castellans to surrender, enabling his captor to take command of more than 70 towns in one week. Mehmed, however, had no intention of sparing Stephen's life and summoned him on 25 May. Stephen fearfully brought Angelović's document,
Assessment and legacy
Stephen Tomašević was buried on a hill near Jajce. Europe was stunned to see the Bosnian state fall almost completely within weeks of his death. The country's quick submission is said to be the consequence of a poor cooperation between Stephen and his noblemen, but it is perhaps most accurate to attribute it to the people's low morale and general belief that the conquest was inevitable.[26] Additionally, the religiously diverse Bosnians were aware, much like the neighbouring Serbians, that the country would be overrun by Hungary if not by the Ottomans, and that they would enjoy far less freedom of religion and far higher taxes in that case. Therefore, resistance was not as strong as it could have been. Pope Pius's claim that adherents of the Bosnian Church betrayed the kingdom is groundless.[4]
Stephen Tomašević's half-siblings were taken to Constantinople and converted to Islam. Queen Catherine, his stepmother, left for the
In 1888, the Croatian archeologist
Family tree
Ostoja | Kosača | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Vladislav | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sigismund | Catherine | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
References
- ^ Mühle 2023, p. 592.
- ^ a b c d e Ćošković 2009.
- ^ Ćirković 1964, p. 276.
- ^ a b c d Fine 2007, p. 339.
- ^ Fine 2007, p. 240.
- ^ Fine 1994, p. 578.
- ^ Ćirković 1964, p. 310.
- ^ a b Ćirković 1964, p. 317.
- ^ Fine 1994, p. 572.
- ^ a b c d Miller & Nesbitt 1995, p. 187.
- ^ a b Fine 1994, p. 574.
- ^ a b c d e Babinger 1992, p. 163.
- ^ Babinger 1992, p. 156.
- ^ a b c d e f Fine 1994, p. 575.
- ^ Ćirković 1964, p. 318.
- ^ Babinger 1992, p. 164.
- ^ Babinger 1992, p. 163-164.
- ^ a b Miller & Nesbitt 1995, p. 189.
- ^ Fine 1994, p. 575-576.
- ^ Ćirković 1964, p. 323.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Ljubez 2009, p. 149.
- ^ Bury et al. 1923, p. 149.
- ^ a b Mandić 1978, p. 277.
- ^ a b c d e Miller 1923, p. 578.
- ^ a b c d Ćirković 1964, p. 324.
- ^ a b c d Ćirković 1964, p. 325.
- ^ Ćirković 1964, p. 326.
- ^ Ćirković 1964, p. 326-327.
- ^ Ćirković 1964, p. 327.
- ^ a b c d Miller & Nesbitt 1995, p. 191.
- ^ a b c Babinger 1992, p. 220.
- ^ The Commentaries of Pius II, Smith College, 1955, pp. 740–741
- ^ Ćirković 1964, p. 329.
- ^ a b Babinger 1992, p. 221.
- ^ a b c Babinger 1992, p. 222.
- ^ a b Ljubez 2009, p. 150.
- ^ Ljubez 2009, p. 158.
Bibliography
- Brooke, Zachary Nugent, eds. (1923), The Cambridge Medieval History, vol. 4, Cambridge University Press
- Ćirković, Sima (1964). Историја средњовековне босанске државе (in Serbo-Croatian). Srpska književna zadruga.
- Ćošković, Pejo (2009), Kotromanići (in Serbo-Croatian), Miroslav Krleža Institute of Lexicography
- ISBN 0472082604.
- Fine, John Van Antwerp Jr. (2007). The Bosnian Church: Its Place in State and Society from the Thirteenth to the Fifteenth Century. Saqi. ISBN 978-0-86356-503-8.
- Mandić, Dominik (1978), Sabrana djela Dr. O. Dominika Mandića: Bosna i Hercegovina: povjesno kritička istraživanja, Zajednica izdanja ranjeni labud
- Miller, William (1923), The Cambridge Medieval History, Volume 4, Cambridge University Press
- Ljubez, Bruno (2009), Jajce Grad: prilog povijesti posljednje bosanske prijestolnice (in Serbo-Croatian), HKD Napredak
- ISBN 081320805X
- ISBN 0-691-01078-1.
- ISBN 978-9-00453-674-6.
Further reading
- ISBN 9781405142915.