Dobroslav II ( sr-Cyrl, Доброслав; 1081–1103) was King of
Duklja
Duklja ( sh-Cyrl, Дукља; el, Διόκλεια, Diokleia; la, Dioclea) was a medieval South Slavic state which roughly encompassed the territories of modern-day southeastern Montenegro, from the Bay of Kotor in the west to the Bojana Ri ...
, between 1101 and 1102.
Life
His life is only known from the information given in the ''
Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja
The ''Chronicle of the Priest of Dioclea or Duklja'' ( sh, Ljetopis popa Dukljanina) is the usual name given to a purportedly medieval chronicle written in the late 13th century by an anonymous priest from Duklja. Its oldest preserved copy is in La ...
'', according to which he is sometimes called Dobroslav II in modern historiography. Dobroslav was the eldest of four sons of the Dioclean king
Michael I Michael I may refer to:
* Pope Michael I of Alexandria, Coptic Pope of Alexandria and Patriarch of the See of St. Mark in 743–767
* Michael I Rhangabes, Byzantine Emperor (died in 844)
* Michael I Cerularius, Patriarch Michael I of Constantinopl ...
and his second wife, a Greek.
Dobroslav was about 25 years old at the death of his father,
in ca. 1081.
Although being the eldest son, Michael had chosen his favourite,
Constantine Bodin
Constantine Bodin ( Bulgarian and sr, italic=no, Константин Бодин, ''Konstantin Bodin''; 1072–1101) was a medieval king and the ruler of Duklja, the most powerful Serbian principality of the time, from 1081 to 1101, succee ...
, to succeed him. The Venetians had rescued Bodin in 1078 from Byzantine captivity. By 1085, Bodin and his brothers had suppressed a revolt by their cousins, the sons of Michael's brother Radoslav in the ''
župa
A župa (or zhupa, županija) is a historical type of administrative division in Southeast Europe and Central Europe, that originated in medieval South Slavic culture, commonly translated as "parish", later synonymous "kotar", commonly translate ...
'' of Zeta, and Constantine Bodin ruled unchallenged until his death in 1101. Dobroslav succeeded as titular "King of Slavs".
According to the Chronicle of Duklja, Dobroslav was selected by the people to become king after the death of Bodin. However, his reign was short as
Vukan, Grand Prince of Serbia
Vukan I ( sr, Вукан, gr, Βολκάνος; 1050 – 1112) was the Grand Prince of Serbia from 1083 until his death in 1112. During first years he ruled together with his brother Marko, holding the regions of inner Serbia ( Raška, lat. R ...
, along with the pretender to the Dioclean throne,
Kočopar, attacked Duklja, defeating Dobroslav at the Battle of Morača. Dobroslav was overthrown and was banished to inner
Serbia
Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
. In the meantime, the army from inner Serbia, along with Kočopar and Vukan, took over Dioclea. Kočopar wasn't able to hold his position in Dioclea, and thus escaped to
Zachumlia
Zachlumia or Zachumlia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Zahumlje, Захумље, ), also Hum, was a medieval principality located in the modern-day regions of Herzegovina and southern Dalmatia (today parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia ...
, where he died.
Vladimir
Vladimir may refer to:
Names
* Vladimir (name) for the Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Macedonian, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak and Slovenian spellings of a Slavic name
* Uladzimir for the Belarusian version of the name
* Volodymyr for the Ukr ...
, Dobroslav's nephew, assumed the throne of Dioclea after Kočopar's death. Dobroslav was later released from prison in inner Serbia and returned to Dioclea. However, upon his arrival, Vladimir imprisoned him in
Scutari where he was
blinded and castrated on the orders of Bodin's widow, Queen
Jaquinta Jaquinta ( sh, Jakvinta/Јаквинта; 1081 – 1118) was a queen consort of Dioclea by marriage to king Constantine Bodin. She is best known for her role in the Dioclean civil war, where she violently intervened in a succession crisis follow ...
. His last years were spent at the Monastery of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (Sv. Srđa i Vakha) on the
Bojana river
The Bojana ( cnr, Бојана), also known as the Buna ( sq, Bunë), is a river in Albania and Montenegro which flows into the Adriatic Sea. An outflow of Lake Skadar, measured from the source of the lake's longest tributary, the Morača, t ...
, where he was buried.
He had no issue.
See also
*
Vojislavljević dynasty
The Vojislavljević ( sr-Cyrl, Војислављевић, pl. Vojislavljevići / Војислављевићи) was a Serbian medieval dynasty, named after ''archon'' Stefan Vojislav, who wrested the polities of Duklja, Travunia, Zahumlje, inner ...
*
Vukanović dynasty
The Vukanović dynasty ( sr-cyr, Вукановић, Vukanovići / Вукановићи), was a medieval Serbian dynasty that ruled over inner Serbia, centered in the Raška region ( la, Rascia), during the 11th and 12th century. Several mem ...
References
Sources
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dobroslav Ii
1134 deaths
12th-century monarchs in Europe
12th-century Serbian people
Rulers of Duklja
Vojislavljević dynasty
Eastern Orthodox monarchs
Year of birth unknown
Blind royalty and nobility
Serbian exiles