Stefan Balšić ( sr-cyr, Стефан Балшић; fl. 1419-40), known as Stefan Maramonte, was a Zetan nobleman. He was the son of

Konstantin Balšić Konstantin Balšić ( sr-cyr, Константин Балшић) or Konstantin Balsha ( sq, Konstantin Balsha) ( 1378–died 1402), was a lord of the Balšić family, who ruled over lands in northern Albania. Life Konstantin was the son of Đur ...

and

Helena Thopia Helena Thopia ( 1388–1403) was an Albanian princess of the Thopia family who held the Krujë region as sovereign lady for two terms; 1388-1392 and 1394–1403. Life Princess Helena Thopia was the eldest daughter of Karl Thopia and Voisava Bal ...

. After Konstantin's death (1402), Helena entered the Republic of Venice and then lived with her sister Maria. Since Maria was married to Phillip Maramonte, the Venetians and Ragusans often referred to Stefan Balšić with the name ''Maramonte''. He was initially a close associate to Zetan lord

Balša III Balša III ( sr-cyr, Балша III) or Balsha III ( sq, Balsha III) (1387 – 28 April 1421, in Belgrade) was the fifth and last ruler of Zeta from the Balšić noble family, from April 1403 to April 1421. He was the son of Đurađ II and Jelena L ...

(r. 1403-1421), being his vassal. Balša III and Stefan fought against the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...

, and Stefan helped in the administration of the land as co-ruler with Balša III, he did however not succeed Balša III. Balša III, who died on 28 April 1421, had decided to pass the rule of Zeta to his uncle, the Serbian Despot

Stefan Lazarević Stefan Lazarević ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Лазаревић, 1377 – 19 July 1427), also known as Stefan the Tall ( sr, Стефан Високи / ''Stefan Visoki''), was the ruler of Serbia as prince (1389–1402) and despot (1402–1427), ...

. When the

Second Scutari War The Second Scutari War ( sr-cyr, Други скадарски рат) was an armed conflict in 1419–1426 between Zeta (1419–1421) and then the Serbian Despotate (1421–1423) on the one side and the Venetian Republic on the other, over Scuta ...

between Venice and Despot Stefan began, he .. Stefan left

Apulia it, Pugliese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographic ...

in the summer of 1426, seeking to take Zeta. During the 1427–28 conflict, Maramonte went to the Ottoman court where he sought the support of Sultan

Murad II Murad II ( ota, مراد ثانى, Murād-ı sānī, tr, II. Murad, 16 June 1404 – 3 February 1451) was the sultan of the Ottoman Empire from 1421 to 1444 and again from 1446 to 1451. Murad II's reign was a period of important economic deve ...

for his appointment as the Lord of Zeta. There, he met

Skanderbeg , reign = 28 November 1443 – 17 January 1468 , predecessor = Gjon Kastrioti , successor = Gjon Kastrioti II , spouse = Donika Arianiti , issue = Gjon Kastrioti II , royal house = Kastrioti , father ...

, who was a hostage at the Ottoman court. Maramonte married

Vlajka Kastrioti The House of Kastrioti ( sq, Dera e Kastriotëve) was an Albanian noble family, active in the 14th and 15th centuries as the rulers of the Principality of Kastrioti. At the beginning of the 15th century, the family controlled a territory in the ...

, the sister of Skanderbeg. Supported by the Ottomans, Maramonte, accompanied by

Gojčin Crnojević Gojčin Crnojević ( sr-cyr, Гојчин Црнојевић, 1398–d. after 1451) was a Lord of Zeta, initially as a vassal of the Serbian Despotate until he revolted against Despot Stefan Lazarević. He disappeared from sources in 1451. Goj ...

and

Little Tanush Tanush Dukagjin ( 1423–33), known as Little Tanush, was an Albanian nobleman, a member of the Dukagjini family, the son of Pal Dukagjini (died 1393). He had four brothers: Progon (d. 1394), Pal II (d. 1402), Andrea (d. 1416), and Gjon Dukagji ...

, plundered the region around Scutari and

Ulcinj Ulcinj ( cyrl, Улцињ, ; ) is a town on the southern coast of Montenegro and the capital of Ulcinj Municipality. It has an urban population of 10,707 (2011), the majority being Albanians. As one of the oldest settlements in the Adriatic coast ...

, and attacked

Drivast Drisht ( sq-definite, Drishti) is a village, former bishopric and Latin titular see with an Ancient and notable medieval history (Latin ''Drivastum,'' Italian ''Drivasto'') in Albania, 6 km from Mes Bridge (Albanian: ''Ura e Mesit''). It is l ...

in 1429, but failed to capture it. Since his attempts failed, Maramonte surrendered to the Venetians and served as their military officer in the campaigns in

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

and

Lombardia (man), (woman) lmo, lumbard, links=no (man), (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , ...

Annotations

*His name was ''Stefan Balšić'' ( la, Stephanus de Balsis, links=no), but he was called ''Stefan Maramonte'' (sr. Stefan Crnogorac, de. Stephan Czernogoraz), meaning "Stefan from the Black Mountain (

Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...

)" ( la, Stephanus de Maramonte Zarnagorae, links=no).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stefan Maramonte 14th-century births 15th-century deaths People of the Serbian Despotate Balšić noble family Stefan Lords of Zeta 15th-century Venetian people

See also

Annotations

References