Stephen II ( hr, Stjepan II) was the last member of the Trpimirović dynasty and last native

king of Croatia This is a complete list of rulers of Croatia under domestic ethnic and elected dynasties during the Croatian Kingdom (925–1918). This article follows the monarch's title number according to Hungarian succession for convenience. For example, the ...

to rule the entire medieval Croatian Kingdom.Stjepan II (1089 - 1091)
/ref>List of Croatian rulers
PDF, University of Michigan Stephen's father was Gojslav II, the younger brother of

Peter Krešimir IV of Croatia Peter Krešimir IV, called the Great ( hr, Petar Krešimir IV. Veliki) was King of Croatia This is a complete list of rulers of Croatia under domestic ethnic and elected dynasties during the Croatian Kingdom (925–1918). This article follows the ...

. Stephen was duke of Croatia under Krešimir around 1066. He was due to succeed Peter Krešimir IV but was sidelined by the people and clergy in 1075 who instead bestowed the title of king on

Demetrius Zvonimir Demetrius Zvonimir ( hr, Dmitar Zvonimir, ; died 1089) was a King of Croatia and Dalmatia This is a complete list of rulers of Croatia under domestic ethnic and elected dynasties during the Croatian Kingdom (925–1918). This article follows th ...

, previously a ban in

Slavonia Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia Dalmatia (; hr, Dalmacija ; it, Dalmazia; see #Name, names in other languages) is a region on the east shore of the Adriatic Sea, a narrow belt stretching from the island of Rab in the nort ...

. Stephen II was forced to live in the monastery of St Stephen Beneath the Pines (''Sv. Stjepan pod borovima'') on the peninsula of Sustipan, near

Split Split(s) or The Split may refer to: Places * Split, Croatia, the largest coastal city in Croatia * Split Island, Canada, an island in the Hudson Bay * Split Island, Falkland Islands * Split Island, Fiji, better known as Hạfliua Arts, entertain ...

. The formal reason for life in the monastery is an alleged illness, so in his charter from 1078, Stephen writes:

''I, Stephen, once glittering Prince of the Croats, devastated by a bad illness, call upon the honorable priests of the Croatian kingdom to find a remedy for my sins. Of their advice I took heed, and let myself be brought to the monastery of St Stephen. Here I was relieved of all my honours and had choosen the grabe, recommending the monastery's leader to mention me in his prayers.''

King Demetrius Zvonimir was a member of the junior Svetoslavić branch of the House of Trpimirović (descendants of

Svetoslav Suronja Svetoslav Suronja (), was List of rulers of Croatia, King of Kingdom of Croatia (medieval), Croatia from 997 to 1000. A member of the Trpimirović dynasty, he reigned with the help of his ''Ban (title), ban'', Varda. John the Deacon (Venetian chr ...

). By the time Demetrius Zvonimir died in 1089, Stephen was old and seriously affected by ill health. Nevertheless, he assumed the throne after being persuaded by the aristocracy and clergy. Stephen's rule was relatively ineffectual and lasted less than two years. He spent most of this time in the tranquility of the monastery near

, where he stayed before becoming king. Zvonimir's widow, Queen Jelena, reportedly plotted the inheritance of the Croatian Crown for her brother, King

Ladislaus I of Hungary Ladislaus I or Ladislas I, also Saint Ladislaus or Saint Ladislas ( hu, Szent László, hr, Ladislav I., sk, Svätý Ladislav, pl, Władysław I Święty; 1040 – 29 July 1095) was King of Hungary The King of Hungary ( hu, magyar kirá ...

. Stephen II died peacefully in December 1090, or at the beginning of 1091, without leaving an heir. War and unrest broke out in Croatia shortly afterward, with the southern nobility electing Petar Svačić as King of Croatia in 1093, immediately entering into conflict with the Hungarian king

Ladislaus

. The war culminated in the

Battle of Gvozd Mountain The Battle of Gvozd Mountain took place in the year 1097 and was fought between the army of Petar Svačić and King Coloman of Hungary, Coloman I of Hungary. It was a decisive Hungary, Hungarian victory, which ended the War of the Croatian Succes ...

in 1097 leading to a personal union of Croatia and Hungary in 1102, ruled by Coloman of Hungary, Coloman.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephen 02 Of Croatia Kings of Croatia Trpimirović dynasty 1091 deaths 11th-century monarchs in Europe 11th-century Croatian people Year of birth unknown Burials at the Church of St. Stephen, Solin

See also

References