Stephen Thomas ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=/, Stefan Tomaš, Стефан Томаш, sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=/, label=none, Stjepan Tomaš, Стјепан Томаш; 1411 – July 1461), a member of the

House of Kotromanić A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...

, reigned from 1443 until his death as the penultimate king of Bosnia. An illegitimate son of

King Ostoja Stephen OstojaHis name in Bosnian is rendered Stjepan Ostoja (), while in Croatian it's Stjepan Ostoja. In Serbian, he is called Stefan Ostoja (). ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Stjepan Ostoja, Стјепан Остоја; died September 1418 ...

, Thomas succeeded King Tvrtko II, but his accession was not recognized by the leading magnate of the Kingdom of Bosnia, Stjepan Vukčić Kosača. The two engaged in a

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies ...

which ended when the King repudiated his wife, Vojača, and married the insubordinate nobleman's daughter,

Catherine Katherine, also spelled Catherine, and other variations are feminine names. They are popular in Christian countries because of their derivation from the name of one of the first Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria. In the early Christ ...

. Thomas and his second wife, both raised in the

Bosnian Church The Bosnian Church ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=/, Crkva bosanska, Црква Босанска) was a Christian church in medieval Bosnia and Herzegovina that was independent of and considered heretical by both the Catholic and the Eastern Orthodo ...

tradition, converted to Roman Catholicism and sponsored construction of churches and monasteries throughout the kingdom. Throughout his reign, Thomas waged a war with the

Serbian Despotate The Serbian Despotate ( sr, / ) was a medieval Serbian state in the first half of the 15th century. Although the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 is generally considered the end of medieval Serbia, the Despotate, a successor of the Serbian Empire and ...

over the lucrative mining town of

Srebrenica Srebrenica ( sr-cyrl, Сребреница, ) is a town and municipality located in the easternmost part of Republika Srpska, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is a small mountain town, with its main industry being salt mining and a nearby ...

and its surroundings, in addition to (or in conjunction with) multiple conflicts with his father-in-law. Moreover, he had a tense relationship with the menacing

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

. After years of skirmishes and raids, Thomas appeared willing to lead the Christian coalition against the Turks, but received no assistance from fellow Christian rulers. Having failed to expand into

Croatia proper Croatia proper ( hr, Hrvatska) is one of the four historical regions of the Republic of Croatia, together with Dalmatia, Istria, and Slavonia. It is located between Slavonia in the east, the Adriatic Sea in the west, and Dalmatia to the south ...

, Thomas turned again to the east in 1458, arranging a match between his son

Stephen Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

and the Serbian heiress Helena. Bosnian control over the remnants of the Serbian Despotate lasted merely a month before the Ottoman conquest of the state. King Thomas' failure to defend Serbia permanently damaged his reputation in Europe. Wishing to improve his image among Europe's Catholics, Thomas turned against the Bosnian Church, thus becoming the first ruler of Bosnia to engage in religious persecution. Thomas' sometime contradictory traits earned him both admiration and scorn from his contemporaries. His son Stephen succeeded him, and immediately proved more apt at dealing with the challenges of the time.

Background

Thomas was the son of

, who died in 1418, and his mistress, whose name is not recorded. He was a doubly

adulterine Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal ...

child, as both his father and mother were married at the time of his birth. Ostoja was the only non-Catholic king of Bosnia, and Thomas was raised as a member of the

, to which his parents adhered.

Tvrtko II Stephen Tvrtko II ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Stjepan/Stefan Tvrtko, Стјепан/Стефан Твртко; died in November 1443), also known as Tvrtko Tvrtković (), was a member of the House of Kotromanić who reigned as King of Bosnia from 1404 to 1409 ...

deposed

Stephen Ostojić Stephen or Steven is a common English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( grc-gre, Στέφανος ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; ...

, Ostoja's only known legitimate child and successor, in 1421. Thomas' illegitimate older brother, Radivoj, unsuccessfully contested Tvrtko's rule with the help of the Ottoman Turks and the Kosača family, the leading magnates of the Kingdom of Bosnia. The narrative sources refer to Thomas (as well as his father and brother) as a Kristić, which is thought to be the name of a

cadet branch In history and heraldry, a cadet branch consists of the male-line descendants of a monarch's or patriarch's younger sons ( cadets). In the ruling dynasties and noble families of much of Europe and Asia, the family's major assets— realm, tit ...

of the

Kotromanić dynasty The Kotromanić ( sr-cyrl, Котроманић, Kotromanići / Котроманићи) were members of a late medieval Bosnian noble and later royal dynasty. Rising to power in the middle of the 13th century as bans of Bosnia, with control ov ...

. Thomas was thus closely related to Tvrtko II, likely his first cousin. Avoiding the limelight during the reign of Tvrtko II, Thomas lived with a commoner named Vojača and their children. He was loyal to King Tvrtko, and together the two took part in a skirmish in Usora, where Thomas was wounded. His loyalty likely influenced the childless and ailing King to ensure his succession; Thomas was certainly preferable to his brother Radivoj, whom Tvrtko detested. Count Hermann II of Celje, a descendant of the Kotromanić family once designated as

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of an heir apparent or a new heir presumptive with a better claim to the position in question. ...

, had died in 1435.

Accession to coronation

Tvrtko II died in November 1443. The '' Stanak'' approved his choice of heir, and Thomas was duly elected king by 5 December. Like his predecessors, he added the royal name Stephen to his own. However, the kingdom's most powerful magnate, Grand Duke Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, refused to accept Thomas as king, and announced his support for Radivoj. The authorities of the neighbouring

Republic of Ragusa hr, Sloboda se ne prodaje za sve zlato svijeta it, La libertà non si vende nemmeno per tutto l'oro del mondo"Liberty is not sold for all the gold in the world" , population_estimate = 90 000 in the XVI Century , currency = ...

immediately expressed concern about the situation. Kosača and Radivoj appealed to Ragusa not to recognize Thomas as king, but to no avail. Simultaneously, Hermann's grandson Ulrich II pressed his claim to the Bosnian throne and tried to gather support among Thomas's opponents. Because of this, Thomas hastened to send word of his accession to foreign rulers, including the German king Frederick IV, Ulrich's rival, and Ragusan and Venetian authorities, hoping to receive recognition. Ulrich was occupied with the feud waged against him by Frederick, as well as with the succession struggle in Hungary, where he had taken side with his cousin, queen dowager

Elizabeth of Luxembourg Elizabeth of Luxembourg ( hu, Luxemburgi Erzsébet; 7 October 1409 – 19 December 1442) was queen consort of Hungary, queen consort of Germany and Bohemia. The only child of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, King of Hungary and Bohemia, Eliza ...

and her infant son Ladislaus against the reigning monarch Vladislav I, leaving Thomas ample space of maneuver.Vjekoslav Klaić, ''Povijest Hrvata, od najstarijih vremena do svršetka XIX. stoljeća'', Vol. 3 (Zagreb: 1974), pp 206-207.

Succession war

King Thomas acted resolutely to strengthen his position. In January 1444, he penetrated the Bosnian-held region of

Zachlumia 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 ...

, ruled by the Kosačas. Kosača's nephew

Ivaniš Pavlović Ivanis may refer to: People * Ivaniš (magnate) (), Serbian magnate (despot), Dušan's relative, governor in Toplica * Ivaniš Berislavić (died 1514), Despot of Serbia * Ivaniš Horvat (died 1394), Croatian nobleman * Ivaniš Korvin (1473– ...

accompanied him, and the Radivojević family, the discontented vassals of the Kosačas, joined them upon their arrival. The party soon took Drijeva, thus restoring the important customs town to the

royal domain Crown land (sometimes spelled crownland), also known as royal domain, is a territorial area belonging to the monarch, who personifies the Crown. It is the equivalent of an entailed estate and passes with the monarchy, being inseparable from it ...

for the first time in three decades. Pressed by his simultaneous war with Venice, and receiving no help from the Ottoman Turks, Kosača agreed to a truce in March. Both sides hoped to buy time to regain strength for future clashes. King Thomas tried to exact the promise of help from Venice in the event of a Hungarian offensive against him, even offering 25-year-long control over some of his towns and mines to the Republic in return. However, throughout May successful negotiations with Hungary rendered this

cession The act of cession is the assignment of property to another entity. In international law it commonly refers to land transferred by treaty. Ballentine's Law Dictionary defines cession as "a surrender; a giving up; a relinquishment of jurisdictio ...

unnecessary.

János Hunyadi John Hunyadi (, , , ; 1406 – 11 August 1456) was a leading Hungarian military and political figure in Central and Southeastern Europe during the 15th century. According to most contemporary sources, he was the member of a noble family of ...

's intercession with King Vladislaus I led to Hungarian recognition of Thomas in June, for which the grateful King of Bosnia promised Hunyadi free passage, shelter, an annual income and assistance in any matter. Thus, by summer, Thomas had secured his grip on the throne. In July 1444, the Hungarian king informed Thomas of his intention to break the truce with the Ottomans. King Thomas decided to make the best of his membership in the Christian coalition. In May he had already conquered the lucrative

silver mining Silver mining is the extraction of silver from minerals, starting with mining. Because silver is often found in intimate combination with other metals, its extraction requires elaborate technologies. In 2008, ca.25,900 metric tons were consumed ...

town of

, taken by the Ottomans from the

, which in turn had taken it from Bosnia. He now decided to resume his war against the rebellious Kosača, an Ottoman tributary. The Turks were now ready to assist the Duke and broke into Bosnia, forcing the King to flee from Kozograd to

Bobovac Bobovac ( sh-Cyrl, Бобовац) is a fortified city of medieval Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located near today's Vareš and the village of Borovica. It is protected site as a National monument of Bosnia and Herzegovina. History The city was ...

, and enabling Kosača to reverse all his losses. In August, the Ottomans restored Serbia to

Đurađ Branković Đurađ Branković (; sr-cyr, Ђурађ Бранковић; hu, Brankovics György; 1377 – 24 December 1456) was the Serbian Despot from 1427 to 1456. He was one of the last Serbian medieval rulers. He was a participant in the battle of Anka ...

, who allied with Kosača against King Thomas. The destruction of the Hungarian army in November 1444 at the

Battle of Varna The Battle of Varna took place on 10 November 1444 near Varna in eastern Bulgaria. The Ottoman Army under Sultan Murad II (who did not actually rule the sultanate at the time) defeated the Hungarian– Polish and Wallachian armies commanded ...

, where King Vladislaus himself perished, left Thomas vulnerable. Forced again to rely solely on Venice, Thomas repeated his earlier offer, but the Republic declined and made peace with Kosača. In April 1445, Thomas lost Srebrenica and the entire

Drina Valley Podrinje (Serbian Cyrillic: Подриње) is the Slavic name of the Drina river basin, known in English as the Drina Valley. The Drina basin is shared between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia, with majority of its territory being located in ...

to Branković. Ivaniš Pavlović came to his aid again, and the two advanced towards

Pomorje Pomorje ( sr-Cyrl, Поморје), also known (in plural) as the Lands of Pomorje ( sr, / ), is a medieval term, used to designate several maritime regions of Upper Dalmatia and its hinterland, that at the end of the 12th century, during the r ...

. Thomas retook Drijeva, but his advance was suddenly halted, perhaps by another Turkish incursion or a truce. Hostilities finally ended in September.

Conversion and marriage

Having failed to strengthen royal authority by force, King Thomas decided to seek another way to pacify the kingdom. A rapprochement with Kosača via marriage with his daughter

was probably already envisaged in 1445, when Thomas improved relations with the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...

in order to be cleared of the "stain of

illegitimacy Legitimacy, in traditional Western common law, is the status of a child born to parents who are legally married to each other, and of a child conceived before the parents obtain a legal divorce. Conversely, ''illegitimacy'', also known as '' ...

" as well as to receive an

annulment Annulment is a legal procedure within secular and religious legal systems for declaring a marriage null and void. Unlike divorce, it is usually retroactive, meaning that an annulled marriage is considered to be invalid from the beginning al ...

of his union with Vojača.

Pope Eugene IV Pope Eugene IV ( la, Eugenius IV; it, Eugenio IV; 1383 – 23 February 1447), born Gabriele Condulmer, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 3 March 1431 to his death in February 1447. Condulmer was a Venetian, and ...

responded affirmatively on 29 May. By that time, Thomas appears to have decided to join the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. Negotiations with Kosača intensified in the beginning of 1446. King Thomas was then finally converted from Bosnian Christianity to Roman Catholicism by Tommaso Tommasini, Bishop of Lesina; however, Cardinal Juan Carvajal only performed the

baptism Baptism (from grc-x-koine, βάπτισμα, váptisma) is a form of ritual purification—a characteristic of many religions throughout time and geography. In Christianity, it is a Christian sacrament of initiation and adoption, almost ...

in 1457.

Map of Roman Catholic monasteries in Bosnia in the 15th century

Thomas' intention to marry Kosača's daughter Catherine was made known in April, their lands and borders reverting to '' status quo ante bellum''. The prospective bride, a Bosnian Christian, also had to convert to Catholicism for the marriage to proceed. These developments angered Ivaniš Pavlović and Petar Vojsalić, another vassal, but in the end no conflict with them took place. Elaborate festivities marked the royal wedding in mid-May in

Milodraž Milodraž was a settlement in the Kingdom of Bosnia, situated on an important road connecting the towns of Visoko and Fojnica. No remains of it have been found, but royal charters and Ragusan documents confirm that one of the residences of King T ...

, conducted by Catholic rite, followed by the couple's

coronation A coronation is the act of placement or bestowal of a crown upon a monarch's head. The term also generally refers not only to the physical crowning but to the whole ceremony wherein the act of crowning occurs, along with the presentation of ot ...

in Mile. For the first time, a crown was sent from Rome to be placed on the head of a Bosnian king. The

Bishop of Feltre The Italian Catholic diocese of Feltre, in the Veneto existed from 1462 to 1818. It was then united into the diocese of Belluno e Feltre. It had previously had an independent existence, up to 1197.papal legate to Bosnia, another Tommaso Tommasini, fetched the crown from the

Cathedral of Saint Domnius The Cathedral of Saint Domnius ( hr, Katedrala Svetog Duje), known locally as the ''Sveti Dujam'' or colloquially ''Sveti Duje'', is the Catholic cathedral in Split, Croatia. The cathedral is the seat of the Archdiocese of Split-Makarska, headed ...

Spalato )'' , settlement_type = City , anthem = ''Marjane, Marjane'' , image_skyline = , imagesize = 267px , image_caption = Top: Nighttime view of Split from Mosor; 2nd row: Cathedra ...

in July, but it never reached Thomas. As it facilitated alliances with

Western Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US *Western, New York, a town in the US *Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that id ...

rulers and came along with

Western cultural influences image:Da Vinci Vitruve Luc Viatour.jpg, Leonardo da Vinci's ''Vitruvian Man''. Based on the correlations of ideal Body proportions, human proportions with geometry described by the ancient Roman architect Vitruvius in Book III of his treatise '' ...

(in

art Art is a diverse range of human activity, and resulting product, that involves creative or imaginative talent expressive of technical proficiency, beauty, emotional power, or conceptual ideas. There is no generally agreed definition of wha ...

architecture Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...

music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspe ...

and

fashion Fashion is a form of self-expression and autonomy at a particular period and place and in a specific context, of clothing, footwear, lifestyle, accessories, makeup, hairstyle, and body posture. The term implies a look defined by the fashion i ...

) that penetrated Bosnia, Roman Catholicism became the preferable faith early in Thomas' reign. Many Bosnian noblemen followed the King's example in converting to Catholicism, but some soon returned to the Bosnian Church; Kosača wrote that he considered conversion, but never went through with it. Churches and Franciscan monasteries sprang up throughout Bosnia during Thomas' reign, some erected by the King himself. Despite his efforts to project an image of a good Catholic king, Thomas' religious policy was not initially so resolute. He continued honoring Bosnian Christians and their clergy as his predecessors had done, which led to disputes with local Franciscans. Pope Eugene agreed that, for political reasons, King Thomas had to tolerate heretics.

Peak

Peace brought unusual stability to Bosnia as well as security to Thomas. He retook Srebrenica once again in the autumn of 1446, and eventually struck a short-lived compromise with Branković by which the two would share the town and its mining revenues. It was not to last, however. Unfounded rumour had it that Hungarian noblemen considered offering the

Holy Crown of Hungary The Holy Crown of Hungary ( hu, Szent Korona; sh, Kruna svetoga Stjepana; la, Sacra Corona; sk, Svätoštefanská koruna , la, Sacra Corona), also known as the Crown of Saint Stephen, named in honour of Saint Stephen I of Hungary, was the c ...

to him, which testified to his growing reputation. The Ottomans, who wanted to weaken Bosnia by encouraging internal division, were very displeased by the kingdom's stability. At the request of Đurađ Branković, the Turks broke into both King Thomas' personal lands, and those of his father-in-law, in March 1448, plundering and burning towns. Kosača, who now called himself "''

Herzog ''Herzog'' (female ''Herzogin'') is a German hereditary title held by one who rules a territorial duchy, exercises feudal authority over an estate called a duchy, or possesses a right by law or tradition to be referred to by the ducal title. ...

'' of

Saint Sava Saint Sava ( sr, Свети Сава, Sveti Sava, ; Old Church Slavonic: ; gr, Άγιος Σάββας; 1169 or 1174 – 14 January 1236), known as the Enlightener, was a Serbian prince and Orthodox monk, the first Archbishop of the autocephalou ...

", was thus forced to side with Branković against his son-in-law and king. In mid-September, Branković's brother-in-law

Thomas Kantakouzenos }, ''Thomás Kantakouzenós'', modern pronunciation ''Thomás Kantakouzinós'', sr, Тома Кантакузин/''Toma Kantakuzin''; died 25 July 1463) was a Byzantine aristocrat, a member of the Kantakouzenos family, who became a Serbian magnat ...

, leading an army that included Kosača himself, soundly defeated King Thomas. King Thomas reconquered Srebrenica again in February 1449, but hostilities continued until 1451, when the King made peace again with his insubordinate father-in-law. The dispute was even taken before the

Diet of Hungary The Diet of Hungary or originally: Parlamentum Publicum / Parlamentum Generale ( hu, Országgyűlés) became the supreme legislative institution in the medieval kingdom of Hungary from the 1290s, and in its successor states, Royal Hungary and ...

. To finance this incessant warfare, as well as to sustain the royal court, King Thomas engaged in vigorous commerce and made business deals with Dalmatian traders. He relied heavily on his silver mining, but profited most from his

salt trade A salt road (also known as a salt route, salt way, saltway, or salt trading route) refers to any of the prehistoric and historical trade routes by which essential salt was transported to regions that lacked it. From the Bronze Age (in the 2nd ...

monopolies.

In-laws' conflict

In 1451 when Kosača sought to improve his own economy through a war with the Republic of Ragusa, Thomas refused to join either side, but still interceded with

Pope Nicholas V Pope Nicholas V ( la, Nicholaus V; it, Niccolò V; 13 November 1397 – 24 March 1455), born Tommaso Parentucelli, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 March 1447 until his death in March 1455. Pope Eugene made ...

to prevent his father-in-law's

excommunication Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...

. However, Ragusa persisted and promised to return the favor by helping Thomas take Drijeva from Kosača, and

Hodidjed Hodidjed is a ruined medieval fort near Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Hodidjed was the only known fortification in the area of Vrhbosna ''župa'' in the High Middle Ages. The fort, located at Han Bulog east of Sarajevo, was first taken by th ...

from the Turks. In the summer, Thomas was even approached by Kosača's family, namely the King's brother-in-law

Vladislav Vladislav ( be, Уладзіслаў (', '); pl, Władysław, ; Russian, Ukrainian, Bulgarian, Macedonian, sh-Cyrl, Владислав) is a male given name of Slavic origin. Variations include ''Volodislav'', ''Vlastislav'' and ''Vlaslav' ...

and mother-in-law Jelena, who were gravely offended when the Duke took his son's charming

Sienese Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

bride as his concubine. In mid-December, Thomas finally agreed with Ragusa on a pact against his infamous father-in-law, but the war ended abruptly when Hungary and the Ottomans signed a truce which specifically forbade the latter's tributary to attack Ragusa. Stepangrad u Blagaje, sidelni hrad hercegovskych vevodu z 14

Stepangrad u Blagaje, sidelni hrad hercegovskych vevodu z 14

Open rebellion against Stjepan Kosača broke out in March 1452. Vladislav, along with his mother and grandmother, raised an army and took control over most of his father's territory. Thomas, Vladislav's king and brother-in-law, answered his call for help and arrived with his army the following month. Ragusa also joined them. However, King Thomas proved reluctant to attack and soon went back north to ward off a Turkish incursion. Kosača seized the opportunity to enlist help from Venice, which took Drijeva from Vladislav, and to entice uprisings against the rebels themselves. Thomas returned, as he had promised, chasing the Venetians from Drijeva and easily defeating his brother-in-law's enemies. The coalition then suddenly fell apart when it became clear that Vladislav would not hand over parts of his patrimony that Thomas claimed as his due, namely Drijeva and

Blagaj Blagaj is a village in the south-eastern region of the Mostar basin, in the Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It stands at the edge of Bišće plain and is one of the most valuable mixed urban and rural built environments in ...

, which was the Kosača seat and the key to Zachlumia. New conflict emerged in 1453 upon the death of

Petar Talovac Petar Talovac ( hu, Tallóci Péter; died in 1453) was a Croatian nobleman, a member of the Talovac noble family. He was a vassal of the Croato-Hungarian king Sigismund who served first as administrator of the Archbishopric of Zagreb and then as ...

, who had governed

as ban on behalf of the Hungarian king. Both Thomas and his recently widowed father-in-law wished to gain control of Talovac's

allodial land In the law of the Middle Ages and early Modern Period and especially within the Holy Roman Empire, an allod (Old Low Franconian ''allōd'' ‘fully owned estate’, from ''all'' ‘full, entire’ and ''ōd'' ‘estate’, Medieval Latin ''allodium ...

by offering marriage to his widow, Hedwig Garai; Kosača proposed himself, while Thomas suggested his son

. Kosača invited Turks to Bosnia in autumn, but neither prevailed as Venice moved in to protect Talovac's heirs. They then made peace, realizing that the Ottomans, who had just stunned Europe by conquering Constantinople, would soon be at their gates as well. Another concern was the end of

regency A regent (from Latin : ruling, governing) is a person appointed to govern a state '' pro tempore'' (Latin: 'for the time being') because the monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge the powers and duties of the monarchy ...

for the hitherto underage Hungarian king

Ladislaus the Posthumous Ladislaus the Posthumous( hu, Utószülött László; hr, Ladislav Posmrtni; cs, Ladislav Pohrobek; german: link=no, Ladislaus Postumus; 22 February 144023 November 1457) was Duke of Austria and King of Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia. He was the ...

, which decreased the influence of Thomas' friend János Hunyadi, and led to the rise of Ulrich of Celje, who was supported by Kosača. After Ladislaus made Ulrich the new Ban of Croatia, the latter started seizing control of Croatian towns, which met strong opposition from Thomas. The Bosnian king feared that Ulrich would take Talovac's land and have his territory border Kosača's. Not wishing to break peace with his father-in-law yet again, the King turned to Venice for help.

Christian coalition

The Holy See put King Thomas under its protection in 1455, and promised that he would be given back the lands taken by Turks and his treacherous magnates if the Christians defeated the Ottomans. In 1456, Thomas sent a letter to

Pope Callixtus III Pope Callixtus III ( it, Callisto III, va, Calixt III, es, Calixto III; 31 December 1378 – 6 August 1458), born Alfonso de Borgia ( va, Alfons de Borja), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 April 1455 to his ...

asking him to find a bride for his son Stephen, hoping that the Holy See would provide him with a daughter-in-law of royal blood. Preparations were under way for another Ottoman attack on Hungary in the beginning of that year.

Mehmed the Conqueror Mehmed II ( ota, محمد ثانى, translit=Meḥmed-i s̱ānī; tr, II. Mehmed, ; 30 March 14323 May 1481), commonly known as Mehmed the Conqueror ( ota, ابو الفتح, Ebū'l-fetḥ, lit=the Father of Conquest, links=no; tr, Fâtih Su ...

, the Ottoman sultan, issued unusual demands to the King of Bosnia and his nobles, the Kosačas and the Pavlović family. He asked Thomas to send 10,000 loads of food, his father-in-law 8,000 and Petar Pavlović 4,000. Mehmed also demanded that they commit their troops and personally take part in the war on the Ottoman side. He also requested from Thomas the cession of four towns: two in the middle of Bosnia and two bordering Hungary and

Venetian Dalmatia Venetian Dalmatia ( la, Dalmatia Veneta) refers to parts of Dalmatia under the rule of the Republic of Venice, mainly from the 15th to the 18th centuries. Dalmatia was first sold to Venice in 1409 but Venetian Dalmatia was not fully consolidated ...

. This was all refused. By now Thomas suspected that Mehmed also intended to conquer his kingdom. Therefore, he started taking more interest in a Christian coalition against the Turks, and cooperating more closely with his father-in-law. The lack of a firmer action against the Ottomans was blamed on Bosnian Christians, whom he described as being more inclined towards the Muslims than towards other Christians. The heavy Ottoman defeat by Hungarians at the Battle of Belgrade in July 1456 did nothing to alleviate Thomas' situation, as Mehmed started exerting an even greater pressure on Bosnia. In addition to financial extortion, Thomas was now forbidden to export silver, which Mehmed claimed for himself. This severe crippling of the Bosnian economy suffocated the kingdom. Jerusalem-kreuz

The situation in Hungary took a sharp turn for the worse immediately after the celebrated victory over the Turks. The victorious commanders, including János Hunyadi, died of plague, Ulrich of Celje was murdered, and even the young King Ladislaus died suddenly the following year. The aged Đurađ Branković also died, his

despotate Despot or ''despotes'' ( grc-gre, δεσπότης, despótēs, lord, master) was a senior Byzantine Empire, Byzantine Byzantine aristocracy and bureaucracy, court title that was bestowed on the sons or sons-in-law of reigning emperors, and initi ...

passing to his son Lazar. Realizing that Hungary was drastically weakened, and that he had crossed the point of no return by refusing the Sultan's demands, Thomas decided to step forward to head the Christian coalition. In August 1456, Ragusa received an information from the King in the utmost secrecy: he was intent on declaring war on the Turks. He was far from capable of succeeding, and even suffered a Turkish raid in the beginning of 1457. Pope Callixtus III took King Thomas very seriously: he ordered that the King of Bosnia be handed the Crusaders' cross, the

papal flag The following is a list of flags used in the Vatican City and its predecessor, the Papal States. National flag and State flag Papal flags Military flag Historical flags See also * Flag of Vatican City * Coat of arms of Vatican City ...

and the crusading fund, marking him as the leader of the coalition in July 1457. However, Thomas relied not on his own dubious strength, but on the assistance of Western rulers. His emissaries to King Alfonso V of Aragon, Doge

Francesco Foscari Francesco Foscari (19 June 1373 – 1 November 1457) was the 65th Doge of the Republic of Venice from 1423 to 1457. His reign, the longest of all Doges in Venetian history, lasted 34 years, 6 months and 8 days, and coincided with the inception o ...

of Venice, Duke Francesco I Sforza of Milan, and Duke Philip the Good of Burgundy all reported refusals of help. Cardinal Carvajal was sent to Bosnia to meet with King Thomas. Cardinal Giovanni Castiglione sceptically wrote that Carvajal would have been better off if he had stayed in Buda. Indeed, Carvajal found Thomas ill-equipped to deal with the enemy. The Pope became disillusioned with him, and transferred the leadership of the Christian coalition to the Albanian lord

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 ...

Fall into disrepute

Expansion efforts

The ultimately failed crusading efforts did not preclude Thomas from seeking expansion. The death of the heirless Ulrich of Celje reopened the possibility of seizing Talovac lands, but his father-in-law moved more quickly, leading to a new brief cooling in their relations. However, in January 1458 a new opportunity arose on Bosnia's eastern border. The turmoil that followed the death of Lazar Branković enabled Thomas to retake the formerly Bosnian part of the

Drina The Drina ( sr-Cyrl, Дрина, ) is a long Balkans river, which forms a large portion of the border between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Serbia. It is the longest tributary of the Sava River and the longest karst river in the Dinaric Alps whi ...

River valley, conquered by Lazar's father in the preceding decade, as well as to expand into its right bank. Thomas captured a total of eleven towns, keeping Srebrenica,

Zvornik Zvornik ( sr-cyrl, Зворник, ) is a city in Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located in Republika Srpska, on the left bank of the Drina river. In 2013, it had a population of 58,856 inhabitants. The town of Mali Zvornik ("Little Zvornik") lies ...

and

Teočak Teočak ( sr-cyrl, Теочак) is a municipality located in Tuzla Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The center of the municipality is the village of Teočak-Krstac. Geography The municipa ...

for himself, and distributing the rest among the local nobility who swore fealty to him. He then turned his attention back to Croatia. He suggested to Venice that since the Hungarians had not yet appointed a new

ban of Croatia Ban of Croatia ( hr, Hrvatski ban) was the title of local rulers or office holders and after 1102, viceroys of Croatia. From the earliest periods of the Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by bans as a ruler's representative (viceroy) an ...

, he and the Republic should split the banate among themselves. In June, he warned Venice that the new Hungarian king

Matthias Corvinus Matthias Corvinus, also called Matthias I ( hu, Hunyadi Mátyás, ro, Matia/Matei Corvin, hr, Matija/Matijaš Korvin, sk, Matej Korvín, cz, Matyáš Korvín; ), was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1458 to 1490. After conducting several m ...

, Hunyadi's son, would not be a good neighbour to either Bosnia or Venice if he took hold of Croatia. Smederevo water trench

A large Turkish raid in February 1458 forced Thomas to sign a truce, despite his earlier crusading vows, but Mehmed no longer insisted on the cession of the four towns; he intended to conquer Serbia instead. At that time, King Thomas dropped the plan of having his son marry an illegitimate daughter of Francesco Sforza; the match with a bastard daughter of a duke was far beneath the King's expectations for Stephen. Instead, he successfully negotiated with Lazar's widow, the Byzantine princess

Helena Palaiologina Helena Palaiologina ( el, ; 3 February 1428 – 11 April 1458) was a Byzantine princess of the Palaiologos family, who became Queen of Cyprus and Armenia, titular Queen consort of Jerusalem, and Princess of Antioch through her marriage to King ...

, about a marriage between Stephen and her oldest daughter, Helena. That way Thomas procured not only a daughter-in-law of imperial blood, but also found a way to extend the Kotromanić rule to the Despotate of Serbia, now reduced to the

Smederevo Fortress The Smederevo Fortress ( sr, / ) is a medieval fortified city in Smederevo, Serbia, which was the temporary capital of Serbia in the Middle Ages. It was built between 1427 and 1430 on the order of Despot Đurađ Branković, the ruler of the ...

and its surroundings, as Lazar had left no sons. Thomas sent word of the plans to King Matthias, his feudal overlord, in October. In early December, Thomas himself went to meet Matthias at a

diet Diet may refer to: Food * Diet (nutrition), the sum of the food consumed by an organism or group * Dieting, the deliberate selection of food to control body weight or nutrient intake ** Diet food, foods that aid in creating a diet for weight loss ...

Szeged Szeged ( , ; see also other alternative names) is the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat of Csongrád-Csanád county. The University of Szeged is one of the m ...

. Matthias was thrilled and urged Thomas to send his son as soon as possible. During Thomas' long absence, Turks broke into Bosnia and besieged Bobovac and Vranduk, but his son Stephen and brother Radivoj escaped. Thomas returned to Bosnia in mid-January 1459 and took up the fight against the attackers, even trying to eject them from Hodidjed. In mid-April, he raided the outskirts of Hodidjed and besieged the fort. Meanwhile, Thomas' son had married Lazar's daughter and taken possession of Smederevo. Thomas boasted about his son being made despot, but the arrangement was cut short by the arrival of Mehmed at the head of a vast force before the walls of Smederevo. Terrified, Thomas' son and brother agreed to surrender the town and fortress on 20 June in exchange for safe conduct. Thomas and Radivoj were bitterly reproached by the Hungarian king. Matthias told all Europe that Thomas had sold the fortress of paramount importance to the enemy. Thomas took great pains to clear his name, explaining to

Pope Pius II Pope Pius II ( la, Pius PP. II, it, Pio II), born Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini ( la, Aeneas Silvius Bartholomeus, links=no; 18 October 1405 – 14 August 1464), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 August ...

that Smederevo could not have been defended. The King sent a delegation to the Council of Mantua in July, promising to do his best to hold the Turks back and begging for help. The only ruler to provide assistance to Thomas was

Bianca Maria Visconti Bianca Maria Visconti (31 March 1425 – 28 October 1468) was Duchess of Milan from 1450 to 1468 by marriage to Francesco I Sforza. She was regent of Marche during the absence of her spouse in 1448. She served as Regent of the Duchy of Milan du ...

, Duchess of Milan, who sent 300 men via

Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic ...

Religious persecution

Unlike in other Balkan states of the time, the politics of Bosnia were not dominated by religion, and its rulers as well as the common people were entirely indifferent to the religious beliefs of others. However, this changed in 1459 when the Ottoman threat became greater. Pope Pius II informed Thomas that he would not come to his aid as long as the Bosnian Church was tolerated. Thomas was anxious to appear as a good Catholic in the wake of Hungarian accusations of betraying the

Christendom Christendom historically refers to the Christian states, Christian-majority countries and the countries in which Christianity dominates, prevails,SeMerriam-Webster.com : dictionary, "Christendom"/ref> or is culturally or historically intertwine ...

. The decision Thomas took in 1459 made him the first Bosnian ruler to persecute people for their religious beliefs, a policy popes had long demanded by the Holy See. The Bosnian Church had been decimated by Catholic, and then even Orthodox, proselytization and its own low morale. Thomas' order that its clergy either convert or leave his domain was followed by confiscation of their considerable property, which probably helped him make the otherwise difficult decision. The persecution lasted almost two years. 12,000 people were forcefully converted, while forty members of the clergy fled to his father-in-law's domain. In 1461, he sent three men accused of heresy to be questioned by Cardinal Juan de Torquemada in Rome. The Bosnian Church was thus all but annihilated by King Thomas. The persecution did little to restore Thomas' reputation in Catholic Europe. When possession of the formerly Talovac-held Čačvina Castle caused another feud with his father-in-law in 1459, Kosača accused him of having invited the Turks who plundered his land. The accusation reached Pope Pius, who ordered that the King be excommunicated if such a grave offense against Christian interests were proven. Though Thomas probably did invite the Turkish raiders, the excommunication never took place.

Last years

The fall of Serbia meant that the eastern border of Thomas' realm was now the bulwark of Christendom. However, Bosnia was not Mehmed's priority. Thomas was forced to surrender northeastern Bosnia, namely Usora, Srebrenica, Zvornik and Teočak, in early 1460, allowing the Turks to cross the

Sava The Sava (; , ; sr-cyr, Сава, hu, Száva) is a river in Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. It flows through Slovenia, Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally t ...

to the Hungarian regions of

Slavonia Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baran ...

and Syrmia. Both Thomas and his father-in-law were aware that the Ottoman conquest of Bosnia was inevitable. They continued to seek foreign assistance, but were also preparing for a life in exile. However, this prospect did not help them settle their differences and put up a more effective defence. Thomas, still estranged from his in-laws, fell ill in June 1461 and requested a physician from Ragusa. He died in July, aged around 50. He was buried in the royal mausoleum in Bobovac. The circumstances of his death are unclear. Rumours circulated, first recorded by a gunsmith from

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

, that the King's death was not natural. Specifically, it was said that his brother Radivoj and son Stephen had conspired against him. Later narratives also involved Mehmed and Matthias in the plot, with the Hungarian king as the mastermind. These rumours are generally dismissed by historians. Stephen succeeded him, to the benefit of the doomed kingdom, as the ruptures between the monarch and his nobles were finally healed.

Personality and legacy

Thomas was a man of many contradictions. His good looks and noble comportment greatly impressed his contemporaries. The Italian condottiero

Gaspare Broglio da Lavello Gaspare (also ''Gaspero'', ''Gasperino'' and ''Gasparro'') is an Italian male given name, the literal translation of the English name Casper and Jasper (French Gaspard, Scandinavian Kasper and Jesper). The name is rare in contemporary times, but ...

(son of

Angelo Tartaglia Angelo Broglio da Lavello, known as Angelo Tartaglia (1350 or 1370–1421), was an Italian condottiero and nobleman, captain of the Papal Army, lord of Lavello and Toscanella. Biography Born in Lavello, Basilicata, Tartaglia trained at ...

), whom he met in 1452, wrote that he had never met a prince more refined and dignified, surpassing even the intellectual humanist

Federico da Montefeltro Federico da Montefeltro, also known as Federico III da Montefeltro KG (7 June 1422 – 10 September 1482), was one of the most successful mercenary captains (''condottieri'') of the Italian Renaissance, and lord of Urbino from 1444 (as Duke fro ...

, Broglio's idol. At the same time, Thomas' inconstancy and lack of courage inspired disdain. He was capable of both great generosity and pettiness. Fickleness damaged his reputation abroad, while religious persecution and forced conversions caused disapproval at home; he was cursed in the early years of the

Ottoman rule Ottoman is the Turkish spelling of the Arabic masculine given name Uthman ( ar, عُثْمان, ‘uthmān). It may refer to: Governments and dynasties * Ottoman Caliphate, an Islamic caliphate from 1517 to 1924 * Ottoman Empire, in existence fro ...

for robbing the indigenous Bosnian Church of its property. Thomas' union with Vojača produced at least four children: Stephen (who succeeded him), a son who died as a child during a pilgrimage to Meleda, a daughter who married a Hungarian nobleman in 1451, and another daughter who married in 1451. With Catherine, who outlived both him and his kingdom, Thomas had a son named

Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it '' Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...

in 1449 and a daughter named

in 1453.

Family tree

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * {{Authority control Bosnian monarchs 15th-century births 1461 deaths Kotromanić dynasty Converts to Roman Catholicism from the Bosnian Church Bosnia and Herzegovina Roman Catholics Roman Catholic monarchs 15th-century Bosnian people Year of birth unknown Year of birth uncertain Kings of Bosnia