Stephen II (or Ștefan II), (c. 1410 – 13 July 1447) was a

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

(

Voivode Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

) of

Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...

. He ruled alone between September 1434 and August 1435, jointly with

Iliaș of Moldavia Iliaș or Ilie I (20 July 1409 – 23 April 1448) was List of rulers of Moldavia, Prince (Voivode) of Moldavia twice: from January 1432 to October 1433 and with his brother Ștefan II of Moldavia, Stephen II from August 1435 to May 1443. Life ...

from August 1435 to May 1443, alone from May 1443 to May 1444, in association with his brother

Petru Petru is a given name, and may refer to: * Petru I of Moldavia (Petru Mușat, 1375–1391), ruler of Moldavia * Petru Aron (died 1467), ruler of Moldavia * Petru Bălan (born 1976), Romanian rugby union footballer * Petru Cărare (1935–2019), w ...

from May 1444 to 1445, and alone until July 1447.

Life

He was the son of

Alexander the Good Alexander I, commonly known as Alexander the Good (; – 1 January 1432) was Voivode of Moldavia between 1400 and 1432. He was the son of Roman I and succeeded Iuga to the throne. As ruler he initiated a series of reforms while consolidating ...

and a concubine, Stanca. He deposed his brother Iliaș I with the assistance several

boyar A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russia), Moldavia and Wallachia (and later Romania), Lithuania and among Baltic Germans. C ...

s and of the

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

Vlad II Dracul Vlad II (), also known as Vlad Dracul () or Vlad the Dragon (before 1395 – November 1447), was Voivode of Wallachia from 1436 to 1442, and again from 1443 to 1447. He is internationally known as the father of Vlad the Impaler, or Dracula. Bo ...

. In exchange for

Pokuttya Pokuttia, also known as Pokuttya or Pokutia, (; ; ) is an historical area of East-Central Europe, situated between the Dniester and Cheremosh rivers and Carpathian Mountains, in the southwestern part of modern Ukraine. Although the historic hear ...

the

Poles Pole or poles may refer to: People *Poles (people), another term for Polish people, from the country of Poland * Pole (surname), including a list of people with the name * Pole (musician) (Stefan Betke, born 1967), German electronic music artist ...

, to whom Iliaș had pledged his allegiance, also recognised him, and

King King is a royal title given to a male monarch. A king is an Absolute monarchy, absolute monarch if he holds unrestricted Government, governmental power or exercises full sovereignty over a nation. Conversely, he is a Constitutional monarchy, ...

Władysław III agreed to capture Iliaș and hold him in prison. Iliaș was eventually freed in 1435, and returned at the head of an army, engaging his brother in several battles; the indecisive one in ''Podraga'' or ''Podagra'' (the present-day village of Podriga in Drăgușeni) brought Władysław III's mediation: an agreement was reached for Stephen and Iliaș to share the throne, with Stephen as ruler over the southeastern part of Moldavia, in

Tecuci Tecuci () is a city in Galați County, Romania, in the historical region of Western Moldavia. It is situated among wooded hills, on the right bank of the Bârlad River, and at the junction of railways from Galați, Bârlad, and Mărășești. ...

, Kilia,

Vaslui Vaslui (), a city in eastern Romania, is the seat of Vaslui County, in the historical region of Western Moldavia. The city administers five villages: Bahnari, Brodoc, Moara Grecilor, Rediu, and Viișoara. History Archaeological surveys indicate t ...

, and

Covurlui The Covurlui Plain is located in Galați County, Romania, having an altitude varying between 60 and 200 metres. Its name is derived from the river Covurlui and has a Cuman origin. Before World War II, Covurlui was the name of a county, but it w ...

. In 1443, Iliaș breached their agreement, and Stephen caught him and gouged out his eyes. Blinded, Iliaș sought refuge in Poland, while Stephen remained prince, taking as his associate an illegitimate brother, Petru II. He was killed in 1447 by the son of Iliaș, Roman II, who had ensured Polish support during his refuge in Pokuttya.Ștefănescu, p. 105; Xenopol, p.127-128

Notes

References

*Ștefan Ștefănescu, ''Istoria medie a României'',

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

, Vol. I, 1991 *

A. D. Xenopol Alexandru Dimitrie Xenopol (; March 23, 1847 – February 27, 1920) was a Romanian historian, philosopher, professor, economist, sociologist, and author. Among his many major accomplishments, he is credited with authoring the first major synthes ...

, ''Istoria romînilor din Dacia Traiană'', Vol. III, cap. 3, Iaşi, 1896 {{DEFAULTSORT:Stephen 02 of Moldavia 1447 deaths Monarchs of Moldavia Year of birth unknown 15th-century Moldavian people

Life

See also

Notes

References