Anđeo Zvizdović (or Zvijezdović; 1420 – 7 June 1498) was a

Franciscan friar , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

and evangelist who negotiated the

Ahdname of Milodraž The Ahdname of Milodraž ( sh, Milodraška ahdnama/Милодрашка ахднама), also called the Ahdname of Fojnica (Фојничка ахднама/''Fojnička ahdnama''), was the '' ahdname'' issued on 28 May 1463 (or 1464) by the Ottoman ...

– the promise of the

freedom of religion Freedom of religion or religious liberty is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or community, in public or private, to manifest religion or belief in teaching, practice, worship, and observance. It also includes the freedo ...

to the people of Bosnia following the

Ottoman conquest of Bosnia The Ottoman conquest of Bosnia and Herzegovina was a process that started roughly in 1386, when the first Ottoman attacks on the Kingdom of Bosnia took place. In 1451, more than 65 years after its initial attacks, the Ottoman Empire officially est ...

Religious life

Zvizdović is said to have been born to a noble family in the village of Zvizde near Uskoplje (modern

Gornji Vakuf Gornji Vakuf-Uskoplje ( sr-cyrl, Горњи Вакуф-Ускопље) is a town and municipality located in Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. Etymology Although settlements i ...

), from which his surname is derived. According to other accounts, he was born in

Vrhbosna Vrhbosna ( sr-cyrl, Врхбосна, ) was the medieval name of a small region in today's central Bosnia and Herzegovina, centered on an eponymous settlement (župa) that would later become part of the city of Sarajevo. The meaning of the name ...

(modern-day

Sarajevo Sarajevo ( ; cyrl, Сарајево, ; ''see names in other languages'') is the capital and largest city of Bosnia and Herzegovina, with a population of 275,524 in its administrative limits. The Sarajevo metropolitan area including Sarajev ...

). His religious zeal was fueled by the sermons of Saint James of the Marches, who served as Vicar of Bosnia in the 1430s. James admitted him to the Franciscan Order and named him Anđeo (Angel); Zvizdović's original name is unknown. Zvizdović was particularly distinguished by his

public speaking Public speaking, also called oratory or oration, has traditionally meant the act of speaking face to face to a live audience. Today it includes any form of speaking (formally and informally) to an audience, including pre-recorded speech delive ...

skills even as a novice friar, and was eventually elected head of the Franciscans of

Bosnia proper Bosnia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Bosna, Босна, ) is the northern region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, encompassing roughly 81% of the country; the other region, the southern part, is Herzegovina. The two regions have formed a geopolitic ...

. After the

Ottomans The Ottoman Turks ( tr, Osmanlı Türkleri), were the Turkic founding and sociopolitically the most dominant ethnic group of the Ottoman Empire ( 1299/1302–1922). Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks remains scarce, ...

under

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 ...

subjugated the

Kingdom of Bosnia The Kingdom of Bosnia ( sh, Kraljevina Bosna / Краљевина Босна), or Bosnian Kingdom (''Bosansko kraljevstvo'' / Босанско краљевство), was a medieval kingdom that lasted for nearly a century, from 1377 to 1463, and ...

in 1463, and the subsequent execution of King Stephen, Zvizdović also functioned as the secular representative of the Bosnian people. He stepped forward to meet the Sultan and negotiated the

, the legal recognition of

Bosnian Franciscans Franciscan Province of Bosna Srebrena (also ''Bosna Argentina''; officially la, Provincia OFM Exaltationis S. Crucis - Bosna Argentina) is a province of the Franciscan order of the Catholic Church in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Their headquarters ...

by the Ottoman Empire, as well as the promise of

to Bosnia's Catholic population. Zvizdović died in

Fojnica Fojnica ( sr-cyrl, Фојница) is a town and municipality located in Central Bosnia Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is located west of the capital Sarajevo, in the valley of the Foj ...

on 7 June 1498.

Legacy

Due to his intervention with Mehmed the Conqueror, Zvizdović is often credited with the survival of

Roman Catholicism in Bosnia and Herzegovina The Catholic Church in Bosnia and Herzegovina is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the spiritual leadership of the pope in Rome. According to the latest census from 2013, there are 544,114 Catholics in Bosnia and Herzegovina, making up ...

. The remnants of his skeleton, partly burned in the fire of 1524, are buried in the

Franciscan monastery in Fojnica Franciscan monastery of the Holy Spirit is a Bosnian Franciscan monastery in Fojnica, Bosnia and Herzegovina. History It was founded in 1668 and it includes a library of ca. 12,500 volumes, including 13 ''incunabula'' and 156 works written in ...

. Anđeo Zvizdović was one of the most influential Franciscan of his era, in particular during the times of establishment of the Ottoman rule in Bosnia, but also one of the most prominent men of Bosnian history and the history of the Bosnian Catholics in particular. Zvizdović is subject of many researches, and his deeds are perceived and interpreted in different ways, not only by modern-day Bosnian Catholic, Croats, but also by Muslim Bosnians (Bosniaks) and Orthodox Bosnian (Serbs) as well. A street in the central part of

, his place of birth, in close proximity to a contemporary Bosnian parliament building, bears his name. The '' Martyrologium franciscanum'' includes Fra Anđeo Zvizdović among the

beatified Beatification (from Latin ''beatus'', "blessed" and ''facere'', "to make”) is a recognition accorded by the Catholic Church of a deceased person's entrance into Heaven and capacity to Intercession of saints, intercede on behalf of individua ...

Franciscans, and he is venerated as such by both friars and laypersons alike.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zvizdovic, Andeo Franciscans of the Franciscan Province of Bosnia Franciscan beatified people People from Sarajevo 1498 deaths Year of birth uncertain People from Gornji Vakuf