Dragimir (

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet (, ), also known as the Serbian script, (, ), is a standardized variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language. It originated in medieval Serbia and was significantly reformed in the 19th cen ...

: Драгимир; † 1018) or Dragomir (Драгомир) was ruler of

Travunia Travunia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Travunija, Травунија; ; ; ) was a South Slavic medieval principality that was part of Medieval Serbia (850–1371), and later the Medieval Bosnia (1373–1482). The principality became hereditar ...

and

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, r ...

, medieval

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

principalities located in present-day regions of

Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical Regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, regions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia (reg ...

and south

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

, from an unknown date before 1000 to 1018.Živković 2006, "Стефан Војислав".

Biography

The only preserved medieval source that mentions Dragimir is the dubious

Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja The ''Chronicle of the Priest of Dioclea or Duklja'' ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Ljetopis popa Dukljanina, Љетопис попа Дукљанина; ) is the usual name given to a medieval chronicle written in two versions between 1295 and 1301 by an eccles ...

, specifically its Chapters 34–37. Chapter 34 relates to "King" Hvalimir who divided his domain among his sons, giving Zenta to his first-born Petrislav, Travunia and Zachlumia to Dragimir, and Podgoria to the youngest Miroslav.Stephenson 2010,
Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja, Chapters 30-35
". After Miroslav died without an heir, his land was taken over by Petrislav, who thus ruled all of

Duklja Duklja ( sr-Cyrl, Дукља; ; ) was a medieval South Slavs, South Slavic state which roughly encompassed the territories of modern-day southeastern Montenegro, from the Bay of Kotor in the west to the Bojana river in the east, and to the sou ...

(Zenta and Podgoria). However this is contradictory to the earlier and more trusted

De Administrando Imperio (; ) is a Greek-language work written by the 10th-century Byzantine Emperor Constantine VII. It is a domestic and foreign policy manual for the use of Constantine's son and successor, the Emperor Romanos II. It is a prominent example of Byz ...

which states that Hvalimir's son was Čučimir, leaving up to question whether Dragimir was Hvalimir's grandson, or whether he existed at all. In 1009 or 1010, Bulgarian Emperor

Samuel Samuel is a figure who, in the narratives of the Hebrew Bible, plays a key role in the transition from the biblical judges to the United Kingdom of Israel under Saul, and again in the monarchy's transition from Saul to David. He is venera ...

occupied Dragimir's lands, together with Duklja,

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

, and Raška.Živković 2006, "Владимир". Dragimir retreated before the emperor's army on a mountain, but was soon invited by Samuel to come down and resume ruling Travunia and Zachlumia as his

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain ...

. The emperor had previously made a similar arrangement in Duklja with

Jovan Vladimir Jovan Vladimir or John Vladimir ( sr-cyr, Јован Владимир; – 22 May 1016) was the ruler of Duklja, the most powerful Serbs, Serbian principality of the time, from around 1000 to 1016. He ruled during the protracted war betwee ...

, son and successor of Petrislav. Vladimir was killed in 1016 by Samuel's son's successor Ivan Vladislav who was killed at the end of 1017. In the first half of 1018, Dragimir set off for Duklja accompanied by his soldiers to establish himself as its ruler, since his nephew Vladimir died without an heir. When he came to

Kotor Kotor (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Котор, ), historically known as Cattaro (from Italian language, Italian: ), is a town in Coastal Montenegro, Coastal region of Montenegro. It is located in a secluded part of the Bay of Kotor. The city has ...

, the town's inhabitants prepared a banquet for him on a small island in the

Bay of Kotor The Bay of Kotor ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Boka kotorska, Бока которска, separator=" / ", ), also known as the Boka ( sh-Cyrl, Бока), is a winding bay of the Adriatic Sea in southwestern Montenegro and the region of Montenegro concentrated a ...

. Dragimir went there with only a handful of his men, who could not defend him against the Kotorans who had actually decided to kill him. He ran away into a church, but the Kotorans opened its roof and killed him by throwing beams and stones at him. After that, his soldiers returned to Travunia.Živković 2009, p.272. Dragimir had a son,

Stefan Vojislav Stefan Vojislav ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Војислав, ; 1034–d. 1043) was the Prince of Duklja from 1018 to 1043. Beginning in the year 1018, he served as a Byzantine governor, until 1034 when he led an unsuccessful revolt that landed him i ...

, who would become ruler of Duklja in the 1030s, and the founder of the

Vojislavljević dynasty The House of Vojislavljević ( sr-Cyrl, Војислављевић, pl. Vojislavljevići / Војислављевићи) was a Serbian medieval dynasty, named after ''archon'' Stefan Vojislav, who wrested the polities of Duklja, Travunia, ...

.Van Antwerp Fine 1991, p.203.

Notes

References

* Stephenson, Paul (July 2010).
Translated Excerpts from Byzantine Sources
'
Paul Stephenson
* Van Antwerp Fine, John (1991). ''The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century''. The

University of Michigan Press The University of Michigan Press is a university press that is a part of Michigan Publishing at the University of Michigan Library. It publishes 170 new titles each year in the humanities and social sciences. Titles from the press have earn ...

. . * * Živković, Tibor (2006). ''Портрети српских владара (IX-XII)'' (in Serbian). Belgrade: Zavod za udžbenike. . * * {{refend 1018 deaths 11th-century Serbian royalty Year of birth unknown