Grgur Branković (1415 – 16 October 1459) was a 15th-century Serbian nobleman. Grgur was the eldest son of Serbian Despot

Đurađ Branković Đurađ Vuković Branković ( sr-Cyrl, Ђурађ Вуковић Бранковић, ; 1377 – 24 December 1456) served as the Serbian Despot from 1427 to 1456, making him one of the final rulers of medieval Serbia. In 1429, Branković was form ...

and Eirene Kantakouzene. In 1439, after the

Ottomans Ottoman may refer to: * Osman I, historically known in English as "Ottoman I", founder of the Ottoman Empire * Osman II, historically known in English as "Ottoman II" * Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empir ...

captured

Smederevo Smederevo ( sr-Cyrl, Смедерево, ) is a list of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the Podunavlje District in eastern Serbia. It is situated on the right bank of the Danube, about downstream of the Serbian capital, ...

, the capital of the

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

, they appointed Grgur as governor of his father's captured estates. Because he plotted against the Ottomans, they dismissed him and put him in prison in April 1441. In May 1441 the Ottomans blinded Grgur and his brother Stefan. In 1458, during the struggle for the throne of the Serbian Despotate, Grgur resurfaced claiming it for himself or his son. In 1459 he retreated to

Hilandar Monastery The Hilandar Monastery (, , , ) is one of the twenty Eastern Orthodox Church, Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Mount Athos in Greece and the only Serbs, Serbian Serbian Orthodox Church, Orthodox monastery there. It was founded in 1198 by two Ser ...

, where he took monastic vows and the name ''German'' (Germanus). Grgur died in Hilandar on October 16, 1459.

Family

He was the eldest son of

and Eirene Kantakouzene. He had three brothers (Todor, Stefan and Lazar) and two sisters (

Mara Mara or MARA may refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional characters * Mara (''Doctor Who''), an evil being in two ''Doctor Who'' serials * Mara (She-Ra), fictional characters from the ''She-Ra and the Princesses of Power'' and ''The New Advent ...

and Catherine Cantacuzena). After the

captured

in 1439, Grgur was allowed to govern his father's former estates in southern Serbia, as Ottoman vassal. During the winter 1440, Grgurs' father and Serbian Despot

traveled to Zeta with his wife and several hundred cavalry through the Ottoman province governed by Grgur. Đurađ had intention to mobilize forces to recover his lost territories of Serbian Despotate. In April 1441 the Ottomans, probably justifiably, accused Grgur for treason and dismissed him from his governorship. On 8 May 1441 both Grgur and his brother Stefan were blinded, based on the order of Sultan

Murad II Murad II (, ; June 1404 – 3 February 1451) was twice the sultan of the Ottoman Empire, from 1421 to 1444 and from 1446 to 1451. Early life Murad was born in June 1404 to Mehmed I, while the identity of his mother is disputed according to v ...

. According to John Van Antwerp Fine, Jr. and

Sima Ćirković Sima Ćirković (Serbian Cyrillic: Сима Ћирковић; 29 January 1929 – 14 November 2009) was a Yugoslav and Serbian historian. Ćirković was a member of the Academy of Sciences and Arts of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Yugoslav Acade ...

, Grgur resurfaced in 1458, claiming the succession of the vacant throne of Serbian Despotate for himself or his son. Branković retreated to

Hilandar The Hilandar Monastery (, , , ) is one of the twenty Eastern Orthodox monasteries in Mount Athos in Greece and the only Serbian Orthodox monastery there. It was founded in 1198 by two Serbs from the Grand Principality of Serbia, Stefan Neman ...

where he took monastic vowes and monastic name German. He soon died there on 16 October 1459. His son was Vuk Grgurević the titular

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

from 1471 until his death in 1485.

Ancestry

References

Sources

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Brankovic, Grgur 1415 births 1459 deaths Grgur 15th-century Serbian nobility People associated with Agiou Pavlou Monastery