Nikolić noble family was a Bosnian medieval noble family from Hum (later

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 ...

), today

Bosnia and Herzegovina 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 ...

. The family's estate was in the western part of the ''

Bosansko Primorje ''Bosansko Primorje'' (, or Bosnian Littoral) is a historical coastal region on the eastern Adriatic shores, which between the beginning of the 14th and the end of the 17th century stretched from the Neretva river delta to Kuril area of Petrovo ...

'' (), namely

Popovo Polje Popovo Polje ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Popovo polje, Попово поље, , is a '' polje'' (karstic field) in Bosnia and Herzegovina, located in a southernmost region of the country, near the Adriatic coast. Its size is . Popovo polje ...

and

Neum Neum () is a town and municipality in Bosnia and Herzegovina, located in Herzegovina-Neretva Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the only town on the Bosnia and Herzegovina coastline, making it the country's only access to ...

. They were of major importance, serving under Grand Dukes of Bosnia/Serbia and noble families of Hranić and Kosača, lords of Hum and later Herzegovina.

History

The progenitor of the family was Nikola, a ''župan'' or ''knez''. Nikola had two sons by Katarina, the daughter of Stephen I, Ban of Bosnia: Vladislav and Bogiša. Little is known about the first ancestors of the Nikolić family, though they were most likely important family in Hum, with princess Vukosava, Petar and Miliša Nikolić probably being the second generation of the Nikolić family. The first mention of the Nikolić brothers happened after the death of King

Tvrtko I of Bosnia Stephen Tvrtko I ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Stjepan/Stefan Tvrtko, Стјепан/Стефан Твртко; 1338 – 10 March 1391) was the first king of Bosnia. A member of the House of Kotromanić, he succeeded his uncle Stephen II ...

in 1391. Loyal to the new Bosnian king,

Stephen Dabiša Stephen or Steven is an English first name. It is particularly significant to Christians, as it belonged to Saint Stephen ( ), an early disciple and deacon who, according to the Book of Acts, was stoned to death; he is widely regarded as the firs ...

, they were granted

Republic of Dubrovnik The Republic of Ragusa, or the Republic of Dubrovnik, was an aristocratic maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik (''Ragusa'' in Italian and Latin; ''Raguxa'' in Venetian) in South Dalmatia (today in southernmost Croatia) that carr ...

citizenship by 1392. After the ascension of the rival king to

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

throne, namely

Stephen Ostoja Stephen OstojaHis name in Bosnian is rendered Stjepan Ostoja (), while in Croatian it is Stjepan Ostoja. In Serbian, he is called Stefan Ostoja (). ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Stjepan Ostoja, Стјепан Остоја; died September 141 ...

, the Nikolić brothers, also related to Queen

Jelena Gruba Helen ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=/, Jelena, Јелена; 1345 – after 18 March 1399), also known by the name sh-Latn-Cyrl, label=none, separator=/, Gruba, Груба, ruled the Kingdom of Bosnia from September 1395 until late April or early Ma ...

, who was of the House of Nikolić herself and the widow of Stephen Dabiša, were forced to take refuge in

Dubrovnik Dubrovnik, historically known as Ragusa, is a city in southern Dalmatia, Croatia, by the Adriatic Sea. It is one of the most prominent tourist destinations in the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean, a Port, seaport and the centre of the Dubrovni ...

. Later, Vukosav participated in the Bosnian-Ragusan War around 1403 as a nobleman of the

Grand Duke of Bosnia Grand Duke of Bosnia (, ) was a court title in the Bosnian medieval state, with its first holders being recorded around the middle of the 14th century. The title was bestowed by the monarch to its highest military commander, rarely two, usually ...

Sandalj Hranić Sandalj Hranić Kosača ( cyrl, Сандаљ Хранић Косача; 1370 – 15 March 1435) was a powerful Bosnian nobleman whose primary possessions consisted of Hum, land areas between Adriatic coast, the Neretva and the Drina rivers ...

, and was killed and buried in

Ston Ston () is a settlement and a municipality in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County of Croatia, located at the south of isthmus of the Pelješac peninsula. History Because of its geopolitical and strategic position, Ston has had a rich history since ...

on 28 November 1403. Grgur Vukosalić, the son of Vukosav Nikolić, was present at historical events in Bosnia in the course of

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 ...

's campaign against King Stephen Ostoja and his own lord and Grad Duke of Bosnia,

. To no avail, the Nikolić family tried to gain independence from the Bosnian duke, and after Hranić's death, they remained loyal to his successor as the Grad Duke of Bosnia,

Stjepan Vukčić Kosača Stjepan Vukčić Kosača (1404–1466) was a powerful Bosnian Nobility, nobleman who was politically active from 1435 to 1466; the last three decades of Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Middle Ages, Bosnian medieval history. During this period, ...

, as well. Grgur died in July 1436. The sons of Grgur Vukosalić, Vuk and Vukašin Grgurević, maintained their position under Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, as the Grand Duke tried to overtake

Zeta Zeta (, ; uppercase Ζ, lowercase ζ; , , classical or ''zē̂ta''; ''zíta'') is the sixth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals, it has a value of 7. It was derived from the Phoenician alphabet, Phoenician letter zay ...

. In 1442 Vukasin fell into Venetian captivity, but with Dubrovnik help he was released. The last mention of the Nikolić family was in 1453, and they were still under the lordship of Stjepan Vukčić Kosača. The Ottoman Empire had already entered the area of

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 ...

and prepared the conquest of the rest of the Bosnian Kingdom, which would occur 10 years later. Finally, after decades of political and social instability, Bosnia officially fell in 1463. Herzegovina would follow in 1482, with a Hungarian-backed reinstated Bosnian state around the former capital Jajce, being the last to succumb in 1527. After the end of the Bosnian medieval state, Nikolić's fate is little known until the 18th century.

Members

;Family tree *Nikola, knez (župan) **Vladislav (fl. 1347–1363) *** Vukosav Nikolić (fl. 1395–d. 1403), ****Grgur Nikolić (fl. 1403–d. 1436), knez *****Vuk Nikolić *****Vukašin Nikolić ****Radoje Nikolić, vojvoda **Bogiša ;Unknown genealogy *Jovan *Bogdan *Miliša (fl. 1392) *

(ca. 1345–d. after March 18, 1399), Queen of Bosnia from 1391 to 1398, first as

queen consort A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but hi ...

until 1395 and then as

queen regnant A queen regnant (: queens regnant) is a female monarch, equivalent in rank, title and position to a king. She reigns ''suo jure'' (in her own right) over a realm known as a kingdom; as opposed to a queen consort, who is married to a reigning ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nikolic noble family Bosnian noble families Kingdom of Bosnia