Peter the Younger ( Romanian: ''Petru cel Tânăr'') (1547 – 19 August 1569) was 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 ...

(

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 ...

) of

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 ...

between 25 September 1559 and 8 June 1568. The eldest son of Mircea the Shepherd and Doamna Chiajna, he was named "the Young" because, at the moment of crowning, he was only 13.

Reign

After the death of his father on 21 September 1559, the

Boyars A boyar or bolyar was a member of the highest rank of the Feudalism, feudal nobility in many Eastern European states, including First Bulgarian Empire, Bulgaria, Kievan Rus' (and later Russian nobility, Russia), Boyars of Moldavia and Wallach ...

attempted to take the throne from the family. Between 25 September and 24 October 1559, three battles took place between the Boyars and the remaining family of Mircea the Shepherd. The first battle, from the village Românești, was won by the boyars, only to lose the second battle, of Șerpătești.Aurică IVAȘCU - Bătălia de la Șerbănești. Teze și antiteze. În revista ”Memoria Oltului și Romanaților” nr. 5(51), Găneasa, mai 2016. The decisive battle took place at Boiani where, Peter, helped by 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 ...

, won. On 24 October 1559, Peter, who was still a minor was confirmed by the

Sublime Porte The Sublime Porte, also known as the Ottoman Porte or High Porte ( or ''Babıali''; ), was a synecdoche or metaphor used to refer collectively to the central government of the Ottoman Empire in Istanbul. It is particularly referred to the buildi ...

as the new ruler of

. Peter was totally different from his father, having a mild and religious nature. Because he was too young, the country was led by his capable mother Lady Chiajna, who was able to neutralize the intrigues of the pretenders to the throne and the manoeuvres of

King of Hungary The King of Hungary () was the Monarchy, ruling head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 (or 1001) to 1918. The style of title "Apostolic King of Hungary" (''Magyarország apostoli királya'') was endorsed by Pope Clement XIII in 1758 ...

Death

Attempting to secure the wealth of both the family and the state, the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, through a representative, managed to send the young prince in

exile Exile or banishment is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons ...

along with his mother, Lady Chiajna in 1568. Peter the Younger arrived in Constantinople on 31 May and was taken to the Seven Towers fortress, where he was stripped of his riches. On 19 August 1569, Peter the Younger died of poisoning in

Konya Konya is a major city in central Turkey, on the southwestern edge of the Central Anatolian Plateau, and is the capital of Konya Province. During antiquity and into Seljuk times it was known as Iconium. In 19th-century accounts of the city in En ...

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

, he was only 21 years old. He was buried in the Church of the Transfiguration in the same locality.

Legacy

Peter established the Plumbuita Monastery in 1560 and continued his father's work on restoring the Curtea Veche Church and the Snagov Monastery.

Notes

References

*
"Petru cel Tânăr"
from Enciclopedia Romaniei {{DEFAULTSORT:Peter the Younger 1547 births 1569 deaths 16th-century princes of Wallachia 16th-century murdered monarchs Deaths by poisoning House of Drăculești