Ruđina Balšić ( sr-cyr, Руђина Балшић, ; 1396–1420) was a Zetan noblewoman and ruled upon today

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

and

Albania Albania ( ; or ), officially the Republic of Albania (), is a country in Southeast Europe. It is located in the Balkans, on the Adriatic Sea, Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea, and shares land borders with Montenegro to ...

n territory from the Balšić family. She married

Mrkša Žarković Mrkša Žarković ( sr-cyr, Мркша Жарковић) was a Serbian nobleman who ruled parts of today's southern Albania from 1396 to 1414. Early life and marriage Mrkša was the son of Žarko, who was mentioned in 1356–1357 as ruling over ...

and inherited his realm, the

Principality of Vlorë The Principality of Valona and Kanina, also known as the Despotate of Valona and Kanina, Principality of Valona or Principality of Vlorë (1346–1417) was a medieval principality in Albania, roughly encompassing the territories of the modern coun ...

, when he died in 1414. After unsuccessful negotiations to sell her duchy to the Venetians, the Ottomans captured it in 1417. She fled to Corfu, then to Zeta where she was governess of Budva from 1418. In 1420, during the

Second Scutari War The Second Scutari War (; ) was an armed conflict in 1419–1426 between Zeta under the Balsha, Zeta (1419–1421) and then the Serbian Despotate (1421–1423) on the one side and the Venetian Republic on the other, over Shkodër and other former ...

, she surrendered Budva to the Venetians without any resistance and moved to Dubrovnik with the town's treasury.

Family and marriage

Ruđina (or ''Rugina'', ''Rudina'') was the daughter of

Balša II Balša Balšić ( sr-cyr, Балша Балшић; ; died 18 September 1385) or Balša II was the Lord of Lower Zeta from 1378 to 1385. He was a member of the Balšić noble family, which ruled Zeta (with Scutari) from 1362 to 1421. Early life ...

, the lord of

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 ...

(1378–85), and Comita Muzaka daughter of Andrea II Muzaka. In 1391 Ruđina married nobleman

. Their marriage was blessed by the Archbishop of Ohrid, although it was seen as noncanonical because they were close relatives. In 1397 she and her mother were given citizenship of the

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

Duchess of Vlorë, Kaninë, Himare and Berat

After her husband's death in 1414, Ruđina inherited control over

Vlorë Vlorë ( ; ; sq-definite, Vlora) is the List of cities and towns in Albania, third most populous city of Albania and seat of Vlorë County and Vlorë Municipality. Located in southwestern Albania, Vlorë sprawls on the Bay of Vlorë and is surr ...

and held it until it fell to 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 ...

in 1417. She offered Vlorë to the

Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice, officially the Most Serene Republic of Venice and traditionally known as La Serenissima, was a sovereign state and Maritime republics, maritime republic with its capital in Venice. Founded, according to tradition, in 697 ...

in exchange for 10,000 ducats. The Venetians were interested in gaining control over Vlorë in order to prevent the Ottomans from controlling entrance into the

Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Se ...

. While the Venetians prolonged negotiations with Ruđina hoping to get a better price, the Ottomans captured Vlorë in June 1417.

Governess of Budva

After the Ottoman conquest of Vlorë, Ruđina had to flee, first to

Corfu Corfu ( , ) or Kerkyra (, ) is a Greece, Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands; including its Greek islands, small satellite islands, it forms the margin of Greece's northwestern frontier. The island is part of the Corfu (regio ...

and then to Zeta, which was ruled by her nephew,

Balša III Balša III ( sr-cyr, Балша III; ) or Balsha III (1387 – 28 April 1421, in Belgrade) was the fifth and last ruler of Zeta from the Balšić noble family, from April 1403 to April 1421. He was the son of Đurađ II and Jelena Lazarević. ...

, who entrusted her with the governorship of the coastal town of

Budva Budva (Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Будва, or ) is a town in the Coastal Montenegro, Coastal region of Montenegro. It had 27,445 inhabitants as of 2023, and is the centre of Budva Municipality. The coastal area around Budva, called the Budv ...

in 1418. When the Venetians sent a naval squadron to the port of Budva in 1419 during the

, Ruđina surrendered the town without any resistance and fled to the

(

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 ...

) with the town's treasury.

Family tree

References

Sources