Vuk Branković ( sr-Cyrl, Вук Бранковић, , 1345 – 6 October 1397) was a Serbian medieval
nobleman
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...
who, during the
Fall of the Serbian Empire
The fall of the Serbian Empire was a decades-long process in the late 14th century. Following the death of the childless Emperor of the Serbs, Emperor Stefan Uroš V in 1371, the Serbian Empire was left without an heir and the magnates, ''velika ...
, inherited a province that extended over present-day southern and southwestern
Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
, entire
Kosovo
Kosovo, officially the Republic of Kosovo, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe with International recognition of Kosovo, partial diplomatic recognition. It is bordered by Albania to the southwest, Montenegro to the west, Serbia to the ...
, the northern part of present-day
Republic of North Macedonia
North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe. It shares land borders with Greece to the south, Albania to the west, Bulgaria to the east, Kosovo to the northwest and Serbia to the n ...
, and northern
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 ...
. His fief (and later state) was known as ''Oblast Brankovića'' ( District of Branković) or simply as ''Vukova zemlja'' (Vuk's land), which he held with the title of ''
gospodin
''Gospodar'' or ''hospodar'', also ''gospodin'' as a diminutive, is a term of Slavic languages, Slavic origin, meaning "lord" or "Master (form of address), master". The compound (, , , sh-Latn-Cyrl, gospodar, господар, ) is a derivative o ...
'' (lord, sir), under Prince
Lazar of Serbia
Lazar Hrebeljanović ( sr-Cyrl, Лазар Хребељановић; – 15 June 1389) was a medieval Serbian ruler who created the largest and most powerful state on the territory of the disintegrated Serbian Empire. Lazar's state, referre ...
. After the
Battle of Kosovo
The Battle of Kosovo took place on 15 June 1389 between an army led by the Serbian Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović and an invading army of the Ottoman Empire under the command of Sultan Murad I. It was one of the largest battles of the Late Middl ...
(1389), Vuk was briefly the ''de facto'' most powerful Serbian lord.
Origins
Branković was born in 1345 and belonged to a Serb noble family that held a prominent role in the 14th century. Vuk was a son of
Branko Mladenović
Branko ( sr-cyr, Бранко; 1331–65) was a Serbian magnate who served to king and Serbian Empire, emperor Stefan Dušan (r. 1331–55), and emperor Stefan Uroš V (r. 1355–71), with the titles of ''sluga'' and later ''sevastokrator''. A m ...
(died before 1365), who received the high court title of ''
sevastokrator
''Sebastokrator'' (, ; ; ), was a senior court title in the late Byzantine Empire. It was also used by other rulers whose states bordered the Empire or were within its sphere of influence (Bulgarian Empire, Serbian Empire). The word is a compound ...
'' from Emperor
Stefan Dušan
Stephen (honorific), Stefan Uroš IV Dušan ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош IV Душан), also known as Dušan the Mighty ( sr-Cyrl, Душан Силни; – 20 December 1355), was the King of Serbia from 8 September 1331 and Emperor of th ...
(r. 1331–1355) and served as governor of
Ohrid
Ohrid ( ) is a city in North Macedonia and is the seat of the Ohrid Municipality. It is the largest city on Lake Ohrid and the eighth-largest city in the country, with the municipality recording a population of over 42,000 inhabitants as of ...
(present-day North Macedonia). Vuk's grandfather was Mladen (died after 1326), who was ''
župan
Župan is a noble and administrative title used in several states in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe between the 7th century and the 21st century. It was (and in Croatia still is) the leader of the administrat ...
'' (count) in
Trebinje
Trebinje ( sr-Cyrl, Требиње, ) is a city and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is the southernmost city in Bosnia and Herzegovina and is situated on the banks of the Trebišnjica river in the region of East Her ...
under King
Stefan Milutin
Stefan Uroš II Milutin ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош II Милутин, Stefan Uroš II Milutin; 1253 – 29 October 1321), known as Saint King, was the King of Serbia between 1282–1321, a member of the Nemanjić dynasty. He was one ...
(1282–1321) and ''vojvoda'' (duke) under King
Stefan Dečanski
Stefan Uroš III, , known as Stefan of Dečani ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Дечански, Stefan Dečanski, ( – 11 November 1331), was King of Serbia from 6 January 1322 to 8 September 1331. Dečanski was the son of King Stefan Milutin (). He ...
(1321–1331). Later chronicles alleged that the Branković were descended from
Vukan Nemanjić
Vukan Nemanjić ( sr-Cyrl, Вукан Немањић, ; before 1165 – after 1207) was the Grand Prince of the Grand Principality of Serbia from 1202 to 1204. He was the Grand Prince of Pomorje (titular King) from 1195 until his death. He was t ...
, son of
Stefan Nemanja
Stefan Nemanja (Serbian Cyrillic alphabet, Serbian Cyrillic: , ; – 13 February 1199) was the Grand Prince (Grand Župan#Serbia, Veliki Župan) of the Grand Principality of Serbia, Serbian Grand Principality (also known as Raška (region), Raš ...
.
Expansion
After their father's death, Vuk and his brothers Grgur and Nikola Radonja retreated to the valley of
Drenica
Drenica (, ), also known as the Drenica Valley, is a hilly region in central Kosovo, covering roughly around of Kosovo's total area (6%). It consists of two municipalities, Drenas and Skenderaj, and several villages in Klina, Zubin Potok, Mitr ...
(central Kosovo). During the final years of
Stefan Uroš V
Saint Stefan Uroš V ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош V, ; 13362/4 December 1371), known in historiography and folk tradition as Uroš the Weak (), was the Emperor of the Serbs, second Emperor (Tsar#Serbia, Tsar) of the Serbian Empire (1355–13 ...
's rule, Grgur and Vuk's governance was limited to their heritance in Drenica. Vuk took advantage of the death of King Vukašin in the
Battle of Maritsa
The Battle of Maritsa or Battle of Chernomen (; in tr. ''Second Battle of Maritsa'') took place at the Maritsa River near the village of Chernomen (present-day Ormenio, Greece) on 26 September 1371 between Ottoman forces commanded by Lala S ...
(1371) and conquered
Sjenica
Sjenica ( sr-cyr, Сјеница, ) is a town and municipality located in the Zlatibor District of southwestern Serbia, on the vast Sjenica- Pešter plateau and geographically located in the central part of Sandžak. The population of the municip ...
,
Zvečan
Zvečan ( sr-Cyrl, Звечан) or Zveçan ( sq-definite, Zveçani) is a town and municipality located in the Mitrovica District in Kosovo. As of 2015, it has a population of 16,650 inhabitants. It covers an area of , and consists of a town and ...
, and part of the
Lim River
The Lim (Serbian Cyrillic: Лим, ) or Vermosh River () is a river that flows through Albania, Montenegro, Serbia and Bosnia and Herzegovina and is long.
Vuk's marriage to Mara, the daughter of the most powerful Serbian magnate prince
Lazar Hrebeljanović
Lazar Hrebeljanović ( sr-Cyrl, Лазар Хребељановић; – 15 June 1389) was a medieval List of Serbian monarchs, Serbian ruler who created the largest and most powerful state on the territory of the disintegrated Serbian Empir ...
, brought him substantial lands in Kosovo. This marriage sealed the alliance between two houses and secured Lazar's assistance for Vuk's future plans, although Vuk in return had to acknowledge Lazar as his feudal senior. Soon after the marriage, Lazar and 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 ...
attacked župan
Nikola Altomanović
Nikola Altomanović ( sr-Cyrl, Никола Алтомановић; died after 1395) was a 14th-century Serbian župan of the House of Vojinović. He ruled the areas from Rudnik, over Polimlje, Podrinje, east Herzegovina with Trebinje, reach ...
, who ruled in the western part of Serbia, and conquered and divided his lands in 1373. In the partition of Altomanović's land, Vuk got areas of Raška (including the old Serbian capital Ras) and lands in Polimlje (northern Montenegro). After the death of
Đurađ I Balšić
Đurađ I Balšić ( sr-cyr, Ђурађ I Балшић; ) was the Lord of Zeta between 1362 and 13 January 1378. He was the eldest of the three sons of Balša I, and belonged to the Balšić family.
Life
Đurađ was the eldest son of Balša, ...
(13 January 1378), Vuk captured his cities of
Prizren
Prizren ( sq-definite, Prizreni, ; sr-cyr, Призрен) is the second List of cities and towns in Kosovo, most populous city and Municipalities of Kosovo, municipality of Kosovo and seat of the eponymous municipality and District of Prizren, ...
Metohija
Metohija (), also known in Albanian as Dukagjini, (, ) is a large drainage basin, basin and the name of the region covering the southwestern part of Kosovo. The region covers 35% (3,891 km2) of Kosovo's total area. According to the 2024 ce ...
.
At its peak, the realm of Branković stretched from Sjenica in the west to
Skopje
Skopje ( , ; ; , sq-definite, Shkupi) is the capital and largest city of North Macedonia. It lies in the northern part of the country, in the Skopje Basin, Skopje Valley along the Vardar River, and is the political, economic, and cultura ...
in the east, with the cities of
Pristina
Pristina or Prishtina ( , ), . is the capital and largest city of Kosovo. It is the administrative center of the eponymous municipality and District of Pristina, district.
In antiquity, the area of Pristina was part of the Dardanian Kingdo ...
and
Vushtrri
Vushtrri ( sq-definite, Vushtrria; sr-Cyrl, Вучитрн, ''Vučitrn'') is a List of cities in Kosovo, city and Municipalities of Kosovo, municipality located in the District of Mitrovica, Mitrovica District in Kosovo. According to the 2024 c ...
serving as its capitals. The most important cities in Vuk's province were Priština, Prizren, Peć, Skopje, and Ras, as well as the rich mining settlements of Trepča,
Janjevo
Janjevo () or Janjevë (in Albanian) is a village or small town in the Lipjan municipality in eastern Kosovo.
The settlement has a long history, having been mentioned for the first time in 1303 as a Catholic parish. The town was prior to the Ko ...
,
Gluhavica
Gluhavica is a village in the municipality of Tutin, Serbia
Tutin ( sr-cyrl, Тутин) is a town and municipality located in the Raška District of southwestern Serbia. According to the 2022 census, the municipality has a population of 33,053 p ...
, and others.
Battle of Kosovo
After the Battle of Maritza, the Ottomans forced the southern Serbian feudal lords (in present-day Macedonia and Greece), Konstantin Dragaš, King Marko,
Toma Preljubović
Toma or TOMA may refer to:
Places
*Toma, Burkina Faso, a town in Nayala province
* Toma Department, a department in Nayala province
*Toma, Banwa, Burkina Faso, a town
* Tōma, Hokkaidō, Japan, a town
**Tōma Station, its railway station
*Toma, a ...
, and others, to become their vassals and started to attack the northern Serbian lands ruled by prince Lazar and Vuk. After initial Serbian successes at the battles of Dubravnica (1381), Pločnik (1386), and
Bileća
Bileća ( sr-cyrl, Билећа) is a town and municipality in Republika Srpska, Bosnia and Herzegovina. As of 2013, the town has a population of 7,476 inhabitants, while the municipality has 10,807 inhabitants.
History
The first traces of ci ...
(1388), the Ottomans launched a full-scale attack on Serbia, aiming at the very heartland of Vuk's realm in central Kosovo. In the epic
Battle of Kosovo
The Battle of Kosovo took place on 15 June 1389 between an army led by the Serbian Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović and an invading army of the Ottoman Empire under the command of Sultan Murad I. It was one of the largest battles of the Late Middl ...
(1389), Vuk participated along with his father-in-law Lazar and a contingent of King Tvrtko's army.
Unlike Lazar, who died in the battle along with most of his army, Vuk managed to survive and preserve his army, which later gave material for a popular Serbian folk tradition (represented in folk epic poems and tales) that he betrayed Lazar in order to become supreme ruler of Serbia, a theory that is rejected by modern-day Serbian historians but not by the Serb people. Despite the consensus of modern historiography in
Serbia
, image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg
, national_motto =
, image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg
, national_anthem = ()
, image_map =
, map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...
that Vuk Branković was not a traitor in the Battle of Kosovo in 1389,
Momčilo Spremić
Momčilo Spremić (; born August 29, 1937) is a Serbian historian and member of the Serbian Academy of Science and Arts. He is professor of General history of the Middle Ages at the University of Belgrade Faculty of Philosophy. Spremić specialize ...
emphasized that there is a possibility that Vuk really betrayed his Serbian allies.
Last years
After the Battle of Kosovo, Vuk refused to become an Ottoman vassal (unlike prince
Stefan Lazarević
Stefan Lazarević ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Лазаревић, 1377 – 19 July 1427), also known as Stefan the Tall (), was a Serbian ruler as prince (1389–1402) and Despot (court title), despot (1402–1427). He was also a diplomat, legislat ...
, son of prince Lazar, who became an Ottoman vassal in late 1389) and started to plan anti-Ottoman action together with the Hungarian king Sigismund. However, Vuk was unable to resist the Ottomans for long. In 1392, they captured Skopje and forced Vuk to become their vassal and pay tribute. Even after that, Vuk showed some resistance to the Ottomans, refusing to participate on the Ottoman side in the battles of Rovine (1395) and Nicopolis (1396), unlike other Serbian lords such as prince Stefan,
prince Marko
Marko Mrnjavčević ( sr-Cyrl, Марко Мрњавчевић, ; – 17 May 1395) was the ''de jure'' Serbia in the Middle Ages, Serbian king from 1371 to 1395, while he was the ''de facto'' ruler of territory in western Macedonia (region) ...
, and
Konstantin Dejanović
Konstantin (Kostadin) Dejanović ( sr-Cyrl, Константин (Костадин) Дејановић; ) or Konstantin Dragaš was a Serbian magnate that ruled a large province in eastern Macedonia under Ottoman suzerainty, during the fall of ...
. He also maintained contacts with Hungary. Finally, the Ottomans ended this situation by attacking Vuk in 1395–96, seizing his land, and giving most of it to prince Stefan Lazarević, while Vuk himself was imprisoned and died in an Ottoman prison. A small part of Vuk's land with the towns of Priština and Vučitrn was given to his sons to hold as Ottoman vassals.
Lazar of Serbia
Lazar Hrebeljanović ( sr-Cyrl, Лазар Хребељановић; – 15 June 1389) was a medieval Serbian ruler who created the largest and most powerful state on the territory of the disintegrated Serbian Empire. Lazar's state, referre ...
and Milica Nemanjić in 1371. She died on April 12, 1426. They had three sons:
* Grgur Vuković (1377 - 13 March 1408),
*
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 ...
(1377 - 24 December 1456), succeeded his maternal uncle
Stefan Lazarević
Stefan Lazarević ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Лазаревић, 1377 – 19 July 1427), also known as Stefan the Tall (), was a Serbian ruler as prince (1389–1402) and Despot (court title), despot (1402–1427). He was also a diplomat, legislat ...
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 ...
), ruling 1427–1456
* Lazar Vuković (died 12 July 1410), knez
Titles
He is most often titled "Lord Vuk" (господин Вук), while he signed himself "Lord of Serbs and Podunavlje" (). The Serbian Church had in the period between 1374 and 1379 accepted ''knez'' Lazar as "Lord of Serbs and Podunavlje". According to historian R. Mihaljčić, when Vuk claimed the title, Stefan Lazarević was around 15 years old (ca. 1392). Vuk was not recognised with that title, as it was preserved for Lazar and Lazar's son Stefan.
Folk tradition
Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...
portraits Vuk as a traitor in the Kosovo Myth: supposedly, Vuk tarnished the family name when he betrayed
Prince Lazar
Lazar Hrebeljanović ( sr-Cyrl, Лазар Хребељановић; – 15 June 1389) was a medieval List of Serbian monarchs, Serbian ruler who created the largest and most powerful state on the territory of the disintegrated Serbian Empir ...
at the
Battle of Kosovo
The Battle of Kosovo took place on 15 June 1389 between an army led by the Serbian Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović and an invading army of the Ottoman Empire under the command of Sultan Murad I. It was one of the largest battles of the Late Middl ...
, which he survived in 1389. This tradition is apocryphal.
Vuk
VUK or Vuk may refer to:
*Vuk (name), South Slavic given name
** Vuk, Ban of Bosnia (), a member of the Kotromanić dynasty
** Vuk Karadžić (1787–1864), Serbian language reformer and folklorist, often referred to simply as Vuk
* ''Vuk'' (film) ...