О Дмитру Краљевићу
About Dmitar Kraljević

Summary/Abstract: Dmitar Kraljević, the youngest son of the Serbian king Vukaöin and queen Jelena was born after 1345. In the charter to Ragusans dated from April 3rd 1370, Vukaöin mentioned only his wife Jelena and elder sons Marko and Andrijaö. Dmitar was not mentioned, since he was still a child. After the death of king Vukaöin, and the despot of Ser, Jovan Ugljeöa, in the battle at the Marica river on September 26th 1370, the successors of this house were left at the small territory in western Macedonia. They have ruled together, by the system of divided family rule. Dmitar probably remained at the court of his mother, queen Jelena-Jelisaveta. The only one inscription that mentioned him in this period is the one from 1376/77 in the Church of St. Demetrius near Skoplje. Good relationship between brothers, at least in the period before the battle of Kosovo, is testified by the agreement of the exchange of the villages between Marko and Andrijaö. It was described in the founders inscription in the St. Andrewís church, finished in the spring of 1389 at the latest. The conflict happened after the meeting in Ser with sultan Bayazit I in winter of 1393/94. Contrary to king Marko, who remained loyal to Bayazit, Andrijaö and Dmitar refused to serve the Turkish sultan. By the end of July of 1394, they have built the deposit of their father Vukaöin in Dubrovnik, and afterwards went to serve Hungarian king Zsigmund. As early as in the next year, 1395, the brothers were at the opposed sides in the battle of Rovine. During this conflict, king Marko died, and possibly Andrijaö as well. New sources about Dmitar date back from 1399 when he stayed in Dubrovnik. Then Dmitar took the Hungarian tribute on behalf of king Zsigmund. At the same time he received from the Dubrovnik Municipality the rest of the money from the deposit of king Vukaöin. As early as in spring of 1400, Dmitar was in this town again, not only to collect the tribute, but as a diplomatic representative of Hungarian king. Dmitarís name appeared again in connection with Hungarian tribute in December 1402, as well as March 1403, when Rafael Gučetić, son of Marin Gučetić, collects the census on behalf of Dmitar. It seems that the king Zsigmund renounced this tribute to Dmitar, perhaps as a pay. In the meantime, as we have learned from the two of his preserved original charters, Dmitar was the ûupan of Zarand and castellan of Vilagoö. This region Dmitar probably got at the latest until December 1402, when Ragusans addressed him as dominus Dmitrius. He held these posts most likely until his death. As a vassal, Dmitar served in the army for his king. There are no sources to prove his engagement in the campaign against Bosnia. He died after June 30th, 1407 and before 1410. He probably died during struggles of 1409, as vassal of the king Zsigmund, at the side of despot Stefan Lazarević, against despot`s brother Vuk and the Turks. During his life in Hungary he had good relations with Ragusans, especially the Gučetić family.

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