Konstantin Dragaš
Constantine Dejan Dragaš and Constantine Dragaš Dejanović , even Constantine Dejan Dragash , Bulgarian Константин Деян Драгаш , Serbian Константин Дејан Драгаш, Greek: Kωvσταντίνος Δραγάσης / Konstantínos Dragases, († 17th May 1395 ) was a regional Serbian Prince ( despot ) of the Despotate of Welbaschd (today Kyustendil ) from 1355 until his death in the Battle of Rovine .
Life
Konstantin Dragaš was the son of the Serbian Sebastokrator Dejan and the Bulgarian Boljar daughter Theodora (Eudokia), a sister of the Serbian Tsar Stefan Dušan . His maternal grandparents were the Serbian King Stefan Dečanski and Theodora, daughter of the Bulgarian Tsar Smilez .
Together with his brother Jovan (Johannes) , who died around 1378/1379, Constantine ruled large parts of today's Macedonia between the river valleys of Vardar and Struma (Strymon). Constantine's titles vary according to different sources. He may have carried the title of despot ( despotēs ), probably due to his in-law relationship with the Byzantine emperor Manuel II. Furthermore, through this relationship with the imperial family, he was able to confirm his claims to rule over the region around the Struma and the river before his death in 1395 today's city of Pernik through Constantinople.
The Dragaš brothers maintained the monasteries of Athos , including Hilandar , Pantaleimon and Vatopédi . The Poganovo Monastery is a foundation of Constantine and housed the Poganowo icon , a gift from his daughter Helena Dragaš .
After the Battle of the Mariza in 1371 they became vassals of the Ottoman Empire , but were able to maintain close ties to their Christian neighbors. At the behest of the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid I , he took part in the campaign against the Wallachian voivod Mircea cel Bătrân together with his neighbor and ally, the Serbian king of Prilep Marko Kraljević , and was killed in the battle of Rovine in 1395 . The Ottomans renamed his capital Welbaschd in his honor to Küstendil (Bulgarian Kjustendil , German: "Land of Constantine"). The town of Dragaš is also named after him.
family
Konstantin Dragaš was married twice. The name of his first wife is unknown. His second wife was Eudokia Megaskomnene, daughter of Emperor Alexios III. of Trebizond . With his first wife, Constantine had at least one daughter and possibly a son who rebelled against the Ottomans around 1430.
- Helena Dragaš (Jelena Dragaš, nun Hypomone), married the Byzantine emperor Manuel II. Among her many children are the two last Byzantine emperors, of whom Constantine XI. made his mother's name Dragaš (Greek k, Dragasēs) his own.
Serbian folk poetry
Konstantin Dragaš appears as a hero in the epic poetry as a friend of Marko Kraljević .
literature
- Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium . Oxford University Press, 1991.
- Alexios G. Savvides, Benjamin Hendrickx (Eds.): Encyclopaedic Prosopographical Lexicon of Byzantine History and Civilization . Vol. 2: Baanes-Eznik of Kolb . Brepols Publishers, Turnhout 2008, ISBN 978-2-503-52377-4 , pp. 376-378.
Individual evidence
- ↑ F. Miklošić and M. Joseph: Acta et dipolomata. 1862, p. 260
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Konstantin Dragaš |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Константин Деян Драгаш (Cyrillic); Kωvσταντίνος Δραγάσης (Greek); Konstantínos Dragáses (Greek); Konstantin Dejan Dragaš; Konstantin Dejan Dragasch |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | regional prince and despot |
| DATE OF BIRTH | before 1355 |
| DATE OF DEATH | May 17, 1395 |