Grdeša (Serbian Cyrillic: Грдеша, Latin: Gerdessa, Gurdeses; fl. 1150–51) or Grd was a local Slavic chieftain from the region surrounding Trebinje, who ruled the area with a title of župan. He was mentioned in 1150–51 as vassal of the Grand Prince Uroš II of Serbia.
Grd / Grdeša | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | ca. 1120 |
| Died | 1178 or ca. 1180 |
| Occupation(s) | Nobility, military leader |
| Title | župan |
| Military career | |
| Allegiance | Kingdom of Hungary, Serbian Grand Principality |
| Years of service | fl. 1150–51 |
| Battles / wars | |
It is believed that Grdeša was born around 1120. In 1150 he was one of the military commanders in the army of Uroš II of Serbia that fought the Byzantine Empire; the combined Serbo-Hungarian army suffered defeat at the Battle of Tara, where Grdeša and fellow Duke Vučina (Bучинa) where captured.[1][non-primary source needed] It is assumed the prisoners were taken to Sredets, but were released in 1151.[2] The death of Grd is placed in 1178 or around 1180.[2] He had a son, župan Pribilša, who "died in the time of Stephen Vladislav I of Serbia".[3]
His tomb (stećak) was found at the local community of Police in Trebinje.[4] The tablet mentions him "in the days of Grand Prince Mihailo" as the župan of Trebinje, and also his brother župan Radomir (Радомир), and his family.[3][4] The stećak is the oldest found and is currently held at the Museum of Herzegovina in Trebinje.[5] A spur of his is in the collection of the National Museum in Sarajevo.
A charter, believed to be written in 1151, was found, and in it Desa, the younger brother of Uroš II, gifted the island of Mljet to the monastery of Saint Mary in Apulia, of which witnesses were "iupanus Gerdessa, Desimir, setnicus Rastessa, iupanos Grubessa, Petrus comes Raguseorum...", however, this was proven to be a falsification dating from the 13th century.[6]
References
edit- ^ Brand 1976, p. 87.
- ^ a b c Kalić-Mijušković et al. 1971.
- ^ a b Mihaljčić & Steindorff 1982, pp. 112–114.
- ^ a b Jireček & Jagić 1912, p. 12.
- ^ Muzej Hercegovine Trebinje, Ćirilički natpis sa grobne ploče župana Grda, gospodara Trebinja, druga polovina XII v. Archived 2011-07-27 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Kampuš, Ivan (1963). Šidak, Jaroslav (ed.). "Novi prilozi o lokrumskim falsifikatima i Desinoj darovnici pulsanskim Benediktincima" (PDF). Historijski zbornik (in Croatian). Zagreb: Savez povijesnih društava Hrvatske / Štamparski zavod "Ognjen Prica". Archived from the original (PDF) on Jul 14, 2015. Retrieved 2012-11-13.
Sources
edit- Brand, Charles M. (1976). Deeds of John and Manuel Comnenus. Columbia University Press. ISBN 978-0-231-52155-0.
- Mihaljčić, Rade; Steindorff, Ludwig (1982). Namentragende Steininschriften in Jugoslawien vom Ende des 7. bis zur Mitte des 13. Jahrhunderts. Steiner Franz Verlag. ISBN 978-3-515-03873-7.
- Jireček, Konstantin; Jagić, Vatroslav (1912). Staat und Gesellschaft im mittelalterlichen Serbien: Studien zur Kulturgeschichte des 13.-15. Jahrhunderts. Zentralantiquariat der Deutschen Demokratischen Republik.
- Kalić-Mijušković, Jovanka; Ferjančić, Božidar; Radošević, Ninoslava; Ostrogorski, Georgije; Barišić, Franjo (1971). Vizantijski izvori za istoriju naroda Jugoslavije. Vizantološki institut SANU.
Further reading
edit- Radojičić, Đorđe (1931), "Grdeša trebinjski župan XII veka", Prilozi za KJIF