Ljutovid
Knez of Zahumlje
Reignfloruit c. 1039–1034
ReligionChristian

Ljutovid (Serbian Cyrillic: Љутовид) was an independent local Slavic chieftain and ruler of Zahumlje with a title of knez. This region included parts of present-day western Herzegovina in Bosnia and Herzegovina and southern Croatia along the coast. Ljutovid flourished in the middle of the 11th century as a vassla of the Byzantine Empire.

As the local Slavic ruler of Zahumlje, and recipient of Byzantine ranks and titles, in July 1039 was styled as "protospatharios epi tou Chrysotriklinou, hypatos, strategos of Serbia and Zahumlje", and claimed supremacy in military ranks not only in his local domain but also to entire Serbia.[1][2] This could suggests Emperor Michael IV,[3] also granted him nominal right over neighbouring lands, including Serbia.[1]

Depending on different narratives by 11th century John Skylitzes and 14th century Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja, in 1042 new emperor ordered Michael the governor of Dyrrhachium to gather a big army, and were sent piles of imperial gold and silver to the Župan of Rascia (Serbia[4]), Ban of Bosnia and Ljutovid of Zahumlje to do the same as support to overthrow Stefan Vojislav of Duklja.[1][5][6][7] This was because previously Vojislav denounced emperor's authority by stealing gold and attacking lands under Byzantine allies.[8][6][9] In the same year of 1043, Michael, or Curcilius and Ljutovid, led the army of the allied force against Duklja but they were disastrously ambushed in the Triballos mountains (possibly Klobuk hill[10]),[11] with Ljutovid having a duel with Vojislav's son Gojislav.[12][9] Vojislav went on to pursue and annex lands of Zahumlje, Travunia and Dyrrhachium.[13][14]

There exist several documents (possibly forged, but recent research approves their authenticity[15]), one with two variants dated 1039 and 1151, and third a transcript by duke Desa. In them is confirmed his title as "protospatarius epi to chrusotriclinio, ypatus et strategos Servie et Zachlumie"[16] According to them Ljutovid awarded the monastery on Lokrum with Babino Polje on the island of Mljet (modern Croatia).[15][17] According to it, Protospatar Ljutovit declared that no one, neither Ragusan, nor citizen of Ston, neither Latin, nor Slav, could impede the donation.[17]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Stephenson 2003, pp. 42-43: "if the idea of developing a thema of Serbia existed briefly, it was swiftly abandoned and the title strategos passed to the local aristocracy. In a charter issued July 1039 the Slavic ruler of Zahumlje styled himself "Ljutovit, protospatharios epi tou Chrysotriklinou, hypatos, strategos of Serbia and Zahumlje." Ljutovid's claim to be strategos not only of Zahumlje, but all Serbia suggests that he had been courted by the emperor, and awarded nominal rights neighbouring lands, including Duklja, which was at the time at war with the empire. Moreover, if we can trust the Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja, our only narrative source, we must conclude that none of the Serbian lands was under direct Byzantine control in 1042. In that year, we are told, the ban of Bosnia, župan of Raška, and Slavic princeps of Zahumlje (Chelmana), Ljutovid, received Byzantine ambassadors offering piles of imperial silver and gold to support imperial efforts against the ruler of neighbouring Duklja, Stefan Vojislav. The use of Latin princeps, rather than iupanus or banus, to describe Ljutovid, supports the notion that he held the supreme authority among the Serbs at the time."
  2. ↑ Stephenson 2004, pp. 129.
  3. ↑ p. 150
  4. ↑ Dzino 2023, pp. 186.
  5. ↑ Stephenson 2004, pp. 129, 134.
  6. 1 2 Stojkovski 2021, pp. 148–149.
  7. ↑ Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja, ch. 38: "iupano Rassae et bano Bosnae et principi regionis Chelmanae"
  8. ↑ Stephenson 2004, pp. 133–134.
  9. 1 2 Dzino 2023, pp. 172–173.
  10. ↑ Marko Vego, Naselja bosanske srednjevjekovne države, Svjetlost, 1957. Google Books
  11. ↑ Stephenson 2004, pp. 134.
  12. ↑ Stojkovski 2021, pp. 149.
  13. ↑ Stephenson 2004, pp. 135.
  14. ↑ Curta 2006, pp. 269.
  15. 1 2 Dzino 2023, pp. 173.
  16. ↑ Dzino 2023, pp. 173–175.
  17. 1 2 John Van Antwerp Fine, When ethnicity did not matter in the Balkans

Sources

  • Curta, Florin (2006). Southeastern Europe in the Middle Ages, 500–1250. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-81539-0.
  • Dzino, Danijel (2023). Early Medieval Hum and Bosnia, ca. 450-1200: Beyond Myths. Taylor & Francis. ISBN 9781000893434.
  • Stephenson, Paul (2003). The legend of Basil the Bulgar-slayer. Cambridge University Press. pp. 42–43. ISBN 978-0-521-81530-7. Retrieved 8 May 2011.
  • Stephenson, Paul (2004) [2000]. Byzantium's Balkan Frontier: A Political Study of the Northern Balkans, 900–1204. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-77017-0.
  • Stojkovski, Boris (2021). "Byzantine military campaigns against Serbian lands and Hungary in the second half of the eleventh century". In Theotokis, Georgios; Meško, Marek (eds.). War in Eleventh-Century Byzantium. Routledge/Taylor & Francis Group. pp. 145–159. ISBN 9780367192549.
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