Medieval Serbia
Serbia’s medieval period began in the 6th century with the Slavic migrations to The Balkan Peninsula. The dynasty that ruled these areas in the seventh century was the Vlastimirović dynasty, named after the first ruler of the established independent state “Serbia”, Prince Vlastimir (830-851). After the Vlastimirović dynasty, the Vojislavljević dynasty took primacy over Serbian medieval lands Duklja, Raška, Bosnia, and Zahumlje and ruled until 1186.
By defeating the last ruler of this dynasty, Stefan Nemanja (1166-1196) came to power starting a new dynasty. They ruled from 1166 to 1371. Prominent Nemanjić figures were Rastko Nemanjić – the first Serbian archbishop Saint Sava, Stefan the First-Crowned (1217-1228), and King Milutin (1282-1321) who was the greatest founder amongst Serbian rulers, who built 40 churches during his reign. All rulers from the Nemanjić dynasty, except Tsar Dušan, were proclaimed saints. Their prominent endowments were Studenica and Hilandar, Ziča, Mileševa, Gračanica, and Bogorodica Ljeviška.
After the death of the last Nemanjić, Uroš The Weak, the empire fell apart and it wasn’t until the First Serbian Uprising in 1804 and the Karađorđević family helped Serbia gain power. In 1882 Serbia became a kingdom once again with the Obrenović family as their royal family.
