Dimitrije Kantakuzin

Dimitrije Kantakuzin
Born	1435 Novo Brdo, Serbian Despotate (now Kosovo)
Died	after 1487 Black Sea region
Occupation	writer
Language	Serbian
Nationality	Serbian (Serbian Despotate)
Ethnicity	Greek
Relatives	Janja Kantakuzin (brother),

Dimitrije Kantakuzin (Serbian Cyrillic: Димитрије Кантакузин; born 1435—fl. 1487) was a Serbian writer who lived in the 15th century Serbian Despotate.

Dimitrije's father, whose name is unknown, was a customs officer (kesar) at Novo Brdo during the 1440s. His father was most likely one of the Kantakouzenoi that settled Serbia after the marriage of Serbian Despot Đurađ Branković (r. 1427–1456) and Irene Kantakouzene in 1414. Dimitrije's younger brothers were Janja, Alexios and George. Novo Brdo was an important medieval Serbian cultural and economic center. It was famous for its rich silver mines which attracted both domestic and foreign miners. In addition, many talented Serbian writers and artists resided in that city, among the most notable being Konstantin Mihailović (1430–fl. 1501) and Vladislav the Grammarian (fl. 1456–79).

Dimitrije was born in 1435 in Novo Brdo, during the reign of Đurađ Branković. In 1438, the last free Serbian territory fell into the hands of the Ottoman Turks, led by Sultan Murad II. Even after the capture of Smederevo, however, the last capital of independent Serbia, Novo Brdo resisted Turkish invasion and refused to capitulate. In 1441, after more than two years of siege, Novo Brdo was captured. The citizens of Novo Brdo still refused to admit to defeat and immediately organized an uprising which was cruelly and mercilessly quelled by the Ottomans. Novo Brdo, captured and occupied, remained yet undefeated and continued its resistance until 1455. That year, after a prolonged and heavy bombardment of the city, Novo Brdo finally capitulated. Sultan Mehmed the Conqueror himself entered the city and ordered the execution of the nobility of Novo Brdo. He also ordered all able-bodied Serbian men to be decapitated, the children and boys to be enlisted in the Janissaries, and the girls and women of that city to be given to his soldiers and commanders as slaves. Dimitrije, a youth of about twenty at the time, witnessed these scenes of anarchy, atrocity, and death. This experience evidently left an indelible impression on him, and he became obsessed with the transitiveness of life and the power of death. Death became an ever-present thought and vision, a constant companion, a tormentor, the central theme and recurrent motif of his literary works.

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