Stefan Lazarević

Stefan Lazarević
Despot of Serbia
Fresco of Stefan Lazarević from Manasija monastery
Reign	Knez (1389–1402) Despot (1402–1427)
Predecessor	Lazar of Serbia
Successor	Đurađ Branković
Born	1377 Kruševac, Moravian Serbia
Died	1427 Glava, Serbian Despotate
Burial	Manasija Monastery
House	House of Lazarević
Father	Lazar of Serbia
Mother	Princess Milica of Serbia

Stefan Lazarevic (Serbian: Стефан Лазаревић, c. 1377–19 July 1427) known also as Stefan the Tall (Стеван Високи), was the son of Prince Lazar Hrebeljanović and a ruler of Serbia. He held a title of prince (1389-1402) and despot (1402-1427). In his time he was regarded as one of the finest knights and military leaders in Europe, and because of his literature works he is regarded as one of the best Serbian writers in the Middle ages. After the death of his father on the Kosovo Field in 1389, he became ruler of Moravian Serbia and ruled with his mother Milica Hrebeljanović, until he reached adulthood in 1393. His reign and his personal literary works are sometimes associated with early signs of the Renaissance in Serbian lands. He introduced knightly tournaments, modern battle tactics, and firearms to Serbia.

As an Ottoman vassal, Lazarević was leader of Serbian auxiliary squads in the battle of Rovine, Nicopolis and Angora. After the battle of Angora, Lazarević received the title of despot from the Byzantines in Constantinople, in 1402.

In 1403–04 he became an ally of Hungarian king Sigismund, and received Mačva, Belgrade (which became Lazarević's capital in 1405), Golubac and other domains, such as Srebrenica in 1411. In 1408 Sigismund founded the Order of the Dragon, a chivalric order for selected nobility, in which Stefan had the superior rank.