Tvrtko I
| Tvrtko I | |
|---|---|
Seal of King Tvrtko I
|
|
| Ban of Bosnia | |
| Reign | September 1353– October 1377 (interrupted by Vuk in 1365-66) |
| Predecessor | Stephen II |
| King of Bosnia | |
| Reign | October 1377 – 10 March 1391 |
| Coronation | (26 October?) 1377 |
| Successor | Dabiša |
| Born | c. 1338 |
| Died | 10 March 1391 (aged 52–53) |
| Spouse | Dorothea of Bulgaria |
| Issue | Tvrtko II of Bosnia |
| House | Kotromanić |
| Father | Vladislav of Bosnia |
| Mother | Jelena of Bribir |
| Religion | Roman Catholic |
Stephen Tvrtko I (Serbo-Croatian: Stjepan Tvrtko, Стефан Твртко; c. 1338 – 10 March 1391) was the first King of Bosnia, and is widely considered one of the country's greatest medieval rulers.
A member of the House of Kotromanić, Tvrtko succeeded his uncle Stephen II as Ban of Bosnia in 1353. As he was a minor at the time, his father, Vladislav, briefly ruled as regent, followed by his mother, Jelena. Early in his personal rule Tvrtko quarreled with Roman Catholic clergy, but later enjoyed cordial relations with all religious communities in his realm. After initial difficulties – the loss of large parts of Bosnia to his overlord, King Louis I of Hungary, and a brief deposition by magnates – Tvrtko's power grew considerably. He conquered some remnants of the neighbouring Serbian Empire in 1373, after the death of its last ruler and his distant relative, Uroš the Weak. In 1377 he had himself crowned King of Bosnia and of Serbia, claiming to be the heir of the extinct Serbian Nemanjić dynasty.
The expansion of the Kingdom of Bosnia continued, with the King focusing on the coast. He gained control of the entire Pomorje and the major maritime cities of the area, erected new settlements and started building a navy, but never succeeded in subjugating the lords of the independent Serbian statelets. The death of King Louis and accession of Queen Mary in 1382 allowed Tvrtko to take advantage of the ensuing succession crisis in Hungary and Croatia. After bitter fighting from 1385 to 1390, Tvrtko succeeded in conquering large parts of Slavonia, Dalmatia and Croatia proper. Following the Battle of Kosovo in 1389, his tenuous claim to Serbia became a mere fiction, as the Serbian rulers he sought to subdue became vassals of the victorious Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Turks also launched their first attacks on Bosnia during Tvrtko I's reign, but his army was able to repel them. Tvrtko's sudden death in 1391 prevented him from solidifying the Kotromanić hold on Croatian lands.
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