Krešimir III of Croatia
Encyclopedia
Kingdom of Croatia (medieval)
The Kingdom of Croatia , also known as the Kingdom of the Croats , was a medieval kingdom covering most of what is today Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina in the Balkans.Established in 925, it ruled as a sovereign state for almost two centuries...
in 1000–1030 from the House of Trpimirović and founder of its cadet line House of Krešimirović. He was the middle son of former King Stjepan Držislav
Stjepan Držislav
Stephen Držislav was a King of Croatia from 969 AD until his death in 997. He was a member of the Trpimirović dynasty. He ruled from Biograd with Godemir as his Ban.-Early period:...
. Until 1020, he co-ruled with his brother Gojslav
Gojslav of Croatia
Gojslav was a monarch who co-ruled the Kingdom of Croatia with his brother Krešimir III from 1000 to his death in 1020. He was the youngest son of the former Croatian King Stjepan Držislav and a member of royal House of Trpimirović.- Revolt and reign :...
.
Reign
After Croatia's King Stjepan Držislav died in 997, his brother Svetoslav SuronjaSvetoslav Suronja
Svetoslav Suronja was King of Croatia from 997 to 1000. He was a member of House of Trpimirović. He reigned with the help of his Ban, Varda. His name was Svetoslav, but because of his physiology and, probably, his temper, he was nicknamed Suronja which could be translated as dark man or cold man....
had become King of Croatia. Together with brother Gojslav
Gojslav of Croatia
Gojslav was a monarch who co-ruled the Kingdom of Croatia with his brother Krešimir III from 1000 to his death in 1020. He was the youngest son of the former Croatian King Stjepan Držislav and a member of royal House of Trpimirović.- Revolt and reign :...
, Krešimir revolted against him, and used his alliance with the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
to ask Bulgaria
First Bulgarian Empire
The First Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state founded in the north-eastern Balkans in c. 680 by the Bulgars, uniting with seven South Slavic tribes...
for help. An answer on that demand has been received during the Bulgarian invasion of 998 in which the emperor Samuil
Samuil of Bulgaria
Samuel was the Emperor of the First Bulgarian Empire from 997 to 6 October 1014. From 980 to 997, he was a general under Roman I of Bulgaria, the second surviving son of Emperor Peter I of Bulgaria, and co-ruled with him, as Roman bestowed upon him the command of the army and the effective royal...
pillaged the Dalmatian cities and great parts of Bosnia. After these military operations were brought to an end, the Bulgarian emperor gave the conquered territories back to Gojslav
Gojslav of Croatia
Gojslav was a monarch who co-ruled the Kingdom of Croatia with his brother Krešimir III from 1000 to his death in 1020. He was the youngest son of the former Croatian King Stjepan Držislav and a member of royal House of Trpimirović.- Revolt and reign :...
and Krešimir III. During last two years (999–1000) of the Croatian civil war, this two revolters have managed to defeat Svetoslav Suronja
Svetoslav Suronja
Svetoslav Suronja was King of Croatia from 997 to 1000. He was a member of House of Trpimirović. He reigned with the help of his Ban, Varda. His name was Svetoslav, but because of his physiology and, probably, his temper, he was nicknamed Suronja which could be translated as dark man or cold man....
with some Bulgarian help, who was already gone to exile in Venice in year 1000. Answering that political change the Venetian Doge Pietro II Orseolo
Pietro II Orseolo
Pietro II Orseolo was the Doge of Venice from 991 to 1009.He began the period of eastern expansion of Venice that lasted for the better part of 500 years...
has started military intervention in Dalmatia in which he will defeat Croatia.
In Trogir
Trogir
Trogir is a historic town and harbour on the Adriatic coast in Split-Dalmatia County, Croatia, with a population of 12,995 and a total municipality population of 13,322 . The historic city of Trogir is situated on a small island between the Croatian mainland and the island of Čiovo...
under Venetian control, there was a meeting between Doge Pietro Orseolo II and Krešimir III, in which his son Stephen was to be taken hostage and marry the Doge's daughter, Joscella (Hicela) Orseolo, as part of the agreement made at their meeting.
The war between Venice and Croatia was renewed in Summer 1018, when Otto Orseolo
Otto Orseolo
Otto Orseolo was the Doge of Venice from 1008 to 1026. He was the third son of Pietro II Orseolo, whom he succeeded at the age of sixteen, becoming the youngest doge in Venetian history....
instigated a campaign on the eastern coast of the Adriatic Sea and took few settlements from Croatia, also conquering the islands Krk
Krk
Krk is a Croatian island in the northern Adriatic Sea, located near Rijeka in the Bay of Kvarner and part of the Primorje-Gorski Kotar county....
and Rab
Rab
Rab is an island in Croatia and a town of the same name located just off the northern Croatian coast in the Adriatic Sea.The island is long, has an area of and 9,480 inhabitants . The highest peak is Kamenjak at 408 meters...
that were previously under Croatian control.
Krešimir III and Gojslav
Gojslav of Croatia
Gojslav was a monarch who co-ruled the Kingdom of Croatia with his brother Krešimir III from 1000 to his death in 1020. He was the youngest son of the former Croatian King Stjepan Držislav and a member of royal House of Trpimirović.- Revolt and reign :...
have spent their reign attempting to restore rule over the Dalmatian cities that were now under Venetian control. Peace was concluded upon the diplomatic intervention of Byzantine Emperor Basil II
Basil II
Basil II , known in his time as Basil the Porphyrogenitus and Basil the Young to distinguish him from his ancestor Basil I the Macedonian, was a Byzantine emperor from the Macedonian dynasty who reigned from 10 January 976 to 15 December 1025.The first part of his long reign was dominated...
who confirmed Gojslav and Krešimir III as the Byzantine vassals of Croatia after the defeat of the First Bulgarian Empire.
End of reign
On 1 September 1024, Vasil Bojoan, a captain serving under the Byzantines invaded Croatia and captured the wife of Krešimir, who was first taken to BarBar, Montenegro
Bar is a coastal town in Montenegro. It has a population of 17,727...
, and then to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
. This proves that Croatia was in bad relations with the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
at that time, and once the emperor Basil II had died in 1025, Krešimir stopped paying tribute to the empire.
In c. 1027, he collaborated with Stephen I of Hungary against Venice in an attempt to regain the cities of Dalmatia. The Hungarian king previously took his nephew Peter Urseolo, who was forced to flee from the republic when his father was deposed in a 1026 revolt. According to a chronicle, Stephen I might've betrothed his son Emeric to one of Krešimir's daughters, however records show that the preparations were cancelled due to Emeric's sudden death.
Krešimir was succeded by his son Stjepan around 1030, when he returned from Venice back to Croatia. It is possible that he co-ruled with his father from 1028.
Sources
- Intervju - ДИНАСТИЈЕ и владари јужнословенских народа. Special Edition 12, 16 June 1989.