Kingdom of Bosnia

Kingdom of Bosnia
Bosansko kraljevstvo
Босанско краљевство
1377–1463[1]
Royal banner of King Tvrtko I
Coat of arms
Medieval Bosnian State Expansion
Capital
  • Visoko
  • Jajce
  • Bobovac

44°08′13″N 18°14′16″E / 44.13694°N 18.23778°E / 44.13694; 18.23778
Religion
Catholicism (official)[2]
Bosnian Church
Eastern Orthodoxy
Demonym(s)Bosnian
GovernmentFeudal monarchy
King 
• 1377–1391
Tvrtko I (first)
• 1461–1463
Stephen Tomašević (last)
Historical eraMiddle Ages
• Coronation of Tvrtko I
26 October 1377
• Ottoman conquest
25 May 1463[1]
CurrencyBosnian Golden Coin
Preceded by
Succeeded by
Banate of Bosnia
Sanjak of Bosnia

The Kingdom of Bosnia (Serbo-Croatian: Kraljevina Bosna / Краљевина Босна), or Bosnian Kingdom (Bosansko kraljevstvo / Босанско краљевство), was a medieval kingdom that lasted for nearly a century, from 1377 to 1463, and evolved out of the Banate of Bosnia, which itself lasted from at least 1154.

King Tvrtko I (r. 1353–91) acquired portions of western Serbia and most of the Adriatic coast south of the Neretva River. During the late part of his reign, Bosnia became one of the strongest states in the Balkan Peninsula. However, feudal fragmentation remained important in Bosnia and the Bosnian nobility held significant power, exercising it at the Stanak meetings where members deliberated on matters such as election of the new king or queen and coronations, foreign policy, sale or cession of territory, contracting and signing treaties with neighboring countries, and military issues.

The Ottoman Empire annexed portions of eastern Bosnia in the 1440s and 1450s and went on to conquer Hum, by then renamed to Herzegovina, with the last fortress, Novi, falling in December 1481. Stephen Tomašević, the last king of Bosnia, was captured by the Ottomans and killed in 1463.

The overwhelming majority of the population was rural, with few significant urban centers. Among the more notable towns were Doboj, Jajce, Srebrenik, Srebrenica, Tešanj, and Podvisoki. Mining, especially for silver, was a major source of income for Bosnian kings.

  1. ^ Babinger, Franz (1992). Mehmed the Conqueror and His Time. Princeton NJ: Princeton University Press. pp. 220–222. ISBN 0-691-01078-1.
  2. ^ Bell, Imogen (2002). Central and South-Eastern Europe 2003. Psychology Press. p. 100. ISBN 9781857431360.