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      Ragusa from the East

      During the twelfth century the Slave lands were beginning to assume a semblance of order, and early in the thirteenth century, out of the chaos of barbarous and more or less independent tribes, four principal states had taken shape. They were Servia or Rascia, Bosnia, Hlum or Hum, and Doclea. The most important of these was Servia, welded into a kingdom by the Nemanja dynasty, who had extended their frontiers southwards and eastwards at the expense of the Eastern Roman Empire. It included, besides modern Servia, as far as the Ibar and the Servian Morava, a part of Bosnia to the east of the watershed between the rivers Bosna and Drina, the district of Novibazar and Old Servia, and a part of Albania.97 It had no regular capital in the modern sense, but the Kings resided usually at Prizren, at Scutari,98 or at Skopje (Üsküb). It touched the sea-coast at the Bocche di Cattaro and in Albania; and the town of Cattaro was sometimes under Servian protection. The importance of the country does not begin until the reign of Stephen Nemanja (1143 or 1159). He extended his territory so as to include Bosnia in 1169, and reduced all the semi-independent župans (feudal lords) to subjection. He was still under Byzantine suzerainty, but after the death of Manuel Comnenus in 1180 he refused to pay tribute to his successor, conquered Niš, and made Priština99 his capital. In 1185 he shook off all allegiance to the Greeks, and assumed the title of King of Servia, but was not crowned. In 1195 he abdicated in favour of his son, Stephen Uroš, who was crowned by his younger brother, St. Sava, the first archbishop of Servia. Stephen Uroš’s reign was peaceful, and Servia flourished under him. His brother, Vukan, had inherited the Zeta and part of Hlum from his father, but owed allegiance to Stephen Uroš. When the Latin Empire of Constantinople was established in 1205, Baldwin recognised him as independent King of Servia, Bosnia, and Dalmatia. Uroš died in 1224. His son, Stephen III., captured the town of Vidin or Bdin from the Bulgarians, and the district of Syrmia between the Save and the Danube. His brother, Ladislas, who succeeded him, abandoned Vidin on marrying the Bulgarian Tsar’s daughter. A third brother, Stephen IV. the Great, succeeded in 1237. With Stephen Uroš II. Milutin (succeeded 1275) Servia is almost at the height of her power. He conquered a large part of Macedonia, capturing the town of Serres, besieged Salonica in 1285, and invaded Albania. He added Bosnia, which had been under Hungarian vassalage, once more to Servia, by divorcing his first wife and marrying Elizabeth, the daughter of the King of Hungary, who gave him Bosnia as a dowry. His grandson, Stephen, who was called Dušan or the Strangler, because he had strangled his own father,100 succeeded in 1331, and extended his power over the greater part of the Balkan peninsula. He conquered the rest of Macedonia and Albania, and reduced Bulgaria to a state of vassalage. In 1346 he had himself crowned “Tsar of the Serbs and Greeks.”101

      Bosnia, which corresponded to the modern region of that name, minus the eastern districts under Servia and the north-west corner, was ruled by a Banus who owed allegiance to Hungary. The first Banus, whose name is recorded in authentic documents, is Borić, who reigned from 1154 to 1163. During the next twenty years the country was under Byzantine suzerainty, represented at times by Greek governors, at others by native princes with Imperial diplomas. In 1180 the great Banus Kulin or Čulin came to the throne, shook off Byzantine authority, and ruled the country wisely and well for twenty-four years. He cultivated friendly relations with his neighbours, including Ragusa.102 “The days of Čulin” became proverbial in later and less happy times to indicate a golden age. After Čulin’s death the country’s prosperity declined, but revived to some extent under Matthew Ninoslav (1232). After the death of his successor in 1254 Bosnia fell once more under Hungarian vassalage, and was divided into Bosnia proper (afterwards Bosnia-Mačva) under native vassal Bani, and the district of Usora and Soli ruled by Hungarian magnates. After a short period under the Croatian house of Šubić the native prince, Stephen Kotromanić, became Banus under Hungarian suzerainty, and reigned until 1353, when his nephew, Stephen Trvartko or Tvrtko,103 succeeded him and crowned himself king.

      The land of Hlum or Hum had in early times formed part of the kingdom of Doclea, and included, besides the modern Herzegovina, Tribunia (or Travunia), the peninsula of Sabbioncello, a long stretch of Dalmatian coast, and part of Montenegro. In 1015 it was conquered by the Bulgarian Tsars, whose empire had spread to the Adriatic. The Greek Emperor, Basil II. (Bulgaroktonos), reconquered it in 1019, and in 1050 the native prince Radoslav drove out the Greeks, and made himself ruler of the country. Among his successors was Bodino, who is said to have besieged Ragusa. During the twelfth century the Servians attacked Doclea, and in 1143 King Radoslav II. asked the Greek Emperor for help against them; but in 1150 Hlum was conquered by Dessa (or Stephen Nemanja), brother of the King of Servia, reoccupied by the Greeks a few years later, and in 1168 added once more to the kingdom of Servia. From 1198 to the beginning of the thirteenth century it was connected with Croatia, after which it returned once more to the Servians. The latter were extremely anxious to possess Hlum, because it afforded them their best opening to the sea (to the north they were cut off by Bosnia and Croatia). In all probability it continued to form part of Servia until added to the Bosnian Banate by Stephen Kotromanić about 1320 or 1330, shorn, however, of Stagno by the Ragusans, as we shall see subsequently.104

      Ragusa was thus surrounded on all her land frontiers by powerful Slavonic states, who at times were friendly, but envied her wealth, and above all her splendid port; of this they tried on more than one occasion to gain possession. Ragusa relied for safety on their own dissensions and on Venetian protection. In the meantime she made the most of her position by exploiting their territory for commercial purposes.

      Of the first twenty years of Venetian rule there is little to record. Of the counts, only one name is mentioned between 1204 and 1222—Giovanni Dandolo,105 who may have ruled during the whole period. But about this time there occurred a curious event in the history of the town, which is described as a Ragusan version of the story of Marin Faliero. It is variously represented as having occurred about 1221–1223 or 1230–1232. The earlier date appears to be more probable, for reasons which we shall explain. Apparently for a few years previously Ragusa had been enjoying what was practically absolute freedom, as no Venetian count had been appointed. In 1221 or thereabouts a certain Damiano Giuda or Juda was elected count

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