Gradinja ( sr-cyr, Градиња) or Gradihna (; 1125–46) was the ruler of

Duklja Duklja ( sr-Cyrl, Дукља; ; ) was a medieval South Slavs, South Slavic state which roughly encompassed the territories of modern-day southeastern Montenegro, from the Bay of Kotor in the west to the Bojana river in the east, and to the sou ...

, from either 1131 to 1142 or 1135 to 1146. Gradinja is one of many persons (alongside Branislav, Gojislav, Georgije and Grubeša among others) mentioned only in the ''

Chronicle of the Priest of Duklja The ''Chronicle of the Priest of Dioclea or Duklja'' ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Ljetopis popa Dukljanina, Љетопис попа Дукљанина; ) is the usual name given to a medieval chronicle written in two versions between 1295 and 1301 by an eccles ...

'' (CPD), not found in Byzantine sources as the other Serbian rulers and royalty. Gradinja was the son of Dukljan prince

Branislav Branislav () is a Czech, Croatian, Russian, Slovak, Serbian, Slovene and Ukrainian given name. It also appears in Polish as Bronisław, in Russian as ''Bronislav,'' and Ukrainian as ''Boronyslav.'' The name is derived from the Slavic elements bran ...

, and the brother of

Grubeša Grubeša Branislavljević ( sr-cyrl, Грубеша Бранислављевић) (died 1125) was a medieval king and the ruler of Duklja from 1118 to 1125. After the Byzantine Empire defeated King George I of Duklja in 1118, Grubeša assumed the ...

, the former ruler (r. 1118–25). Around 1125, Gradinja, the rival of

Đorđe Đorđe ( sr-Cyrl, Ђорђе; transliterated Djordje) is a masculine given name of Slavic origin, common in Serbian. It is derived from Greek ''Georgios'' ('' George'' in English). Other variants include: Đurđe, Đurađ, Đura, Đuro, Geo ...

, married himself in ''Raška'' (

Grand Principality of Serbia The Grand Principality of Serbia ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Великожупанска Србија, Velikožupanska Srbija, separator=" / "), also known by the anachronistic exonym Raška (region), Rascia ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рашка, Raška, separator=" ...

), with the "intent of returning the rule", according to

Mavro Orbini Mavro Orbini (1563–1614) was a Ragusan chronicler, notable for his work '' The Realm of the Slavs'' (1601) which influenced Slavic ideology and historiography in the later centuries. Life Orbini was born in Ragusa (now Dubrovnik), the capital ...

. Following the second war with the Byzantines, in which King Đorđe was defeated and imprisoned in the stronghold of Oblik, the Byzantines appointed Gradinja as ruler of Duklja, to rule as a vassal. According to the CPD, Gradinja was gentle, tame, compassionate and a protector of the widows and the poor. The power and territorial extent of Duklja was, in the time of his reign, greatly decreased. His son

Radoslav Radoslav () is a common Slavic masculine given name, derived from ''rad-'' ("happy, eager, to care") and ''slava'' ("glory, fame"), both very common in Slavic dithematic names. It roughly means "eager glory". It is known since the Middle Ages. T ...

inherited the throne in 1146. Gradinja was according to Gavro Škrivanić buried in the

Church of Saints Sergius and Bacchus in Bojana The Shirgj Church (), also known as the Monastery of Saints Sergius and Bacchus (), is a ruined former Benedictine monastery in the village of Shirgj on the river Buna in northern Albania. The church was built by Saint Helen of Serbia in 1290, ded ...

References

Sources

* * * * * * * * {{S-end 12th-century monarchs in Europe 12th-century Serbian nobility 12th-century Byzantine people Monarchs of Duklja Vojislavljević dynasty Pretenders 12th-century deaths People from the Grand Principality of Serbia

See also

References

Sources