Simonida Nemanjić ( sr-cyr, Симонида Немањић; – after 1336), born Simonis Palaiologina (, sr. Симонида Палеолог, ''Simonida Paleolog''), was a

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived the events that caused the fall of the Western Roman E ...

princess and

queen consort A queen consort is the wife of a reigning king, and usually shares her spouse's social Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and status. She holds the feminine equivalent of the king's monarchical titles and may be crowned and anointed, but hi ...

of the

Kingdom of Serbia The Kingdom of Serbia was a country located in the Balkans which was created when the ruler of the Principality of Serbia, Milan I of Serbia, Milan I, was proclaimed king in 1882. Since 1817, the Principality was ruled by the Obrenović dynast ...

as the fourth wife of

Serbian king This is an wiktionary:archontology, archontological list of Serbs, Serbian monarchs, containing Monarch, monarchs of the Serbia in the Middle Ages, medieval principalities, to heads of state of modern Serbia. The :Serbian monarchy, Serbian mona ...

Stefan Milutin Stefan Uroš II Milutin ( sr-Cyrl, Стефан Урош II Милутин, Stefan Uroš II Milutin; 1253 – 29 October 1321), known as Saint King, was the King of Serbia between 1282–1321, a member of the Nemanjić dynasty. He was one ...

(r. 1282–1321). She was a daughter of the

Byzantine Emperor The foundation of Constantinople in 330 AD marks the conventional start of the Eastern Roman Empire, which Fall of Constantinople, fell to the Ottoman Empire in 1453 AD. Only the emperors who were recognized as legitimate rulers and exercised s ...

Andronikos II Palaiologos Andronikos II Palaiologos (; 25 March 1259 – 13 February 1332), Latinization of names, Latinized as Andronicus II Palaeologus, reigned as Byzantine emperor from 1282 to 1328. His reign marked the beginning of the recently restored em ...

(r. 1282–1328) and

Irene of Montferrat Yolande of Montferrat ( – 1317 in Drama) (also known as Violante, then Empress Irene) was the second wife of Andronikos II Palaiologos and thus Empress of the Byzantine Empire. She was the heiress of the Margraviate of Montferrat. Life Born ...

. In

Medieval Serbia The medieval period in the history of Serbia began in the 6th century with the Slavic migrations to Southeastern Europe, and lasted until the Ottoman Serbia, Ottoman conquest of Serbian lands in the second half of the 15th century. The period i ...

Simonida is best remembered as a patron of the Arts, Music and Literature.

Life

Simonida was born in

Constantinople Constantinople (#Names of Constantinople, see other names) was a historical city located on the Bosporus that served as the capital of the Roman Empire, Roman, Byzantine Empire, Byzantine, Latin Empire, Latin, and Ottoman Empire, Ottoman empire ...

. In 1298, as a result of a Byzantine defeat, Emperor Andronikos II promised a marriage alliance to the

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * Pertaining to Serbia in Southeast Europe; in particular **Serbs, a South Slavic ethnic group native to the Balkans ** Serbian language ** Serbian culture **Demographics of Serbia, includes other ethnic groups within the co ...

ruler Milutin. Initially, Andronikos II intended to wed his sister Eudokia, the empress-dowager of Trebizond, but after she refused, Simonida was proposed instead. Church circles in Constantinople opposed the marriage, but the emperor was determined to push the deal through, and in late 1298 he sent his trusted minister

Theodore Metochites Theodore Metochites (; 1270–1332) was a Byzantine Greek statesman, author, gentleman philosopher, and patron of the arts. From c. 1305 to 1328 he held the position of personal adviser ('' mesazōn'') to emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos. Life ...

to Serbia to conduct the negotiations. On his part, Milutin too was eager to accept, and even divorced his third wife,

Ana Terter Ana Terter (Bulgarian language, Bulgarian and sr-cyr, Ана Тертер; died after 1304) was a Second Bulgarian Empire, Bulgarian princess and Queen consort of Serbia in the Middle Ages, Serbia (1284–1299). She was the fourth wife of King S ...

, the daughter of the Bulgarian tsar George Terter. Simonida was five years old, and Milutin was almost 50, was married three times, with adult children. The marriage was celebrated in

Thessalonica Thessaloniki (; ), also known as Thessalonica (), Saloniki, Salonika, or Salonica (), is the second-largest city in Greece (with slightly over one million inhabitants in its metropolitan area) and the capital city, capital of the geographic reg ...

in spring 1299, and the couple departed for Serbia in April. As a wedding present, Byzantines recognized Serbian rule north of the line

Ohrid Ohrid ( ) is a city in North Macedonia and is the seat of the Ohrid Municipality. It is the largest city on Lake Ohrid and the eighth-largest city in the country, with the municipality recording a population of over 42,000 inhabitants as of ...

—

Prilep Prilep ( ) is the List of cities in North Macedonia, fourth-largest city in North Macedonia. According to 2021 census, it had a population of 63,308. Name The name of Prilep appeared first as ''Πρίλαπος'' in Greek (''Prilapos'') in 1 ...

—

Štip Štip ( ) is the largest urban agglomeration in the eastern part of North Macedonia, serving as the economic, industrial, entertainment and educational focal point for the surrounding municipalities. As of the 2021 census, the city of Štip had ...

. Simonida showed great interest in theology at a rather young age and wanted to become a

nun A nun is a woman who vows to dedicate her life to religious service and contemplation, typically living under vows of poverty, chastity, and obedience in the enclosure of a monastery or convent.''The Oxford English Dictionary'', vol. X, page 5 ...

. After her mother Irene died in 1317, Simonida attended her funeral in Constantinople and decided not to return to Serbia after nearly a decade and a half of discussion. When Milutin's men came for her, she came to them in

monastic habit A religious habit is a distinctive set of clothing worn by members of a religious order. Traditionally, some plain garb recognizable as a religious habit has also been worn by those leading the religious eremitic and anchoritic life, although ...

. They were shocked, but her own half-brother

Constantine Palaiologos Constantine XI Dragases Palaiologos or Dragaš Palaeologus (; 8 February 140429 May 1453) was the last reigning List of Byzantine emperors, Byzantine emperor from 23 January 1449 until his death in battle at the fall of Constantinople on 29 M ...

took off her monastic habit and ordered her to take the civil dress. He then sent her to Serbia with Milutin's men, although she was reluctant to go. After Milutin threatened to start a war, Simonida came back to him. She was 22 years old. When Milutin fell ill, she was beside him all the time, much to the surprise of the rest of the court. Milutin died on 19 October 1321, and already on 29 October, Simonida returned to Constantinople, where she entered the monastery of

Saint Andrew in Krisei Koca Mustafa Pasha Mosque (; also named ''Sünbül Efendi Camii'') is a former Eastern Orthodox church converted into a mosque by the Ottomans, located in Istanbul, Turkey. The church, as the adjoining monastery, was dedicated to Saint Andrew of ...

as a nun. There is very little information about her later life. It is known that she ordered a

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect th ...

song for her father's funeral. Simonida was last mentioned in historical documents in 1336 as an attendee at an assembly of civil and religious dignitaries, who prosecuted the conspirators against the government. She died some time after 1345.

Legacy

Her beauty was well known, and she was known as a figure of purity and beauty in Serbian tradition. A

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

of her in

Gračanica monastery Gračanica () may refer to: Places Bosnia and Herzegovina * Gračanica, Bosnia and Herzegovina, a town and municipality in Tuzla * Gračanica (Bugojno), a village in Central Bosnia * Gračanica, Gacko, a village in Republika Srpska * Gračanica, ...

is regarded as one of the most valuable frescoes in

Serbian art Serbian art refers to the visual arts of the Serbs and their nation-state Serbia. The medieval heritage includes Byzantine art, preserved in architecture, frescos and icons of the many Serbian Orthodox monasteries. In the early modern period, Se ...

. Unfortunately, the fresco is partly ruined, so that Simonida has no eyes. She brought a large entourage to Serbia, and with her arrival, Serbia received a massive injection of Byzantine culture. Byzantine-style court ceremonials and dress were adopted, Byzantine functional and honorary titles appeared, court offices were renamed, and Byzantine administrative, fiscal and legal institutions were copied. Byzantinization was further expanded by Serbia's newly won populous Greek-speaking regions, in which Milutin retained all former Byzantine political, social and cultural activities. Strangely enough, none of this would have happened due to a near-death experience in 1303 during a small festival being held in Ras. A maid had nearly killed her by jumping off a known balcony but had failed to do so.The Balkans: From Constantinople to Communism
by D. Hupchick, page 89

Milan Rakić Milan Rakić (Serbian Cyrillic: Милан Ракић; 18 September 1876 – 30 June 1938) was a Serbian poet-diplomat and academic. He focused on dodecasyllable and hendecasyllable verse, which allowed him to achieve beautiful rhythm and rh ...

wrote a

lyric poem Modern lyric poetry is a formal type of poetry which expresses personal emotions or feelings, typically spoken in the first person. The term for both modern lyric poetry and modern song lyrics derives from a form of Ancient Greek literature, th ...

about her named ''Simonida'', and

Milutin Bojić Milutin Bojić ( sr-Cyrl, Милутин Бојић; – ) was a Serbian war poet, theatre critic, playwright, and soldier. A native of Belgrade, he began writing poetry at an early age and published a number of literary reviews under a p ...

wrote a psychological drama called ''Kraljeva Jesen'' ("King's autumn") about her. Asteroid 1675 Simonida discovered by Serbian astronomer Milorad B. Protić was named after her.

Ancestry

References

External links

, - {{Authority control 1294 births 1340s deaths 14th-century Serbian royalty 14th-century Byzantine nuns Queens consort of Serbia Greek women of the Byzantine Empire Medieval Serbian royal consorts Medieval Serbian people Palaiologos dynasty Nemanjić dynasty Year of death unknown Daughters of Byzantine emperors 14th-century Serbian women

Life

Legacy

Ancestry

See also

References

Further reading

External links