Stephen III
Géza II, who died on 31 May 1162, was succeeded by his first-born son, Stephen III. Stephen III seems to have confirmed Béla's possession of the duchy, because Kinnamos referred to the land which was "long before granted" to Béla by Géza and Stephen. Shortly after his ascension to the throne, Stephen III was expelled by his uncles, Ladislaus II and Stephen IV. The Byzantine Emperor, Manuel I Komnenos, supported the uncles' takeover, but Stephen III returned to Hungary and regained his crown by force in the middle of 1163. Béla probably remained neutral during his brother's conflict with their uncles, because there is no report of Béla's activities in 1162 and 1163.