page_title: Croatia in union with Hungary
section_title: Dynastic struggles and the Šubić family
hierarchical_section_title: Croatia in union with Hungary / History / Dynastic struggles and the Šubić family
caption_attribution_description: English: Depiction of Paul I Šubić of Bribir on the 14th century Chest of Saint Simeon in Zadar.
context_page_description: The Kingdom of Croatia entered a personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary in 1102, after a period of rule of kings from the Trpimirović and Svetoslavić dynasties and a succession crisis following the death of king Demetrius Zvonimir. With the coronation of King Coloman of Hungary as "King of Croatia and Dalmatia" in 1102 in Biograd, the realm passed to the Árpád dynasty until 1301, when the line of the dynasty died out. Then, kings from the Capetian House of Anjou, who were also cognatic descendants of the Árpád kings, ruled the kingdoms. Later centuries were characterized by conflicts with the Mongols, who sacked Zagreb in 1242, competition with Venice for control over Dalmatian coastal cities, and internal warfare among Croatian nobility. Various powerful nobles emerged in the time period, like Paul I Šubić of Bribir and Hrvoje Vukčić Hrvatinić, that secured de facto independence for their realms. The Ottoman incursion into Europe in the 16th century significantly reduced Croatian territories and left the country weak and divided.
context_section_description: In 1290 King Ladislaus IV died, leaving no sons, and a war of succession broke out between Andrew III from the Árpád dynasty and Charles Martel of Anjou from the House of Anjou. Croatian Ban Paul Šubić and most of the Croatian nobility supported Charles Martel, while most of the Hungarian nobles supported Andrew III. The Babonić family was initially on the Anjou side, but soon came out for Andrew III. To retain Croatian support, father of Charles Martel, Charles II of Naples, awarded in the name of his son all lands from the Gvozd Mountain to the Neretva River hereditarily to Paul Šubić. The position of the ban was thus made hereditary for the Šubić family, while the local Croatian nobles became vassals of Paul and his descendants. In response Andrew III also issued a charter naming Paul a hereditary Croatian ban. As a result of this bidding for support and the absence of central power in the midst of a civil war, the Šubić family became the most powerful family in Croatia.
  In Zagreb, the bishop's town, Kaptol, supported Charles Martel, while Gradec supported Andrew, which led to bitter fighting in the area. After Charles Martel died in 1295 his rights to the throne passed to his son, Charles I (also known as Charles Robert). Croatian and Hungarian nobles eventually accepted Andrew III as King, but a new revolt started when in 1299 Andrew named his uncle, Albertino Morosini as heir, since he had no sons. Paul sent his brother, George I Šubić, to Rome to gain papal approval for their requests and bring Charles I to Croatia, where he arrived in August 1300. Andrew III died in January 1301 and brought the Árpád dynasty to an end. Ban Paul Šubić accompanied Charles I to Zagreb, where he was recognized as king. In March 1301 the Archbishop crowned him with a provisional crown King of Hungary and Croatia in Esztergom. So the act was not performed with the Holy Crown of Hungary in Székesfehérvár as it was required by custom.
  The privileges that Paul Šubić gained during the succession crisis were confirmed and his family gained hereditary banship. Although the Croatian nobles recognized Charles I, a part of the Hungarian nobles refused to do so and opted for Wenceslaus, the son of Wenceslaus II, King of Bohemia, who was in 1301 crowned King of Hungary in Székesfehérvár. Civil war followed in Hungary, but it did not affect Croatia, which was under the firm authority of Paul Šubić. Earlier in 1299 Paul gained control over Bosnia, so his title was from then "Ban of the Croats and Lord of Bosnia" (Latin: Banus Croatorum Dominus et Bosnae). He gave his brother Mladen I Šubić the title of Ban of Bosnia. At that time the power of Paul extended from Gvozd to the Neretva, and from the Adriatic coast to the Bosna River, and only the city of Zadar remained outside his realm and under the rule of Venice. In 1304 Ban Mladen I was killed in Bosnia. Paul carried out a campaign against Bosnia to reaffirm his authority, bringing more of its lands under his rule, as Paul referred to himself from 1305 as "lord of all Bosnia" (Latin: totius Bosniae dominus). He appointed his second son, Mladen II, Ban of Bosnia, and in 1305 his third son, Paul II, became the Prince of Split.
  Paul issued his own money and was for all practical purposes an independent ruler. In 1311 Paul triggered a successful rebellion in Zadar against Venetian rule. War with Venice continued after Paul's death on 1 May 1312, who was succeeded by his son Mladen II. With Paul's death began a gradual decline of the Bribir Princes. Venice eventually restored their rule in Zadar in 1313. In 1322 another civil war in Croatia started, culminating in the Battle of Bliska when Mladen II and his allies were defeated by a coalition of Croatian noblemen, including his brother Paul II, and coastal towns under the command of John Babonić, the Ban of Slavonia. A council in Knin was convened by the King where John Babonić was named Ban of Croatia and Dalmatia, ending the hereditary banship of the Šubić family. Their holdings were reduced and split between Mladen's brothers. Paul II held Bribir and
caption: Depiction of Paul I Šubić on the Chest of Saint Simeon in Zadar
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