page_title: Stefan Branković
section_title: Reign
hierarchical_section_title: Stefan Branković / Reign
caption_attribution_description: English: Serbian Despotate in 1455-1459.Српски / srpski: Srpska despotovina 1455-1459. godine.
context_page_description: Stefan Branković, also known in historiography as Stefan the Blind, was briefly the despot of the Serbian Despotate between 1458 and 1459, member of the Branković dynasty.
context_section_description: According to Nicol, Stefan had become a citizen of the Republic of Venice. He was blinded alongside his brother Grgur in 1441. Both blind brothers seem to have been omitted from considerations as possible heirs to their father. They could only claim the throne in 1458, since the death of Lazar left them the only male representatives of the Branković.
  According to Fine, Stefan secured the throne by co-operating with his sister-in-law Helena Palaiologina, widow of Lazar. She was a daughter of Thomas Palaiologos, Despot of the Morea, and Catherine Zaccaria of the Principality of Achaea. Helena however arranged the marriage of one of her daughters to Stjepan Tomašević, prince of Bosnia. She thus managed to secure the throne for her new son-in-law. Matthias Corvinus of Hungary and Stjepan Tomaš Kotromanić, King of Bosnia and father of Tomašević, dethroned Stefan on April 8, 1459. They enthroned Stjepan Tomašević as his replacement. At the end of 1459 Stefan decided to travel to Albania, where he had relatives. In mid-1460 he travelled to Albania where he married Angelina Arianit Komneni in November 1460. Angelina was the sister of Donika, who married Skanderbeg. Skanderbeg gave to Stefan Branković an unknown estate as appanage. At the beginning of 1461 Stefan Branković went to Italy with Skanderbeg's written recommendation.
  When Serbian Despotate had been lost to Ottomans, Stefan's son Jovan led Serbian refugees to the Kingdom of Hungary. There Jovan was finally recognized as Serbian Despot, with a principality called Raitzen.
caption: Serbian Despotate, 1455-1459
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