Jovan Vladimir
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Vladimir (Владимир) (died May 22, 1016) was a ruler of Doclea. He is recognized as a Saint by the Serbian Orthodox Church under the name Saint Jovan Vladimir (Sveti Jovan Vladimir/Свети Јован Владимир).
The disintegration of Prince Ceslav's Serbia precipitated the rise of other Serbian principalities, most notably that of Duklja. This slavicized name comes from the ancient designation for a town (outside today's Podgorica) and part of the southern Adriatic and littoral — Dioclea. The region is to be called Zeta from the late 11th century, and eventually, since the late 15th century — Montenegro ("Crna Gora" in Serbian).
Jovan Vladimir appears during the protracted war between Byzantium and Tsar Samuil — the heir to the First Bulgarian Empire. In a situation reminiscent of earlier Serbian rulers, he was pressed by Bulgarian expansion, while being courted by the Byzantine Emperor. Samuil prevailed, taking Vladimir prisoner. His fate in captivity is the subject of one of the most romantic tales of early Serbian literature — the story of Vladimir and Theodora Kosara of Bulgaria, an oral tradition reported in the 12th century. Chronicles of the Priest of Dioclea. The tale tells how Samuil's daughter fell in love with the handsome captive, and begged her father for his hand. He obliged, returning to his new son-in-law Duklja and adjoining Trebinje. Thereafter, Vladimir apparently ruled in peace, evading involvement in the major conflict that culminated with Samuil's defeat by the Byzantines in 1014.
Vladimir finally fell victim in 1016 to a plot by his alleged ally, the last ruler of the First Bulgarian Empire, Ivan Vladislav. Duklja is not mentioned for the next twenty or so years, presumably remaining a vassal principality of Byzantium. Shortly after his death, Jovan Vladimir was to be recognized as a martyr and saint, with a cult that persists to this day, being honored on June 4. While limited in scope, this canonizing of the deceased ruler was to set a precedent, later to be expanded in the appearance of the Holy Nemanjić dynasty in Raška.
