Angjelina Arianit Komneni
Encyclopedia
Saint Angelina of Serbia was a 15th-century queen consort (Despotissa) of Serbian
ruler Stefan Branković. She came from an Albanian
noble family and was sister-in-law of Skanderbeg
. For her pious life she has been proclaimed a saint and venerated as such by the Serbian Orthodox Church
.
, in the time when most of the people of Albania were Orthodox Christians. Angelina was married to Serbian ruler Stefan Branković, son of the Despot of Serbia called Lord George, and is venerated as saint Angelina of Serbia
in the Serbian Orthodox Church
.
Angelina was the sister of Donika Kastrioti
, who was the wife of George Kastrioti Skanderbeg. Both Lady Angelina and Branković fled to the territories of the League of Lezhë
and then to Italy, when the regions of the Serbian Despotate
and those of the League were invaded by the Ottoman Empire.
In 1485, at the death of her husband, Angelina went to the Kingdom of Hungary
, where her son had, George, had become a titular despot in exile of the Serbian Despotate
. The territory of the Despotate had been under the Ottoman Empire since its collapse in 1459. Later Angelina retired in the Krušedol monastery
, in the Fruška Gora
mountain, Syrmia
, where she died in the beginning of the 16th century.
She is venerated as a saint by the Serbian Orthodox Church
and her feast day is July 30 or December 10. She wrote a hagiography
known as Hagiography of Mother Angelina .
Serbians
Serbians may refer to people who are identified with the country of Serbia, or people of the Serb ethnic group.However it could also be used as the translation of Serbian word "Србијанци" , especially when distinction is made between the two...
ruler Stefan Branković. She came from an Albanian
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
noble family and was sister-in-law of Skanderbeg
Skanderbeg
George Kastrioti Skanderbeg or Gjergj Kastrioti Skënderbeu , widely known as Skanderbeg , was a 15th-century Albanian lord. He was appointed as the governor of the Sanjak of Dibra by the Ottomans in 1440...
. For her pious life she has been proclaimed a saint and venerated as such by the Serbian Orthodox Church
Serbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
.
Life
Angelina was born Angelina Arianit Komneni, and was a princess and sixth daughter of Albanian noble Gjergj Arianit KomneniGjergj Arianit Komneni
Gjergj Arianiti was an important Albanian hero and the great uncle of Moisi Arianit Golemi. He was also the father of Gjergj Kastrioti's wife Marina Donika . He shared a distant relation from his great grandmother with the famous Byzantine Komnenos dynasty, originating in Paphlagonia, Asia Minor...
, in the time when most of the people of Albania were Orthodox Christians. Angelina was married to Serbian ruler Stefan Branković, son of the Despot of Serbia called Lord George, and is venerated as saint Angelina of Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
in the Serbian Orthodox Church
Serbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
.
Angelina was the sister of Donika Kastrioti
Donika Kastrioti
Donika Kastrioti Arianiti Muzaka, Princess of the League of Lezhë was an Albanian noblewoman. A member of the Houses of Arianiti, Muzaka and Kastrioti she was the wife of George Kastrioti Skanderbeg. She was the daughter of Gjergj Arianiti who stood as one of the greatest leaders' war against the...
, who was the wife of George Kastrioti Skanderbeg. Both Lady Angelina and Branković fled to the territories of the League of Lezhë
League of Lezhë
The League of Lezhë was an alliance of Albanian Principalities forged in Lezhë on the 2nd of March 1444. It was initiated and organised by Skanderbeg with the aim of uniting the Albanian principalities that had been founded in the 12th - 14th centuries, to fight the Ottoman Armies...
and then to Italy, when the regions of the Serbian Despotate
Serbian Despotate
The Serbian Despotate was a Serbian state, the last to be conquered by the Ottoman Empire. Although the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 is generally considered the end of the medieval Serbian state, the Despotate, a successor of the Serbian Empire and Moravian Serbia survived for 70 more years,...
and those of the League were invaded by the Ottoman Empire.
In 1485, at the death of her husband, Angelina went to the Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
, where her son had, George, had become a titular despot in exile of the Serbian Despotate
Serbian Despotate
The Serbian Despotate was a Serbian state, the last to be conquered by the Ottoman Empire. Although the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 is generally considered the end of the medieval Serbian state, the Despotate, a successor of the Serbian Empire and Moravian Serbia survived for 70 more years,...
. The territory of the Despotate had been under the Ottoman Empire since its collapse in 1459. Later Angelina retired in the Krušedol monastery
Krušedol monastery
The Krušedol monastery is a Serb Orthodox monastery on the Fruška Gora mountain in the northern Serbia, in the province of Vojvodina. The monastery is the legacy of the last Serbian despot family of Srem - Branković. It was built between 1509 and 1514...
, in the Fruška Gora
Fruška Gora
Fruška Gora is a mountain in north Syrmia. Most part of the territory is located within Vojvodina, Serbia, but a smaller part on its western side overlaps the territory of Croatia...
mountain, Syrmia
Syrmia
Syrmia is a fertile region of the Pannonian Plain in Europe, between the Danube and Sava rivers. It is divided between Serbia in the east and Croatia in the west....
, where she died in the beginning of the 16th century.
She is venerated as a saint by the Serbian Orthodox Church
Serbian Orthodox Church
The Serbian Orthodox Church is one of the autocephalous Orthodox Christian churches, ranking sixth in order of seniority after Constantinople, Alexandria, Antioch, Jerusalem, and Russia...
and her feast day is July 30 or December 10. She wrote a hagiography
Hagiography
Hagiography is the study of saints.From the Greek and , it refers literally to writings on the subject of such holy people, and specifically to the biographies of saints and ecclesiastical leaders. The term hagiology, the study of hagiography, is also current in English, though less common...
known as Hagiography of Mother Angelina .
Further reading
- Slobodan Mileusnić: Sveti Srbi, Novi SadNovi SadNovi Sad is the capital of the northern Serbian province of Vojvodina, and the administrative centre of the South Bačka District. The city is located in the southern part of Pannonian Plain on the Danube river....
2000.