Đuraš Ilijić was a Serbian nobleman that held Upper Zeta with the title of čelnik (head) during the rule of Stefan Dečanski (r. 1321–1331), Dušan the Mighty (r. 1331–1355) and Uroš the Weak (r. 1355-1371), from 1326 until his death in 1362. He is an ancestor of the House of Crnojević

House of Crnojevic

The Crnojević was a medieval Serb noble house that held Zeta, or parts of it; a region corresponding to north of Lake Skadar , from 1326 to 1362, then 1403 until 1515. The progenitor, Đuraš Ilijić, was head of Upper Zeta in the Serbian Kingdom and Empire The Crnojević was a medieval Serb noble...

 (Đurašević).

Life

He was the son of Ilija, a kefalija (from Greek kephale

Kephale (Byzantine Empire)

In the late Byzantine Empire, the term kephalē was used to denote local and provincial governors.It entered use in the second half of the 13th century, and was derived from the colloquial language. Consequently, it never became an established title or rank of the Byzantine imperial hierarchy, but...

, "head", a term used for a provincial governor), and had two brothers, Nikola and Vladin. Đuraš was one of the counts that supported Dušan's overthrow against his father. In 1355 he heads together with his brothers, sons and fraternal nephews to defend Skradin

Skradin

Skradin is a small town in the Šibenik-Knin county of Croatia it has a population about 3,986 . It is located near the Krka river and at the entrance to the Krka National Park, from Šibenik and from Split...

 against the Magyars. He ends up subsequently giving it to Mljet

Mljet

Mljet is the most southerly and easterly of the larger Adriatic islands of the Dalmatia region of Croatia. The National Park includes the western part of the island, Veliko jezero, Malo jezero, Soline Bay and a sea belt 500 m wide from the most prominent cape of Mljet covering an area of...

 (Republic of Venice

Republic of Venice

The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...

) on January 10, 1356, after the news of the death of Dušan, who had wished this (the Emperor had previously sought diplomacy with Venice regarding a flotilla). He was killed around 1362, by the sons of his enemy Balša I, He was buried in the Church of Saint Michael on Prevlaka

Prevlaka

Prevlaka is a small peninsula in southern Croatia, at the entrance to the Bay of Kotor in the eastern Adriatic. The word prevlaka means portage. The cape Oštro, located at the tip of the peninsula, is the southernmost point of mainland in Croatia....

 with the inscription "in Emperor's Stefan's name a fearsome knight" (у цара Стефана трети витез).

Sources

• Vladimir Corovic: Istorija srpskog naroda "Kralj Lajoš se, doista, počeo spremati na Srbe, ali ne mogade tokom 1355. god. preći u napadaj. Možda nije imao ni prave volje da primi borbu s Dušanom, čiju je snagu znao i video. Sem sa Srbijom on je rđavo stajao i sa Mletačkom Republikom, nešto zbog mletačkih veza sa Srbima, a mnogo više zbog njenog učvršćivanja u Dalmaciji. Zbog izvesnih gradova u Dalmaciji, posebno zbog Klisa i Skradina, koji su pripadali Šubićima, odnosno Dušanovoj sestri Jeleni, udovici Mladena III, bilo je dosta pregonjenja i pregovaranja. Te gradove su hteli i Mlečani i Mađari i Bosanci, dok je Dušan želeo da ih očuva sestri kao svojoj saveznici, možda kao strateške tačke prema Bosni, sa njene zapadne strane. Dušanova vojska ušla je 1355. god. u te gradove. Kako car nije hteo nikakva sukoba s Mlečanima, on je, videći njihovu nesavladivu želju da dobiju te gradove, pristao da njegova sestra povede pregovore o prodaji. Videći neraspoloženje skradinskog građanstva protiv svojih ljudi, a čuvši možda i za carevu smrt, njegov vojvoda Đuraš Ilić predade taj grad Mlečanima 10. januara 1356. god., kako mu car beše ranije naredio. Grad Klis preoteli su Mađari."
• Sveta loza Stefana Nemanje, chapter 41