MARKO KRALJEVIC

born c. 1335 died May 17, 1395, Rovine, Serbia king of Serbia from 1371 to 1395 and a hero in the literature and traditions of the South Slavic peoples. Marko Kraljevic (Mark, the King's Son) was a member of the powerful Macedonian family allied to that of Balic, which ruled in northern Albania and along the Adriatic. When his father, King Vukain, was slain in battle with the Turks in 1371, Marko succeeded him as a vassal to the sultan. He is known to have completed a monastery at Suica, near Skopje, and to have died fighting at the Battle of Rovine (1395) during a war between the Turks and the Walachian prince Mircea the Old, but otherwise his life is sparsely documented. More colourful details have been preserved in Romanian, Bulgarian, and Albanian folk songs as well as in Serbian ballads and epic poetry. Joyous, just, strong, incredibly brave, and chivalrous to a fault, Marko is portrayed as an implacable foe of the Turks and a prodigious drinker of wine.