Saint Helen of Serbia Света Јелена Српска Sveta Jelena Srpska | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Queen Helen of Serbia, fresco inSerbian OrthodoxSopoćani Monastery | |
| Church Builder | |
| Venerated in | Eastern Orthodox Church |
| Attributes | Church Builder |
| Queen consort of Serbia | |
| Tenure | 1243–1276 |
| Born | c. 1235 |
| Died | 8 February 1314 (agedc. 78) Church of St. Nicholas,Skadar |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | Stefan Uroš I |
| Issue |
|
| Religion | Roman Catholic, thenSerbian Orthodox |
| Signature |  |
Saint Helen of Serbia (Serbian:Света Јелена Српска,romanized: Sveta Jelena Srpska;c. 1235 – 8 February 1314) was thequeen consort of theSerbian Kingdom, as the spouse of KingStefan Uroš I, who ruled from 1243 to 1276. Their sons were later Serbian kingsStefan Dragutin (1276–1282) andStefan Milutin (1282–1321). As a dowager-queen, she held the provincial governorship in the regions ofZeta andTravunija (until 1308). She builtGradac Monastery and was known for herreligious tolerance. She isvenerated as a saint by theEastern Orthodox Church.[1][2] Herrelics, however, are now lost.
Helena's origin is not known for certain. Herhagiography, written by Serbian ArchbishopDanilo II (1324–1337), states only that she "was of a French family" (Serbian:бысть оть племене фpoужьскaаго), while in hagiography of her husband, King Stefan Uroš I, the same statement was repeated, but it was also added that she was "from the imperial family".[3]
By the beginning of the 20th century, several genealogical theories on her origin were proposed, based mainly on examination of historical data related to Helena's sister, or half-sister Maria and her family.[4][5]
One of those theories advocated that Helena was ofAngevine origin.[6] That theory was based on free interpretation of some sources from the 1280s and 1290s, showing that Angevine kings of Naples referred to Queen Helen of Serbia asdear cousin. Based on that, some researchers started to advocate Helena's direct origin from the House of Anjou, coining the term "Helen of Anjou" (Serbian Cyrillic:Јелена Анжујска, Jelena Anžujska). Despite a lack of supporting sources, the term became more popular during the 1920s and 1930s. It was promoted not only by journalists and publicists, but also by some scholars. Stating that Helen was of French origin,John Fine assumed that she was "probably of theValois family".[7]
Several scholars have pointed out that someNeapolitan andRagusan sources from the 1280s refer to Maria ofCayeux assister (Latin:soror), or at least a half-sister of Queen Helen of Serbia, thus focusing their efforts on discovering key details on Maria's ancestry. Gordon McDaniel proposed that Maria's husband Anselm ofCayeux, theCaptain General inAlbania (1273–1274) forCharles I of Naples, was the same Anselm who was mentioned in 1253–1255 as husband of Maria, daughter ofJohn Angelos of Syrmia (d. before 1250) andMatilda of Požega (d. after 1255). According to McDaniel, Maria and Helen were full sisters, by both parents, and thus both descended, through their father John, from a side branch of the Byzantine imperialHouse of Angelos, and the Hungarian royalHouse of Árpád.[8][9]
A key napolitan document that points to the sisterhood between Maria and Helen was issued in the summer of 1280, by kingCharles I of Sicily, who allowed lady Maria to travel fromApulia to Serbia, to visit her sister, the queen of Serbia (Latin:Quia nobilis mulier domina Maria de Chaurs cum filio suo et familia eiusdem domine intendit transfretare ad presens ad partes Servie visura dominam reginam Servie sororem suam). In later documents, issued in 1281, Maria was mentioned by king Charles as his cousin (Latin:nobilis mulier Maria domina Chau consanguinea nostra carissima), and widow of Anselm of Cayeux, who was son or grandson of the elderAnselm de Cayeux (Latin:nobilem mulierem Mariam relictam quondam nobilis viri Anselmi de Chau).[10]
Parents of Maria of Cayeux are known from her marriage licenses, issued from 1253 to 1255 by the papal chancellery. The first mentions the marriage "inter Anselmum de Keu ac Mariam, natam Matildis dominae de Posaga, natae comitissae Viennensis", while the second mentions "Maria, nate quondam Calojohanni" and also mentions Matilda's maternal uncle as "imperatore Constantinopolitano, eiusdem Matildis avunculo".[11][12] Those data allowed McDaniel to identify Maria's father asJohn Angelos, and Maria's mother asMatilda, daughter ofMargaret Courtenay (sister of the Latin emperorsRobert I andBaldwin II).[13][14]
Several scholars have accepted McDaniel's conclusion that Maria of Cayeux and Helen of Serbia were sisters, or at least half sisters, thus also accepting his approach to complicated questions on Queen Helen's ancestry, and by proxy to other genealogical questions, related to their ancestors and cousins from various families (Angelos,Courtenay,Cayeux).[15][16][17][18][19][20][21]
Helen married KingStefan Uroš I of Serbia (1243–1276), around 1245–1250. In 1276, conflict broke out between her husband and their eldest sonStefan Dragutin.[22][23] King Uroš abdicated, and later died in 1280. During the reign of her sons Stefan Dragutin (1276–1282) andStefan Milutin (1282–1321), dowager-queen Helen held provincial administration in the regions ofZeta andTravunia, until 1308. She proved to be a successful administrator, governing regions with mixedSerbian Orthodox andRoman Catholic population.[24][25][26]
Soon after that, she became anun at the Church ofSt. Nicholas inSkadar, where she died on 8 February 1314.[27] She wascanonized by theSerbian Orthodox Church. Herfeast day is 12 November [O.S. 30 October].[28] With frescos fromSerbian OrthodoxGračanica Monastery Queen Helen significantly contributed to the cultural rise of the medieval Serbian state. She had a library at her court and encouraged transcription of books in monasteries. She founded the first girls' school in medieval Serbia. One of Helen's palaces was in the town ofBrnjak (sometimes called "Brnjaci") in the territory of modernKosovo. She also possessed the town ofJeleč atRogozna mountain. As did other members of theNemanjić dynasty, she built monasteries and donated to churches. She built theGradac Monastery, where she was buried, the Church of St. Nicholas inSkadar where she died, and renewed theMonastery of Saints Sergius and Bacchus. She had repaired and rebuilt many churches and monasteries aroundLake Skadar that had been devastated by theMongol invasion of 1242.[4][29][30][31][28]
Queen Helen and her husband, King Stefan Uroš I, had at least three children, two sons and one daughter:
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| Preceded by | Queen consort of Serbia c. 1245–1276 | Succeeded by |
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