Petar Berislavić
Petar Berislavić was born in Trogir in 1475. He decided to follow the path of priesthood, leaving his hometown of Trogir for Hungary. In 1501 he is mentioned as a senior clergyman in Kalocsa, while in 1512 he became the Bishop of Veszprem. He also served various state duties, and in 1513 he became the Ban (viceroy) of Croatia, Dalmatia and Slavonia. Before that he firmly advocated for Dalmatia and his hometown Trogir to be taken back from the Venetians. That, however, did not happen. As a ban, he was strongly dedicated to defending Croatian lands from the Ottoman invasions. As early as August 1513, he defeated a large Ottoman host near Dubica with the help of other Croatian nobles, which echoed far beyond Croatian lands. In the next few years Petar tirelessly gathered assets needed for defense. In particular, he sought aid from the Pope, who showed willingness to help. All the while he fought back the Ottoman incursions, sword in hand. On multiple occasions he supported the defense of the important city and fortress of Jajce. Thus, in 1518 he reached the city with his forces, defeated the Ottomans and provided weapons and supplies to the defenders. During his time as a ban, he proved himself as an extraordinary military leader and a warrior who not only managed to stop the Ottomans, but also inflict several heavy defeats upon them. On 20 May 1520 he was killed during an attempt to destroy an Ottoman group at Vražja Gora near Korenica. On the day he died, Pope Leo X, unaware of his passing, named him cardinal. The previous year, in a letter to Ban Petar, Pope Leo X called Croatia the Vanguard of Christianity ("antemurale Christianitatis"). Petar's body was transferred to Veszprém and buried in the city's cathedral, where his grave has remained to this day, marked by a tombstone with his crest etched onto it.
Ivan Karlović
Ivan Karlović Krbavski, from the Kurjaković lineage, was born around the year 1485. He gained the title of a duke along with various estates after his father, Duke Karlo Kurjaković, died. In the following years he did all in his power to keep the Ottoman threat away from his holdings, even by occasionally cooperating with them. Despite the occasional alliance with the Ottomans, he was forced to fight them time and again. As early as 1500, he beat them in the Battle of Gradac. As the Deputy Ban and Captain of Croatia and Dalmatia, he participated in the great Croatian victory in the Battle of Dubica in August 1513 alongside Ban Petar Berislavić. He became a ban in 1521 and spent the following years trying to organize the Kingdom's defense from the Ottoman invasions. During that time, the Ottomans conquered parts that were once the heart of Croatia, including Knin, Skradin and Ostrovica. Despite all efforts, he did not receive sufficient help, so he even had to invest his own resources. Constant warfare against the Ottomans reduced Croatia's territory daily, and the lost lands included Karlović's estates. In 1524, he renounced the ban title, only to be reappointed after Ferdinand I of Habsburg was elected as Croatian king in 1527, jointly with Franjo Batthyány. Already the following year, on 5 October 1528, he led the Croatian forces to a major victory against the Ottomans. In 1529 he commanded the Croatian troops that helped the king end the Ottoman siege of Vienna. During that time in Croatia there was a conflict between the nobles supporting King Ferdinand I and those who supported his rival Ivan Zapolja. This weakened the country, especially the Ottoman resistance. For this reason, Karlović strove to reconcile the contending parties, and ultimately a peace agreement was signed in 1530. Shortly after, on 9 August 1531, he died at Medvedgrad. He was buried in a church in Remete, but his grave has not been preserved.
Christoph Frankopan
Christoph Frankopan (also: Krsto I. Brinjski) was most likely born in Modruš in 1482 as a child of Bernardin Frankopan and Princess Luisa of Aragon. In the early 16th century, he entered the service of King Maximillian I Habsburg, successfully waging war on the Venetians in Istria and present-day northeastern Italy. The warfare against the Venetians was shortly interrupted in 1512 and 1513, when he unsuccessfully tried to take back the island of Krk alongside his father Bernardin. Krk was the original seat of the noble house of Krčki (later called Frankopan) and had been under the Venetian authority since 1480. After that, Christoph returned to the imperial service and continued to fight against the Venetians. He was captured and imprisoned in June 1514 in Venice. A Roman breviary in German, printed in 1518, was also created there. The cover shows Christoph and his wife Apollonia in prayer. At the request of the French King Francis I, he was transferred to Milan in 1519, but managed to escape and return to the imperial service. He went back to Croatia in 1523, and visited Rome the same year to seek Pope's help in defending Croatia. In June 1525, he performed a great feat by breaking through to the besieged Jajce, delivering weapons and supplies to its defenders. King Louis II of Hungary honored him for this heroism with the title of "the Defender of the Kingdoms of Croatia, Dalmatia and Slavonia". Before the Battle of Mohács, he advised King Louis II of Hungary to wait for the arrival of other Croatian nobles and their forces, which the former disregarded. On 23 September 1526, during an assembly in Križevci, the nobility appointed him as "the Governor and Supreme Protector" of the Kingdom. After the death of King Louis II in Mohács, he did not openly align himself with either candidate for the Croatian-Hungarian throne, Ferdinand I of Habsburg or Ivan Zapolja. In October 1526, however, he sided with Ivan Zapolja, who appointed him the Ban of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia. Therefore, it was only natural that he participated in the election of Zapolja as king alongside the Slavonian nobility at the Dubrava assembly on 18 December 1526. The election of two kings and their unfulfilled promises regarding the country's defense against the Ottomans led to disagreements and armed fights between their supporters. Christoph remained loyal to Zapolja, only to be mortally wounded in a battle near Varaždin on 26 September 1527. He died the next day in Martijanec near Varaždin and was buried in Modruš.
Thomas II Erdődy
Thomas II Erdődy (previously known in literature as Thomas Bakač Erdődy) was born around 1558. Two decades later, in 1578, he participated in the battles against the Ottomans near Bihać, under the command of the Ban of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia Krsto Ungnad and the Carinthian land captain Georg (Juraj) von Khevenhüller. Since then, Thomas participated in various campaigns and battles against the Ottomans, for example in the victories at Cernik and in Turopolje in 1581. In September 1583, he was named the Ban of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia. He continued to fight the Ottomans as a ban, and in 1585 managed to break through to Kostajnica. Certainly the most famous battle in which he participated as the Croatian Ban and military leader was the Battle of Sisak on 22 June 1593, in which the Ottomans led by Hasan Pasha Predojević suffered a heavy defeat (Hasan Pasha was also killed in the battle) which echoed throughout Europe as a brilliant Christian victory. Pope Clement VIII therefore sent him a letter of recognition, calling him "dear son". Despite that victory, the Ottomans captured the Sisak fortress on 30 August 1593. Nevertheless, the Battle of Sisak meant stopping further Ottoman conquests of Croatian lands and establishing balance on the battlefields, while also enabling the launch of attacks on areas under the Ottomans. Not long after, the Croats managed to take back the Sisak fortress. In 1594, Thomas occupied Petrinja, which the Ottomans burned before retreating. At the end of that year they reoccupied the town, but in September 1595, a host that Thomas was part of finally drove the Ottomans out of Petrinja. In the meantime, in January 1595, he requested to be relieved of the ban duty, which was granted by King Rudolf II of Habsburg in September that year. After performing numerous other functions, he once again served as ban from 1608 to 1615. He died in Krapina on 17 January 1624, and was buried in the Zagreb Cathedral. On the tombstone that still stands today, he is depicted in full armor and with the family crest, and the displayed weapons and trophies from battles against the Ottomans are a reminder that he was a prominent military leader.
dr. sc. Mario Jareb, Scientific Advisor
Croatian Institute of History
