knez

Led by the Serb knez, or prince, Lazar Hrebeljanović (he did not claim Dušan’s imperial title), a combined army of Serbs, Albanians, and Hungarians met Murad’s forces in battle. On St. Vitus’s Day (Vidovdan), June 28 (June 15, Old Style), 1389, at Kosovo Polje, the Serbs and their allies…

…would later rule through local knezes, who were Christian “princes” or “headmen.” A knez might act as a negotiator for taxation with the authorities, as a kind of justice of the peace, as an intermediary in the organization of labour obligations, or as a spokesman for the Christian population in…