SERBIAN WRITTEN SOURCES ON THE TATARS AND THE GOLDEN HORDE (FIRST HALF OF THE 14TH CENTURY)

Serbian narrative and documentary texts, written in the first half of the XIV century, represent valuable source material for the research of Tatar political and military influence in the Balkan lands. Most important among them are Vita of King Stephen Uros II Milutin (1282-1321), extant in three different editions and Vita of Archbishop Daniel II (13241337). The first one offers insight into the relations between the Kingdom of Serbia and the powerful Juchid prince Nogai, while in the latter, the key role of Tatar contingents in internal power struggle between king Milutin and his brother Stephen Dragutin is mentioned. The presence of Tatars in the Battle of Velbazhd (1330), fought between Serbia and the Bulgarian Empire, is also attested in various sources, including the so-called Old Serbian chronicles and the Code of Law of Emperor Stephen Dusan (1349). Another group of sources analyzed in the text are several apocryphal writings of South Slavic literature. Their value lies in the fact that they reflect the image of the Tatars in the eyes of the Balkan Slavs. Last, but not least important testimony of Tatar activities in Serbian lands is preserved in place-names of Tatar origin, recorded in royal charters, issued by Milutin's son Stephen (1321-1331) and grandson Stephen Dusan (1331-1355).