Maria of Serbia, Marchioness of Montferrat

Maria of Serbia or Marija Branković (Serbian: Марија Бранковић, b. 1466 - d. 27 August 1495) was princess of Serbia by birth, and marchioness of Montferrat by marriage. She was daughter of despot Stefan Branković of Serbia and princess Angelina Arianiti of Albania. In 1485, she married Boniface III, Marquess of Montferrat.^[1]

Biography

Since 1459, when Serbia fell under Ottoman rule,^[2] Maria′s father, despot Stefan Branković, was living in exile, mainly in northern Italy, where Marija was born in 1466. In 1485, she was married to Boniface III Palaiologos, marquess of Montferrat, who fell ill in 1493, and Marija became regent.^[3] Boniface died in 1494, and his widow continued to act as regent since their sons were still minor. Marija died in 1495.^[4]

Marija and Boniface had two sons: William IX (1486-1518), who became Marquess of Montferrat between 1494 and 1518, and John George (1488-1533) became the last Marquess of Montferrat between 1530 and 1533.

References

Sources

• Ćirković, Sima (2004). The Serbs. Malden: Blackwell Publishing.
• Haberstumpf, Walter (2009). Regesti dei Marchesi di Monferrato (secoli IX-XVI). Alessandria: San Giorgio Editrice.
• Ruggiero, Michele (1979). Storia del Piemonte. Torino: Piemonte in Bancarella.

Ancestry