Stefan Uroš III Dečanski

Timeline

1. 1276–1321Dečani · KosovoBorn into the Nemanjić royal house, he was exiled by his father Milutin I to Constantinople amid early court struggles, later pardoned and recalled; imprisoned again in 1314, he was restored after Milutin's death in 1321, laying the groundwork for his eventual accession.
2. 1322–1330Dečani Monastery · KosovoFormally crowned King of Serbia in 1322 (effectively reigning from 1321), he vigorously built religious foundations such as Dečani Monastery and promoted church independence and the rule of law; he contended repeatedly with the Byzantine Empire in the Balkans and in June 1330 defeated Bulgarian Tsar Michael Shishman at the Battle of Velbazhd, striking fear across the Balkans.
3. 1331Zvečan Castle · SerbiaIn 1331 his eldest son Dušan launched a coup, deposing him and imprisoning him in Zvečan Castle, where he died on 11 November of the same year; Dečani Monastery, left from his reign, became a masterpiece of medieval Serbian architecture.