Ban of Croatia in the context of "Beloš of Serbia"

At the time of the Roman Empire, the area of modern Croatia comprised two Roman provinces, Pannonia and Dalmatia. After the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, the area was subjugated by the Ostrogoths for 50 years, before being incorporated into the Byzantine Empire.

Croatia, as a polity, first appeared as a duchy in the 7th century. With the nearby Principality of Lower Pannonia, it was united and elevated into the Kingdom of Croatia which lasted from 925 until 1102. From the 12th century, the Kingdom of Croatia entered a personal union with the Kingdom of Hungary. It remained a distinct state with its ruler (Ban) and Sabor, but it elected royal dynasties from neighboring powers, primarily Hungary, Naples, and the Habsburg monarchy. From the 15th to the 17th centuries was marked by intense struggles between the Ottoman Empire to the south and the Habsburg Empire to the north.

The Vukanović dynasty (Serbian Cyrillic: Вукановић, pl. Vukanovići / Вукановићи), was a medieval Serbian dynasty that ruled over inner Serbia, centered in the Raška region (Latin: Rascia), during the 11th and 12th century. Several members of the Vukanović dynasty also ruled in some other regions (Zachlumia, Travunia, Duklja, and also Croatia). The house may have descended from the Vojislavljević dynasty of Duklja. Vukanović dynasty was later succeeded in Serbia by the closely related Nemanjić dynasty, who represented their younger, cadet branch.

The Vukanović family was named by later historians, after its founder Vukan of Serbia. However, the family itself is also known as the Urošević dynasty (Serbian Cyrillic: Урошевић, pl. Uroševići / Урошевићи), after Vukan's nephew, Uroš I of Serbia.

Ivan Mažuranić (pronounced [ǐʋan maʒǔranitɕ]; 11 August 1814 – 4 August 1890) was a Croatian poet, linguist, lawyer and politician who is considered to be one of the most important figures in Croatia's political and cultural life in the mid-19th century. Mažuranić served as Ban of Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia between 1873 and 1880, and since he was the first ban not to hail from old nobility, he was known as Ban pučanin (Ban commoner).

His realistic assessment of strengths and weaknesses of Croatia's position between the hammer of Austrian bureaucracy and the anvil of Hungarian expansionist nationalism were seen as invaluable to his country during times of significant political turmoil. Mažuranić is best remembered for his contributions in the development of the Croatian law system, economics, linguistics, and poetry.

The Duke of Slavonia (Croatian: slavonski herceg; Latin: dux Slavoniae), also meaning the Duke of Dalmatia and Croatia (Croatian: herceg Hrvatske i Dalmacije; Latin: dux Dalmatiae et Croatiae) was a title of nobility granted several times in the 12th and 14th centuries, mainly to relatives of Hungarian monarchs or other noblemen.

The title of duke of "whole of Slavonia" didn't mean Slavonia in the narrow sense, but specifically all Slavic lands of the Kingdom of Hungary, being a synonym for the Kingdom of Croatia and Dalmatia (and Slavonian domain). An example being 1231 charter by Coloman in which protected "omnes templarios, qui infra ducatum Sclavonie sunt, tam in Dalmatia, quam in Croatia" ("all the Templars who are within the Duchy of Sclavonia, both in Dalmatia and in Croatia"). The title of duke signified a more extensive power than that of the Ban of Slavonia or Ban of Croatia. In cca. 1185 during Hungarian king Béla III, the "dux Sclauonie" paid to the king each year ten thousand silver coins.

The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia or the Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia (Croatian: Trojedna Kraljevina Hrvatska, Slavonija i Dalmacija; Hungarian: Horvát-Szlavónország or Horvát–Szlavón Királyság; German: Königreich Kroatien, Slawonien und Dalmatien) was a nominally autonomous kingdom and constitutionally defined separate political nation within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It was created in 1868 by merging the kingdoms of Croatia and Slavonia following the Croatian–Hungarian Settlement of 1868. It was associated with the Kingdom of Hungary within the dual Austro-Hungarian state, being within the Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen, also known as Transleithania. While Croatia had been granted a wide internal autonomy with "national features", in reality, Croatian control over key issues such as tax and military issues was minimal and hampered by Hungary. It was officially referred to as the Triune Kingdom of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia, also simply known as the Triune Kingdom, and had claims on Kingdom of Dalmatia, which was administered separately by the Austrian Cisleithania. The city of Rijeka, following a disputed section in the 1868 Settlement known as the Rijeka Addendum [hr], became a corpus separatum and was legally owned by Hungary, but administered by both Croatia and Hungary.

The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia was ruled by the emperor of Austria, who bore the title King of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia and was confirmed by the State Sabor (Parliament of Croatia-Slavonia or Croatian-Slavonian Diet) upon accession. The King's appointed steward was the Ban of Croatia and Slavonia. On 21 October 1918, Emperor Karl I, known as King Karlo IV in Croatia, issued a Trialist manifest, which was ratified by the Hungarian side on the next day and which unified all Croatian Crown Lands. One week later, on 29 October 1918, the Croatian State Sabor proclaimed an independent kingdom which entered the State of Slovenes, Croats and Serbs.

Demetrius Zvonimir (Croatian: Dmitar Zvonimir, pronounced [dmîtar zʋônimiːr]; Old Church Slavic: ⰸⱏⰲⱏⱀⰻⰿⰻⱃⱏ; died 1089) was a King of Croatia and Dalmatia from 1075 or 1076 until his death in 1089. Prior to that, Zvonimir also served as Ban of Croatia (1064/1070–1074). His native name was Zvonimir, but adopted the forename Demetrius at his coronation.

He first served as ban in the service of King Peter Krešimir IV. Afterwards, Peter Krešimir IV appointed him duke and declared him as his heir. In 1075 or 1076, Demetrius Zvonimir succeeded to the Croatian throne through papal diplomacy. His reign is characterized as relatively peaceful, with no extensive war campaigns, focused instead on Croatia's economic and cultural development. He inherited the Croatian state at its height and ruled from the city of Knin. Medieval legends allege his assassination, but his death and succession are subjects of controversy in historiography. His reign was followed by a period of anarchy, which ended with the ascension of the Hungarian Árpád dynasty and the creation of a union with Hungary.

Paul I Šubić of Bribir (Croatian: Pavao I. Šubić Bribirski, Hungarian: bribiri I. Subics Pál; c. 1245 – 1 May 1312) was Ban of Croatia between 1275 and 1312, and Lord of Bosnia from 1299 to 1312. As the oldest son of Stephen II of the Šubić noble family, he inherited the title of count of Bribir. He was appointed ban in 1273. He was relieved from duty in 1274, following his involvement in disputes between the Dalmatian coastal cities of Trogir and Split, and was returned to office in 1275.

With the help of his brothers, Mladen I and George I, Paul imposed direct rule over most of the coastal cities. The contest over the lands of the Kačić family in southern Croatia, who were known for piracy in the Adriatic Sea, brought Paul into conflict with the Republic of Venice. At the same time, the Šubićs became allies with the House of Anjou from Naples. Fighting with Venice continued intermittently until a peace treaty in 1294.