Serbian Empire

The Serbian Empire (Serbian: Српско Царство / Srpsko Carstvo,  pronounced  [sr̩̂pskoː tsâːrstʋo]) is a historiographical term for the empire in the Balkan peninsula that emerged from the medieval Serbian Kingdom. It was established in 1346 by King Stefan Dušan, known as "the Mighty", who significantly expanded the state. He also promoted the Serbian Church to an Orthodox patriarchate. His son and successor, Uroš the Weak, lost most of the territory (hence his epithet). The Serbian Empire effectively ended with the death of Stefan V in 1371 and the break-up of the Serbian state. Some successors of Stefan V claimed the title of Emperor in parts of Serbia until 1402.

Establishment
In 1331, Stefan Dušan became King of Serbia by deposing and murdering his father, Stefan Dečanski (r. 1322–1331). By 1345, Dušan the Mighty had expanded his state to cover half of the Balkans, more territory than either the Byzantine Empire or the Second Bulgarian Empire. Therefore, in 1345, in Serres, Dušan proclaimed himself "Tsar" ("Caesar").[1] On 16 April 1346, in Skopje, he had himself crowned "Emperor of the Serbs and Greeks", a title signifying a claim to succession of the Byzantine Empire. The ceremony was performed by the newly elevated Serbian Patriarch Joanikije II, the Bulgarian Patriarch Simeon, and Nicholas, the Archbishop of Ohrid.

Reign of Stefan Dušan
Serbian Emperor Stefan Dušan doubled the size of his former kingdom, seizing territories to the south, southeast, and east at the expense of the Byzantine Empire. Serbia held parts of modern Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moravian Serbia, Kosovo, Zeta, modern Macedonia, modern Albania, and half of modern Greece, with Bulgaria as its vassal. He did not fight a single field battle, instead winning his empire by besieging cities. Dušan undertook a campaign against the Byzantine Empire, which was attempting to avert a deteriorating situation after the destruction caused by the Fourth Crusade. Dušan swiftly seized Thessaly, Albania, Epirus, and most of Macedonia.

After besieging the emperor at Salonica in 1340, he imposed a treaty assuring Serbia sovereignty over regions extending from the Danube to the Gulf of Corinth, from the Adriatic Sea to the Maritsa river, and including all of Bulgaria up to the environs of Adrianople. Bulgaria had never recovered since its defeat by the Serbs at the Battle of Velbazhd, and the Bulgarian czar, whose sister Dušan later married, became his vassal, the Second Bulgarian Empire being a Serbian vassal state between 1331 to 1365. Dušan thus ruled over the almost the entire Balkan peninsula, with only southern Greece, Salonica, and Thrace escaping his authority. He gave sanctuary to the former regent of the Byzantine Empire, John VI Kantakouzenos, in revolt against the government, and agreed to an alliance.

In 1349 and 1354, Dušan enacted a set of laws known as Dušan's Code. The Code was based on Roman-Byzantine law and the first Serbian constitution, St. Sava's Nomocanon (1219). It was a Civil and Canon law system, based on the Ecumenical Councils, for the functioning of the state and the Serbian Orthodox Church.

In 1355, Dušan begin military preparations, assembling an army of 80,000 men, an enormous number at that time. Dušan marched towards Constantinople, capturing Adrianople in a fierce battle. The Serbian army was proceeding to Constantinople, located 40 miles to the east, when Dušan suddenly died of an unknown illness at 46. His expedition ended as well, and the army retreated carrying the dead body of the man who had elevated Serbia to the rank of a great power.

Flag of the Serbian Empire