Ban of Croatia () was the title of local rulers or office holders and after 1102, viceroys of Croatia. From the earliest periods of the Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by bans as a ruler's representative (viceroy) and supreme military commander. In the 18th century, Croatian bans eventually became the chief government officials in Croatia.
They were at the head of the Ban's Government, effectively the first prime ministers of Croatia. The institution of ban persisted until the first half of the 20th century, when it was officially superseded in function by that of a parliamentary prime minister.
Origin of title
South Slavic ban (, with a long ), is directly attested in 10th-century Constantine Porphyrogenitus' book De Administrando Imperio as , in a chapter dedicated to Croats and the organization of their state, describing how their ban "has under his rule Krbava, Lika and Gacka."De Administrando Imperio 30/90-117, "
Bans during the Trpimirović dynasty References from the earliest periods are scarce, but history recalls that the first known Croatian ban is Pribina from the 10th century. In the early Middle Ages, the ban was the royal district governor of Lika, Gacka and Krbava. Later, the meaning of the title was elevated to that of provincial governor in the Kingdom of Croatia. King Demetrius Zvonimir was originally a ban serving under King Peter Krešimir IV. Name(Birth–Death) Term start Term endNotesMonarch(Reign) Pribina The first historically attested Ban of Croatia. Pribina deposed of King Miroslav during a civil war in the Croatian Kingdom, and replaced him with Michael Krešimir. He ruled over the Gacka, Krbava and Lika counties, according to De Administrando Imperio. He is also possibly referred to in a charter as potens banus, meaning "powerful ban". Godemir Also called Godimir. He is mentioned to have served kings Michael Krešimir and Stephen Držislav:hr:s:Povijest Hrvatske I. (R. Horvat)/Nasljednici kralja Tomislava in a charter of King Peter Krešimir IV from 1068.Comperimus namque in gestis proaui nosti Cresimiri maioris... Stipišić, J. i M. Šamšalović, ur. Codex Diplomaticus Regni Croatiae, Dalmatiae et Slavoniae, sv. 1. Zagreb: Izdavački zavod JAZU, 1967., pp. 105. Gvarda Mentioned in a charter of King Peter Krešimir IV from 1068. Božeteh Mentioned in a charter of King Peter Krešimir IV from 1068. Stephen Praska According to the chronicle of Archdeacon Goricensis John, he was named as ban by King Stephen I around 1035 (after his military expeditions to the east), thus succeeding Božeteh as Croatian ban.Rački, Documenta, 472.Comperimus namque in gestis proaui nosti Cresimiri maioris... Stipišić, J. i M. Šamšalović, ur. Codex Diplomaticus Regni Croatiae, Dalmatiae et Slavoniae, sv. 1. Zagreb: Izdavački zavod JAZU, 1967, pp. 105.R. Horvat - Povijest Hrvatske I. He eventually attained a Byzantine imperial title of protospatharios somewhere between 1035 and 1042, which governed his influence over the Dalmatian theme.Gojčo He was possibly the brother of King Peter Krešimir IV, who was rumored to have murdered his other brother called Gojslav.Tomislav Raukar, Hrvatsko srednjovjekovlje, Školska Knjiga, Zagreb, 1997 pp. 47-48 Demetrius Zvonimir Croatian charters at the time were issued in the names of both King Peter Krešimir and Ban Zvonimir.John Van Antwerp Fine: The Early Medieval Balkans: A Critical Survey from the Sixth to the Late Twelfth Century, 1991, p. 279 In 1074, Normans from southern Italy invaded Croatia and captured a certain Croatian ruler whose name is not known, certainly King Peter Krešimir, who died soon after and was succeeded by Demetrius Zvonimir.Neven Budak: Prva stoljeća Hrvatske, Hrvatska sveučilišna naklada, Zagreb 1994, p. 31-33Petar Snačić Ban of Croatia according to a later addenda to Supetar Cartulary.
Croatian bans after 1102 After the Croats elected King Coloman of Hungary as King of Croatia 1102, the title of ban acquired the meaning of viceroy. Bans were appointed by the Hungarian king as his representatives in Kingdom of Croatia, heads of the parliament (sabor) and also as supreme commander of Croatian Army.
Croatia was governed by the viceregal ban as a whole from 1102 until 1225, when it was split into two separate regions of Slavonia and Croatia. Two different bans were occasionally appointed until 1476, when the institution of a single ban was resumed. Most bans were native nobles but some were also of Hungarian ancestry. In the 13th and 14th centuries, the more extensive title of Duke of Slavonia (meaning all lands of the Kingdom of Croatia and Dalmatia and Slavonian domain) was also granted, mainly to relatives of Hungarian monarchs or other major noblemen. Most notable bans from this period were Pavao Šubić and Peter Berislavić.
Bans of Croatia, Dalmatia and Slavonia
Portrait Name(Birth–Death) Term start Term endNotesMonarch(Reign)Ugra/Ugrin11021105 In 1105 commanded the Hungarian fleet that successfully attacked the island of Rab and others in the Gulf of Kvarner, and remained for a year on the island of Krk as comes alongside another Slavic ban. In historiography by ancestry is considered to be a Hungarian, or Croatian nobleman.Coloman(1102–1116)Sergije/Sergius1105Klaudije11161117Stephen II(1116–1131)Aleksije/AlexiusBéla II(1131–1141)Beloš(1083–1163)1142Géza II(1141–1162)Apa 1158Beloš(1083–1163)1163Stephen III(1162–1172)Ampudije/Ampudin1164Maurus1181Béla III(1172–1196)Denis/DionysiusBan only in the littoral partSubanus/Šoban11831185Kalán Bár-Kalán(–1218)11901193Dominic Miskolc1194Andrija1198for Duke AndrewEmeric(1196–1204)Nicholas I of Transylvania1198 (?)1199for King EmericBenedict Osl11991200for King EmericNicholas, Palatine of Hungary12001201 (?)for Duke AndrewMartin Hont-Pázmány1202for Duke AndrewHipolit1204for King EmericMercurius12051206Ladislaus III(1204–1205)Csépán Ják12061207Andrew II(1205–1235)Bánk Bár-Kalán12081209Thomas Monoszló1209 Berthold Andechs-Merana12091211Michael Kacsics1212Martin Hont-Pázmány1213Julius I Kán 1213Ban only in SlavoniaSimon Kacsics12121214Ohuz12131214Ivan1215Ban only in SlavoniaPousa/Poša1216meanwhile in 1217 Pontius de Cruce was a regent of Croatia and DalmatiaBánk Bár-Kalán12171218Julius I Kán1219Ban only in SlavoniaErnej/Ernst Hontpâzmânc. 12201221Ohuz12191220Solomon Atyusz
Bans of Croatia and Dalmatia
From 1225 to 1476, there were parallel Bans of Croatia and Dalmatia and of Slavonia. The following is the list of the former, the latter are listed at the article Ban of Slavonia. During the period of separate titles of ban, several persons held both titles, which is indicated in the notes.
After the death of King Louis I of Hungary, his daughter Mary succeeded to the throne, which led to kings Charles III and Ladislaus of Naples claiming the Kingdom of Hungary. A war erupted between forces loyal to Mary, and later to her husband and successor Sigismund of Luxembourg, and those loyal to Ladislaus.
During this time, Sigismund appointed Nicholas II Garai (who was also count palatine) the Ban of Croatia and Dalmatia in 1392, Butko Kurjaković in 1394, and then again Garai in the period from 1394 to 1397. Nicholas II Garai was also at the time the Ban of Slavonia, succeeded by Ladislav Grđevački (1402–1404), Paul Besenyő (1404), Pavao Peć (1404–1406), Hermann II of Celje (1406–1408).
Ladislaus in turn appointed his own bans. In 1409, this dynastic struggle was resolved when Ladislaus sold his rights over Dalmatia to the Republic of Venice. Portrait Name(Birth–Death) Term start Term endNotesMonarch(Reign) Vojnić 1225 Andrew II(1205–1235) Valegin 1226 Stephen II Babonić 12431249Béla IV(1235–1270) Butko of Podgorje 1259Stephen of Klis12631266 Nicholas Gutkeled 1275 Ladislaus IV(1272–1290) Pavao I Šubić 1278 1312Andrew III(1290–1301)Charles I(1301–1342) Mladen II Šubić 1312 1322John Babonić 1322 1322Nicholas Hahót13451346Louis I(1342–1383)Stephen I Lackfi13501352John Csúz13561358 Nicholas Szécsi13581366 Kónya Szécsényi 1366 1367 Emeric I Lackfi 1368 Simon Mauritius of Pok1369 1371Charles of Durazzo 1371 1376 Nicholas Szécsi 1377 1380Second term Emeric I Bebek 1380 1383 Stephen II Lackfi 1383 1384Mary(1382–1395) Thomas of St George 1384 1385 Ivan Paližna 1385 1386Co-ruled with relative Ivan Anjou Horvat (1385–1387). Also at the time the Ban of Slavonia. Ladislaus Lackfi 1387 Denis of Lučenec 1387 1389 Ivan Paližna1389Second term. Also at the time the Ban of Slavonia. Butko Kurjaković 1394 Nicholas II Garai13951397Charles II(1385–1386) Hermann II of Celje14061407Also at the time the Ban of Slavonia.Sigismund(1387–1437)Karlo Kurjaković14081409Ivan Kurjaković14101411Pavao Kurjaković14101411Co-ruled with Ivan Kurjaković.Peter Albeni14121413John Albeni14141419Ivaniš Nelipić14191419 Albert Nagymihályi14191426 Nikola IV Frankopan14261432Son of Ban Ivan FrankopanIvan VI Frankopan14341436Stephen III Frankopan14341437 Co-ruled with Ivan Frankopan and later Matko Talovac Peter Talovac14381453Co-ruled with Matko Talovac and Franko Talovac Albert I(1437–1439)Vladislaus I(1440–1444)Ladislaus V(1444–1457) Ladislaus Hunyad1453Pavao Špirančić14591463Matthias I(1458–1490) Stephen Frankopan1463 Nicholas of Ilok 14571463Also at the time the Ban of Slavonia (1457–1463) Emeric Zápolya14641465Also at the time the Ban of SlavoniaJohn Thuz14661467Also at the time the Ban of Slavonia Blaise Magyar14701472Also at the time the Ban of SlavoniaDamjan Horvat14721473Also at the time the Ban of Slavonia
Bans of Dalmatia, Croatia and Slavonia From 1476 onwards, the titles of Ban of Dalmatia and Croatia, and Ban of Slavonia are again united in the single title of Ban of Croatia, Slavonia and Dalmatia (banus regnorum Dalmatiae et Croatiae et totius Sclavoniae).
Portrait Name(Birth–Death) Term start Term endNotesMonarch(Reign)Andrew Bánffy14761477Matthias I(1458–1490)Ladislaus of Egervár14771481 Blaise Magyar1482 Matthias Gereb14831489Known for the Battle of Una.Ladislaus of Egervár14891493Vladislaus II(1490–1516) John Both1493 Mirko Derenčin1493Known for the Battle of Krbava field.Ladislaus Kanizsai14931495 John Corvinus14951498George Kanizsai14981499 John Corvinus14991504Andrew Both15051507Marko Mišljenović15061507 John Ernuszt15081509George Kanizsai15081509Andrew Both15101511 Emeric Perényi15121513 Peter Berislavić15131520Known for the Battle of Dubica.Louis II(1516–1526)Ivan Karlović15211524John Tahy1525 Ferenc Batthyány15251526Christoph I Frankopan(1482–1527)15261527Appointed as supporter of John Zápolya
Habsburg-era bans The title of ban persisted in Croatia after 1527 when the country became part of the Habsburg monarchy, and continued all the way until 1918.
Among the most distinguished bans in Croatian history were the three members of Zrinski family Nikola Šubić Zrinski and his great-grandsons Nikola Zrinski and Petar Zrinski. Also there are two notable Erdődys: Toma Erdődy, great warrior and statesman, and Ivan Erdődy, to whom Croatia owes much for protecting her rights against the Hungarian nobility, his most widely known saying in Latin is Regnum regno non praescribit leges (A kingdom may not proscribe laws to another kingdom.)
In the 18th century, Croatian bans eventually became chief government officials in Croatia. They were at the head of Ban's Government, effectively the first prime ministers of Croatia. The most known bans of that era were Josip Jelačić, Ivan Mažuranić and Josip Šokčević.
Bans in the Habsburg Monarchy The Habsburg dynasty ruled Kingdom of Croatia and Kingdom of Slavonia between 1527 and 1918.