The Charters of Despot Stefan to Hilandar Monastery

metahistorical sense, between his father's legacy and his own destiny, with faith in eternal life and in the victory of Christ. This charter to the Hilandar Monastery of 1406 was first published by Dimitrije Avramović (1815–1855), and after him it was published by Franz Miklosich (Franjo Miklošič, 1813–1891), Archimandrite Leonid Kavelin (1822–1891), Stojan Novaković (1842–1915), Vasily Korablev (1873–1936) and others; there are several translations of this charter into Serbian - by Đorđe Trifunović, Aleksandar Mladenović (1930–2010) and Andrija Veselinović; the introductory part was also translated by Saint Justin Popović (1894–1979) - as part of his Life of Saint Prince Lazar. Five years after the charter of 1406, Despot Stefan issued another charter to the Hilandar Monastery, by which he donated to it a larger number of villages in the Serbian lands in exchange for six adelphata (monastic livings) in the monastery. He granted the monastery several villages in the vicinity of Novo Brdo, as well as two in Levač - Bdčina and Cernica, which correspond to the present-day villages of Bačina and Cernica in the municipality of Varvarin. These settlements belonged to the district of Temnić, which in the Middle Ages was part of Levač. The introductory part of the charter repeats the charter of Prince Lazar from 1379 or 1380: in this way too Despot Stefan shows the continuity of the authority he inherited from his father. The introduction, composed to a great extent of biblical quotations, reflects the way in which Serbian medieval culture was set upon scriptural foundations. Researchers have noted the literary value of the arenga of this charter - it was translated into modern Serbian by Đ. Trifunović, Vladimir Mošin (1894–1987) and Dimitrije Bogdanović (1930– 1986); the charter as a whole was translated into modern Serbian by A. Mladenović. In this charter Stefan required that of the six adelphata received he might cede two to monks of his own choosing, and that after their death he should again have the right to dispose of them. Mindful of death, the pious ruler, the right-believing Serbian Despot, prescribed that after his repose an annual commemoration be performed for him in the monastery in accordance with the rules of the Church, with the boiling of wheat - koliva - and the singing of ten Liturgies. In the first forty days after his death a further hundred Liturgies were to be served, and afterwards he was to be commemorated as founder, together with the brethren of the monastery. If we compare these words with those recorded by Constantine the Philosopher in the Life of Despot Stefan - that Despot Stefan, caring for the splendor of the Manasija Monastery, ordained that the Lord's Supper, that is, the Liturgy, the Eucharist, "be performed (here) with great honor, becoming (thus) like the seraphim" - and given the fact that the Despot provided for the serving of the Holy Liturgy both during his lifetime and after his repose, we may suppose that this ruler was not only pious but also ecclesial in the liturgical sense. The donated villages were freed from numerous obligations, except for monetary dues for military needs and dues to the ruler. This charter was issued on June 8, 1411 in Jagodna (Jagodina) and is a significant document testifying to the continuous support of Despot Stefan for the Hilandar Monastery. The charter of 1411, preserved in the original,