Charters of Despot Stefan to the Great Lavra Monastery

Stefan Lazarević supported the Church and the monasteries for many reasons: first and foremost there were his spiritual convictions, then his desire to follow the tradition of the Nemanjić dynasty, as well as the practical need to preserve venerable religious institutions. In turbulent times, his support for the monasteries was also a way of maintaining stability in the land.

Mount Athos enjoyed a special status, and rulers strove to provide the monasteries with the conditions necessary for a life of prayer. Exemption from taxes and other levies allowed the monks to devote themselves to the spiritual life without concern for material things. Among the Athonite monasteries, the Great Lavra, the Monastery of Saint Athanasius, was especially aided by Serbian rulers and the Serbian nobility. Emperor Stefan Uroš (1336-1371) and Despot Jovan Uglješa (†1371) made gifts to the monastery, as the surviving charters show. Two charters issued to the monastery by Prince Lazar (1329– 1389) have also survived, in which he granted the monastery considerable material resources. Like his father, Stefan Lazarević continued this tradition and supported the Athonite Monastery of Saint Athanasius with his gifts.

On several occasions Stefan Lazarević made gifts to this monastery, issuing charters by which he donated revenues and villages, exempting them from dues. At first, as prince, together with his mother Milica and his brother Vuk, he secured the exemption of the monastery's estates from various levies. His charter issued to the Great Lavra Monastery in 1394 or 1395 bears witness to this. By that charter the Lazarević family freed certain villages in the Petrus region, that is, in the vicinity of Paraćin, from their obligations: this was a confirmation of the charter that Prince Lazar had issued to the Great Lavra Monastery in 1375 or 1376, granting privileges to the monastic estate. The charter was signed by "the right-believing Prince Stefan in Christ God, lord of all the Serbian and Danubian lands."

As geopolitical circumstances changed, the pious Serbian ruler had on several occasions to adjust his gifts. At times, because of Ottoman attacks, it was necessary to replace previously granted estates, since they had become unsafe to cultivate. On the other hand, internal conflicts in the Serbian state, as well as pressure from the Ottoman administration, affected his ability to make donations. Despite all these complex