Tvrtko I Kotromanić

Stjepan Tvrtko I Kotromanić was born circa 1338 at the royal fortress of Bobovac. Inheriting the Banate of Bosnia in 1353 at age fifteen, Tvrtko overcame rebellions by local feudal barons and pressure from the Kingdom of Hungary, systematically consolidating royal power.

On October 26, 1377, at Mile (near Visoko), Tvrtko was crowned King of Bosnia and the Serbs. He constructed a formidable war navy on the Adriatic, conquered Kotor and Dalmatian coastal cities, and founded the fortress cities of Herceg Novi and Brštanik. Under his rule, medieval Bosnia reached its greatest territorial extent, economic wealth, and international standing.