Veliki vojvoda (Serbian Cyrillic: велики војвода; from veliki = great and vojvoda = duke) was a military and noble title in use during the Middle Ages and the Modern period in the Western Balkans. It is often translated into "Grand duke".
Contents
Middle Ages
veliki vojvoda was a title used in Serbia in the Middle Ages and the Kingdom of Bosnia (1380–1448).
Serbia
It signified superiority over the other vojvode. The title-holder commanded the army on occasions when the monarch did not attend in military campaigns, usually with lesser important military operations inside the country, or when a detachment was sent to aid allies. Another term used for the title was "standard-bearer" (stegonoša, Latin: vexilifer).
There are also mentions of the title-holders in Serbian epic poetry regarding the Battle of Kosovo, such as Dimitrije.
Montenegro
The title was adopted in the Prince-Bishopric of Montenegro. Mirko Petrović-Njegoš bore the title, as "Grand Duke of Grahovo".