Case file · Folklore / legend
Prince Lazar's choice at Kosovo
Serbian tradition holds that on the eve of the battle of Kosovo, 28 June 1389, Prince Lazar was offered an earthly or a heavenly kingdom by a messenger from God, and chose the heavenly one and martyrdom.
1389 CE · 42.70, 21.11 · status: legend
The account
Both Lazar and Sultan Murad I died in the battle. Church texts written soon after began Lazar's cult, and later epic songs added the Kosovo Maiden, the traitor Vuk Branković and the prophetic falcon from Jerusalem. The 'Kosovo myth' shaped Serbian identity for six centuries.
The sceptical view
The battle is historical; the heavenly offer and many epic details developed over centuries.