Jelena Balšić

Jelena Balšić (Јелена Балшић, Jelena Balsha; 1407 – 1453) was a member of the Balšić noble family who married the Bosnian nobleman Stjepan Vukčić Kosača. She was the daughter of Balša III and Mara Thopia.

Life
Jelena was born in 1407 as the daughter of Balša III of Zeta and Mara Thopia. She was named after her grandmother Jelena. Jelena's lineage is traced back to the Balšić and Thopia noble families. In 1424, at the age of 17, Jelena married Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, a significant political figure of the time. The union between Jelena and Stjepan Vukčić played a crucial role in shaping the political landscape of the region. Jelena was not only a wife and mother but also a central figure in the complex power dynamics of the time. Through her marriage to Stjepan Vukčić, she became the mother of several notable children, each leaving a mark on the history of the Balkans. Jelena died in 1453.

Issue

 * Catherine of Bosnia (1424–1478), in 1446 she married King King Tomaš of Bosnia, and leaving Bosnian Church converted to Catholicism;
 * Vladislav Hercegović (c. 1427–1489), Grand Duke of Bosnia, Lord of Krajina, married Kyra Ana, daughter of Georgios Kantakuzenos in 1455;
 * Vlatko Hercegović (c. 1428–1489), Herceg of St. Sava, married an Apulia n noblewoman;
 * Hersekzade Ahmed Pasha (c. 1430–1515), baptized Stjepan; the youngest son of Stjepan Vukčić, whom Sultan Mehmed II took to his court, became a Muslim in the Sultan's service. He became the Grand Vizier and Grand Admiral to the Sultan, married Sultan Bayezid II's daughter, Fatima, in 1482; and had descendants by her.