House of Shishman

The House of Shishman (Bulgarian: Шишман), also referred to as the Shishmanids or Shishmanovtsi (Bulgarian: Шишмановци), was a medieval Bulgarian dynasty of Turkic Cuman^[1] origin. The House of Shishman ruled the Second Bulgarian Empire from the proclamation of Michael Asen III as emperor in 1323 to the deposition of his son Ivan Stephen in 1331 whereafter rule fell to the House of Sratsimir, who were matrilineal descendants of the Shishmanids.^[2]

House of Shishman Шишмановци
Coat of arms of the Bulgarian emperor, drawn by Conrad Grünenberg (1483)
Parent house	Asen dynasty (matrilineal)
Country	Second Bulgarian Empire
Founded	1270s/1280s
Founder	Shishman of Vidin
Final ruler	Ivan Stephen
Titles	Emperor of Bulgaria Despot of Vidin
Dissolution	14th century?
Deposition	1331
Cadet branches	House of Sratsimir (matrilineal)

The Shishmanids were matrilineally descended from the earlier Asen dynasty^[2] and may also have been related to the immediately preceding Terter dynasty.^[3]

Family tree

• Shishman of Vidin, Despot of Vidin^[2]
  • Michael Asen III, Bulgarian emperor (1323–1330; also known as Michael Shishman)^[2]
    • Ivan Stephen, Bulgarian emperor (1330–1331)^[2]
    • Shishman, exile in the Byzantine Empire^[4]
    • Louis, exile in Naples^[4]
    • Michael, Despot^[4]
  • Belaur, Despot of Vidin^[5]
  • Keratsa Petritsa, Empress of Bulgaria, married Sratsimir and was the mother of Ivan Alexander^[2]
    • (→ Sratsimir dynasty)