Bernardin Frankopan

Bernardin Frankopan (1453–1529) was a Croatian nobleman and diplomat, a member of the influential Frankopan noble family of Croatia. As one of the wealthiest and most distinguished aristocrats in the kingdom in his day, he had one of the leading roles in mounting defences of Croatian statehood against the Ottoman expansion. Biography Ancestry and family The only son of Stjepan (Stephen) III Frankopan of Modruš, Ban (viceroy) of Croatia, and Ižota (Isotta) Frankopan née d' Este, Princess of Ferrara (present-day Italy), Bernardin Frankopan was born in 1453, most probably in Ozalj Castle, one of the castles owned by his family. The birth date of the new-born knez (prince) has not been determined with certainty. His grandfather Nikola IV Frankopan, the sole owner of huge estates possessed by noble family known as the Princes of Krk at the beginning of the 15th century and the first person to have called himself Frankopan, was Ban (viceroy) of Croatia from 1426 until 1432.