Hierarch Saint Danilo II, Archbishop of Serbia

Danilo II is among the most venerated hierarchs of the Serbian Orthodox Church — a monk, writer, and chronicler of medieval Serbia. Born c. 1270 in the župa of Pilot (near Prizren) to a noble Serbian family, he became a monk and served as hegumen of the Hilandar and Peć monasteries, then as bishop of Banja/Hum.

Enthroned as Archbishop of the Serbian Church on 14 September 1324, he held the see until his death, during the height of the Nemanjić dynasty under Kings Stefan Uroš III Dečanski and Stefan Dušan. Deeply engaged in ecclesiastical and court politics, he promoted the veneration of Serbian rulers as saints.

His major literary legacy is Lives of the Kings and Archbishops of Serbia, covering events from 1234 to his own time — one of the most significant works of medieval Serbian literature, later continued by an anonymous disciple. During his tenure the Church of the Hodegetria was built at the Peć monastery complex, where he was buried following his death on 19 December 1337.