Zaharija of Serbia

Zaharija was the ruler of Serbia from 921 to 925/926. Zaharija belonged to the exiled main branch of the Serbian dynasty, as the son of Prvoslav. He was sent by Byzantine emperor Romanos Lekapenos to take the Serbian throne from Pavle in 921, but he failed, and was sent as a political hostage to Bulgaria. After Pavle switched sides to Byzantium, the Bulgarian emperor Simeon I now sent Zaharija, who managed to take the Serbian throne and immediately became a subject of Byzantium. He successfully fought off a Bulgar campaign, sending war trophies to emperor Romanos. Simeon sent a larger army, before which Zaharija fled to Croatia. Serbia was devastated and Zaharija likely retired in Byzantium.