Pavle, Archbishop of Peć

Pavle (Serbian Cyrillic: Павле; fl. 1527–1541) was the Archbishop of Peć and self-proclaimed Serbian Patriarch from around 1530 to 1541. As the Metropolitan of Smederevo, he managed with the help of notable Serbs and Turks to come over the Archbishopric of Peć, and worked toward its renewed autocephaly, recreating the Serbian Patriarchate of Peć that had been abolished by the Ottomans, who transferred all Serbian bishoprics to the jurisdiction of Archbishopric of Ohrid). Most of the higher clergy, however, supported the Archbishop of Ohrid, Prohor, and on the Church assembly on 13 March 1532 anathematized Pavle and his followers. After some time Pavle made peace with Prohor, and recognized his superiority, however, he began a more active struggle for removing Peć from Ohrid. He successfully had Prohor and his closest people imprisoned by the Ottoman government, and had unsupportive bishops removed and began reorganizing his Archbishopric. Prohor managed to free himself and after talks with the Sultan was reappointed as Archbishopric of Ohrid. Upon Prohor's return, an assembly was summoned on 20 July 1541 which stripped Pavle of his priesthood, along with bishop Neofit Ljesnovski, Tefan Zvornički and Pahomije Kratovski, all of whom Pavle had appointed – those who still recognized them as their bishops were to be anathematized. After this, Pavle is no longer mentioned.