[3] Zeta was a crown land of the Grand Principality and Kingdom of Serbia, ruled by heirs to the Serbian throne from the Nemanjić dynasty.

The name Crna Gora (Montenegro) was formally mentioned for the first time in 1296, by Stefan Milutin (son of Uroš I) in the charter of St. Nicholas' monastery in Vranjina, to denote the highland region under Mount Lovćen, within the confines of Zeta.

Later Žarko held the Lower Zeta region: he is mentioned in records from 1356, when he raided some Ragusan merchants, not far from Sveti Srđ at Lake Skadar.

The next year, in June, Žarko became a citizen of the Republic of Venice, where he was known as "baron lord of the Serbian King, with holdings in the Zeta region and Bojana of the maritime".

[4] The Balšići are mentioned in a charter issued in 1360 to the Republic of Ragusa by Emperor Stefan Uroš V, as provincial lords in the Zeta region.

[4] According to Mavro Orbin (l. 1563–1614), 'A poor Lord Balša', said to be 'kin to Nemanja' held only a village located between the Adriatic and Bojana river during the rule of Emperor Dušan (r. 1331–55) but after the death of the Emperor and following years under his son, Uroš V, by 1362 had taken over Lower Zeta, after removing vojvoda Đuraš Ilijić of Upper Zeta who had held the position since around 1326 (since Stefan Dečanski).

While he was battling in the south of Kosovo, Đurađ's younger brother Balša II married Komnina, a close cousin of Emperor Stefan Dušan's wife, Jelena.

Through the marriage, Đurađ II received a generous dowry in the land, including Vlorë, Berat, Kanina, and some additional strategically important regions.

The most prominent feudal lords who did not recognize Balša's rule was the House of Crnojević, who were consistently encouraged by the Venetians to rebel against him.

With this in mind as well as the constant danger from the Turks, Đurađ II maintained strong family ties with Serbia's main lord of the time, Prince Lazar.

After a serious defeat of his forces by Turks near Nicopolis, the Hungarian King Sigismund gave him the title of Prince of Arbania and the control over the islands of Hvar and Korčula.

In 1403, Đurađ II's 17-year-old son, Balša III, inherited the throne of Zeta after his father died as a consequence of the injuries he suffered in the Battle of Tripolje.

As he was young and inexperienced, his main advisor was his mother Jelena, a sister of the Serbian ruler, Stefan Lazarević.

In 1421, before his death and under the influence of his mother Jelena, Balša III passed the rule of Zeta to Despot Stefan Lazarević.