Nikola Stepanić Selnički (Latin: Nicolaus Zelniczey, Hungarian: Zelniczey IV. Miklós) was a Catholic bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Pécs (1596-1598) and Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Zagreb (1598-1602). With his 1598 and 1599 activities aimed to impose his feudal authority over Serbs who populated a year earlier vast territories in Slavonia, abandoned for more than 40 years, he initiated the "Vlach question".
According to Sakcinski, Selnički was born in Selnica near Konjšćina in 1553 in a family which is a branch of Turopolje nobility.[2] According to some other sources Selnički was a son of Stephan from Bosnia, who descended from a noble family.[3] He studied in at University of Paris and in Bologne.[2]
He wrote a chronicle with detailed description of the 1593 Battle of Sisak which is not preserved.[2]
When Serb settlers came to Habsburg military frontier (in modern-day Croatia) they were settled on the land which remained vacant for more than 40 years.[4] Soon after Serbs were settled in Slavonia, Selnički began with his activities against them.[5] In 1598 Selnički received information that emperor Rudolf was going to grant Serbs privileges which would guarantee their status of people free from their feudal obligations.[5] Selnički was the first of Croatian nobility who tried to impose his rule over Serb settlers.[6] Furthermore, Selnički actually was the initiator of the "Vlach question" in Croatia with his intention to impose his feudal authority over Serbs, populated a year earlier on his estates by Varaždin general Sigismund.[7]
In July 1599 Selnički requested that Serbs (Vlachs) populated a year before on the territory of his estates should not be given any privileges.[2]