Voivodeship of Transylvania
| Voivodeship of Transylvania | |
|---|---|
| voivodeship of the Kingdom of Hungary | |
| 12th century–16th century | |
 | |
| Capital | Gyulafehérvár(Alba-Iulia) [1] |
| History | |
• Established | 12th century |
• Disestablished | 16th century |
| Today part of | Romania |
The Voivodeship of Transylvania was a province (voivodeship) of the medieval Kingdom of Hungary from 12th to 16th century.
History
According to the Gesta Hungarorum chronicle, this area was ruled by the Vlach voivode Gelou in the 9th century, until he was defeated by the Hungarian duke Tuhutum (Töhötöm, Tétény).[2] Another known local ruler was Gyula, uncle of king Stephen I of Hungary, who ruled over this region in the 10th-11th century.
Since the 12th century, the region was ruled by voivodes who were subordinated to Hungarian kings.
The Voivodeship of Transylvania was organized according to the system of Estates. Transylvanian Estates were privileged groups or universitates (the central power acknowledged some collective or communal "liberties") with power and influence in socio-economic and political life; nevertheless they were organized according to certain ethnic criteria as well.
The basic document that granted privileges to the entire aristocracy was the Golden Bull issued by king Andrew II in 1222.
Gradually, after 1366 Romanians lost their status as an Estate (Universitas Valachorum) and were excluded from Transylvania's assemblies. The main reason was religion: during Louis I's proselytizing campaign, privileged status was deemed incompatible with that of "schismatic" in a state endowed with an apostolic mission by the Holy See: through the Decree of Turda, in 1366, the king redefined nobility in terms of membership in the Roman Catholic Church, thus excluding the Eastern Orthodox "schismatic" Romanians.
In 1437 Hungarian and Romanian peasants, the petty nobility and burghers from Clus upraised against their feudal masters and proclaimed their own Estate (universitas hungarorum et valachorum - the Estate of Hungarians and Romanians) (see: Bobâlna revolt). In order to suppress the revolt, the Hungarian nobility in Transylvanian counties, the Saxon burghers and the Szeklers formed the Unio Trium Nationum (The Union of the Three Nations), an alliance of mutual aid against the peasants, jointly pledging to defend their privileges against any power except that of Hungarian king. By 1438, the rebellion was crushed. From 1438 onwards the political system was based on the Unio Trium Nationum and the society was led by these three privileged nations (Estates): the nobility (mostly Hungarians), the Szeklers and the Saxon burghers.
Following the defeat of the Hungarian army by the Ottomans in the Battle of Mohács (1526), Transylvania became an autonomous state, under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire: the Principality of Transylvania, where native princes, who paid the Ottomans tribute, ruled with considerable autonomy.
Borders
Before the defeat of the Kingdom of Hungary in the Battle of Mohács, Voivodeship of Transylvania bordered the main part of the Kingdom of Hungary in the north and west, the Principality of Wallachia in the south, and the Principality of Moldavia in the east.
Ethnic groups
Population of the Voivodeship of Transylvania was mostly composed of Hungarians (including Székelys), Romanians, Saxons and Slavs. According to Jean W.Sedlar, a plausible estimate is that Vlachs constituted about two-thirds of Transylvania's population in 1241 on the eve of the Mongol invasion.[3]
See also
- Principality of Transylvania (1571–1711)
- Principality of Transylvania (1711–1867)
- History of Transylvania
- Transylvania
- List of rulers of Transylvania
References
- ^ [1]
- ^ http://keptar.niif.hu/000500/000586/magyaro-honf-terkep_nagykep.jpg
- ^ East Central Europe in the Middle Ages, 1000-1500, by Jean W.Sedlar p.8
