Principality of Hungary

Principality of Hungary Magyar Nagyfejedelemség (hu)
←   ← 895 – 1000 →
Capital	Not specified
Government	Principality
Grand Prince	Árpád (c. 895 - c. 907)
	Zoltán (c. 907 - c. 947)
	Fajsz (c. 947 - c. 955)
	Taksony (c. 955 - c. 972)
	Géza (972 - 997)
	Stephen (997 - 1000)
Historical era	Middle ages
- Established	9th century the 9th century
- ended at the coronation of     Stephen I	25 December 1000 or 1 January 1001 1000

The Principality of Hungary,^{[1][2][3][4][5]} also Hungarian Principality^[6][7][8][9] or Duchy of Hungary^[10][11] (also "Grand Principality" Hungarian: Magyar Nagyfejedelemség), was the first documented Hungarian state,^[12] a tribal alliance^[13][14][15] in the Carpathian Basin, established 895^[16][17] or 896,^[12][18][19] following the 9th-century Magyar invasion of Pannonia.

The Magyars (Hungarians), a semi-nomadic group of people led by Árpád formed the Principality of Hungary at the very end of the 9th century,^[2] arriving from Etelköz, their earlier principality east of the Carpathians.^[20]

The principality was succeeded by the Christian kingdom of Hungary with the coronation of Stephen I in AD 1000.

In contemporary Byzantine sources, the territory of the Hungarian tribal alliance was also known as in Greek as "Western Tourkia", because of its allegiance to the Khazar Khaganate.^[21][22] The Hungarian historiography also calls the entire period from 896 to 1000 "the age of principality".^[18]

History

History of Hungary
This article is part of a series
Prehistory
Prehistoric Pannonia
Prehistoric Magyars
Early history
Roman Pannonia
Magyar invasion
Middle Ages (896–1541)
Principality of Hungary (896–1000)
Medieval Kingdom of Hungary (1000–1538)
Turkish wars (1366–1526)
Early Modern history
Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary (1538–1867)
Eastern Hungarian Kingdom (1538–1570)
Ottoman Hungary (1541–1699)
Principality of Transylvania (1570–1711)
Late modern period
Rákóczi's War (1703–1711)
Revolution of 1848
Austria-Hungary (1867–1918)
Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen
Hungary in World War I
Interwar period (1918–41)
Kingdom of Hungary (1920-1946)
World War II
Contemporary history (1946 to present)
Republic of Hungary (1946–49)
People's Republic (1949–89)
Revolution of 1956
Republic of Hungary (since 1989)
Topical
Church history
Military history
Music history
Jewish history
Székely people
Hungary Portal v · d · e

See also: Hungarian prehistory

Magyar invasion

Main articles: Magyar invasion of Pannonia and Hungarian invasions of Europe

A detail of the Arrival of the Hungarians, Árpád Feszty's and his assistants' vast (1800 m²) cyclorama, painted to celebrate the 1000th anniversary of the Magyar conquest of Hungary, now displayed at Ópusztaszer National Memorial Site in Hungary

Europe around 900

On the eve of the arrival of the Magyars, East Francia, the First Bulgarian Empire and Great Moravia (a vassal state of East Francia)^[23] ruled the territory of the Carpathian Basin. This area had been sparsely populated,^[3][24] since Charlemagne’s destruction of the Avar state in 803 and the Magyars (Hungarians) were able to move in virtually unopposed, peacefully.^[25] The freshly unified Hungarians led by Árpád settled in the Carpathian Basin starting in 895. This now highly-centralized and controlled^[26] principality, initially a warrior-state,^[1] with a new-found military force, conducted vigorous raids from Constantinople to as far away as central Spain and the periodic attacks lasted till 970.

Transition

Principality of Hungary in 998 AD

First Hungarian coin, by Géza (970s)

The movement from a ranked chiefdom society to state society was one of the most important change during this time.^[27] In the first time, Magyars retained a semi-nomadic lifestye changing pastures between winter and summer, Hungarians would migrate between winter and summer dwelling-places along a river, finding water for their livestock.^[26] According to Györffy's theory^[28] from placenames, Árpád's winter quarters -clearly after his occupation of Pannonia in 900- were possibly in 'Árpádváros' (Árpád's town), now a district of Pécs, and his summer quarters -as confirmed by Anonymus- were in Csepel Island.^[26] Later, his new summer quarters were in Csallóköz^[26] in conformity with this theory, however the exact location of the early center of the state is disputed. According to Gyula Kristó the center was located between Danube and Tisza rivers,^[28] however the archeological findings expect the location at the region of Upper Tisza.^[28]
Forced by changed economic circumstances, insufficient pasturage to support a nomad society and the impossibility of moving on,^[29] the semi-nomadic Hungarian lifestyle began to transform and they adopted settled life. Magyars ceased being semi-nomads and turned to agriculture.^[23] However the beginning of conversion of Hungarian society to agriculture can be dated back to the 8th century.^[8] The society began to show uniform image, the local Slavic and other populations merged with the Hungarians.^[29] The Hungarian tribal leaders and their clans established fortified centers in the country and later their castles became centers of the counties.^[25] The whole system of Hungarian villages grew up in the 10th century.^[26]
Fajsz and Taksony, the Grand Princes of the Hungarians, began to reform the power structure.^[30][31] They invited Christian missionaries for the first time and built forts.^[30] Taksony abolished the old center of the Hungarian principality (possibly at Upper Tisza) and sought a new one at Székesfehérvár^[31] and Esztergom.^[32] Taksony also renewed the old style military attendance, changed the weaponry of the army, implemented large-scale organized resettlements of the Hungarian population.^[31]
After the battle of Arcadiopolis, the Byzantine Empire was the primary enemy for the Hungarians.^[33] The Byzantine expansion threatened the Hungarians, because the subjugated First Bulgarian Empire were in alliance with the Magyars at that time.^[33] The situation became more difficult for the principality when the Byzantine Empire and the Holy Roman Empire made an alliance in 972.^[33] In 973, twelve illustrious Magyar envoys, whom probably Géza had assigned, participated in the Diet held by Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor. Géza established closed ties with the Bavarian court, inviting missionaries and marrying his son to Gisela, daughter of the Duke Henry II.^[29] Géza of the Árpád dynasty, Grand Prince of the Hungarians, who ruled only part of the united territory, the nominal overlord of all seven Magyar tribes, intended to integrate Hungary into Christian Western Europe, rebuilding the state according to the Western political and social model. Géza's first-born son, Saint Stephen I became the first King of Hungary after defeating his cousin Koppány, who also claimed the throne.

Christianization

Main article: History of Christianity in Hungary

Pannonhalma Archabbey, established by Géza

Hungary was emerged on the frontier of Christendom.^[29] From the second half of the 10th century, Christianity flourished as Catholic missionaries arrived from Germany. Between 945 and 963, the main office-holders of Principality (the Grand Prince (Taksony), the Gyula, and the Horka) were willing to christen.^[34][35] In 973 Géza I and all his household were baptised, and a formal peace concluded with Emperor Otto I, however he remained essentially pagan even after his baptism.^[20] Due to Géza's fater, Taksony, Géza was educated to become a pagan prince.^[36] The first Hungarian Benedictine monastery was founded in 996 by Prince Géza. During Géza's reign, the nation conclusively renounced its nomadic way of life and within a few decades of the battle of Lechfeld became a Christian kingdom.^[20]

Organization of the state

Until 907 (or 904), the Hungarian state was controlled by joint rule (shaped from the Khazars). The kingship was divided between the sacral prince^[37][38] Kende and the military leader Gyula. It is not known which of the two roles were assigned to Árpád and which to Kurszán. Possibly, after the Kende Kurszán's death, the principality changed its conformation and became a single-head principality led by Árpád. The Byzantine Constantine Porphyrogennetos called Árpád the "ho megas Tourkias archon" (the great prince of Tourkia),^[39] and all of the 10th century princes who ruled the country held this title.^[7] According to the Agnatic seniority the oldest members of the ruling clan inherited the principality. Likely, the Grand princes of Hungary did not possess superior power, because during the military campaigns to the west and to the south the initially strong^[40] princely power had diminished.^[39] Moreover, the records did not negotiate Grand Princes in the first half of the 10th century, except in one case, when they mention Taksony as 'king of Hungary' (Taxis-dux, dux Tocsun) in 947.^[39] The role of military leaders (Bulcsú, Lél) grew more significant.^[39] The princes of the Árpád dynasty bore Turkic names as the majority of the Hungarian tribes.^[18]

Titles

• Megas archon or Magnus princeps, the Grand Prince of Hungarians (first rank)^[39]
• Gyla or djila, Gyula, the military leader^[39] (second rank)^[39]
• Horca, Kharkhas, the judge^[41] (third rank)^[39]
• Kende, the sacral prince,^[37] (until 907 CE)

See also

Hungary portal

• List of Hungarian rulers
• Magyar tribes

References

1. ^ ^{a b} S. Wise Bauer, The history of the medieval world: from the conversion of Constantine to the First Crusade, W. W. Norton & Company, 2010, p. 586
2. ^ ^{a b} George H. Hodos, The East-Central European region: an historical outline, Greenwood Publishing Group, 1999, p. 19
3. ^ ^{a b} Alfried Wieczorek, Hans-Martin Hinz, Council of Europe. Art Exhibition, Europe's centre around AD 1000, Volume 1, Volume 1, Theiss, 2000, pp. 363-372
4. ^ Alfred Rambaud, Vladimir Gregorievitch Simkhovitch, Aleksandrovitch Nivokov, Peter Roberts, Isaac Aaronovich Hourwich, The case of Russia: a composite view, Fox, Duffield & company, 1905, p. 298
5. ^ Frederick Albert Richardson, The International quarterly, Volume 10, Fox, Duffield & company, 1905, p. 33
6. ^ Ferenc Glatz, Magyar Történelmi Társulat, Etudes historiques hongroises 1990: Environment and society in Hungary, Institute of History of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, 1990, p. 10
7. ^ ^{a b} Acta historica, Volumes 105-110, József Attila Tudom. Bölcs. Kar, 1998, p. 28
8. ^ ^{a b} Antal Bartha, Hungarian society in the 9th and 10th centuries, Akadémiai Kiadó, 1975, pp- 53-84, ISBN 978-9630503082
9. ^ Oksana Buranbaeva, Vanja Mladineo, Culture and Customs of Hungary, ABC-CLIO, 2011, p. 19
10. ^ Colin Davies, The emergence of Western society: European history A.D. 300-1200, Macmillan, 1969, p. 181
11. ^ Jennifer Lawler, Encyclopedia of the Byzantine Empire, McFarland & Co., 2004, p.13
12. ^ ^{a b} Louis Komzsik, Cycles of Time: From Infinity to Eternity, Trafford Publishing, 2011 p. 54
13. ^ Peter Linehan,Janet Laughland Nelson. 2001. p. 79
14. ^ Anatoly Michailovich Khazanov,André Wink. 2001. p. 103
15. ^ Lendvai. 2003. p. 15
16. ^ The encyclopedia Americana, Volume 14, Grolier Incorporated, 2002, p. 581
17. ^ Encyclopedia Americana, Volume 1, Scholastic Library Pub., 2006, p. 581
18. ^ ^{a b c} Acta orientalia Academiae Scientiarum Hungaricae, Volume 36 Magyar Tudományos Akadémia (Hungarian Academy of Sciences), 1982, p. 419
19. ^ Zahava Szász Stessel, Wine and thorns in Tokay Valley: Jewish life in Hungary : the history of Abaújszántó, Fairleigh Dickinson Univ Press, 1995, p. 47
20. ^ ^{a b c} Paul Lendvai, The Hungarians: a thousand years of victory in defeat, C. Hurst & Co. Publishers, 2003, p. 15-29, p. 533
21. ^ Peter B. Golden, Nomads and their neighbours in the Russian steppe: Turks, Khazars and Qipchaqs, Ashgate/Variorum, 2003. "Tenth-century Byzantine sources, speaking in cultural more than ethnic terms, acknowledged a wide zone of diffusion by referring to the Khazar lands as 'Eastern Tourkia' and Hungary as 'Western Tourkia.'" Carter Vaughn Findley, The Turks in the World History, Oxford University Press, 2005, p. 51, citing Peter B. Golden, 'Imperial Ideology and the Sources of Political Unity Amongst the Pre-Činggisid Nomads of Western Eurasia,' Archivum Eurasiae Medii Aevi 2 (1982), 37–76.
22. ^ Carter V. Findley, The Turks in world history, Oxford University Press, 2005, p. 51
23. ^ ^{a b} Kirschbaum, Stanislav J. (1995). A History of Slovakia: The Struggle for Survival. New York: Palgrave Macmillan; St. Martin's Press. pp. 26. ISBN 978-0-312-10403-0. http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=3JV_ARmBtYgC&printsec=frontcover&dq=A+History+of+Slovakia:+The+Struggle+for+Survival&hl=en&ei=41ZJTZDLJoHQhAeqlsXODg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=1&ved=0CDgQ6AEwAA#v=onepage&q&f=false. Retrieved 2009-10-09.  Cited: "Great Moravia was a vassal state of the Germanic Frankish Kingdom and paid an annual tribute to it."
24. ^ Bryan Cartledge, Bryan Cartledge (Sir.), The will to survive: a history of Hungary, Timewell Press, 2006, p.6
25. ^ ^{a b} Dora Wiebenson, József Sisa, Pál Lövei, The architecture of historic Hungary, MIT Press, 1998, p. 11, ISBN 978-0-262-23192-3
26. ^ ^{a b c d e} Lajos Gubcsi, Hungary in the Carpathian Basin, MoD Zrínyi Media Ltd, 2011
27. ^ The New Hungarian quarterly, Volumes 31-32, Corvina Press, 1990, p. 140
28. ^ ^{a b c} Révész, László (03.1996). A honfoglaló magyarok Északkelet- Magyarországon. Új Holnap 41. http://oldwww.uni-miskolc.hu/city/Olvaso/ujholnap/marcius/revesz.htm. 
29. ^ ^{a b c d} Nóra Berend, At the gate of Christendom: Jews, Muslims, and "pagans" in medieval Hungary, c. 1000-c. 1300, Cambridge University Press, 2001, p. 19
30. ^ ^{a b} László Kósa, István Soós, A companion to Hungarian studies, Akadémiai Kiadó, 1999, p. 113
31. ^ ^{a b c} Révész, László (20.12.2010). Hunok, Avarok, Magyarok (Huns, Avars, Magyars). Hitel folyóirat (Magazine of Hitel). http://www.hitelfolyoirat.hu/dl/pdf/20110202-11330.pdf. 
32. ^ Révész, László (02.2008). A Felső-Tisza-vidék honfoglalás kori temetői. História (Magazine of História). http://www.historia.hu/. 
33. ^ ^{a b c} József Attila Tudományegyetem., Bölcsészettudományi Kar (University of József Attila), Acta historica, Volumes 92-98, 1991, p. 3
34. ^ András Gerő, A magyar történelem vitatott személyiségei, Volume 3, Kossuth, 2004, p. 13, ISBN 978-9630945974
35. ^ Mark Whittow, The making of Byzantium, 600-1025, University of California Press, 1996, p. 294
36. ^ Ferenc Glatz, Magyarok a Kárpát-medencében, Pallas Lap- és Könyvkiadó Vállalat, 1988, p. 21
37. ^ ^{a b} Victor Spinei, The Great Migrations in the East and South East of Europe from the Ninth to the Thirteenth Century: Hungarians, Pechenegs and Uzes, Hakkert, 2006, p. 42
38. ^ Kevin Alan Brook, The Jews of Khazaria, Rowman & Littlefield, 2009, p. 253
39. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} Timothy Reuter, The New Cambridge Medieval History: c. 900-c. 1024, Cambridge University Press, 1995, p. 543-545, ISBN 9780521364478
40. ^ Michael David Harkavy, The new Webster's international encyclopedia: the new illustrated reference guide, Trident Press International, 1998, p. 70
41. ^ András Róna-Tas, A honfoglaló magyar nép, Balassi Kiadó Budapest, 1997, ISBN 963 506 140 4