Principality Of Transylvania Research Articles

Einige Bemerkungen zur Wirtschaft Siebenbürgens am Ende des Fürstentums und am Anfang des Großfürstentums

Transylvania between the Principality of Transylvania and the Grand Principality, as part of the Habsburg Empire suffered a series of economic experiences that led to a considerable extent to its economic as well as social and political decay and recovery. The small Principality on the edge of Central Europe has experienced appreciable changes in its status for two centuries, as well as in the economic perception of those who lived there and also of the other states. The 17th century was one marked both by rich periods from an economic point of view, but also by periods generating economic crisis, due to various natural cataclysms. It is a century of continuous balance between princely absolutism and the noble regime, between the enslavement process and the protection of free structures. Transylvania was hit by the economic crisis of the Habsburg Empire in the middle of the 18th century. The strategies to revitalize the Treasury through internal sources hit hard on the province's financial strength. The economic life of these 200 years is marked by the historic collapse of the guild system. The first who act to limit the monopoly of the guilds are the Princes of Transylvania. The forms of manufacturing production that appeared precisely in the important areas of the guild economy such as those of Sibiu or Braşov are also a significant, but insufficient factor, leading to the weakening of these corporations.

Methodological Aspects for the Analysis of Transylvanian Censuses in the First Third of the Eighteenth Century

Throughout history, tax revenue has been a significant source of income for the state. Direct taxes composed a crucial part of the state budget, along with revenues generated from trade and other economic activities. Since the Early Modern Times, taxpayers have been registered before tax collection to estimate income and determine applicable taxes for households.In the Middle Ages, censuses taken in the Kingdom of Hungary aimed to register the taxpaying population, mainly serfs, while excluding the tax-exempt nobility and ecclesiastical order. The Ottoman conquests led to changes in the tax system, with the occupiers building a well-organized system adapted to local social conditions in the territory under their rule. Despite the Viennese court's financial administration reforms, medieval taxation methods persisted for decades in the remaining part of the Kingdom of Hungary. Tax collection procedures in the Principality of Transylvania also followed medieval customs, although the Transylvanian government introduced changes in defining taxpayers and tax units, similar to the reform in the Kingdom of Hungary.In my study, I examine the censuses (conscriptiones, connumerationes) carried out in Cluj and Turda Counties from 1713 to 1733. My research focuses on the structure and content of these sources, as well as their methodological implications and potential for data interpretation and application.

Possibilities of Utilizing Historical Heritage for Tourism in Alba Iulia/Gyulafehérvár and Its Surroundings Nowadays

Our present study focuses on Alba/Fehér County located in the southwestern part of historical Transylvania. In recent decades, many cultural values ​​have been renewed in the area of Alba/Fehér County in ​​the Mureş/Maros Valley. The studied area has favorable natural and socio-geographic features and a varied history. Its historical and cultural center is Alba Iulia/Gyulafehérvár and the Castle of Alba Iulia/Gyulafehérvár.
 The secular and ecclesiastical buildings and monuments of the castle are the cultural achievements of the Roman era, the Kingdom of Hungary, the Principality of Transylvania, the Habsburg Empire, the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy and Romania after World War I. Before 1990, it was mostly possible to visit memorial sites and monuments related to Romanian history. The university founded in 1991 to commemorate the historic event in Alba Iulia/Gyulafehérvár on December 1st 1918 uses some parts of the buildings on the castle grounds. The cultural values ​​restored between 2013-2015 with the support of the European Union were integrated into the tourist offer. The Habsburg period of the city's history is described illustratively. The cathedral of the Roman Catholic Bishopric of Transylvania, founded in 1009, preserves the ecclesiastical, historical and architectural values ​​of several centuries.
 Nowadays, it is not possible to visit the building of the Reformed Academy located in the castle, the priceless Batthyaneum library, as well as the remains of the 10th-century church. Making them accessible to visitors would significantly increase the tourist facilities and possibilities of the city and the region.

Court Jesters in the Service of the Transylvanian Nobility

The aim of this paper is to provide a brief overview of the jesters found in the Principality of Transylvania. Our analysis is largely based on memoirs, autobiographies and chronicles written by Transylvanian nobles and intellectuals, and occasionally on princely charters. The earliest records on court fools in the principality date to the 16th century, while the latest are from the 19th century. Two types of fools can be encountered in the sources: natural and artificial ones. Dwarfs, mentally ill, ugly or slow-minded adults fall in the first category. In contrast, the artificial or wise fools, as they are referred to, possessed special skills, and they were not only good entertainers, but often educated people, sometimes even members of the nobility. They distinguished themselves from their colleagues by the intimacy they manifested around the prince or nobles, and their freedom to comment and criticize politics, to offer advice and in general to speak freely.

On Learning Logic in 17th Century Transylvania

"The purpose of this paper is to provide a glimpse on the method and content of teaching logic/dialectic in the Principality of Transylvania in the 17th century from the perspective of Miklós Bethlen with references to two important local scholars: Pál Keresztúri and Janos Apáczai Csere, who is better known as being the first Hungarian encyclopaedist. In addition to this, the paper will contain for comparison a short survey of what Jan Amos Komenský had to say about teaching logic. Keywords: Logic, dialectic, teaching method, Miklós Bethlen, Pál Keresztúri, Janos Apáczai Csere, Jan Amos Komenský "

The Eastern Policy of France in the Second Half of the 17th — Second Half of the 18th Century

The article reveals the peculiarities of the eastern policy of France in the second half of the 17th — second half of the 18th century. During the reign of Kings Louis XIV and Louis XV, the eastern policy of France underwent significant changes. At the beginning of this period, the main goal of the “eastern barrier” was to confront the Austrian Habsburgs. To this end, the government of Louis XVI used, first of all, the alliance with the Principality of Transylvania. Problems in the east distracted the Habsburgs from the wars in Europe. During the reign of Louis XV, France's foreign policy became much less consistent. At the beginning of the reign of this monarch, the policy of the “eastern barrier” continued, only now it was directed primarily against Russia, since France was very concerned about the Austro-Russian military alliance. Later, the so-called “reversal of alliances” took place, which eventually led to the Seven Years' War, during which France was on the same side with Austria and Russia, and the policy of the “eastern barrier” was temporarily forgotten. After the turn of Russian policy towards an alliance with Prussia, France is also returning to its traditional policy of containing Russia. This was reflected in the support of the Bar Confederation in Poland and pushing the Ottoman Empire and the Crimean Khanate to war with Russia. However, this policy has not led to any significant results. Apparently, the traditional alliance with the Ottoman Empire for France already at that moment did not seem so attractive to some French politicians. The weakening of the Ottoman Empire was presented to them as a possible reason for the seizure of its territories in the Eastern Mediterranean, Egypt for example.

Travel Writing and the Integration of East-Central Europe: John Paget’s Hungary and Transylvania

John Paget’s travelogue from 1839, Hungary and Transylvania; with Remarks on their Condition, Social, Political, and Economical, makes a clear distinction between the Kingdom of Hungary and the Principality of Transylvania, both under Austrian rule at the time, and the rest of Eastern Europe. In terms of the variety and depth of the descriptions of the social, political, and economic conditions in the East-CentralEuropean country and province, Paget’s comprehensive and objective text stands out from the travelogues written about the region in the nineteenth century. This essay demonstrates that Hungary and Transylvania reveals the author’s intention to rediscover the history and culture of a neglected European nation who have attempted for centuries, successfully, and often unsuccessfully, to orient their politics toward the West rather than the East. It suggests that despite the occasional colonial discourse, Paget’s travelogue is an attempt to economically, politically, and culturally promote the integration of Hungary and Transylvania into the more “civilized” West. (MP)

War and Social Conflicts in Early Modern Border Areas: Colonel Ludovicus de La Borde and Satu Mare (Szatmár) Fortress (1673–77)

Abstract The social and economic dynamics of early modern borders in central and southeast Europe were marked by endemic warfare. The border between Habsburg Hungary and the Principality of Transylvania in the second half of the seventeenth century was affected by an almost constant state of war. The presence of an Ottoman province in the vicinity (Oradea, conquered by the Turks in 1660) further complicated the political and military situation. Large-scale military campaigns were accompanied by various forms of frontier warfare and rebellions. The aim of this article is to analyze the social impact of war on the fortress of Satu Mare (Szatmár) and the two neighboring market towns, Satu Mare (Szatmár) and Mintiu (Némethi), as reflected by three documents issued by, or referring to, Colonel Ludovicus de La Borde. In the first part of the article, I have presented a short overview of the history of the early modern fortification of Satu Mare (Szatmár) during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, emphasizing the frequent border changes between Habsburg Hungary and the Principality of Transylvania.

Aurora Observations from the Principality of Transylvania from the 16th to the 18th Century CE

We focused on the period from about 1500 CE to 1800 CE and present a compilation of 78 different auroral sightings for the period from the geographical area of the former Principality of Transylvania, then part of the Kingdom of Hungary, and we give source quotations in English translation. Of the 78 potential aurorae, 23 are missing from the catalog of Rethly and Berkes (1963) and are introduced here for the first time into the scientific discourse on past solar activity. The region of Transylvania located around 46° northern latitude is a good geographical indicator for an auroral oval extending unusually far towards the Equator. The reports of seven celestial phenomena from Transylvania during the period of the Maunder minimum (1645 – 1715), which are considered genuine northern lights at a medium to very high probability level, suggest that even during this time of greatly reduced solar activity, aurorae penetrated down to near 45° latitude. Three of these potential aurorae, however, fall within the 18th century, when the Sun was already recovering from the deep minimum phase. Comparing the distribution of potential auroral sightings in Transylvania from the 16th to the 18th century clearly shows, in comparison with other aurora catalogs and with reconstructed solar activity, that high selectivity due to the historical-source situation (incomplete chronicles, lost reports, and lack of scientific interest on the part of chroniclers) makes statements about actual long-term distributions almost impossible. Furthermore, the catalog of Rethly and Berkes is shown to be rather incomplete and to contain several doubtful entries.

Служба и учеба: венгерская дворянская лейб-гвардия как культурно-просветительский институт в Вене XVIII в.

The Royal Hungarian Bodyguard, founded in 1760, was the first guard unit at the Viennese court to be recruited on a territorial basis and exclusively from noblemen. The establishment of the Guard served three purposes: to significantly increase the presence of Hungarians at court, to represent the monarch (the power of the sovereign) and the Hungarian estates, and to provide a cultural space for young Hungarian noblemen. For them, the Guard became an aid in building patron-client relations and in orientation in the court environment, which was especially important for the natives of eastern Hungary and the Principality of Transylvania as well as for Protestant noblemen. The article examines the role of the Guard in expanding the cultural horizons of young Hungarian nobles. The purpose of the paper is to present the role of the guard as an instrument of education and acculturation of Hungarian nobles against the background of well-known and recently discovered sources, such as guard establishment proposals, school register books and so forth, and to awaken interest of international research to the importance of this special institution. At the beginning of the article, an overview of the early proposals of the establishment of the Guard is given, then the principles of its operation are described, and finally, several examples are given to illustrate the role of the Guard in the careers of Hungarian magnates and noblemen.

The Administrative Organisation of Present Cluj County between 1541 and 1848

"The Administrative Organisation of Present Cluj County between 1541 and 1848. The administrative organisation is one of the most important spatial planning actions, because it directly determines spatial configurations and polarizing relations, while concentrating local government institutions into cities and towns which are becoming more prominent as a result of them being designated as administrative centres. This paper attempts to reconstruct the administrative divisions and the ranking of settlements of present Cluj County between 1541 and 1848. Included almost entirely in the Principality of Transylvania, the area of present Cluj County was mainly covered, from North to South, by the counties of Solnocu Interior (Inner Solnoc), Dăbâca, Cluj and Turda. The Szekler seat of Arieș covered a small part in the South and Bihor County (in the Kingdom of Hungary) covered a very small part in the West of present Cluj County. Their limits remained largely the same over a very long period of time. The counties of Solnocu Interior, Dăbâca, Cluj and Turda extended a lot to the West and East of present Cluj County, but their seats were all located here: Dej (Solnocu Interior County), Bonțida (Dăbâca County), Cluj and Turda, to which one may add Gherla, that had the highest status, just like Cluj, that of free royal city, and had an administration of its own. All counties were divided into two districts, an Upper District and a Lower District, and the districts, in their turn, were further divided into circles (smaller districts). Cluj, Gherla, Turda and Dej have retained their importance throughout several centuries up until today, and their historical heritage and prominence still plays an important part in the present regional framework. Keywords: Cluj County, administrative organisation, historical counties, districts, Principality of Transylvania."

Zay Anna Herbáriuma és a XVIII. századi magyar gyógyszerészi szaknyelv

By the end of the 17th century, the Ottoman Empire power had been expelled out of Hungary. At the same time, the death of the King of Spain, forecast the end of the “Western” Habsburg Empire. Emerging economic nations England and the Netherlands wanted to create a new balance of power in which the Principality of Transylvania was also concerned. The Spanish War of Succession ended with the peace of Utrecht, which created a modern style of diplomacy. Ferenc Rákóczi II realized the chance of Hungary’s independence in a rearranging Europe, thus he started his war of independence. One of the spectacular social rise families of the era was the Vay family. Adam Vay wanted to be out of the war of independence. However, when the imperial troops burned down Gács Castle, he joined Rákóczi. Rising to the rank of general, Vay went to exile with his family in Poland after the peace of Szatmár (present-day Satu Mare, Romania). In exile, not only deprivation but also disease threatened them. Typical for the manorial courts of the era, scholar and lay healers worked together. His well-read wife, Anna Zay, began writing herbarium following this tradition. She tried most of the recipes he collected among the personnel of her house. Her work was circulated as a manuscript copy, which preserved the 16th – 17th-century Hungarian medical language. For the people of this era, above the battlefield injuries, the most feared disease was the plague. For Zay, prayer strengthened her endurance, helped her bearing much suffering and sorrow and provided hope to be freed from her exile. God speaks to man through the word, but prayers speak to God.

A Companion to the Reformation in Central Europe

Timeline Map of Europe, ca. 1550 Glossary of Place-Name Equivalents Notes on Contributors List of Illustrations Introduction (Howard Louthan and Graeme Murdock) Part I: Contexts and Confessions Chapter 1: The lands of the Bohemian crown (Phillip Haberkern) Chapter 2: The Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Maciej Ptaszynski) Chapter 3: The Austrian lands (Astrid von Schlachta) Chapter 4: The Kingdom of Hungary and Principality of Transylvania (Marta Fata) Chapter 5: Reform before Reform? (Natalia Nowakowska) Chapter 6: Protestant Reformers (Luka Ilic, Michael Springer, and Edit Szegedi) Chapter 7: Antitrinitarianism (Mihaly Balazs) Chapter 8: Catholic Reformers (Rona Johnston Gordon, Howard Louthan, and Tadhg O hAnnrachain) Chapter 9: Orthodox Reform (Liudmyla Sharipova) Part II: Communities and Communication Chapter 10: Social and Moral Discipline (Alexander Schunka) Chapter 11: The Town and the Reformation as an event (Rudolf Schlogl) Chapter 12: Nobles: Between religious compromise and revolt (Vaclav Buzek) Chapter 13: The monarch and court in the Habsburg lands (Mark Hengerer) Chapter 14: Education: the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Michael Tworek) Chapter 15: Bibles and Books: Bohemia and Hungary (Pal Acs and Howard Louthan) Chapter 16: Visual cultures (Maria Craciun and Grazyna Jurkowlaniec) Chapter 17: Tolerance and Intolerance (Laura Lisy-Wagner and Graeme Murdock) Index

Between "Faithful Subjects" and "Pernicious Nation": Greek Merchants in the Principality of Transylvania in the Seventeenth Century

Between "Faithful Subjects" and "Pernicious Nation": Greek Merchants in the Principality of Transylvania in the Seventeenth Century

275 years since the epidemic of plague in Cluj: Dr. Alexandru Lenghel's contribution to its investigation.

Plague is one of the most impressive diseases in the cultural history of mankind. Its lethality has influenced the evolution of society and it is frequently represented in fine arts and literature.The principality of Transylvania was also affected by this infection, the plague having strongly impacted both economic and social development.Between 1738 and 1739 an important plague epidemic spread in Transylvania. The authors introduce and discuss a less known work on this epidemic, with focus on its impact on the city of Cluj - a book written in 1930 by Dr. Alexandru Lenghel, who later became a target of political persecution during the Stalinist period, while his work entered a cone of shadow.

State and Governance in The Principality Of Transylvania

This study offers a brief survey of the Transylvanian state and the administrative structure of the Principality of Transylvania. First, it reveals the changes taking place in the operation of the Transylvanian diet after the fall of Buda (1541) — this authority developed from a partial diet into a general assembly. The formula used until 1690 by the assembly of the Transylvanian estates for naming itself had settled by the mid-16th century: states and orders of the three nations of Transylvania and of the Joined Parts of Hungary (status et ordines trium nationum regni Transylvaniae Partiumque Hungariae eidem annexarum). The author describes the unique legal status of the new state, the Principality of Transylvania as a “dual dependence”. On the one hand, as a vassal state, the Transylvanian state depended upon the Ottoman Empire, and on the other, in theory, it remained part of the Kingdom of Hungary — as was proclaimed in several public or secret agreements between the princes and the kings. The study shows how the estates could practice their right of free election of the prince and the difficulties of the method, it also discusses the peculiarities of the division of power between the estates and the prince, and it considers the union (treaty of alliance) of the Transylvanian estates as the constitution of the new state.

:Early Modern Religious Communities in East Central Europe: Ethnic Diversity, Denominational Plurality, and Corporative Politics in the Principality of Transylvania (1526-1671)

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Early modern religious communities in east-central Europe. Ethnic diversity, denominational plurality, and corporative politics in the principality of Transylvania (1526–1691). By István Keul. (Studies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions, 143.) Pp. xvii+318 incl. 3 maps and 40 figs. Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2009. €99. 978 9004 17652 2; 1573 4188

Early modern religious communities in east-central Europe. Ethnic diversity, denominational plurality, and corporative politics in the principality of Transylvania (1526–1691). By István Keul. (Studies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions, 143.) Pp. xvii+318 incl. 3 maps and 40 figs. Leiden–Boston: Brill, 2009. €99. 978 9004 17652 2; 1573 4188

Litterae missionariorum de Hungaria et Transilvania (1572-1717), Vol. 1 (review)

Litterae missionariorum de Hungaria et Transilvania (1572-1717), Vol. I. Edited by Istvan Gyorgy Toth. [Bibliotheca Academiae Hungariae, Roma, Fontes 4.] (Rome-Budapest: History Institute of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences. 2002. Pp. 756. 3000 Forint.) This very thick first volume of a source collection contains the carefully edited letters, one ought to say reports, forwarded to the Congregatio de propaganda fide in Rome, by mainly Franciscan missionaries active in the regions of historic Hungary under the Turkish yoke, and of Transylvania ruled by Protestant princes in that time period. The originally researched and edited material is based upon written documents preserved in various archives in Rome. The first document printed in this first volume of a multi-volume set is the letter (report?) by Bonifacio di Ragusa, Bishop of Stagno, addressed to Pope Gregory XIII, dated in Ragusa on December 18, 1572. The last (n. 242) published document, the letter (report) by Archbishop Michele Magych of Antivar, sent from Nijemci (datum in Niemczi, diocesi Syrmiensi), and addressed to Cardinal Antonio Barberini, Prefect of the Congregatio de propoganda fide, is dated from July 14, 1636. Professor Toth's most conscientious editorial work is similar in approach to Epistolae et acta Jesuitarum (1575-88), and to Annuae litterae Soc. Jesu de rebus Transylvanicis temporibus principum Bathory (1579-1613), Vols. II and V of Fontes rerum Transylvanicarum series, edited by Andreas Veress (Budapest, 1913 and 1921, respectively). One has to bear in mind that, at this time, from the 1540's to the 1690's, historic Hungary was broken up into three parts: the mid-section, occupied by the Turks, belonged to the Ottoman empire; the western part including the north and northwest formed the Hungarian kingdom under Catholic Habsburg rule and was regarded as a part of the Habsburg world empire, while the east became the principality of Transylvania, though its princes frequently paid their dues to the Sublime Porte in Istanbul. Therefore, the reports-sometimes of personal nature-sent by mainly Franciscan missionaries, or by Jesuits dressed as secular clergymen, to the Sacred Congregation in Rome about their activities in regions under direct Turkish rule, or in areas of Protestant Transylvania, essentially provide original, frequently eyewitness and honest records that depict the spiritual well-being, religious and social status, everyday living, economic and cultural conditions among the sparse population under Turkish rule and in the principality; they report on various ethnic groups, their number, their colorful folk and religious customs, even their pagan superstitions. …

Art. XIII.—Biographical Sketch of M. Alexander Csoma Körösi, the Hungarian Traveller; extracted from a Letter addressed by that Gentleman to Capt. C. P. Kennedy, of the Hon. East-India Company's Service, Assistant to the Political Resident at Dehlí, &amp;c.

I am a native of the Siculian nation (a tribe of those Hungarians who settled in ancient Dacia in the 4th century of the Christian era), in the great principality of Transylvania, subject to his Imperial Majesty the Emperor of Austria.