Ancient history of Transylvania
Encyclopedia
In ancient times, Romans
exploited the gold mines in what is now Transylvania
extensively, building access roads and forts to protect them, like Abrud
. The region developed a strong infrastructure and economy, based on agriculture, cattle farming and mining. Colonists from Thracia
, Moesia
, Macedonia
, Gaul
, Syria
, and other Roman provinces were brought in to settle the land, developing cities like Apulum (now Alba Iulia
) and Napoca (now Cluj Napoca) into municipium
s and colonia
s.
The Dacians rebelled frequently, the biggest rebellion occurring after the death of emperor Trajan
. Sarmatians
and Bur
s were allowed to settle inside Dacia Trajana after repeated clashes with the Roman administration. During the 3rd century increasing pressure from the free Dacians (Carpians
) and Visigoths forced the Romans to abandon exposed Dacia Trajana.
In 271 AD, the Roman emperor Aurelian
abandoned Dacia Trajana and reorganised a new Dacia Aureliana inside former Moesia Superior.
The abandonment of Dacia Trajana by the Romans is mentioned by Eutropius in his
Breviarium Liber Nonus.
The first wave of the Great Migrations, (300 to 500 AD) brought the influence of migratory tribes, especially the Germanic tribes.
The Visigoths established a kingdom north of Danube
and Transyilvania between 270-380. The region was known by Romans as Guthiuda and includes the region between Alutus (Olt) and Ister (Danube) too. It is unclear whether they used the term Kaukaland (land of the mountains) for Transylvania proper or the whole Carpathians. The (Vizi)Goths were unable to preserve the region's Roman era infrastructures. The goldmines of Transylvania were ruined and unused during the Early Middle Age.
Ulfilas
had carried (around 340) Homoean Arianism to the Goths living in Guthiuda with such success that the Visigoths and other Germanic tribes became staunch Arians
. When the Goths entered the Roman Empire (around 380) and founded successor-kingdoms, most had been Arian Christians.
In 380
a new power reached Transylvania, the Huns
. They drow back every Germanic people from the Carpathian Basin except the Gepids. The Alans
, Vandals
, Quads left the region toward the Roman Empire
. The Huns extended their rule over Transylvania after 420AD.
After the disintegration of Attila's empire, Transylvania was inhabited by the remnants of various Hunnic, and a Germanic tribe, the Gepids. The Transyilvanain Gepids had a semiindependent status inside the Kingdom of Gepids, but this relative autonomy came to an end in the late 6th century.
The rule of Gepids was crushed by a Lombards
and Eurasian Avars
attack in year 567 AD. In fact the Gepids were exterminated from the region. We know only about slight Gepid remnants (cemeteries) in the Banat
region after 600. In Transyilvania we have no traces which indicate a Gepids continuity after 567.
By 568, the Avars
under the capable leadership of their Kagan
, Bayan, established in the Carpathian Basin an empire that lasted for 250 years. During this 250 years the Slavs were allowed to settle inside Transylvania and they started to clear the Carpathian's virgin forests. The Avars meet their demise with the rise of Charlemagne's Frankish empire. After a fierce seven year war and civil war
between the Kagan
and Yugurrus which lasted from 796-803 A.D., the Avars were defeated.
The Transylvanian Avars were, subjugated by the Bulgars
under Khan Krum at the beginning of the 9th century and Transylvania, along with eastern Pannonia
, was incorporated into the First Bulgarian Empire
.
In 862, Moravian Prince Ratislav rebelled against his lord, hired Magyar troops to help him, and with their aid he won his independence. This is the first time when Magyar expedition troops entered the Carpathians Basin. After a devastating Bulgar and Pecheneg attack the Magyar tribes crossed the Carpathians and occupied the entire basin without significant resistance. According to the prime Gesta Ungarorum from the 11th century they entered Transylvania first, where Prince Almos was killed: "Almus in patria Erdelw occisus est, non enim potuit in Pannoniam introire". According to some archeological findings near Turda
(Golds of Prince Berthold of Bavaria) Transylvanian Magyars also participated in several raids against the West, Italy
, or the Balkans. Although the defeat in the Battle of Lech in 955
stopped the Magyar raids against western Europe, the raids on the Balkan Peninsula continued for one more decade.
The history of Transylvania during the early Middle Ages
is difficult to ascertain due to the scarcity of reliable written or archeological evidence. There are two major conflicting theories concerning whether or not the Romanized Dacian population (one of the ancestors of the Romanians
) continued to live in Transylvania after the withdrawal of the Romans
, and therefore whether or not the Romanians were present in Transylvania at the time of the
Great Migrations, particularly at the time of the Magyar migration; see: Origin of Romanians
. These conflicting hypotheses are often used to back competing nationalistic claims by Hungarian and Romanian chauvinists
.
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
exploited the gold mines in what is now Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
extensively, building access roads and forts to protect them, like Abrud
Abrud
Abrud is a town in the north-western part of Alba County, Transylvania, Romania, located on the river Abrud. It administers three villages: Abrud-Sat, Gura Cornei and Soharu.-Population:...
. The region developed a strong infrastructure and economy, based on agriculture, cattle farming and mining. Colonists from Thracia
Thracia
Thracia is a Web-Based computer game created and developed by an exclusively Romanian team, part of Infotrend Consulting, and launched in 2009. At the time, it was the first endeavor of its kind. All browser games were text based, made up mostly of static content...
, Moesia
Moesia
Moesia was an ancient region and later Roman province situated in the Balkans, along the south bank of the Danube River. It included territories of modern-day Southern Serbia , Northern Republic of Macedonia, Northern Bulgaria, Romanian Dobrudja, Southern Moldova, and Budjak .-History:In ancient...
, Macedonia
Macedonia (Roman province)
The Roman province of Macedonia was officially established in 146 BC, after the Roman general Quintus Caecilius Metellus defeated Andriscus of Macedon, the last Ancient King of Macedon in 148 BC, and after the four client republics established by Rome in the region were dissolved...
, Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
, Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, and other Roman provinces were brought in to settle the land, developing cities like Apulum (now Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania with a population of 66,747, located on the Mureş River. Since the High Middle Ages, the city has been the seat of Transylvania's Roman Catholic diocese. Between 1541 and 1690 it was the capital of the Principality of Transylvania...
) and Napoca (now Cluj Napoca) into municipium
Municipium
Municipium , the prototype of English municipality, was the Latin term for a town or city. Etymologically the municipium was a social contract between municipes, the "duty holders," or citizens of the town. The duties, or munera, were a communal obligation assumed by the municipes in exchange for...
s and colonia
Colonia (Roman)
A Roman colonia was originally a Roman outpost established in conquered territory to secure it. Eventually, however, the term came to denote the highest status of Roman city.-History:...
s.
The Dacians rebelled frequently, the biggest rebellion occurring after the death of emperor Trajan
Trajan
Trajan , was Roman Emperor from 98 to 117 AD. Born into a non-patrician family in the province of Hispania Baetica, in Spain Trajan rose to prominence during the reign of emperor Domitian. Serving as a legatus legionis in Hispania Tarraconensis, in Spain, in 89 Trajan supported the emperor against...
. Sarmatians
Sarmatians
The Iron Age Sarmatians were an Iranian people in Classical Antiquity, flourishing from about the 5th century BC to the 4th century AD....
and Bur
BUR
BUR may refer to:* Bur, a saying by Gucci Mane* Burs , a Germanic tribe* Bob Hope Airport, Burbank, California * Burmese language * Burkina Faso...
s were allowed to settle inside Dacia Trajana after repeated clashes with the Roman administration. During the 3rd century increasing pressure from the free Dacians (Carpians
Carpians
The Carpi or Carpiani were an ancient people that resided, between not later than ca. AD 140 and until at least AD 318, in the former Principality of Moldavia ....
) and Visigoths forced the Romans to abandon exposed Dacia Trajana.
In 271 AD, the Roman emperor Aurelian
Aurelian
Aurelian , was Roman Emperor from 270 to 275. During his reign, he defeated the Alamanni after a devastating war. He also defeated the Goths, Vandals, Juthungi, Sarmatians, and Carpi. Aurelian restored the Empire's eastern provinces after his conquest of the Palmyrene Empire in 273. The following...
abandoned Dacia Trajana and reorganised a new Dacia Aureliana inside former Moesia Superior.
The abandonment of Dacia Trajana by the Romans is mentioned by Eutropius in his
Breviarium Liber Nonus.
The first wave of the Great Migrations, (300 to 500 AD) brought the influence of migratory tribes, especially the Germanic tribes.
The Visigoths established a kingdom north of Danube
Danube
The Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
and Transyilvania between 270-380. The region was known by Romans as Guthiuda and includes the region between Alutus (Olt) and Ister (Danube) too. It is unclear whether they used the term Kaukaland (land of the mountains) for Transylvania proper or the whole Carpathians. The (Vizi)Goths were unable to preserve the region's Roman era infrastructures. The goldmines of Transylvania were ruined and unused during the Early Middle Age.
Ulfilas
Ulfilas
Ulfilas, or Gothic Wulfila , bishop, missionary, and Bible translator, was a Goth or half-Goth and half-Greek from Cappadocia who had spent time inside the Roman Empire at the peak of the Arian controversy. Ulfilas was ordained a bishop by Eusebius of Nicomedia and returned to his people to work...
had carried (around 340) Homoean Arianism to the Goths living in Guthiuda with such success that the Visigoths and other Germanic tribes became staunch Arians
Arianism
Arianism is the theological teaching attributed to Arius , a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt, concerning the relationship of the entities of the Trinity and the precise nature of the Son of God as being a subordinate entity to God the Father...
. When the Goths entered the Roman Empire (around 380) and founded successor-kingdoms, most had been Arian Christians.
In 380
380
Year 380 was a leap year starting on Wednesday of the Julian calendar. At the time, it was known as the Year of the Consulship of Augustus and Augustus...
a new power reached Transylvania, the Huns
Huns
The Huns were a group of nomadic people who, appearing from east of the Volga River, migrated into Europe c. AD 370 and established the vast Hunnic Empire there. Since de Guignes linked them with the Xiongnu, who had been northern neighbours of China 300 years prior to the emergence of the Huns,...
. They drow back every Germanic people from the Carpathian Basin except the Gepids. The Alans
Alans
The Alans, or the Alani, occasionally termed Alauni or Halani, were a group of Sarmatian tribes, nomadic pastoralists of the 1st millennium AD who spoke an Eastern Iranian language which derived from Scytho-Sarmatian and which in turn evolved into modern Ossetian.-Name:The various forms of Alan —...
, Vandals
Vandals
The Vandals were an East Germanic tribe that entered the late Roman Empire during the 5th century. The Vandals under king Genseric entered Africa in 429 and by 439 established a kingdom which included the Roman Africa province, besides the islands of Sicily, Corsica, Sardinia and the Balearics....
, Quads left the region toward the Roman Empire
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
. The Huns extended their rule over Transylvania after 420AD.
After the disintegration of Attila's empire, Transylvania was inhabited by the remnants of various Hunnic, and a Germanic tribe, the Gepids. The Transyilvanain Gepids had a semiindependent status inside the Kingdom of Gepids, but this relative autonomy came to an end in the late 6th century.
The rule of Gepids was crushed by a Lombards
Lombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
and Eurasian Avars
Eurasian Avars
The Eurasian Avars or Ancient Avars were a highly organized nomadic confederacy of mixed origins. They were ruled by a khagan, who was surrounded by a tight-knit entourage of nomad warriors, an organization characteristic of Turko-Mongol groups...
attack in year 567 AD. In fact the Gepids were exterminated from the region. We know only about slight Gepid remnants (cemeteries) in the Banat
Banat
The Banat is a geographical and historical region in Central Europe currently divided between three countries: the eastern part lies in western Romania , the western part in northeastern Serbia , and a small...
region after 600. In Transyilvania we have no traces which indicate a Gepids continuity after 567.
By 568, the Avars
Eurasian Avars
The Eurasian Avars or Ancient Avars were a highly organized nomadic confederacy of mixed origins. They were ruled by a khagan, who was surrounded by a tight-knit entourage of nomad warriors, an organization characteristic of Turko-Mongol groups...
under the capable leadership of their Kagan
Kagan
- People :* Daryn Kagan , former American newscaster* Donald Kagan , Yale historian specializing in ancient Greece* Elena Kagan, dean of Harvard Law School, U.S. Solicitor General , and Associate Justice of the U.S...
, Bayan, established in the Carpathian Basin an empire that lasted for 250 years. During this 250 years the Slavs were allowed to settle inside Transylvania and they started to clear the Carpathian's virgin forests. The Avars meet their demise with the rise of Charlemagne's Frankish empire. After a fierce seven year war and civil war
Civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same nation state or republic, or, less commonly, between two countries created from a formerly-united nation state....
between the Kagan
Kagan
- People :* Daryn Kagan , former American newscaster* Donald Kagan , Yale historian specializing in ancient Greece* Elena Kagan, dean of Harvard Law School, U.S. Solicitor General , and Associate Justice of the U.S...
and Yugurrus which lasted from 796-803 A.D., the Avars were defeated.
The Transylvanian Avars were, subjugated by the Bulgars
Bulgars
The Bulgars were a semi-nomadic who flourished in the Pontic Steppe and the Volga basin in the 7th century.The Bulgars emerge after the collapse of the Hunnic Empire in the 5th century....
under Khan Krum at the beginning of the 9th century and Transylvania, along with eastern Pannonia
Pannonia
Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
, was incorporated into the First Bulgarian Empire
History of Bulgaria
The history of Bulgaria spans from the first settlements on the lands of modern Bulgaria to its formation as a nation-state and includes the history of the Bulgarian people and their origin. The first traces of human presence on what is today Bulgaria date from 44,000 BC...
.
Turda
Turda is a city and Municipality in Cluj County, Romania, situated on the Arieş River.- Ancient times :The city was founded by Dacians under the name Patavissa or Potaissa...
(Golds of Prince Berthold of Bavaria) Transylvanian Magyars also participated in several raids against the West, Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, or the Balkans. Although the defeat in the Battle of Lech in 955
955
Year 955 was a common year starting on Monday of the Julian calendar.- Europe :* August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld: Otto I the Great defeats the Magyars, halting their westward expansion and ending the threat to Germany.* Eadwig becomes King of England.- Religion :* December 16 – Pope...
stopped the Magyar raids against western Europe, the raids on the Balkan Peninsula continued for one more decade.
The history of Transylvania during the early Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
is difficult to ascertain due to the scarcity of reliable written or archeological evidence. There are two major conflicting theories concerning whether or not the Romanized Dacian population (one of the ancestors of the Romanians
Romanians
The Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
) continued to live in Transylvania after the withdrawal of the Romans
Roman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
, and therefore whether or not the Romanians were present in Transylvania at the time of the
Great Migrations, particularly at the time of the Magyar migration; see: Origin of Romanians
Origin of Romanians
The origin of the Romanians – the ethnogenesis of the Romanian people – can be traced back to the region’s Romanized inhabitants living, within the Roman Empire, in the lands north of the Jireček Line The origin of the Romanians – the ethnogenesis of the Romanian people (speakers of a Romance...
. These conflicting hypotheses are often used to back competing nationalistic claims by Hungarian and Romanian chauvinists
Chauvinism
Chauvinism, in its original and primary meaning, is an exaggerated, bellicose patriotism and a belief in national superiority and glory. It is an eponym of a possibly fictional French soldier Nicolas Chauvin who was credited with many superhuman feats in the Napoleonic wars.By extension it has come...
.
See also
- Prehistory of TransylvaniaPrehistory of TransylvaniaThe Prehistory of Transylvania describes what can be learned about the region known as Transylvania through archaeology, anthropology, comparative linguistics and other allied sciences....
- History of TransylvaniaHistory of TransylvaniaTransylvania is a historical region in the central part of the Romania. In ancient times it was part of the Dacian Kingdom and Roman Dacia. Since the 10th century, Transylvania became part of the Kingdom of Hungary...
- National Museum of Transylvanian HistoryNational Museum of Transylvanian HistoryThe National Museum of Transylvanian History is a history and archaeology museum in the city of Cluj-Napoca, Romania. It features a permanent exhibition, as well as temporary exhibitions, the "Tezaur" exhibition, and Pharmacy Historical collection—this last opened in the Hintz House, an...
- Celts in TransylvaniaCelts in TransylvaniaThe Celts of Transylvania were an ancient people of Indo-European origin, first attested to archaeologically in Central Europe between 800–450 BC. By the time of the later La Tène period The Celts of Transylvania were an ancient people of Indo-European origin, first attested to...
- List of tribes in Thrace and Dacia
- List of cities in Thrace and Dacia
- DaciaDaciaIn ancient geography, especially in Roman sources, Dacia was the land inhabited by the Dacians or Getae as they were known by the Greeks—the branch of the Thracians north of the Haemus range...
- La Tène cultureLa Tène cultureThe La Tène culture was a European Iron Age culture named after the archaeological site of La Tène on the north side of Lake Neuchâtel in Switzerland, where a rich cache of artifacts was discovered by Hansli Kopp in 1857....
Further reading
- History of Transylvania by Béla Köpeczi Boulder, Colo. : Social Science Monographs ; New York : Distributed by Columbia University Press, 2001- 2002 ISBN 0880334797