Foundation of Wallachia
Encyclopedia
The foundation of Wallachia , that is the establishment of the first independent Romanian
principality, was achieved at the beginning of the 14th century, through the unification of smaller political units that had existed between the Carpathian Mountains
, and the Rivers Danube
, Siret
and Milcov.
Prior to the consolidation of Wallachia
, waves of nomadic peoples – the last of them being the Cumans
and the Mongols
– rode across the territory. The territory became a frontier area between the Golden Horde
(the westernmost part of the Mongol Empire
) and the Kingdom of Hungary
after 1242. The Romanians in Muntenia
, east of the Olt River
, had to pay tribute to the Mongols; and west of the river, in Oltenia
, they were oppressed by the Bans of Severin
, appointed by the Kings of Hungary
. The Golden Horde’s domination decreased in the region at the end of the 13th century, and at that time the Kingdom of Hungary also underwent a strong political crisis. These events enabled the incipient states of the territory to consolidate their autonomy.
One Romanian tradition records that Wallachia was founded when a certain Radu Negru
(‘Radu the Black’) arrived from the Făgăraş
region in the 1290s after crossing the Transylvanian Alps with “a great many following him”. More credible is the report that some Romanian lords in the Olt and Argeş
valleys chose as leader one of their number, a certain Basarab
.
It was Voivode Basarab I (c. 1310–1352) who broke off with the Kingdom of Hungary and refused to accept the king’s suzerainty. Basarab I received international support and the recognition of the autonomy of Wallachia due to his great military victory
over King Charles I of Hungary
(1301–1342) at Posada on November 12, 1330. The Metropolitan See of Wallachia, directly subordinated to the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
, was set up during the reign of Basarab I’s son, Nicolae Alexandru
(1352–1364). The first silver and bronze coins were minted in Wallachia in 1365.
(early Romanians) on the left side of the Danube, there is a quotation of a passage from an Armenian
book of geography. The passage represents an interpolation
, probably from the first centuries of the second millennium, which refers to an “unknown country called Balak”, situated in the neighborhood of the “Sarmatians
’ country” and of “Zagura” (Bulgaria
). Another 11th-century reference to the Vlachs’ country appears to be the section of the ancient Turkic
chronicle Oghuzname ('Oghuz Khan's Tale'), preserved in a 17th century text, which narrates the battles of the Cumans against several peoples, including the Vlachs (Ulak).
The Cumans
, a Turkic tribe
approached the Danube Delta
shortly after 1064–1065, and from 1068 the entire territory between the Aral Sea
and the lower Danube were controlled by them. But this vast territory was never politically united by a strong central power. The different Cuman groups were under independent rulers or khan
s who meddled in the political life of the surrounding areas, such as the Rus’ principalities and the Byzantine Empire
. In attacking the Byzantine Empire, the Cumans were also assisted by the Vlachs living in the Balkan Mountains
(now in Bulgaria) who showed them the mountain paths where no imperial guard was set up. There are disputes in historiography regarding the content of the meaning of the term "Vlach" at that time. In various sources the expressions “Vlachs” or “Moesi
” may refer either to Romanized inhabitants of the Balkans or to Bulgarians and Cumans. Some historians suggest that the term “Vlach” referred to pastoral populations at that time.
In 1185, the Balkan Vlachs, together with the Bulgarians, rose up in arms against the Byzantine Empire. They created, with the help of the Cumans and the Vlachs living on the left bank of the Danube, a new state, the Second Bulgarian Empire
between the Balkan Mountains and the Danube (to the south of the future Wallachia) or between the Balkan Mountains and Carpathians (including future Wallachia). The new state was called “Vlachia” or “Vlachia and Bulgaria” in Western sources. For example, in 1204 the pope elevated the head of the Bulgarian church to the rank of “primas” (primate
) “of all Bulgaria and Vlachia”. “Vlachia” as a designation for northern Bulgaria only disappeared from the sources after the middle of the 13th century.
In 1211, King Andrew II of Hungary
(1205–1235) settled the Teutonic Knights
in the region of Braşov
in order to put an end to the frequent incursions of the Cumans into Transylvania
. The knights were given all the territory they could conquer beyond the Carpathian Mountains as a fief to be held from the king of Hungary. According to a royal charter of 1222, the knights’ military power stretched across the Carpathians all the way to the Danube. That the Teutonic Knights won several victories “beyond the snowy mountains” (ultra montes nivium), that is to the south and to the east of the Carpathians, is also confirmed by papal
letters. However, the Teutonic Knights were forced out of the territory in 1225 by King Andrew II, who claimed that they had ignored his authority.
The Mongols were the last of the migrating hordes to enter Europe
. This happened in 1223 when they defeated a joint Rus’-Cuman army at the river Kalka
(now in Ukraine
). Some Cuman groups, after their defeat of the Mongols, become willing to adopt Christianity. As early as 1227, one of the Cuman chieftains, Boricius subjected himself and his people to the future King Béla IV of Hungary
, converted to Christianity and agreed to pay an annual tax and the tithe
. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cumania
, located in northeastern Wallachia and southwestern Moldavia
, was established in 1228. A significant presence of the Vlachs within the newly established bishopric is documented in the correspondence between the Hungarian crown prince
and Pope Gregory IX
(1227–1241), as the pope complained about Orthodox
prelate
s active among the local Vlachs.
The Diocese of Cumania was de jure
a part of the Kingdom of Hungary, and King Andrew II adopted the title of "king of Cumania" in 1233. There can be no doubt that the king also placed garrisons at key points on the southern slopes of the Carpathian Mountains in northeastern Wallachia. But the military outposts in the region of the bishopric are only first mentioned in relation to the Mongol invasion of 1241
by Roger of Torre Maggiore.
In parallel with the emergence of the Second Bulgarian Empire, the Kingdom of Hungary also persuaded an active expansionist policy in the Balkan Peninsula from the end of the 12th century. To that end, Oltenia was put under the control of a Hungarian governor, who received the title of ban
. The centre of the new province (the Banate of Severin) was Fort Severin (now Drobeta-Turnu Severin
, Romania
), on the Danube, in the vicinity of the Iron Gates. Its first ban, Luke, was mentioned in 1233.
In 1236 a large Mongol army was collected under the supreme leadership of Batu Khan
and set forth to the west, in one of the greatest invasions in world's history. The Mongols’ most devastating attacks against the western territories of the Desht-i Quipchaq (‘the steppe
of the Cumans’) took place in 1237–1238. The development of the battles was not recorded in the sources, but the Cuman's subsequent migration to Hungary, Bulgaria and other neighboring territories is eloquent enough. Although some Cuman groups survived the Mongol invasion, but the Cuman aristocracy was slain. The steppes of eastern Europe were conquered by Batu Khan’s army and became parts of the Golden Horde.
But the Mongols left no garrisons or military detachments in the lower Danube region and did not take direct political control of it. Although theoretically part of the Golden Horde, the steppe corridor between the Dnieper River
and the lower Danube was only a “region of hegemony”, not of direct control.
Two of them, the kenezates of Johannes
and Farcaş
were given to the Knights Hospitallers. But the kenezates under Litovoi
and Seneslau
were exempted from the grant, and the royal charter expressly stipulated that they were to be left “to the Vlachs as they had owned it until now”. On the other hand, the royal charter also describes that Voivode Litovoi's rule had extended on the northern side of the Transylvanian Alps into the Hunedoara
region, but the king removed this territory from Litovoi’s authority in 1247; thenceforward Litovoi’s kenezate was restricted to the Oltenian part of the Jiu
valley. Voivode Seneslau held the territories of central and southern Muntenia on the banks of the rivers Argeş and Dâmboviţa
.
After the failure and disappearance of the Hospitallers, the history of the region is shrouded in obscurity for decades. But the trend toward the unification of the Romanian polities seems to begin with Voivode Litovoi. He (or his namesake son) was at war with the Hungarians and killed in battle sometime between 1270 and 1280. In the battle, his brother, Bărbat
was captured. Bărbat was forced not only to pay ransom but also to recognize Hungarian rule.
of Făgăraş and Almaş
, named Radu Negru (‘Radu the Black’) or Negru Vodă (‘The Black Voivode’) was the first voivode of Wallachia. These texts state that Radu Negru, together with some colonists (“Romanians, Catholics and Saxons
”) arrived from the region of Făgăraş in Transylvania. The first documentary evidence for a terra Blacorum (‘land of the Vlachs’) on the territory later called Făgăraş is an early 13th-century property register which mentions the order of King Andrew II of Hungary that estates previously in Vlach hands be transferred to the Cistercian abbey at Cârţa
. Radu Negru and his followers crossed the Carpathians to Muntenia and founded Wallachia with its capitals in Câmpulung
and Curtea de Argeş
. The chronicles narrate these events under the year 1290 or 1292.
The Romanian term for the “founding” (descălecat, literally ‘dismounting’) refers to this alleged settling in Wallachia. But the word's exact meaning is debated, since there had been Romanians living in Wallachia before Radu Negru’s arrival; thus the term likely refers simply to the unification of the lands under one ruler. Moreover, this account of Radu Negru’s ‘dismounting’ may merely be a legend subsequently invented to parallel the circumstances by which Moldavia
, the other Romanian principality was founded
according to the earliest chronicles.
The origin of Oltenia is given by some of the chronicles differently: according to these chronicles Oltenia was colonized by Romanians from Turnu Severin, who founded two other capitals, at Strehaia
and Craiova
. After the arrival of Radu Negru and his descălecat, these Romanians swore allegiance to him.
Radu Negru’s personality is surrounded by legend; no details about him can be proved by other historical sources. Some chronicles identify him with the founder of various churches, such as the monastery at Curtea de Argeş, but they mistake him for later voivodes of Wallachia, such as Radu I
(c. 1377-c. 1383) and Neagoe Basarab
(1512–1521).
Due to lack of any actual contemporary evidence, the Roman historian Nicolae Iorga
doubted the existence of such a voivode, considering that 'Negru Vodă' is simply a nickname that could have been given to Basarab I, the real founder of Wallachia. Other view is represented by Neagu Djuvara
who identifies Negru Vodă with Thocomerius, Basarab's father, explaining his nickname by his Cuman descent: he appeared to have a dark skin color for the Romanians.
The legendary traditions may also be in connection with the establishment of a trans-Carpathian frontier mark by the Hungarian monarchy, with its capital at Câmpulung, probably in the last decade of the 13th century. A tomb stone belonging to one of the leaders of this formation, Count Lawrence of Câmpulung (comes Laurentius de Longo Campo), dating from the year 1300, may provide a solid chronological reference point. On the other hand, comes Laurentius may have been a one-time leader of the Saxon community in Câmpulung.
Basarab was the son of Thocomerius whose status cannot be specified. There is no direct clue in the sources to the date when Basarab took the office of voivode. But Ioannes Kantakouzenos
in his History narrates that in 1323 Basarab's armies joined in the fighting between Bulgaria and Byzantium and supported Tzar Michael Šišman of Bulgaria
(1323–1330) against the Byzantines. In a diploma, dated July 26, 1324, King Charles I of Hungary refers to Basarab as “our voivode of Wallachia” (woiuodam nostrum Transalpinum) which indicates that at that time Basarab was a vassal
of the king of Hungary.
In short time, however, Basarab refused to accept the suzerainty of the king, for neither Basarab's growing power nor the active foreign policy he was conducting on his own account to the south could be acceptable in Hungary. In a new diploma, dated June 18, 1325, King Charles I mentions him as “Basarab of Wallachia, unfaithful to the king’s Holy Crown” (Bazarab Transalpinum regie corone infidelem).
Hoping to punish Basarab, King Charles I mounted a military campaign against him in 1330. The king marched to Severin and took it from Basarab. The voivode asked for a truce, offering to refund 7,000 silver marks
for the costs of the army, and showed himself ready to continue paying tribute to the king and send his son as a hostage to the royal court. But the king refused and advanced with his host into Wallachia where everything seemed to have been laid waste.
Unable to subdue Basarab, the king ordered the retreat through the mountains. But in a long and narrow valley, the Hungarian army was attacked by the Romanians, who had taken up positions on the heights. The battle, called the Battle of Posada
, lasted for four days (November 9–12, 1330) and was a disaster for the Hungarians whose defeat was devastating. The king was only able to escape with his life by exchanging his royal coat of arms with one of his retainers.
The Battle of Posada was a turning point in Hungarian-Wallachian relations: though in the course of the 14th century, the kings of Hungary still tried to regulate the voivodes of Wallachia more than one time, but they could only succeed temporarily. Thus Basarab’s victory irretrievably opened the way to independence for the Principality of Wallachia.
(1331–1371) on the throne of the tzars of Bulgaria in Tirnovo
.
As a way of solemnizing his secession from the Kingdom of Hungary, Basarab’s son, Nicolae Alexandru also sought Byzantine approval for the creation of an Orthodox see for his territories. In 1359 Byzantium acceded to his request that the displaced metropolitan of Vicina
, Hyakinthos – whom Nicolae Alexander had been hosting at his court for some time – should became the “legitimate pastor of all Oungrovlachia for the blessing and spiritual direction of himself, his children and all his lordship”. At the same time, Byzantium also agreed to the creation of a metropolitan see, after Hyakinthos’ death, for “all Oungrovlachia”.
The new state was denoted as Oungrovlachia in Byzantine sources which reflects that it bordered on the Kingdom of Hungary. This name is first encountered in a Greek
diploma issued by the synod of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1370. In the diploma, the ruler of Wallachia, Nicolae Alexandru is styled “great voivode and master of all Oungrovlachia”.
Latin
documents used the term Wallachia or Wallachia maior (‘Greater Wallachia’) for Muntenia (which first appeared in 1373), and Wallachia minor (‘Lesser Wallachia’) for Oltenia (first recorded in 1377). The new country was identified as terra transalpina (‘land beyond the mountains’) or partes transalpinae (‘parts beyond the mountains’) in documents issued by the Royal Chancellery
of Hungary in the entire 14th century. The terminology of the Hungarian chancellery was also used in the Latin documents of the Wallachian voivodes.
The Romanian rulers chose the Byzantine model of government, and Wallachia was from the start an absolute monarchy
. The princes' absolute power was held to be divinely ordained
. Their correspondence and records used the expression "By the Grace of God
" from the 14th century. Wallachian sovereigns were host commanders and supreme judges, they patronized the church and made decisions that became laws. In theory, the voivodes were considered proprietors of all the lands in the country, but in fact they were devoid of extensive personal land holdings.
The monarchy was also dynastic: the princes were to be elected by boyars from among the members of the ruling family, the Basarabs. The boyars were the members of the privileged landed aristocracy. However, the origin of the Romanian boyar class is problematic: it may have evolved naturally from the heads of the Vlach villages and communities, but it is also possible that the princes created it by granting privileges to certain favored persons.
Multiple vassalage became an important aspect of Romanian diplomacy after the Christian Balkan states (Bulgaria, Serbia
) one by one fell to the Ottoman Empire
in the course the second half of the 14th century. For example, Mircea the Elder (1386–1418) accepted the suzerainty of Poland
in 1387 and that of Hungary in 1395, and Wallachia was paying tribute to the Ottoman Empire from 1417. When accepting Hungarian suzerainty, the princes of Wallachia usually also received the district of Făgăraş in Transylvania from the Hungarian monarchs, for example in 1366 King Louis I of Hungary (1342–1382) granted the region to Prince Vladislav I of Wallachia
(1364–1377), with the title of duke, and Prince Mircea the Elder received it from King Sigismund
(1387–1437).
During the reign of Mircea the Elder, Dobruja
also became part of Wallachia before it was annexed to the Ottoman Empire.
Romanians
The Romanians are an ethnic group native to Romania, who speak Romanian; they are the majority inhabitants of Romania....
principality, was achieved at the beginning of the 14th century, through the unification of smaller political units that had existed between the Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
, and the Rivers 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....
, Siret
Siret River
The Siret or Sireth is a river that rises from the Carpathians in the Northern Bukovina region of Ukraine, and flows southward into Romania for 470 km before it joins the Danube...
and Milcov.
Prior to the consolidation of Wallachia
Wallachia
Wallachia or Walachia is a historical and geographical region of Romania. It is situated north of the Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians...
, waves of nomadic peoples – the last of them being the Cumans
Cumans
The Cumans were Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. After Mongol invasion , they decided to seek asylum in Hungary, and subsequently to Bulgaria...
and the Mongols
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
– rode across the territory. The territory became a frontier area between the Golden Horde
Golden Horde
The Golden Horde was a Mongol and later Turkicized khanate that formed the north-western sector of the Mongol Empire...
(the westernmost part of the Mongol Empire
Mongol Empire
The Mongol Empire , initially named as Greater Mongol State was a great empire during the 13th and 14th centuries...
) and the Kingdom of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
after 1242. The Romanians in Muntenia
Muntenia
Muntenia is a historical province of Romania, usually considered Wallachia-proper . It is situated between the Danube , the Carpathian Mountains and Moldavia , and the Olt River to the west...
, east of the Olt River
Olt River
The Olt River is a river in Romania. It is the longest river flowing exclusively through Romania. Its source is in the Hăşmaş Mountains of the eastern Carpathian Mountains, near the village Bălan. It flows through the Romanian counties Harghita, Covasna, Braşov, Sibiu, Vâlcea and Olt...
, had to pay tribute to the Mongols; and west of the river, in Oltenia
Oltenia
Oltenia is a historical province and geographical region of Romania, in western Wallachia. It is situated between the Danube, the Southern Carpathians and the Olt river ....
, they were oppressed by the Bans of Severin
Banate of Severin
-References:*George Popoviciu, Istoria românilor bănăţeni, Lugoj, 1904*Patriciu D., Istoria Banatului Severin, Tipografia Diecezană, Caransebeş, 1899....
, appointed by the Kings of Hungary
King of Hungary
The King of Hungary was the head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 to 1918.The style of title "Apostolic King" was confirmed by Pope Clement XIII in 1758 and used afterwards by all the Kings of Hungary, so after this date the kings are referred to as "Apostolic King of...
. The Golden Horde’s domination decreased in the region at the end of the 13th century, and at that time the Kingdom of Hungary also underwent a strong political crisis. These events enabled the incipient states of the territory to consolidate their autonomy.
One Romanian tradition records that Wallachia was founded when a certain Radu Negru
Radu Negru
Radu Negru also known as Radu Vodă , Radu Negru, or Negru Vodă, was a legendary ruler of Wallachia....
(‘Radu the Black’) arrived from the Făgăraş
Fagaras
Făgăraș is a city in central Romania, located in Braşov County . Another source of the name is alleged to derive from the Hungarian language word for "partridge" . A more plausible explanation is that the name is given by Fogaras river coming from the Pecheneg "Fagar šu", which means ash water...
region in the 1290s after crossing the Transylvanian Alps with “a great many following him”. More credible is the report that some Romanian lords in the Olt and Argeş
Arges River
Argeș is a river of Southern Romania. It starts at the junction of headwaters Buda and Capra in the Făgăraș Mountains, in the Southern Carpathians and flows into the Danube at Oltenița.The main city on the Argeş is Piteşti...
valleys chose as leader one of their number, a certain Basarab
Basarab I of Wallachia
Basarab I the Founder was voivode or prince of Wallachia . His rise seems to have taken place in the context of the war between the Kingdom of Hungary and the Orthodox states in the north of the Balkan Peninsula...
.
It was Voivode Basarab I (c. 1310–1352) who broke off with the Kingdom of Hungary and refused to accept the king’s suzerainty. Basarab I received international support and the recognition of the autonomy of Wallachia due to his great military victory
Battle of Posada
The Battle of Posada was fought between Basarab I of Wallachia and Charles I Robert of Hungary.The small Wallachian army led by Basarab, formed of cavalry, foot archers, as well as local peasants, managed to ambush and defeat the 30,000-strong Hungarian army, in a mountainous region near the...
over King Charles I of Hungary
Charles I of Hungary
Charles I , also known as Charles Robert , was the first King of Hungary and Croatia of the House of Anjou. He was also descended from the old Hungarian Árpád dynasty. His claim to the throne of Hungary was contested by several pretenders...
(1301–1342) at Posada on November 12, 1330. The Metropolitan See of Wallachia, directly subordinated to the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople , part of the wider Orthodox Church, is one of the fourteen autocephalous churches within the communion of Orthodox Christianity...
, was set up during the reign of Basarab I’s son, Nicolae Alexandru
Nicolae Alexandru of Wallachia
Nicholas Alexander was a Prince of Wallachia between 1352 and November 1364, after having been associate ruler to his father Basarab I.In the year 1359, he founded the Wallachian Eastern Orthodox Metropolitan seat....
(1352–1364). The first silver and bronze coins were minted in Wallachia in 1365.
Last centuries of the Early Middle Ages
Among the oldest attestations of the countries of the VlachsVlachs
Vlach is a blanket term covering several modern Latin peoples descending from the Latinised population in Central, Eastern and Southeastern Europe. English variations on the name include: Walla, Wlachs, Wallachs, Vlahs, Olahs or Ulahs...
(early Romanians) on the left side of the Danube, there is a quotation of a passage from an Armenian
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
book of geography. The passage represents an interpolation
Interpolation (manuscripts)
An interpolation, in relation to literature and especially ancient manuscripts, is an entry or passage in a text that was not written by the original author...
, probably from the first centuries of the second millennium, which refers to an “unknown country called Balak”, situated in the neighborhood of the “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....
’ country” and of “Zagura” (Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
). Another 11th-century reference to the Vlachs’ country appears to be the section of the ancient Turkic
Turkic languages
The Turkic languages constitute a language family of at least thirty five languages, spoken by Turkic peoples across a vast area from Eastern Europe and the Mediterranean to Siberia and Western China, and are considered to be part of the proposed Altaic language family.Turkic languages are spoken...
chronicle Oghuzname ('Oghuz Khan's Tale'), preserved in a 17th century text, which narrates the battles of the Cumans against several peoples, including the Vlachs (Ulak).
The Cumans
Cumans
The Cumans were Turkic nomadic people comprising the western branch of the Cuman-Kipchak confederation. After Mongol invasion , they decided to seek asylum in Hungary, and subsequently to Bulgaria...
, a Turkic tribe
Turkic peoples
The Turkic peoples are peoples residing in northern, central and western Asia, southern Siberia and northwestern China and parts of eastern Europe. They speak languages belonging to the Turkic language family. They share, to varying degrees, certain cultural traits and historical backgrounds...
approached the Danube Delta
Danube Delta
The Danube Delta is the second largest river delta in Europe, after the Volga Delta, and is the best preserved on the continent. The greater part of the Danube Delta lies in Romania , while its northern part, on the left bank of the Chilia arm, is situated in Ukraine . The approximate surface is...
shortly after 1064–1065, and from 1068 the entire territory between the Aral Sea
Aral Sea
The Aral Sea was a lake that lay between Kazakhstan in the north and Karakalpakstan, an autonomous region of Uzbekistan, in the south...
and the lower Danube were controlled by them. But this vast territory was never politically united by a strong central power. The different Cuman groups were under independent rulers or khan
Khan (title)
Khan is an originally Altaic and subsequently Central Asian title for a sovereign or military ruler, widely used by medieval nomadic Turko-Mongol tribes living to the north of China. 'Khan' is also seen as a title in the Xianbei confederation for their chief between 283 and 289...
s who meddled in the political life of the surrounding areas, such as the Rus’ principalities and the Byzantine Empire
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
. In attacking the Byzantine Empire, the Cumans were also assisted by the Vlachs living in the Balkan Mountains
Balkan Mountains
The Balkan mountain range is a mountain range in the eastern part of the Balkan Peninsula. The Balkan range runs 560 km from the Vrashka Chuka Peak on the border between Bulgaria and eastern Serbia eastward through central Bulgaria to Cape Emine on the Black Sea...
(now in Bulgaria) who showed them the mountain paths where no imperial guard was set up. There are disputes in historiography regarding the content of the meaning of the term "Vlach" at that time. In various sources the expressions “Vlachs” or “Moesi
Moesi
The Moesi were a Daco-Thracian tribe who inhabited present day Serbia and Bulgaria, part of the then Roman province of Moesia, which was named after them in 87 AD by the Romans after the Romans under Crassus defeated them in the 29 BC.- History :...
” may refer either to Romanized inhabitants of the Balkans or to Bulgarians and Cumans. Some historians suggest that the term “Vlach” referred to pastoral populations at that time.
In 1185, the Balkan Vlachs, together with the Bulgarians, rose up in arms against the Byzantine Empire. They created, with the help of the Cumans and the Vlachs living on the left bank of the Danube, a new state, the Second Bulgarian Empire
Second Bulgarian Empire
The Second Bulgarian Empire was a medieval Bulgarian state which existed between 1185 and 1396 . A successor of the First Bulgarian Empire, it reached the peak of its power under Kaloyan and Ivan Asen II before gradually being conquered by the Ottomans in the late 14th-early 15th century...
between the Balkan Mountains and the Danube (to the south of the future Wallachia) or between the Balkan Mountains and Carpathians (including future Wallachia). The new state was called “Vlachia” or “Vlachia and Bulgaria” in Western sources. For example, in 1204 the pope elevated the head of the Bulgarian church to the rank of “primas” (primate
Primate
A primate is a mammal of the order Primates , which contains prosimians and simians. Primates arose from ancestors that lived in the trees of tropical forests; many primate characteristics represent adaptations to life in this challenging three-dimensional environment...
) “of all Bulgaria and Vlachia”. “Vlachia” as a designation for northern Bulgaria only disappeared from the sources after the middle of the 13th century.
In 1211, King Andrew II of Hungary
Andrew II of Hungary
Andrew II the Jerosolimitan was King of Hungary and Croatia . He was the younger son of King Béla III of Hungary, who invested him with the government of the Principality of Halych...
(1205–1235) settled the Teutonic Knights
Teutonic Knights
The Order of Brothers of the German House of Saint Mary in Jerusalem , commonly the Teutonic Order , is a German medieval military order, in modern times a purely religious Catholic order...
in the region of Braşov
Brasov
Brașov is a city in Romania and the capital of Brașov County.According to the last Romanian census, from 2002, there were 284,596 people living within the city of Brașov, making it the 8th most populated city in Romania....
in order to put an end to the frequent incursions of the Cumans into 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...
. The knights were given all the territory they could conquer beyond the Carpathian Mountains as a fief to be held from the king of Hungary. According to a royal charter of 1222, the knights’ military power stretched across the Carpathians all the way to the Danube. That the Teutonic Knights won several victories “beyond the snowy mountains” (ultra montes nivium), that is to the south and to the east of the Carpathians, is also confirmed by papal
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
letters. However, the Teutonic Knights were forced out of the territory in 1225 by King Andrew II, who claimed that they had ignored his authority.
The Mongols were the last of the migrating hordes to enter Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. This happened in 1223 when they defeated a joint Rus’-Cuman army at the river Kalka
Battle of the Kalka River
The Battle of the Kalka River took place on May 31, 1223, between the Mongol Empire and Kiev, Galich, and several other Rus' principalities and the Cumans, under the command of Mstislav the Bold and Mstislav III of Kiev...
(now in Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
). Some Cuman groups, after their defeat of the Mongols, become willing to adopt Christianity. As early as 1227, one of the Cuman chieftains, Boricius subjected himself and his people to the future King Béla IV of Hungary
Béla IV of Hungary
Béla IV , King of Hungary and of Croatia , duke of Styria 1254–58. One of the most famous kings of Hungary, he distinguished himself through his policy of strengthening of the royal power following the example of his grandfather Bela III, and by the rebuilding Hungary after the catastrophe of the...
, converted to Christianity and agreed to pay an annual tax and the tithe
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
. The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cumania
Diocese of Cumania
The Diocese of Cumania was a Roman Catholic diocese in Hungary.The diocese was founded in 1227 with its seat in Milcov, serving the Cumans and the Teutonic Knights in the Burzenland. The diocese was destroyed during the course of the Mongol invasion of Europe in 1241.It was a suffragan of the...
, located in northeastern Wallachia and southwestern Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
, was established in 1228. A significant presence of the Vlachs within the newly established bishopric is documented in the correspondence between the Hungarian crown prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
and Pope Gregory IX
Pope Gregory IX
Pope Gregory IX, born Ugolino di Conti, was pope from March 19, 1227 to August 22, 1241.The successor of Pope Honorius III , he fully inherited the traditions of Pope Gregory VII and of his uncle Pope Innocent III , and zealously continued their policy of Papal supremacy.-Early life:Ugolino was...
(1227–1241), as the pope complained about Orthodox
Greek Orthodox Church
The Greek Orthodox Church is the body of several churches within the larger communion of Eastern Orthodox Christianity sharing a common cultural tradition whose liturgy is also traditionally conducted in Koine Greek, the original language of the New Testament...
prelate
Prelate
A prelate is a high-ranking member of the clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin prælatus, the past participle of præferre, which means "carry before", "be set above or over" or "prefer"; hence, a prelate is one set over others.-Related...
s active among the local Vlachs.
De jure
De jure is an expression that means "concerning law", as contrasted with de facto, which means "concerning fact".De jure = 'Legally', De facto = 'In fact'....
a part of the Kingdom of Hungary, and King Andrew II adopted the title of "king of Cumania" in 1233. There can be no doubt that the king also placed garrisons at key points on the southern slopes of the Carpathian Mountains in northeastern Wallachia. But the military outposts in the region of the bishopric are only first mentioned in relation to the Mongol invasion of 1241
Mongol invasion of Europe
The resumption of the Mongol invasion of Europe, during which the Mongols attacked medieval Rus' principalities and the powers of Poland and Hungary, was marked by the Mongol invasion of Rus starting in 21 December 1237...
by Roger of Torre Maggiore.
In parallel with the emergence of the Second Bulgarian Empire, the Kingdom of Hungary also persuaded an active expansionist policy in the Balkan Peninsula from the end of the 12th century. To that end, Oltenia was put under the control of a Hungarian governor, who received the title of ban
Ban (title)
Ban was a title used in several states in central and south-eastern Europe between the 7th century and the 20th century.-Etymology:The word ban has entered the English language probably as a borrowing from South Slavic ban, meaning "lord, master; ruler". The Slavic word is probably borrowed from...
. The centre of the new province (the Banate of Severin) was Fort Severin (now Drobeta-Turnu Severin
Drobeta-Turnu Severin
Drobeta-Turnu Severin is a city in Mehedinţi County, Oltenia, Romania, on the left bank of the Danube, below the Iron Gates.The city administers three villages: Dudaşu Schelei, Gura Văii, and Schela Cladovei...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
), on the Danube, in the vicinity of the Iron Gates. Its first ban, Luke, was mentioned in 1233.
In 1236 a large Mongol army was collected under the supreme leadership of Batu Khan
Batu Khan
Batu Khan was a Mongol ruler and founder of the Ulus of Jochi , the sub-khanate of the Mongol Empire. Batu was a son of Jochi and grandson of Genghis Khan. His ulus was the chief state of the Golden Horde , which ruled Rus and the Caucasus for around 250 years, after also destroying the armies...
and set forth to the west, in one of the greatest invasions in world's history. The Mongols’ most devastating attacks against the western territories of the Desht-i Quipchaq (‘the steppe
Steppe
In physical geography, steppe is an ecoregion, in the montane grasslands and shrublands and temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biomes, characterized by grassland plains without trees apart from those near rivers and lakes...
of the Cumans’) took place in 1237–1238. The development of the battles was not recorded in the sources, but the Cuman's subsequent migration to Hungary, Bulgaria and other neighboring territories is eloquent enough. Although some Cuman groups survived the Mongol invasion, but the Cuman aristocracy was slain. The steppes of eastern Europe were conquered by Batu Khan’s army and became parts of the Golden Horde.
But the Mongols left no garrisons or military detachments in the lower Danube region and did not take direct political control of it. Although theoretically part of the Golden Horde, the steppe corridor between the Dnieper River
Dnieper River
The Dnieper River is one of the major rivers of Europe that flows from Russia, through Belarus and Ukraine, to the Black Sea.The total length is and has a drainage basin of .The river is noted for its dams and hydroelectric stations...
and the lower Danube was only a “region of hegemony”, not of direct control.
Earliest voivodates in medieval documents
After the Mongol invasion, a great many (if not most) of the Cuman population left the Wallachian Plain, but the Vlach (Romanian) population remained there under the leadership of their local chiefs, called knezes and voivodes. In 1247, King Béla IV tried to bring the Knights Hospitallers to the region and granted to them a number of territories in the “land of Severin”. The knights’ mission, however, proved to be a total failure (there is even no report whether they occupied their posts), but the royal charter for the knights, dated June 2, 1247, lists four autonomous territorial-administrative units (kenezates) in Oltenia and western Muntenia.Two of them, the kenezates of Johannes
John (knez)
John, also Joan or Ioan, was a cneaz mentioned in a diploma issued by king Béla IV of Hungary on 2 July 1247; the diploma granted territories to the Knights Hospitaller in the Banate of Severin and Cumania. John held a kenazate which was given to the knights by the king...
and Farcaş
Farcaş
Farcaş, also Farkas, Farkaş or Farcas, was a cneaz mentioned in a diploma issued by king Béla IV of Hungary on 2 July 1247; the diploma granted territories to the Knights Hospitaller in the Banate of Severin and Cumania. Farcaş held a kenazate which was given to the knights by the king...
were given to the Knights Hospitallers. But the kenezates under Litovoi
Litovoi
Litovoi, also Litvoy, was a Vlach voivode in the 13th century whose territory comprised northern Oltenia .He is mentioned for the first time in a diploma issued by king Béla IV of Hungary on 2 July 1247...
and Seneslau
Seneslau
Seneslau, also Seneslav or Stănislau, was a Vlach voivode mentioned in a diploma issued by king Béla IV of Hungary on 2 July 1247; the diploma granted territories to the Knights Hospitaller in the Banate of Severin and Cumania...
were exempted from the grant, and the royal charter expressly stipulated that they were to be left “to the Vlachs as they had owned it until now”. On the other hand, the royal charter also describes that Voivode Litovoi's rule had extended on the northern side of the Transylvanian Alps into the Hunedoara
Hunedoara County
Hunedoara is a county of Romania, in Transylvania, with its capital city at Deva.-Demographics:In 2002, it had a population of 485,712 and the population density was 69/km².*Romanians - 92%*Hungarians - 5%*Romas - 2%*Germans under 1%....
region, but the king removed this territory from Litovoi’s authority in 1247; thenceforward Litovoi’s kenezate was restricted to the Oltenian part of the Jiu
Jiu River
Jiu is a river of southern Romania. It is formed near Petroşani by the junction of headwaters Jiul de Vest and Jiul de Est.It flows southward through the Romanian counties Hunedoara, Gorj and Dolj before flowing into the Danube a few kilometers upstream from the Bulgarian city of Oryahovo, 331...
valley. Voivode Seneslau held the territories of central and southern Muntenia on the banks of the rivers Argeş and Dâmboviţa
Dâmbovita River
Dâmbovița is a river in Romania. It has its sources in the Făgăraş Mountains, on the Curmătura Oticu. The upper reach of the rivers, upstream of the confluence with the Boarcăşu River is also known as Izvorul Oticului River or Oticu River....
.
After the failure and disappearance of the Hospitallers, the history of the region is shrouded in obscurity for decades. But the trend toward the unification of the Romanian polities seems to begin with Voivode Litovoi. He (or his namesake son) was at war with the Hungarians and killed in battle sometime between 1270 and 1280. In the battle, his brother, Bărbat
Barbat
Bărbat was the brother and successor of voivode Litovoi whose territory had comprised northern Oltenia .In 1277 , Litovoi renounced fealty to king Ladislaus IV of Hungary when the king claimed lands for the crown, but Litovoi refused to pay tribute for them...
was captured. Bărbat was forced not only to pay ransom but also to recognize Hungarian rule.
'Dismounting' by Radu Negru
Romanian chronicles written in the 17th century narrate that a herţeg or dukeDuke
A duke or duchess is a member of the nobility, historically of highest rank below the monarch, and historically controlling a duchy...
of Făgăraş and Almaş
Almas
-Geographic locations:* Almas , a fajãs on São Jorge Island in the Azores* Almas, Afghanistan, a town in Afghanistan* Almas, Iran, a village in Iran* Almas, Tocantins, a city and municipality in Tocantins state, Brazil...
, named Radu Negru (‘Radu the Black’) or Negru Vodă (‘The Black Voivode’) was the first voivode of Wallachia. These texts state that Radu Negru, together with some colonists (“Romanians, Catholics and Saxons
Transylvanian Saxons
The Transylvanian Saxons are a people of German ethnicity who settled in Transylvania from the 12th century onwards.The colonization of Transylvania by Germans was begun by King Géza II of Hungary . For decades, the main task of the German settlers was to defend the southeastern border of the...
”) arrived from the region of Făgăraş in Transylvania. The first documentary evidence for a terra Blacorum (‘land of the Vlachs’) on the territory later called Făgăraş is an early 13th-century property register which mentions the order of King Andrew II of Hungary that estates previously in Vlach hands be transferred to the Cistercian abbey at Cârţa
Cârta, Sibiu
Cârţa is a commune in Sibiu County, Transylvania, Romania. It is composed of two villages, Cârţa and Poieniţa .-Famous people:* Viktor Kästner , Transylvanian Saxon poet...
. Radu Negru and his followers crossed the Carpathians to Muntenia and founded Wallachia with its capitals in Câmpulung
Câmpulung
Câmpulung , or Câmpulung Muscel, is a city in the Argeş County, Wallachia, Romania. It is situated among the outlying hills of the Transylvanian Alps, at the head of a long well-wooded glen traversed by the Râul Târgului, a tributary of the Argeş.Its pure air and fine scenery render Câmpulung a...
and Curtea de Argeş
Curtea de Arges
Curtea de Argeș is a city in Romania on the right bank of the Argeş River, where it flows through a valley of the lower Carpathians , on the railway from Pitești to the Turnu Roşu Pass. It is part of Argeș County. The city administers one village, Noapteș...
. The chronicles narrate these events under the year 1290 or 1292.
The Romanian term for the “founding” (descălecat, literally ‘dismounting’) refers to this alleged settling in Wallachia. But the word's exact meaning is debated, since there had been Romanians living in Wallachia before Radu Negru’s arrival; thus the term likely refers simply to the unification of the lands under one ruler. Moreover, this account of Radu Negru’s ‘dismounting’ may merely be a legend subsequently invented to parallel the circumstances by which Moldavia
Moldavia
Moldavia is a geographic and historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester river...
, the other Romanian principality was founded
Foundation of Moldavia
The foundation of Moldavia is linked by medieval chronicles to Dragoş, a Romanian nobleman from Maramureş . But Dragoş took possession of the province, in the 1350s, in the name of King Louis I of Hungary...
according to the earliest chronicles.
The origin of Oltenia is given by some of the chronicles differently: according to these chronicles Oltenia was colonized by Romanians from Turnu Severin, who founded two other capitals, at Strehaia
Strehaia
Strehaia is a town in Mehedinţi County, Oltenia, Romania. It is situated 25 km west of Filiaşi, on the Motru River valley. Forests in the vicinity are home to the largest Herman's Tortoise colonies in Oltenia....
and Craiova
Craiova
Craiova , Romania's 6th largest city and capital of Dolj County, is situated near the east bank of the river Jiu in central Oltenia. It is a longstanding political center, and is located at approximately equal distances from the Southern Carpathians and the River Danube . Craiova is the chief...
. After the arrival of Radu Negru and his descălecat, these Romanians swore allegiance to him.
Radu Negru’s personality is surrounded by legend; no details about him can be proved by other historical sources. Some chronicles identify him with the founder of various churches, such as the monastery at Curtea de Argeş, but they mistake him for later voivodes of Wallachia, such as Radu I
Radu I of Wallachia
Radu I was a ruler of the principality of Wallachia, ....
(c. 1377-c. 1383) and Neagoe Basarab
Neagoe Basarab
Neagoe Basarab was the Voivode of Wallachia between 1512 and 1521. Born into the boyar family of the Craioveşti as the son of Pârvu Craiovescu or Basarab Ţepeluş cel Tânăr, Neagoe Basarab, who replaced Vlad cel Tânăr after the latter rejected Craioveşti tutelage, was noted for his abilities and...
(1512–1521).
Due to lack of any actual contemporary evidence, the Roman historian Nicolae Iorga
Nicolae Iorga
Nicolae Iorga was a Romanian historian, politician, literary critic, memoirist, poet and playwright. Co-founder of the Democratic Nationalist Party , he served as a member of Parliament, President of the Deputies' Assembly and Senate, cabinet minister and briefly as Prime Minister...
doubted the existence of such a voivode, considering that 'Negru Vodă' is simply a nickname that could have been given to Basarab I, the real founder of Wallachia. Other view is represented by Neagu Djuvara
Neagu Djuvara
Neagu Djuvara is a Romanian historian, essayist, philosopher, journalist, novelist, and diplomat.-Early life:A native of Bucharest, he descended from an aristocratic Aromanian family...
who identifies Negru Vodă with Thocomerius, Basarab's father, explaining his nickname by his Cuman descent: he appeared to have a dark skin color for the Romanians.
The legendary traditions may also be in connection with the establishment of a trans-Carpathian frontier mark by the Hungarian monarchy, with its capital at Câmpulung, probably in the last decade of the 13th century. A tomb stone belonging to one of the leaders of this formation, Count Lawrence of Câmpulung (comes Laurentius de Longo Campo), dating from the year 1300, may provide a solid chronological reference point. On the other hand, comes Laurentius may have been a one-time leader of the Saxon community in Câmpulung.
Basarab I the Founder
John VI Kantakouzenos
John VI Kantakouzenos or Cantacuzenus was the Byzantine emperor from 1347 to 1354.-Early life:Born in Constantinople, John Kantakouzenos was the son of a Michael Kantakouzenos, governor of the Morea. Through his mother Theodora Palaiologina Angelina, he was a descendant of the reigning house of...
in his History narrates that in 1323 Basarab's armies joined in the fighting between Bulgaria and Byzantium and supported Tzar Michael Šišman of Bulgaria
Michael Shishman of Bulgaria
Michael Asen III ), ruled as emperor of Bulgaria from 1323 to 1330. The exact year of his birth is unknown but it was between 1280 and 1292. He was the founder of the last ruling dynasty of the Second Bulgarian Empire, the Shishman dynasty...
(1323–1330) against the Byzantines. In a diploma, dated July 26, 1324, King Charles I of Hungary refers to Basarab as “our voivode of Wallachia” (woiuodam nostrum Transalpinum) which indicates that at that time Basarab was a vassal
Vassal
A vassal or feudatory is a person who has entered into a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. The obligations often included military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain privileges, usually including the grant of land held...
of the king of Hungary.
In short time, however, Basarab refused to accept the suzerainty of the king, for neither Basarab's growing power nor the active foreign policy he was conducting on his own account to the south could be acceptable in Hungary. In a new diploma, dated June 18, 1325, King Charles I mentions him as “Basarab of Wallachia, unfaithful to the king’s Holy Crown” (Bazarab Transalpinum regie corone infidelem).
Hoping to punish Basarab, King Charles I mounted a military campaign against him in 1330. The king marched to Severin and took it from Basarab. The voivode asked for a truce, offering to refund 7,000 silver marks
Mark (money)
Mark was a measure of weight mainly for gold and silver, commonly used throughout western Europe and often equivalent to 8 ounces. Considerable variations, however, occurred throughout the Middle Ages Mark (from a merging of three Teutonic/Germanic languages words, Latinized in 9th century...
for the costs of the army, and showed himself ready to continue paying tribute to the king and send his son as a hostage to the royal court. But the king refused and advanced with his host into Wallachia where everything seemed to have been laid waste.
Unable to subdue Basarab, the king ordered the retreat through the mountains. But in a long and narrow valley, the Hungarian army was attacked by the Romanians, who had taken up positions on the heights. The battle, called the Battle of Posada
Battle of Posada
The Battle of Posada was fought between Basarab I of Wallachia and Charles I Robert of Hungary.The small Wallachian army led by Basarab, formed of cavalry, foot archers, as well as local peasants, managed to ambush and defeat the 30,000-strong Hungarian army, in a mountainous region near the...
, lasted for four days (November 9–12, 1330) and was a disaster for the Hungarians whose defeat was devastating. The king was only able to escape with his life by exchanging his royal coat of arms with one of his retainers.
The Battle of Posada was a turning point in Hungarian-Wallachian relations: though in the course of the 14th century, the kings of Hungary still tried to regulate the voivodes of Wallachia more than one time, but they could only succeed temporarily. Thus Basarab’s victory irretrievably opened the way to independence for the Principality of Wallachia.
Aftermath of the Battle of Posada
The international prestige of Wallachia increased considerably after Basarab’s victory over King Charles I. Only a few months after his great victory, in February 1331, Basarab contributed to the establishment of his son-in-law, Ivan AlexanderIvan Alexander of Bulgaria
Ivan Alexander , also known as John Alexander, ruled as Emperor of Bulgaria from 1331 to 1371, during the Second Bulgarian Empire. The date of his birth is unknown. He died on February 17, 1371. The long reign of Ivan Alexander is considered a transitional period in Bulgarian medieval history...
(1331–1371) on the throne of the tzars of Bulgaria in Tirnovo
Veliko Tarnovo
Veliko Tarnovo is a city in north central Bulgaria and the administrative centre of Veliko Tarnovo Province. Often referred to as the "City of the Tsars", Veliko Tarnovo is located on the Yantra River and is famous as the historical capital of the Second Bulgarian Empire, attracting many tourists...
.
As a way of solemnizing his secession from the Kingdom of Hungary, Basarab’s son, Nicolae Alexandru also sought Byzantine approval for the creation of an Orthodox see for his territories. In 1359 Byzantium acceded to his request that the displaced metropolitan of Vicina
Isaccea
Isaccea is a small town in Tulcea County, in Dobruja, Romania, on the right bank of the Danube, 35 km north-west of Tulcea. According to the 2002 census, it has a population 5,374....
, Hyakinthos – whom Nicolae Alexander had been hosting at his court for some time – should became the “legitimate pastor of all Oungrovlachia for the blessing and spiritual direction of himself, his children and all his lordship”. At the same time, Byzantium also agreed to the creation of a metropolitan see, after Hyakinthos’ death, for “all Oungrovlachia”.
The new state was denoted as Oungrovlachia in Byzantine sources which reflects that it bordered on the Kingdom of Hungary. This name is first encountered in a Greek
Medieval Greek
Medieval Greek, also known as Byzantine Greek, is the stage of the Greek language between the beginning of the Middle Ages around 600 and the Ottoman conquest of the city of Constantinople in 1453. The latter date marked the end of the Middle Ages in Southeast Europe...
diploma issued by the synod of the Patriarchate of Constantinople in 1370. In the diploma, the ruler of Wallachia, Nicolae Alexandru is styled “great voivode and master of all Oungrovlachia”.
Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
documents used the term Wallachia or Wallachia maior (‘Greater Wallachia’) for Muntenia (which first appeared in 1373), and Wallachia minor (‘Lesser Wallachia’) for Oltenia (first recorded in 1377). The new country was identified as terra transalpina (‘land beyond the mountains’) or partes transalpinae (‘parts beyond the mountains’) in documents issued by the Royal Chancellery
Chancery (medieval office)
Chancery is a general term for a medieval writing office, responsible for the production of official documents. The title of chancellor, for the head of the office, came to be held by important ministers in a number of states, and remains the title of the heads of government in modern Germany,...
of Hungary in the entire 14th century. The terminology of the Hungarian chancellery was also used in the Latin documents of the Wallachian voivodes.
The Romanian rulers chose the Byzantine model of government, and Wallachia was from the start an absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy
Absolute monarchy is a monarchical form of government in which the monarch exercises ultimate governing authority as head of state and head of government, his or her power not being limited by a constitution or by the law. An absolute monarch thus wields unrestricted political power over the...
. The princes' absolute power was held to be divinely ordained
Divine Right of Kings
The divine right of kings or divine-right theory of kingship is a political and religious doctrine of royal and political legitimacy. It asserts that a monarch is subject to no earthly authority, deriving his right to rule directly from the will of God...
. Their correspondence and records used the expression "By the Grace of God
By the Grace of God
By the Grace of God is an introductory part of the full styles of a monarch taken to be ruling by divine right, not a title in its own right....
" from the 14th century. Wallachian sovereigns were host commanders and supreme judges, they patronized the church and made decisions that became laws. In theory, the voivodes were considered proprietors of all the lands in the country, but in fact they were devoid of extensive personal land holdings.
The monarchy was also dynastic: the princes were to be elected by boyars from among the members of the ruling family, the Basarabs. The boyars were the members of the privileged landed aristocracy. However, the origin of the Romanian boyar class is problematic: it may have evolved naturally from the heads of the Vlach villages and communities, but it is also possible that the princes created it by granting privileges to certain favored persons.
Multiple vassalage became an important aspect of Romanian diplomacy after the Christian Balkan states (Bulgaria, Serbia
Serbia
Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans...
) one by one fell to the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
in the course the second half of the 14th century. For example, Mircea the Elder (1386–1418) accepted the suzerainty of Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
in 1387 and that of Hungary in 1395, and Wallachia was paying tribute to the Ottoman Empire from 1417. When accepting Hungarian suzerainty, the princes of Wallachia usually also received the district of Făgăraş in Transylvania from the Hungarian monarchs, for example in 1366 King Louis I of Hungary (1342–1382) granted the region to Prince Vladislav I of Wallachia
Vladislav I of Wallachia
Vladislav I of the Basarab dynasty, also known as Vlaicu-Vodă, was a ruler of the principality of Wallachia . He was a vassal of the Bulgarian Emperor Ivan Alexander. In 1369 Vladislav I subdued Vidin and recognised Louis I of Hungary as his overlord in return for Severin, Amlaş, and Făgăraş...
(1364–1377), with the title of duke, and Prince Mircea the Elder received it from King Sigismund
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...
(1387–1437).
During the reign of Mircea the Elder, Dobruja
Dobruja
Dobruja is a historical region shared by Bulgaria and Romania, located between the lower Danube river and the Black Sea, including the Danube Delta, Romanian coast and the northernmost part of the Bulgarian coast...
also became part of Wallachia before it was annexed to the Ottoman Empire.
Further reading
- Castellan, Georges (1989). A History of the Romanians. East European Monographs. ISBN 0-88033-154-2
- Durandin, Catherine (1995). Historie des Roumains (The History of the Romanians). Librairie Artheme Fayard. ISBN 978-2-213-59425-5.
- Treptow, Kurt W.; Bolovan, Ioan (1996). A History of Romania. East European Monographs. ISBN 0-88033-345-6.