History of Maramures
Encyclopedia
Maramureş is a commune in Romania, located in Harghita County. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania...
, Sălaj
Salaj County
Sălaj is a county of Romania, in the historical regions of Crișana and Transylvania, with the capital city at Zalău.-Geography:Sălaj county has a total area of ....
and Bihorian 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...
. Different sources mention two different people as the first bishop - "Simon the Moldavian" by some and "ehumen Pahonius, a relative of the voevods" by others.
The bishopric became the earliest non-rural Romanian bishopric, after the bishoprics of Tomis
Constanta
Constanța is the oldest extant city in Romania, founded around 600 BC. The city is located in the Dobruja region of Romania, on the Black Sea coast. It is the capital of Constanța County and the largest city in the region....
and Durustorum, continued south of the Danube since Roman times. The monastery was the cultural and religious center of the northern half of Transylvania for over 300 years. Its monks produced the oldest known texts in the Romanian language (three different documents, apparently all written in 1391), as well as chronicles that served as sources for 17th and 18th century scholars of the Romanian renascence. In the 17th century, the monastery became an important typographic center
Typography
Typography is the art and technique of arranging type in order to make language visible. The arrangement of type involves the selection of typefaces, point size, line length, leading , adjusting the spaces between groups of letters and adjusting the space between pairs of letters...
. The monastery was burned down during an anti-Habsburg uprising of Hungarian Protestants in 1703, who retreated into the region and employed scorched earth tactics.
The village of Peri (Grushevo) is situated on the right bank of the river Tisza
Tisza
The Tisza or Tisa is one of the main rivers of Central Europe. It rises in Ukraine, and is formed near Rakhiv by the junction of headwaters White Tisa, whose source is in the Chornohora mountains and Black Tisa, which springs in the Gorgany range...
, in what is today Northern Maramuresh
Northern Maramuresh
Northern Maramuresh is a geographic-historical region comprising roughly the eastern half of the Zakarpattia Oblast in southwestern Ukraine, near the border with Romania...
, between Apşa de Jos to the east, Teresva (also spelled Taras in older sources) to the west, Strâmtura
Strâmtura
Strâmtura is a commune in Maramureş County, Romania. It is composed of three villages: Glod , Slătioara and Strâmtura.-References:...
to the north, all three currently 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...
and Săpânţa
Sapânta
Săpânţa is a commune in Maramureş County in northern Romania, 15 kilometers northwest of Sighet and just south of the Tisza River. It is composed of a single village, Săpânţa....
, currently in 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...
, to the south, on the opposite side of the river.
The oldest document mentioning Sighet, the capital of Maramureş, dates to 1326. In 1334, papal lists mention a "Benedict, paroh of Sighet." In 1346, Benedict is mentioned as "rector eclesie Zygeth". In 1329, King Carol Robert gave the status of seats of "royal guests" to four towns of Maramureş: Visk, Hust
Khust
Khust is a city located on the Khustets River in the Zakarpattia oblast in western Ukraine. It is near the confluence of the Tisza and Rika Rivers...
, Teceu and Campulung
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...
. On 19 February 1352, King Louis I extended these urban privileges to Sighet. In 1385, the city of Sighet is mentioned as "county siege, where documents are emitted", and in 1397, a document of the Dragoş family mentions "villa noastra libera ... Zyget". The towns of Hust
Khust
Khust is a city located on the Khustets River in the Zakarpattia oblast in western Ukraine. It is near the confluence of the Tisza and Rika Rivers...
and Teceu also gained in importance during that time. Mason
Masonry
Masonry is the building of structures from individual units laid in and bound together by mortar; the term masonry can also refer to the units themselves. The common materials of masonry construction are brick, stone, marble, granite, travertine, limestone; concrete block, glass block, stucco, and...
s, tailor
Tailor
A tailor is a person who makes, repairs, or alters clothing professionally, especially suits and men's clothing.Although the term dates to the thirteenth century, tailor took on its modern sense in the late eighteenth century, and now refers to makers of men's and women's suits, coats, trousers,...
s, baker
Baker
A baker is someone who bakes and sells bread, Cakes and similar foods may also be produced, as the traditional boundaries between what is produced by a baker as opposed to a pastry chef have blurred in recent decades...
s, carpenter
Carpenter
A carpenter is a skilled craftsperson who works with timber to construct, install and maintain buildings, furniture, and other objects. The work, known as carpentry, may involve manual labor and work outdoors....
s, barber
Barber
A barber is someone whose occupation is to cut any type of hair, and to shave or trim the beards of men. The place of work of a barber is generally called a barbershop....
s, potters
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
, smith
Smith (metalwork)
A metalsmith, often shortened to smith, is a person involved in making metal objects. In contemporary use a metalsmith is a person who uses metal as a material, uses traditional metalsmithing techniques , whose work thematically relates to the practice or history of the practice, or who engages in...
s, goldsmith
Goldsmith
A goldsmith is a metalworker who specializes in working with gold and other precious metals. Since ancient times the techniques of a goldsmith have evolved very little in order to produce items of jewelry of quality standards. In modern times actual goldsmiths are rare...
s and cartwrighters are mentioned. In 1472, a diploma of Matei Corvin reaffirms the urban privileges of Sighet.
Many of the larger villages of Maramureş date from the same period: Slatina
Slatina, Romania
Slatina is the capital city of Olt county, Romania, on the river Olt.The city administers one village, Cireaşov.-History:The town of Slatina was first mentioned on January 20, 1368 in an official document issued by Vladislav I Vlaicu, Prince of Wallachia. The document stated that merchants from...
(1360), Apşa de Jos (1387), Apşa de Mijloc (1406) and Biserica Alba (1373). At the end of the 15th century, there were 128 towns and villages in Maramureş (compared with 205 in nearby Ung, 122 in Bereg and 76 in Ugocsa). The combined population in 1500 is estimated by historians at 30,000 to 60,000. Many villages are mentioned in the 15th century as nameşi villages, i.e. inhabited by free peasants: Lipcia, Iza
Iza
Iza is a town located in the province and autonomous community of Navarre, northern Spain.*For the village in Slovakia see Iža*For the river in Romania, see Iza River...
, Dolha
Dolha
Dołha is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Drelów, within Biała Podlaska County, Lublin Voivodeship, in eastern Poland. It lies approximately north of Drelów, west of Biała Podlaska, and north of the regional capital Lublin.-References:...
, Dragova, Bedevlea, Vâşcova, Vilihivtsi, Criceva, Ciumaleva, Uglea, Colodne, Vonigova in the north Vâşcova is even mentioned as a town sometimes.
In 1514, the uprising of the cross-curutz peasants under Derdi Doji conquered Hust
Khust
Khust is a city located on the Khustets River in the Zakarpattia oblast in western Ukraine. It is near the confluence of the Tisza and Rika Rivers...
, the "gate of Maramureş", but did not encroach further into the region.
1526-1690
In 1526, at the Battle of MohácsBattle of Mohács
The Battle of Mohács was fought on August 29, 1526 near Mohács, Hungary. In the battle, forces of the Kingdom of Hungary led by King Louis II of Hungary and Bohemia were defeated by forces of the Ottoman Empire led by Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent....
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
was defeated by the Ottomans and King Lajos II, the last of the Jagiellon dynasty
Jagiellon dynasty
The Jagiellonian dynasty was a royal dynasty originating from the Lithuanian House of Gediminas dynasty that reigned in Central European countries between the 14th and 16th century...
, died in battle. Most of the Pannonian plains were subsequently occupied by Turks
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...
and the western and northern Kingdom of Hungary passed to the Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
n Habsburgs, while Transylvania, including Maramureş, became an autonomous principality within the Ottoman Empire from 1541. Petru Rareş
Petru Rares
Peter IV Rareș was twice voievod of Moldavia: 20 January 1527 to 18 September 1538 and 19 February 1541 to 3 September 1546. He was an illegitimate child born to Ștefan cel Mare...
of 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...
attempted to take the area over in 1527-1538 and later Mihai Viteazul 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...
tried the same in 1600-1601. Most notably, the Austrian Habsburgs tried it for the whole duration of the autonomous principality (1527) until they finally absorbed it in 1687.
In 1551, Sighet's rights to hold fairs were reaffirmed. Also in 1551, the first ever strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
in the Kingdom of Hungary took place, when the miner
Miner
A miner is a person whose work or business is to extract ore or minerals from the earth. Mining is one of the most dangerous trades in the world. In some countries miners lack social guarantees and in case of injury may be left to cope without assistance....
s of Ocna Slatina left their workplace and created a make-shift tent camp at Baia Mare
Baia Mare
Baia Mare is a municipality in northwestern Romania and the capital of Maramureş County. The city is situated about 600 kilometres from Bucharest, the capital of Romania, 70 kilometres from the border with Hungary and 50 kilometres from the border with Ukraine...
, demanding improvement of their working conditions and annulment of the death penalty.
In the 16th century, Lutheran and Reformed Calvinist movements took hold in Transylvania, especially among the Hungarian nobility
Nobility
Nobility is a social class which possesses more acknowledged privileges or eminence than members of most other classes in a society, membership therein typically being hereditary. The privileges associated with nobility may constitute substantial advantages over or relative to non-nobles, or may be...
. In 1556, the Catholic Church in Sighet, together with the majority of believers, was taken over by the Protestants. Later they also opened a confessional school there.
With the help of Transylvanian 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...
, a Romanian Orthodox monk from Moldavia printed the first Romanian language text entitled "the Lutheran Catechism" in 1544. During the 1550s and 1560s, a whole series of propaganda appeared. On November 30, 1566, the Protestant-dominated Sibiu
Sibiu
Sibiu is a city in Transylvania, Romania with a population of 154,548. Located some 282 km north-west of Bucharest, the city straddles the Cibin River, a tributary of the river Olt...
Diet decided to "extirpate the idolatry, especially from among the Romanian peasants". During the reigns of the Zapolai princes in 1526-1571 over different parts of the disintegrating Kingdom of Hungary, the Protestant nobility of Transylvania and the Catholic Austria often clashed, with the latter slowly gaining the upper hand.
The pro-independence policy of the Hungarian-Transylvanian nobility provoked an Ottoman invasion in 1566. The principality was plundered, but its remote location saved Maramureş. The region was similarly protected from the devastations during and in the aftermath of the 1604-1606 and 1678-1685 Hungarian anti-Habsburg uprisings. The 16th and 17th centuries also saw the rise of haiduc movements - self-organized small detachments that attacked the rich and distributed the bounty among the poor.
From the 16th century, with the consent of the Hungarian nobility and later with that of the Habsburgs, the mountain regions separating Panonia from Galicia were subject to the Galician colonization: Lemki settled in the Ung, Zempeln and Saros
Sáros county
Sáros was a historic administrative county of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is presently in northeastern Slovakia...
counties, Boiki - in Bereg and Ung, while Hutsuls
Hutsuls
Hutsuls are an ethno-cultural group of Ukrainian highlanders who for centuries have inhabited the Carpathian mountains, mainly in Ukraine, the northern extremity of Romania .-Etymology:...
- in northeastern Maramureş.
The period from the end of the 15th century to end of the 18th century also saw the gradual migration of Ruthenians
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
from Bereg to the northwest of Maramureş, mostly by intermarriage with local Vlachs.
In 1611, Emperor Leopold of Austria
Leopold V, Archduke of Austria
Leopold V, Archduke of Further Austria was the son of Archduke Archduke Charles II of Inner Austria, and the younger brother of Emperor Ferdinand II, father of Ferdinand Charles, Archduke of Further Austria...
allowed Sighet to have its own coat-of-arms: an Aurochs
Aurochs
The aurochs , the ancestor of domestic cattle, were a type of large wild cattle which inhabited Europe, Asia and North Africa, but is now extinct; it survived in Europe until 1627....
' head.
In the 17th century, the Romanian Orthodox Church of Transylvania was moved by the Diet to the jurisdiction of the Reformed (Calvinist) Church. A Calvinist superintendent was named on April 9, 1639 to oversee the conversion
Religious conversion
Religious conversion is the adoption of a new religion that differs from the convert's previous religion. Changing from one denomination to another within the same religion is usually described as reaffiliation rather than conversion.People convert to a different religion for various reasons,...
of Romanians from Orthodoxy to Calvinism. Many leaders of the Romanian Church (which opposed these moves) such as the metropolitans Dosoftei
Dosoftei
Dimitrie Barilă, better known under his monastical name Dosoftei , was a Moldavian Metropolitan, scholar, poet and translator....
, Ghenadie II, Ilie Iorest and Sava Brâncovici (the latter two were later canonized by the Romanian Orthodox Church) were persecuted, imprisoned or sometimes killed by the Transylvanian governments of princes, such as Gabriel Bethlen
Gabriel Bethlen
Gabriel Bethlen was a prince of Transylvania , duke of Opole and leader of an anti-Habsburg insurrection in the Habsburg Royal Hungary. His last armed intervention in 1626 was part of the Thirty Years' War...
or Georgy Rakoczi.
In 1641, the Ruthenian Orthodox Bishop of Munkach in Bereg, the region immediately to the west of Maramureş, converted to Catholicism
Catholicism
Catholicism is a broad term for the body of the Catholic faith, its theologies and doctrines, its liturgical, ethical, spiritual, and behavioral characteristics, as well as a religious people as a whole....
. On April 24, 1646, 63 Ruthenian Orthodox clerics from nearby Ung, Bereg and Ugocsa counties proclaimed the Uzhhorod Union with Catholicism, founding the Ruthenian Greek-Catholic Church. In 1689, Pope Alexander VIII officially recognized the union. This led to open conflict with Báthory
Báthory
The Báthory were a Hungarian noble family of the Gutkeled clan. The family rose to significant influence in Central Europe during the late Middle Ages, holding high military, administrative and ecclesiastical positions in the Kingdom of Hungary...
princes, who were Reformed Protestants. In 1689-1706, the Catholic Bishop of Munkach was a Greek
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....
, Iosif Camillis, who managed to take over some Orthodox parishes in northern Transylvania and obtained authority among others over some parts of Maramureş, especially over the largely Ruthenian villages of the region. In total, 140 Ruthenian and Romanian parishes were under the authority of the Bishop of Munkach. Later, in 1853, the Romanian ones separated and formed the Bishopric of Gherla.
The Romanian bishops of Maramureş, together with the monks of the Maramureş hermitages ("schituri"), trying to preserve orthodoxy, started a revival movement aimed at the local priests and at the population. Their aim was to uphold "that the language, traditions and religious we hold link us with neighboring Moldavia." To counterbalance the Catholic proselytism, the Romanian clergy of Maramureş elected Iosif Stoica from Criciova
Criciova
Criciova is a commune in Timiş County, Romania. It is composed of four villages: Cireşu, Cireşu Mic, Criciova and Jdioara....
, a widowed priest who became a monk, then bishop. He was raised to this rank in 1690 by the metropolitan Dosoftei
Dosoftei
Dimitrie Barilă, better known under his monastical name Dosoftei , was a Moldavian Metropolitan, scholar, poet and translator....
of Moldavia. An antimis (religious text), dated by Iosif Stoica in 1692 and preserved to this day, is signed "din mila lui Dumnezeu, Episcop Ortodox al Maramureşului, exarh al Stavropighiei Patriarhale Constantinopolitane, locţiitor al Mitropoliei din Bâlgrad
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...
din Ardeal
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 title of the Bishopric of Peri. Stoica is known to have travelled throughout the region, often to Khust
Khust
Khust is a city located on the Khustets River in the Zakarpattia oblast in western Ukraine. It is near the confluence of the Tisza and Rika Rivers...
. The Hungarian historian Nicolae Bethlen, former chancellor of Transylvania during that period, has noted that Iosif Stoica wrote a letter opposing union with the Roman Church, based on arguments from the Scriptures and the writings of the Church fathers. Bethlen noted his surprise that a rural Romanian was able to produce "a letter of such theological strength."
After serving as bishop for 15 years, Iosif Stoica was forced to sign a 20-point program in 1705. It imposed strong restrictions to orthodoxy and to the Romanian character of the faith. However, when Iosif Stoica refused to sign, he was arrested and imprisoned in Khust, allegedly with the support of Iosif Camillis, who wanted to name as vicar of Sighet a Catholic, Gheorghe Ghenadie Bizanezi. The priests and parishioners of Maramureş protested in vain, demanding the release of their Bishop. They elected a new Bishop, Iov Ţârca from Gâmbuţ, who after a few years of persecutions and accusations fled to Moldavia. He was then condemned to death for his activities in defending the Church. After being released in 1711, Iosif Stoica continued to exercise his episcopal functions without the knowledge of the authorities. He tried to recover his bishopric officially, but died in the same year. For his piety and activities in defending the traditional Romanian faith, he was revered by the believers from Maramureş along with the saints, and later, in 1992, the Romanian Orthodox Church
Romanian Orthodox Church
The Romanian Orthodox Church is an autocephalous Eastern Orthodox church. It is in full communion with other Eastern Orthodox churches, and is ranked seventh in order of precedence. The Primate of the church has the title of Patriarch...
canonized him. His saint's day is April 24.
The next bishop, Ştefan Serafim Petrovan, was a person easily swayed. He was ready to turn to Catholicism, but was prevented in this by the Calvinist Hungarian nobility. Romanian-Orthodox sources claim that the attempt to convert the Maramureş Romanians to Catholicism "were met with dignified and solemn protests against being united against their will and against introduction of innovations contradicting their old law and beliefs."
In the 17th century, Maramureş became renowned for the so-called "girl fairs" ("târguri de fete") where, in addition to activities common to classical fair
Fair
A fair or fayre is a gathering of people to display or trade produce or other goods, to parade or display animals and often to enjoy associated carnival or funfair entertainment. It is normally of the essence of a fair that it is temporary; some last only an afternoon while others may ten weeks. ...
s, people gathered to meet and marry. Due to extensive cutting of woods, by 1631 the cutting of fir
Fir
Firs are a genus of 48–55 species of evergreen conifers in the family Pinaceae. They are found through much of North and Central America, Europe, Asia, and North Africa, occurring in mountains over most of the range...
trees for cork
Cork (material)
Cork is an impermeable, buoyant material, a prime-subset of bark tissue that is harvested for commercial use primarily from Quercus suber , which is endemic to southwest Europe and northwest Africa...
to transport the salt was limited. At the same time, nut
Nut (fruit)
A nut is a hard-shelled fruit of some plants having an indehiscent seed. While a wide variety of dried seeds and fruits are called nuts in English, only a certain number of them are considered by biologists to be true nuts...
s, apple
Apple
The apple is the pomaceous fruit of the apple tree, species Malus domestica in the rose family . It is one of the most widely cultivated tree fruits, and the most widely known of the many members of genus Malus that are used by humans. Apple grow on small, deciduous trees that blossom in the spring...
s, mulberries
Mulberry
Morus is a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae. The 10–16 species of deciduous trees it contains are commonly known as Mulberries....
, corn
Maize
Maize known in many English-speaking countries as corn or mielie/mealie, is a grain domesticated by indigenous peoples in Mesoamerica in prehistoric times. The leafy stalk produces ears which contain seeds called kernels. Though technically a grain, maize kernels are used in cooking as a vegetable...
and clover
Clover
Clover , or trefoil, is a genus of about 300 species of plants in the leguminous pea family Fabaceae. The genus has a cosmopolitan distribution; the highest diversity is found in the temperate Northern Hemisphere, but many species also occur in South America and Africa, including at high altitudes...
became sources of revenue. Maramureş also became renowned for its wood and iron works - Visk, Criva, Buştina, Bocicoiu Mare, furnaces and casting - Kosivska Poliana, Butfalva, timber - Frăsini, Bocicoiu Mare, Gura Ciornei, shoe factories - Khust. Cliff caves were used to heat mineral water, creating the first spa
Spa
The term spa is associated with water treatment which is also known as balneotherapy. Spa towns or spa resorts typically offer various health treatments. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters goes back to prehistoric times. Such practices have been popular worldwide, but are...
s. The towns of Visk, Teceu
Tiachiv
Tyachiv is a city located on the Tisza River in the Zakarpattia Oblast in western Ukraine. It is the administrative center of the Tiachiv Raion .- History and name :...
, Khust and others remained owned by the county government, unlike the surrounding regions, where many towns and cities became private property or central state property.
1690-1918
The last incursion of the OttomansOttoman 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...
into Central Europe proved disastrous to them. In 1683, the Austrians and the Poles
Poles
thumb|right|180px|The state flag of [[Poland]] as used by Polish government and diplomatic authoritiesThe Polish people, or Poles , are a nation indigenous to Poland. They are united by the Polish language, which belongs to the historical Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages of Central Europe...
defeated the Ottomans at the gates of Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
. Within seven years, they also conquered Buda
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, Transylvania and abolished the principality. In 1699, in the Treaty of Karlovitz, the Ottomans officially renounced Transylvania in favour of Austria. In Transylvania, Catholic and Protestant efforts to convert the population resulted in open clashes. Concurrently, the Transylvanian nobility was becoming Magyarized
Magyarization
Magyarization is a kind of assimilation or acculturation, a process by which non-Magyar elements came to adopt Magyar culture and language due to social pressure .Defiance or appeals to the Nationalities Law, met...
, a process virtually completed by the 16th century, when Calvinism was adopted. After granting autonomy to Catholics Szeckely and new Lutherans Saxons
Saxons
The Saxons were a confederation of Germanic tribes originating on the North German plain. The Saxons earliest known area of settlement is Northern Albingia, an area approximately that of modern Holstein...
, the nobility formed with them "The Union of The Three Nations", a statute aimed at concentrating all the power in the principality in the hands of the three nations: Hungarian (Calvinist nobles), (Catholic) Szeckelies and (Lutheran) Saxons. (Orthodox) Romanians, representing the vast majority of the population, were left with no representation, except the voice they could have through their clergy. Understanding that the religious pressure from all sides would not cease, a part of the Romanian-Orthodox clergy prepared to compromise with the side that would prove more flexible to the needs of the Romanians.
Linguistic and cultural affinities, as well as the much greater flexibility shown by the Catholic Church paid off for the latter. In 1692, Orthodox Bishop Teofil Seremi was established as the Metropolitan of 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...
, as usual under the Calvin dependency. After discussions and negotiations through the Jesuit Ladislau Baranyi, Seremi convoked a synod. On March 21, 1697, the synod decided to unite the Church with Rome under the conditions of the Council of Florence
Council of Florence
The Council of Florence was an Ecumenical Council of the Roman Catholic Church. It began in 1431 in Basel, Switzerland, and became known as the Council of Ferrara after its transfer to Ferrara was decreed by Pope Eugene IV, to convene in 1438...
, similarly to the unions of Brest
Brest, Belarus
Brest , formerly also Brest-on-the-Bug and Brest-Litovsk , is a city in Belarus at the border with Poland opposite the city of Terespol, where the Bug River and Mukhavets rivers meet...
and Muncach of the Ruthenians
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
. The intention was that the Romanian clergy would receive the same rights and immunities as the Latin clergy, while preserving the traditional establishments and the mass
Mass
Mass can be defined as a quantitive measure of the resistance an object has to change in its velocity.In physics, mass commonly refers to any of the following three properties of matter, which have been shown experimentally to be equivalent:...
. On April 4, 1697, the imperial chancellor Franz Ulrich Kinsky presented the Romanians' request to the governor of Transylvania Georgy Bánffy in Vienna and the imperial approval of the document. The Church was left under existing Calvinist control. Teofil Seremi died in July 1697, presumably by poisoning.
The ambiguity of the situation at the time was emphasized by the next Metropolitan of Transylvania, Atanasie Anghel
Atanasie Anghel
Atanasie Anghel Popa, was a Romanian Greek-Catholic bishop of Alba Iulia between 1698 and 1713. He was the successor to Teophilus Seremi in the seat of Mitropoliei Bălgradului...
. He received his ordination as Orthodox Metropolitan of Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
, where prince Constantin Brancoveanu
Constantin Brâncoveanu
Constantin Brâncoveanu was Prince of Wallachia between 1688 and 1714.-Ascension:A descendant of the Craioveşti boyar family and related to Matei Basarab, Brâncoveanu was born at the estate of Brâncoveni and raised in the house of his uncle, stolnic Constantin Cantacuzino...
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...
had arranged for official instruction to be given to the new metropolitan by Dositei, the Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem
Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem
The Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem is the head bishop of the Orthodox Church of Jerusalem, ranking fourth of nine Patriarchs in the Eastern Orthodox Church. Since 2005, the Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem has been Theophilos III...
. As soon as the Catholics started to realize the promised concessions, the 1697 union gained strength. In response to the July 2, 1698 confirmation of the 1697 privileges by Cardinal Kollonich of Esztergom, Atanasie Anghel
Atanasie Anghel
Atanasie Anghel Popa, was a Romanian Greek-Catholic bishop of Alba Iulia between 1698 and 1713. He was the successor to Teophilus Seremi in the seat of Mitropoliei Bălgradului...
summoned a new synod, which passed a "Manifest of Union" on October 7, 1698, signed by 38 high representatives of the Romanian clergy of Transylvania. In 1700, Brancoveanu presented the Romanian Orthodox Metropolitan of Alba Iulia with a substantial financial contribution which he retracted the next year, after a new synod in 1700 validated the union. In 1701, Anghel travelled to Vienna and declared the Metropolitan province of Transylvania was no longer subordinate to Bucharest. Dositei, the Patriarch of Jerusalem and Teodosie, the Metropolitan of Bucharest, presented Anghel with a formal anathema
Anathema
Anathema originally meant something lifted up as an offering to the gods; it later evolved to mean:...
.
In 1700, the Maramureş county congregation decided that the parochial school at Sighet had to be supported with public money.
In 1703, there was a Hungarian uprising against Austria and Catholicism, led by Ferenc Rakoczi. Some Romanians, Ruthenians and Slovaks participated. On June 7, 1703 the curutz won an inconclusive battle against Austrians at Dolha
Dolha
Dołha is a village in the administrative district of Gmina Drelów, within Biała Podlaska County, Lublin Voivodeship, in eastern Poland. It lies approximately north of Drelów, west of Biała Podlaska, and north of the regional capital Lublin.-References:...
, but were subsequently defeated, although definitively only in 1711. During this uprising, the Hungarian Protestants plundered and destroyed the famous Monastery of Peri in 1703.
After the union, Anghel's difficulties continued. The Calvin intendant was replaced by a Jesuit theologist, Gabriel Hevenessi, whose aggressiveness and absence of diplomacy, according to contemporaries, were surpassed only by his zeal to censure the books printed at Alba Iulia. The support from Wallachia was now completely cut. Due to the Hungarian revolt, the support from Vienna was minimal. In 1707, Rakoczy occupied Alba Iulia and Anghel had to retreat with the imperial troops to Sibiu. In Alba Iulia, the Bishop of Maramureş Iov Tarca, the former counter-candidate of Atanasie Anghel for the metropolitan see, re-established the Romanian Orthodox metropolitan province of Transylvania, with himself as Metropolitan, but was forced to flee to Maramureş, when the city passed again into Austrian hands.
In 1711, Atanasie Anghel, frustrated by the absence of imperial support, again voided the union with Rome, but was dissuaded by the Jesuits, when they finally managed to obtain support from the Emperor. Anghel died in 1713, but it took until December 23, 1715 until the Emperor approved another bishop, Ioan Giurgiu Patachi
Ioan Giurgiu Patachi
Ioan Giurgiu Patachi was Bishop of Făgăraş and Primate of the Romanian Greek Catholic Church from 1721 to his death in 1727.-Life:...
. Simultaneously, due to major reconstruction in Alba Iulia and resulting demolition of many old buildings, the metropolitan see was moved to 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...
. After approval by a papal decree "Indulgentum esse" (1716) and papal bull "Rationi Congruit" (1721), Patachi was festively installed in his position at the "St. Nicolas" Cathedral in Fagaraş on August 17, 1723.
In 1717, the Tatars invaded Maramureş and plundered the wealth of Sighet, much of which was hidden in the reformed church. After bringing much disaster, the Tatars were annihilated in a battle at Borşa.
The adversaries of the Greek-Catholic Church inside the imperial territory were the Protestant nobility of Transylvania, but also the Serbian Orthodox Metropolitan of Karlowitz
Sremski Karlovci
Sremski Karlovci is a town and municipality in Serbia, in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, situated on the bank of the river Danube, 8 km from Novi Sad...
. The latter's emissary to Transylvania, the Romanian monk Visarion Sarai, succeeded in spontaneously gathering so much support among the locals that it terrified the Austrian authorities. After arresting him, they sent him to the fearful Kufstein
Kufstein
Kufstein is a city in Tyrol, Austria, located along the river Inn, in the lower Inn valley, near the border with Bavaria, Germany, and is the site of a post World War II French sector United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration Displaced Persons camp.Kufstein is the second largest city...
prison in Tirol, where he vanished.
The person who was instrumental in establishing the national right of Romanians in Transylvania and forming the union with Rome was the Romanian Greek-Catholic Bishop of Blaj
Blaj
Blaj is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. It has a population of 20,758 inhabitants.The landmark of the city is the fact that it was the principal religious and cultural center of the Romanian Greek-Catholic Church in Transylvania....
Inocenţiu Micu-Klein
Inocentiu Micu-Klein
Iaoan Inocenţiu Micu-Klein was a Bishop of Făgăraş and Primate of the Romanian Greek Catholic Church from 1730 to his resignation in 1751...
. Schooled by the Jesuits in Cluj
Cluj-Napoca
Cluj-Napoca , commonly known as Cluj, is the fourth most populous city in Romania and the seat of Cluj County in the northwestern part of the country. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest , Budapest and Belgrade...
, trained in theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
in Trnava
Trnava
Trnava is a city in western Slovakia, 47 km to the north-east of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of a kraj and of an okres . It was the seat of a Roman Catholic archbishopric . The city has a historic center...
and later a Basilian monk
Order of Saint Basil the Great
The Order of St. Basil the Great also known as the Basilian Order of Saint Josaphat is an monastic religious order of the Greek Catholic Churches that is present in many countries and that has its Mother House in Rome. The order received approbation on August 20, 1631...
, he was appointed in 1729 by Emperor Charles VI
Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles VI was the penultimate Habsburg sovereign of the Habsburg Empire. He succeeded his elder brother, Joseph I, as Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia , Hungary and Croatia , Archduke of Austria, etc., in 1711...
Bishop of Alba Iulia and Fagaraş. He was also awarded the titles of Imperial Councillor and Baron as well as given a seat in the Transylvanian Diet
Transylvanian Diet
The Transylvanian Diet was the constitutional and political body of Principality of Transylvania, and later of the Grand Principality of Transylvania...
. In 1737, he moved the bishopric seat from Făgăraş to Blaj
Blaj
Blaj is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania. It has a population of 20,758 inhabitants.The landmark of the city is the fact that it was the principal religious and cultural center of the Romanian Greek-Catholic Church in Transylvania....
and in 1741 laid the foundations of the local cathedral. As a member of the Diet, Micu began to press the Habsburg monarchy to fulfill the agreement that conversion to Greek Catholicism would bring with it privileges such as were accorded Roman Catholics and an end to serfdom
Serfdom
Serfdom is the status of peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to Manorialism. It was a condition of bondage or modified slavery which developed primarily during the High Middle Ages in Europe and lasted to the mid-19th century...
. First pressing for rights for the clergy and the converts, he soon began to petition for freedom for all Romanians. Micu petitioned the Habsburg court for over forty years to this end. His perseverance ultimately caused both Empress Maria Theresa
Maria Theresa of Austria
Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina was the only female ruler of the Habsburg dominions and the last of the House of Habsburg. She was the sovereign of Austria, Hungary, Croatia, Bohemia, Mantua, Milan, Lodomeria and Galicia, the Austrian Netherlands and Parma...
and the Transylvanian Diet to declare themselves offended. The Diet itself opposed the liberation of the work force or the awarding of political rights to Romanians, considered by the Diet as "moth for the cloth." Exiled in 1744 and forced to give up his bishopric in 1751, Micu died in Rome in 1768.
A visit by the Catholic Bishop Manuil Olsavszky
Manuil Mykhailo Olsavszky
Manuil Mykhailo Olsavszky was the bishop of the Eparchy of Mukacheve from 1743 to his death in 1767.-Life:...
of Muncach, travelling as official envoy of Empress Maria Theresa throughout Transylvania, revealed that the union was in name only and that the locals did not want to receive uniate priests, but demanded that Klein be brought back. Fearing the situation could get much worse, Maria Theresa produced an Edict of Tolerance towards the Orthodox believers on July 13, 1759. It forbade the uniate clergy to persecute them. Two petitions were sent in March 1791 and March 1792 by the leaders of the ethnic Romanians of Transylvania to Emperor Leopold II
Leopold II, Holy Roman Emperor
Leopold II , born Peter Leopold Joseph Anton Joachim Pius Gotthard, was Holy Roman Emperor and King of Hungary and Bohemia from 1790 to 1792, Archduke of Austria and Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1765 to 1790. He was a son of Emperor Francis I and his wife, Empress Maria Theresa...
, demanding equal political rights with the other ethnicities of Transylvania and a share of the Transylvanian Diet proportional to their population (two third). Partially modelled on revolutionary France Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen
The Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen is a fundamental document of the French Revolution, defining the individual and collective rights of all the estates of the realm as universal. Influenced by the doctrine of "natural right", the rights of man are held to be universal: valid...
, the Supplex Libellus Valachorum Transsilvaniae (Petition of the Vlachs of Transylvania) documents were drafted by clerics of the Romanians Greek Catholic Church. Rejected, except for the point referring to the free practice of the Orthodox faith, despite the quasi-total support by the population, the document became the rallying point of the Romanians of Transylvania until after World War I.
In the 18th century, Maramureş was known for the export of salt, fur, wine and wooden crafts, while importing jewelry, carpets (from Turkey and the Balkans), fabric, crystal, china (from Czechia, Germany and Italy) and iron crafts (from Holland and Poland). Buştina, Veliky Bicichiv, Vâşcova, Teceu, Hust, Rahau, Ocna Slatina, Taras, Yasinia
Yasinia
Yasinia is an urban-type settlement in the Rakhiv Raion of the Zakarpattia Oblast in Ukraine. It was the site of the Hutsul Republic after World War I, and the birthplace of several prominent Ukrainians declaring independence from Kingdom of Hungary. This republic was ended by Romanian troops on...
, Dolha, Borşa and Sighet were the regional towns that emerged during that period. Hust was hosting as many as ten annual fairs.
The 19th century brought economic growth to Maramureş, although the first factories had appeared two centuries earlier. Electricity, post and telephone service reached the region by the end of the century.
During 1870-1913, there was considerable migration to the USA. From Maramureş, Ugocea, Bereg and Ung combined, there were 180,000 legal and up to 400,000 illegal emigrants to the USA. A smaller number of people emigrated to Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
.
In 1900, Ioan Mihalyi de Apşa printed the first volume of the history of the County of Maramureş, "Maramures Diplomas of XIV – XV centuries", at Sighet.
With the beginning of World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n troops invaded Yasinea and Rahiv in northeastern Maramureş in September 1914. They were repelled, but at the end of October 1914, while pushing towrds Uzhoc, they invaded also the northest-most villages of Maramureş, around Studene
Studené
Studené is a village and municipality in Ústí nad Orlicí District in the Pardubice Region of the Czech Republic.The municipality covers an area of , and has a population of 156 ....
and were again repelled. No further military action took place in Maramureş.
November 1918 - March 1919
At the end of World War IWorld War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, the Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
empire dissolved. The nations comprising it elected national and/or regional assemblies to determine future political configurations. At this time, Maramureş County was divided into North and South. The National Assembly of the Romanians of (inner) Transylvania, Crişana, Banat and Maramureş
Union of Transylvania with Romania
Union of Transylvania with Romania was declared on by the assembly of the delegates of ethnic Romanians held in Alba Iulia.The national holiday of Romania, the Great Union Day occurring on December 1, commemorates this event...
, composed of 1228 elected members, has decided on December 1, 1918 in 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...
upon their union with 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 December 15, 1918, in Mediaş, the Council of the Transylvanian Saxons and Danubian Swabians (ethnic Germans that had moved to Transylvania in the 12th-13th, respectively in the 18th centuries) decided to support the Romanians, mainly because of their adversity to the prospect of otherwise living in a Hungarian national state, which was due to the Magyarization
Magyarization
Magyarization is a kind of assimilation or acculturation, a process by which non-Magyar elements came to adopt Magyar culture and language due to social pressure .Defiance or appeals to the Nationalities Law, met...
policy practiced in the Transleitanian part of Austria-Hungary after 1870 and until World War I. The remaining Hungarians (24%-26% of population of Transylvania) as a whole were opposed to this move, claiming to be represented by the Transleitanian Government in Budapest.
Southern Maramureş, as well as Romanian villages from the north of the river Tisza, around the town of Ocna Slatina, elected deputies to the Romanian Assembly.
In November and December 1918, various "Councils" were established in different cities of Carpathian Ruthenia, the region inhabited by Ruthenians
Ruthenians
The name Ruthenian |Rus']]) is a culturally loaded term and has different meanings according to the context in which it is used. Initially, it was the ethnonym used for the East Slavic peoples who lived in Rus'. Later it was used predominantly for Ukrainians...
, spanning over most parts of the former counties of Ung, Bereg, Ugocea and the northern part of Maramureş, in order for inhabitants to decide which state they wished to join.
Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod
Uzhhorod or Uzhgorod is a city located in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. It is the administrative center of the Zakarpattia Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Uzhhorodskyi Raion within the oblast...
, Mukachevo, Berehovo and other cities voted to join the new Hungarian Republic. On January 21, 1919, Khust
Khust
Khust is a city located on the Khustets River in the Zakarpattia oblast in western Ukraine. It is near the confluence of the Tisza and Rika Rivers...
and Svaljava voted to join Ukraine-Russia. A Hutsul Republic
Hutsul Republic
The Hutsul Republic was a short-lived state, formed in the aftermath of World War I. The republic was declared on January 8, 1919, claiming Ukrainian-speaking areas of Hungary, when original plans to unite this area with the Western Ukrainian National Republic failed.General Stepan Klochurak was...
was declared in Yasinia
Yasinia
Yasinia is an urban-type settlement in the Rakhiv Raion of the Zakarpattia Oblast in Ukraine. It was the site of the Hutsul Republic after World War I, and the birthplace of several prominent Ukrainians declaring independence from Kingdom of Hungary. This republic was ended by Romanian troops on...
on January 8, 1919. A vote was taken by the National Council of American Ruthenians, in which Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
won as the most popular home for the region. This vote served as a basis point for Entante's proposals about the future fate of Carpathian Ruthenia
Carpathian Ruthenia
Carpathian Ruthenia is a region in Eastern Europe, mostly located in western Ukraine's Zakarpattia Oblast , with smaller parts in easternmost Slovakia , Poland's Lemkovyna and Romanian Maramureş.It is...
.
The Czechoslovak delegation at Versailles
Versailles
Versailles , a city renowned for its château, the Palace of Versailles, was the de facto capital of the kingdom of France for over a century, from 1682 to 1789. It is now a wealthy suburb of Paris and remains an important administrative and judicial centre...
insisted that the northern half of Maramureş be combined with Carpathian Ruthenia, based on the fact that the August 17, 1916 Treaty (article 4) between Romania and the powers of the Entante (Britain, France, Russia and Italy) precluding the entrance of Romania in World War I, stipulated Romania's right to Austria-Hungarian territory inhabited by Romanians up to the river Tisza. The Romanian delegation was opposed to this because the river Tisza divided Maramureş County roughly into half and the Romanians from the right bank of Tisza also took part in the election of representatives to the Assembly of Alba Iulia.
These MPs voiced concern during the Assembly upon the incorrect usage of the phrase "up to Tisza" by some speakers as a figure of speech and were assured that de jure
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'....
the Assembly was representing the population of the administrative units of Austria-Hungary from whom they were elected.
After tough negotiations at the Conference of the Treaty of Versailles, the Romanian delegation obtained that the Entente powers accept the decision of the Assembly. The Romanian Army moved into Transylvania during the spring and summer of 1919. They were welcomed by the local population, except by the ethnic Hungarians and to the deception of many of the politicians at the Conference of Versailles, trying to prevent the emergence of a regional power in Eastern Europe. Four independent field Commissions, one each from Britain, France, USA and Italy, submitted proposals for the border of Romania in Transylvania. The consolidated proposal suggested that the westernmost one row of Counties (parts of Crişana/Partium) be retained by Hungary and one County in the southwest (part of Banat) to be attributed to the newly formed Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
.
March 1919 - April 1920
An ambiguous period ensued from March to May 1919 as a "Diet" government for Carpathian Ruthenia formed with strong ties to Hungary’s Béla KunBéla Kun
Béla Kun , born Béla Kohn, was a Hungarian Communist politician and a Bolshevik Revolutionary who led the Hungarian Soviet Republic in 1919.- Early life :...
(communist) regime.
Throughout the summer of 1919, Czech troops began to control most of what is today Carpathian Ruthenia, with Romanian troops gaining control of its southern regions in late spring at the request of the Versailles Conference, against the Communist Hungarian Republic.
In June 1919, independently from the ongoing events in Versailles, the Romanian and Czechoslovak armies agreed on a demarcation line which left Ung and most of the Bereg County under Czechoslovak control, while Maramureş, Ugocsa and part of the Bereg County fell under Romanian control, until the final decisions at Versailles were made.
On July 2, 1919, the Prime Minister of Romania, I C Brătianu, withdrew from the Versailles Conference because the Entente powers wanted to stick to the letter of the 1916 treaty with respect to Maramureş, i.e. to divide the county. This created tension between the Romanian Delegation and the Supreme Council at Versailles.
On August 3, 1919, the Entente powers finally accepted the Czechoslovak suggestion. Brătianu refused to sign the treaty in that form. The Romanians wanted to preserve the June demarcation line as the official border.
In Transylvania, there was some public anxiety about keeping Maramureş County intact. The Prefect of Maramureş, who kept the administration over the entire County, was very outspoken. Maramureş and Ugocsa elected members to the new Romanian parliament in 1919, with a wide participation in the vote among both Romanians and Ruthenians. The elected MPs were of both ethnic groups. They engaged in a series of attempts to wake the political class and the public opinion to what they called "the cause of the over-Tisza lands."
The Saint-Germain agreement of September 10, 1919 between Entente and Czechoslovakia provided for the incorporation of the majority of Carpathian Ruthenia into Slovakia as an autonomous unit of the Slovak portion of the Czechoslovak state.
In Romania, the Brătianu Government resigned on September 12, 1919 and a new government led by Vaitoianu was formed. A member of that government, Alexandru Vaida-Voevod
Alexandru Vaida-Voevod
Alexandru Vaida-Voevod or Vaida-Voievod was a Romanian politician who was a supporter and promoter of the union of Transylvania with the Romanian Old Kingdom; he later served three terms as a Prime Minister of Greater Romania.-Transylvanian politics:He was born to a Greek-Catholic family in the...
, previously a famous Transylvanian politician in former Austria-Hungary, compiled a documented "proposition about the boundary of Maramureş, to include all Romanian villages," suggesting "a line that would start west of Teceu and would continue to the north along mountain crests to the Galician border, leaving in Romania in addition to the south, the entire subdistrict of Sighet, the subdistricts of Tisza and Taras and half of the subdistrict of Teceu."
On September 30, 1919, Vaiatoianu was replaced by Vaida himself. Vaida was appointed to the Romanian Delegation in Versailles as an expert in the question of Maramureş by one of the new MPs from that County, Dr G Iuga. The latter presented many documents in support of the argument about "the obvious Romanian rights over Maramureş." He used the example of the oldest Romanian Bishopric, established in the village of Peri in 1391, on the northern side of the river, which has been for over 300 years the main center of Romanian culture in the northern half of Transylvania.
On December 16, 1919, in a speech to the Romanian Parliament, Vaida said that he was hopeful in finding a solution "to save the entire Maramureş." After negotiations, the Czech Delegation started accepting the Romanian point of view. On March 15, 1920, the chief of the Czech Delegation to Versailles, Štefan Osuský
Štefan Osuský
JUDr. Štefan Osuský was an Austro-Hungarian born Slovak politician and diplomat.-Life:In 1902 he began his studies at the Lutheran Lyceum in present-day Bratislava...
, informed Vaida that the Maramureş border "is to be settled in short time." The agreement reached by the Romanian and Czech delegations left the entire Maramureş, except the Dolha sub-district, to Romania. In return, the Czechs demanded a military alliance. The agreement was to be signed in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where the whole conference moved.
Yet another government was formed in Bucharest, this time not led by a Transylvanian, but by General Averescu
Averescu
Averescu is a Romanian family name originating from Moldavia:, 15th-century Moldavian steward of Ştetan III. the Great. Village of Avereşti, Neamţ County was given for him....
. The agricultural reform envisioned by Vaida-Voevod deeply upset and threatened the wealthiest land owners and businessmen from pre-1918 Romania, who set aside their infighting to concentrate on the threat posed by Vaida. Of the 16 million inhabitants of Romania in 1920, only seven million lived in the pre-1918 territories. This threatened the pre-1918 political class, which was more feudal, conservative and anti-democratic than the politicians that formerly lived in Austria-Hungary or in the Russian Empire
Russian Empire
The Russian Empire was a state that existed from 1721 until the Russian Revolution of 1917. It was the successor to the Tsardom of Russia and the predecessor of the Soviet Union...
. Another faction that played a key role in the deposition of Vaida was Bratianu, who feared possible inquiries about the misuse of funds by his government before Romania entered World War I in 1916. Averescu assured Bratianu that any possible inquiries would be persecuted.
The Czechoslovak delegation took this opportunity to change its tone and refused to sign the documents on the grounds that the new Romanian government was not legitimate and could not sign agreements as the previous regime had.
On April 1, 1920, the Czech representative in Bucharest reaffirmed the Czechoslovak government’s request that the Romanian troops leave the territory up to the Tisza line, informing the Romanian government that it "agrees to negotiate in the future a rectification of the boundary following propositions from a mixed Czech-Romanian border Commission to be formed."
On April 18, 1920, the Romanian Government of General Averescu announced to the Czechs that the army would retreat to the requested line. This reply, implemented at the end of July 1920, created the impression in diplomatic circles that Romanians renounced the territory of Maramureş north of the river Tisza. The Romanian perspective had been given a crushing blow with this hasty withdrawal of troops, a blow against the natural geographic configuration and vital economic interests of the region, without any consent and against the categorical will of the affected Romanian population. On June 4, 1920, Romania signed the Treaty of Trianon
Treaty of Trianon
The Treaty of Trianon was the peace agreement signed in 1920, at the end of World War I, between the Allies of World War I and Hungary . The treaty greatly redefined and reduced Hungary's borders. From its borders before World War I, it lost 72% of its territory, which was reduced from to...
and the international community recognized the border in northern Transylvania as it is today. The mixed Czech-Romanian commission was never formed.
1920-1938
After the Treaty of Trianon was concluded in 1920, Northern Maramureş became part of Subcarpathian Rus region of Slovakia, one of the component states of Czechoslovakia.In 1920, there were 60 newspapers edited in the Subcarpathian Rus, the region that apart from northern Maramureş also contained Ung, Bereg and Ugocsa: 22 in Hungarian, ten in Russian, nine in Rusyn, five in Hebrew, four in Czech, four in Ukrainian and six mixed. No newspaper was published in Romanian.
1938-1944
Prior and during World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Hungary, led by Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy
Miklós Horthy de Nagybánya was the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary during the interwar years and throughout most of World War II, serving from 1 March 1920 to 15 October 1944. Horthy was styled "His Serene Highness the Regent of the Kingdom of Hungary" .Admiral Horthy was an officer of the...
, allied itself with Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
in the hope of re-obtaining some of the territories it had lost under the Treaty of Trianon
Treaty of Trianon
The Treaty of Trianon was the peace agreement signed in 1920, at the end of World War I, between the Allies of World War I and Hungary . The treaty greatly redefined and reduced Hungary's borders. From its borders before World War I, it lost 72% of its territory, which was reduced from to...
.
On October 1, 1938 the First Vienna Award
First Vienna Award
The First Vienna Award was the result of the First Vienna Arbitration, which took place at Vienna's Belvedere Palace on November 2, 1938. The Arbitration and Award were direct consequences of the Munich Agreement...
came into force. It was a direct result of the Munich Agreement
Munich Agreement
The Munich Pact was an agreement permitting the Nazi German annexation of Czechoslovakia's Sudetenland. The Sudetenland were areas along Czech borders, mainly inhabited by ethnic Germans. The agreement was negotiated at a conference held in Munich, Germany, among the major powers of Europe without...
. Czechoslovakia was forced by Germany and Italy to cede the Sudetenland (a part of Czechia mostly inhabited by ethnic Germans) to the Third Reich. On October 6 and October 8, 1938, Slovakia and Subcarpathian-Ruthenia respectively gained autonomy. Then, Germany and Italy arbitrated the 2 November Vienna Protocol, allocating a strip of territory from southern Slovakia (approximately one third of Slovakia) and Subcarpathian-Ruthenia to Hungary. The resumption of Hungarian control over these territories was not an entirely peaceful process. Invited by Germany and Italy, Poland invaded and annexed the Teschen area in Moravia. Nevertheless, Romania refused to invade and annex the compactly Romanian part of Northern Maramureş. The remaining Slovak territory became officially autonomous and had the right to its own parliament and government with Monsignor Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso
Jozef Tiso was a Slovak Roman Catholic priest, politician of the Slovak People's Party, and Nazi collaborator. Between 1939 and 1945, Tiso was the head of the Slovak State, a satellite state of Nazi Germany...
chosen as its leader. However, it did not become fully independent from Czechoslovakia until an ultimatum given by Hitler prompted a vote for "independence" (as a puppet state for Hitler) on March 14, 1939.
The next day, on March 15, 1939, Germany annexed the remainder of Czechoslovakia as the "Reichsprotektorat" of Bohemia and Moravia. Subcarpathian-Ruthenia declared its independence in Khust
Khust
Khust is a city located on the Khustets River in the Zakarpattia oblast in western Ukraine. It is near the confluence of the Tisza and Rika Rivers...
under President Augustin Voloshin, but was invaded and annexed by Hungary the following day. On March 23, Hungary started an invasion from the Subcarpathian-Ruthenia and occupied additional portions of eastern Slovakia, but later returned them to Slovakia.
The Subcarpathian-Ruthenian land allocated to Hungary as part of the Vienna Protocol (November 2, 1938) Award included the region’s largest cities: Uzhhorod, Mukachevo, Berehovo and Chop. Khust, in the East, the westernmost city of Northern Maramureş, remained a part of Subcarpathia-Ruthenia and the seat of its government moved there. The Chust government actively continued to voice complaints over the fate of the western Subcarpathian-Ruthenian territories and vocally asserted the region’s case for its own government and the protection of its former lands. The Chust declarations increasingly included a possible attachment to an independent Ukraine. The day after the Slovak vote for independence from Czechoslovakia on March 14, 1939, the Ruthenian Diet led by Premier Augustin Voloshin declared independence for Subcarpathian-Ruthenian under the name "Carpatho-Ukraine." Within 24 hours, Hungarian troops invaded Chust with the assent of Hitler. They liquidated the government and annexed the remainder of Subcarpathian-Ruthenian to Hungary. In addition, the southern part of the Maramureş region was occupied by Hungary between 1940-1944 after the Second Vienna Award
Second Vienna Award
The Second Vienna Award was the second of two Vienna Awards arbitrated by the Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy. Rendered on August 30, 1940, it re-assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania from Romania to Hungary.-Prelude and historical background :After the World War I, the multi-ethnic...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
.
1944-1991
One of the first acts of the Soviet administration was to change the historic names of the villages. Apsa de Jos became Dibrova, Apsa de Mijloc became Srednee Vodianoe, Ocna Slatina became Solotvino and Biserica Alba becameBila Tserkva. The names of the smaller villages were also changed.
Collectivization brought a lot of resistance from the local population. After the creation of the first kolkhoz
Kolkhoz
A kolkhoz , plural kolkhozy, was a form of collective farming in the Soviet Union that existed along with state farms . The word is a contraction of коллекти́вное хозя́йство, or "collective farm", while sovkhoz is a contraction of советское хозяйство...
in the village of Apsa de Jos, the biggest village of the Trans-Carpathian region, the locals killed Ivan Chernichko, the president of the kolkhoz. As a result, 21 men were sentenced to a total of 427 years of imprisonment. In Apsa de Mijloc, the locals killed four Soviet officials and were deported to Siberia. Eventually two kolkhoz were created in Apsa de Jos in 1949 and united three years later. In 1959, the kolkhoz of the village of Stramtura was united with the former, which was named "friendship of peoples."
Although the Soviets opened the first university in Uzhhorod, built the first hydro-electric plant (on the Tereblea and Rica rivers), partially electrified the railroad and even held the World Children Olympic Games in Uzhhorod in 1990, severe damage was produced during this period to the cultural and ecological heritage of the whole region of Trans-Carpathia, including Northern Maramureş.
