Principality of Nitra
Encyclopedia
The Principality of Nitra also Nitrian Principality or Slovak Principality is the name for a polity of Nitra Sloviens, centered on large agglomeration
, a multi-tribal centre around Nitra
, Slovakia
. The initially independent Principality of Nitra came into existence in the early 9th century. This state was annexed by Mojmir I and the merger of Principality of Nitra and the Moravian state created the Great Moravia
. It may have been a nascent state that merged into Great Moravia in the 830s and lost its separate existence around 900.
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We do not have much information based on documents (only two entries in a Western written primary source) on the polity referred as the "Principality of Nitra" by later historians. The primary source (The Conversion of the Bavarians and the Carantanians) refers to Pribina
's expulsion by Mojmír I
, Duke of the Moravians
and its interpolation mentions him in connection with Nitra
:
Nevertheless, during the first decades of the 9th century, the Slavic people living in the north-western parts of the Carpathian Basin
were under the rule of a tribal leader
(styled prince by later historians) whose seat was in Nitra. In the 9th century, an extensive network of settlements developed around the town. Around that time, the Avars
' power collapsed in the Carpathian Basin
following the military campaigns of Charlemagne
and Krum of Bulgaria
.
The "Principality of Nitra" emerged in the 8th century and developed into an independent Slavic state; although the polity may have lost its independence when it was still at the stage of development. In the early 9th century, the polity was situated on the north-western territories of present-day Slovakia
.
Around 828, Archbishop Adalram of Salzburg consecrated a church for Prince Pribina in Nitrava (identified with Nitra).
In 833 Mojmír I, Duke of the Moravians, expelled Pribina. Following his expulsion, Pribina went to count Ratbod who administered the Eastern March of the Carolingian Empire. In the early 840s, Louis the German
, King of East Francia granted Pribina parts of Pannonia
around the Zala
River (referred to as the "Balaton Principality
"). Afterwards, Pribina supported East Francia in its struggle against Great Moravia and died in a battle against Rastislav
, Prince of Great Moravia in 861. He was succeeded by his son Koceľ
in his county in Pannonia.
What modern historians designate as Great Moravia
, arose around 830, when Mojmír I unified the Slavic tribes settled north of the Danube and extended the Moravian supremacy over them. The "Principality of Nitra" was governed by the future King Svatopluk I
from about 860 during the reign of Prince Rastislav
.
Upon Prince Rastislav's request, two brothers, Byzantine officials and missionaries Saints Cyril and Methodius
came in 863. Cyril developed the first Slavic alphabet
and translated the Gospel into the Old Church Slavonic
language. Texts translated or written by Cyril and Methodius are considered to be the oldest literature in the Slavic languages.
Castles in Great Moravia mentioned by name in contemporary written sources were located in the "Principality of Nitra", although the identification of some of them is still under debate. Nitrawa, mentioned in The Conversion of the Bavarians and the Carantanians and other documents, is identified with Nitra. Dowina, referred in the Annals of Fulda
at the year 864, is sometimes identified with Devín Castle
, but the period of its building is also dated to the 13th century. Brezalauspurc is usually identified with Bratislava Castle
, but its denomination suggest that the fortress was built for Braslav
, a count in East Francia; therefore its identification as a castle in Great Moravia is under debate.
Great Moravia reached its maximum territorial extent during the reign of Svatopluk I (870-894), who had governed the "Principality of Nitra" before ascending the throne. Following his death, his sons, Mojmír II
and Svatopluk II
got involved in wars with the neighbouring countries and a civil war also broke out between the brothers.
The see of one of the dioceses in Great Moravia was established in Nitra; its first bishop, Wiching was consecrated in 880.
Around 896 the nomadic Magyar tribes, who had occasionally intervened into the struggles of the powers dominating the Carpathian Basin already from 861, suffered a catastrophic defeat from the Pechenegs; they left their territories east of the Carpathian Mountains, invaded the Carpathian Basin and started to occupy the territory gradually. The Magyars invaded the territories of Great Moravia around the Morava River in 902 and they destroyed the state. In three battles (July 4–5 and August 9, 907) near Bratislava
, the Magyars routed Bavaria
n armies. Historians traditionally put this year as the date of the breakup of the Great Moravian Empire.
Some contemporary sources mention that Great Moravia disappeared without trace following the Magyars' victories, but archaeological researches and toponyms
suggest the continuity of Slavic population in the valleys of the rivers of the Inner Western Carpathians
.
Great Moravia left behind a lasting legacy in Central and Eastern Europe. The Glagolitic script and its successor Cyrillic were disseminated to other Slavic countries, charting a new path in their cultural development. The administrative system of Great Moravia may have influenced the development of the administration of the Kingdom of Hungary
.
.
The Gesta Hungarorum
("Deeds of the Hungarians") mentions that Huba, head of one of the seven Magyar tribes, received possessions around Nitra and the Žitava River
; while according to the Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum
("Deeds of the Huns and Hungarians") another tribal leader, Lél
settled down around Hlohovec and following the Magyars' victory over the Moravians', he usually stayed around Nitra. Modern authors claim that one of the Magyar tribes occupied the north-western parts of the Carpathian Basin. On the other hand, the remaining territories belonging to the "Principality of Nitra" were under the rule of local Slavic.
From 917 the Magyars made raids to several territories at the same time which may prove the decay of the uniform direction within their tribal federation. The sources prove the existence of at least three and maximum five groups of tribes within the federation, and only one of them was lead directly by the Árpáds (the dynasty of the future kings of Hungary
) who ruled over the western parts of the Carpathian Basin.
The development of the future Kingdom of Hungary started during the reign of Grand Prince Géza
(before 972-997) who expanded his rule over the territories west of the River Hron
. Some authors claim that Géza's son, the future King Stephen received the "Duchy of Nitra" in appanage from his father following his marriage with Giselle of Bavaria
. When Géza died, a member of the Árpád dynasty, the pagan Koppány
claimed the succession, but Stephen defeated him with the assistance of his wife's German retinue.
Around 1015 (1002?) Duke Boleslaw I of Poland
occupied some territories of present-day Slovakia east of the River Morava, but King Stephen recovered these territories already in 1018 (1029?, 1031?).
on the territories, e.g. Bars
, Esztergom, Hont
, Komárom
and Nyitra counties were probably founded by him. The scarcely inhabited parts of the kingdom (e.g., the northern and north-eastern territories of present-day Slovakia) were originally the kings' private forests, then they were organized into "forest counties" (12-13th centuries). The Magyars did not treat the northern region of Kingdom of Hungary as a separate political entity where Slovaks lived during the centuries.
Following King Stephen's death (1038), the kingdom got involved into civil wars and pagan revolts which lead to the intervention of the Holy Roman Empire
. Stephen's successor, King Peter was dethroned in 1041 and he fled to the court of Emperor Henry III
who lead his armies against Peter's opponent, King Samuel Aba
in the following year. The emperor occupied the western territories of present-day Slovakia till the Hron
River, and he granted the occupied territories to a member of the Árpád dynasty, Béla instead of King Peter because the Hungarians opposed the latter's rule. However, King Samuel Aba could reoccupy the territory after the withdrawal of the Emperor's troops.
In 1046 King Andrew I ascended the throne who conceded one-third of the counties
of the kingdom ("Tercia pars regni") to his brother, Duke Béla who had possibly governed parts of the territory already in 1042. The counties entrusted to Duke Bela did not form a separate province within the kingdom, but they were organized around two or three centers: the eastern block of the counties were located around Bihar (Romanian: Biharea), while their north-western block was centered around Nitra; the third (possible) center of the territories was Krassó (near to the present-day Dupljaja
in Serbia).
The Tercia pars regni were governed regularly by members of the Árpád dynasty (the Dukes Géza
, Ladislaus, Lampert
, Álmos
till 1163, when the last duke of the territory, Stephen
ascended the throne. The dukes accepted the supremacy of the kings of Hungary, but some of them (Béla, Géza and Álmos) rebelled against the king in order to acquire the crown and allied themselves with the rulers of the neighboring countries (e.g., the Holy Roman Empire
, Bohemia
).
Agglomeration
In the study of human settlements, an urban agglomeration is an extended city or town area comprising the built-up area of a central place and any suburbs linked by continuous urban area. In France, INSEE the French Statistical Institute, translate it as "Unité urbaine" which means continuous...
, a multi-tribal centre around Nitra
Nitra
Nitra is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. With a population of about 83,572, it is the fifth largest city in Slovakia. Nitra is also one of the oldest cities in Slovakia and the country's earliest political and cultural center...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
. The initially independent Principality of Nitra came into existence in the early 9th century. This state was annexed by Mojmir I and the merger of Principality of Nitra and the Moravian state created the Great Moravia
Great Moravia
Great Moravia was a Slavic state that existed in Central Europe and lasted for nearly seventy years in the 9th century whose creators were the ancestors of the Czechs and Slovaks. It was a vassal state of the Germanic Frankish kingdom and paid an annual tribute to it. There is some controversy as...
. It may have been a nascent state that merged into Great Moravia in the 830s and lost its separate existence around 900.
Independent polity
Pribina
Pribina was a Slavic prince whose adventurous career, recorded in the Conversion of the Bavarians and the Carantanians , illustrates the political volatility of the Franco–Slavic frontiers of his time...
's expulsion by Mojmír I
Mojmír I
Mojmir I or Moimir I was the first known ruler of the Moravian Slavs . In modern scholarship, the creation of the early medieval state known as "Great" Moravia is attributed either to his or to his successors' expansionist policy...
, Duke of the Moravians
Moravians (ethnic group)
Moravians are the modern West Slavic inhabitants of the historical land of Moravia, the easternmost part of the Czech Republic, which includes the Moravian Slovakia. They speak the two main groups of Moravian dialects , the transitional Bohemian-Moravian dialect subgroup and standard Czech...
and its interpolation mentions him in connection with Nitra
Nitra
Nitra is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. With a population of about 83,572, it is the fifth largest city in Slovakia. Nitra is also one of the oldest cities in Slovakia and the country's earliest political and cultural center...
:
Nevertheless, during the first decades of the 9th century, the Slavic people living in the north-western parts of the Carpathian Basin
Pannonian Basin
The Pannonian Basin or Carpathian Basin is a large basin in East-Central Europe.The geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewhat different sense - meaning only the lowlands, the plain that remained when the Pliocene Pannonian Sea dried...
were under the rule of a tribal leader
Tribal chief
A tribal chief is the leader of a tribal society or chiefdom. Tribal societies with social stratification under a single leader emerged in the Neolithic period out of earlier tribal structures with little stratification, and they remained prevalent throughout the Iron Age.In the case of ...
(styled prince by later historians) whose seat was in Nitra. In the 9th century, an extensive network of settlements developed around the town. Around that time, the Avars
Eurasian Avars
The Eurasian Avars or Ancient Avars were a highly organized nomadic confederacy of mixed origins. They were ruled by a khagan, who was surrounded by a tight-knit entourage of nomad warriors, an organization characteristic of Turko-Mongol groups...
' power collapsed in the Carpathian Basin
Pannonian Basin
The Pannonian Basin or Carpathian Basin is a large basin in East-Central Europe.The geomorphological term Pannonian Plain is more widely used for roughly the same region though with a somewhat different sense - meaning only the lowlands, the plain that remained when the Pliocene Pannonian Sea dried...
following the military campaigns of Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
and Krum of Bulgaria
Krum of Bulgaria
Krum the Horrible was Khan of Bulgaria, from after 796, but before 803, to 814 AD. During his reign the Bulgarian territory doubled in size, spreading from the middle Danube to the Dnieper and from Odrin to the Tatra Mountains. His able and energetic rule brought law and order to Bulgaria and...
.
The "Principality of Nitra" emerged in the 8th century and developed into an independent Slavic state; although the polity may have lost its independence when it was still at the stage of development. In the early 9th century, the polity was situated on the north-western territories of present-day Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
.
Around 828, Archbishop Adalram of Salzburg consecrated a church for Prince Pribina in Nitrava (identified with Nitra).
Part of Great Moravia
In 833 Mojmír I, Duke of the Moravians, expelled Pribina. Following his expulsion, Pribina went to count Ratbod who administered the Eastern March of the Carolingian Empire. In the early 840s, Louis the German
Louis the German
Louis the German , also known as Louis II or Louis the Bavarian, was a grandson of Charlemagne and the third son of the succeeding Frankish Emperor Louis the Pious and his first wife, Ermengarde of Hesbaye.He received the appellation 'Germanicus' shortly after his death in recognition of the fact...
, King of East Francia granted Pribina parts of Pannonia
Pannonia
Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube, coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy, and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia....
around the Zala
Zala
Zala is the name of an administrative county in Hungary. Itlies in south-western Hungary. It is named after the Zala River. It shares borders with Croatia and Slovenia and the Hungarian counties Vas, Veszprém and Somogy. The capital of Zala county is Zalaegerszeg. Its area is 3784 km²...
River (referred to as the "Balaton Principality
Balaton Principality
The Principality of Lower Pannonia was a Slavic principality located in the western part of the Pannonian plain, between the rivers Danube to its east The Principality of Lower Pannonia (also called Pannonia, Lower Pannonia, Pannonian Principality, Transdanubian Principality, Slavic Pannonian...
"). Afterwards, Pribina supported East Francia in its struggle against Great Moravia and died in a battle against Rastislav
Rastislav
Rastislav or Rostislav was the second known ruler of Moravia . Although he started his reign as vassal to Louis the German, king of East Francia, he consolidated his rule to the extent that after 855 he was able to repel a series of Frankish attacks...
, Prince of Great Moravia in 861. He was succeeded by his son Koceľ
Kocel
Koceľ was the second Lord of Principality of Lower Pannonia centered in Blatnograd / Blatnohrad .-Early life:...
in his county in Pannonia.
What modern historians designate as Great Moravia
Great Moravia
Great Moravia was a Slavic state that existed in Central Europe and lasted for nearly seventy years in the 9th century whose creators were the ancestors of the Czechs and Slovaks. It was a vassal state of the Germanic Frankish kingdom and paid an annual tribute to it. There is some controversy as...
, arose around 830, when Mojmír I unified the Slavic tribes settled north of the Danube and extended the Moravian supremacy over them. The "Principality of Nitra" was governed by the future King Svatopluk I
Svatopluk I
Svatopluk I or Zwentibald I was the greatest ruler of Moravia that attained its maximum territorial expansion in his reign . His career had already started in the 860s, when he governed a principality, the location of which is still a matter of debate among historians, within Moravia under the...
from about 860 during the reign of Prince Rastislav
Rastislav
Rastislav or Rostislav was the second known ruler of Moravia . Although he started his reign as vassal to Louis the German, king of East Francia, he consolidated his rule to the extent that after 855 he was able to repel a series of Frankish attacks...
.
Upon Prince Rastislav's request, two brothers, Byzantine officials and missionaries Saints Cyril and Methodius
Saints Cyril and Methodius
Saints Cyril and Methodius were two Byzantine Greek brothers born in Thessaloniki in the 9th century. They became missionaries of Christianity among the Slavic peoples of Bulgaria, Great Moravia and Pannonia. Through their work they influenced the cultural development of all Slavs, for which they...
came in 863. Cyril developed the first Slavic alphabet
Glagolitic alphabet
The Glagolitic alphabet , also known as Glagolitsa, is the oldest known Slavic alphabet. The name was not coined until many centuries after its creation, and comes from the Old Slavic glagolъ "utterance" . The verb glagoliti means "to speak"...
and translated the Gospel into the Old Church Slavonic
Old Church Slavonic
Old Church Slavonic or Old Church Slavic was the first literary Slavic language, first developed by the 9th century Byzantine Greek missionaries Saints Cyril and Methodius who were credited with standardizing the language and using it for translating the Bible and other Ancient Greek...
language. Texts translated or written by Cyril and Methodius are considered to be the oldest literature in the Slavic languages.
Castles in Great Moravia mentioned by name in contemporary written sources were located in the "Principality of Nitra", although the identification of some of them is still under debate. Nitrawa, mentioned in The Conversion of the Bavarians and the Carantanians and other documents, is identified with Nitra. Dowina, referred in the Annals of Fulda
Annales Fuldenses
The Annales Fuldenses or Annals of Fulda are East Frankish chronicles that cover independently the period from the last years of Louis the Pious to shortly after the end of effective Carolingian rule in East Francia with the accession of the child-king, Louis III, in 900...
at the year 864, is sometimes identified with Devín Castle
Devín Castle
Devín Castle is a castle in Devín, which is a borough of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia....
, but the period of its building is also dated to the 13th century. Brezalauspurc is usually identified with Bratislava Castle
Bratislava Castle
Bratislava Castle is the main castle of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia.The massive rectangular building with four corner towers stands on a quite isolated rocky hill of the Little Carpathians directly above the Danube river in the middle of Bratislava...
, but its denomination suggest that the fortress was built for Braslav
Braslav of Pannonia
Braslav or Bräslav was the last duke or prince of Pannonian Croatia in 880-898/900 vassalaged to the Kingdom of East Francia...
, a count in East Francia; therefore its identification as a castle in Great Moravia is under debate.
Great Moravia reached its maximum territorial extent during the reign of Svatopluk I (870-894), who had governed the "Principality of Nitra" before ascending the throne. Following his death, his sons, Mojmír II
Mojmír II
Mojmir II was the last king of the Great Moravian Empire . Because of a civil war with his brother, he failed to prevent dismemberment of his Empire and probably died while fighting Magyar invaders....
and Svatopluk II
Svatopluk II
Svatopluk II ruled the Principality of Nitra from 894 to 906 and strove to control all of Great Moravia.Svatopluk II was a younger son of Svatopluk I. As Prince of Nitra, Svatopluk II was subordinated to his older brother Mojmír II, the King of Great Moravia which contained the principality as its...
got involved in wars with the neighbouring countries and a civil war also broke out between the brothers.
The see of one of the dioceses in Great Moravia was established in Nitra; its first bishop, Wiching was consecrated in 880.
Around 896 the nomadic Magyar tribes, who had occasionally intervened into the struggles of the powers dominating the Carpathian Basin already from 861, suffered a catastrophic defeat from the Pechenegs; they left their territories east of the Carpathian Mountains, invaded the Carpathian Basin and started to occupy the territory gradually. The Magyars invaded the territories of Great Moravia around the Morava River in 902 and they destroyed the state. In three battles (July 4–5 and August 9, 907) near Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
, the Magyars routed Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
n armies. Historians traditionally put this year as the date of the breakup of the Great Moravian Empire.
Some contemporary sources mention that Great Moravia disappeared without trace following the Magyars' victories, but archaeological researches and toponyms
Toponymy
Toponymy is the scientific study of place names , their origins, meanings, use and typology. The word "toponymy" is derived from the Greek words tópos and ónoma . Toponymy is itself a branch of onomastics, the study of names of all kinds...
suggest the continuity of Slavic population in the valleys of the rivers of the Inner Western Carpathians
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...
.
Great Moravia left behind a lasting legacy in Central and Eastern Europe. The Glagolitic script and its successor Cyrillic were disseminated to other Slavic countries, charting a new path in their cultural development. The administrative system of Great Moravia may have influenced the development of the administration of 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...
.
Under the rule of Hungarian chieftains
The Magyar tribes took possession of the Carpathian Basin around 900 and their tribes got established on the territory. Archaeological researches do not prove the total destruction of the regions around the Morava River but the Magyar armies regularly passed through the territories when they marched to pillage the territories of East Francia. Toponyms may prove that the nomadic Magyars occupied the Western Pannonian Plain in present-day Slovakia, while the hills were inhabited by a mixed (Slav and Hungarian) population and people living in the valleys of the mountains spoke Slavic languageSlavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
.
The Gesta Hungarorum
Gesta Hungarorum
Gesta Hungarorum is a record of early Hungarian history by an unknown author who describes himself as Anonymi Bele Regis Notarii , but is generally cited as Anonymus...
("Deeds of the Hungarians") mentions that Huba, head of one of the seven Magyar tribes, received possessions around Nitra and the Žitava River
Žitava River
The Žitava River is a 99.3 km long river in southern Slovakia. It is the right tributary of the Nitra river.-See also:* Peace of Zsitvatorok...
; while according to the Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum
Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum
The Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum , written mainly by Simon of Kéza around 1282-1285, is one of the sources of early Hungarian history...
("Deeds of the Huns and Hungarians") another tribal leader, Lél
Lehel
Lehel was a Magyar chieftain, one of the brilliant military leaders of prince Taksony of Hungary, the descendant of Árpád. He was one of the most important figures of the Magyar invasions of Europe...
settled down around Hlohovec and following the Magyars' victory over the Moravians', he usually stayed around Nitra. Modern authors claim that one of the Magyar tribes occupied the north-western parts of the Carpathian Basin. On the other hand, the remaining territories belonging to the "Principality of Nitra" were under the rule of local Slavic.
From 917 the Magyars made raids to several territories at the same time which may prove the decay of the uniform direction within their tribal federation. The sources prove the existence of at least three and maximum five groups of tribes within the federation, and only one of them was lead directly by the Árpáds (the dynasty of the future 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...
) who ruled over the western parts of the Carpathian Basin.
The development of the future Kingdom of Hungary started during the reign of Grand Prince Géza
Géza of Hungary
Géza , Grand Prince of the Hungarians .Géza was the son of Taksony of Hungary, Grand Prince of the Hungarians and his Pecheneg or Bulgar wife. Géza's marriage with Sarolt, the daughter of Gyula of Transylvania, was arranged by his father.After his father's death , Géza followed him as Grand Prince...
(before 972-997) who expanded his rule over the territories west of the River Hron
Hron
Hron is a 298 km long left tributary of the Danube and the second longest river in Slovakia. It flows from its source located in the Low Tatra mountains through central and southern Slovakia, pouring into the Danube near Štúrovo and Esztergom...
. Some authors claim that Géza's son, the future King Stephen received the "Duchy of Nitra" in appanage from his father following his marriage with Giselle of Bavaria
Giselle of Bavaria
Blessed Gisela of Hungary was the first queen of Hungary.- Biography :Gisela was a daughter of Henry II, Duke of Bavaria and Gisela of Burgundy....
. When Géza died, a member of the Árpád dynasty, the pagan Koppány
Koppány
Koppány was a Hungarian nobleman of the tenth century. Brother of the ruling prince of Hungary, Géza of the Árpád dynasty, Koppány ruled as Prince of Somogy in the region south of Lake Balaton...
claimed the succession, but Stephen defeated him with the assistance of his wife's German retinue.
Around 1015 (1002?) Duke Boleslaw I of Poland
Boleslaw I of Poland
Bolesław I Chrobry , in the past also known as Bolesław I the Great , was a Duke of Poland from 992-1025 and the first King of Poland from 19 April 1025 until his death...
occupied some territories of present-day Slovakia east of the River Morava, but King Stephen recovered these territories already in 1018 (1029?, 1031?).
Part of the Kingdom of Hungary
Nitra appanage duchy (tercia pars regni) was a territorial-administrative unit after the dissolution of the Great Moravian Empire and in the first century of the Kingdom of Hungary. King Stephen established several countiesComitatus (Kingdom of Hungary)
A county is the name of a type of administrative units in the Kingdom of Hungary and in Hungary from the 10th century until the present day....
on the territories, e.g. Bars
Bars county
Bars is the name of a historic administrative county of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is presently in central and southern Slovakia...
, Esztergom, Hont
Hont
Hont is the name of a historic administrative county of the Kingdom of Hungary and then shortly of Czechoslovakia...
, Komárom
Komárom county
Komárom county was a historic administrative county of the Kingdom of Hungary in present-day southern Slovakia and north-western Hungary on both sides of the...
and Nyitra counties were probably founded by him. The scarcely inhabited parts of the kingdom (e.g., the northern and north-eastern territories of present-day Slovakia) were originally the kings' private forests, then they were organized into "forest counties" (12-13th centuries). The Magyars did not treat the northern region of Kingdom of Hungary as a separate political entity where Slovaks lived during the centuries.
Following King Stephen's death (1038), the kingdom got involved into civil wars and pagan revolts which lead to the intervention of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
. Stephen's successor, King Peter was dethroned in 1041 and he fled to the court of Emperor Henry III
Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry III , called the Black or the Pious, was a member of the Salian Dynasty of Holy Roman Emperors...
who lead his armies against Peter's opponent, King Samuel Aba
Samuel Aba of Hungary
Samuel Aba , King of Hungary , Palatine of Hungary .-King of Hungary:Samuel was from Northern Hungary, Castle Gonce / Castle Abaújvár, County of Aba...
in the following year. The emperor occupied the western territories of present-day Slovakia till the Hron
Hron
Hron is a 298 km long left tributary of the Danube and the second longest river in Slovakia. It flows from its source located in the Low Tatra mountains through central and southern Slovakia, pouring into the Danube near Štúrovo and Esztergom...
River, and he granted the occupied territories to a member of the Árpád dynasty, Béla instead of King Peter because the Hungarians opposed the latter's rule. However, King Samuel Aba could reoccupy the territory after the withdrawal of the Emperor's troops.
In 1046 King Andrew I ascended the throne who conceded one-third of the counties
Tercia pars regni
The Tercia pars regni or Ducatus is the denomination for territories occasionally governed separately by members of the Árpád dynasty within the Kingdom of Hungary in the 11th-12th centuries...
of the kingdom ("Tercia pars regni") to his brother, Duke Béla who had possibly governed parts of the territory already in 1042. The counties entrusted to Duke Bela did not form a separate province within the kingdom, but they were organized around two or three centers: the eastern block of the counties were located around Bihar (Romanian: Biharea), while their north-western block was centered around Nitra; the third (possible) center of the territories was Krassó (near to the present-day Dupljaja
Dupljaja
Dupljaja is a village in Serbia. It is situated in the Bela Crkva municipality, in the South Banat District, Vojvodina province. The village has a Serb ethnic majority and its population numbering 854 people .-History and archaeology:...
in Serbia).
The Tercia pars regni were governed regularly by members of the Árpád dynasty (the Dukes Géza
Géza I of Hungary
Géza I was King of Hungary from 1074 until his death. During King Solomon's rule he governed, as Duke, one third of the Kingdom of Hungary. Afterwards, Géza rebelled against his cousin's reign and his followers proclaimed him king...
, Ladislaus, Lampert
Lampert of Hungary
Lampert was a member of the Árpád dynasty; Duke of one-third of the Kingdom of Hungary .Lampert was the third son of the future King Béla I of Hungary and his Polish wife...
, Álmos
Prince Álmos
Álmos was a Hungarian prince, the son of King Géza I of Hungary, brother of King Kálmán. He held several governmental posts in the Kingdom of Hungary....
till 1163, when the last duke of the territory, Stephen
Stephen IV of Hungary
Stephen IV , King of Hungary . In his youth, he rebelled against his brother, King Géza II of Hungary and had to flee to the Court of the Byzantine Emperor, Manuel I Komnenos...
ascended the throne. The dukes accepted the supremacy of the kings of Hungary, but some of them (Béla, Géza and Álmos) rebelled against the king in order to acquire the crown and allied themselves with the rulers of the neighboring countries (e.g., the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
, Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
).