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The Budai Nagy Antal revolt, or Bobâlna revolt (Hungarian Erdélyi paraszt felkelés, that is Transylvanian peasant revolt, Template:Lang-ro meaning Bobâlna Revolt), of 1437 in Transylvania, was the only significant popular revolt in the Kingdom of Hungary prior to the great peasant war of 1514. The event is named after the leader of the revolt, Antal Nagy de Buda, or is simply called the "Transylvanian Peasant revolt".

Background

Transylvania ("the Land beyond the Forests") was a geographic region in the 15th-century Kingdom of Hungary. Four major ethnic groups inhabited the territory: the Hungarians, Saxons, Székelys and Vlachs (or Romanians). The Hungarians, the Hungarian-speaking Székelys and the Saxons formed sedentary communities, living in villages and towns. Most Vlachs were shepherds, herding their flocks between the mountains and the lowlands. For administrative purposes, Transylvania was divided into counties and seats. The seven Transylvanian counties were subjected to the authority of a high-ranking royal official, the voivode of Transylvania. The seats were the administrative units of the autonomous Saxon and Székely communities.

The voivodes presided the general assemblies of the Transylvanian noblemen which were annually held at a meadow near Torda (now Turda in Romania). From the early 15th century, the voivodes preferred to stay at the royal court instead of visiting Transylvania where their deputies, the vice-voivodes, represented them, but the vice-voivodes could not assert the full authority of the voivodes. The Transylvanian noblemen were exempted of taxation in 1324. They were also granted the right to administer justice to the peasants living in their estates in 1342.

The Székelys were a community of border guards who had specific privileges. They were to fight in the royal army, for which they were exempted of taxation. A royal official, the Count of the Székelys, was their supreme leader, but the Székely seats were administered by elected officials. The Saxons also had the right to elect the magistrates of their seats. They enjoyed personal freedom and paid a lump sum tax to the monarchs. Dozens of Székely and Saxon families held landed property in the counties, for which they also enjoyed the status of noblemen. Székely and Saxon notabilities were occasionally invited to attend the general assemblies of the noblemen, which enabled the leaders of the three nations to coordinate their actions.

The Hungarians, Saxons and Székelys adhered to Roman Catholicism. The Diocese of Transylvania included most of the province, but the Saxons of Southern Transylvania were subjected to the Archbishops of Esztergom. Catholic commoners were to pay an ecclesiastic tax, the tithe, to the bishops. John XXIII exempted the lesser noblemen from paying the tithe in 1415, but the bishop of Transylvania ignored his decesion, especially after John had been declared an Antipope. The Orthodox Vlachs did not originally pay the tithe. However, Sigismund of Luxemburg, King of Hungary, ordered the Vlachs who had settled on lands abandoned by Catholic peasants to pay the tithe to the bishop.

The Ottomans broke into Transylvania in almost each year from 1420. The costs of the defence increased and the noblemen began to collect the ninth from the peasants living on their estates. Although the tax had already been introduced in 1351, it had not been regularly collected. The noblemen also made attempts to hinder the free movement of their serfs. Sigismund of Luxemburg also ordered that every tenths peasant were to take up arms in case of an Ottoman attack, although peasants had always been exempt of military obligations.

Events leading to the revolt

In order to tackle financial burdens resulting from the Hussite wars and military campaigns against the Ottoman Empire, King Sigismund put lower value silver coins into circulation in Hungary. György Lépes, the Bishop of Transylvania, decided in 1434 not to collect taxes until this money was used; however, he demanded the arrears of the tithes in one sum three years later, in 1437, when valuable golden coins were issued again by the royal treasury. The peasants, having received revenues in silver coins earlier, were not able to pay taxes in the new valuable currency. When the peasants refused to pay, the bishop excommunicated them. The peasants were also aggrieved over the unwillingness of their lords to respect their right of free movement. Furthermore, the bishop required payments from petty noblemen and even from Vlach (Romanian) peasants who did not belong to the Roman Catholic Church.

The rebellion breaks out

The rebellion broke out in northern Transylvania, but soon spread to the counties of Szatmár (Satu Mare) and Szabolcs. In June 1437, an army of Hungarian and Vlach (Romanian) peasants built a camp on a hill at Bábolna (Romanian: Bobâlna). They were joined by petty noblemen and priests. They proclaimed and demanded the recognition of an Estate of their own, called universitas Hungarorum et Valachorum - Estate of Hungarians and Romanians and were led by a poor nobleman called Antal Nagy de Buda and five other captains (three Hungarian peasants, a Romanian peasant, and a burgher from Kolozsvár (Cluj-Napoca). The rebels sent envoys to Transylvanian voivode László Csák. The voivode promptly executed the envoys, but after the rebel troops scored a victory over his forces, he feigned willingness to negotiate. On 6 July at Kolozsmonostor (Cluj-Mănăştur) a contract was signed between the parties that met many of the rebels' demands. Both parties also sent envoys to King Sigismund of Hungary asking for arbitration.

However, on 16 September the Transylvanian nobility, the Saxon burghers, and the Székely free guards formed an alliance of mutual aid, which was termed the Union of Kápolna (Căpâlna). The alliance was designed to protect Transylvania from Tatar and Ottoman incursions, and to support feudal landlords in the noble counties (Comitates) in their fight against the peasants.

A new treaty with the rebels was signed on 6 October at Apáti (Apateu), which repealed some aspects of the previous agreement. The new agreement exempted petty nobles from paying taxes and thus left the peasants alone with their requests. When Sigismund died in December, the allies attacked and defeated the rebels in a pitched battle. Antal Nagy de Buda died on the battlefield. They also besieged Kolozsvár, where the surviving rebels found refuge, and took the town in January 1438.

The leaders of the revolt were executed at Torda (Turda), while Kolozsvár was deprived of its urban privileges and its inhabitants declared peasants. On 2 February 1438 the alliance set out by the Union of Kápolna was renewed; it later became the Union of Three Nations.

In literature

Hungarian author Géza Hegedüs wrote an historic novel about this event titled Erdőntúli veszedelem (Danger Beyond the Forest).

See also

• Unio Trium Nationum

Notes

1. Romanian history writing prefers using "Bobâlna Revolt", by the place where the peasant rebels first gathered (Bábolna/Bobâlna).

References

1. Chronicle of Johannes de Thurocz
2. ^ Held 1977, p. 28.
3. ^ Pop 2005, p. 233.
4. Held 1977, p. 200.
5. ^ Pop 2005, p. 227.
6. ^ Pop 2005, p. 232.
7. ^ Makkai 1994, p. 223.
8. ^ Makkai 1994, p. 207.
9. Pop 2005, p. 258.
10. Engel 2001, p. 116.
11. Held 1977, pp. 28–29.
12. Engel 2001, p. 115.
13. ^ Engel 2001, p. 114.
14. Pop 2005, pp. 232–233.
15. Makkai 1994, pp. 209–210.
16. Makkai 1994, p. 212.
17. Makkai 1994, pp. 210, 212.
18. ^ Makkai 1994, p. 224.
19. Pop 2005, p. 259.
20. Held 1977, p. 29.
21. Makkai 1994, p. 225.
22. Makkai 1994, pp. 225–226.

Sources

• Demény, Lajos (1987). Parasztfelkelés Erdélyben (in Hungarian). Gondolat. ISBN 963-281-856-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Engel, Pál (2001). The Realm of St Stephen: A History of Medieval Hungary, 895–1526. I.B. Tauris Publishers. ISBN 1-86064-061-3. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Held, Joseph (1977). "The Peasant Revolt of Babolna, 1437-1438". Slavic Review. 36 (1): 25–38. {{cite journal}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Makkai, László (1994). "The Emergence of the Estates (1172–1526)". In Köpeczi, Béla; Barta, Gábor; Bóna, István; Makkai, László; Szász, Zoltán; Borus, Judit (eds.). History of Transylvania. Akadémiai Kiadó. pp. 178–243. ISBN 963-05-6703-2. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Pop, Ioan-Aurel (2005). "The Romanians in the 14th–16th centuries from the "Christian Republic" to the "Restoration of Dacia"". In Pop, Ioan-Aurel; Bolovan, Ioan (eds.). History of Romania: Compendium. Romanian Cultural Institute (Center for Transylvanian Studies). pp. 209–314. ISBN 978-973-7784-12-4. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

External links

• Wealth of the winners

• 1437 riots
• Riots and civil disorder in Hungary
• Popular revolt in late-medieval Europe
• Peasant revolts
• Wars involving Hungary
• Medieval Transylvania
• Battles involving Transylvania