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Ethnicity in Transylvania. from Medieval Peoples to Modern Nations

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Ethnicity in Transylvania. from Medieval Peoples to Modern Nations HAO, Núm. 34 (Primavera, 2014), 105-113 ISSN 1696-2060 ETHNICITY IN TRASYLVANIA. FROM MEDIEVAL PEOPLES TO MODERN NATIONS Radu Lupescu Sapientia Hungarian University of Transylvania, Cluj-Napoca, Romania. E-mail: [email protected] Recibido: 23 Mayo 2013 / Revisado: 19 Noviembre 2013 / Aceptado: 22 Enero 2014 /Publicación Online: 15 Junio 2014 Resumen: Transilvania es una región de particularities, lived together since from the Europa, en dónde en el transcurso de los siglos Middle Ages. This strategic region was convivieron y conviven muchas naciones. Entre incorporated into the Hungarian Kingdom by ellas jugaron el rol determinante los húngaros, King Saint Stephen (1000-1038) right at the los rumanos, los sajones y los székelys beginning of his reign, by defeating his uncle, (seklers), quiénes ya estaban presentes en el Gyula, a territorial leader from another doce siglo en Transilvania. La fecha de su Hungarian kindred. It became a princley inmigración, sus tareas y el territorio dónde territory of the Arpadian Dinasty, and from the habitaron fueron distintas y esta situación se twelveth century it was governed by one of the refleja de sus derechos y fueros propios. Pero a main office holders of the kingdom, the voivode. diferencia de las épocas anteriores los reyes húngaros de orígen de casa de Anjou In order to defend its south-eastern borders, the excluyeron los rumanos ortodoxos de la Hungarian Kings settled here the Székelys, a Gobernación de Transilvania, así no podía community whose origin is still debated. Earlier desarrollarse la nobleza propia de ellos. A partir they performed military duties along the western de 1437 la nobleza y la aristocracia de otras tres border of Hungary, but after this region was naciones fueron aliados y cuando en el siglo consolidated, the Székelys were transferred to XVI se descompusó el Reino Húngaro, ellas east. In the twelve century they already were asumieron la Gobernación de Transilvania. Al living in south Transylvania. The presence of mismo tiempo Transilvania se convirtió en the Saxons is better documented. King Géza II patria acogedora a las nuevas confesiones y (1141-1162) started to settle the first religiones protestantes. Este modo se formó communities from Wallonia and Flanders in the aquel sistema que podemos denominar de tres mid twelfth century. Later they were mostly naciones privilegiadas y de cuatro religiones German speaking settlers, and were called admitidas. Esta representación de tipo medieval Saxons. The purpose of this colonization was to estaba en vigor hasta el siglo XIX. cuando las strengthen the defense of the south-eastern naciones modernas la sucidieron. Los rumanos border of the kingdom against the Cumans, and aprovecharon la oportunidad ofrecida y han to resolve the demographic issue of the conseguido cerrar filas entre las naciones underpopulated Transylvania. Meanwhile, the transilvanas. Székelys were transferred to the south-eastern corner of Transylvania where they constituted a Palabras clave: Hungarians, Romanians, community of free men having only military Saxons, Székelys, Transylvania, Nation. duties. In 1222 the majority of the Saxons were integrated in the Sibiu/Szeben County and King ______________________ Andrew II (1205-1235) granted them several privileges included in the so called Diploma ransylvania is one of those special Andreanum. These privileges offered them a historical regions of Europe where great possibility to develop important T different peoples, each with strong settlements which later evolved into royal © Historia Actual Online 2014 105 Ethnicity in Transylvania... Radu Lupescu towns. The Saxon te-rritories were reorganized modern historiography. During the fifteenth several times in the following centuries. The century the union was renewed several times most important one was performed by King and gradually became fundamental for the Matthias Corvinus (1458-1490) who extended government of Transylvania, especially when the privileges of the Andreanum over the whole after the Battle of Mohács when Hungary was Saxon community (universorum Saxonum partitioned. From this perspective the change of nostrorum partium regni nostri attitude towards Romanians in the fourteenth Transsilvanorum), and thus created the so called century proved to be fatal and had a long term Saxon University which was preserved until the consequence. nineteenth century. From the third decade of the sixteenth century The emergence and the spread of the Romanian the Ottoman conquest of Hungary seemed to be population in Transylvania is still debated, but is inevitable. They conquered step by step the certain that in the twelfth century they were border fortifications of the kingdom and annihi- already living in Transylvania. They not formed lated the Hungarian army at the battle of a single compact community such as the Saxons Mohács (1526). During this difficult period the and the Székelys, but some smaller ones spread nobility was unable to line up behind a single over the counties of Transylvania. Although the ruler, but instead the Hungarian Diet elected two Romanians were of Orthodox faith it seems that kings: Ferdinand of Habsburg and John during the Arpadian Age they enjoyed the same Szapolyai. The first governed over the western status as the Hungarians, Saxons and Székelys. territories of Hungary, the second over the All of these medieval nations were represented eastern parts, especially in Transylvania. The on the regional assemblies of Transylvania civil war was exploited at maximum by the which started to function from the second half of Ottomans who in 1541 occupied the central part the thirteenth century. After changing the ruling of the kingdom. Thus Hungary split into three dynasty, the Angevin kings started to built up a parts, a division which lasted about two medieval society based on the catholic faith. The centuries. The eastern territories, including the orthodox communities, tolerated or even Voivodate of Transylvania and the neighboring accepted before, were gradually excluded from counties (Partes Regni Hungariae, or Partium), the local governments, and were not able to constituted the Principality of Transylvania develop their own nobility. In the case of the officially recognized in 1570 by the Treaty of Romanian population the royal attitude towards Speyer. them was probably influenced by the newly obtained independence of the two Romanian The Principality basically was built on the principalities: Wallachia and Moldavia. tradition of the medieval Kingdom of Hungary, Especially in the case of Moldavia the but it had some new particular features as well. intervention of some Romanian influential First of all the Reformation started to take root families from Hungary in obtaining its in most of these regions, and in the following independence was quite obvious, and few years period Transylvania was considered one of the later, when in 1366 King Louis the Great (1348- most important Protestant territories. The 1380) visited Transylvania, he took important Lutheran, Calvinist and Unitarian beliefs were decisions that had a strong effect on the accepted slowly, the last one by the Diet of Romanian population. The noble status was 1557, and together with the Catholics they conditioned by the catholic faith and royal became the officially accepted religions of granting charter was necessary for these landed Transylvania. Now the religious diversity of properties. From that time the presence of Transylvania doubled the complicate social Romanians in the general assembly of stratification of it inherited from the Middle Transylvania is no more documented. This is the Ages. That was the system of the three reason why they were left out from the alliance privileged nations, i. e. the Hungarians, Saxons called fraterna unio signed by the leaders of the and Székelys, preserved in the period of the Hungarian, Saxon and Székely communities. principality. The majority of the Székelys This was concluded in 1437 when a large revolt remained Catholic, but the rest of the nations of the Transylvanian peasants spread through have converted to Protestantism: the Saxons to the whole region. The union was created to Lutheranism, the Hungarians to Unitarianism overcome the revolt and to defend Transylvania and Calvinism. From the sixteenth century this against an enemy attack, and not against the system was called the union of the three nations Romanian population as was supposed by the (unio trium nationum) and the four accepted 106 © Historia Actual Online 2014 HAO, Núm. 34 (Primavera, 2014), 119-132 ISSN 1696-2060 religions (recepta religio). The union was Transylvania (congregatio generalis) but it was renewed several times during the existence of different in many other respects. The deputies the Transylvanian Principality, especially in were still members of the three privileged some moments of crisis, with the purpose of nations, but they actually got the invitation to defending their country and the privileges of the the Diet due to their offices or their social three nations (1630, 1649, 1661). statues. All of them were denominated by the Prince of Transylvania and thus represented the However, if we have a closer look how the interests of their lord. There are only few cases status of these nations has evolved during the when the Diet was able to act as defender of the principality, one can remark significant interest of the Transylvanian statuses, usually differences. The Hungarian nobility continued to during wartime or when a new prince was be the most influential member of the union. On elected. As soon as the new lord reestablished the other side the Székely society underwent the authority of its strength based leadership he important changes. In the Middle Ages they subjected the Diet again. This large authority of were exempt from taxation but had to fulfill the prince was possible because Transylvania increased military duties. The exemption was had no powerful aristocracy to keep it under not a problem if we consider the whole control. There was only one family member of Hungarian Kingdom but the Transylvanian the Hungarian social elite, the Bánffy of Principality was much smaller and the Losoncis.
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