Hungarian History

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They are characterized by discipline, respect for tradition, and dedication, while through their performances and presence, they bring the values of the chivalric world closer to the audience. 👏

We thank them for being part of this experience and for contributing to the special atmosphere of the event! 🏰

Today in Hungarian history:
2 June 1562 The death of Nádasdy Tamás...

Baron Nádasdy Tamás de Nádasd et Fogarasföld (I), called the Great Palatine (1498-1562), was a Hungarian nobleman, landowner, and statesman. Born into the house of Nádasdy, he was the son of Nádasdy I Ferenc de Nádasd (1492-1541) and his first wife, Therjék Orsolya de Szenterzsébet (d. 1529).

He was educated in Graz, Bologna, and Rome. In 1521, he accompanied Thomas Cajetan (whom the Pope had sent to Hungary to preach a crusade against the Turks) to Buda as his interpreter.

In 1525, he became a member of the Council of State and was sent by King Lajos II to the Diet of Speyer to ask for help in the impending Turkish war. During his absence, the Mohács disaster occurred, and Nádasdy returned to Hungary only in time to es**rt the queen-widow from Komárom to Pozsony.

He was sent to offer the Hungarian crown to Archduke Ferdinand, and at the coronation (November 3, 1527), he became the commander of the Buda Castle. In 1528, Nádasdy occupied Győr for Ferdinand with the help of Cseszneky György, the commander of Tata Castle.

After the conquest of Buda by Sultan Suleiman, Nádasdy went over to King Szapolyai János. In 1530, he successfully defended Buda against the imperial troops. In 1533, jealous of Lodovico Gritti’s dominating influence, he left Szapolyai for Ferdinand, to whom he remained faithful.

Despite changing cloaks, he remained a true warrior. Read more about his valiant life:
https://www.hungarianottomanwars.com/essays/baron-nadasdy-tamas-1498-1562/
🏰💕📣🇭🇺 Dear Readers: I can make the content available only through donations. 🇭🇺 You can buy me a cup of coffee at:
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Today in Hungarian 🇭🇺 History:
1 June 1485 King Matthias Corvinus takes Vienna...

Not too many armies were able to take Vienna before Bonaparte Napoleon but King Matthias Corvinus was one of them. We, Hungarians all learned in our National Anthem, that:

“Proud Vienna suffered sore

From King Mátyás’ dark array.”

The war first erupted in 1477 on the pretext that Frederick had given refuge to Beckensloer János, Archbishop of Esztergom, who had been ignored by the king and then allied against him and had fled the country with his treasury.

The Hungarian armies had already surrounded Vienna, but with the Pope’s intervention the two monarchs made peace again, and the Emperor agreed to pay the war debt – although only part of it was later reimbursed.

The weapons did not rest for long, Matthias declared war again in 1482, and the formidable Black Army took the smaller Austrian castles one after the other, only to lay siege to Vienna again on 29 January 1485.

Instead of an open assault, Matthias relied on starving Vienna, with a population of about 50,000.

With no news of a relief army and food running low, some of the citizens of Vienna tried to open the gates to the conquerors as early as April, but it was not until 1 June 1485, when the defenders’ commander, Hans von Wulfersdorfer, realized that further resistance was futile.

Not too many armies were able to take Vienna before Bonaparte Napoleon but King Matthias Corvinus was one of them. We, Hungarians, all learned in our National Anthem, that:ege to Vienna again on 29 January 1485.

Please, share my post with your friends to make history known:
https://www.hungarianottomanwars.com/1372-1490/1-june-1485-king-matthias-corvinus-takes-vienna/
Disclaimer:
Let us take a look at the events, based on the research of Bánlaky József. Please note that I always use the Oriental name order for Hungarians, where family names come first.
🏰💕📣🇭🇺 Dear Readers: I can make the content available only through donations.
🇭🇺 You can buy me a cup of coffee at: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/duhoxoxa ☕ 🇭🇺
Thank you!🔥Köszönöm!

It happened today in Hungarian history:
1 June 1552 The fall of Veszprém castle

Before taking the castles of Nógrád County one by one, Pasha Ali nicknamed Hádim or the Castrated had made a detour during the end of the spring of 1552 towards Veszprém castle.

He had to take care of the western threat before launching his large campaign: he did not want surprise coming from behind. The Hajdú soldiers of Veszprém castle made the Pasha Ali of Buda angry in April.

These Hajdú soldiers had assaulted the new Sanjak Bey of Székesfehérvár, Bey Hamza. Attacking a newly appointed Pasha was always great fun and good income on the Borderland because the soldiers were very badly paid by the Habsburgs.

During their raid, the Hajdús were burning and looting the "Turkish” lands where the inhabitants were basically Hungarians. No wonder they had such a villainous reputation in the 16th century.

Ali began the siege of Veszprém on 20 May and the defenders surrendered it on 1 June. When the garrison was leaving under the promised safe conduct, they were either slaughtered or captured.
(...)
Pasha Hádim Ali broke his oath and it made the members of the Valiant Order upset all along the Borderland. Perhaps it was the reason why Captain Szondy, the hero of Drégely Castle, decided not to surrender the small Drégely but chose to die and fight until the last man just like Losonczy in Szolnok during the same year.

Read the full story on my page, based on Szibler Gábor's research:
https://www.hungarianottomanwars.com/1541-1699/1-june-1552-the-fall-of-veszprem-castle/
Disclaimer:
Social media is full of the deeds of Scottish, Irish, and Native American people which is a good example for us, Hungarians to follow. All your shares are appreciated.
Also, I can make this content available only through donations, so please invite me for a cup of coffee here:
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/duhoxoxa ☕️🇭🇺
Thank you, köszönöm szépen!

It happened 107 years ago, on May 31, 1919, in Hungarian history:

Stromfeld Aurél's Hungarian troops recaptured Rimaszombat (Rimavská Sobota) and Edelény, beating the Czechoslovak legion.

At that time, Stromfeld did not yet suspect that the Reds would betray the successful northern campaign and that he would have to retreat from the Polish border without firing a single shot.

The picture shows Tompa Square in Rimaszombat. At that time, the town was 90% Hungarian, with 7,000 inhabitants, while today, out of its roughly 24,000 residents, only one-third are Hungarian.
(Source: Napról napra Trianon )

It happened today in Hungarian history:
On 1 June 1531, Zsámboki János, the famous Hungarian Renaissance Latinist, was born.

Zsámboki has done a lot for spreading Hungarian culture in Europe, and his work contributed to turning Vienna into an important spiritual center of the continent. He drew not just maps but also purchased the chronicles of Bonfini and Kézai for us.

I summarized his life, check it out on my page. Let us also take a glimpse into his Emblemata from 1567, and see the emblem of how sleeping elephants lean on the trunk of a tree.

The title of this emblem is “Nusquam tuta fides”, meaning that “No trust is ever sure”. The Latin poem explains it:
“DUM rigidos artus elephas, dum membra quiete
Sublevat, assuetis nititur arboribus:
Quas ubi venator didicit, succidit ab imo,
Paulatim ut recubans belua mole ruat.
Tam leviter capitur duri qui in proelia Martis
Arma, viros, turrim, tergore vectat opes.
Nusquam tuta fides, nimium ne crede quieti,
Saepius & tutis decipiere locis.
Hippomenes pomis Schoeneïda vicit amatam,
Sic Peliam natis Colchis acerba necat.
Sic nos decipiunt dedimus quibus omnia nostra:
Saltem conantur deficiente fide.”

It means in the English language the following:
“While the elephant rests his stiff joints and limbs, he leans against trees tried and true. When the hunter has learned which these are, he cuts them at the base, so that the beast leaning on it bit by bit should take it down with his weight.

So easy is it to capture those who in the battles of Mars carry on their backs arms, men, and towers. No trust is ever sure, and do not put too much faith in quiet, for you will more often be deceived in secure places. Hippomenes defeated his love, the daughter of Schoeneus, with apples, and so the harsh daughter of Colchis killed Pelias by means of his daughters.
So those deceive us to whom we give our all, but they only try as trust diminishes.”

In short: trust no one, because no place is safe.
Here is more about him:
https://www.hungarianottomanwars.com/essays/zsamboki-janos-johannes-sambucus-pannonius-1531-1584/
All shares and cups of coffee are appreciated:
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Today in Hungarian history:
Catherine of Brandenburg (BRANDENBURGI KATALIN), the second wife of Prince Bethlen Gábor, THE ONLY WOMAN WHO WAS THE RULER OF TRANSYLVANIA, WAS BORN ON 28 MAY 1604.

Catherine was the fourth child of John Sigismund, Elector of Brandenburg, and Princess Anne of Prussia. By marrying her, Bethlen Gábor joined a prestigious circle, as one of Catherine’s sisters became the wife of King Gustavus Adolphus II of Sweden and the other of King Christian IV of Denmark.

I've updated my article about her life and reign. You can read it in my Substack newsletter:
https://open.substack.com/pub/gaborszantai/p/catherine-of-brandenburg-wife-of?r=3v2wim&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=true

I've improved my previous article on the deeds of Hungarian soldiers abroad during the 18th and 19th centuries with the following details:

Ott Károly Péter was one of the most distinguished Hungarian generals of the French wars, who combined the greatest Hungarian military virtues of heroism, cunning, perseverance, excellent education, and the most importantly, patriotism.

He died in Buda on 10 May 1809. You can read more about his deeds on my page:
https://www.hungarianottomanwars.com/hungarian-military-deeds-abroad-in-the-18th-century/
(Source: HM Hadtörténeti Intézet és Múzeum )

Picture: Lukátsy and Baróthi hussars save the life of Colonel Ott, who fell from his horse at the Battle of Bellheim, 17 May 1792.

Castles, forts, palisades in the "Hungaries" (The Kingdom of Hungary, Ottoman Occupied Lands, Principality of Transylvania)

I am re-launching a Series from 2021 to show you some of my humble collection of castles of the "Hungaries" that I have translated into English and posted on my self-hosted page to salvage them.
In 2021, I had 220 of them, but now, I have 423 of them, and I am planning to increase their number until I can. This time, I supplemented these castles with a link pointing to their location on Google Maps.

Behold not just the shiny castles that had an important role on the 1,000-mile-long Croatian-Hungarian-Transylvanian Borderland. We have to pay due honor to the smallest palisade and earthen castle because people died there, too.

Regarding the Borderland, I am not talking only about the first line of defense: several layers had their role, even deep and far in the hinterland. Their stories have to be told in the English language.

Here are the castles discussed in this post. Note that I follow the alphabetical order, and the term "Felvidék" is a geographic or historical term. (When you open the link, you may have to type the castle's name into the search field):

1. Alsómattyasóc (Nižné Matiašovce) is a village in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, near to the previous Hungarian-Polish border, in Slovakia. It is famous for its fortified church.
https://tinyurl.com/y9zeyamu
2. The castle of Ajnácskő (Hajnácka, Pirsenstein) is located on the Felvidék aka Upper Hungary/Horná Zem/, it is in Slovakia. It is in Gömör County, right at the present Hungarian-Slovakian border, not far from Rimaszombat and Fülek. Its name comes from the Hungarian name Ajnács (the name allegedly has a Turkish origin, ‘ojnas’, and it stands for “flirtatious” in English, but it is not proven yet). Legend says that the Hungarian home-taker chief called Huba gave the castle to his daughter, Hajnácska, in the 9th century. Its castle was built after the Mongolian invasion by Bata and was first mentioned in 1247.
https://tinyurl.com/yw328kdv
3. Alsómicsinye (Dolná Mičiná) is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia. It was first mentioned in 1402. It was owned by the Micsinyei and the Beniczky families.
https://tinyurl.com/k69yn8ms
4. Árva castle (Oravsky Hrad, Arwaburg) is situated in the Carpathian mountains, it is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia. The castle was built in the Kingdom of Hungary in the thirteenth century, after the Mongol invasion of Hungary in 1241.
According to Mikszáth Kálmán, it could have been built by the Templars. Its first owners, the Balassa family, were mentioned first in 1267 when King Béla IV bought it from them, and it had been in the king’s hand for a while.
https://tinyurl.com/53u6e3rh
6. Bajmóc (Bojnice, Bojnický Zámok) is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia. Bajmóc was first mentioned in 1113 AD. King Louis the Great made Bajmóc a town in 1366. Later, in the 15th century, it was owned by King Matthias Corvinus, who gave it to his illegitimate son John Corvinus in 1489. Matthias liked to visit Bajmóc, and it was here that he worked on his royal decrees.
https://tinyurl.com/mr3rk82w
7. Bakabánya (Slovakian: Pukanec, German: Bugganz / Puk(k)an(t)z, Turkish: Bukabak) is located on the Felvidék aka Upper Hungary/Horná Zem, in Slovakia.
It was in Hont County. It used to be one of the rich cities of the Mining Town district of the Hungarian Kingdom. More exactly, it was on the most southern part of the Mining Town district, so it was often the target of the Ottoman raids in the 16th-17th centuries.
https://tinyurl.com/3ed3mk35
8. Balogvár is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia.
Next to the Balog valley, we can find the valley of Vály with the village of Felsővály. (That happens to be one of the origins of my family.)
Balogvár was built by the German Henrik, son of Oth, around 1290. Its village, Vámosbalog, used to have the right to collect taxes. As for its inhabitants’ origin, they may have been Germans or Pechenegs (besenyő); the villagers of Vály considered them “foreigners,” and there weren’t many mixed marriages between them in the 19th century.
As for the Turkish age, the Ottoman army took the castles of Fülek and Salgó in 1554, and they built the palisade castle called Szabadka near Rimaszombat. We don’t know whether they had taken Balog castle or no,t but it is not thought too likely.
https://tinyurl.com/au6yzzjm
9. The armies of King Matthias Corvinus and King Casimir clashed under the walls of Barkó Castle 554 years ago in 1466. King Matthias spent a winter in Barkó (Brekov) castle, which can be found in the Upper Lands / Felvidék / Horná Zem, in Slovakia.
https://tinyurl.com/4ezn6tdy
10. The old city of Bártfa (Bardejov, Bartfeld) is located in the Upper Lands / Horná Zem / Felvidék, in Slovakia. It is situated at the Polish border.
The city was surrounded by a wall, and its main square is one of the nicest Saxon town centers among the Carpathian Mountains. Its name derives from the Hungarian “bárd” or pole-ax, as can be seen in the town’s coat of arms.

The Germans settled there after the destruction of the Mongols in 1242. Bártfa had an important role in trade, and its connections with the Polish Biecz were very strong. Hunyadi János defeated the army of the Hussites led by Talafusz at the city in 1435.
https://tinyurl.com/bdz37ky7
11. Beckó (Beckov, Beckow) castle is a gem of Hungarian medieval history and a precious stone of Slovakia in our days as it is located in the historical Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék. Both nations can be equally proud of it. The castle is on the left bank of the River Vág. It is also called Bolondóc or Stribor castle, and it was there in the 12th century already. There are several legends of this castle about the cruel Lord Stibor and his death.
https://tinyurl.com/sj6n8sw8
12. Besztercebánya, Neusohl, or Banská Bystrica, the famous mining town of the Hungarian Kingdom, is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia.
Why were the cities of the Mining Town District so famous? No wonder there were the richest gold, copper, and silver mines in the Kingdom of Hungary.
https://tinyurl.com/mkcy7e3n
13. Betlenfalva (Betlanovce or Betlensdorf) is famous for the late Renaissance palace of the Hungarian Thurzó family. The village is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, it is located in Slovakia, not too far from Kassa (Kosice, Kaschau).
The place was first mentioned in 1260 as “Betlema”, and the Göbel family owned it in 1311. The settlement’s lord became the powerful Thurzó György in 1430.
https://tinyurl.com/mr25euuc
14. Berencsváralja, aka Berencs (Branč) castle, was built by the powerful Hungarian Aba family in the 13th century. It is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia, and 13 villages belonged to it. As it was located at a safe distance from the Borderland, there was no immediate Ottoman peril, and no important sieges took place. It was rather the center of the area’s liege-lord who controlled his lands from the castle.
https://tinyurl.com/4p66ecf7
15. Boldogkő aka Boldogkőváralja’s castle is in north Hungary, and it was built by Comes Tyba, son of Jaak from the Tomaj Clan, after 1255. It was defending the road towards Kassa (Kosice, Kaschau) and the Valley of the Hernád River.
It was first mentioned in King András III’s document in 1295. The legend of the castle dates back to the Tatar invasion, where King Béla IV was allegedly hiding in it in 1241.
https://tinyurl.com/3hxfyy6a
16. Borsi (Borša) is famous for its Rákóczi castle where the Hungarian Prince Rákóczi Ferenc II was born on 27 March 1676.
Borsi is in the district of Kassa (Kosice, Kaschau), and it is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia.

It is just 3 km from Sátoraljaújhely. The word “bors” is an ancient Turkish word, and it means “strong”. Borsi was first mentioned in 1221 as Borsy. The settlement used to belong to the castle of Sárospatak.
https://tinyurl.com/2s3v2r5c
17. Borostyánkő is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia, in the Small Carpathian Mountains. The castle is also called Ballenstein and Paistun or Borinka – it is not the same castle as the other Borostyánkő (Bernstein) in Austria.

It appeared first in writing in 1273, and it was the part of the Borderland that was guarding Hungary’s western gates.
https://tinyurl.com/54buky9m
18. The castle of Borostyánkő is now in Austria, and it is called Bernstein. However, its first name was Medvekő aka Barenstein (Bear-stone). It is also known as the castle of the Almásy family. When the wide Border zone called the “gyepü” system was going out of fashion, stone and palisade castles were built to guard Hungary’s western border.
This castle was also built in the first part of the 13th century as an important part of the western Borderland’s castle system that was guarding the Hungarian Kingdom.
https://tinyurl.com/bdf7rzsj
19. Bozók (Bzovík) is located in the region called Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, it is in Slovakia. Bozók is located 30 km south of the town of Zólyom (Zvolen), near Korpona. It played a role in the Hungarian-Ottoman wars as it was part of the Hungarian Borderland.
It was Comes Lampert of the Hunt-Poznan Clan, the brother-in-law of the Hungarian King László, who established a Cistercian abbey in Bozók between 1124-31, in honor of Saint King István.
https://tinyurl.com/2afyv4a2
20. The castle of Budatin is located in the Upper lands/Horná Zem/Felvidék, in Slovakia, one km from Zsolna, next to the River Vág (Vah). It was built in the 13th century by the Hungarian Balassa family. Originally, it was on an island. Later, it went to the Szúnyogh family in 1487. Around the mid-16th century, the castle was rebuilt in the Renaissance style.
https://tinyurl.com/yas2hh3f
You can follow and/or support my work on Patreon:
https://www.patreon.com/hungarianottomanwars
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"Misterele Istoriei" – 465k followers, AI-generated Ceaușescu propaganda, and a silence that needs to end

What is this page?

"Misterele Istoriei" ("The Mysteries of History") is a Romanian Facebook and YouTube page with over 465,000 followers. It uses sophisticated AI-generated images to promote three core narratives:

1. Glorification of Romanian origins and heroes
2. Systematic historical condemnation of Hungarians and Székelys — framed as eternal enemies
3. Positive portrayals of Nicolae Ceaușescu — a dictator whose national-socialist regime starved its own people

Who is Ceaușescu? (What the page won't tell you)

Nicolae Ceaușescu was not a hero. His national-socialist dictatorship included:

- Decree 770 (1966) – banning abortion and contraception, leading to an estimated 500,000+ deaths from illegal abortions and tens of thousands of abandoned orphans
- The Securitate – a secret police network of over 600,000 informers, with political prisons (Pitești, Gherla, Râmnicu Sărat) and systematic torture. However, the Pitești phenomenon predates Ceaușescu. Sadly, Ceaușescu's Securitate continued systematic political imprisonment and torture through the 1970s–80s.
- "Systematization" – a plan to destroy 7,000–8,000 villages; primarily Hungarian and German settlements in Transylvania
- Engineered famine – Romanians survived on starvation rations while Ceaușescu exported food to pay foreign debt

What is AUR?

AUR (Alliance for the Unity of Romanians) is a Romanian nationalist political party founded in 2019. Presently, its popularity is increasing.
It has been described by political analysts as:
- Far-right and nationalist in ideology
- Anti-Hungarian in rhetoric, particularly regarding Transylvania and Székely Land
- Revisionist on World War II history (some AUR figures have questioned atrocities committed under Marshal Ion Antonescu, a convicted war criminal and Hitler's ally)
- Openly nostalgic for certain aspects of the Ceaușescu era

Investigations have documented a coordinated disinformation network supporting AUR, including:
- TikTok dismantling 27,217 inauthentic accounts promoting AUR and their ally Călin Georgescu using foreign IP addresses
- A network of 22 fake news sites amplifying AUR propaganda
- DGI Multimedia Design – a company controlled by AUR vice-president Marius Lulea – managing dozens of pro-AUR "independent publications".

"Misterele Istoriei" fits this pattern perfectly. The page even provides easy access to English translations of its content — meaning the propaganda is designed for export.

The political silence that matters

In 2023, the previous Hungarian Prime Minister publicly praised AUR leader George Simion at a meeting in Tihany, calling him "a decent, patriotic man."

During that same period, AUR's propaganda network — including "Misterele Istoriei" — was actively glorifying a national-socialist dictator and condemning Székely Hungarians / Székelys and other Hungarians in Transylvania.

The previous Hungarian government, which had spent billions on its own social media propaganda infrastructure, never publicly opposed or contradicted this anti-Hungarian, Ceaușescu-rehabilitating narrative.

What international norms say

The UN's 2024 Global Principles for Information Integrity state that governments, tech platforms, advertisers — and civil society, including private initiatives like mine — share responsibility for countering disinformation and hate speech.

When governments stay silent for political convenience, private citizens and independent pages are not just allowed to speak up. According to international norms, they are expected to.

It is now 2026, and Hungary has a new government.

The question is about whether Hungary will finally speak up for Székelys and Hungarians in Transylvania — not with empty rhetoric, but with consistent action against historical disinformation and hate speech. Especially in English language social media.
I am all ears.

Closing

The AI-generated images below show Ceaușescu as a hero. The reality was a national-socialist dictatorship.

Our old government stayed silent. What about the new one?
International norms say private initiatives must fill the gap when governments fail.

I am not silent.
Are you?