Austrian–Hungarian War (1477–1488)
Austrian–Hungarian War (1477–1488) | |||||||
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Matthias marching into Vienna | |||||||
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Belligerents | |||||||
Holy Roman Empire | Kingdom of Hungary | ||||||
Commanders and leaders | |||||||
Frederick III | Matthias Corvinus | ||||||
Units involved | |||||||
Imperial Army |
Austrian-Hungarian War (1477–1488) | ||||||
The Austrian–Hungarian War was a military conflict between the
as Frederick III). The war lasted from 1477 to 1488 and resulted in significant gains for Matthias, which humiliated Frederick, but which were reversed upon Matthias' sudden death in 1490.Conflict
Matthias and Frederick III/V had been rivals stretching back to Matthias' succession as
With the consent of
Emperor Frederick, at the same time stuck in the
Battles
Having concluded a peace agreement with King Vladislaus in 1478, Matthias could concentrate on his Austrian campaign against Frederick. Some of the most notable battles of the Austrian-Hungarian War include:
- Siege of Hainburg
- Battle of Leitzersdorf
- Siege of Vienna (1485)
- Siege of Retz
- Siege of Wiener Neustadt
Emperor Frederick failed to procure help from the
The Habsburgs - although a powerful force concerning marriage politics - were relatively weak when it came to martial affairs. They had few resources that could contend with the Black Army of Hungary, an early standing mercenary force under capable commanders like Stephen V Báthory or Lawrence of Ilok, which conquered most of the Lower Austrian territories.
After the imperial war against Hungary had been decided at the Nuremberg Diet in 1487, Albert III of Saxony was appointed as the supreme commander of the entire imperial army. He was supposed to oppose Matthias' Black army. After the Hungarian occupation of Vienna, Albrecht's task was to reconquer the lost Austrian territories. However, this failed due to the poor equipment of his army, so he had to wage a difficult defensive war under adverse circumstances.
Duke Albrecht knew that no decisive help was to be expected from the Reich in the near future, but that the situation in the hereditary lands would deteriorate visibly.
Emperor Frederick failed to procure help from the Prince-electors and the Imperial States. In 1483 he had to leave his Hofburg residence in Vienna and fled to Wiener Neustadt, where he also was besieged by Matthias' troops for 18 months until the fortress was captured in 1487. Humiliated, Frederick fled to Graz, and later to Linz in Upper Austria.
On 17 November 1487 Duke Albrecht informed Emperor Frederick that, under the real circumstances in his hereditary lands, a compromise with the King of Hungary would be the only rational solution.
Aftermath
The war came to an end with an armistice in 1488, although the Habsburgs rankled with the peace.[3]
At the beginning of December, Matthias Corvinus met with Albrecht of Saxony in Markersdorf an der Pielach , a little later an armistice was reached in St. Pölten on 6 December, which was extended several times until the death of the Hungarian king.[4]
Matthias Corvinus offered Emperor Frederick and his son prince Maximilian, the return of Austrian provinces and Vienna, if they would renounce the treaty of 1463 and accept Matthias as Frederic's designated political heir and probable the inheritor of the title of Holy Roman Emperor. Before this was settled though, Matthias died in Vienna in 1490.[5]
After Matthias Corvinus died from a stroke on 6 April 1490, Frederick was able to regain the Austrian lands without serious fight. In 1490, Matthias' unexpected death led to a reversal of his gains, with Matthias' illegitimate son
During his reign in Hungary, the new Polish king would go on to undo many of Matthias' efforts, unmaking the reformed system of taxation, the standing army, and the centralized authority of the monarch. Hungary's nobles would act in complicity with this, contributing to the weakening of the country until 1526, when Hungary was defeated by the Ottoman Empire in the Battle of Mohács, whereby King Louis II was killed. The Habsburg archduke Ferdinand of Austria by his marriage with Anne of Bohemia and Hungary claimed the succession, he was enfeoffed with the Bohemian kingdom by his elder brother Emperor Charles V and also reached the consent of the Hungarian magnates. He was crowned king in Pressburg (Pozsony) on 24 February 1527, laying the grounds for the transnational Habsburg monarchy.
References
- ^ Tanner, Marcus. The Raven King: Matthias Corvinus, and the Fate of his Library. Yale University Press, 2008. pp 53-54.
- ^ pp 63-65.
- ^ „Gedächtnis des Landes" der Geschichtsdatenbank Niederösterreichs, ed. (26 July 2022). "Chronik. Waffenstillstand mit König Matthias Corvinus zu St. Pölten". gedaechtnisdeslandes.at.
- ^ Susanne Wolf: [1] Die Doppelregierung Kaiser Friedrichs III. und König Maximilians (1486–1493), S. 173.
- ISBN 9781509917662.
- ^ Tanner, pp 151.