John Csák
John Csák | |
---|---|
Judge royal | |
Reign | 1311–1314 |
Predecessor | vacant, before Stephen Ákos |
Successor | Lampert Hermán |
Died | before 1324 |
Noble family | gens Csák |
Father | Csák |
John from the kindred Csák (
Early career
John was born into the Újlak (Ilok) branch of the extended and powerful gens (clan) Csák. His father was Csák, who was mentioned by contemporary records in the period between 1240 and 1274. John had numerous illustrious close relatives, including his second cousin Ugrin Csák, the de facto ruler of Upper Syrmia in the early 14th century. John had no known descendants.[1]
John first appeared in contemporary documents in 1295,[2] although two non-authentic charters refer to him as Master of the horse and ispán of Baranya County in July 1290.[3] He was considered a supporter of Andrew III, the last Hungarian monarch from the Árpád dynasty. For his court service, John was granted the castle of Visk (or Wysk) and its surrounding lands in Hont County (present-day Vyškovce nad Ipľom in Slovakia) on 25 April 1296.[4][5] He served as Master of the horse in 1297, replacing his relative Matthew Csák. He is the last known person, who held the dignity during the Age of Árpáds.[6] He functioned as ispán of Hont County in 1298.[7] He was ispán of Baranya County in 1300.[8] It is plausible that his latter function was highly nominal, as the county was ruled by the Kőszegi family, in addition to other parts of Transdanubia.[9]
During the Interregnum
Andrew III died on 14 January 1301. A civil war between various claimants to the throne—Charles of Anjou, Wenceslaus of Bohemia, and Otto of Bavaria—followed Andrew's death and lasted for seven years. Initially, John supported Wenceslaus in the war of succession, [10] despite that Ugrin Csák, also from the clan's Újlak branch, was considered the strongest domestic pillar of Charles' dominion in the early years. John was first styled as a "baron" and member of the royal court of Wenceslaus in 1303.[11] In the same year, the young king transcribed and confirmed the letter donation of the late Andrew III, regarding the ownership of Visk.[4]
By 1307, John Csák took an oath of allegiance to Charles of Anjou.
Judge royal and betrayal
John Csák was mentioned as "designate" (
During his tenure as Judge royal, John Csák resided in Buda and performed his judicial role with countrywide competence. For instance, he judged over the Valkó County nobles' abuse of power case in August 1313, while in other occasions, he instructed the cathedral chapter of Gyulafehérvár (present-day Alba Iulia, Romania) during a land property lawsuit, and the cathedral chapter of Győr during an investigation.[18] Historian Ildikó Tóth emphasizes that many of John's legal cases were originally belonged to the judicial courts of the oligarchic provinces. Following the establishment of the strong royal power, John Csák took over and conducted these lawsuits. He was the first Judge royal, who has placed great emphasis on material evidences during his litigation processes.[19]
John Csák was last referred to as Judge royal on 12 July 1314.
References
- ^ Engel: Genealógia (Genus Csák, 8. Újlak branch)
- ^ Markó 2006, p. 275.
- ^ Zsoldos 2011, pp. 58, 133.
- ^ a b c d Tóth 1999, p. 144.
- ^ Engel 1996, p. 461.
- ^ Zsoldos 2011, p. 58.
- ^ Zsoldos 2011, p. 160.
- ^ Zsoldos 2011, p. 133.
- ^ Engel 1996, p. 102.
- ^ Kristó 1999, p. 42.
- ^ Engel 1996, p. 470.
- ^ a b c d Kristó 1999, p. 51.
- ^ a b Bertényi 1976, p. 61.
- ^ Tóth 1999, p. 145.
- ^ a b c d Engel 1996, p. 6.
- ^ Bertényi 1976, p. 60.
- ^ Tóth 1999, pp. 146, 148.
- ^ Tóth 1999, p. 147.
- ^ Tóth 1999, p. 148.
- ^ Kristó 1999, p. 52.
- ^ a b Bertényi 1976, p. 64.
- ^ Engel 1996, p. 307.
Sources
- Bertényi, Iván (1976). Az országbírói intézmény története a XIV. században [History of the Institution of Judge Royal in the 14th Century] (in Hungarian). ISBN 963-05-0734-X.
- Engel, Pál (1996). Magyarország világi archontológiája, 1301–1457, I. [Secular Archontology of Hungary, 1301–1457, Volume I] (in Hungarian). História, MTA Történettudományi Intézete. ISBN 963-8312-44-0.
- Kristó, Gyula (1999). "I. Károly király főúri elitje (1301–1309) [The Aristocratic Elite of King Charles I, 1301–1309]". Századok (in Hungarian). 133 (1). Magyar Történelmi Társulat: 41–62. ISSN 0039-8098.
- Markó, László (2006). A magyar állam főméltóságai Szent Istvántól napjainkig: Életrajzi Lexikon [Great Officers of State in Hungary from King Saint Stephen to Our Days: A Biographical Encyclopedia] (in Hungarian). Helikon Kiadó. ISBN 963-547-085-1.
- Tóth, Ildikó (1999). "Károly Róbert első országbírója (Adalékok Csák János országbírói működéséhez) [Charles Robert's First Judge Royal: Data to the Function of John Csák as Judge Royal]". In Homonnai, Sarolta; Piti, Ferenc; Tóth, Ildikó (eds.). Tanulmányok a középkori magyar történelemről. Az I. Medievisztikai PhD-konferencia (Szeged, 1999. július 2.) előadásai (in Hungarian). ISBN 963-482-421-8.
- Zsoldos, Attila (2011). Magyarország világi archontológiája, 1000–1301 [Secular Archontology of Hungary, 1000–1301] (in Hungarian). História, MTA Történettudományi Intézete. ISBN 978-963-9627-38-3.