Hungarian Dynasties

Garai

Garay or Garai (Croatian Gorjanski) were a Hungarian noble family in the Kingdom of Hungary, a branch of the Dorozsma (Duružmić) clan, with notable members in the 14th and 15th centuries. They were lords of Csesznek, but their principal estates were in Croatia were they served as powerful frontier lords. Nicholas I Garay the chief governor of Bratislava, was a palatine to the King of Hungary (1375-1385). He was killed in 1386. Nicholas I's first son John Garay (Ivan Gorjanski, Garai János; 1371-1429) was the governor of Temesiensis and Pozsega banates. John's daughter, Dorothy Garai, was Queen of Bosnia as spouse of King Tvrtko II of Bosnia. Nicholas I's second son Nicholas II Garay (Nikola II Gorjanski, Garai Miklós II; 1367-1433) was the ban of Mačva, Usora, Soli (modern Tuzla), Slavonia, Croatia, Dalmatia, and married to Jelena Lazarević, daughter of Serbian Prince Lazar. In 1396 he fought the Ottomans in the Battle of Nicopolis which was lost due to others' errors. In 1416 Sigismund extended their armorial bearings showing the Order of the Dragon and the Order of the Scarf. He presented the patent to his brother-in-law Garai Miklós. Nicholas II's granddaughter Anna was engaged to Matthias Corvinus. Nicholas II's son, László II Garay (1410-1459) was a Palatine of the Kingdom of Hungary (1447-1458). Based on an agreement with the Hunyadi family he originally supported Matthias Hunyadi as king. Later when Hunyadi did not keep the bargain the barons of the Garai party opposed Matthias Hunyadi. Nicholas I also married his daughters well: Ilona was married to the magnate Nicholas Széchy, and Dorothea married Nicholas Frankopan, ban of Croatia and Dalmatia. Nicholas I's uncle, Paul Garay (1280-1353), was also a ban of Mačva. His successors ruled until 1440 including Zala.

Date: 1280-

Region: Croatia

Arpad

One of the most ancient houses of the Magyar race, founded by Árpád was the son of Grand Prince Álmos reigned from 895-907. Although the founder of the Kingdom of Hungary was not Árpád (as he lived a century earlier) - but his descendant Saint Stephen I –, he is generally thought of as the forefather of Hungarians and is often affectionally mentioned as our father Árpád (Hungarian: Árpád apánk). Árpád was the founder of the dynasty named after him, which would rule over the kingdom of Hungary till 1301.

Region: Hungary

Date: start date/numerous carriers

Aba

Aba is the name of a Genus Aba (Clan Aba) in the Kingdom of Hungary. Their ancestors may have been among the tribal leaders of the Kabars (three nomadic tribes that joined the tribal federation of the Magyars in the 9th century). The Gesta Hungarorum ("The Deeds of the Hungarians") mentions that Ede and Edemen, the Abas' ancestors received land possession around the Mátra Mountains, especially in Gyöngyöspata - Heves County, after the conquest of the Carpathian Basin by the Magyars (around 895). The Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum ("The Deeds of the Huns and the Hungarians") connects the family to Attila the Hun. Csaba was Attila's legitimate son by the daughter of the Greek emperor Honorius. Csaba in turn had two sons, Edemen and Ed. Edemen entered Pannonia with his father's and mother's great entourage (his mother being a Chorasminian) when the Hungarians came back for the second time, whereas Ed remained in Scythia with his father. Csaba is the ancestor of the clan of Aba.—Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum. Samuel Aba was the most prominent member of the family who became King of Hungary (1041-1044). The gens may have been named after him. Amade Aba is another prominent descendant of the family; he held several castles and possessions on the northern and north-eastern parts of the kingdom in the first decade of the 14th century.

Region: north Hungary

Date: start date

Csák

Csák was the name of a gens (Latin for "clan"; nemzetség in Hungarian) in the Kingdom of Hungary. The Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum ("Deeds of the Huns and Hungarians") records that the ancestor of the family was Szabolcs, son of chieftain Előd, the leader of one of the seven Magyar tribes. The family was probably connected to the Árpád dynasty. Their ancient possessions were located around the Vértes Hills in Transdanubia; Csákvár ("castle of Csák") and Csákberény villages still bear their name. The family was named after Szabolcs' grandson who had a fortress built on his possessions. The most prominent members of the family were Máté Csák and Ugrin Csák who were powerful aristocrats of the Kingdom of Hungary from the 1290s.

Region: central Hungary

Date: 1290

Kacsics

Kacsics was the name of a gens ("clan") in the Kingdom of Hungary. According to some historians, they might have been descendants of a Croatian noble family of Kačić, dukes of Omiš. Their possessions were located around Szécsény on the Ipoly River. A member of the gens, Simon took part in the murder of Queen Gertrude of Merania (24 September 1213) and therefore King Andrew II of Hungary confiscated his possessions. The Kacsics gens divided into four branches by the end of the 13th century. The powerful Szécsényi family ascended from one of its branches. The members of the gens accepted the supremacy of Máté Csák, one of the most powerful oligarchs of the kingdom, around 1300; only one of them, Thomas Szécsényi became the partisan of King Charles I. Consequently, the king granted him his relatives' possessions following his victories over the oligarch.

Date: 1200

Region: North Hungary

Szécsényi 

The Szécsényi was a noble family of the Kingdom of Hungary in the 14-15th centuries. The ancestor of the family, Thomas descended from the gens ("clan") Kacsics. He was one of the most powerful barons of King Charles I of Hungary and he hold several dignities during his reign. The family was named after its possession, Szécsény. The male line of the family ended in 1460. Thomas Szécsényi (ca. 1285-1354), the son of Farkas Szécsényi, joined King Charles I against the powerful Máté Csák in 1301; therefore, his relatives who followed Máté Csák occupied his inherited possessions in Nógrád county. He fought at the Battle of Rozgony/Rozhanovce (15 June 1312) when the king's armies defeated the allied troops of Máté Csák and Amade Aba's sons. Shortly afterwards, the king granted Thomas the possession of Hollókő that had been confiscated from his relatives. In 1316, he occupied the Visegrád Castle from Máté Csák. He became the head (ispán) of Arad, Bács and Szerém counties (1318) and the Magistrate of the Cumans (1319). In 1320, he was appointed to the Master of the Queen's Treasury (királynéi tárnokmester). Around that time, he married one of Queen Elisabeth's relatives, Anna of Oświęcim as his second wife. Following Máté Csák's death (1321), the king granted him several castles and possessions in Heves, Gömör and Nógrád counties; thus, he received Ajnácskő (today Hajnáčka in Slovakia), Baglyaskő, Bene, Somoskő (today Šomoška in Slovakia) and Sztrahora Castles. In the same year, he became the Voivode of Transylvania. He suppressed the rebellion of the Transylvanian Saxons (1324) and the king granted him Salgó Castle (today Sibiel in Romania). In 1342, he was appointed to the office of Master of the King's Treasury (tárnokmester) and in 1349, he became the High Justiciar of the Kingdom (országbíró).

Date: 1280

Region: North Hungary

Báthory

The Báthory were a Hungarian noble family of the Gutkeled clan. The family rose to significant influence in Central Europe during the late Middle Ages, holding high military, administrative and ecclesiastical positions in the Kingdom of Hungary. In the early modern period, the family brought forth several Princes of Transylvania and one King of Poland. The Báthory family belonged to the Gutkeled, a clan of Hungarian nobles, which traced its descent to the Swabian brothers Gut and Kelad, who immigrated into Hungary from the castle Stof (probably Staufen im Breisgau or Hohenstaufen in Württemberg) during the reign of King Peter (reigned 1038-1046), who himself was partly of Venetian descent. The actual Báthory family began in the 13th century with Andrew of Rakoméz, surnamed the Bald, son of Nikolaus. Andrew is mentioned in 1250 as a patron of the monastery of Sárvár in the county of Szatmár. In 1279, King Ladislaus IV rewarded Andrew's brother Hados and Andrew's sons George (d. 1307), Benedict (d. 1321) and Briccius (d. 1322) for their military services by granting them Bátor in the county of Szabolcs. Bátor had been the estate of Vajda son of Lángos, who had married a relative of Andrew but died without issue. In 1310, Bátor came into the sole possession of Briccius when he reached an agreement with his nephew Michael and his cousin Vid to divide the joint possessions. After this, Briccius and his descendants named themselves "of Bátor" or Báthory. The family divided into two major branches, which descended from the sons and grandsons of Briccius: The elder branch of the family, the Báthory of Somlyó were descended from John, Count of Szatmár, the first-born son of Briccius, through his eldest son Ladislaus (died 1373). Ladislaus, Count of Szabolcs, married Anna Meggyesi and received Somlyó as dowry. Ladislaus' younger brother George II is the ancestor of the Simolin family, later called Báthory of Simolin. A further division occurred under the great-grandsons of Ladislaus (latter half of the 15th century): John and Stephen dropped the name Báthory and founded the Szaniszlófi family, while Nikolaus continued the Somlyó branch. The younger branch of the family, the Báthory of Ecsed, were descended from Luke, the youngest son of Briccius. Luke possessed wide estates in Szatmár and was granted by King Charles Robert the lordship of Ecsed, where he built the castle called Hrséy (loyalty).This branch, since they retained the possession of Bátor, are sometimes called of Bátor or, as the younger branch, Nyírbátor (New Bathory).

Hunyadi

Hunyadi or Corvin family was a Hungarian noble family from the Middle Ages, probably of Romanian origin. Their Romanian ancestry is claimed by medieval authors and by the majority of modern historians. The first recorded member of the family was Serb who settled in Hunyad county in Transylvania from Wallachia. His son Vojk, adopted the name László and adhered to Catholicism. He was ennobled in 1409 and received the estate of Hunyad Castle. The origins of the Coat of Arms of the Hunyadi family, which depicts a raven holding a golden ring in its beak is probably the origin of the name Corvin. Notable members of the clan were John Hunyadi (1387-1456), second son of Vojk. A successful soldier, he became Voivod of Transylvania and Captain General and Regent of Hungary. László Hunyadi (1433-1457), eldest son of John Hunyadi, Hungarian statesman and warrior. Subject of an opera by Ferenc Erkel. King Matthias Corvinus of Hungary (1443-1490), second son of John Hunyadi, ruled Hungary from 1458 to 1490 and also Moravia and Silesia from 1469 to 1490. János Corvinus, son of King Matthias Corvinus, duke of Głogów (Silesia) and ban of Croatia and Slavonia.

Date: 1300

Region: Transylvania

Gutkeled

The Gutkeleds were according to the Gesta Hungarorum of Simon of Kéza descended from two Swabian brothers Kelad and Gut. Their origins are earmarked as Stauf in Staufen im Breisgau or the Hohenstaufen castle in Württemberg. They came to Hungary some time in the reign of Péter Orseolo, placing the arrival of the Gutkeleds to Hungary sometime around the 1040s. More noble families come from the Gutkeled clan than any other Hungarian clan. Notable members include István (Stjepan) Gutkeled, Ban of Slavonia (1248–1260) and Miklós (Nikola) Gutkeled, Ban of Slavonia (1278–1279)

Region: -

Date: start date

House of Keglević

The House of Keglević is a Croatian noble family originally from Dalmatia. The earliest ancestor was of Roman blood, meaning the family was also known as the Mauroi due to him. His son also Mauros was from Milet and entitled proedros and judge of the Hippodrome of Constantinople with a title of a Basileus. The third Maurus, a merchant from Amalfi founded the hospice of Muristan in Jerusalem ca. 1023 and had some connection to blessed Gerard the founder of the Order of the Knights of St. John of Jerusalem the Knights Hospitaller. The ancient Roman amphitheatre in Trieste was called Amphitheatrum Maurone. In 1300 the family produced Peter de genere Percal a castle lord in Dalmatia, who was mentioned in a court verdict judged by an abbot of a monastery in Hungary as a son of the illegitimate son of the Queen Elisabeth of Sicily, Queen of Hungary, and of the lawyer of George I Šubić of Bribir, he was a relative of Helen of Anjou, Queen of Serbia. The great-great-grandfather of this Peter and grandfather of the lawyer of George I Šubić of Bribir was Bosdarius de Poclat a judge in Dalmatia, who was the son of Percal de Sevenico, count of Šibenik, son of Guoffrido de Sevenico, under whose command was the army of Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, in Bosnia, son of Benesmiro, legal advisor (justitiarius) of Monte Sant'Angelo, who was sent by Pope Alexander III as a notifier to Šibenik, shortly after Konstantin (Komnenos) Sebastos the son of the second cousin of the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Komnenos and Grand Admiral of the Byzantine fleet claimed the title of a Croatian and Dalmatian duke.

Date: start

Region: Croatia

Bána

Erik Fügedi has proven that the Clan Bána was a collateral branch of the Clan Katapán (Koppán) descending from the princely house of the Pecheneg Talmat tribe. According to the medieval Gesta Hungarorum,Ketel Cuman (in fact Pecheneg) khagan joined the people of Hungarian Grand Prince Álmos at Kiev in 884 CE. After the conquest of Hungary, one part of Ketel's clan settled down between Sátorhalom and Tolcsva river, whilst the other part where the Vág river falls into the Danube. At the bank of Vág Ketel's son, Alaptolma constructed the castle of Komárom, where later they were buried in a Pagan way. The Clan Bána split off from the Katapáns and had its primeval estates around Bana village and in the Bakony mountains. They were known as Counts of Bana and Wildgraves of Bakony. The direct forefather of the Cseszneky family, Count Apa from the Clan Bána, is mentioned in a document from 1230. In accordance with this record, Pope Gregory IX investigated the complaint of Pannonhalma Abbey, since Count Apa and his son, Jakab had occupied the Benedictines' possessions and fishing places around Gönyű. Another son of Apa, Mihály was mentioned in 1225 as King Andrew II's equerry, and later he rendered great service to King Béla IV during the Mongol invasion.

Cseszneky

According to the tradition the Cseszneky family has descended from the Clan Bána, whose origin traces back to the 10th century. One Mihály Bána was mentioned in 1225 as King Andrew II's equerry, and later he rendered great service to King Béla IV during the Mongol invasion. Mihály's son, Jakab, was royal swordbearer and lord of Trencsén Castle, he constructed Csesznek Castle around 1263. He and his descendants took the name Cseszneky after their ancestral home. Between 1326 and 1392 Csesznek Castle was a royal castle, by virtue of the power and influence of the family, King Sigismund then offered it to the Garai family in lieu of the Macsó Banate. In 1482 the male line of the Garais died out and King Matthias Corvinus donated the castle to the Szapolyai family.

Date: 1225

Region: Western Hungary

Podmanitzky

The Podmanitzky family was an influential noble family in the Kingdom of Hungary. They originate from the little village Podmanín near Považská Bystrica, Slovakia. "They were the men, who for more than a hundred years influenced highest politics in the Kingdom of Hungary. They were present when most striking issues were dealt with, they helped several kings to gain the throne. Powerful, proud, but diplomatic. Great tactics, who had always known when to fight and when to retreat." The clan includes archbishops, bishops and Counts as well as royal advisors.

DATE: 1350

REGION: North Hungary

Jesenský

In 1274, Andrew gained nobility by serving king Ladislaus IV of Hungary bravely, and got the village of Jeszent in Túróc (Slovak: Turiec) county, and its surroundings as a gift. From that time, the family called herself as Jeszentsky ("of Jeszent"), which later transformed into Jeszenszky (Jesenský) the family produced several warriors polarised against the Ottomans.

Date: 1270

Region> north-western Slovakia