without meeting with any refiftance. Having ravaged that country, from thence they went to Beneventum and Nola, plundering and deftroying all before them; and having burnt the monaftery of Cafinum, they obliged the monks to redeem themselves by parting with their moit valuable effects, which they had concealed, an enumeration of which is given by Leo Oftienfis. The Hungarians returning again to Capua, encamped for twelve days upon the banks of the Liris, or Gariliano; and, loaded with booty, went from thence into the territories of the Marfi and Peligni, by whom they were furprized, and almost entirely cut in pieces, the few that remained marching with precipitation out of Italy. The fame year another body of Hungarians invaded France, where they committed great devastations, and carrying off many prifoners, returned to their country *. ria is in vades Ger many, THE next expedition of the Hungarians that history mentions, was in the year 949, when, under the command of A.C.949. their king Toxis, the father of Geyfa, their firft Chriftian king, Toxis the they entered Italy. Berengarius III. not being then in a con- king of the dition to oppofe their arms, fent his fon Albert to Toxis, to Hungaoffer him a large fum of money, provided he would leave the kingdom. Toxis agreeing for ten bufhels of filver, Berengarius, by a capitation-tax, raised that fum from his fubjects, A.C.985. which the barbarians receiving marched out of Italy'. Some years afterwards, the Hungarians being informed that the emperor Otho was engaged in reducing his rebellious fon Ludolphus, they entered Germany, and pillaging and burning the country as they went, they paffed the Lech, and befieged Augfburg, which then was very weakly fortified. Otho, who had conquered and pardoned his fon, was at this time in Saxony; but being informed of the invafion of the Hungarians, he immediately affembled an army near Augsburg, and attacking the enemy, after an obftinate difpute, he totally but is derouted them, and purfued them to the river Lech, where feated great numbers of them were drowned. The following days near Augs he continued the purfuit, and furrounding the villages, whi- burg. ther they had fled in small bodies, he cut them all off; few, or none, of the great multitude that had invaded Germany, returning to their own country. After this fignal victory, the emperor returned to Ratisbon; where, as a terror to future invaders, he caufed three of the Hungarian princes, whom he had taken prifoners, to be hanged: and going * LEO OSTIEN. 1. i. c. 58. 1 BONF. Dec. i, 1. 10. p. 109. BAR. Ann. v. x. p. 755. BONF. ibid. p. 109. BAR. Ann. v. x. p. 766. Sax. CRANT. 1. iv. c. 6. MEIB. Rer. Ger. Script, v. i. p. 240, & 657. religion. A.C. 989. afterwards to Rome, he was crowned with great folemnity by pope Leo VIII. and among other titles affumed that of king of Pannonia. THE Hungarian forces were fo weakened by this defeat in Germany, that we read of no other expedition under the reign of their firft king Toxis, who died not many years after, and was fucceeded by his fon Geyfa, a lover of peace and Geyfa, the juftice, who was converted to the Chriftian religion by St. Son of Adalbert, the bifhop of Prague". In the beginning of Geyfa's Toxis, is reign, the Hungarians were in poffeffion of Auftria; but the converted emperor Henry II, giving that province to Leopold, duke of to the Suabia, who had married his fifter, on condition that he conChriftian quered it from them; Leopold, accepting the condition, and affembling an army, defeated the Hungarians near Mellicum upon the Danube; after which defeat, Geyfa furrendered that province, and concluded a peace with the Germans, being more intent upon propagating the Chriftian faith in his kingdom, than feizing the dominions of others. Though it is faid, that fome of the Hungarians bordering on Germany, had already privately embraced the Chriftian religion; yet Geyfa, in converting his kingdom, met with great oppofition from the nobles, who thought nothing glorious or worthy of their attention, but invafions and ravages of their neighbours; and accufing their king of neglecting the adminiftration of the kingdom, by omitting to declare war, and fuffering the youth to live idly, they at length ventured in fome measure to oppofe his proceedings. Notwithstanding this oppofition, Geyfa ftill continued his endeavours to civilize his people, and in order to ftrengthen his authority, made an alliance with fome of the princes of Germany; the Bavarians, Saxons, and Suabians, willingly supplying him not only with A.C.997. money, but with auxiliary troops". In the year 997, Geyfa died, and was fucceeded by his fon Stephen, then very young, but who had been declared king by the states, the year before his father died; which title, with the addition of that of apoftolic, four years after was confirmed to him by pope Sylvefter II. Stephen, at that time, surrendering his kingdom to the church. This Stephen is reckoned the firft of the kings of Hungary, for his predeceffors were kings more by authority and power, than by ordinary title. He is greatly celebrated for his piety, and unwearied study in converting his heathen fubjects. In the beginning of his reign, his nobles, who were greatly addicted to their ancient idolatry, defpifing the ibid. BARON. Ann. v. x. p. 882. BONF. ibid. p. 112. • BONF. tender bim, on ac the new ender years of the king, raised a rebellion against him, which His fubwas headed by one Cupa, who wanted to marry the widow jects rebel of Geysa, in hopes of poffeffing the throne. The rebels, af- against ter destroying the poffeffions of many of those that had embraced the new religion, laid fiege to the city of Vefperin. count of But Stephen, trufting the command of his army to fome experienced Germans, marched againft the rebels, whom he de- but are rereligion, feated; and Cupa being killed, his body was quartered and duced. expofed in four of the principal cities of Hungary. The authority of the king being established by this victory, many ecclefiafticks flocked into his kingdom, which was, at this time, divided into ten bishopricks, all of them richly endowed by the king, who was not contented with building churches only in his own kingdom, but likewife founded and endowed a monaftery at Jerufalem, and built a church at Conftantinople, and another at Rome. A. C. 1002. A. C. 1030, HUNGARY did not long enjoy the fruits of peace; for we find Giula, prince of Transylvania, in the year 1002, infested the province next to him, with defign to oblige the The Bulyoung king his nephew to return to the religion of his garians. ancestors. But Stephen marching against him with an army, invade in a few months made himself matter of Transylvania, and Hungary, took his uncle Giula, with his wife and two children, prifon- but are ers. Soon after this, Hungary was invaded by the Bulgarians, defeated under the conduct of Cea; but Stephen having repulfed the by Steinvaders, purfued them into their own country, where he Phen. gained a fignal victory, and returned loaded with booty. Towards the end of his reign, the emperor Conrad II. having conquered fome provinces from the Poles and Bohemians, turned his arms again Hungary; but finding Stephen in a condition to oppote him, he renewed the peace P. Hiftory makes no mention of any other expedition of Stephen: he married two wives, both named Guyla; the first was the fifter of the emperor Henry II. and remarkable for her piety. By her he had one fon, named Emeric, who died before his ather without any iffue, leaving his wife a virgin, and being canonized after his death. The fecond wife of Stephen is faid to have been a daughter of William of Burgundy, and of a character very different from that of his first wife. Four years after the peace concluded with Conrad, Stephen died, and was buried at Albe Royal, or Sleulweiffenburg, being fucceeded in his kingdom by his nephew Pater. PETER was furnamed the German, on account of the fa. vour he fhewed to those of that nation, upon whom he be P GARLUIL. in vita St. Steph. c. 9, 10, 11: Peter. A. C. 1034. ftowed Germans. Aba in Is depofed ftowed many of the chief posts in his kingdom; and despifon account ing his own fubjects and countrymen, he introduced Germans of his fa- into his council, and appointed them for governors in his vour to the cities. By thefe proceedings, he became extremely odious ta his fubjects, who confpired against him, and chufing one Aba, by others called Ovo, they conducted him to the camp, where he was approved of by the foldiers, and declared king. Peter then flying into Bavaria, left his minifters to the fury of the oppofite faction, who put many of them to death, and annulled all his decrees. Aba had not long poffeffed the throne, when he heard that the emperor Henry III, was preparing to affist Peter to recover his kingdom; upon which information, he immediately affembled an army on both fides of the Danube, and invaded Bavaria and Auftria; and revaria and turning to Hungary with great booty, he ordered another army to invade Carinthia, which returning likewise loaded with spoil, was intercepted and cut off by Gothofred, In the fpring following, Henry advanced with an army as far as Raab, with an intention of restoring Peter; but Aba giving him a large fum of money, and promifing to restore the captives which he had made in his former incurfions, the empeHe becomes for retired without any action. Aba now thinking himself bateful to fecure in the poffeffion of the throne, gave himself up so bis fubjects much to infolence and cruelty, that he foon became more on account odious than his competitor; and having put fifty of the nobles of his cru- to death upon the difcovery of a confpiracy, the reft fled to ity. vades Ba Auftria. fo the emperor, who was prevailed upon by their entreaties to affift Peter in recovering his kingdom. Accordingly, being joined by Breliflaus, marquis of Moravia, he attacked Aba near Raab, and after a moft obftinåte difpute, in which many of the Bavarians were flain, that they gave a name to the field, he at last gained the victory; Aba flying to the village of Scoeb, not far from the river Tibife, where he was flain, and buried in a neighbouring church, but was afterwards dug up, and interred in a monaftery, near the Saar, built by himself. Peter being again re-established in his kingdom, banifhed the three princes of the blood-royal, and 1044 thinking himself fecure from any rival, he continued as forPeter is amerly to give the command of his cities to Germans and Itagain reftolians, and to do every thing by their advice; which so provoked his fubjects, that many of them formed a confpiracy against him, and conceived an averfion for the religion of A. C. red. DUBRAV. Hift. Bohem. 1. vii. 9 BARONI. V. xi. p. 130. p. 50. AVENT. Ann. Boii. 1. v. p. 408. & 416. • BARON. Ann, V. xi. p. 177. BONF. Dec. jį. 1. 2. thofe thofe foreigners: fo that recalling two of the exiled princes, Andrew and Leventa, the other having married the king of Poland's daughter, they promifed to them to kill Peter, and drive out the Germans and Italians, provided they would allow them to follow their old religion, and deftroy the churches. The princes finding that they could not obtain the kingdom without granting their request, at last gave their confent. Immediately the people, affembling in great bo dies, fell upon those who ftill continued Chriftians, killing But conti them by various torments, especially those who were of the German or Italian nation. The churches and monafteries nuing ftill to favour were likewife plundered of their wealth and burnt, and the the Ger monks and bishops many of them ftoned to death. Peter, mans, bis finding that the whole nation had deferted him, and gone fubjects aover to the party of the banished princes, endeavoured, with gain rebel a great body of Germans, to escape into Auftria; but the paffes against being feized, he was prevailed upon to return, under the him. pretence of a reconciliation. He had not marched three days when the Hungarians endeavoured to surprise him, and take him prisoner; however, being affifted by the Germans, he defended himself for two days, till all his friends were flain. Being at last taken, his eyes were immediately put out, and afterwards he was conducted to Albe Royal, where in a few days he died. ANDREW, by the death of his rival, was no fooner in full poffeffion of his throne, than he ordered the churches to be rebuilt, and all his fubjects to profefs the Chriftian religion. About this time Wratislaus, the fecond fon of Breliflaus, king of Bohemia, being driven from Moravia by his brother Spiligneus, retired to Hungary, where he was honourably entertained by Andrew, who gave him his only daughter Adelhard, (Dubravius fays his fifter) in marriage; which Spiligneus being informed of, recalled him home, and again put him in poffeffion of his marquifate. Andrew is faid, by the Hungarian annals, in the beginning of his reign, to have reduced Andrew Auftria". This is not mentioned by the German writers; on reduces the contrary, they affirm, that Andrew paid homage and a Auftria. yearly tribute to the emperor Henry III. However, this is certain, that in the year 1051, a peace was concluded betwixt him and Adelbert of Auftria; foon after which he invited hist brother Bela to come into Hungary with his family, his other brother Leventa having died in the first year of his reign, and he himself being without children. Upon Bela's arrival, he divided Hungary into three parts, two of which he reserved DUER. 1. viii. p. 58. BONF. Dec. ii. 1. 2, to A. C. 1051 |