Unio Trium Nationum (

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

for "Union of the Three Nations") was a pact of mutual aid codified in 1437 by three Estates of

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

: the (largely Hungarian)

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

, the

Saxon The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

( German) patrician class (represented by the Transylvanian Saxon University), and the free military

Székelys The Székelys (, Old Hungarian script, Székely runes: ), also referred to as Szeklers, are a Hungarians, Hungarian subgroup living mostly in the Székely Land in Romania. In addition to their native villages in Suceava County in Bukovina, a ...

. The union was directed against the whole of the peasantry, regardless of ethnicity, in response to the

Transylvanian peasant revolt The Transylvanian peasant revolt (), also known as the peasant revolt of Bábolna or Bobâlna revolt (), was a popular revolt in late medieval Europe, popular revolt in the eastern territories of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1437. The revolt broke ...

. László Fosztó: ''Ritual Revitalisation After Socialism: Community, Personhood, and Conversion among Roma in a Transylvanian Village'', Halle-Wittenberg, 200

In this typical feudal estate parliament, the peasants (whether Hungarian, Saxon, Székely, or Romanian in origin) were not represented, and they did not benefit from its acts, as the commoners were not considered to be members of these feudal "nations".

Background

Medieval administrative structure in Transylvania

In medieval times, Transylvania was organised into two separate types of territorial units: the Noble Counties ( Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary), Comitates) were ruled by feudal landlords. Here, the majority of population were Hungarian and Romanian

serfs Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery. It developed dur ...

. In other regions called

Seats A seat is a place to sit. The term may encompass additional features, such as back, armrest, head restraint but may also refer to concentrations of power in a wider sense (i.e " seat (legal entity)"). See disambiguation. Types of seat The ...

, the free Székely and

nations lived without feudal landlords and had the royal privilege to have local authority and self-government.

Events leading to the Union

With the rise of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

, one of the first major Ottoman military campaigns against Transylvanian parts of the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

was organised in 1421. The invading forces entered the region from

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

. The

Saxons The Saxons, sometimes called the Old Saxons or Continental Saxons, were a Germanic people of early medieval "Old" Saxony () which became a Carolingian " stem duchy" in 804, in what is now northern Germany. Many of their neighbours were, like th ...

and

living in the border area tried to defend themselves, but were heavily outnumbered by the intruders. King Sigismund was not able to react promptly because he had recently inherited the Bohemian throne and was involved there in the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, a ...

. Also, Transylvanian Diets had not been organized for decades and there was no forum to coordinate defence preparations of the three nations. Left alone, the Saxon Burzenland and the Székely Seat of Háromszék, both in the border region, were ravaged. Sigismund reacted to the attack only years later, leading a series of military campaigns against the Ottomans in Wallachia. The Ottomans, allied with the Wallachian Voivode, returned in 1432 and Southern Transylvania suffered serious damages again. In the same period, nobles and church authorities in Central Transylvania were concerned about protesting and revolting

. Hungarian and Romanian (

Vlach Vlach ( ), also Wallachian and many other variants, is a term and exonym used from the Middle Ages until the Modern Era to designate speakers of Eastern Romance languages living in Southeast Europe—south of the Danube (the Balkan peninsula) ...

) peasants were dissatisfied with high taxes and restrictions to their free movement. Scattered peasant protests turned into a serious revolt in 1437, when peasants and Hungarian nobles defeated the troops of the landholders. The Budai Nagy Antal Revolt was triggered by an attempt by the Bishop of Transylvania to collect taxes. Although the revolt was led by Hungarian noble Antal Nagy de Buda, it consisted of a coalition of various elements of Transylvanian society. This included Hungarian and Romanian

as well as the burghers of Kolozsvár (''Klausenburg'', ''Cluj''), and resulted in the lower taxes codified by the Treaty of Kolozsmonostor. Pál Vajdaházi, one of the leaders of the revolt, was referred to in this document as ' (Standard-bearer of the Union of Hungarian and Romanian inhabitants of this province of Hungary). Consequently, it is possible that the rebels considered themselves inhabitants of the Estate of

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

and

Romanians Romanians (, ; dated Endonym and exonym, exonym ''Vlachs'') are a Romance languages, Romance-speaking ethnic group and nation native to Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. Sharing a Culture of Romania, ...

(').

Brotherly Union (Union of Kápolna)

Despite the pressing issues at hand, the Transylvanian Diet was still not called together by the

Voivode Voivode ( ), also spelled voivod, voievod or voevod and also known as vaivode ( ), voivoda, vojvoda, vaivada or wojewoda, is a title denoting a military leader or warlord in Central, Southeastern and Eastern Europe in use since the Early Mid ...

, resulting in the various nobles initiating a meeting of the three nations. After a gap of almost half a century, the estates now had the opportunity to discuss Transylvanian issues together. On this occasion, the nobles set up an alliance with

and

who were still afraid of possible Ottoman incursions. The alliance of mutual aid, signed in Kápolna (present-day ( Căpâlna), was called the ''Fraterna Unio'' (Brotherly Union), and was designed to protect the parties both from revolts and Ottoman attacks. While the existence of the Union helped the indigenous inhabitants to re-negotiate and partly modify the terms of the previous agreement, the alliance did not organize any serious military operations until the end of 1437. At that time, the alliance defeated the opposition after the death of King Sigismund in December.

Founding of the Union of Three Nations

After the successful campaign, the alliance of Hungarian nobles, Székelys, and Saxon elite was codified in the ''Unio Trium Nationum'' ("Union of Three Nations") on February 2, 1438. Like the Brotherly Union, the new Union provided mutual aid against peasant revolts and Ottoman attacks. The Union ensured that the (Hungarian and Romanian) serfs continued to be excluded from the political life of

, although they were the majority of the population in the Noble Counties ( ''Comitates''). The Romanians adhered to

Eastern Orthodoxy Eastern Orthodoxy, otherwise known as Eastern Orthodox Christianity or Byzantine Christianity, is one of the three main Branches of Christianity, branches of Chalcedonian Christianity, alongside Catholic Church, Catholicism and Protestantism ...

, which in predominantly

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Hungary was considered heretical. The alliance of the three privileged estates was effective for centuries and provided the framework of internal and international relations of Transylvania. After the 18th century, when the danger of Ottoman or Tatar attacks was over, the Union became an alliance of the three estates to protect their vested rights from those who were not represented in the Transylvanian Diet. In the 19th century, the term "three nations" became charged with ethnic considerations, because Romanians were consequently excluded from Transylvanian government. In 1711, the

Bulgarians Bulgarians (, ) are a nation and South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Bulgaria and its neighbouring region, who share a common Bulgarian ancestry, culture, history and language. They form the majority of the population in Bulgaria, ...

of Alvinc and Déva (led by church leader Balázs Marinovics) and the

Armenians Armenians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to the Armenian highlands of West Asia.Robert Hewsen, Hewsen, Robert H. "The Geography of Armenia" in ''The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times Volume I: The Dynastic Periods: From Antiq ...

also claimed the privileges of a fourth and fifth ''natio'', but their demands were not met with the elevation of their communities to that privileged status.

Background

Medieval administrative structure in Transylvania

Events leading to the Union

Brotherly Union (Union of Kápolna)

Founding of the Union of Three Nations

See also

References

Further reading