Roland Borsa
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Roland Borsa (; ; 1250 - died 1301) was
voivode of Transylvania The Voivode of Transylvania (;Fallenbüchl 1988, p. 77. ;Zsoldos 2011, p. 36. ; ) was the highest-ranking official in Transylvania within the Kingdom of Hungary from the 12th century to the 16th century. Appointed by the King of Hun ...
for 3 periods in the late 13th century. He was known for battling the
Mongol invasions The Mongol invasions and conquests took place during the 13th and 14th centuries, creating history's largest contiguous empire, the Mongol Empire (1206–1368), which by 1260 covered large parts of Eurasia. Historians regard the Mongol devastati ...
and, later, for rebelling against King Charles I's attempts to control his territory.


Origins

According to the earliest written sources, the Borsa family was originated from Barsa village (now Barsa is part of modern Füzesgyarmat). They received their first Transylvanian estate only in the early 13th century.János Karácsonyi: Magyar nemzetségek. (Hungarian noble families), the article about Borsa family. URL

/ref> Roland Borsa was the member of a noble family, originally from the valley of the Borșa River (today in
Cluj County Cluj County () is a county () of Romania, in Transylvania. Its seat is Cluj-Napoca. Name In Hungarian language, Hungarian it is known as ''Kolozs megye''. Under the Kingdom of Hungary, a county with an identical name (Kolozs County, ) existed s ...
, Romania), a tributary of the
Someșul Mic The Someșul Mic (''Little Someș'', Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Kis-Szamos'') is a river in north-western Romania (Cluj County). At its confluence with the Someșul Mare in Mica, Cluj, Mica, the Someș is formed. Its total length is , and ...
river. A branch of the family was established in Bihor in the 12th century, and maintained close ties with the Transylvanian branch.


First period of rule (1282)

Initially a supporter of the centralization policies of
László IV Ladislaus IV (, , ; 5 August 1262 – 10 July 1290), also known as Ladislaus the Cuman, was King of Hungary and List of rulers of Croatia, Croatia from 1272 to 1290. His mother, Elizabeth the Cuman, Elizabeth, was the daughter of a chieftai ...
, King of Hungary, Borsa was named voivod of Transylvania in the spring of 1282. In July and August he participated in the royal campaign against the Aba tribe, then distinguished himself with a decisive role in the victory over Cuman rebels. Despite this success, however, a series of royal concessions to the aristocracy forced Roland to resign his voivodship in favor of Apor Péc.


Second period of rule (1284-1285)

Returning to the voivodship in 1284, Roland Borsa found himself faced with Mongol invasions. In the winter of 1285, he attempted to stem the invasion with a campaign in which the Transylvanians distinguished themselves through their valor on the battlefield. To assist in governing his new territories, he named a vice-voivod from the Transylvanian branch of the family, László Borsa of Szentmártón. Following a conflict with King László IV at the end of 1285, Roland Borsa was again stripped of his power.


Reorganization of the voivodship and final period of rule

Roland Borsa was at the nadir of his fortunes when the Transylvanian voivodship began to reorganize along "congregational" lines, shifting de facto power to a group of landed nobles. When the first congregation of nobles met in 1285 near
Turda Turda (; , ; ; ) is a Municipiu, city in Cluj County, Transylvania, Romania. It is located in the southeastern part of the county, from the county seat, Cluj-Napoca, to which it is connected by the European route E81, and from nearby Câmpia ...
, Roland Borsa had lost his Transylvanian lands and proved unable either to exercise any influence over the other nobles or to play an important role in governing the province. Nonetheless, as sentiment against László took a firmer hold on the nobility, he returned to power for a final time in 1288. Along with his brother, he organized the assassination of the King by Cuman mercenaries at
Körösszeg Toboliu ( Hungarian: ''Vizesgyán'') is a commune located in Bihor County, Crișana, Romania. Established in 2007 when it was split from Girișu de Criș Commune, it is composed of two villages, Cheresig (''Körösszeg'') and Toboliu. At the 201 ...
in
Bihor County Bihor County (, ) is a county (județ) in western Romania. With a total area of , Bihor is Romania's 6th largest county geographically and the main county in the historical region of Crișana. Its capital city is Oradea (Nagyvárad). Toponymy ...
in 1290. This action, along with his ill-concealed ambitions for Transylvania, led him into direct conflict with the last scion of the House of Árpád, András III. Defeated by royal forces in the Civil War of 1294, he was dismissed as voivod, but somehow managed to avoid the confiscation of his now-extensive lands. He died far from the corridors of power in 1301.


Footnotes


Bibliography

* Sălăgean, Tudor (2005). ''Romanian Society in the Early Middle Ages (9th–14th Centuries AD)''. ''In:'' Pop, Ioan-Aurel; Bolovan, Ioan; ''History of Romania: Compendium''; Romanian Cultural Institute (Center for Transylvanian Studies). Cluj-Napoca. . * Sălăgean, Tudor (2003, 2007). ''Transilvania în a doua jumătate a secolului al XIII-lea: Afirmarea regimului congregațional''. ( Centrul de Studii Transilvane.
Cluj-Napoca Cluj-Napoca ( ; ), or simply Cluj ( , ), is a city in northwestern Romania. It is the second-most populous city in the country and the seat of Cluj County. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest (), Budapest () and Belgrade ( ...
. {{DEFAULTSORT:Borsa, Roland Voivodes of Transylvania Oligarchs of the Kingdom of Hungary 13th-century births Year of birth unknown 1301 deaths
Roland Roland (; ; or ''Rotholandus''; or ''Rolando''; died 15 August 778) was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. The historical Roland was mil ...
13th-century Hungarian people 14th-century Hungarian people