The Treaty of Nagyvárad (or Treaty of Grosswardein) was a secret peace agreement between Emperor Ferdinand I and John Szapolyai, rival claimants to 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 ...

, signed in Grosswardein / Várad (modern-day Oradea,

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

) on February 24, 1538.István Keul, ''Early modern religious communities in East-Central Europe: ethnic diversity, denominational plurality, and corporative politics in the principality of Transylvania'' (1526–1691)], Brill, 2009
p. 40
/ref> In the treaty, they divided Hungary between them according to the actual possession. Ferdinand recognized Zápolya as John I,

King of Hungary The King of Hungary () was the Monarchy, ruling head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 (or 1001) to 1918. The style of title "Apostolic King of Hungary" (''Magyarország apostoli királya'') was endorsed by Pope Clement XIII in 1758 ...

and ruler of two-thirds of the Kingdom, while Zápolya conceded the rule of Ferdinand over western Hungary, and recognized him as heir to the Hungarian throne, since Zápolya was childless. But in 1540, just before Zápolya's death, his wife bore him a son, John Sigismund Zápolya, and the agreement failed. John Sigismund was elected King of Hungary as John II by the Hungarian nobility. Isabella asked Ottoman Sultan Suleyman I to help in the fight with Ferdinand and his successors that ensued, only to see Suleiman to prevail, declare John II a king, and placing himself as a

regent In a monarchy, a regent () is a person appointed to govern a state because the actual monarch is a minor, absent, incapacitated or unable to discharge their powers and duties, or the throne is vacant and a new monarch has not yet been dete ...

. A large portion of Hungary became essentially a Turkish province, complete with Ottoman governor and garrison in Buda.

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* Habsburg–Ottoman wars in Hungary (1526–1568) Nagyvarad, Treaty of Oradea Nagyvarad Nagyvarad 16th century in Transylvania 1538 treaties 16th century in Hungary 1538 in the Habsburg monarchy Eastern Hungarian Kingdom Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor {{Treaty-stub

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