Matthias Corvinus

Lore & Background

Matthias was born in Kolozsvár (now Cluj-Napoca in Romania) on 23 February 1443, the second son of John Hunyadi and Elizabeth Szilágyi. His education was managed by his mother; Gregory of Sanok was his only teacher whose name is known. Matthias learnt many languages and read classical literature. According to Antonio Bonfini, Matthias 'was versed in all the tongues of Europe', with the exceptions of Turkish and Greek. Bonfini also wrote that he needed an interpreter to speak with a POW during his Moldavian campaign. The late 16th-century Polish historian Krzystoff Warszewiecki wrote that Matthias had been able to understand the Romanian language of the envoys of Stephen the Great, Prince of Moldavia. In 1457, Matthias was imprisoned along with his older brother, Ladislaus Hunyadi, on the orders of King Ladislaus the Posthumous. Ladislaus Hunyadi was executed, causing a rebellion that forced King Ladislaus to flee Hungary. After the King died unexpectedly, Matthias's uncle Michael Szilágyi persuaded the Estates to unanimously proclaim the 14-year-old Matthias as king on 24 January 1458. He began his rule under his uncle's guardianship, but he took effective control of government within two weeks. As king, Matthias waged wars against the Czech mercenaries who dominated Upper Hungary and against Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor, who claimed Hungary for himself. He signed a peace treaty with Frederick III in 1463, acknowledging the Emperor's right to style himself King of Hungary. The Emperor returned the Holy Crown of Hungary with which Matthias was crowned on 29 March 1464. In this year, Matthias invaded the territories that had recently been occupied by the Ottomans and seized fortresses in Bosnia. He soon realized he could expect no substantial aid from the Christian powers and gave up his anti-Ottoman policy. Matthias introduced new taxes and regularly set taxation at extraordinary levels. These measures caused a rebellion in Transylvania in 1467, but he subdued the rebels. The next year, Matthias declared war on George of Poděbrady, the Hussite King of Bohemia, and conquered Moravia, Silesia, and Lusatia, but he could not occupy Bohemia proper. The Catholic Estates proclaimed him King of Bohemia on 3 May 1469, but the Hussite lords refused to yield to him even after the death of their leader George of Poděbrady in 1471. Instead, they elected Vladislaus Jagiellon. A group of Hungarian prelates and lords offered the throne to Vladislaus's younger brother Casimir, but Matthias overcame their rebellion. Having routed the united troops of Casimir IV and Vladislaus at Breslau in Silesia (now Wrocław in Poland) in late 1474, Matthias turned against the Ottomans, who had devastated the eastern parts of Hungary. He sent reinforcements to Stephen the Great, Prince of Moldavia, enabling Stephen to repel a series of Ottoman invasions in the late 1470s. In 1476, Matthias besieged and seized Šabac, an important Ottoman border fort. He concluded a peace treaty with Vladislaus Jagiellon in 1478, confirming the division of the Lands of the Bohemian Crown between them. Matthias waged a war against Emperor Frederick and occupied Lower Austria between 1482 and 1487.

Reader's Guide

Matthias Corvinus is significant for his military, administrative, and cultural achievements. He established one of the earliest professional standing armies of medieval Europe, the Black Army of Hungary, which allowed him to conduct successful campaigns against the Ottomans, the Holy Roman Empire, and Bohemia. He reformed the administration of justice, reduced the power of the barons, and promoted talented individuals based on ability rather than social status. His patronage of art and science made Hungary the first country to embrace the Renaissance from Italy, and his royal library, the Bibliotheca Corviniana, was one of the largest book collections in Europe. As 'Matthias the Just,' the monarch who wandered among his subjects in disguise, he remains a popular hero of Hungarian and Slovak folk tales. His reign marked a period of strong centralization and cultural flourishing, though his heavy taxation and wars also caused internal unrest.

Did You Know?

• Matthias was imprisoned in 1457 along with his older brother Ladislaus Hunyadi on the orders of King Ladislaus the Posthumous; Ladislaus was executed two days later on 16 March 1457.
• Matthias was elected king at age 14 on 24 January 1458, after his uncle Michael Szilágyi arrived at the Diet with 15,000 troops.
• According to Antonio Bonfini, Matthias 'was versed in all the tongues of Europe' except Turkish and Greek, and could speak Hungarian, Latin, Italian, Polish, Czech, and German.
• Matthias's royal library, the Bibliotheca Corviniana, was one of the largest collections of books in Europe.
• Matthias besieged and seized Šabac, an important Ottoman border fort, in 1476.