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First Mongol invasion of Hungary
The first invasion of the Kingdom of Hungary by the Mongol Empire started in March 1241. The Mongols started to withdraw in late March 1242.
The Hungarians had first learned about the Mongol threat in 1229, when King Andrew II granted asylum to some fleeing Rus' boyars. Some Magyars (Hungarians), left behind during the main migration to the Pannonian basin, still lived on the banks of the upper Volga (it is believed by some that the descendants of this group are the modern-day Bashkirs, although these people now speak a Turkic language, not Magyar). In 1237 a Dominican friar, Julianus, set off on an expedition to lead them back, and was sent back to King Béla with a letter from Batu Khan, Mongol ruler and founder of the Golden Horde. In this letter, Batu called upon the Hungarian king to surrender his kingdom unconditionally to the "Tatar" forces or face complete destruction. Béla did not reply, and two more messages were later delivered to Hungary. The first, in 1239, was sent by the defeated Cuman tribes, who asked for and received asylum in Hungary. The second was sent in February 1241 from Poland which was facing an invasion from another Mongol force.
The military doctrine of the Hungarian kings prohibited nobles from constructing private stone castles/fortresses for their own protection within the realm during most of the high medieval era. Consequently, the building of stone castles was an exclusive royal monopoly in the Kingdom of Hungary. It was believed that privately built strongholds by landowners could ultimately lead to the strengthening of oligarchy and a decline in the royal power. Castles were only authorized to be built in strategically significant locations deemed important by the monarchs, primarily along the western border near the Holy Roman Empire. This policy proved to be successful to preserve the nearly absolute royal power in the realm, however it backfired during the Mongol attacks.
Following their defeat in 1239 soon after the Mongol invasion of Rus', many Cuman-Kipchak peoples were driven from their steppes further west or south. One such tribe was that of Khan Köten. According to Rogerius, Köten led a group consisting of 40,000 familias (a Latin phrase with multiple meanings) into Hungary. Some historians interpret this as Köten's tribe consisting of 40,000 families, though as pointed out by Hungarian historian András Pálóczi-Horváth the land the Cumans were expected to settle on could only support 17,000 families, suggesting Köten led 40,000 people in total. Köten sought asylum in the nearby kingdom of Hungary; the king responded that they could do so as long as the Cumans would convert to Catholicism and acknowledge him as their overlord, providing military service.
Köten agreed to Béla's conditions, promising to convert to Christianity and fight the Mongols (referred to as "Tatars" by the Hungarians). The king promptly gave them leave to settle in the plains along the Tisza River. However the Cumans, used to a nomadic and raid-based lifestyle, did not get on well with the sedentary population of Hungary. Many cases of robbery and rape were reported with Cumans as the perpetrators; Béla often refused to punish these transgressions, as he was reluctant to start a conflict with the Cumans, especially when he was already expecting a Mongol invasion. Townspeople also accused the Cumans of being agents of the Mongols.
Five separate Mongol armies invaded Hungary in 1241. The main army under Batu and Subutai crossed through the Verecke Pass. The army of Qadan and Büri crossed through the Borgói Pass. Two smaller forces under Böchek and the noyan Bogutai entered Hungary from the southeast. The army that had invaded Poland under Orda and Baidar invaded Hungary from the northwest.
Events surrounding the Mongol invasion invasion of Dalmatia were described by medieval chronicler of Split - Thomas the Archdeacon - who was also a contemporary of these events. Thomas described the atrocities committed by the Tatars against the population of Hungary. Thomas claims that after king Béla IV returned from Austria, he spent some time in Zagreb, contemplating what to do next. Thomas claims that Béla evacuated his wife and daughters along with remains of St Stephen from Szekezfehervar and send them to the littoral parts of the Kingdom. King and his entourage eventually left Zagreb and came to Split. He demanded its citizens to prepare him a boat, which they couldn't do as fast as he demanded, so Béla took refuge on an island in nearby Trogir where he also placed his court. Meanwhile, Mongols went on pursuit after king. Thomas claims that Mongols did not manage to kill much of the Slavic population as people took refuge in mountains and forests. After massacring prisoners near what is probably Srb, Mongol armies reached Split. As Mongols ravaged the town hinterland, citizens of Split prepared ballistic devices on their town walls.
According to Thomas, Mongols thought that Béla resided in nearby Klis fortress, so they started attacking the fortress, but they could not inflict much damage due to Klis' strategic position on a hilltop. They therefore dismounted from their horses and climbed the steep rocks on which the fortress was built. Defenders hurled rocks on climbing Tatars, kiling several, but the attacks became even fearcer and eventually hand-to-hand combat ensued, and the Mongols started looting the fortress. The Mongols eventually realized that the Hungarian king was not in Klis, so they aborted their attacks on the fort and went towards Trogir and Split.
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First Mongol invasion of Hungary
The first invasion of the Kingdom of Hungary by the Mongol Empire started in March 1241. The Mongols started to withdraw in late March 1242.
The Hungarians had first learned about the Mongol threat in 1229, when King Andrew II granted asylum to some fleeing Rus' boyars. Some Magyars (Hungarians), left behind during the main migration to the Pannonian basin, still lived on the banks of the upper Volga (it is believed by some that the descendants of this group are the modern-day Bashkirs, although these people now speak a Turkic language, not Magyar). In 1237 a Dominican friar, Julianus, set off on an expedition to lead them back, and was sent back to King Béla with a letter from Batu Khan, Mongol ruler and founder of the Golden Horde. In this letter, Batu called upon the Hungarian king to surrender his kingdom unconditionally to the "Tatar" forces or face complete destruction. Béla did not reply, and two more messages were later delivered to Hungary. The first, in 1239, was sent by the defeated Cuman tribes, who asked for and received asylum in Hungary. The second was sent in February 1241 from Poland which was facing an invasion from another Mongol force.
The military doctrine of the Hungarian kings prohibited nobles from constructing private stone castles/fortresses for their own protection within the realm during most of the high medieval era. Consequently, the building of stone castles was an exclusive royal monopoly in the Kingdom of Hungary. It was believed that privately built strongholds by landowners could ultimately lead to the strengthening of oligarchy and a decline in the royal power. Castles were only authorized to be built in strategically significant locations deemed important by the monarchs, primarily along the western border near the Holy Roman Empire. This policy proved to be successful to preserve the nearly absolute royal power in the realm, however it backfired during the Mongol attacks.
Following their defeat in 1239 soon after the Mongol invasion of Rus', many Cuman-Kipchak peoples were driven from their steppes further west or south. One such tribe was that of Khan Köten. According to Rogerius, Köten led a group consisting of 40,000 familias (a Latin phrase with multiple meanings) into Hungary. Some historians interpret this as Köten's tribe consisting of 40,000 families, though as pointed out by Hungarian historian András Pálóczi-Horváth the land the Cumans were expected to settle on could only support 17,000 families, suggesting Köten led 40,000 people in total. Köten sought asylum in the nearby kingdom of Hungary; the king responded that they could do so as long as the Cumans would convert to Catholicism and acknowledge him as their overlord, providing military service.
Köten agreed to Béla's conditions, promising to convert to Christianity and fight the Mongols (referred to as "Tatars" by the Hungarians). The king promptly gave them leave to settle in the plains along the Tisza River. However the Cumans, used to a nomadic and raid-based lifestyle, did not get on well with the sedentary population of Hungary. Many cases of robbery and rape were reported with Cumans as the perpetrators; Béla often refused to punish these transgressions, as he was reluctant to start a conflict with the Cumans, especially when he was already expecting a Mongol invasion. Townspeople also accused the Cumans of being agents of the Mongols.
Five separate Mongol armies invaded Hungary in 1241. The main army under Batu and Subutai crossed through the Verecke Pass. The army of Qadan and Büri crossed through the Borgói Pass. Two smaller forces under Böchek and the noyan Bogutai entered Hungary from the southeast. The army that had invaded Poland under Orda and Baidar invaded Hungary from the northwest.
Events surrounding the Mongol invasion invasion of Dalmatia were described by medieval chronicler of Split - Thomas the Archdeacon - who was also a contemporary of these events. Thomas described the atrocities committed by the Tatars against the population of Hungary. Thomas claims that after king Béla IV returned from Austria, he spent some time in Zagreb, contemplating what to do next. Thomas claims that Béla evacuated his wife and daughters along with remains of St Stephen from Szekezfehervar and send them to the littoral parts of the Kingdom. King and his entourage eventually left Zagreb and came to Split. He demanded its citizens to prepare him a boat, which they couldn't do as fast as he demanded, so Béla took refuge on an island in nearby Trogir where he also placed his court. Meanwhile, Mongols went on pursuit after king. Thomas claims that Mongols did not manage to kill much of the Slavic population as people took refuge in mountains and forests. After massacring prisoners near what is probably Srb, Mongol armies reached Split. As Mongols ravaged the town hinterland, citizens of Split prepared ballistic devices on their town walls.
According to Thomas, Mongols thought that Béla resided in nearby Klis fortress, so they started attacking the fortress, but they could not inflict much damage due to Klis' strategic position on a hilltop. They therefore dismounted from their horses and climbed the steep rocks on which the fortress was built. Defenders hurled rocks on climbing Tatars, kiling several, but the attacks became even fearcer and eventually hand-to-hand combat ensued, and the Mongols started looting the fortress. The Mongols eventually realized that the Hungarian king was not in Klis, so they aborted their attacks on the fort and went towards Trogir and Split.