Gesta Hungarorum (Deeds of the Hungarians)

[Victor1234]

Starting Game Info:

Started as Laszlo Arpad, Count of Bihar, in the 1066 scenario.

Patch: 1.05 (no mods)
Difficulty: Normal
AI Aggressiveness: Aggressive

Table of Contents: Has been added with dates and links to each chapter. When viewing them, the entire page has to load first, so if you click a link, it will take you to the exact chapter after the page it is on has loaded (usually 1-2 seconds after)

Table of Contents:
Prologue: Farkasokból Szentek
Chapter I: Prelude to War (1066-1080)
Chapter II: The First Galich War (1080-1082)
Chapter III: The First Croatian War (1082-1089)
Chapter IV: The Wallachian Adventure (1089-1092)
Chapter V: The Moldavian Crusade (1092-1096)
Chapter VI: The Last Proclamation of King Kálmán, 8th King of Hungary
Chapter VII: The Second Galich/Second Croatian War (1096-1101)
Chapter VIII: The First Crusade (for the Holy Land) (1101-1106)
Chapter IX: The Interlude (1106-1114)
Chapter X: The Third Croatian War (1114-1116)
Chapter XI: The Third Polish War (1116-1120)
Chapter XII: The Continuation Of War (1120-1126)
Chapter XIII: The Ascension of the Árpád-Bihar Line (1123)
Chapter XIV: The Kingdom of Hungary (1126)
Chapter XV: The Peaceful Reign (1126-1132)
Chapter XVI: The Fourth Croatian War (1132-1134)
Chapter XVII: The Golden Years (1134-1145)
Chapter XVIII: The Cleansing of the Land (1145-1159)
Chapter XIX: The Roman Crusade (1159-1176)
Chapter XX: The Fourth Polish War (1176-1179)
Chapter XXI: The Second Crusade (for the Holy Land) (1179-1182)
Chapter XXII: The First Bulgarian War (1182-1198)
Chapter XXIII: The Westward Expansion (1198-1201)
Chapter XXIV: The Austrian Debt Paid (1201-1207)
Chapter XXV: The Sixth Polish War (1207-1212)
Chapter XXVI: The Valencian Crusade (1212-1217)
Chapter XXVII: The Wars of Hungarian Expansion (1217-1222)
Chapter XXVIII: The Affairs of the Kingdom (1222)
Chapter XXIX: The Reckoning (1222-1231)
Chapter XXX: The Reforms of King Antal (1231-1250)
Chapter XXXI: The Pax Hungarorum (1250-1255)
Chapter XXXII: The Pax Hungarorum Continued (1255-1259)
Chapter XXXIII: The Expansion of the Infidels (1259-1262)
Chapter XXXIV: The Second Roman Crusade (1262-1264)
Chapter XXXV: The Island Expansion (1264-1266)
Chapter XXXVI: The End of the Pax Hungarorum (1266-1270)
Chapter XXXVII: The Third Roman Crusade (1270-1272)
Chapter XXXVIII: The Dangerous Years (1272-1277)
Chapter XXXIX: The Wars of King István (1277-1283)
Chapter XL: The Second German War (1283-1287)
Chapter XLI: The Beginning of the Reconquest (1287-1289)
Chapter XLII: The German Campaign of the Reconquest (1289-1293)
Chapter XLIII: The Irish Campaign of the Reconquest (1293-1298)
Chapter XLIV: The Italian Campaign of the Reconquest (1298-1304)
Chapter XLV: The Last Campaign of the Reconquest (1304-1307)
Chapter XLVI: The Syrian Adventure (1307-1312)
Chapter XLVII: The Opening Moves (1312-1320)
Chapter XLVIII: The War Against the Kingdom of the Fatamids (1320-1326)
Chapter XLIX: The Military Reforms of King Kálmán (1326-1344)
Chapter L: The First Southern Incursion (1344-1361)
Chapter LI: The Final Southern Incursion (1361-1376)
Chapter LII: The End of the Rise to Power (1376-1419)
Epilogue


World Update (1120)
World Update (1250)
End-game World Update (1419)



Link to next part of the Hungarian Quartet
Gesta Hungarorum: Book II

 

[Victor1234]

Prologue: Farkasokból Szentek (From Wolves into Saints)​

In the beginning, there were two brothers, Hunor and Magor, who upon the death of their father, undertook a hunting trip outside of their lands with a hundred of their warriors on horseback. Upon leaving their lands, there they saw a magnificent deer to which they gave chase. As they chased it, it moved away from them and they could not catch it. They gave chase for a full day and still had not caught it. When night fell, they also lost sight of it's tracks and made camp for the night. The next morning, the deer re-appeared and the hunters gave chase once more, but once again failed to reach and catch it, losing the tracks with nightfall and making camp. This was repeated for many days as the brothers and their warriors followed the deer's tracks farther and farther from their homeland. One morning, when the brothers had finally lost their way completely, even the tracks back to their homeland, the deer did not appear again. The brothers and their horsemen camped near a nearby forest, when during the night they heard wonderous music coming from the other side of the forest. They followed the sound of the music, going deeper and deeper into the forest, when at last they came to a clearing, where there were beautiful maidens dancing, and amongst the maidens, two princesses, daughters of the Alan Prince Dul. The maidens were startled by the approach of strangers and fled, as did the princesses, but the brothers and their warriors gave chase and captured them. The brothers Hunor and Magor coupled with the two Alan princesses, while their warriors coupled with the other hundred maidens. After they multiplied, the descendants of Hunor became the Huns and those of Magor became the Hungarians.

In 400 AD, there still existed the tribe of Hunor and of Magor between the rivers of the Volga and the Kama and the Ural Mountains, in the ancient homeland called Baskíria. They then deemed those lands to be too few for both tribes to live together, and so the tribe of Hunor went west, crossed the Volga river and advanced into Europe towards the Roman Empire and made their mark in history as the Huns of Attila, the Scourge of God. The other, remained in this homeland and warred with the neighbouring Ogur Turks (Bulgars), Permians and Mordvins (Volgaic Finns) for some time. The tribe of Magor eventually left Baskíria and went south-west to Levédia at the banks of the Don river in 463 AD. Here, they lived for some years until the tribe split apart and seven tribes went west to Etelköz in the southern Ukraine on the banks of the Dnieper, while the rest, the Szavárd Hungarians, headed south into the Caucasian lands of Armenia.

The arrival of the Hungarians to Kijev and Etelköz


In 820 AD, the seven tribes in Etelköz were engaged in warfare with those around them, sometimes hiring themselves out as mercenaries and sometimes warring with each other. It was then that Emese, wife of Egyek, leader of one of the tribes, was impregnated while she slept, by the Turul and it was prophesied that the son who would be born would be the ancestor of Kings. This son was born and named Álmos (Sleepy), who would by his leadership and skill in battle rise to be the overlord of the seven tribes. He then bid each leader of the other six tribes to enter into a blood oath with him, which they did and as their blood mixed in the dish, thereby the nation of the Hungarians was born. Álmos died thereafter, to be succeeded by his son, Árpád.

The blood oath, where the seven leaders cut their forearms and let their blood drip into a dish to mix.


Árpád, son of Álmos, rose to lead the Hungarians upon the death of his father. Around 890 AD, when encamped along the Don river, an eagle swooped out of the skies and attacked the horses of the warriors in camp. The warriors could not hit the eagle with their bows, for it was too quick, but then the Turul appeared out of the skies and slew the eagle, after which it circled the camp and then flew off to the west. Árpád felt that where the Turul led them, there they would find their true homeland, and so he bid his warriors and his nation to break camp and pledged to follow the Turul wherever it would go. This they did, and followed the Turul for many weeks west, until at last they reached the land which the Romans called Pannonia, the lands between the Duna, Tisza and Dráva rivers. Here lived the Avars, whom the Hungarians put to flight with great ease, and after they were driven off, the Turul circled above this land once more. Árpád decreed that this was to be the homeland of the Hungarians and the nation marvelled at the fertility of the land, the purity of the water and the beauty of the skies. Árpád bid that his tent be erected on the island in the Duna, which he named Csepel, after the boy who cared for his horse.

The Turul (a sort of falcon)


In 906 AD, Árpád bid that the Hungarians launch raiding expeditions to the west, north, south and east, to plunder and pillage and to bring the wealth of Europe back to their homeland. This, they did, and for fifty years, the Hungarians, with their nimble horse archers, raided and plundered far and wide, meeting no foe who could match them. Great cities such as Rome (plundered in 936), Pavia and Pisa, or mighty empires such as Byzantium, were forced to pay tribute to the Hungarians. Towns in lands as far away as Aragon and northern Saxony were pillaged, while the great cities of the Franks were likewise plundered, such as Reims, Tours, Paris, Chalons, Aachen, Cologne, Trier and Tiel. Thuringia, Saxony, Bavaria, Swabia and northern Italy paid tribute to the Hungarians to be granted safety from their raids. All this changed in 955 AD, when Otto I. of the Germans challenged the Hungarian expedition against Ausburg, and at the Battle of Lech, met the Hungarians on the field. The army of Otto I broke and ran in disorder like all armies facing the Hungarians had, but as the Hungarian raiders dismounted to raid and loot the German camp, Otto rallied his men and returned to the battlefield. There, weighed down by their plunder and unable to reach their horses, the Hungarians were defeated for the first time, and all the raiders fled or killed, while their leaders were captured or killed. Lehel, one of the leaders, was granted a last request before his execution. He asked to play a tune on his horn for the German Emperor, and when he was given it, moved closer to the Emperor and struck him with the horn's sharp point. In an instant, the Emperor was slain, and Lehel proclaimed that now the Emperor will go before him and serve him in the afterlife, as was the belief of the Hungarians that any who was killed would serve his killer thereafter. Lehel was hung in Regensburg from a tree, and would have no master in the afterlife, for no man took his life. Thus ended the raiding and plunder in the west and north and south. In the east, one last expedition against Byzantium was prepared by Szvjatoszlav of Kiev, who leading some Hungarian, Bulgar and Pecheneg mercenaries, strove to sack the city of Byzantium and failed. Thereafter, the Hungarian horsemen raided no more, and lived in peace with their neighbours.

The conquest of Pannonia and the raids



In 1000 AD, Vajk, leader of the Hungarians, was baptized István by Thietmar, Bishop of Merseburg, and thereafter the Pope dispatched a crown to István, King of Hungary. Under his rule, paganism was stamped out, the ancient runic writings destroyed, bishoprics established, castles and churches erected and Latin made the language of the realm. The Kingdom of Hungary was born.

The baptism of King István (Stephen), King of Hungary and later Saint.

​

Whereupon, in the year of our Lord one-thousand and sixty-six, the third year of the reign of King Salamon of Hungary, Dezsõ, Archbishop of Pressburg, acting as regent for his young leige, did decree the creation of the Gesta Hungarorum. The place of storage for this new work was decreed to be the Royal Library at Pozsony (Pressburg), where hence a council of the archbishop, two bishops, chosen each year anew and four scribes would regularily convene to preserve forever the affairs of the Kingdom.

 

[KuzuX]

A new comment for a new AAR!!!! (that means Wonderful StAARt,hopefully :rofl: )

 

[unmerged(63836)]

This could be interesting AAR. Not many hungarian-ones. I`ll follow this

 

[canadiancreed]

This could be interesting AAR. Not many hungarian-ones. I`ll follow this

Indeed. I think that Hungary is the red-headed stepchild of the Easten euro kingdoms in CK. Not as glamorous as Poland, but quite intresting if played right.

Good luck with this. First thing I'd look to do is get rid fo those horrid provinces in the Transylvania area.

 

[Veldmaarschalk]

Good luck with your AAR-project, Victor !

 

[Victor1234]

Book I
Chapter I: Prelude to War



At the coming of the year of our Lord one-thousand and sixty-seven, the realm faced an uncertain time. The young King, in the second-last year under the benevolent regency of the Archbishop of Pressburg, began asserting greater control over his affairs, contrary to tradition which dictated that the regent was to have final say in all matters until the monarch came of age. Some say it was in his suspicious nature to begin assuming such responsibilities, for both foreigner and Hungarian became suspect in plots against the King. Even the Queen, Jutta of the House of Franken, for a time was locked up in her royal chambers for fear she would poison the King's food. Yet, for all his suspicions, no plot materialized and the realm remained fallow and poor. All revenues went to the maintenance of a large network of spies and men to maintain control in the Kingdom in the constant look-out for assassins. The King, misguided in the arts of warfare, forbade the age-old tradition of horse archers upon whose strength the Kingdom itself had been founded, believing it too cowardly and contrary to the laws of chivalry. Yet from foreign lands came the grumble of war. The Principality of Galich, had, as spies reported, been mobilising men-at-arms and knights as well as supplies and other provisions of war for a long campaign. From the realm itself, news of the Duke of Székesfehérvár's secret correspondance with the Prince of Galich become known. Yet the King, believing this to be yet another assassination plot against his royal person, ordered the execution of such spies, so that in future, no such reports would arrive. Furthermore, suspicious of the intentions of his brother-in-law, King Heinrich of Germany, whose sister he had married in order to combine the strength of Germany and Hungary, shunned this new-found ally in favor of an alliance with the Count of Ostrava, thereby weakening the balance of arms until the advantage rested solely with the Prince of Galich.

Salamon, 6th King of Hungary, 4th Hungarian King from the House of Árpád


Excerpt from "The History of the House of Árpád"
included: 1130 A.D.


Around this time, in the year 1070 AD, the Árpád-Bihar branch of the House of Árpád under the leadership of László, first Count of Bihar, third in line to the throne of Hungary, did receive consent from the House of Ják, of the Székesfehérvár branch, to take in wedlock the eldest born daughter of the Duke of Székesfehérvár, Anna Jak. In doing so, he did solidify his prospects as third in line of succession, to the Duchy as well, by way of agreement with the Duke. László had thus far gained a reputation as one well versed in the crafts of war and a man of many virtues and faults. He had become a man just, yet proud, energetic, yet trusting, indulgent, yet brilliant. The tidings of the plot against the Kingdom begun by the Duke of Székesfehérvár soon reached the ears of László as well. Shortly thereafter other advisors in the court, amongst them the Marshal and Steward, conferred with László of the treason of the Duke, suggesting that perhaps the Count's wife, the daughter of the Duke, was no more than a spy for the Duke himself. Yet, he would not hear of it, trusting totally in the fidelity of his wife.

Laszlo Arpad, 1st Count of Bihar

The Kingdom of Hungary

 

[Victor1234]

KuzuX: Thanks for the well-wishes, and congrats on first reader response in the AAR

thrashing mad: Yep, as far as I can see, there are only 2 other Crusader Kings AARs that feature Hungary, and one of them was the Beta AAR...the other appears as if it is abandoned.

canadiancreed: Thanks, the game did get really interesting down the line, although as a lowly Count, I don't really run the Kingdom yet, so weird things happen. Among them is always that Germany gets a piece of the eastern part of Hungary....Salamon and Jutta never have children, Jutta is always given a country(sometimes, as in my game, even a Duchy), if Salamon dies, Jutta doesn't re-marry, so when Jutta and Salamon die, Heinrich (German King) takes the land....which is a pain to get back later on. Oh well

Veldmaarschalk: Thanks, your suggestions and tips were very useful

 

[Victor1234]

Chapter II: The First Galich War



Time passed quickly in the realm following the whispers of war. The young King soon attained manhood and the Archbishop retired to the monastery that had served him as lodgings before the regency. The King had a modest change in colour, no longer as suspicious as in his younger years, yet the wealth of the Kingdom was still largely his royal purse rather than the means for the enrichment of the land. For ten years still did the King of Hungary receive news of further indications of war. Amongst his vassals, his cousin, Lászl?ó Árpád, Count of Bihar, did even bring for his royal inspection correspondance between the Duke of Székesfehérvár and the Prince of Galich. However, intrigue lingered still until it spread amongst the Kingdom like a foul poison. The letters themselves, bearing a mysterious seal in the form of a crow-like bird, remained a mystery. For yet there was no such Principality of Galich existant. In part due to the absolving of his earlier royal perogatives against the reporting of news from abroad, reports of troop movements and preparations of war to the north of the Kingdom arrived, arousing curiosity as only the Principality of Kiev was known to lie directly north of the Kingdom. Thus far in time, the Principality had little contact with the realm, yet the turmoil and rumours of a new war continued. Whereupon, alarming reports of foreign troops entering the Kingdom from the north arrived at the Royal Court at Pozsony. Upon the verification of these reports, it was discovered that the object of the rumours of the past ten years, the elusive Prince of Galich, was none other than Izyaslav Rurikovich, Prince of Kiev, Galich and Turov. In keeping with the practice native to feudal orders of the time, the treachorous Prince was known only by his primary title, as the Prince of Kiev. Yet, there was no mistaking that the invading army was under the flag of the same Principality of Kiev.

Treachorous Prince of Kiev, Galich and Turov


At once, the mobilization of all the realm began in earnest for a counter-attack aimed at the heartland of the Principality of Kiev, Kiev itself. Yet the Hungarian with whom the Prince of Kiev had conspired, the Duke of Székesfehérvár, chose the start of the war to declare himself free of the feudal contract by which the King of Hungary had granted him his lands.

The Traitorous Duke


Amongst those pledged to fulfill their feudal obligations and provide troops for the war, there were narry a man in all the realm whom did not hence flock to the Royal Army of the King. With all the implements of war maintained, the soldiers did begin a march northwards, to break the seiges which had begun by the host of Kiev and to end the reign of terror and looting spread by the invading army. In the year of our Lord one-thousand and eighty, did the knights of the King drive back the invading hordes and launch their own attack into the lands of this most un-Christian of foes. Soon, after four seiges lasting less than three months time and two battles where the host of Hungary was victorious over the host of Kiev, did Kiev, Galich, Torki and Terebolv fall to the Kingdom. Yet the King, leading his troops further north still, fell prey to vile traps launched from the east where the wicked Prince still held power. The celebrated warrior of Kiev, that most barbarian of men, serving now in the armies of Kiev with the troops of the County of Korsun, Burikhan of Manych, did lead a counter-attack to the counter-attack of the Kingdom, beseiging the defenders of Terebolv.

The army of Kiev

The evil barbarian


To break the seige, the young King Salamon did march his army from neighbouring Galich, amongst his host, the regiments of the Count of Bihar, László Árpád.

King Salamon of Hungary shortly before the Battle of Terebolv


In the ensuing battle, the young King and the barbarian Burikhan did meet in personal combat according to the rules of chivalry whereupon out of the nearby woods, three Kievan horsemen did ride to murder the King. Fighting against both the horsemen and the evil Marshal himself, did he slay all three horsemen before receiving a fatal wound from the Marshal, who promptly rode back to his men, exposing his cowardly manner and unchivalrous character. Upon the appearance of the interlopers, the Count of Bihar did rally the knights and charged forth, desperate to save the life of the King, alas, arriving too late to furnish any aid. Thereupon the knights led by the Count did charge forth once more, breaking the seige and driving all the enemy from the field in confusion and despair. Among those who fled the field was he, the evil Marshal. Yet before the battle had ended, King Salamon of Hungary lay dead, succumbed to his wound.

King Salamon of Hungary, killed by the evil Marshal

László Árpád, Count of Bihar, Hero of the Battle of Terebolv

 

[Victor1234]

Following the death of the King, the Council of Nobles did elect Géza Árpád, cousin of the late King, as the new King of Hungary. Yet there was no time for a formal coronation, as the war still raged on. Following battles fought further north and east of Kiev, the new King did release the regiments of most vassals from further war obligations and continued to offer battle with his personal troops. Unknown to the new King, however, the traitor, the Duke of Székesfehérvár had, since the death of King Salamon, been mobilizing his knights for a campaign and did declare war upon the Kingdom in support of his Kievan allies. Count László Árpád, returned home to Bihar after being released from the feudal obligations of the war in Kiev, did now embark to crush this traitor once and for all. Battling the enemy troops still, King Géza of Hungary did bestow upon his brother László, the title and land of the Duke of Székesfehérvár and the land of the County of Vas and Székesfehérvár in the year one-thousand and eighty-two. The rebel traitor did, however, escape the forces of pious justice and sought refugee in the land of Bohemia, to live out his days until death or a return to power.

László Árpád, Duke of Székesfehérvár

Escaped Traitor


Upon the final victory of the war over the forces of Kiev did King Géza of Hungary return finally to his native land, to be annointed and formally crowned the seventh King of Hungary at the castle of Székesfehérvár, the locality where the Kings of Hungary had always been crowned.

Géza, 7th King of Hungary

The Kingdom after the First Galich War







Excerpt from "The History of the House of Árpád"
included: 1130 A.D.


In 1080 AD did the 1st Count of Bihar, László of the House of Árpád, engage the forces of the evil Principality of Kiev and take the field for the Kingdom of Hungary. Whereupon, returning home to wife whom he had seen not for a year, did he commence to make for the domain of the traitorous Duke of Székesfehérvár, who even now called on László to rise in rebellion with him. This wicked man, Márton Ják, did attempt to include his eldest daughter in the treason, but she would none of it, swearing her steadfast devotion to her husband and her Kingdom. Moved by his wife's devotion to him, László took to field with twice the vigor of previous battles, defeating the forces of the rebel Duke at Vas and thence laying seige to both castles under the Duke's evil grasp. Having caused the traitor to flee the realm and in view of his dutiful loyalty to the Crown, did the new King of Hungary, Géza, conclude the feudal contract with László, his younger brother, to grant him the Duchy of Székesfehérvár and the Counties of Vas and Székesfehérvár.

 

[Victor1234]

Note to self: Include less pictures.....I actually had to split this update in two because the forum wouldn't let me post so many pictures at once

 

[Veldmaarschalk]

Great story so far, you had some luck though with the rebellion of duke Márton

 

[Victor1234]

Yep, originally, I picked Laszlo, because he was 3rd in line to the throne, and I thought I'd just have to wait until I became King....skipping the Duke level altogether....until I realized that older brother Geza is a baby producing-machine....and I keep getting further and further from the throne....so then it really was lucky that this came along, because it would've taken much more time to become a Duke otherwise (the surrounding counties are either bishoprics, or hard to marry into....so it would've taken much, much longer to become a Duke)

 

[Victor1234]

Oh, and out of curiosity, what do the readers think about the quantity of screenshots posted? Post alot (ie, current level, about everything), post average (new Hungarian kings, my characters, land changes in war and the occassional special character screenie), or few (just new kings and my characters)?

 

[Olaus Petrus]

Nice progress. Being a duke opens many more possibilities than being a count.

It surprises me how well AI Hungary defeated Kiev.

Oh, and out of curiosity, what do the readers think about the quantity of screenshots posted? Post alot (ie, current level, about everything), post average (new Hungarian kings, my characters, land changes in war and the occassional special character screenie), or few (just new kings and my characters)?

Alot or average. Maps and important characters are interesting and make following AAR easier.

 

[Victor1234]

Nice progress. Being a duke opens many more possibilities than being a count.

It surprises me how well AI Hungary defeated Kiev.



Alot or average. Maps and important characters are interesting and make following AAR easier.

Thanks, the AI gets really stupid later....but you'll read all about that too

 

[Victor1234]

Chapter III: The First Croatian War



Whereupon the war with the Principality of Kiev had ended in terms of clash of arms, there still remained a peace to be signed. Such a peace was worked out and agreed to, whereby the Prince of Kiev would cede to the Kingdom all lands and titles pertaining thereof, except the Principality of Galich. Such was the mercy of King Géza of Hungary. Yet for those whose purpose was naught but evil against the Kingdom, there would be no mercy. So acting in dutiful obedience to the King's will, László, Duke of Székesfehérvár, dispatched armed men to the Ducky of Kiev, a new vassal of the Kingdom, with the aim of apprehending the murderer of the dearly departed King Salamon. These men found their mark, when word came from Kiev of the successful assassination of Burikhan.

The barbarian finally brought to justice


Thus four years passed with peace for all, where prosperity reigned in the life of the Kingdom, culminating in a new period of advancement in the Kingdom. For in some regions of land, roads were built, forests cleared and libraries built to spread the seeds of knowledge to all.

Yet even as the men-at-arms of the Kingdom enjoyed their return to the homeland, a new adversary presented itself in the form of the Kingdom of Croatia. The King of the Croatians, by way of insult, had sent to King Géza a feudal contract, whereby the Kingdom of Hungary would pay fealty to the Kingdom of Croatia and King Géza would become a suppliant before the King of Croatia. Seizing upon the outcry of the nobles, clergy and people of the land, war was declared against the wily Croatians, leading to another great mobilization for war. Thereupon, drawing men and horses from his newly invested lands, did László, Duke of Székesfehérvár, lead an army into the lands of Croatia to avenge the honour of Hungary.

The host of László through the Croatian land


The Battle of Zagreb began with the Croatian host arriving to lift the seige of the castle, led by Bernadin Draskovic.

The enemy commander


As the relief force approached the seige, the Hungarian knights formed and turned to charge the approaching Croatians. The knights, led by the brave Duke László, routed those of the Croatian Bernadin Draskovic, whereupon László himself, amidst four knights of the enemy did slay Bernadin, causing the remnants of his army to flee as well.

The slain enemy commander


Yet even as the investment of castles in the lands of Croatia were ongoing, the devious ally of the Croatians, the Polish, soon declared war, requiring the attentions of King Géza himself to be diverted towards this frontier. The Poles, by some form of false strategy, elected to march their troops through the Kingdom of Germany in a broad sweep west, then east, in order to crush the Hungarian armies.

The investment of enemy castles


Due to their long and tiresome march over lands not known to them, by the time these armies had arrived, the war with Poland had long ceased with Hungary emerging as the victor, winning major territorial gains from Croatia and minor gains from Poland.

The resultant peace after the First Croatian War



Excerpt from "The History of the House of Árpád"
included: 1130 A.D.


In 1088 AD, on campaign in the lands of Croatia, László Árpád, Duke of Székesfehérvár, Count of Székesfehérvár, Vas and Bihar, succumbed to his old age and weary years of warfare. Those closest to him at his death, swore that the Duke had consumed too great a quantity of spirits on the eve of victory over the lands of Croatia, in keeping with his indulgent nature, causing the fatal combination of old age and spirits to produce his death.

The great warrior upon his death


Soon, in accordance with the laws of succession, his eldest son, János Árpád, reaffirmed the feudal contract with his leige, King Géza of Hungary and all was right once more in the realm.

The Second Duke of Székesfehérvár

 

[Olaus Petrus]

János doesn't seem to be as great as his father, but I hope that he turns out to be competent duke.

 

[Victor1234]

Chapter IV: The Wallachian Adventure



So it came to pass that in the year of our Lord, one-thousand and eighty-nine, the Kingdom embarked upon a great Crusade to free the neighbouring realm of Wallachia from the persecution of the infidels whom occupied the region. Thus embarked, the army of the Duchy of Székesfehérvár led the effort in the war by first investing the pagan stronghold at Severin. Later these same troops fought a battle against the Pecheneg infidels at Turnu, as the Royal Army attacked the troops of the infidel in Pereschen.

Battle of Turnu


The battle, became a victory for Hungary owing to the superiority of both the noble knights thus accompanied by the light calvary. As in battles before, a frontal charge by knights, followed by the light calvary pursuing the retreating and routed infidels, did win the day for the Kingdom. Yet this victory too, came at a price, for the young Duke of Székesfehérvár, János, fell at the Battle of Turnu, dying the death of a Christian martyr at the hands of the wicked Pechenegs.

The 2nd Duke of Székesfehérvár


The armies of Hungary, then engaged in battle against both the Tribe of Pechenegs and the Tribe of the Cumans, did turn eastwards ever more steadily, seizing vast tracts of land in the realm of Wallachia and along the river Dniepr. For two years hence past the Battle of Turnu, did the Hungarians fight the infidel. With their armies in a state of chaos and their cause tarnished by their pagan infidelities, the Tribe of Pechenegs itself collapsed, leaving only the Tribe of the Cumans to make peace with the Kingdom. However, death would follow death, as King Géza, his armies returned home from their crusade, left only a peace to be made and died of a chill on his liver. This inflictment did he receive in the course of his campaigning in the tall mountains of the Wallachian frontier. Those in attendance upon the King at his death swear they saw an angel appear, whereupon the King's soul was guided up to Heaven by the angel. For this, the clergy of the land agreed that henceforth, King Géza would carry the moniker "the Pious" and receive the rites of beautification. As according to the laws of succession, his eldest son Kálmán assumed the throne as the new King.

King Géza the Pious, 7th King of Hungary

King Kálmán, 8th King of Hungary


Yet, all was not right in the realm. The new King Kálmán sought a quick end to the war, in spite of the obvious superiority enjoyed by the armies of Hungary in strength of arms. Though his vassals and the nobles of Hungary were eager to drive the frontiers of the Kingdom far beyond their current reaches, the King, having a cowardly disposition from birth, dared not to go campaigning far from his native lands.

Hungary at the conclusion of the Wallachian Crusade


Even more as an afront to his Hungarian brethren, when having the choice of any unmarried noble woman in the realm, the King took to his side in Holy matrimony none other than the daughter of the wicked barbarian whom killed his father's cousin. The King's wife, borne from the loins of Burikhan the Barbarian, was a woman of low birth and a foreigner lacking dowry. This insult to the conscience of the Kingdom and those nobles who were his vassals in particular, led to great discontent within the Kingdom.

Wife of the King, father shown






Excerpt from "The History of the House of Árpád"
included: 1130 A.D.



In the year 1089 AD, Duke János, 2nd Duke of Székesfehérvár, embarked on the recent crusade to free Wallachia from the infidel. Though valiant to the last, he met his end on the bloody field of Turnu. Having no child-heir of his own but a daughter, the rules of succession decreed that the Duchy would pass to his brother, Jákob.

When the King, Géza the Pious, passed from the barren earth, the third Duke of Székesfehérvár and first Duke of Wallachia (a title recently acquired following the Wallachian Crusade) was discontent with the new King Kálmán. Although of the true royal line and a cousin to the Duke, the King rapidly lost favour in the eyes of Duke Jákob, who as his countrymen, harboured ill feelings towards the new King. The marriage to the daughter of the man who killed another of the Árpád line was also upsetting to the Duke. Then he did receive a vision of his father, László Árpád, in which the evils of the King Kálmán were recounted and Jákob chosen as the instrument to correct these wrongs. This vision afflicted the young Duke much, expressed in a letter to his brother, Kristóf, in which he wrote "Something is rotten in the state of Hungary".

 

[Olaus Petrus]

Reign of János certainly wasn't long.

Wallachia was nice addition to your titles. But Moldavia would have been nice too. But then again AI has tendency to ruin victorious wars by making peace to soon.