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Machtverhältnisse in Europa an der Wende vom 15. zum 16. Jahrhundert
9-20Views:205At the turn of the fifteenth to the sixteenth century, Europe experienced profound upheavals that affected politics, society, culture and religion alike. After the population decline caused by the plague and wars, growth began again. Trade, commerce and agriculture flourished, particularly as a result of the overseas discoveries made by Spain and Portugal. Politically, early absolutist structures emerged in Western Europe: in France, England, Spain and Portugal, the influence of the nobility was curtailed in favour of strong monarchies. At the same time, these powers became increasingly expansionist in their foreign policy. In the Holy Roman Empire, however, the situation was more complex: internal conflicts such as the Hussite Wars and ecclesiastical tensions weakened central authority. It was not until Maximilian I that reforms were introduced with the Imperial Chamber Court and Imperial Circles, although the emperor had only limited power. Italy remained politically fragmented, and rival city-states and foreign powers prevented lasting stability. After the Hundred Years’War, France pursued expansion plans in Burgundy and Italy, while in Hungary, after the death of Matthias Corvinus, dynastic ties secured the Habsburgs’; long-term access to Bohemia and Hungary.
Culturally, the Renaissance and Humanism shaped the era. New universities – especially in German-speaking countries – and the invention of printing contributed significantly to the spread of knowledge. At the same time, the Church fell into a deep crisis due to the sale of offices, the indulgence trade and the moral decline of the clergy, which intensified calls for reform. The House of Habsburg, especially under Frederick III and Maximilian I, gained increasing influence through marriage politics and territorial security. The Habsburgs thus laid the foundation for their supremacy in Europe and shaped the balance of power at the beginning of the early modern period.
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Wirtschaftliche Ungleichheit oder ausgewogene Beziehungen. Das Königreich Ungarn im europäischen Wirtschaftssystem
261-276Views:183The economic division of labour in Europe from the second half of the fifteenth century onwards is clearly visible. Western European historiography focuses primarily on the Atlantic region and Western Europe in its portrayal of the globalising economic system, while Central Europe is very often treated as peripheral. However, this cannot be confirmed by the relevant historical sources. The regions of the Carpathian Basin participated in the continental economic cycle mainly with raw materials, live animals and semi-finished products. Nevertheless, at the beginning of the early modern period, Central Europe and the Hungarian regions were indispensable partners of the Western European regions rather than vulnerable markets.
The period from the second half of the fifteenth century to the first half of the seventeenth century was the last period of (early) modern history in which a more or less balanced system of relations still connected the regions above mentioned. This does not, of course, contradict the part of the classic centre-periphery model that states that the regions of Western and Central Europe had different production profiles from the fifteenth century onwards. While the former had a clear advantage in craft production, the latter concentrated mainly on agricultural products and mining raw materials. Nevertheless, it should be emphasised that in the first half of the early modern period, every region was still able to participate in multilateral trade with numerous goods that other regions needed. None of the regions became the exclusive consumer market for the other. Mutual dependence can be demonstrated in almost all bilateral interregional relationships. -
The Relationship Between Central Europe and the Low Countries from the Middle Ages to the Present Day Conference
331–333Views:83The conference entitled “The Relationship Between Central Europe and the Low Countries from the Middle Ages to the Present Day” was held on 6–7 March 2026 at the Sándor Karácsony Hall of the University of Debrecen. The event was organised by the Faculty of Humanities and the Research Group for Dutch–Hungarian Connections. It brought together scholars examining the historical interactions between Central Europe and the Low Countries from the medieval period to the present, with particular attention to key figures, events, and forms of exchange shaping both regions. The primary aim of the conference was to explore patterns of continuity, change, and interaction within these relationships.
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Some Notes on the Putsch Map (“Europa Regina”) and Its Depiction of Southeastern Europe
213-228Views:281This paper examines a series of anthropomorphic maps depicting Europe in the form of a woman, now collectively referred to as Europa Regina. The first such map was created by Johannes Putsch of Innsbruck (1516–1542) as a visual accompaniment to his poem Europa Lamentans, dedicated to Archduke Ferdinand I of Habsburg and his brother, Charles V. The concept gained widespread popularity through adaptations of Putsch’s map, including a more detailed version by Matthias Quad and Johann Bussemacher, printed in Cologne in 1587, and two smaller, simplified versions featured in Heinrich Bünting’s Itinerarium Sacrae Scripturae (1587) and Sebastian Münster’s Cosmographia (1588).
Previously, the earliest known version of Putsch’s map was thought to have been printed in Paris in 1537. However, in 2019, an earlier edition printed in 1534 – now kept in the Retz Museum in Lower Austria – was (re)discovered. Along with describing this map and the circumstances of its rediscovery, this presentation will examine the representation of the south-eastern regions of the European continent in Putsch’s map and its derivatives. It is suggested that Putsch, in addition to drawing from Ptolemaic geography, was probably familiar with Lázár Deák’s Tabula Hungariae (1528). -
Beyond the Western Metropolis: A Research Agenda for the Spatial History of Urban Crime in Budapest throughout the “Long” Twentieth Century
315–330Views:75This paper outlines a comprehensive research agenda for the spatial and social history of urban crime in Budapest from the city’s unification (1873) to the end of the communist regime (1989). While historical criminology has extensively analyzed the metropolises of Western Europe and North America, the distinct urbanization trajectories and spatial dynamics of deviance in East-Central Europe remain largely underexplored. Moving beyond traditional political and state-centric narratives, this study proposes a robust theoretical and methodological framework to investigate the localized realities of both the organized “underworld” and everyday criminality. Central to this agenda is a four-factor localization model that systematically analyzes the crime scene, the residence and origin of offenders, and the spatial attachments of victims. By integrating quantitative official records with qualitative egodocuments and media representations, the proposed framework captures the lived experience of urban space. Furthermore, it highlights how macro-historical crises fundamentally reshaped the geography of metropolitan crime.
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Europäische und ungarische Peregrinatio academica im 15. und 16. Jahrhundert
193-212Views:233This study explores the evolution of academic peregrination in Europe during the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, with a particular focus on students from the Kingdom of Hungary. It examines how the expansion of universities and the impact of the Reformation reshaped student mobility across the continent.
In the fifteenth century, the rise of regional universities led to a decline in international student migration, although Italian institutions like Padua, Bologna, and Ferrara remained popular for legal and medical studies. Hungarian students, lacking domestic universities, pursued education abroad, primarily in Vienna and Krakow, and also in Italy and France.
The sixteenth century brought significant changes due to confessional divisions. Protestant students increasingly attended newly founded or reformed institutions such as Wittenberg, Marburg, and Heidelberg, while Catholic students gravitated toward Jesuit-led universities like Graz, Dillingen, and Ingolstadt. Confessional loyalty influenced university choice, with restrictions imposed by rulers to ensure ideological conformity.
Hungarian academic peregrination mirrored broader European trends. While Wittenberg became the leading destination for Hungarian Protestants, Vienna and Padua remained important centers for Catholic students. The study draws on extensive archival sources, including rectoral registers and academic databases (RAG, RAH), to trace student movements and institutional preferences.
Ultimately, the research highlights how geopolitical, religious, and cultural factors shaped the academic journeys of Hungarian students within the dynamic landscape of early modern European higher education. -
Arbeitnehmer der Niederländischen Ost-Indien Kompanie (1602–1799) aus dem Königreich Ungarn
237–314Views:70The Verenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie (VOC), a colossal enterprise for its time, employed a vast number of workers. The problem, however, was that two-thirds of the people died either during the journey or shortly after arriving in Asia. Scurvy, starvation, shipwrecks, clashes with the indigenous population, or with rival Spanish or Portuguese competitors were the usual causes of the high mortality rate. The loss of life on the outward journey alone was 15–20%. Upon arrival in Java, tropical diseases – particularly the dreaded malaria, typhus and dysentery – awaited the survivors. The VOC therefore constantly needed a fresh supply of a significant number of people to replace the workers who had died. Even in the seventeenth century, the Netherlands was a small country with a population of just 1.5 million. In the seventeenth century, the VOC had approximately 30 000 employees, of whom around 25 000 were in Asia. It soon became clear that, with such a small population, the Netherlands could not meet the VOC’s long-term staffing requirements. The labour shortage forced the directors of the trading company to recruit workers not only in the Netherlands but also abroad. In this article, I examine VOC workers from the Kingdom of Hungary. From the preliminary inventory, we can therefore conclude that they mostly (87%) held the lowest-ranking positions in the Dutch company and served for an average of six years. Just under 21% of the Hungarians survived the tropical adventure, and only 17% were able to return to Europe. It must be noted that most of them were assigned to lower-ranking positions. They had no formal education, so they were confined to poorly paid jobs (sailor, soldier). They were largely left to fend for themselves, and their mortality rate was much higher than that of the average VOC employee.
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Quellenerschließungsarbeiten am Beispiel des Herzoglich Preußischen Briefarchivs (HBA)
277-290Views:176The Ducal Prussian Letter Archive (HBA) can be compared in its historical significance to the Vatican Archives or the great dynastic archives of Europe. It represents the continuation of the Order’s Letter Archive (OBA). Like its predecessor, the HBA primarily preserves unbound records. Charters are rarely to be found among these holdings; instead, the collection largely consists of incoming and outgoing correspondence, financial accounts, reports, and so-called “news” (Zeitungen). Outgoing correspondence has often survived in the form of drafts, which are palaeographically demanding.
Closely connected to the HBA is a series of books known as Registranden or letter-books, which contain copies of both incoming and outgoing correspondence. As these have generally been transmitted exclusively in written form, they can be of considerable value for archival research. The Registranden belong to the so-called “East Prussian Folios” (Ostpreußische Folianten, abbreviated Ostpr. Fol.), which continue chronologically after the “Order Folios” (Ordensfolianten, abbreviated OF).
The HBA is organized into departments (A–K) according to geographical and thematic pertinence. These departments are subdivided numerically, alphanumerically, or by means of lowercase letters (e.g., A.1. or J.1b). With approximately 117 linear meters of material, Department A ranks among the most extensive sections of the HBA. -
A Strange Year: 1513 viewed from the East
67-82Views:187Years that come before (in particular) or after an annus mirabilis as usually neglected, even though it stands to reason that major events have both origins and impact that exceed strict chronological limitations. 1513 is one of those years: “the eve” of the crusade/rebellion that spread through the eastern parts of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1514. The developments outlined in this short essay are potentially indicative for the policies of the three major neighbours of Jagiello Buda: Vienna, Krakow and Constantinople. Two “events” stand out in this regional framework ad annum 1513: an invented Ottoman-Tartar-Wallachian invasion of Transylvania and a failed – Habsburg-sponsored – Moldavian princely wedding. After crushing the opposition in Asia Minor, Selim I was asserting his power in Europe. Sigismund I Jagiello had to secure his borders against perils from all sides. Maximilian I of Habsburg still attempted to be Christendom’s “unifying spider”. In-between theme, Wladislaw II Jagiello had more down-to-earth concerns. The same applied, for Bogdan III, the vassal in fact of four mentioned monarchs (even though he did not accept Sigismund as suzerain and Maximilian was only de iure co-king of Hungary). Bogdan had one major problem (which had led to war between him and Sigismund, as his and Wladislaw’s youngest sister, Elisabeth, had not become his wife): the lack of a prestigious spouse. This is what Maximilian attempted to sort precisely at a time when Wladislaw’s envoys were claiming, outside of the Hungarian kingdom, that “the Wallachian” too had invaded Transylvania.
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“Igni ferroque”. Shaping Early Modern Ukraine History Through Lens of Armenian Sources
217–236Views:67Early Modern Era historical sources, dating back to sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, are crucial for understanding the dynamics of narrative changes between the late Middle Ages and Enlightenment period. Perceived through various lens, they determine (by means of interpretation of myths and symbols) our perception of history till today. This paper could be understood as an attempt to narrate history in a variety of ways inextricably linked to continuous present. The article based on textual analysis of Early Modern Armenian chronicles and colophons originating from Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth (Rzeczpospolita) should help us to better understand the multifaceted phenomenon of “Orient” and “Europe” constructions, especially the concept of frontier Orientalism as well as antemurale myth. Analysed sources offer a glimpse into interpretive “reading” the history of Black Sea region and neighbouring areas from multiple perspectives – through lens of Armenian chroniclers.
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The Role of Gifts in the Diplomatic Relations between Sigismund of Luxemburg and the Teutonic Order
37–58Views:109In the diplomatic relations between Sigismund of Luxembourg and the Teutonic Order, gifts of varying kinds and value played an important role, in line with contemporary European practice. Far more records survive concerning the gifts presented by the Order to the Hungarian and King of the Romans than those sent by Sigismund to the Grand Master. The Order’s gifts often conveyed symbolic political messages; by contrast, no such function can be clearly identified in Sigismund’s case. In its gift-giving practices, the Order also considered the potential political influence of wives and daughters at princely courts, and accordingly extended gifts to them. Given the Order’s monastic and ecclesiastical character, such a practice on Sigismund’s part is hardly conceivable. Particular attention should be paid to the Grand Master’s most prestigious gifts, namely trained hunting falcons, highly esteemed across Europe. These were distributed according to the rank of the recipients and the significance of political relations, with the number of birds serving as an indicator of status.
Notably, the treasury accounts of the Grand Master record only one Hungarian gift deemed worthy of specific mention: Hungarian wine. Strikingly, the sources indicate that this “gift” was in fact purchased by the Order at considerable cost. As for other items Sigismund may have sent to Prussia, these can be inferred from the practices of other European rulers, typically consisting of objects compatible with the knights’ monastic lifestyle or of religious relics.