Matthias I
Matthias I (Matyas), also known as Matthias Corvinus, was the king of Hungary and Croatia.
Contents
History
Matthias I was the second son of John Hunyadi, the regent (captain general) of Ladislaus V, and younger brother of Ladislaus.
Ladislaus's rivalry with Ulrich II, the princely count of Celje and ban of Slavonia, led to the latter being assassinated and the former being executed. Matthias I was held prisoner by Ladislaus V while his mother Elizabeth (Erzsebet) and uncle Michael Szilagyi (Szilagyi Mihaly), count of Beszterce, raised a rebel army. Ladislaus V was forced to flee Buda for Vienna then Prague, taking Matthias I with him.
Ladislaus V died on November 23, 1457 without an heir. With the rebel army arriving in Buda, the still captive Matthias I was elected king unanimously on January 24 to avoid a succession war. Michael ruled as regent until August 1459.
Reign
Matthias I began building the professional Black Army in 1458.
In retaliation for the Ottoman occupation of Serbia in 1458, Matthias I ordered the counter invasion. Stephen Thomas, king of Bosnia, submitted to Hungarian suzerainity.
Frederick III pressed a claim for the kingdom of Hungary in 1459. George, king of Bohemia, and many powerful Czech nobles, such as John Jiskra, raised an army in support of Frederick III. Matthias I negotiated peace with Frederick III and John separately (April and May 1462, respectively).
Victor, duke of Munsterberg and son of George, invaded Austria in 1468. This instigated a declaration of war by both Frederick III and Matthias I. Moravia was quickly occupied and George was deposed; Matthias I was elected the new king of Bohemia on May 3, 1469. The rebels instead backed Vladislaus and would continue to fight for another decade.
In 1477, Frederick III installed Wladyslaw II as king of Bohemia. Matthias I invaded Austria in retaliation and forced a retraction by December. Matthias I would return in 1482 and continue to occupy parts of Austria until 1487. Separately, by 1479 a peace treaty with Wladyslaw II was agreed, dividing Bohemia between them.
Matthias I died on 6 April, 1490.
Legacy
Matthias I collected the second largest library in Europe. He spoke many languages: at least Hungarian, Latin, Italian, Polish, Czech, and German.
His reign was not popular (largely due to high taxes), and his illegitimate son John Corvinus did not succeed in inheriting the kingdom.