History of Hungary |
---|
Hungary portal |
The military history of Hungary includes battles fought in the Carpathian Basin and the military history of the Hungarian people regardless of geography.
The first well established reference to Hungarians derives from Georgius Monachus' work in the 9th century. It mentions that around 837 the Bulgarian Empire desired an alliance with the Hungarians. [1] Although the Hungarians supposedly participated earlier at the Battle of Pliska in 811. [2] The Hungarians began the conquest of the Carpathian Basin in 895. They continued to raid adjacent countries for many years. The Hungarians were able to defeat three major Frankish imperial armies between 907 and 910, [3] however a military defeat in 955 forced them to withdraw and consolidate their gains.
The Magyars advanced as far as the Iberian Peninsula, the Coast of Normandy and city of Constantinople. [4]
The Magyar arts of war involved agility, speed, and precision. Their armies were well-organized and the men were well trained and disciplined. [5] The Hungarians used many tools of war to defeat their foes, the most characteristic of their weapons being the quick-firing reflex bow, which they fired accurately from the saddle, even at full gallop. They also carried sabers and spontoons, but the reflex bow remained their armament of choice. The Magyars placed an emphasis on ranged fighting – their charges were usually preceded by a volley of arrows, and followed up by hand-to-hand combat. The majority of their troops were trained to fight on horseback.
The Hungarians demonstrated a use of siege weapons, including a
battering ram at the
Siege of Ausburg. After the death of the last king
Demetrius Zvonimir of Croatia, he left no heir, so his wife Helen, the sister of Saint
Ladislaus I of Hungary called the Hungarian troops to take control of the kingdom. After Saint Ladislaus' death, his nephew, the
King Coloman of Hungary ascended to the Hungarian throne. The feudal lords of Croatia elected a new king, and tried to get rid of the Hungarian occupation, and then the Hungarians took up arms against
Croatia, and won a bloody victory at
Gvozd Mountain. After this, Coloman was crowned as king of Croatia in 1102.
The Hungarian
chivalric army was at its best during the reign of Louis I, who also led campaigns against
Italy in 1347 and 1350. Nevertheless, there were still light cavalry units in the army, consisting of, among others,
Szeklers and the settling Kuns.
On the winter of 1458 the 15 years old
Mathias Corvinus was elected as king by the Hungarian
nobility. During his reign he dealt with the noble factions, and created a centralized royal authority, supported mainly by the first permanent Hungarian
mercenary army, the
Fekete Sereg (King’s Black Army). Mathias favored the obsolete
catapults over the modern
cannons already employed by his father. Light cavalry, formed by
hussars and
Jász mounted archers, regained part of their former role in the Fekete Sereg.
On 2 September 1686 united Hungarian,
Austrian and West-European troops liberated
Buda from the
Turkish occupation. By the end of the 17th century Christian armies led by
Habsburgs conquered all the Turkish-ruled territories. Thereafter the
Kingdom of Hungary was part of the
Habsburg Monarchy.
A decisive part of the fighting force – about four fifth, most of the time – was formed by the main arm of the time: infantry. The other arm, cavalry, still consisted mainly of heavy cavalry, or units equipped with mail armor, called battle cavalry. Another two types of cavalry were
dragoons and light cavalry. Hungarian hussars became internationally recognized, being a prime example of light cavalry. In this era
artillery became a third arm.
Two significant attempts were made at achieving independence: the
war for independence led by
Francis II Rákóczi (1703–1711), and the
Hungarian Revolution of 1848.
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link){{
cite book}}
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link)History of Hungary |
---|
Hungary portal |
The military history of Hungary includes battles fought in the Carpathian Basin and the military history of the Hungarian people regardless of geography.
The first well established reference to Hungarians derives from Georgius Monachus' work in the 9th century. It mentions that around 837 the Bulgarian Empire desired an alliance with the Hungarians. [1] Although the Hungarians supposedly participated earlier at the Battle of Pliska in 811. [2] The Hungarians began the conquest of the Carpathian Basin in 895. They continued to raid adjacent countries for many years. The Hungarians were able to defeat three major Frankish imperial armies between 907 and 910, [3] however a military defeat in 955 forced them to withdraw and consolidate their gains.
The Magyars advanced as far as the Iberian Peninsula, the Coast of Normandy and city of Constantinople. [4]
The Magyar arts of war involved agility, speed, and precision. Their armies were well-organized and the men were well trained and disciplined. [5] The Hungarians used many tools of war to defeat their foes, the most characteristic of their weapons being the quick-firing reflex bow, which they fired accurately from the saddle, even at full gallop. They also carried sabers and spontoons, but the reflex bow remained their armament of choice. The Magyars placed an emphasis on ranged fighting – their charges were usually preceded by a volley of arrows, and followed up by hand-to-hand combat. The majority of their troops were trained to fight on horseback.
The Hungarians demonstrated a use of siege weapons, including a
battering ram at the
Siege of Ausburg. After the death of the last king
Demetrius Zvonimir of Croatia, he left no heir, so his wife Helen, the sister of Saint
Ladislaus I of Hungary called the Hungarian troops to take control of the kingdom. After Saint Ladislaus' death, his nephew, the
King Coloman of Hungary ascended to the Hungarian throne. The feudal lords of Croatia elected a new king, and tried to get rid of the Hungarian occupation, and then the Hungarians took up arms against
Croatia, and won a bloody victory at
Gvozd Mountain. After this, Coloman was crowned as king of Croatia in 1102.
The Hungarian
chivalric army was at its best during the reign of Louis I, who also led campaigns against
Italy in 1347 and 1350. Nevertheless, there were still light cavalry units in the army, consisting of, among others,
Szeklers and the settling Kuns.
On the winter of 1458 the 15 years old
Mathias Corvinus was elected as king by the Hungarian
nobility. During his reign he dealt with the noble factions, and created a centralized royal authority, supported mainly by the first permanent Hungarian
mercenary army, the
Fekete Sereg (King’s Black Army). Mathias favored the obsolete
catapults over the modern
cannons already employed by his father. Light cavalry, formed by
hussars and
Jász mounted archers, regained part of their former role in the Fekete Sereg.
On 2 September 1686 united Hungarian,
Austrian and West-European troops liberated
Buda from the
Turkish occupation. By the end of the 17th century Christian armies led by
Habsburgs conquered all the Turkish-ruled territories. Thereafter the
Kingdom of Hungary was part of the
Habsburg Monarchy.
A decisive part of the fighting force – about four fifth, most of the time – was formed by the main arm of the time: infantry. The other arm, cavalry, still consisted mainly of heavy cavalry, or units equipped with mail armor, called battle cavalry. Another two types of cavalry were
dragoons and light cavalry. Hungarian hussars became internationally recognized, being a prime example of light cavalry. In this era
artillery became a third arm.
Two significant attempts were made at achieving independence: the
war for independence led by
Francis II Rákóczi (1703–1711), and the
Hungarian Revolution of 1848.
{{
cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
link){{
cite book}}
: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (
link)