Janus Pannonius ( la, Ioannes Pannonius, hr, Ivan Česmički, hu, Csezmiczei János or ; 29 August 1434 – 27 March 1472) was a Croatian- Hungarian

Latinist Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...

, diplomat and Bishop of Pécs. He was the most significant poet of the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

in the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...

and one of the better-known figures of

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

poetry in Europe.

Life

Born in

Slavonia Slavonia (; hr, Slavonija) is, with Dalmatia, Croatia proper, and Istria, one of the four historical regions of Croatia. Taking up the east of the country, it roughly corresponds with five Croatian counties: Brod-Posavina, Osijek-Baran ...

, Janus's father was a

Croat The Croats (; hr, Hrvati ) are a South Slavic ethnic group who share a common Croatian ancestry, culture, history and language. They are also a recognized minority in a number of neighboring countries, namely Austria, the Czech Republic, Ge ...

Ádám Makkai
''In quest of the 'miracle stag': the poetry of Hungary : an anthology of Hungarian poetry in English translation from the 13th century to the present in commemoration of the 1100th anniversary of the foundation of Hungary and the 40th anniversary of the Hungarian Uprising of 1956''
University of Illinois Press, 1996, p. 41 whose social status and relation to the nobility is unclear. His mother, Borbála Vitéz, was Hungarian.

Pope Pius II Pope Pius II ( la, Pius PP. II, it, Pio II), born Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini ( la, Aeneas Silvius Bartholomeus, links=no; 18 October 1405 – 14 August 1464), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 August ...

wrote that Pannonius was of Slavonian origin (''de origine Slavonica''). His biographer and friend

Vespasiano da Bisticci Vespasiano da Bisticci (1421 – 1498) was an Italian humanist and librarian of the early Renaissance period. Life Born near Rignano sull'Arno, not far from Florence, he was chiefly a book merchant, or ''cartolaio'', and had a share in the form ...

said that he was of Slavic nationality. According to Ronsano of Palermo, he was from Dalmatia (''di natione Dalmata''). M. Franičević, in citing Ronsano, notes that many Italians saw all “Croats” as Dalmatians. Ludovik Tuberon Crijević, writing of Pannonius, says that he was born a Slav (''genere itidem Sclavenum'') in that part of interior Dalmatia that lies between the Sava and Drava rivers. Pannonius was brought up by his mother; in 1447 his uncle sent him to Italy for a

schooling. He attended the School of

Guarino da Verona Guarino Veronese or Guarino da Verona (1374 – 14 December 1460) was an Italian classical scholar, humanist, and translator of ancient Greek texts during the Renaissance. In the republics of Florence and Venice he studied under Manuel Chrysol ...

at Ferrara, where the pupils were educated in Latin and Greek authors under the guidance of a noted teacher of the

Italian Renaissance The Italian Renaissance ( it, Rinascimento ) was a period in Italian history covering the 15th and 16th centuries. The period is known for the initial development of the broader Renaissance culture that spread across Europe and marked the trans ...

. The boy was considered the brightest pupil of his generation by both his teachers and fellow-students. He wrote poetry according to the rules of classical prosody; he was around thirteen when he wrote his first epigrams. His higher education was completed at the

University of Padua The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from ...

in canon law. After making an educational tour of Rome, he returned to Hungary in 1458, the year of Matthias's accession to the throne. For a time, he worked at the Royal Chancery, and soon was appointed as the Bishop of Pécs and later Vice-Chancellor of the country. Janus Pannonius was an influential intellectual in the kingdom; he kept his connections with some of the leading philosophers of his time. He also collected a significant library of humanist works (probably dispersed in 1526). He served as the

Ban of Slavonia Ban of Slavonia ( hr, Slavonski ban; hu, szlavón bán; la, Sclavoniæ banus) or the Ban of "Whole Slavonia" ( hr, ban cijele Slavonije; hu, egész Szlavónia bánja; la, totius Sclavoniæ banus) was the title of the governor of a territor ...

in 1469. He died in the

Medvedgrad Medvedgrad (; Croatian for ''bear-town''; hu, Medvevár) is a medieval fortified town located on the south slopes of Medvednica mountain, approximately halfway from the Croatian capital Zagreb to the mountain top Sljeme. For defensive purpos ...

castle near

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital and largest city of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb stands near the international border between Croatia and Slov ...

References

Sources

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Works

Opera
Basel, 1555 {{DEFAULTSORT:Pannonius, Janus 1432 births 1472 deaths 15th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Hungary 15th-century Latin writers 15th-century Croatian poets 15th-century Croatian nobility Hungarian male poets Medieval Croatian nobility Hungarian people of Croatian descent Baranya (region) History of Baranya (region) People from Čazma Bishops of Pécs Royal treasurers (Kingdom of Hungary) Chief justices of Hungary Book and manuscript collectors Croatian male poets 15th-century Hungarian poets 15th-century Hungarian writers