Nicholas Kont of Orahovica ( hr, Nikola Kont Orahovički, hu, raholcai Kont Miklós; *? - † before 16 April 1367) was a Croato- Hungarian nobleman, very powerful and influential in the royal court of king Louis the Angevin, serving as

Count palatine A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an ord ...

. He was the forefather and founder of the Iločki noble family ( hu, Újlaki család).

Life and career

Nicholas was a descendant of a noble family originating from the area of Dubica district in medieval '' Lower Slavonia''. His father was Lawrence (Lőrinc) the ''Tót'', who served as Master of the Treasury and

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 ...

.Fedeles, Tamás (in Hungarian): Egy középkori főúri család vallásossága: Az Újlakiak példája. ''Századok'', CXLV. 2011/2. pp. 377–418. He had two brothers, Bartholomew (Bertalan) and Leukus (Lökös), both of them functioned as Master of Cup-bearers. Having served in the king Louis' army during military campaigns on the present-day Italian soil, he got the nickname ''Kont'' (from Italian: ''conte'' = count). The adjective ''Orahovički'' was attributed to his name since his father Lovro /''Lawrence''/ gained the

Orahovica Orahovica is a town in Slavonia, Croatia. It is situated on the slopes of the mountain Papuk and positioned on the state road D2 Varaždin- Koprivnica- Našice- Osijek. History The name Orahovica is derived from the word ''orah'', meaning ...

estate, including large

Ružica Castle Ružica ("little Ruža") may refer to: *Ružica (given name) *Ružica Church in the Belgrade Fortress *Ružica, the old name for Gnjilane See also * *Ruža (disambiguation) Ruža (Serbo-Croatian for "Rose") may refer to: * Ruža (given name) * ...

. He was born at the beginning of the 14th century and had two brothers, Bartol /''Bartholomew''/ and Leukus, who performed important functions at the royal court as well ( cup-bearer, chief retainer), but did not managed to achieve his glory. In the middle of the 14th century Nicholas became one of the leading magnates of the king and was given the new titles and properties. In the period between 1343 and 1367 he was the

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

of Udvar, royal cup-bearer (1345–1351), Voivode of Transylvania (1351-1356) and finally

Count Palatine A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an ord ...

(1356–1367). In the meantime he served as Ispán of several counties in Croatia and Hungary ( Sopron,

Varaždin ) , image_photo = , image_skyline = , image_flag = Flag of Varaždin.svg , flag_size = , image_seal = , seal_size = , image_shield = Grb_Grad ...

, Vas, Szolnok, Sáros etc.). In his military career he distinguished himself especially in some battles in Italy. In the 1347-1348-war he commanded, together with

John Garai John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second ...

(uncle of Nicholas I Garai), the military unit that conquered

L'Aquila L'Aquila ( , ) is a city and ''comune'' in central Italy. It is the capital city of both the Abruzzo region and of the Province of L'Aquila. , it has a population of 70,967 inhabitants. Laid out within medieval walls on a hill in the wide valle ...

, and in 1350, during the siege of

Aversa Aversa () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Caserta in Campania, southern Italy, about 24 km north of Naples. It is the centre of an agricultural district, the ''Agro Aversano'', producing wine and cheese (famous for the typical bu ...

, he became commander-in-chief of king's forces, after Stephen Lackfi had been removed. He commanded the Louis' army during the campaign against medieval

Banate of Bosnia The Banate of Bosnia ( sh, Banovina Bosna / Бановина Босна), or Bosnian Banate (''Bosanska banovina'' / Босанска бановина), was a medieval state based in what is today Bosnia and Herzegovina. Although Hungarian kings ...

(ruled by future king

Tvrtko I Kotromanić Stephen Tvrtko I ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Stjepan/Stefan Tvrtko, Стјепан/Стефан Твртко; 1338 – 10 March 1391) was the king of Bosnia, first king of Kingdom of Bosnia, Bosnia. A member of the House of Kotromanić, h ...

) in 1363, and against

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

in 1365. Although formally Kotromanić was Louis' vassal, the latter undertook military action because of Bosnian heretics. The campaign was unsuccessful. When the Ilok branch of the Hungarian noble family Csák died out in 1364, the king gave the Ilok fief to Nicholas and his nephew Ladislaus, the son of Leukus. So the Orahovica family transferred its seat in 1365 to Ilok and soon after that Nicholas's descendants started to call themselves Iločki/Újlaki. He married Klara Zsámboki, daughter of Kont's predecessor, Palatine Nicholas Zsámboki (or ''Gilétfi''). When Nicholas Kont died in 1367, he was succeeded by his two sons, Nicholas II (†1397) and Bartholomew II (†1393), who however did not reach the power and glory of their father. His only daughter Catherine was the wife of

Frank Szécsényi Frank Szécsényi ( hu, Szécsényi Frank; died 1408), also Francis, was a Hungarian baron and military leader, who was a staunch supporter of King Sigismund of Luxembourg. He participated in various military campaigns against the Ottoman Empire. ...

Castles

File:Ružica5.JPG,

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-Baranja ...

File:Várpalota1.jpg, Palota (Várpalota)near

Veszprém Veszprém (; german: Weißbrunn, sl, Belomost) is one of the oldest urban areas in Hungary, and a city with county rights. It lies approximately north of the Lake Balaton. It is the administrative center of the county (comitatus or 'megye') of ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

File:Galgóc légifotó.jpg, Galgóc (present-day

Hlohovec Hlohovec (german: Freistad(l) an der Waag, Hungarian ''Galgóc''), is a town in southwestern Slovakia, with a population of 21,508. Name The name comes from ''*Glogovec'', the Old Slavic name for a place densely overgrown by hawthorn. The Hung ...

) in

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

File:Ilok.JPG, Fortified town Ilok in

Srijem Syrmia ( sh, Srem/Срем or sh, Srijem/Сријем, label=none) is a region of the southern Pannonian Plain, which lies between the Danube and Sava rivers. It is divided between Serbia and Croatia. Most of the region is flat, with the exce ...

References

External links

Nicholas Kont – the founder-ancestor of the Iločki family

Nikola Kont – a king Louis's warrior who earned Ilok Castle (in Croatian)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kont of Orahovica, Nicholas 1367 deaths 14th-century Croatian people 14th-century Hungarian people Medieval Croatian nobility History of Slavonia Medieval Hungarian nobility Palatines of Hungary Syrmia Voivodes of Transylvania Year of birth unknown

Nicholas Nicholas is a male given name and a surname. The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Anglicanism, Anglican Churches celebrate Saint Nicholas every year on December 6, which is the name day for "Nicholas". In Greece, the n ...

14th-century Croatian nobility 14th-century Croatian military personnel Masters of the cupbearers