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, 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)
* ...
at 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 ...
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-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 ...
in 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 ...
See also
*
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 ...
*
Ilok
*
House of Ilok
A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air condi ...
*
Nicholas of Ilok
*
Ladislaus of Ilok
Ladislaus of Ilok (in Latin sources ''Ladislaus de Wylak'', ''de Illoch'', ''de Voilack'', hr, Ladislav Iločki, hu, Újlaki László; born c. mid-14th century – died 1418) was a Croato– Hungarian nobleman, a member of the Iločki noble ...
*
Louis the Angevin
References
External links
Nicholas Kont – the founder-ancestor of the Iločki familyNikola 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