The Massacre at Madéfalva took place at Csík-Mádéfalva,
Grand Principality of Transylvania
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(today
Siculeni
Siculeni ( hu, Madéfalva, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a Communes of Romania, commune in Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania. The Siculicidium took place here.
The commune is ...
in
Romania
Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central, Eastern, and Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Moldova to the east, and ...
). In
Latin
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 ...
''Siculicidium'' "murder of
Székelys" was a
mass murder committed against Székelys by the
Habsburg army in 1764, under
Maria Theresa.
History
In 1763, the Court of
Vienna
en, Viennese
, iso_code = AT-9
, registration_plate = W
, postal_code_type = Postal code
, postal_code =
, timezone = CET
, utc_offset = +1
, timezone_DST ...
entrusted general
Adolf Nikolaus von Buccow
Adolf (also spelt Adolph or Adolphe, Adolfo and when Latinised Adolphus) is a given name used in German-speaking countries, Scandinavia, the Netherlands and Flanders, France, Italy, Spain, Portugal, Latin America and to a lesser extent in vari ...
to set up three Székely and two
Romanian
Romanian may refer to:
*anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania
**Romanians, an ethnic group
**Romanian language, a Romance language
*** Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language
** Romanian cuisine, tradition ...
regiments to patrol the borders. However, the Székelys were unwilling to give up their hundred-year tradition of soldiering and their
privileges. Thus, they resisted the forced military draft and organized a revolt against it. Maria Theresa appointed a new general,
Joseph von Siskovics, who commanded his soldiers to attack Csík-Madéfalva (present-day
Siculeni
Siculeni ( hu, Madéfalva, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a Communes of Romania, commune in Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania. The Siculicidium took place here.
The commune is ...
), where the Székely leaders were supposed to meet in a council. It was under the darkness of the snowy night of January 7, 1764 that the Habsburg soldiers entered the village and massacred about 400 unsuspecting people, including women and children.
Consequences
The following days, the Székely leaders were captured and impeached, while thousands of terrified Székelys started to migrate to
Moldavia
Moldavia ( ro, Moldova, or , literally "The Country of Moldavia"; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ; chu, Землѧ Молдавскаѧ; el, Ἡγεμονία τῆς Μολδαβίας) is a historical region and for ...
, where they took refuge in the villages of the
Csángómagyars who had been living there for centuries. In 1774, the Habsburg soldiers took control of an area of Moldavia that would eventually be named
Bukovina and – after the intervention of Count
András Hadik
Count András Hadik de Futak ( hu, gróf futaki Hadik András; german: Andreas Graf Hadik von Futak; sk, Andrej Hadík; 16 October 1710 – 12 March 1790) was a Hungarian nobleman and Field MarshalDarrell Berg (editor): ''The Correspondence o ...
– they pardoned the Székelys there and settled them down. There, the Székelys founded settlements of their own. The five villages of the
Székelys of Bukovina
The Székelys of Bukovina are a small Hungarian ethnic community with a complex history. They live today in the Tolna and Baranya counties of Hungary, in Hunedoara County in Romania and in the Serbian province of Vojvodina.
Origins
Some Szé ...
were: Istensegíts ("God help us!", now
Ţibeni
Satu Mare (german: Grossdorf) is a commune located in Suceava County, Bukovina, Romania. It is composed of two villages, Satu Mare (german: Deutsch Satulmare) and Țibeni ( hu, Istensegíts).
From 1776 to 1941, Țibeni village was inhabited by ...
, 1776), Fogadjisten ("Accept God's will!", now
Iacobești), Józseffalva (now
Vornicenii Mari, 1785), Hadikfalva (now
Dornești
Dornești (german: Kriegsdorf, hu, Hadikfalva) is a commune located in Suceava County, Romania. It is composed of two villages, Dornești and Iaz. From 1786 to 1941, Dornești village was inhabited by the Székelys of Bukovina
The Székelys o ...
) and Andrásfalva (
Măneuţi, 1786).
Commemorations
The events remained vivid in the Székely collective memory: in 1905, an obelisk was erected at
Madéfalva
Siculeni ( hu, Madéfalva, Hungarian pronunciation: ) is a commune in Harghita County, Romania. It lies in the Székely Land, an ethno-cultural region in eastern Transylvania. The Siculicidium took place here.
The commune is composed of a single ...
,
on its top carrying a
Turul-bird with the wings spread. At the bottom of the stone-pyramid there is a plate with the word ''SICVLICIDIVM'' on it (oddly enough, adding up the values of the letters as
Roman numerals, the result is exactly the year of the massacre).
Since the
Székelys of Bukovina
The Székelys of Bukovina are a small Hungarian ethnic community with a complex history. They live today in the Tolna and Baranya counties of Hungary, in Hunedoara County in Romania and in the Serbian province of Vojvodina.
Origins
Some Szé ...
came into existence as a consequence of the events of January 7, 1764, they celebrate this day as the community's birthday.
See also
*
History of the Székely people
The history of the Székely people (a subgroup of the Hungarians in Romania) can be documented from the 12th century. According to medieval chronicles, the Székelys were descended from the Huns who settled in the Carpathian Basin in the 5th cent ...
References
{{reflist
1764 in Europe
Massacres of Hungarians
Draft evasion
History of Transylvania (1683–1848)
Massacres in Europe
Massacres of ethnic groups
Mass murder in Europe
Persecution
Székelys
Massacres in 1764
1764 murders in Europe