Tamás Borsos de Ozd (
Hungarian ponounciation:; Marosvásárhely, 14 June 1566 – after 1633) was a Hungarian politician and diplomat in the
Principality of Transylvania, who served as mayor of Marosvásárhely (now:
Târgu Mureș, Romania), then ambassador of
Gabriel Bethlen,
Prince of Transylvania to the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
.
Life
He was the son of historian Sebestény Borsos. In 1597, he served as notary, from 1602 till 1604, he was the mayor (chief judge) of Marosvásárhely.
During the fights of the
Long War, the old fortress of Marosvásárhely was destroyed, and did not give shelter to the inhabitants. Among many townfolk, Tamás Borsos found shelter in
Kronstadt ( hu, Brassó, ro, Braşov), city of the
Transylvanian Saxons. Seeing the city's castle, he was said to exclaim: "Oh, if only I could build just one of its bastions in Marosvásárhely, there would be no need for the people to seek refuge in the woods in case of danger". During the time of his office as chief judge he wrote several applications to the prince of
Transylvania
Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...
and to the
Turkish sultan to request permission to construct a fortress. After obtaining the necessary approvals, the construction began in 1602. First, the damaged fortress church was restored, then the bastions and the ten-meter thick walls were built. The city's population contributed significantly to the construction of the castle and bastions as the guilds of the city undertook the construction costs and work of five out of seven bastions.
He was the representative of his hometown on the session of the Transylvanian parliament held in
Dés (now: Dej, Romania) in 1603. From 1605, he was appointed judge to the High Court of the Prince of Transylvania ( hu, fejedelmi tábla). In 1606, he was a member of the Transylvanian parliament, and made known to prince
István Bocskay
Stephen Bocskai or Bocskay ( hu, Bocskai István; 1 January 155729 December 1606) was Prince of Transylvania and Hungary from 1605 to 1606. He was born to a Hungarian noble family. His father's estates were located in the eastern regions of th ...
that Marosvásárhely recognised his rule.
Tamás Borsos is renowned for being one of the first Hungarian diplomats. In the years of 1613, 1618 and 1625, he was the ambassador ( tr, kapu kethüdasi, hu, kapitiha) of Transylvania to the
Sublime Porte of the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
, in Constantinople. He acted as a commissioner of
Prince Gabriel Bethlen at peace treaties of
Nagyszombat (1615) and of
Gyarmat (1625). In 1630, he was the envoy of Transylvania to the Turkish
vezir of
Buda
Buda (; german: Ofen, sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Budim, Будим, Czech and sk, Budín, tr, Budin) was the historic capital of the Kingdom of Hungary and since 1873 has been the western part of the Hungarian capital Budapest, on the ...
. He died after 1633.
His diplomatic letters written in
Hungarian language
Hungarian () is an Uralic language spoken in Hungary and parts of several neighbouring countries. It is the official language of Hungary and one of the 24 official languages of the European Union. Outside Hungary, it is also spoken by Hungarian ...
to Gabriel Bethlen, prince of Transylvania, and his other manuscripts are important sources for the study of the political history of Transylvania.
Works
* Manuscripts describing the political events in Transylvania between 1584 and 1612
* Diary on his first diplomatic mission to the Sublime Porte (1614)
* Diary on his second diplomatic mission to the Sublime Porte (1618–20)
* Memoriale (diplomatic mission to the vezír of Buda in 1630)
* Vásárhelytől a Fényes Portáig (''"From Vásárhely to the Sublime Porte"''). Mémoires and diplomatic correspondence of Tamás Borsos, published in 1972 by Kriterion Könyvkiadó, Bucharest
References
Bibliography
*Szamota István: ''Régi magyar utazók (Old Hungarian Travellers'' (
Nagybecskerek
Zrenjanin ( sr-Cyrl, Зрењанин, ; hu, Nagybecskerek; ro, Becicherecu Mare; sk, Zreňanin; german: Großbetschkerek) is a city and the administrative center of the Central Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbi ...
, 1892).
*Barts Gyula: ''Marosvásárhelyi Borsos Tamás élete és történeti szereplése (Life and Historical Activity of Tamás Borsos of Marosvásárhely'' (
Kolozsvár, 1912).
{{DEFAULTSORT:Borsos, Tamas
1566 births
Year of death unknown
Mayors of places in Romania
People from Târgu Mureș
Hungarian diplomats
16th-century Hungarian people
17th-century Hungarian people
People of the Principality of Transylvania