}; ro, Paul Chinezu; 1432–1494) was a Hungarian general in the service of Hungarian army under king

Matthias Corvinus Matthias Corvinus, also called Matthias I ( hu, Hunyadi Mátyás, ro, Matia/Matei Corvin, hr, Matija/Matijaš Korvin, sk, Matej Korvín, cz, Matyáš Korvín; ), was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1458 to 1490. After conducting several mi ...

. He was the Count of

Temes County County of Temes ( Hungarian: ''Temes'', Romanian: ''Timiș'', Serbian: ''Тамиш'' or ''Tamiš'', German: ''Temes'' or ''Temesch'') was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now in southwestern Roma ...

(in the historical

Banat Banat (, ; hu, Bánság; sr, Банат, Banat) is a geographical and historical region that straddles Central and Eastern Europe and which is currently divided among three countries: the eastern part lies in western Romania (the counties of T ...

region, 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 ...

now part of

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

and

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

after annexation at the

Treaty of Trianon The Treaty of Trianon (french: Traité de Trianon, hu, Trianoni békeszerződés, it, Trattato del Trianon) was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference (1919–1920), Paris Peace Conference and was signed in the Grand Trianon château in ...

which cost Hungary 2/3 of her territory) from 1484 and Captain-General of the Lower Parts. He was a general of King Mathias's famed Black Army. He is famous for his victory over the

Ottomans The Ottoman Turks ( tr, Osmanlı Türkleri), were the Turkic founding and sociopolitically the most dominant ethnic group of the Ottoman Empire ( 1299/1302–1922). Reliable information about the early history of Ottoman Turks remains scarce, ...

in the

Battle of Breadfield A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force ...

in October 1479. He reputedly has never lost a battle.

Life

Origin and early life

Kinizsi's ancestry is obscure. According to some he was a son of a miller, and prior to his military career, he was a journeyman miller. According to some Serbian historians, he was of Serbian origin, and was possibly a descendant of

Vuk Branković Vuk Branković ( sr-cyr, Вук Бранковић, , 1345 – 6 October 1397) was a Serbian medieval nobleman who, during the Fall of the Serbian Empire, inherited a province that extended over present-day southern and southwestern Serbia, enti ...

, though this could not be determined. The first mention of his name is in 1464, in a Latin written document mentioning that (His Excellency) receives a possession in the Abaúj County. Later in 1510, appears also in form of .

Military career

His central estate was the Castle of

Nagyvázsony Nagyvázsony is a village in Veszprém, Hungary. It lies approximately 15 km (9 mi) north of the Lake Balaton. It houses Kinizsi Castle, a 14th-century fortification donated by Matthias I to Pál Kinizsi. Kinizsi's sarcophagus can be ...

since 1472 until his death. After the death of king

Matthias Matthias is a name derived from the Greek Ματθαίος, in origin similar to Matthew. People Notable people named Matthias include the following: In religion: * Saint Matthias, chosen as an apostle in Acts 1:21–26 to replace Judas Iscariot * ...

in 1490 he supported the Bohemian king

Vladislas II of Hungary Vladislaus II, also known as Vladislav, Władysław or Wladislas ( hu, II. Ulászló; 1 March 1456 – 13 March 1516), was King of Bohemia from 1471 to 1516, and King of Hungary and Croatia from 1490 to 1516. As the eldest son of Casimir IV Jagi ...

and the great magnates against Matthias' illegitimate son and designated successor

John Corvinus John Corvinus ( Hungarian: ''Corvin János'', Croatian: ''Ivaniš Korvin'', Romanian: ''Ioan Corvin''; 2 April 1473 – 12 October 1504) was the illegitimate son of Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary, and his mistress, Barbara Edelpöck. Biograp ...

. He destroyed the former king's mercenary Black Army which had become a robber band after its dissolution. He then was crippled by a stroke and died shortly afterwards. He is one of the few generals in history who never lost a battle.

Family

He married Benigna Magyar, the daughter of

Blaise Magyar Blaise Magyar ( hu, Magyar Balázs), also Blaž the Magyar, was a military commander and officer of state in the Kingdom of Hungary in the 15th century. His military career started under the command of John Hunyadi. In the reign of John Hunyadi's s ...

, another general of Corvinus.

Titles

*"Count of Temes" ( la, comes Temesiensis) *"Captain General of the Lower Parts of the Kingdom of Hungary" ( la, generalis capitaneus inferiorum partium regni)

Folklore

In legends, he is known as a commoner. Kinizsi is a hero of some Hungarian and Romanian folk tales along with king

as an extremely strong former miller's apprentice. According to these tales, the king was hunting in the Bakony forest near the mill where he worked and asked for a drink; Kinizsi, to show his strength, served the cup on a millstone. The king, impressed, took him into his service, where Kinizsi's strength, prowess and loyalty earned him rapid promotion. He is said to have wielded two greatswords in battle and to have danced a victory dance after the Battle of Kenyérmező with a captured or dead Turk under each arm and a third held with his hair or belt in his teeth.

Honors

Chinezul Timișoara Chinezul Timișoara was a football club that played both in the Romanian and the Hungarian championship during its existence. It was based in Timișoara, Romania (at the time of foundation Temesvár, Austria-Hungary). History The club was establ ...

was a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

club, which played both in the Romanian and the Hungarian championship during its existence. It was based in

Timișoara ), City of Roses ( ro, Orașul florilor), City of Parks ( ro, Orașul parcurilor) , image_map = Timisoara jud Timis.svg , map_caption = Location in Timiș County , pushpin_map = Romania#Europe , pushpin_ ...

(at the time of foundation Temesvár, Austria-Hungary). Postage stamps: Pál Kinizsi postage stamps were issued by Hungary on 1 January 1943 and in 1945. This same stamp was surcharged 28 fillér on 5 fillér and issued in 1945.

References

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Kinizsi, Pal 1432 births 1494 deaths 15th-century Hungarian people Hungarian generals Hungarian people of Serbian descent Judges royal