Budin Eyalet (also known as

Province A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

of Budin/Buda or Pashalik of Budin/Buda, ) was an administrative territorial entity of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

Central Europe Central Europe is a geographical region of Europe between Eastern Europe, Eastern, Southern Europe, Southern, Western Europe, Western and Northern Europe, Northern Europe. Central Europe is known for its cultural diversity; however, countries in ...

and the

Balkans The Balkans ( , ), corresponding partially with the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throug ...

. It was formed on the territories that Ottoman Empire conquered from the medieval

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

and Serbian Despotate. The capital of the Budin Province was Budin (Hungarian: Buda). Population of the province was ethnically and religiously diverse and included

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

Serbs The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...

Slovaks The Slovaks ( (historical Sloveni ), singular: ''Slovák'' (historical: ''Sloven'' ), feminine: ''Slovenka'' , plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history ...

Muslims Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

of various ethnic origins (living mainly in the cities) and others (

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

, Romani, etc.). The city of Buda itself became majority Muslim during the seventeenth century, largely through the immigration of Balkan Muslims.

History

In the

16th century The 16th century began with the Julian calendar, Julian year 1501 (represented by the Roman numerals MDI) and ended with either the Julian or the Gregorian calendar, Gregorian year 1600 (MDC), depending on the reckoning used (the Gregorian calend ...

the Ottoman Empire had conquered the southern "line of fortresses" (végvár) of the Kingdom of Hungary. After the

Battle of Mohács The Battle of Mohács (; , ) took place on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, in the Kingdom of Hungary. It was fought between the forces of Hungary, led by King Louis II of Hungary, Louis II, and the invading Ottoman Empire, commanded by Suleima ...

where the

was heavily defeated, and the turmoil caused by the defeat, the influence was spread on the middle part of the Kingdom of Hungary. While Ottoman troops invaded

Buda Buda (, ) is the part of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, that lies on the western bank of the Danube. Historically, “Buda” referred only to the royal walled city on Castle Hill (), which was constructed by Béla IV between 1247 and ...

in 1526 and 1529, Suleyman I used the Buda area as a territory of the allied kingdom and did not annex it fully to the Empire. In 1541, Suleyman decided to consolidate the conquered Buda area and to set it up as an organic part of the Empire. He drove away the Austrian commander Wilhelm von Roggendorf, besieging the city, and on 29 August 1541 he took control of the city, together with the city on the other side of the

Danube The Danube ( ; see also #Names and etymology, other names) is the List of rivers of Europe#Longest rivers, second-longest river in Europe, after the Volga in Russia. It flows through Central and Southeastern Europe, from the Black Forest sou ...

, Pest. He immediately organised the first Central European eyalet (province) with its capital in Buda (''Budin'' in Turkish). The same year, several other cities fell under Ottoman rule:

Szeged Szeged ( , ; see also #Etymology, other alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the third largest city of Hungary, the largest city and regional centre of the Southern Great Plain and the county seat ...

, Kalocsa and Szabadka (Serbian: Subotica). In the years 1543–44, the Ottomans conquered the fortresses of Nógrád, Vác, Fehérvár,

Pécs Pécs ( , ; ; Slovak language, Slovak: ''Päťkostolie''; also known by #Name, alternative names) is List of cities and towns of Hungary#Largest cities in Hungary, the fifth largest city in Hungary, on the slopes of the Mecsek mountains in the c ...

and Siklós which were embedded into the new eyalet. In 1552 the eyalet was expanded with new territories in the North, and the new Eyalet of Temeşvar was established. Military control of the surrounding areas was driven from Budin. The following year, the advance of the Ottomans slowed down and the territory of the Budin vilajet did not change until the ending of the Fifteen Years War and the Peace of Zsitvatorok, where the Ottomans lost territories North of Nógrád. However Eğri and Kanije were captured during these wars and were shortly managed as sanjaks in this province. Between 1566–1578, the governorship of Budin was held by Sokollu Mustafa Pasha. He was the twelfth and most notable beylerybey of the province. His tenure of twelve years was unprecedented and unsurpassed and saw numerous construction projects particularly in the provincial capital of Budin. It marked a significant transformation of the capital of the medieval Hungarian kingdom into an Ottoman provincial stronghold at the frontier between civilizations. By the 1570s the financial situation of the eyalet improved, albeit temporarily, as for the first time since its creation tax revenues surpassed expenditures. The territory of the eyalet was significantly reduced in size with the establishment of the eyalets of Eğri (1596) and Kanije (1600). By Gábor Ágoston, Bruce Alan Masters Nevertheless, it remained the foremost Ottoman province in Central Europe, owing to the strategic importance of Budin as a major port on the Danube. In the 17th century Kara Mustafa Pasha conquered more areas from the Habsburg Kingdom of Hungary and its vassal, the Principality of Transylvania, but did not succeed in conquering

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

in 1683. This failed attempt heralded the gradual decline of Ottoman power in Europe. On 2 September 1686 Budin was captured by the troops of the Holy League.

Military

Military clashes between the

Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

and the Ottomans were inevitable. They formed a border with one another, and although the European Eyalet had been established, there was a strong military presence in Buda. The number of the troops in the province at this time is difficult to estimate. There are documents to show 10,200 soldiers in the fortresses in 1546, and 12,451 soldiers in 1568. Auxiliary troops called

sipahi The ''sipahi'' ( , ) were professional cavalrymen deployed by the Seljuk Turks and later by the Ottoman Empire. ''Sipahi'' units included the land grant–holding ('' timar'') provincial ''timarli sipahi'', which constituted most of the arm ...

were also present. The cost of maintaining this large force put pressure on the budget of the province. In 1552, for example, the Porte sent 440,000 gold coins to Budin to provision the army. If the

sultan Sultan (; ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it came to be use ...

or the

beylerbey ''Beylerbey'' (, meaning the 'commander of commanders' or 'lord of lords’, sometimes rendered governor-general) was a high rank in the western Islamic world in the late Middle Ages and early modern period, from the Anatolian Seljuks and the I ...

was not present, then the post of general commander was taken by the

pasha Pasha (; ; ) was a high rank in the Ottoman Empire, Ottoman political and military system, typically granted to governors, generals, dignitary, dignitaries, and others. ''Pasha'' was also one of the highest titles in the 20th-century Kingdom of ...

s of Budin.

Fortresses

The Ottoman Empire put all efforts to strengthen the stronghold in Budin. They built several rings of defence around Budin and defended roads for supplies to Vienna, as their aim was to crush the capital of the Habsburgs, which they did not succeed. The most important fortresses around Budin were

Esztergom Esztergom (; ; or ; , known by Names of European cities in different languages: E–H#E, alternative names) is a city with county rights in northern Hungary, northwest of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom County, on the righ ...

Székesfehérvár Székesfehérvár (; ; ; ; Serbian language, Serbian: ''Стони Београд''; ), known colloquially as Fehérvár (), is a city in central Hungary, and the country's ninth-largest city. It is the Regions of Hungary, regional capital of C ...

, and also less important Vác and Visegrád. To the south, the most relevant fortress was Szigetvár.

Budin

In the 145 years Ottoman era, the city of Budin was not converted to the "Italian" type of defensive fortress, which was in the fashion at that time. The old fortress was enlarged by the "Víziváros" walls and a small stronghold was built on the Gellért hill. The Budin Castle was already standing on a medieval castle, with more or less same walls as per now. Various towers were built by Ottomans i.e. "Murad pasha tower" (Turkish: ''Murat paşa kulesi'') between 1650 and 1653. The walls were enlarged in Gellért hill, in Rózsadomb, Nap-hegy and on the side of the

. The main castle was also walled inside, where they have made small openings so that the sentry could move easily.

Administrative divisions

After 1541, province included following sanjaks:Dr Dušan J. Popović, Srbi u Vojvodini, knjiga I, Novi Sad, 1990, page 201. #Sanjak of Budin (Buda) #Sanjak of Semendire (Smederevo) #Sanjak of İzvornik (Zvornik) #Sanjak of Vulçetrin (Vushtrri) #Sanjak of Pojega (Požega) #Sanjak of Mohaç (Mohács) #Sanjak of İstolni Belgrad (Székesfehérvár) # Sanjak of Segedin (Szeged) #Sanjak of Sirem (Syrmia) #Sanjak of Kopan (Koppany) #Sanjak of Şikloş (Siklos) #Sanjak of Peçuy (Pécs) # Sanjak of Vidin #Sanjak of Alacahisar (Kruševac) #Sanjak of Çanad (Cenad) #Sanjak of Beçkerek (Zrenjanin) #Sanjak of Hipovo In about 1566, province included following sanjaks: #Sanjak of Budin (Buda) #Sanjak of Semendire (Smederevo) #Sanjak of Pojega (Požega) #Sanjak of Mıhaç (Mohács) #Sanjak of İstolni Belgrad (Székesfehérvár) # Sanjak of Segedin (Szeged) #Sanjak of Sirem (Syrmia) #Sanjak of Baboça (Babocsa) #Sanjak of Zigetvar (Szigetvar) #Sanjak of Peçuy (Pécs) #Sanjak of Estergon (Esztergom) #Sanjak of Hatvan #Sanjak of Filek (Filakovo) #Sanjak of Seçen (Szécsény) #Sanjak of Sonluk (Szolnok) #Sanjak of Şimontorna (Simontornya) #Sanjak of Kopan (Koppány) #Sanjak of Şikloş (Siklós) #Sanjak of Sekçay (Szekszárd) #Sanjak of Novigrad (Nograd) #Sanjak of Pespirim (Veszprém) In about 1600, province included following sanjaks: #Sanjak of Semendire (Smederevo) #Sanjak of Sirem (Syrmia) #Sanjak of

Ráckeve Ráckeve ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српски Ковин, Srpski Kovin) is a town on Csepel Island in the county of , Hungary. Its residents are mainly Hungarians, Magyars, with a minority of Serbs. The Serbian Kovin Monastery, the oldest in Hungary and ...

#Sanjak of Kopan (Koppány) #Sanjak of İstolni Belgrad (Székesfehérvár) #Sanjak of Mıhaç (Mohács) #Sanjak of Şikloş (Siklós) #Sanjak of Seçuy In 1610, province included following sanjaks: #Sanjak of Budin (Buda) #Sanjak of Sirem (Syrmia) #Sanjak of

#Sanjak of Kopan (Koppány) #Sanjak of İstolni Belgrad (Székesfehérvár) #Sanjak of Mıhaç (Mohács) Before the end of Ottoman administration (i.e. before 1699), province included following sanjaks: #Sanjak of Budin (Buda) #Sanjak of Sirem (Syrmia) #Sanjak of Semendire (Smederevo) #Sanjak of Sekçay (Szekszárd) #Sanjak of Şimontorna (Simontornya) #Sanjak of İstolni Belgrad (Székesfehérvár) #Sanjak of Estergon (Esztergom) #Sanjak of Mohaç (Mohács) #Sanjak of Peçuy (Pécs)

Notes

References

*Peter Rokai - Zoltan Đere - Tibor Pal - Aleksandar Kasaš, Istorija Mađara, Beograd, 2002. *Dr. Dušan J. Popović, Srbi u Vojvodini, knjiga 1, Novi Sad, 1990.

External links

Beylerbeys of Budin 1541 - 1686MapMapMapMapMapFortresses of the Kingdom of Hungary
{{Subdivisions of the Ottoman Empire Ottoman period in the history of Bulgaria Ottoman period in the history of Croatia Ottoman period in Hungary Ottoman history of Vojvodina Ottoman Serbia Ottoman period in Slovakia Ottoman period in the history of Kosovo Eyalets of the Ottoman Empire in Europe States and territories established in 1541 1541 establishments in the Ottoman Empire 1686 disestablishments in the Ottoman Empire