The Matthias Corvinus House ( Romanian: ''Casa Matia'', ) is one of the oldest buildings in

Cluj-Napoca Cluj-Napoca ( ; ), or simply Cluj ( , ), is a city in northwestern Romania. It is the second-most populous city in the country and the seat of Cluj County. Geographically, it is roughly equidistant from Bucharest (), Budapest () and Belgrade ( ...

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

. It was built in the 15th century, in the gothic style, as a small guesthouse. During its history, the house served as a jail, hospital, and museum; it is now home to a visual arts institute.

Matthias Corvinus Matthias Corvinus (; ; ; ; ; ) was King of Hungary and King of Croatia, Croatia from 1458 to 1490, as Matthias I. He is often given the epithet "the Just". After conducting several military campaigns, he was elected King of Bohemia in 1469 and ...

(Hungarian: ''Hunyadi Mátyás'', Romanian: ''Matia Corvin''), son of

John Hunyadi John Hunyadi (; ; ; ; ; – 11 August 1456) was a leading Kingdom of Hungary, Hungarian military and political figure during the 15th century, who served as Regent of Hungary, regent of the Kingdom of Hungary (1301–1526), Kingdom of Hungary ...

, later one of the most renowned

Kings of Hungary The King of Hungary () was the Monarchy, ruling head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 (or 1001) to 1918. The style of title "Apostolic King of Hungary" (''Magyarország apostoli királya'') was endorsed by Pope Clement XIII in 1758 ...

, was born in this building. That time the house was owned by Jakab (James) Méhffi, who was a well-to-do wine-grower and merchant in the city. On 28 September 1467, king Matthias gave tax and duty exemption privilege for all descendants of the Méhffi family, the owner of the building. The house has been owned by the Art and Design University of Cluj-Napoca since 1950.

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The house of Matthias Corvinus, the only king born in Cluj
Buildings and structures in Cluj-Napoca History of Cluj-Napoca Hunyadi family Houses in Romania Culture of Hungary Gothic architecture in Romania 15th-century architecture Cultural depictions of Matthias Corvinus {{ClujCounty-geo-stub