Maurus (I) from the kindred Győr (; died between 1203 and 1208) was a Hungarian noble at the turn of the 12th and 13th centuries, who served as the first known '' banus maritimus'', a predecessor office to the dignity of Ban of Croatia in the

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 ...

Family

Maurus was born into the Óvár branch of the ''gens'' (clan) Győr of German origin, as one of the five sons of Stephen I. His brothers were prelate and chancellor

Saul Saul (; , ; , ; ) was a monarch of ancient Israel and Judah and, according to the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament, the first king of the United Monarchy, a polity of uncertain historicity. His reign, traditionally placed in the late eleventh c ...

Bishop of Csanád A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

, then

Archbishop of Kalocsa In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...

;

Alexander Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here ar ...

, who participated in King Emeric's Wars in the Balkans; Csépán, a powerful baron and

Palatine of Hungary The Palatine of Hungary ( or , , ) was the highest-ranking office in the Kingdom of Hungary from the beginning of the 11th century to 1848. Initially, Palatines were representatives of the monarchs, later (from 1723) the vice-regent (vi ...

and Pat, who also held that position.Engel: ''Genealógia'' (Genus Győr 1., Óvár branch) Possibly Maurus was the eldest one of his brothers, as his elder son Stephen II was adult by the early 1200s. Through Stephen, Maurus was the ancestor of the Gyulai, Geszti and Kéméndi noble families.

Career

Maurus is first referred by contemporary records in February 1181, when resided in

Zadar Zadar ( , ), historically known as Zara (from Venetian and Italian, ; see also other names), is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Croatia. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea, at the northwestern part of Ravni Kotari region. Zadar ...

and was involved in a verdict about some possession rights. After the Hungarians had restored their suzerainty in

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

against the

Byzantine Empire The Byzantine Empire, also known as the Eastern Roman Empire, was the continuation of the Roman Empire centred on Constantinople during late antiquity and the Middle Ages. Having survived History of the Roman Empire, the events that caused the ...

, taking advantage of

Emperor The word ''emperor'' (from , via ) can mean the male ruler of an empire. ''Empress'', the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), mother/grandmother (empress dowager/grand empress dowager), or a woman who rules ...

Manuel Manuel may refer to: People * Manuel (name), a given name and surname * Manuel (''Fawlty Towers''), a fictional character from the sitcom ''Fawlty Towers'' * Manuel I Komnenos, emperor of the Byzantine Empire * Manuel I of Portugal, king of Po ...

's death, at the turn of 1180 and 1181, Maurus was installed as "governor of the whole coastal province". Consequently, he is identical with that Maurus, who held the position of Ban of Primorje around 1181. He is the first known office-holder of that dignity, which a precursor office of the royal dignity of

Ban of Croatia Ban of Croatia () was the title of local rulers or office holders and after 1102, viceroys of Croatia. From the earliest periods of the Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by Ban (title), bans as a ruler's representative (viceroy) and sup ...

, which elevated as an equal position to the dignity

Ban of Slavonia Ban of Slavonia (; ; ) sometimes also Ban of "Whole Slavonia" (; ; ), was the title of the governor of a territory part of the medieval Kingdom of Hungary and Croatia in union with Hungary, Kingdom of Croatia. From 1102, the title Ban (title), ...

in 1275. Accordingly, Maurus functioned as the deputy of Denis, Ban of Slavonia in proper Croatia, which fact is reflected by his full title in

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

: "''comes et tocius maritime provincie studiosus exercitator''" (). He served in this capacity until 1188 at the last, when a certain ''comes'' Damian of

bore the title. Maurus next appears in contemporary documents as a witness, when

Béla III of Hungary Béla III (, , ; 114823 April 1196) was King of Hungary and King of Croatia, Croatia between 1172 and 1196. He was the second son of King Géza II of Hungary, Géza II and Géza's wife, Euphrosyne of Kiev. Around 1161, Géza granted Béla a du ...

recorded and confirmed the estates and properties of the Székesfehérvár Convent in 1193. Maurus served as ''

ispán The ispánRady 2000, p. 19.''Stephen Werbőczy: The Customary Law of the Renowned Kingdom of Hungary in Three Parts (1517)'', p. 450. or countEngel 2001, p. 40.Curta 2006, p. 355. (, , and ),Kirschbaum 2007, p. 315. deriving from title of župan, ...

'' of

Moson County Moson (German language, German: Wieselburg, Slovak language, Slovak: Mošon) was an administrative county (Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary), comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary, situated mostly on the right (south) side of the Danube river. Its t ...

from 1202 to 1203, replacing his brother Pat. In this capacity, he acted as a ''pristaldus'' (royal commissioner or "bailiff") during the determination of the borders of the Szentkereszt Abbey. Maurus owned lands near Besenyő in

Somogy County Somogy (, ; ; , ) is an administrative county (Counties of Hungary, comitatus or ''vármegye'') in present Hungary, and also in the former Kingdom of Hungary. Somogy County lies in south-western Hungary, on the border with Croatia's Koprivnica- ...

. He died by 1208, when

Andrew II of Hungary Andrew II (, , , ; 117721 September 1235), also known as Andrew of Jerusalem, was King of Hungary and King of Croatia, Croatia between 1205 and 1235. He ruled the Principality of Halych from 1188 until 1189/1190, and again between 1208/1209 and ...

confirmed the Győr kindred's donation to the Lébény monastery in

Győr County Győr county (in Hungarian: ''Győr (vár)megye'') was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary, situated mostly on the right (south) side of the Danube river. Its territory is now part of Hungary, except seven villages on t ...

References

Sources

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gyor, Maurus 1200s deaths 12th-century Hungarian nobility 13th-century Hungarian nobility Maurus Bans of Croatia