Axis – Vallás- és eszmetörténeti folyóirat

Előszó

Őze Sándor — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

„Keresztes háborútól” a királygyilkosságig

Hunyadi Sándor — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

In 1287, Pope Honorius IV authorized Archbishop Lodomer of Esztergom to force Ladislaus IV to take back his wife and, furthermore, if necessary to initiate a crusade against the pagans. Although Pope Honorius IV, and later Pope Nicholas III, provided the support necessary for the crusade through calling upon the rulers of the neighbouring kingdoms to support the Archbishop of Esztergom, the crusade against the Hungarian king never took place due to his assassination. In my study, through an examination of the final years of Ladislaus IV, I aim to answer a particular question in political, military, and ecclesiastical history: why the planned crusade against Ladislaus IV never took place. The assassination plotted against the king seems to answer the question at first, nevertheless, if we set aside the king’s death, several events occured between 1287 and 1290 that might also explain why the crusade never took place, such as the expansion carried out by Albert of Habsburg in the western regions of the kingdom in 1289, or the fact that Ladislaus IV was the last widely recognized member of the dynasty. In this study, I am to explore and elaborate upon these possible reasons on the basis of the available sources and the most recent scholarly literature published on the subject.

Vallásos ének vagy csatadal?

Tóth Dominik — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

Following the defeat at Mohács, the Ottoman threat and the fear of an Ottoman invasion became a tangible reality in the Kingdom of Bohemia as well. Jiřík Štyrsa, a printer of the period, published a collection of songs intended to provide spiritual guidance and support. The volume contained mainly religious songs that were considered especially relevant in those troubled times. According to an editorial note, one of the songs originated from “old Bohemia.” After the discovery of the Jistebnice hymn book, it became clear that the song was indeed one of the Taborite battle songs. Research has shown that it was much more than a simple song: its content served as a kind of guide to proper conduct for the “Warriors of God”.

A magyarországi török háborúk erkölcsi kérdései az egykorú cseh irodalomban

Kovács Eszter — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The Ottoman conquest in Hungary were a topic of intense interest in the Czech lands. A significant portion of the printed materials on the Ottoman wars consists of contemporary reports, while others are historical works; however, there are also a fair number of works that seek to address the moral questions raised by the war. The Czech intellectuals largely agreed that it was necessary to fight against the Turks, both to defend their country and the Christian faith. This view was held by the Utraquist Bartoloměj Dvorský, Šimon Partlic ze Špicberku, and the Catholic Jan Tomáš Pešina. Václav Budovec, nobleman from the Unity of the Brethren (Jednota bratrská), and sympathizer of the Reformed Church, saw in the Turks the army of the Antichrist rising in the end of the times, against whom Christians must fight, both with the sword and in spirit. Although most authors do not question the legitimacy of the wars waged against the Turks — indeed, they encourage enthusiastic participation and financial sacrifice — there are also dissenting voices. The counterarguments can be divided into three major groups. 1. The Turks are God’s punishment, and we must accept this punishment from God’s hand for our sins if we wish to obtain forgiveness (Andreas Musculus). 2. A Christian must treat his fellow men with love; therefore, instead of defeating the Turks, we should strive to convert them (Mikuláš Drábik). 3. The war against the Turks is a matter for Hungary and the Balkan states; it is not in Bohemia’s interest to devote its financial and military resources to fighting the Turks (Bohuslav Balbín). Opinions downplaying the Turkish threat were rarely voiced in the printed press; the majority of the Czech intellectuals regarded this struggle as a matter of Bohemian interest and a moral duty.

Magyarságtudat és hadviselés kapcsolata a török kori Magyarországon

Kövecses László — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

This study, based on military-related sources, argues that by the end of the Ottoman Era, ethno-cultural national identity took precedence over the sense of belonging to a social or religious group. From the late Middle Ages onwards, the peasantry played an increasingly important role in the anti-Turkish struggles. According to contemporary letters, orders, songs and military treatises, the resistance and freedom struggle against both the Ottomans and the Habsburgs contributed significantly to the fact that commoners and nobles began to see each other as belonging to the same national community. In the analysis, special attention is given to the representative of 16th century Hungarian intelligentsia, Péter Pécsi Kis’ Exegeticon and 17th century aristocrate Miklós Zrínyi’s Áfium, both of which contain unique thoughts from the history of ideas’ point of view. A recurring motif in primary sources is the emphasis on a sense of belonging based on common descent and armed lifestyle, as the particular factors capable of forging unity between individuals belonging to diverse denominations and estates. The direct or indirect military involvement and armed lifestyle of a significant portion of society contributed decisively to the development and strengthening of Hungarian identity during the 16th–17th centuries.

Funkcionalitástól a műalkotásig

Mészáros D. Szimonetta — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

The study examines the formal and functional evolution of papal swords within the tradition of the blessed sword and hat. It seeks to determine whether an evolutionary trajectory is discernible, the extent to which these objects can be considered works of art, and at what point they diverged from their original function as weapons. The pope would bless the sword during the Christmas liturgy and subsequently bestow it upon rulers or privileged individuals. The sword, hat, and belt formed a unified symbolic system expressing the transmission of papal approval and power.The tradition persisted from the mid-14th century until 1825, although its origins remain somewhat obscure. Given the scarcity of surviving examples and the difficulty of precisely defining this group of objects, the author establishes criteria for their identification. Symbolically, the sword represents active defense, while the cap signifies divine protection. As part of this prestigious gift the papal swords gradually evolved into objects of ceremony and prestige. From the late 15th century onwards, the artistic nature of these objects became more pronounced, and the role of the goldsmiths grew in importance. During the pontificate of Julius II, these swords became instruments of politics and diplomacy. Overall, the evolution of papal ceremonial swords shows a progression from liturgical weapons towards independent works of art and diplomatic gifts.

Román unitusok és ortodoxok a 17–18. század fordulóján

Demjén Balázs Ádám — Thu, 08 Oct 2026 00:00:00 +0000

For lack of existence of the national self-determination as known in our age, political and confessional identity should be examined collaterally in the late 1690s and early 1700s, also as for the Romanians under Habsburg rule. The Court of Vienna — taking the more or less successful Union of Ungvár (1646) of the Rusins as an example, helped by the imperial Jesuits under the leadership of Lipót Kollonich (1631–1707) — tried to form a new Romanian Greek Catholic confession in parallel with the last anti-Ottoman war in the territory of Hungary and Transylvania (especially from 1692) to take more effective control of the estates of their relms. Our study tries to give a short overview of these aspirations from the very beginning until 1709, when the last substantive connections of the anti-imperial political and military movement (1703–1711) of Prince Ferenc Rákóczi II (1676–1735) in line with religious affairs went down with the two Romanian-based neighbouring principalities of Transylvania, i.e. Moldavia and Wallachia. This hard-pressed period — accompanied with the duel for the Romanian Greek Catholic episcopal seat between the aulic unionist Athanasius and his antipode, basically the Transylvanian Hungarian protestants’ candidate Ioan Ţirca — shows us some failed and partially efficient examples of negotiations and pursuit of common interests via governmental, princely, diplomatic and ecclesiastical sources.