Prince Álmos

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Álmos (also "Almus", Slovak, Template:Langx; Template:Circa 1070  or 1075<ref>Margaret Odrowaz-Sypniewska, The Courtly Lives of Polish Kings, Nobles, Saints, Knights and Their Genealogy</ref> – 1 September 1127<ref>Detlev Schwennicke, Europäische Stammtafeln (Marburg, 1980-1991), ST Volume 2, Chart 154</ref>) was a Hungarian prince, the son of King Géza I of Hungary and brother of King Coloman. He held several governmental posts in the Kingdom of Hungary.

Life

Early life

Álmos was the younger of the two sons surviving infancy of the future King Géza I.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn His mother seems to have been his father's first wife, Sophia, because Géza's Byzantine second wifeTemplate:Mdashwhose baptismal name is unknownTemplate:Mdashreturned to her homeland after her husband's death.Template:Sfn Both Álmos and his older brother, Coloman, were born around 1070, according to the historians Gyula Kristó and Márta Font.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Géza I who ascended the throne in 1074 died on 25 April 1077.Template:Sfn He was succeeded by his brother, Ladislaus I, because Coloman and Álmos were still minors.Template:Sfn The new king decided that Coloman should be prepared for a career in the Church.Template:Sfn The king's decision was unusual, as Coloman was older than Álmos.Template:Sfn

Between 1084 and 1091 Álmos was the duke of Slavonia; between 1091 and 1095 he was named duke of Croatia.<ref name="Kapitánffy2003">Template:Cite book</ref> According to the Illuminated Chronicle both Coloman and Álmos accompanied their uncle on a military campaign against Bohemia in the spring of 1095.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Before reaching the border of his kingdom, Ladislaus I "was overcome by a grave infirmity"<ref name="Chronicon_140_101_130">The Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle (ch. 140.101), p. 130.</ref> and decided to appoint Álmos as his heir.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn However, Coloman did not agree with his uncle's decision, deciding to flee to Poland.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Conflicts with Coloman

Coloman returned after King Ladislaus had died to claim his rights.Template:Sfn According to the Illuminated Chronicle, it was his uncle who had invited him back from Poland.Template:Sfn The same source adds that Álmos "in the true simplicity of his heart honoured his brother, Coloman, and yielded to him the crown of the kingdom",<ref name="Chronicon_140_101_130"/> which suggests that Coloman ascended the throne without bloodshed.Template:Sfn On the other hand, he was only crowned king in early 1096, implying that the two brothers had been fighting for the crown before they reached an agreement.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Coloman was crowned in Székesfehérvár by Archbishop Seraphin of Esztergom.Template:Sfn According to the Illuminated Chronicle, at the same time he "granted the dukedom with full rights"<ref>The Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle (ch. 142.102), p. 131.</ref> to Álmos.Template:Sfn This report shows that Álmos only acknowledged his brother's rule in exchange for receiving the one-time ducatus or duchy of their father and grandfather, which encompassed one-third of the kingdom.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

After Coloman's victories over the marauding crusaders in 1096, Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, whom Ladislaus I had supported against Pope Urban II in his last years, wrote a letter to Duke Álmos.Template:Sfn He stated that Coloman had "neglected" his "interests because of his own necessities"<ref>The letters of Henry IV: Henry thanks Duke Almus for his support and promises him a reward, p. 171.</ref> and asked Álmos to intervene on his behalf at Coloman.Template:Sfn However, the kingTemplate:Mdasha former bishopTemplate:Mdashdid not continue his predecessor's foreign policy and joined the pope's camp.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Historian Gyula Kristó writes that the fact that his brother, Álmos had for years had a close relationship with Emperor Henry may also have influenced Coloman's decision.Template:Sfn

Coloman invaded Croatia and participated himself in the campaign in 1097.Template:Sfn Taking advantage of Coloman's absence, Álmos began to conspire against the king and mustered his armies.Template:Sfn Coloman returned from Croatia and marched towards his brother's duchy with his troops in 1098.Template:Sfn The two armies encountered at Tiszavárkony, only the river Tisza separated them.Template:Sfn However, the commanders of the two troops started negotiations and decided not to fight against each other, compelling Coloman and Álmos to make a peace.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

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Final confrontation

Álmos and Béla are blinded
Álmos and his son, Béla are blinded on Coloman's order (from the Illuminated Chronicle)

The conflict was renewed a few years later between the two brothers, when Coloman had his four-year-old son, Stephen, crowned in 1105, which resulted in the open rebellion of Álmos.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The duke left Hungary and sought the assistance of Emperor Henry IV against the king.Template:Sfn However, he realized that the emperor, who was facing a rebellion of his own son, could not help him.Template:Sfn Álmos returned to Hungary in 1106, but soon fled to his brother-in-law, Boleslaw III of Poland.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn With Polish assistance, he took the fortress of Abaújvár in Hungary.Template:Sfn As a result, Coloman had a meeting with Boleslaw III and the two monarchs "vowed perpetual friendship and brotherhood".Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn<ref name="Gallus_Anonymus_2_29_173">The Deeds of the Princes of the Poles (ch. 2.29.), p. 173.</ref> Without the Polish monarch's support Álmos was forced to yield to Coloman.Template:Sfn

Coloman had Álmos seized
Coloman had the blind Álmos imprisoned before his death (from the Illuminated Chronicle)

King Coloman decided to take advantage of the absence of ÁlmosTemplate:Mdashwho had made a pilgrimage to the Holy LandTemplate:Mdashand seized his duchy in 1107 or 1108.Template:Sfn Although Álmos was allowed to keep his own private property, the annexation of his duchy ensured the integrity of Coloman's kingdom.Template:Sfn Having returned from the Holy Land, Álmos decided to set up a monastery at Dömös.Template:Sfn On the occasion of its consecration, where Coloman was also present, Álmos wasTemplate:Mdashfalsely, according to the Illuminated ChronicleTemplate:Mdashaccused of an assassination attempt on the monarch.Template:Sfn Coloman decided to have his brother arrested, but "the most reverend bishops and other well-disposed dignitaries" intervened on Álmos's behalf and "thus reconciliation was solemnly sworn"<ref>The Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle (ch. 148.105), p. 132.</ref> between the king and his brother.Template:Sfn

Álmos left for Passau.Template:Sfn Upon his request, Henry V of Germany invaded Hungary and laid siege to Pressburg (Bratislava, Slovakia) in September 1108.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn At the same time, Duke Svatopluk of Bohemia, who also supported Álmos, made an incursion into the regions north of the Danube.Template:Sfn However, Coloman's ally, Boleslaw III invaded Bohemia, forcing the Czech duke to withdraw.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Although the emperor's attempt to take Pressburg was also a total failure, he could persuade Coloman to forgive his rebellious brother, who thus return to Hungary.Template:Sfn

Coloman discovered that Álmos was again conspiring to seize the throne.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Having lost his patience, Coloman had Álmos and Álmos's young son, Béla, blinded in order to secure a peaceful succession for his own son.Template:Sfn On the same occasion, many of his brother's partisans were likewise mutilated.Template:Sfn After this Álmos went on to live in seclusion at the monastery of Dömös. Coloman died in 1116. His son, Stephen was crowned king in Székesfehérvár in the month of his father's death.Template:Sfn His peaceful succession proves that the safety measures Coloman had implemented to prevent Álmos from aspiring the throne were effective.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn

Exile

According to the Illuminated Chronicle, the blind Álmos, "fearing death at the hands of King Stephen",<ref>The Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle (ch. 157.112), p. 135.</ref> fled to the Byzantine Empire.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn Many of his partisans followed him and Emperor John II Komnenos settled them in a town in Macedonia.Template:Sfn There, Álmos received a new name from the Emperor, Constantine.<ref>The Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle (ch. 157.), p. 292.</ref> The Byzantine John Kinnamos confirms that the emperor "regarded" Álmos "favorably and received him with kindness".<ref>Deeds of John and Manuel Comnenus by John Kinnamos (1.4), p. 17.</ref> He adds that king Stephen II "sent his envoys to the emperor and demanded that" Álmos "be expelled from"<ref>Deeds of John and Manuel Comnenus by John Kinnamos (1.4), pp. 17–18.</ref> the Byzantine Empire, but his request was rejected.Template:SfnTemplate:Sfn The sources do not specify the date of Álmos's flight, but it seems to have occurred in about 1125.Template:Sfn Historian Ferenc Makk writes that Álmos was forced to flee from Hungary, because he had taken advantage of Stephen's failures in Volhynia and Dalmatia and conspired against Stephen. His departure resulted a war between the two realms, lasting from 1127 to 1129.Template:Sfn Álmos died in exile on 1 September 1127.Template:Sfn

His son Béla the Blind would succeed as king of Hungary in 1131. The duke's remains were returned to Hungary in 1137.

Family

Template:Ahnentafel On August 21, 1104, Álmos married Predslava of Kiev,Template:Sfn and had the following children:

References

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Sources

Primary sources

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  • Deeds of John and Manuel Comnenus by John Kinnamos (Translated by Charles M. Brand) (1976). Columbia University Press. Template:ISBN.
  • The Deeds of the Princes of the Poles (Translated and annotated by Paul W. Knoll and Frank Schaer with a preface by Thomas N. Bisson) (2003). CEU Press. Template:ISBN.
  • The Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle: Chronica de Gestis Hungarorum (Edited by Dezső Dercsényi) (1970). Corvina, Taplinger Publishing. Template:ISBN.
  • "The letters of Henry IV: Henry thanks Duke Almus for his support and promises him a reward" (2000). In Imperial Lives & Letters of the Eleventh Century (Translated by Theodor E. Mommsen and Karl F. Morrison, with a historical introduction and new suggested readings by Karl F. Morrison, edited by Robert L. Benson). Columbia University Press. pp. 52–100. Template:ISBN.

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Secondary sources

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