#mohacs

[thepastisalreadywritten]

[easternblocrelics]

Memorial for the Battle of Mohács for the 450th anniversary Hungary 1976

[fallbabylon]

Replica Buso masks in Budapest- In the Mohacs region of Hungary the Buso mask is worn as part of a festival to scare off winter.

[furordinaricvs]

Franciscan monastery in Bač, Serbia. Built in 1169 by Crusaders. After the battle of Mohacs, Turks started to rule over Bačka province and monastery was turned into a mosque in 1526. After some time, in 1688, monastery was made Christian again.

[thevampiricnihal]

You probably talked abt this but when do you think Ibo actually fell for Nigar

I actually didn’t talk about it directly.

Before answering this question, I will add two disclaimers:

1) This will be a purely Watsonian answer. Of course Doylistically neither Nigar nor Ibrahim showed much interest in each other for the first 16 episodes of the show because the writers probably didn’t think of making them a Thing before Episode 17. I will ignore this reality and will come up with an in-universe answer.

2) I will assume that Ibrahim fell for Nigar at some point before their affair. I won’t explore the possibility that he never ever fell for her and only got it up thinking of how hurt he was by Hatice’s words. My blog, my rules, my reading.

So, let’s list the possibilities:

1- He was always secretly attracted to her.

Not very likely, but it is possibly supported by him dragging her by the arm in Episode 6, tending to use her as his special Harem informant, teasing her in a weird familiar way in Episode 7, and the absolute randomness of him caressing her cheek in Episode 17. There is absolutely nothing supporting a full-blown crush, but you can read a slight attraction into his actions if you want to.

2- In Episode 17, right before randomly caressing her cheek, due to the last-minute regret of marrying a Sultana. Maybe he thought “Shucks, this one was attractive too, isn’t it a pity that I can never be with another woman ever again?”. So his attraction to her might have started at that moment, because he tends to like what he cannot have. This is possibly supported by him being nicer and more touchy-feely with her in the next few episodes.

3- He fell for her in some moment between his marriage to Hatice in Episode 17 and Nigar’s attempted kiss scene in Episode 21. He could have been disappointed with his marriage with Hatice and also may have subconsciously registered Nigar’s crush and returned it. Again this might be supported by him being nicer to her in these episodes.

4- He fell for her while consoling her in Episode 21. They were definitely having “a moment” there, he praised her, he was in awe of her, he wiped her tears with his finger. It was a romantic scene. Maybe he got impacted by the usually put-together Nigar cracking under pressure and connected with her through their common slave backgrounds and fell for her.

5- Her attempting to kiss him made him lowkey obsessed with her and he began to fall for her. This is supported by him getting seriously jealous and mad at the prospect of her having a relationship with Leo in Episode 23 and getting very touchy with her in that scene: Putting their heads together, pinching her lips, touching her breast while taking the letter, completely ignoring her personal space, choking her extremely unnecessarily in a way that reminds one of boys pulling the hair of the girls they like, caressing her face after Leo’s death. He seems to respect her less than he used to, but he is clearly attracted to her at this point. I think this is the interpretation that I subscribe to the most.

6- He might have fallen for her after Leo’s death. In this interpretation the points in the previous item of this list were merely him manipulating her, but after Leo’s death he was impressed with her. This is supported by him being more obviously flirtatious with her in Episode 27. I like this one a bit since it is very “hunter gets hunted”. He merely wanted to manipulate Nigar’s crush but accidentally fell for her.

7- After his victory in Mohacs he got an overblown ego and started to get entitled to being with women other than Hatice. When the first woman he saw after a long time of being away at war was Nigar, he started to get attracted to her. Again supported by the flirtatious behavior in Episode 27. Hatice being heavily pregnant might have helped.

8- After Hatice’s insult in Episode 29, he started to look around and to redirect his romantic energies to the other woman in love with him and fell for her. This is probably the interpretation Ibrahim himself would go with.

9- He fell for her after they had sex in Episode 35. The sex was simply too good and he fell in love.

10- Somewhere between Episodes 35 and 41 he got impressed with her obsession with him and started to fall for her. Maybe it was her suicide letter. He tried to search for ways to make her his mistress. His weird smile at the prospect of marrying her to Matrakçı and him being rather curious about Nigar’s reaction to this marriage supports this.

11- He fell when she helped him with the poisoned arrow incident in Episode 43. He felt that he had someone to help him, someone he can truly rely on. His obsession with her “healing hands” might be a reference to this.

12- He fell when she kissed him and “healed” him at that cave in Episode 44. This too would fit in with the obsession with the “healing hands”. He saw a vision of his mother too when she kissed him which is super weird but fitting in an “Oedipal” way. Later in the episode he gets teary-eyed and demands Hatice to play him one of his “mother’s tunes” and reminisces about his childhood while it is playing. He also seems truly upset about Nigar’s impending marriage at the same scene. He immediately goes and tells Matrakçı to divorce Nigar and at the end of Episode 44 he officially starts the affair. This would fit in with Nigar being a representative of his “past”, of “Theo”. We can even get weirder and speculate his mother looking like Nigar.

But yes, I firmly believe that by the start of Episode 45 (the “wedding” night) Ibrahim is in love with Nigar in his own peculiar way.

I think all of these twelve points are valid to interpret as the moment he fell for her.

I think he became strongly attracted to her during points 1-5, and started to fall in love with her during points 6-12.

[mapsontheweb]

The Great Turkish War or War of the Holy League (1683-1699) and its aftermath

« Atlas des guerres – Époque moderne », Autrement, 2023

by cartesdhistoire

In 1682, the Austro-Turkish war became inevitable: faced with collusion between Louis XIV, the Turks, and Hungarian revolts led by Thököly, an Austro-Polish alliance was formed.

150,000 Turks marched towards Hungary to besiege Vienna, reaching it on July 14. Polish leader Sobieski, arriving in September, imposed his strategy on a coalition army of 75,000 men: crossing the Danube and taking positions on the heights of Kahlenberg. The charge of Polish hussars on September 12 was thunderous, pushing all the way to the fleeing Grand Vizier's camp. Turkish losses were heavy, Vienna was liberated, Ottoman progress was disrupted, and the campaign ended with several more Polish victories.

The formation of the Holy League (with Venice in 1684 and Russia in 1686) allowed the resumption of the offensive by the imperialists: Pest was captured (October 1684), Buda as well, but with difficulty (September 1686), opening the road to Belgrade despite a Turkish counteroffensive resulting in the defeat of Mohacs (1687). Hungarian cities were conquered one by one, Transylvania came under Habsburg sovereignty, but the War of the Augsburg League diverted the imperial troops. A border was drawn on the Danube while Eugene of Savoy, fighting alongside the Imperials, won the Battle of Zenta in 1697. Peace was signed in 1699 (Treaty of Karlowitz): Hungary, Transylvania, and the Banat of Temesvar came under Habsburg domination; Podolia returned to Poland and Azov to the Russians.

The expansion of the Habsburgs continued thanks to their engagement on the side of Venice (Veneto-Ottoman war of 1714-1718). The victories of Eugene de Savoy (Petervarden in 1716, siege of Belgrade in 1717) marked the maximum expansion of the Habsburgs with the Treaty of Passarowitz in 1718 (some territories were returned after the Austro-Turkish War of 1737-1739, with the Treaty of Belgrade).

[vladdocs]

CD SHORTS: Where did 90% of Romania's medieval history BURN?

The great powers of the 14th and 15th centuries had an efficient intelligence system through spy networks and frequent reports. These secret reports were of great importance to political actors. For this reason, they were carefully archived: in Hungary at Buda in the royal archive, in Venice in the Republic's archive, in Istanbul at the High Porte. These would be the mandatory destinations for any Romanian medievalist. It would be... in an ideal world. Unfortunately, however, most of the documents were destroyed. The Hungarian archive was burned first by the Ottomans after Mohacs and the second time, two centuries later, by the Habsburgs. The Venetian archive burned in the 16th century in two major fires. The Ottoman archives were cleaned at the beginning of the 20th century of the oldest (and for bureaucrats irrelevant) funds, sold as waste paper to the Bulgarians. The fact that we know very little about the Romanian Middle Ages is therefore not a conspiracy or the result of the bad will and incompetence of historians. It simply burned over 90% of the sources.

[warfantasy]

Campaigns of John Hunyadi

Introduction Kingdom of Hungary and Croatia had provided a continuous defense of Western Europe against Ottoman expansion from Battle of Nicopolis in 1396. until Battle of Mohacs in 1526. During this time, external assistance was received only infrequently. With Franco-Burgundian military incompetence causing a disaster at Nicopolis, and Western Europe busy with its own matters, Hungary was…

[noneedtofearorhope]

sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but this map isn’t really saying what i think most of us have thought it to be saying

like, take hungary. this is the entire section on hungary

Hungary is just a bit too far from the sea to have received very much attention from us. Nevertheless, armed Brits have conducted operations there. For instance, in the late seventeenth century, assorted volunteers from Britain, including the son of Prince Rupert, fought in the army of Prince Eugene of Savoy as it pushed the Ottomans back through Hungary. Buda was stormed in 1686 and in 1687 the prince won a battle at Mohacs, scene of the decisive Ottoman victory in 1526. The RAF operated over Hungary in the Second World War. SOE also operated in Hungary, though not extensively. SOE had difficulty establishing a presence in the country, with a couple of failed missions. When Basil Davidson was working as liaison with the Yugoslav partisans, SOE sent him to Hungary to try to organise a rebel movement there, but he realised that it wasn't going to work and eventually crossed back tinto the Fruska Gora area.

it also includes things going as far back as the 4th century, which i think most would say is before britain was even a nation.

[european-tour-operator]

Route: Pecs - Monument of the Battle of Mohacs - Szeged - Pecs Duration: 9 h Our first short stop we will make at the monument of the Battle of Mohács which was fought on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, and was a crucial event for the history of Europe for the following

[morfey]

Mohacs ...

[bartholomaus]

Scurtă lecție de istorie.

Am observat că pe internet cca 98% din comentatorii temelor de istorie legate de Transilvaniei confundă grav structurile politice din care a făcut parte Transilvania. Oricum, Transilvania e un termen-umbrelă pentru teritoriile câștigate la vest de Regatul României în 1920. În realitate fiind vorba de 3 entități teritoriale cu identitate specifică: Banatul, Partium (Crișana+Maramureșul) și Transilvania propriu zisă.

Nu îi acuz pe neștiutori deoarece în nici un manual de istorie aceste lucruri nu sunt spuse clar, ci scăldate. În plus se adaugă multe falsuri și clișee lăsate tulburi încă din epoca ceaușistă, ba chiar mai demult/

-FAZA 1. Cucerirea treptată a Transilvaniei

De-a lungul a aproape 300 de ani maghiarii stabiliți în Pannonia au cucerit ceea ce numim Transilvania, înaintând către est, încet-încet până pe linia Carpaților. De paza hotarelor s-au ocupat neamurile de secui războinici a căror așezări s-au mutat spre est o data cu mișcările frontierelor. Ulterior, de paza hotarelor se ocupă și românii (Maramureș, Făgăraș, Hațeg) și coloniștii vestici (sașii) chemați de regii maghiari în primul rând să ridice economic provincia. Încă de la început acesta era un teritoriu multietnic, pe lângă români, maghiari și sași (flamanzi, luxemburghezi, francezi, germani) mai trăiau și cumani, pecenegi, diverși slavi, bulgari etc.

-FAZA 2 Voievodatul Transilvaniei, provincie a Regatului Ungariei

Transilvania a a ajuns să facă parte din Regatul Maghiar organizat ca „voievodat” (termen preluat din slavă, o moștenire rămasă din epoca când o mare parte din Transilvania făcuse parte din Primul Țarat Bulgar), condusă de un guvernator (voievod). În perioada medievală voievodul erau un înalt dregător regal, baron al regatului, care era numit în funcție de către rege. Funcția a evoluat cel mai probabil din funcția de comite de Alba Iulia. Voievodul era ajutat în administrarea civilă și militară a provinciei de către vicevoievod/zi ales din rândurile nobilimii transilvănene. În istoriografia românească mai veche se sugera prin omisiunea unor informații (sau prin hărți) că Voievodatul Transilvaniei era o entitate separată/independentă de Regatul Ungariei, ceea ce nu este adevărat. Relativa autonomie a provinciei se datora sistemului decentralizat al entităților politice medievale. Datorită lipsei unor structuri și instituții statale centralizate și infrastructură specifică epocii moderne, era foarte dificil administrarea unor teritorii atât de diverse ca cele stăpânite de Regatul Maghiar. Toate statele medievale europene erau confruntate cu probleme similare, iar caracterul descentralizat al feudalismului oferea o soluție viabilă.

-FAZA 3 – Transilvania, Principat Autonom sub vasalitate otomană

În 1526 Regatul Ungariei este înfrânt de o armata otomană condusă de Soliman Magnificul (Bătălia de la Mohacs). În deceniile următoare Ungaria centrală (o treime din teritoriul regatului) este anexată de turci și devine ”Pașalâcul de la Buda”. Apoape 30 de ani după Mohacs este cucerită de turci și Timișoara, cu Banat cu tot, devenind ”Pașalâcul de Timișoara”. În părțile Ungariei rămase necucerite de turci începe un război civil între susținătorii lui Ferdinand de Habsburg și fostul voievod ardelean, Ioan Zapolya, aceasta din urmă fiind sprijinit de turci. Amândoi au fost aleși și încoronați în mod legitim ca și regi ai Ungariei. Imperiul Habsburgic, care încă era într-o fază primordială la acest moment, era o formațiune laxă coagulată în jurul posesiunilor ereditare ale Casei de Austria/de Habsburg la care se adăugaseră prin alianțe matrimoniale sau cuceriri teritorii din Croația, Boemia, Italia, Serbia, Germania. Habsburgii mai aveau o aripă spaniolă (Carol Quintul) ceea ce o făcera cea mai puternică familie domnitoare din Europa și cei mai aprigi inamici ai înaintării otomane în lumea creștină. Între 1541-1571 se formează din Regatul Ungariei de Est (teritoriile stăpânite de familia Zapolya, printre care și voievodatul medieval al Transilvaniei) un PRINCIPAT AUTONOM, dar vasal turcilor. Acest principat stăpânea teritorii considerabil mai largi decât voievodatul medieval. În timp ce Moldova sau Valahia ajunseseră să fie controlate politic în totalitate de către turci, Transilvania avea o grămadă de libertăți politice și economice.

Timp de cca 160 de ani, Transilvania a fost un stat în sine. Celelalte resturi ale Regatului Ungariei se aflau ori sub turci, ori făceu parte din Regatul Maghiar controlat de către dinastia de Habsburg. Transilvania a purtat lupte cu Imperiul Habsburgic în mai multe rânduri pentru controlul unor teritorii de graniță: precum Maramureșul (cu cetatea SatuMare) sau Ungaria de Sus, astăzi Slovacia. Timișoara n-a mai putut fi recuperată. În această epocă Reforma religioasă se răspândeste în Transilvania și devine dominantă sub diverse forme: luterană, calvină, unitariană. Episcopiile catolice au fost desființate iar manastirile catolice închise. Transilvania devine un teritoriu pe lângă multi-etnic și multi-religios. Este poate statul cel mai tolerant religios în Europa. Transilvania a fost condusă de principi maghiari, majoritatea buni oameni politici, precum: Ștefan Bathory (ajuns și rege al Poloniei), Gabriel Bethlen, Ghe. Rakoczy I, Akațiu Barcsay, Ghe. Rakoczy II, Mihai Apafi I (numele românizate). Au existat și principi odioși precum Gabriel Bathory. Politica țării o făcea principele, ce avea reședința la Alba Iulia, împreună cu Dieta (Parlamentul) formată din nobilime, sași și secui. De-a lungul timpului Imperiul Habsburgic a încercat de mai multe ori să scoată Transilvania de sub orbita otomană și să o aducă în orbita proprie. Așa cum a încercat în timpul guvernatorului Castaldo (1551-1556) sau a lui Mihai Viteazul, principe al Transilvaniei (de fapt locțiitor al lui Rudolf al II-lea) timp de câteva luni în 1600. Pentru maghiari, Transilvania este entitatea statală care a asigurat continuitatea culturii și civilizației ungurești după dispariția regatului medieval, de-a lungul Renașterii și Epocii Moderne.

-FAZA 4 Transilvania, provincie a Imperiului Habsburgic

După ce otomanii au încercat să cucerească Viena (1683), Imperiul Habsburgic a inițiat un război de lungă durată ce și-a propus alungarea turcilor din Europa. În ultimul deceniu al sec 17 (1690-1699) armatele habsburgice au cucerit de la otomani Ungaria centrală și au anexat-o imperiului (de fapt au reunit-o cu Regatul Maghiar de sub Habsburgi). La fel s-a întâmplat și cu Transilvania care a fost în primă fază ocupată militar. În viziunea Vienei, Transilvania era un stat aservit otomanilor, deci inamic. Adevărul să fie spus, nici stările protestante ardelene nu doreau să-și piardă libertățile dobândite și se temeau de mișcarea Contrareformei îmbrățișată de către Habsburgii catolici.

În următorul deceniu s-au construit premizele anexării Transilvaniei la Imp. Habsburgic. Instituția principatului a fost desființată. Ultimul principe a fost Mihai Apafi II. Transilvănenii s-au opus anexării de către austrieci și pierderii independenței în urma unei lungi revolte (Războiul curuților a lui Francisc Rakoczi II) la care au participat și mulți români. În 1711 Transilvania a intrat în componența Imperiului Habsburgic sub numele de Marele Principat al Transilvaniei. Din acea perioadă a rămas steagul transivănean albastru-roșu-galben. Mai rămânea Banatul de recucerit de la turci. În 1716 o campanie militară austriacă îndelung pregătită recucerește Timișoara de la otomani. Banatul devine teritoriu imperial care va fi colonizat cu șvabi (de la Schwaben ). În aceeași epocă, profitând de un context favorabil, austriecii anexează și Oltenia. Ocupație care va dura până în 1739 (cca 20 ani). Transilvania austriacă a fost condusă de un guvernator (orecum de ex a fost sasul Samuel v. Brukenthal).

În 1848 revoluționarii maghiari visau la o Ungarie liberală – în interiorul Imperiului - bazată pe principii iluminste/liberale. Într-o primă etapă dezideratele revoluționarilor au fost îndeplinte de către curtea de la Viena, dar camarila conservatoare a preluat puterea și a pornit un război împotriva noului guvern de le Buda. Printre obiectivele guvernului liberal maghiar era și unirea Marelui Principat al Transilvaniei cu restul regatului, astfel dizolvând orice urmă de autonomie. Revoluționarii români ardeleni nu au putut să accepte o astfel de poziție întrucât românii ar fi ajuns o minoritate. Așadar s-au aliat și au luptat alături de austrieci, pentru păstrarea situației prezente: Transilvania provincie austriacă ca și Mare Principat. Ceea ce s-a și întâmplat pentru încă câțiva ani.

-FAZA 5 Austro-Ungaria

În 1867, sub presiunea situației externe nefavorabile și a politicienilor maghiari, împăratul Franz Joseph a promulgat împărțirea vechiului Imperiu Habsburgic în două țări, fiecare cu capitala, parlamentul și administrația proprie. Rămâneau comune armata austro-ungară, politica externă, finanțele și simbolul reprezentat de împărat, care domnea deasupra tuturor. Entitatea statală astfel formată a purtat numele de Dubla Monarhie, Monarhia Austro-Ungară sau simplu Austro-Ungaria. Este complet incorect de a se folosi acest termen pentru epoci mai timpurii. În interiorul Dublei Monarhii, Ungaria a devenit un regat cu politică internă independentă de cea a Vienei. Aceasta este epoca care a lăsat cele mai multe urme negative în conștiința românilor din Transilvania, datorită unor politici extrem de proaste ale guvernelor maghiare față de minorități (ținta acestor politici erau slavii din regat, nu românii). Din păcate, deși românii păstrau încă de dinainte de 1848, un mare respect împăratului de la Viena, ca păstrător al echilibrului în interiorul Dublei Monarhii, acesta nu a putut face prea mult pentru a împiedica abuzurile guvernelor de la Budapesta. Finalul Primului Război Mondial a dus la dispariția acestor entități statale, pe ruinele lor formându-se mai multe state naționale.

Mulțumiri prietenului Ladó Árpád-Gellért pentru corectură.

Later Edit - Textul nu este o cronologie a Istoriei Transilvaniei. Sunt numeroase momente importante pe care nu le-am trecut. E doar o trecere istorică prin statele de care a „ținut” teritoriul ce-l numim noi azi Transilvania. Pentru ca oamenii să nu mai confunte Voievodatul, Principatul, Marele Principat al Transilvaniei, Regatul Ungariei, Imperiul Habsburgic, Imperiul Austro-Ungar etc

[thevampiricnihal]

In the scene where Hatice informs Ibrahim of their “golden-haired son” she also says that “Yakup Efendi (the seer) also told me that there is a shadow who came between us”. “Came”, she uses past tense. Nigar already became a shadow between them even before Hatice’s “I am the state” outburst.

I don’t even think that this is particularly wishful thinking on my part. This is Ibrahim upon first seeing Nigar after Mohacs:

This is him first seeing Hatice:

And who can forget his voice shrilling with excitement when Nigar becomes their maid:

I just don’t even think that I am delusional at this point. Ibrahim had a crush on Nigar throughout Season 2.

[fymagnificentwomcn]

I truly do not think you read the original post with comprehension and understood it and that's your chief problem. Nobody talks here about earlier Mahi before rejection! Or that rejection was not the main reason for her gaining awareness.

This is precisely the point of the post that the rejection was freeing in this way (and the irony of it all!) because otherwise she would have never embarked on this road. When Hürrem gets freedom from SS and refuses to give it to Mahi, first she gave up on Suly and then when she came back to the palace, she decided to be strong on her own (as mother of adult prince) but in the wrong way defined by anger as her failed harem rule and misguided focus on revenge showed (precise attempt to be harem winner and use it to her advantage). She learned from her mistakes to focus on becoming a great support for her son in Manisa and fulfil her role as mother of prince and Valide of the household there well. Yet still as mother of prince she had to abide by certain stuff. Then S4 comes in and we talk about the moment where she is after Mustafa is dead.

We are talking about character evolution up until S4 and their final moments. Character journey (which is also not linear). Of course there are plenty of examples of Mahidevran endorsing the system and its rules, especially in S1 when she is the most important concubine LMAO. It's not surprising at all. It's clear as day. But that's not the topic of my post discussing whole character arcs and especially the destinations of their journey.

I purposefully linked to Plami's post to discuss this issue because she explained it excellently and beautifully:

Mahidevran, conversely, also found out his true nature and detached herself from it, daring to openly call out a root of the attachment (E139: “He decides the fates of all of us.”) and put the free choice of everyone into light and question. (E139: “God, apart from reason, gave people free will.”) It’s rare for someone to gain such awareness of the system and that’s a valuable quality to have, but in a future where Mahidevran and Ayşe aren’t as grossly mistreated, would all this be possible to happen? No, I don’t think so. And even the ones that aren’t favourites who are more likely to find this out, there are still people out there that probably would stay trapped in the attachment forever. And favourites would be the least likely to figure stuff out, judging by the series’ themes. (Hürrem, E134: “I am the soul of all the women in the world and my existence is hidden in the love of the conqueror of my heart.” - this assertion is honestly self-explanatory.)

Read the whole thing. It's worth it!

"I don't think the show wants you to sympathise with him- especially in s4 anyway.. like don't worry!" - I totally agree with this part, he clearly emerges as the show's main villain and it's beautiful. The gradual revelation and awareness of this is one of the show's most important themes without the doubt. And his journey to that starts with Mohacs and his greatest victory (but examples of his greatest flaw and seeds are of course even in S1).. precisely because that's an important theme as well. That biggest victory can be the beginning of your downfall (also moral one as in case of SS), as also shown with Hurrem after getting rid of Mustafa and even admitting to it being her darkest days and her winter starting from there. Even Sumbul warned her before that "the biggest victory" concept can be misleading, but she hushed him since she always had won before. Constant winning can make you blind to certain things and have a negative impact, that's a recurring theme in the show as well. And also commentary on the Darwinist system.

"Saying someone else would be better Sultan is not anti-systemic" - it's really sad that's all you took from my post (and something I never said, bah I never even used the word "anti-systemic") and conveniently omitted the most important stuff Mahi said about Suleiman being the master puppeteer directing their lives etc. They expose system as whole.

/And deffo me saying it would mean nothing, but like.. what's the point of this again aasmshs)/.

As for Suleiman apologia, forgive me for not addressing it because I spoke on the topic long enough. Of course he is human, but precisely due to system and him being it, the "power getting to his head" has disastrous consequences for everyone because of how this fucked up human with issues can decide on everyone's fates. Just have a meme from me to wrap it up:

Just thinking how Hürrem was given freedom by Suleiman, which literally did not mean a change in her life other than prestige brought by marriage - she continued to be mentally dependent on him and got absorbed into the system even more… Suleiman’s rejection of Mahidevran, which also contributed to him refusing her freedom (yes she never stood a chance because he never loved her and his favoritism was what decided fates in that system in the end), actually freed her in the long run mentally and emotionally. It was the moment she decided to give up on him and slowly walked towards her full mental independence. And while she still had to obey certain rules imposed by the system due to her having her prince, upon his death, she stopped giving shit and finally voiced all the anger about Suleiman and the system. She lost all the “golden cage”, but she gained freedom from constraints of mind and emotion that the system put on individuals. She was free to get most reflection about the system & form critique of it without being an active part of it any longer. A sad freedom but the truest one any of these women got.

[gorskivijenac]

Olga Plavšić (Ristić) with tambura, Mohacs, Hungary, 1917. Jovana Jovanović, SANU

"I listened to songs that have a constant source of virtue for me personally from my grandmother. She sang us songs from her childhood, from Mohács in Hungary, where it was definitely necessary to nurture, preserve Serbian traditional music."

[reallifesultanas]

A mohácsi csata áldozatairól, 1526 egy másik szemszögből / About the victims of the battle of Mohács, 1526 from a different perspective

This post consisted of the translation of several recent Hungarian articles about the excavation of mass graves related to the battle of Mohács. The articles are listed at the sources.

Painting of Than Mór

Prologue

History is something that needs to be examined objectively in all cases, especially when someone is writing educational articles about it. However, there are times when this is difficult. At the end of the portrait of Sultan Suleiman, I have already referred to this in the epilogue. Then I wrote:

"As a Hungarian, the research about Suleiman is a very complex task, because objectivity is the basis of every historical research, but it is difficult to ignore the often cruel acts committed by the Ottomans against the Hungarians. My feelings about Suleiman are always mixed, for we can “thank” him for the fragmentation of our country, but on the other hand he was such a glorious ruler, that only a few like him lived in history. And his death always fills him with shivers. I respect this 71-year-old man, who wants to die as a glorious sultan with his last strength, but in vain he wants, Szigetvár just doesn’t want to fall. I respect his perseverance, but at the same time, I am extremely proud that Miklós Zrínyi and the other defenders defended Szigetvár so strongly and gloriously! Unawares, I ask myself what would have happened if the news of the sultan’s death came to light? If Sokollu can’t keep it a secret? The soldiers might have collapsed, and the defenders with Zrínyi would give new strength and the history of Szigetvár would turn out differently… "

In connection with the battle of Mohács, this feeling is even stronger. This was one of the bloodiest battles between Suleiman and the Hungarians. And it was full of cruelty. I have already referred to this in my youtube video about the life of Bali Bey, as it was Bali Bey who was sent forward to the capital city after the battle of Mohács and Bali Bey was the one who executed unarmed civilians despite they surrendered and asked for mercy. One might think that it was only Bali Bey who was cruel and would try to find excuses for Suleiman, but the events in Mohács make it clear that Suleiman himself had a similar opinion about us Hungarians.

But what happened at Mohács?

Although Suleiman's intention had been known since the beginning of 1525, the weakened Kingdom of Hungary did not have sufficient resources to build a defense system. Contributing to this was the fact that the Hungarian nobility did not hold together, did not take the threat seriously, and was very divided. By the time the threat became apparent, it was too late. In vain did they ask for help from the other Christian empires, they received only promises. The only one who would have actually been willing to help was Henry VIII, but he made the decision too late. By the time he decided, there was no chance to save the Kingdom of Hungary. Henry's soldiers sent for help reached Pozsony in 1527.

The Hungarian army, which thus consisted of only 24,800 men, was equipped with 85 cannons (53 of which were in use), and a few more Croatian corps were available. The forces of the Ottoman army are put on sixty thousand regular sipahis and janissaries, but this, according to historical research today, is too much, the regular stock of the entire Ottoman army was sixty to seventy thousand, and it did not take part in this battle. In fact, the number of elite units could have been 30,000, with the addition of irregular troops, asabs and akincis, and other units. Thus the Turkish army of sixty thousand was formed from this.

Ottoman miniature about the battle of Mohács.

The Hungarians were already lined up at the dawn of the battle-day. The Ottoman army began to appear in the early afternoon. The army was led by the Rumelians, followed by the Sultan with the court mercenary armies, and finally the Anatolian corps. It tells a lot about their difficulties that although they set off from the camp early in the morning and were only had to cover a distance of 10 km, yet, the Rumelians arrived around noon, and Anatolian Corps arrived on the edge of the terrace with an additional delay of 1-2 hours. According to sources, the troops were so tired that the sultan held a council, as a result of which they decided to postpone the battle and gave the order to camp.

Presumably, the Hungarian military leadership also learned that the Rumelians were building the camp and so some nobles recommended that the Hungarian king should return to their own camp. However, the king's chief advisers suggested the opposite, expecting that if the battle was fought that day, they could defeat the sultan's army in parts individually. Indeed, it was the only chance to win. Lajos II therefore ordered the attack.

The court mercenaries led by the sultan may have been on the edge of the terrace resting, the Rumelians had already built their camp when parts of the Hungarian army stormed them in full gallop. In any case, the attack of the cavalry caused confusion in the Rumelian corps, and the Turks began to flee. Backward, however, the side of the terrace blocked the way, so they split in two directions. In the meantime, the Janissaries who arrived at the scene welcomed the Hungarians with gunfire, so they were forced to retreat. With their retreat, the battle was essentially over.

The other Hungarian corps could not reverse the status of the battle either, the part of the cavalry that survived the Janissaries' gunfires had already fled, but the infantry fighting in front of the cannons was surrounded by the Ottomans and most of them were slaughtered. In the battle of just one and a half to two hours, the Hungarian army suffered a devastating defeat. 4,000 cavalry, 10,000 infantry, 7 bishops - including Archbishop Tomori and another main bishop László Szalkai of Esztergom and another 5 bishops - and 16 ensigns and 12 lords fell. Tomori's body was found by Suleiman, and his head was tied to a spike in front of Suleiman's tent. His peculiar cruelty is a good indication that Suleiman was particularly angry, and although they had won thanks to their headcount superiority, the Hungarian army successfully surprised them due to the poor field conditions.

Map for the battle. Source: http://www.e-kompetencia.si/egradiva/zgo_ds/17%20mohacs/index31.html

The causes and significance of the defeat are still the subjects of heated debate to this day. According to some, the reasons for the defeat are the divisive Hungarian nobility and the deliberate delay of János Szapolyai, the later King John I. However, based on our current knowledge, the blame for Szapolyai does not acceptable. Even if he wanted, Szapolyai could not have reached Mohács, because Szapolyai was still waiting in Torda on 15 August, a good 400 km from the battle site, and on 29 August he was only in the area of ​​Szeged. According to others, under those circumstances, no European state formation, including Hungary, would have had a chance to win against the Ottoman Empire, which had the most modern and equipped forces in the world at that time. However, if the other Christian empires had given support to the Hungarians, the outcome of the battle would not have been so clear.

After the end of the battle, the Turks were armed all night, waiting for the Hungarian main forces... That main forces which actually was already slaughtered. Only after some time, the sultan realized that there is no other army, that's was the whole. So after the surprising victory, Suleiman gave a short rest to his army, and then they started to march for the main goal of his campaign to Buda. The raiders marched in front of him and also robbed, destroyed cities, and executed unarmed civilians begging for mercy. Meanwhile, on August 30, news of the loss of the battle arrived in the capital, by which time the entire court had fled to Pozsony that night. The next day, almost the entire population followed them. The sultan arrived in Buda on September 12. He inspected the castle, on the 14th the city was set on fire, the treasures found in the palace were placed on a ship, including the giant cannon that János Hunyadi had captured in 1456 under Nándorfehérvár. The Sultan's army marched back to Istanbul on September 25th. By then, his raiders had destroyed the areas around the capital from Eger to Győr. Only a few walled cities escaped.

After the battle of Mohács, the country's capital, Buda, was defenseless. The king and with him a significant part of the nobility died, and there were difficulties in organizing further defenses. Practically only the Transylvanian army of 15,000 men remained under the command of János Szapolyai, but he could not and would not fight. He had no choice but to make a deal with the Ottoman Sultan. That's how he became the vassal of the Ottomans and the king of what remained from Hungary.

Painting of Bertalan Székely about the funeral of Lajos II.

Discovery of mass graves

In 1902, miller Demeter Pavlovics wanted to build a trade next to the mill on the Csele stream, but his workers found bones during the extraction of the land, which bones were then found in such quantities that the work itself was obstructed. Most of the bones were already strongly calcified, although some skulls and teeth remained almost completely intact. As they found coins of Lajos II near the miller's place it was possible to link the bones he found to the battle [1].

Although mass graves have been examined several times since then, thanks to advances in science these days, now it is possible to extract information from the grave. The 500th anniversary of the Battle of Mohács is approaching, and this round anniversary and the associated subsidies have greatly helped to establish this huge national cooperation in the excavation of the mass graves. Especially since they want to rebury the remnants of the martyrs on the occasion of the anniversary.

Of the five mass graves currently known in Mohács, the number three is now under investigation, it is the smallest though, about 15 square meters. The identification of bone remains is a huge professional challenge for anthropologists, emphasized György Pálfi, Head of Department of Biological Anthropology, University of Szeged [2].

The mass grave number three on the photography of György Pálfi. Source: [3].

Who and how many can be in the mass graves?

It was already successfully discovered in the 1960s that victims of Christian armies were found in the graves. This could be determined on the basis of the highlighted number of German, Czech and Hungarian coins. We know: Lajos II's army was made up of Hungarian, Transylvanian, German, Polish and Czech soldiers, and even a small number of Croats and Serbs were present in the army [3].

Examining the graves revealed a chaotic sight for the researchers. Looking at the mass grave excavated by archaeologists and prepared for anthropological research, the incredible mixing of human bone remains is astounding to the expert as well. The examination of the mass grave number three and the identification of bone remains is a huge professional challenge for anthropologists, as in addition to the confusion of the many human bones, the extraordinary decay conditions due to the special burial and the subsequent damaging factors, also make the work harder [3].

In the 1970s, the number of dead in the case of mass grave number three, was estimated at around 130, but it is now clear that the compaction in the lower strata and especially at the edges of the grave pit is much greater than expected. It is now visible that the skeletons were compressed in an almost irrationally small place. Based on this, it is believed that the previously estimated number of deads in the mass grave can be doubled. Researchers estimate the number of remains in mass grave number three, which is the smallest among the mass graves, to 300 [3].

Due to the entanglement of skeletons, researchers often have to proceed in parallel with the remains of 8-10 individuals. As a result of the tests, the number of registered bone remains varies. It often turns out that the skull and the skeleton of a person do not really belong together at a glance, in which case the numbers increase. But the opposite also happens. For example, skeletal remains, which were considered separate in 1976, were also reexamined and they found it belongs to the same person, resulting in a decrease in numbers. Exploring bones, often chaotically mixed, is quite time-consuming. The skeletons accumulate in several layers in the mass grave number three [3].

Anthropological observations may also clarify the conclusions that can be drawn from archaeological finds. The people in the mass grave in Mohács are Christians. The excavation and anthropological identification of skeletons of one of the five mass graves known so far have begun. Based on the approximately 200 human remains, 90 percent of the people in the Mohács mass graves are young or relatively young adults, 18-40 years old. A smaller number of adolescents because they also identified people who died around the age of 14-16. They have encountered one or two adolescent children aged 12–13 years, some older men, and a skeleton that can be identified almost certainly and two presumably as women [3].

Can the results help to find the exact location of the battle scene?

Identifying the location of the battlefield is still unresolved. Archaeologist Gábor Bertók - who is the leader of the present excavation - and his staff are constantly looking for the site of the battle of August 29, 1526. This is assumed to be on the outskirts of the village of Majs, because large quantities of rifle bullets, weapon fragments, and plenty of horseshoes were found there. Of the approximately 250 projectiles, nearly 170, or more than two-thirds of the finds, are relatively small compared to the size of a typical rifle bullet of the age: 10 to 15 millimeters. Exploration of the mass grave can also contribute to the identification of the battlefield. Namely, when highlighting bone remains, researchers found such a small rifle bullet, next to the spine of a skeleton. It was also found that this man had been executed, based on the ijuries on his skull and neck. Because of the bullet “preserved” in his body and now find, we can conclude that the skeleton belongs to a prisoner of war who was wounded in the Battle of Mohács, but his injury was not fatal but was later executed as wounded and thrown into this mass grave [3].

Since it is indisputable that the size of the bullet in the victim's body is the same as that found in an area 4-5 kilometers from the mass grave, it is also clear that the victim was injured in battle. This projectile could give another boost to research related to the battlefield. In the near future there will be intensive archaeological excavations in the area, as by 2026, the 500th anniversary of the Battle of Mohács, archaeologists want to find the most probable place for the battle so that we can remember the historical turning point 500 years earlier. Thus, since the victim was certainly executed after the Battle of Mohács and the bullet found in his body is the same as the bullets discovered in the nearby area, it can be safely assumed that the battlefield was 4-5 kilometers from the mass graves [3].

Painting of Bertalan Székely about the battle. The area was very swampy as it is visble in the painting as well.

Who can these people be in the grave? Were they died during the battle or executed later?

Some suggest that based on the head injuries, they may have been the victims of the "Hungarian chariot camp" cut down by the Turks. What was this cart camp? After the battle of Mohács, the country's capital, Buda, was defenseless. The king and with him a significant part of the nobility died, and there were difficulties in organizing further defenses. The only serious resistance during the march of the Ottomans toward Buda, was gathered near Pusztamarót for an "army" of 25,000 peasants, setting up a chariot camp, but they were also quickly smashed and slaughtered by the well-armed Ottomans [3]. In fact, this version is not very possible, as Pusztamarót is a long way from the place of the mass graves.

Other researchers had previously considered the place of mass graves to be the site of the battle. There is also a third option, based on written memoirs of the “great public execution after the battle”. It is known from the archives of Suleiman I that the next day of the battle of Mohács the sultan ordered a large solemn gathering, watched the procession of his glorious army from the tent, and then led the prisoners of war in front of him. He did not allow his lieutenants to keep prisoners of war but organized a large public collective execution. So far we have known - actually from Suleiman's archives - that more than two thousand prisoners of war have been executed after the Battle of Mohács. Based on a 1976 surface survey, it was estimated that about a thousand people's skeletons are buried in the five mass graves. However, based on the new investigations of the third mass grave, researchers believe that the number of skeletons found in the mass graves in Mohács may be more than double of the previously suggested 1000. This is relatively in line with the number of people executed by Suleiman. And a thorough examination of the victims also makes this option more and more likely, as the examination of human skeletal remains at the third mass grave shows that it is the mass grave of wounded people. Researchers have identified a number of cases where it is clear from the trace that a kneeling man with a bowed head was killed from behind. A human skeleton has also been found showing that that man was struck from above two or three times 494 years ago. Several cases have been uncovered where the same cervical vertebrae have been cut twice in parallel, which is very difficult to imagine during battle. Based on the contemporary descriptions and the drawing of the execution after the Battle of Nikápoly more than 100 years ago, it can be assumed that the soldiers captured at Mohács were executed in a similar way by the Sultan. Thus, the third mass grave of the Mohács National Historical Monument shows barbaric post-massacre conditions [3].

Sword traces on a skull highlighted from a mass grave. Photo: György Pálfi. Source: [3].

Cut marks on the cervical vertebrae suggesting beheading. Photo: György Pálfi. Source: [3].

What's next?

Anthropological examination of the mass grave may continue in the spring. Removal of the remains can be done in 3-4 months, but laboratory processing of the findings can take years. During this time, anthropological and, if necessary, genetic methods can be used to isolate the remains of individual victims, but they can also reach facial reconstruction through radiological and genetic analyzes. The main goal is to sort the remains of the martyrs buried in a humiliating way for the 500th anniversary of the Battle of Mohács and then bury them in individual graves [2].

Used sources: [1]: http://ujkor.hu/content/mohacsi-tomegsirok-nyomaban-korabbi-es-legujabb-feltarasok [2]: https://mult-kor.hu/a-szegedi-tudomanyegyetem-antropologusai-is-reszt-vesznek-a-mohacsi-tmegsir-feltarasaban-20201209 [3]: https://u-szeged.hu/mohacsi-csata?objectParentFolderId=19396

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Ez a poszt a mohácsi csatához kapcsolódó tömegsírok feltárásáról szóló több friss magyar nyelvú cikk fordításából állt össze. A cikkek a forrásoknál listázva vannak.

Prológus

A történelem egy olyan dolog, melyet minden esetben objekíven kell figyelni, különösen ha valaki ezzel kapcsolatos ismeretterjesztő írásokat készít. Vannak azonban esetek mikor ez nehéz. Szulejmán szultán portréjának végén az epilógusban már utaltam erre. Akkor ezt írtam:

"Magyarként Szulejmán tanulmányozása igen összetett feladat, hiszen mert bár az objektivitás a történelmi kutatások alapja, nehéz eltekinteni a sokszor kegyetlen cselekedetektől, melyet az oszmánok követtek el a magyarok ellen. Szulejmánnal kapcsolatban mindig vegyesek az érzéseim, ugyanis neki “köszönhetjük” az ország feldarabolódását, de a másik oldalról egy olyan dicső uralkodó volt, amihez fogható kevés élt a történelemben. Halála pedig mindig borzongással tölt el. Tisztelem ezt a 71 éves férfit, aki utolsó erejével dicső szultánként akar meghalni, de hiába akarja annyira, Szigetvár csak nem akar elesni. Tisztelem a kitartását, ugyanakkor borzasztóan büszke vagyok, hogy ilyen erősen és dicsőn védték Szigetvárt Zrínyi Miklós és a többi védő! Akaratlanul is eszembe jut, mi történt volna, ha a szultán halálának híre kiderül? Ha Sokollu nem tudja titokban tartani? A katonák talán összeomlottak volna, Zrínyiék pedig új erőre kapnak és Szigetvár története talán máshogyan alakul…"

A mohácsi csatával kapcsolatban ez az érzés még sokkal erősebb. Ez volt ugyanis az egyik legvéresebb csata Szulejmán és a magyarok közt. És tele volt kegyetlenkedéssel. Erre a Bali Bég életéről szóló youtube videómban már tettem utalást, Bali Bég volt az, akit Szulejmán a mohácsi csata után előreküldött a főváros felé és Bali Bég volt az, aki fegyvertelen civileket végeztetett ki annak ellenére, hogy azok megadták magukat és könyörületet kértek. Gondolhatnánk, hogy Bali Bég volt csupán kegyetlen, mentegethenénk Szulejmánt, ám a mohácsi események egyértelművé teszik, hogy Szulejmán maga is hasonló véleményen volt rólunk magyarokról.

Than Mór festménye a mohácsi csatáról.

Na de mi is történt Mohácson?

Bár 1525 eleje óta tudott volt Szulejmán szándéka a meggyengült Magyar Királyságnak nem volt elegendő forrása, hogy védelmi rendszert építsen ki. Ehhez az is hozzájárult, hogy a magyar nemesség nem fogott össze, nem vette komolyan a fenyegetést és nagyon széthúztak. Mire a fenyegetés nyilvánvalóvá vált, már késő volt. Hiába kértek ekkor segítséget a többi keresztény birodalomtól, csupán ígérgetéseket kaptak. Az egyetlen, aki végül ténylegesen hajlandó lett volna segíteni VIII. Henrik volt, ám ő is későn döntött. Mire döntött, már esély sem volt megmenteni a Magyar Királyságot. Henrik segítsége 1527-ben érte el Pozsonyt.

A magyar sereg, amely így mindössze 24 800 emberből állott, 85 ágyúval volt felszerelve (ebből 53 került használatba), s még néhány horvát hadtest állt rendelkezésre. Az oszmán hadsereg erőit hatvanezer reguláris szpáhira és janicsárra teszik, ez azonban a mai történelmi kutatások szerint túl sok, a teljes oszmán haderő reguláris állománya volt hatvan-hetvenezer, s ebben a csatában az nem vett részt. Valójában az elit egységek száma 30 ezer fő lehetett, amelyhez hozzájöttek az irreguláris csapatok, az aszabok és az akindzsik és a többi egység. Így ebből állt össze a hatvanezer fős török sereg.

Török miniatúra a mohácsi csatáról.

A magyarok a csata hajnalán már felsorakoztak. Az oszmán sereg kora délután kezdett kibontakozni. A csapatok hadrendben vonultak fel, már amennyire ezt a terep megengedte. A sereg élén a ruméliaiak haladtak, mögöttük a szultán az udvari zsoldos hadakkal, és végül az anatóliai hadtest következett. Nehézségeikről sokat elárul, hogy bár a táborból kora reggel útnak indultak, és a csatatérig csupán kb. 10 km-es távolságot kellett megtenniük, mégis, a ruméliaiak dél körül, a derékhad és az anatóliai hadtest pedig 1-2 óra további késéssel érkezett meg a terasz peremére. A források szerint a csapatok annyira elfáradtak, hogy a szultán haditanácsot tartott, melynek eredményeként a csata elhalasztása mellett döntöttek, és parancsot adtak a táborverésre.

Feltehető, hogy a magyar hadvezetés is értesült arról, hogy a ruméliaiak tábort vernek, és a királynak a táborba való visszatérést ajánlották. A király főbb tanácsadói azonban az ellenkezőjét javasolta, arra számítva, hogy ha aznap vívják a csatát, külön-külön verheti meg a szultáni sereg egyes részeit. Valóban ez volt az egyetlen esély a győzelemre. II. Lajos ezért parancsot adott a támadásra.

A szultán vezette udvari zsoldosok a terasz szélén lehettek, s talán már meg is kezdték leereszkedésüket a magaslat pereméről, a ruméliaiak pedig már a tábort építették, amikor a magyar jobbszárny teljes vágtában megrohamozta őket. Mindenesetre a jobbszárny lovasságának támadása zavart idézett elő a ruméliai hadtestnél, és a törökök menekülni kezdtek. Hátrafelé azonban a terasz oldala elzárta az utat, ezért két irányba szétváltak. Időközben a helyszínre ért janicsárok sortüzekkel fogadták a magyarokat, így azok kénytelenek voltak visszavonulni. Azzal, hogy az első lovasroham kifulladt, lényegében a csata is eldőlt.

A többi magyar csapat sem tudta megfordítani a csata állását, a lovasságnak a janicsárok sortüzeit túlélő része ekkor már menekült, ám az ágyúk előtt harcoló gyalogságot az oszmánok bekerítették, és nagy részüket lemészárolták. Az alig másfél-két órás csatában a magyar sereg megsemmisítő vereséget szenvedett. Elesett 4000 lovas, 10 000 gyalogos, 7 püspök – köztük a fővezér Tomori és Szalkai László esztergomi érsek és másik 5 püspök – és 16 zászlósúr, valamint 12 főúr. Tomori holttestét Szulejmán megkerestette, fejét pedig a sátra előtt karóra tűzette. Különös kegyetlensége jól jelzi, hogy Szulejmán különösen dühös volt, és bár a túlerőnek hála nyertek, a magyar sereg a rossz terepi körülményeknek köszönhetően sikerrel lepte meg őt.

Térkép a csatához. Forrás: http://www.e-kompetencia.si/egradiva/zgo_ds/17%20mohacs/index31.html

A vereség okai és jelentősége a mai napig éles viták tárgya. Egyesek szerint a vereség okai a széthúzó magyar nemesség és Szapolyai János, a későbbi I. János király szándékos késlekedése. Mai ismereteink alapján azonban Szapolyai hiábztatása nem igen állja meg a helyét. Szapolyai ha akart volna, se érhetett volna Mohácsra, mert Szapolyai augusztus 15-én még Tordán várakozott, jó 400 km-re a csata helyszínétől, augusztus 29-én pedig Szeged térségében volt csupán. Mások szerint azon körülmények között az akkori világ legmodernebb és legfelszereltebb haderejével rendelkező Oszmán Birodalommal szemben esélye sem lett volna a győzelemre egyetlen európai államalakulatnak, így Magyarországnak sem. Azonban ha a többi keresztény birodalom támogatást ad a magyaroknak, a csata kimenetele korántsem lett volna ennyire egyértelmű.

A csata vége után a törökök egész éjjel fegyverben voltak, várták a magyar főerőket, csak miután a szultán számára is világossá vált a némileg meglepő győzelem, rövid pihenőt adott hadának, majd megindult hadjáratának fő célja, Buda felé. A kiküldött portyázók előtte jártak, és raboltak, pusztítottak, kegyelemért könyörgő fegyvertelen civileket is. Eközben augusztus 30-án a csatavesztés híre megérkezett a fővárosba, mire az egész udvartartás még aznap éjjel elmenekült Pozsonyba. Másnap csaknem az egész lakosság követte őket. A szultán szeptember 12-én érkezett Budára. Megszemlélte a várat, 14-én felgyújtották a várost, hajóra rakták a palotában talált kincseket, köztük azt az óriás ágyút, amelyet Hunyadi János zsákmányolt 1456-ban Nándorfehérvár alatt. A szultáni sereg szeptember 25-én indult vissza Isztambul felé. Addigra portyázói a főváros körüli területeket Egertől Győrig elpusztították. Csupán néhány fallal erődített város menekült meg.

A mohácsi csata után az ország fővárosa, Buda, védtelen volt. A király és vele együtt a főnemesség jelentős része meghalt, a további védekezés megszervezése nehézségekbe ütközött. Gyakorlatilag csak az erdélyi, kb. 15 ezer fős had maradt ütőképes Szapolyai János vezetésével, de ő nem vállalta és nem is vállalhatta a harcot. Számára nem maradt más esély az életben maradásra és emberei életen tartására, mint egyezséget kötni a török szultánnal.

Székely Bertalan festménye Il. Lajos temetéséről.

Tömegsírok felfedezése

1902-ben Pavlovics Demeter molnár a Csele patakra épült malma mellett liszt- és vegyeskereskedést akart építtetni, munkásai azonban a vert falhoz szükséges föld kitermelése során csontokra bukkantak, amelyek azután olyan mennyiségben kerültek elő, hogy magát a munkát is meggátolták, így nem lehetett nem tudomást venni róluk. A csontok legnagyobb része már erősen el volt meszesedve, bár egyes koponyák és fogak még csaknem teljesen épen maradtak. Mivel a molnár a közelben éppen II. Lajos király (1516–1526) pénzeire bukkant, adódott a lehetőség, hogy a megtalált – feltételezhetően tömeg- – sírt a csatához kössék [1].

Bár a tömegsírokat azóta is többször vizsgálták, napjainkban sikerült csak igazán érdekes információkat kinyerni a sírból a tudomány fejlődésének köszönhetően. Közeledik a mohácsi csata 500 éves évfordulója, és ez a kerek évforduló és a vele járó támogatások nagymértékben segítették azt, hogy létrejöhessen ez a hatalmas országos együttműködés a tömegsírok feltárásával kapcsolatban. Különös tekintettel arra, hogy az évforduló alkalmából szeretnék újratemetni a mártírok maradványait.

A jelenleg ismert öt mohácsi tömegsír közül a hármas számú, jelenleg kiemelten vizsgál, a legkisebb, mintegy 15 négyzetméteres. A csontmaradványok azonosítása óriási szakmai kihívást jelent az antropológusok számára – hangsúlyozta Pálfi György a Szegedi Tudományegyetem Embertani Tanszékének tanszékvezetője [2].

A mohácsi III. tömegsír. Fotó: Pálfi György. Forrás [3].

Kik és hányan lehetnek a tömegsírokban?

Azt már a hatvanas években is sikerrel derítették ki, hogy a keresztény hadak áldozatai találhatóak a sírokban. A kiemelt német, cseh és magyar pénzérmék, e kis mennyiségű régészeti információ alapján lehetett ezt meghatározni. Tudjuk: II. Lajos seregét magyar – a mai magyarországi, de természetesen felvidéki és erdélyi területekről is –, német, lengyel és cseh katonák alkották, sőt kis részben részt vettek benne horvátok, szerbek is. Úgy mondhatjuk, hogy a mai „visegrádi országok” elődeiből, valamint német és délszláv területekről származó keresztény és zömében közép-európai haderő vette fel a harcot Mohácsnál a török túlerővel [3].

A sírokat vizsgálva kaotikus látvány tárult a kutatók szeme elé. A régészek által feltárt és az antropológiai vizsgálatra előkészített tömegsírra pillantva az emberi csontmaradványok hihetetlen keveredése megdöbbentő a szakember számára is! A sok tízezernyi emberi csont összevisszasága mellett a speciális betemetés miatti rendkívüli bomlási körülmények és a későbbi károsító tényezők miatt a III. tömegsír feltárása és a csontmaradványok azonosítása óriási szakmai kihívást jelent az antropológusok számára [3].

A hetvenes években a hátmas számú tömegsír esetében 130 körülire tippelték a halottak számát, ma már egyértelműen látszódik, hogy a vártnál sokkal nagyobb az összetömörödés az alsóbb rétegekben és különösen a sírgödör szélein. Most vált láthatóvá, hogy szinte irracionálisan kicsi helyen préselődtek össze a csontvázak. Ennek alapján vélhetően minimum megduplázható a tömegsír korábban becsült leletszáma. A kutatók 300 körülire saccolják a hármas számú - egyébként legkisebb - tömegsírban található maradványok számát [3].

A csontvázak összegabalyodása miatt sokszor 8-10 egyén maradványaival párhuzamosan kell haladjanak a kutatók. A vizsgálatok eredményeként a regisztrált csontmaradványok száma változik. Gyakran kiderül ugyanis, hogy a ránézésre egy személyhez tartozó koponya és váz valójában nem tartozik össze, ilyenkor növekednek a számok. De ennek ellenkezője is előfordul. Például az 1976-ban különállónak gondolt csontváz-maradványok esetében is történt utólagos egyesítés, ami a számok csökkenését eredményezte. A sokszor kaotikus módon keveredett csontok feltárása meglehetősen időigényes. A csontvázak ugyanis keresztül-kasul, több rétegben halmozódnak a III. számú tömegsírban [3].

Az antropológiai megfigyelések is pontosíthatják a régészeti leletekből levonható következtetéseket. A mohácsi tömegsírba került emberek keresztények. Az eddig ismert öt tömegsír közül egynek kezdődött el a feltárása és a csontvázak antropológiai azonosítása. Az eddig fölszedett 120 körüli csontváz és a felszínen korábban szemrevételezett legalább 80 emberi maradvány, vagyis körülbelül kétszáz vázról összegyűlt információ alapján kimondható: a mohácsi tömegsírba kerül emberek 90 százaléka ifjú vagy viszonylag fiatal felnőtt, 18-40 éves férfi. Kisebb számban serdülőkorú, mert 14-16 év körül elhunyt személyeket is azonosítottak a kutatók. Egy-két 12-13 éves kamasz gyerekként, néhány idősebb férfiként, továbbá egy szinte biztosan és két feltételezhetően nőként azonosítható csontvázzal szintén találkoztak [3].

Hozzájárulhatnak az eredmények a csata helyének pontos megtalálásához?

Máig megoldatlan a csatatér helyének a beazonosítása. Csatára utaló jelek – golyók vagy fegyvermaradványok – ugyanis nincsenek a Mohácsi Nemzeti Történelmi Emlékhely területén. Bertók Gábor régész – aki a jelen ásatás vezetője – és munkatársai folyamatosan keresik az 1526. augusztus 29-i csata helyét. Ezt az emlékhelytől 4-5 kilométerre lévő Majs község határában feltételezik, mert ott nagy mennyiségű puskagolyó, fegyvertöredék és rengeteg lópatkó került elő fémkereséssel. A körülbelül 250 lövedék közül közel 170, vagyis a leletanyag több mint kétharmada a kor jellegzetes puskagolyó méretéhez képest viszonylag kisméretű: 10-15 milliméteres. A csatatér azonosításához hozzájárulhat a tömegsír feltárása is. Ugyanis a csontmaradványok kiemelésekor a kutatók találtak egy ilyen kisméretű puskagolyót. Az egyik csontváz gerincoszlopa mellett, körülbelül 25 centiméterre a felső rétegtől, a feltárás második rétegében. Megállapították azt is, hogy ezt az embert kivégezték, amire a koponyáján és a nyakán látható sérülések miatt gondolhatunk. A testében „megőrzött” és most felszínre került golyó miatt arra következtethetünk, hogy a csontváz egy olyan hadifogolyé, aki a mohácsi csatában az oldalán megsebesült, de sérülése nem volt halálos, ám később sebesültként kivégezték és bedobták e tömegsírba [3].

Mivel vitathatatlan, hogy az áldozat testében lévő golyóó mérete megegyezik a tömegsírtól 4-5 kilométerre található területen felfedezett golyókéval, az is egyértelmű, hogy az áldozat a csatában sérült meg. Ez a csontvázak közül kiemelt lövedék újabb lökést adhat a csatatérhez kötődő kutatásoknak. Mert a közeljövőben intenzív régészeti feltárás lesz azon a területen, hiszen 2026-ra, a mohácsi csata 500. évfordulójára meg szeretnék találni a régészek az ütközet legvalószínűbb helyét, hogy ott méltóképpen emlékezhessünk az 500 évvel korábbi történelmi fordulópontra. Tehát mivel az áldozat bizonyosan a mohácsi csata után lett kivégezve és a testében lelt golyó megegyezik a közeli területen felfedezett golyókkal, biztonsággal feltételezhető, hogy a tömegsírtól 4-5 kilóméterre volt a csata helyszíne [3].

Székely Bertalan festménye a mohácsi csatáról. A festményen is jól látszik, hogy a csata területe igen mocsaras volt.

Kik lehetnek ezek az emberek a sírban? Csatában elhunytak vagy kivégzett hadifoglyok?

Az elsőre is látható fejsérülések alapján itt nagy valószínűséggel a törökök által lekaszabolt „magyar szekértábor” áldozatai lehettek. Mi volt ez a szekértábor? A mohácsi csata után az ország fővárosa, Buda, védtelen volt. A király és vele együtt a főnemesség jelentős része meghalt, a további védekezés megszervezése nehézségekbe ütközött. A törökök Budára vonulása során komolyabb ellenállást egyedül a Pusztamarót mellett összegyűlt kb. 25 ezer fős paraszt- és jobbágysereg tanúsított, amely szekértábort hozott létre, de a jól felfegyverzett törökök hamar szétverték és lemészárolták őket is [3]. Tulajdonképpen ez a verzió bizonytalan lábakon áll, hiszen Pusztamarót nagy távolságra van innen.

Más kutatók korábban inkább a csata helyszínének tekintették ezt a helyet. Létezik egy harmadik, eddig háttérbe szorított opció is „a csata utáni nagy nyilvános kivégzésről” szóló írásos emlékek alapján. I. Szulejmán archívumából lehet tudni, hogy a mohácsi csata másnapján a szultán nagy ünnepi összejövetelt rendelt el, a sátra elől szemlélte a dicsőséges seregének a fölvonulását, majd elővezettette a hadifoglyokat. Alvezéreinek nem engedélyezte a hadifoglyok megtartását, hanem nyilvános, nagy kollektív kivégzést rendezett. Eddig annyit tudtunk, hogy több mint kétezer hadifoglyot végeztek ki a mohácsi csata után. Az 1976-os felszíni vizsgálat alapján azt valószínűsítették, hogy az öt tömegsírban körülbelül ezer ember csontváza van. Ám a harmadik tömegsírnál végzett eddigi vizsgálatok alapján valószínű, hogy a mohácsi tömegsírokban fellelhető csontvázak 45 éve feltételezett számnak inkább a duplája lehet valószínű. Ez aránylag jól egyezik a Szulejmán által kivégeztetett személyek számáéval. És az áldozatok alapos vizsgálata is egyre jobban valószínűsíti ezt az opciót, ugyanis a harmadik tömegsírnál az emberi csontvázmaradványok vizsgálata alapján látszódik, hogy ez lenyakazott emberek tömegsírja. Rengeteg olyan esetet azonosítottak a kutatók, amikor egyértelműen látszik a vágásnyomból, hogy a letérdeltetett, a lehajtott fejű embert hátulról végeztek ki – nyakazással. Találtak olyan emberi csontvázat is, amelyen látszik, hogy arra az emberre 494 évvel ezelőtt kétszer-háromszor sújtottak le felülről. Több olyan esetet is feltártak, ahol ugyanazt a nyakcsigolyát kétszer párhuzamosan átvágták, ez pedig csata közben nagyon nehezen elképzelhető. A korabeli leírások, illetve a több mint 100 évvel korábbi nikápolyi csata utáni kivégzésről készült rajz alapján feltételezhető, hogy Mohácsnál a foglyul ejtett katonákat hasonló módon végeztetette ki a szultán. Tehát barbár mészárlás utáni állapotokat mutat a Mohácsi Nemzeti Történelmi Emlékhely harmadik tömegsírja [3].

Kardvágásnyomok egy a tömegsírból kiemelt koponyán. Fotó: Pálfi György. Forrás: [3].

Lefejezésre utaló vágásnyomok egy nyakcsigolyán. Fotó: Pálfi György. Forrás: [3].

Hogyan tovább?

A tömegsír antropológiai vizsgálata tavasszal folytatódhat. A maradványok kiemelésével 3-4 hónap alatt végezhetnek, a leletek laboratóriumi feldolgozása azonban évekig tarthat. Ez idő alatt antropológiai és szükség esetén genetikai módszerekkel megtörténhet az egyes áldozatok maradványainak elkülönítése, de a radiológiai és genetikai elemzéseken át eljuthatnak az arcrekonstrukcióig is. A legfontosabb cél, hogy a megalázó módon eltemetett mártírok maradványait a mohácsi csata 500. évfordulójára szétválogassák, majd egyéni sírokba temethessék [2].

Felhasznált források: [1]: http://ujkor.hu/content/mohacsi-tomegsirok-nyomaban-korabbi-es-legujabb-feltarasok [2]: https://mult-kor.hu/a-szegedi-tudomanyegyetem-antropologusai-is-reszt-vesznek-a-mohacsi-tmegsir-feltarasaban-20201209 [3]: https://u-szeged.hu/mohacsi-csata?objectParentFolderId=19396