HISTORY OF BOJNICE CASTLE
King Charles Robert of Hungary entrusted the administration of Bojnice Castle and manor to the sons of Ban Gillette of Zsámbok. After their death, it was owned by Prince of Opole Vladislaus II, while he held the office of palatine (the highest-ranking dignitary in the kingdom after the king himself) in 1367–1372. In 1393 the castle was already the property of the palatine Eustace (Leustach) of Jelšava. Eustace came from the prominent Ratold (Rátót) family and from 1382 he also held the rank of palatine.
He was captured during the unsuccessful anti-Ottoman expedition at the Battle of Nicopolis in 1396, and so his estates were administered by his wife Hellen and his son George. Eustace's family failed to pay the high ransom demanded for him. Thus, Eustace died in Ottoman captivity not long after his will was written in 1400. Eustace's son and heir George of Jelšava left no male descendant. After his death at the end of 1427, the castle again belonged to the monarch.
Late Middle Ages
In 1430, Bojnice Castle and its estate were given to the sons of Onofrio (i.e., Humphrey)di Bardo, an Italian from Florence, by Sigismund, King of Hungary and Roman-German King (the Emperor from 1433). They received it for their services, especially for their help in the fight against the Hussites. Onofrio's descendants chose Bojnice Castle as their residence and stayed there. After the death of the last of them in 1485, the castle was returned to the royal crown as an escheat.
In 1430, King Sigismund donated the Bojnice estate to the sons of Florentine Onofrej di Bardo.
The Noffry family received Bojnice for their merits in the battles against the Hussites
Gold ducat and silver denarius of Sigismund of Luxemburg, 1st half. 15th century (source: Slovakiana)
At that time, Hungary was ruled by the son of the famous anti-Ottoman warrior John of Hunedoara (Hunyadi), Matthias Corvinus – “the king with the symbol of the raven” (from the Latin “corvus” – raven), who was surrounded by many legends. The reign of Matthias Corvinus saw significant economic and cultural development in the Kingdom of Hungary. First, he stabilised the situation in the country by liquidating the so-called Brethren, the robber military bands formed at their core by former Hussite warriors. These were originally brought to the country as mercenaries in 1440 by Captain John Jiskra of Brandýs in order to defend the interests of Matthias's predecessor Ladislaus the Posthumous. King Matthias enrolled some of the brethens willing to join his service into the Black Regiment – his mercenary standing army, considered one of the best in the Middle Ages.
It is said that King Matthias was very fond of visiting Bojnice. Allegedly, he enjoyed beautiful surroundings and the baths, which were already famous at that time. According to tradition, he is said to have held feasts and even assemblies under the lime tree in front of the castle entrance.
1. Map capturing the achievements of the Hungarian king Matej Corvin and his Black Regiment (source: Wikipedia), 2. Painting "The Arrival of King Matej in Budin" by the Hungarian painter Henrich Weber (source: Wikipedia/Webumenia), 3. John Corvin, the illegitimate son of King Matthias (source: Wikipedia), 4. The lime tree of King Matthias in the castle park (author: Igor Socha/SNM-MBo)
In 1489, after less than four years of royal possession of the Bojnice manor since the extinction of the Onofrio family, Matthias Corvinus gave it to his illegitimate son John Corvinus. However, the young Corvinus did not own the manor for long. Due to the nobles' fear of further centralization of power by the Hunyadi family, he did not receive enough support from them, which was taken advantage of by the Zapolja family, who took possession of the Bojnice manor in about 1494.
In 1489, after less than four years of royal possession of the Bojnice manor since the extinction of the Onofrio family, Matthias Corvinus gave it to his illegitimate son John Corvinus. However, the young Corvinus did not own the manor for long. Due to the nobles' fear of further centralization of power by the Hunyadi family, he did not receive enough support from them, which was taken advantage of by the Zapolja family, who took possession of the Bojnice manor in about 1494.
There is an interesting story connected to this event, the main villain of which is the castellan of Bojnice Peter of Pok (Poky). After the death of King Matthias Corvinus, the castles of the young John Corvinus, who enjoyed the title of Prince of Liptov, were entrusted to the royal treasurer, Bishop Urban Dóci of Eger. However, under the pretext that King Matthias owed him a lot of money, he took some castles, including Bojnice, as collateral. John Corvinus considered the payment of the pension from Dóci's estate to be unjustified and therefore made Peter of Pok, a very ambitious and sold-out person, the new castellan. Peter betrayed his master, went with the castle into the enemy camp and even tried to murder his master on his return from the baths to the castle. He failed to do so, John Corvinus survived, escaping the trap by a hair's breadth. In the end, Poky handed the castle over to Stephen Zapolya on the same pretext as in the case of Bishop Dóci – it was said that King Matthias Corvinus owed him money. Although John Corvinus acknowledged the de facto seizure of Bojnice Castle, he accused Poky through his representatives before King Vladislaus II Jagiellon of treason. Poky was sentenced to death for this and was publicly dismembered in Buda as a warning. The castellan of Bojnice Peter Poky is an inseparable part of the legends about Bojnice and the castle as an example of an unscrupulous man, a mammonite, thirsting for money and power.
Of the Zapolja family, perhaps the most prominent figure in history of the Kingdom of Hungary is John Zapolja, known for his intense struggle for power and the Hungarian crown. He became infamous for his cruel suppression of a peasant uprising led by George Dózsa in 1514. Taking advantage of the death of the young monarch Louis II Jagiellon in the battle with the Ottomans at Mohács (1526), he quickly had himself crowned king in Székesfehérvár. In doing so, he disregarded the succession treaties between the Habsburgs and the Jagiellonians of 1515 as unratified by the Hungarian Diet. These would have created a claim to the Hungarian throne for the Louis's brother-in-law Ferdinand I of Austria. In the ensuing struggle for power between the two crowned kings, John Zapolja managed to retain power, albeit only in the east of the Kingdom of Hungary, and then only through his alliance with the Ottomans. The dual reign ended only with his death in 1540.
1. The rebellion of Juraj Doža in 1514 was ended by his extremely cruel execution, 2. and 3. Battle of Mohács in 1526, 4. Finding the body of King Ľudovít II.
(Source: Wikipedia)
