Foundation of Wallachia

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The Foundation of Wallachia (Romanian: Descălecatul Ţării Româneşti) occurred sometimes between 1290 and 1330.

Contents

[edit] Wallachia prior to the foundation

Terra Transalpina
Terra Transalpina
See also: Origin of Romanians

The exact place where the Romanians lived during the Dark Age is under debate, the main theories being the "continuity theory" which claims they lived around the Carpathian Mountains, away from the migrating tribes and the "migration theory" which says they lived south of the Danube and colonized the current territory of Romania between 9th and 12th century.

Prior to the consolidation of a Wallachian state, its plains were held by various migrating peoples, the last of them being the Pechenegs (around 900-1100) and Cumans, who vanquished the Pechenegs through an alliance with the Byzantine Empire, the decissive battle being the Battle of Levounion.[1]

The territories of eastern Wallachia and southern Moldavia had then been part of Cumania for more than 150 years, the political power in the region being held by the various Cuman tribal chiefs.[2] The Cumans began to lose power in the region with the Hungarian expansion and especially during the 1241-1242 Mongol invasion of Europe, after which many of them fled to Hungary.[3]

The earliest document where the Romanians are reported to live in the region is the Kievan Primary Chronicle (1113) of Nestor which mentions the Vlachs (волохи, Volochi) as fighting the Hungarians.[4]

The next reference to Romanians is from Transylvania and dates from 1222, being a letter written by Andrew II of Hungary who donated the land of Burzenland and gave privileges to the Teutonic Knights:[5]

Item concessimus, quod nullum tributum debeant persolvere nec populi eorum, cum transierint per terram Siculorum aut per terram Blacorum.[5]
Thus we concede, that they won't pay any tribute and nor their people, when they go through the land of the Szekely or the land of the Vlachs.

The area mentioned as being the Vlachs' is probably Făgăraş, one of the the traditional Romanian areas of Transylvania, for some time being ruled by Wallachian voivodes.[5] Just two years later, a 1242 document grants the Teutonic Knights the right to make use of the forest of the Vlachs and Pechenegs.[5]

[edit] Earliest voivodates

Oltenia, unlike Muntenia, was never part of Cumania, their influence in this region being minimal. The Banate of Severin was founded in the 1230s as a territory of Hungary, the first ban, Luke, being mentioned in 1233. In 1247, King Béla IV of Hungary allowed the Knights Hospitaller to settle in Severin to defend the Hungarian borders against the invaders. A diploma gives them Severin and other possessions pertaining to it, including the "knyazates of John and Farkas", but excluding the voivodate of Litovoi, which was to be left to the Vlachs who were holding it. They were also allowed to use the land beyond the Olt River ("Cumania"), with the exception of the Vlach voivodate of Seneslau, which had similar rights like Litovoi. [6]

The Knights Hospitallers probably failed in their mission, as only a few years later, they disappeared from the region. In the meantime, Litovoi increased his power, rebelling in 1272 against the Hungarian King Ladislaus IV wanting to gain the territory of the Banate of Severin, an important strategic point. The king sent George, son of Simon, to fight against Litovoi, killing him in battle and capturing his brother, Bărbat, bringing him to the royal court.[7] Bărbat became Litovoi's successor, ruling his voivodate between 1285 and 1288.

The continuing weakening of the Hungarian state by further Mongol invasions (1285-1319) and the fall of the Árpád dynasty opened the way for the unification of Wallachian polities, and to independence from Hungarian rule.[8]

[edit] Negru Vodă

Main article: Negru Vodă

An anonymous chronicle says that Negru Vodă (The Black Voivode), a herţeg (duke) of Făgăraş and Amlaş, who defeated of the Tatars and married a Catholic Lady Marghita, was the first voivode of Wallachia.[9] According to the legend, him, together with some colonists from Transylvania ("Romanians, Catholics and Saxons") settled in 1290 to the south of the Carpathians and founded Wallachia, with the cities of Câmpulung and Curtea de Argeş and then spread throughout all Muntenia.[10]

The origin of Oltenia is given by the same chronicle as being separate from the one of Muntenia, Oltenia being allegedly colonized by Romanians from Turnu Severin, who allegedly founded two other capitals, at Strehaia and Craiova. After the arrival of Negru Vodă and the descălecat, they swore allegiance to him.[11]

The Romanian term for the "founding" (descălecat, literally dismounting) refers to this alleged settling in Wallachia, but the exact meaning is debated, because there were Romanians living in Wallachia before this date and it's more likely that it was simply a unification of the lands under one ruler.[12]

Some chronicles identify Negru Vodă with the founder of various churches, such as Curtea de Argeş Monastery, but he is mistaken for other voivodes, such as Radu I and Neagoe Basarab.[13]

Due to lack of any actual contemporary evidence, Nicolae Iorga doubted the existence of such a voivode, considering that it's simply a nickname that could have been given to Basarab I, who would be the real founder of Wallachia.[14] Djuvara identifies him with Thocomerius, Basarab's father, explaining the nickname by his Cuman descent: he appeared to have a dark skin colour for the Romanians.[15]

The Battle of Posada in the Chronicon Pictum
The Battle of Posada in the Chronicon Pictum

[edit] Basarab I

Wallachia's creation is historically connected with Basarab I (1310-1352), who rebelled against Charles I of Hungary and took up rule on either side of the Olt River, establishing his residence in Câmpulung as the first ruler in the House of Basarab. Basarab refused to grant Hungary the lands of Făgăraş, Amlaş and the Banat of Severin, defeated Charles in the Battle of Posada (1330), and extended his lands to the east, to comprise lands as far as Kilia (in the Bujak, as the origin of Bessarabia); rule over the latter was not preserved by following princes, as Kilia fell to the Nogais ca.1334.

[edit] Notes

  1. ^ Djuvara, p.16-17
  2. ^ Vasary, p.136
  3. ^ Vasary, p.136, 138
  4. ^ (Russian) Nestor the Chronicler, "Повесть временных лет" (Povest' vremennykh let, 1113)
  5. ^ a b c d Vasary, p.28
  6. ^ Vasary, p.146
  7. ^ Vasary, p.147-148
  8. ^ Vasary, p.148
  9. ^ Brătianu, p. 87
  10. ^ Brătianu, p. 93, 102
  11. ^ Brătianu, p. 102-103
  12. ^ Brătianu, p. 93
  13. ^ Brătianu, p. 87
  14. ^ Brătianu, p. 90
  15. ^ Djuvara

[edit] References