Transylvania - Historical Landmarks
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Historical Landmarks
Historical Landmarks
Gradistea Muncelului, which lies today in western Transylvania, was the capital town of the Dacian state in the 6th century BC. After Dacia's conquest by the Romans (86-106), Sarmizegetusa Regia, also placed in the west part of Transylvania, became the capital city of the Roman Dacia.
The Romanians, a Romanic and Christian race speaking a Romance language, actually came into being within Transylvania's north-western and southern borders, subsequent to Dacia's colonization by the Romans (106-271 AD.)
Between the 9th and the 13th centuries, Transylvania, which was made up of Romanian prefeudal principalities, was gradually conquered by the Hungarian Kingdom. In order to guard its frontiers, the Hungarians resorted to colonizations with Saxons, i.e. Germans come from Flanders, Saxony and the Rhineland who settled in southern and south-eastern Transylvania, with Szeklers (direct descendants of the Huns led by Attila), who settled in the east and south-east of the province, with Teutonic knights and other mendicant orders, i.e. Franciscan and Dominican friars.
Between the 15th and 16th centuries, the three Romanian Lands, i.e Moldavia, Wallachia and Transylvania (led at the time by ruling prince Iancu of Hunedoara) fought together against the Ottoman Empire, a fact which actually prevented their transformation into pashaliks and made a barrier before the Turks' advance into western Europe.
Transylvania was a principality within the Hungarian Kingdom until the 16th century, when, due to the Hungarians' defeat by the Turks (battle at Mohacs, 1526), it fell under the suzerainty of the Ottoman Empire (1541-1699). Within this interval, that is between 1599-1600, Michael the Brave, Wallachia's ruling prince, united, though for a short while, the three Romanian speaking lands, i.e. Wallachia, Moldavia and Transylvania. The event marked the national unity of the Romanians in the three principalities and heralded the foundation of the Romanian national state in 1918.
Between the 15th-18th centuries, Transylvania was governed by Unio trium nationum or the alliance of the privileged nations, i.e. Hungarians, Saxons and Szeklers. Belonging to either the Catholic or the Reformed Church, they marginalized the majoritary Romanian population whose Orthodox faith was merely tolerated; besides, Romanians were deprived of civil rights (had no access to Transylvania's governance and ruling institutions, were not allowed to settle down in towns etc.).
In 1699-1866 Transylvania was a province of the Hapsburg Empire. The 18th century saw the Romanians' struggle for political rights and equality with the Hungarians, Saxons and Szeklers. Their ideals were exemplified by the activities and the writings of Romanian enlighted scholars gathered together under the aegis of the Transylvanian School.
The 1848' Revolution against the absolute power of the Hapsburg Empire is currently associated with the Romanians' claims for independence and equal rights with the other ethnic groups in Transylvania.
Between 1867 and 1918, Transylvania was incorporated with the Austrian-Hungarian Empire. The Romanian population was subdued to a process of forced magyarization thwarted by the movement led by the national party of the Romanians in Transylvania, and by the cultural Society 'Astra' for the defence of the Romanian language.
Between 1918-1922, by the end of WWI and subsequent to the Trianon Peace Treaty and to the resolution carried by the Great Popular Assembly at Alba Iulia, Transylvania was integrated with a military national state called the Great Romania, alongside the other Romanian-speaking provinces, namely Wallachia, Bukovina, Bessarabia, the Banat, Crisana and the Maramures.
In 1940, as a consequence of the German-Soviet Pact and of the Vienna Diktat, Romania had to give up north-western Transylvania (populated mainly by Romanians and covering some 43,500 sqkm) in favour of Horthyst Hungary. Romania was to retrieve it a few years later, by the end of WWI, as sanctioned by the Paris Treaty in 1947.