Charters of the Hungarian King Andrew II Granted to the Teutonic Knights in Transylvania: Latin Texts, Translation into Russian, and Commentaries
This article contains Latin texts, translations into Russian, and comments to four royal charters granted by the Hungarian king Andrew II (1205-1235) to the Teutonic knights, respectively, in 1211, 1212, 1215 (approximately), and 1222. These historical documents contain valuable information about the period of the Teutonic brethren stay in Transylvania. In 1211, the Hungarian king granted to the Knights the Burzenland in southeastern Transylvania in the unlimited possession, where they remained until their final expulsion from the Kingdom of Hungary in 1225. The text of the first royal charter contained in this article shows that the Andrew II’s decision to invite the Teutonic brethren in Transylvania was caused by the frequent Cuman raids on the Kingdom and that the principal aim of the Hungarian monarch was to prevent these attacks by establishing lasting control over the Burzenland. The degree of importance of the task entrusted to the Knights was emphasized by a number of privileges granted by the Hungarian crown, that helped to create favorable conditions for increasing the local population in order to ensure a constant flow of material resources and manpower to the Teutonic brothers, which they could use to organize the defense of Burzenland against the attacks of nomads. The content of subsequent royal charters shows that the Teutonic brothers not only fully used granted privileges in establishing durable control over the Burzenland, but also began to expand their landholdings in the Cuman territories. In particular, the last charter of 1222 gives an idea about the extent of the Teutonic knights’ conquests at the expense of the Cuman possessions beyond the Carpathian Mountains. At the same time, the contents of the royal charters can partially identify the reasons for the deterioration in relations between the Teutonic knights and the Hungarian crown, which led both to the first attempt by Andrew II to confiscate the Teutonic brethren landholdings at the end of 1221 and, possibly, to the final expulsion of the Knights from the Kingdom of Hungary in 1225.