Samuel Aba facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Samuel
Depicted in the Illuminated Chronicle
King of Hungary
Reign	September 1041 – 5 July 1044
Coronation	22 April 1044, Csanád
Predecessor	Peter
Successor	Peter
Born	before 990 or c. 1009
Died	5 July 1044
Burial	Abasár, Hungary
House	House of Aba
Religion	Pagan or Judaism then Chalcedonian Christianity

Samuel Aba (Hungarian: Aba Sámuel) was a powerful leader who became King of Hungary from 1041 to 1044. He was born into an important family that owned a lot of land in the Mátra Hills region. Historians believe his family, the Abas, were leaders of the Kabar tribes. These tribes had joined the Hungarians in the 800s.

Around 1009, Samuel or his father married a sister of Stephen I. Stephen I was the very first King of Hungary. After this marriage, the Aba family, who had followed other beliefs, became Christians. King Stephen then made Samuel a very important official called a palatine. This meant Samuel was in charge of the royal court. However, King Stephen died in 1038. The new king, Peter the Venetian, removed Samuel from his important job.

In 1041, Hungarian noblemen were unhappy with King Peter. They removed him from power and chose Samuel to be their new king. Some historical writings say that King Samuel preferred ordinary people over the nobles. This made his former supporters angry. He also had many people who disagreed with him put to death. This caused problems with important church leaders like Bishop Gerard of Csanád. In 1044, Peter the Venetian returned with help from the German ruler, Henry III. Henry III's army defeated Samuel's larger army at the battle of Ménfő near Győr. Samuel ran away from the battle, but he was caught and killed.

Early Life and Rise to Power

Samuel's family was very important. Some old writings say his family came from two "Cuman" leaders. These leaders received land in the Mátra Hills from Árpád, a great Hungarian prince, around the year 900. Other historians believe the Aba family came from the Kabars. The Kabars were a group of people who joined the Hungarians before they arrived in the Carpathian Basin around 895. Some historians think Samuel's family might have followed Judaism before becoming Christian.

It is certain that Samuel came from a respected family. An unnamed sister of Stephen I married into the Aba family around 1009. King Stephen I was crowned the first King of Hungary in 1000 or 1001. Historians are not sure if Samuel himself married the princess or if it was his father. If Samuel was her husband, he would have been born before 990. He would have become a Christian when he married Stephen I's sister. Samuel also built a church at Abasár, which shows he was a Christian.

Samuel held important jobs when King Stephen was in charge. A castle called Abaújvár ("Aba's new castle") might have been named after him. This suggests he was the first leader, or ispán, of that castle and the area around it. Samuel was also part of the king's special group of advisors. He became the first palatine of Hungary.

When King Stephen died in 1038, his nephew, Peter Orseolo from Venice, became king. King Peter preferred his German and Italian friends. He pushed aside the Hungarian leaders, including Samuel. In 1041, Hungarian nobles who were unhappy with King Peter removed him from power. They then chose Samuel to be their new king.

King of Hungary

Samuel's defeat by Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor in the Battle of Ménfő in 1044 (from the Illuminated Chronicle)

The Illuminated Chronicle says: "King Aba became very proud and acted cruelly towards the Hungarians. He thought that everything should be shared between lords and servants. He did not care about breaking his promises. He ignored the nobles of the kingdom and spent time with peasants and common people. The Hungarian nobles did not want to put up with this. They were angry and planned to kill him. But one of them told the King about the plan. The King then put as many of them as he could in prison and had them killed without a fair trial. This hurt his cause a lot."

When Samuel became king, he got rid of all the laws King Peter had made. He also had many of King Peter's supporters killed. A writer named Hermann of Reichenau even called him "the tyrant of Hungary." Hungarian historical writings criticized Samuel for spending time with peasants instead of nobles. Samuel even removed some taxes that common people had to pay.

After being removed, Peter the Venetian went to Germany for safety. In response, Samuel attacked Austria in 1042. This caused the German ruler, Henry III, to invade Hungary in 1043. This invasion forced Samuel to give up all Hungarian lands west of the Leitha and Morava rivers. He also had to agree to pay a tribute (a payment to another ruler). To pay this tribute, Samuel put new taxes on church leaders and took land from the Church. This made even his own advisors unhappy. He had some of his advisors put to death during Lent. Because of this, Bishop Gerard of Csanád refused to place the royal crown on Samuel's head during the Easter ceremony.

King Henry III invaded Hungary again in 1044 to help Peter the Venetian become king again. The main battle was fought at Ménfő near Győr. Samuel's army was completely defeated. What happened to Samuel after the battle is not fully clear. Some German sources from that time say he was quickly captured and killed by Peter the Venetian's order. However, Hungarian writings from the 1300s say he ran away up the Tisza river. There, he was caught and killed by local people. These writings also say Samuel was first buried in a nearby church. Later, his body was moved to his family's monastery at Abasár.

Family

We don't know what happened to Samuel's wife or children. However, historians believe that the powerful Aba family, which continued for many years, came from him.

See also

• Aba (family)
• Abaújvár

Images for kids

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  Samuel Aba, King of Hungary (Nádasdy Mausoleum, 1664)

Sources

Primary sources

• Anonymus, Notary of King Béla: The Deeds of the Hungarians (Edited, Translated and Annotated by Martyn Rady and László Veszprémy). In: Rady, Martyn; Veszprémy, László; Bak, János M. (2010); Anonymus and Master Roger; CEU Press; ISBN: 978-963-9776-95-1.
• Herman of Reichenau: Chronicle. In: Eleventh-Century Germany: The Swabian Chronicles (selected sources translated and annotated with an introduction by I. S. Robinson) (2008); Manchester University Press; ISBN: 978-0-7190-7734-0.
• The Hungarian Illuminated Chronicle: Chronica de Gestis Hungarorum (Edited by Dezső Dercsényi) (1970). Corvina, Taplinger Publishing. ISBN: 0-8008-4015-1.

Secondary sources