Kingdom of Hungary | |
|---|---|
| 1000 – Present | |
 Flag
 Coat of Arms
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| Status | In personal union with the Kingdom of Croatia |
| Capital | Esztergom, Székesfehérvár, Buda |
| Common languages | Latin, Hungarian |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
| Government | Feudal monarchy |
| King | |
• 1000-1038 |
Stephen I (first) |
| Historical era | Middle Ages |
• Coronation of Stephen I |
1000 |
The Kingdom of Hungary was a country in Central Europe founded in the year 1000 upon the coronation of Stephen I, Grand Prince of the Hungarians, as king following his conversion to Christianity. The nation was ruled by the Árpád dynasty, which also established rule over the Duchy of Austria during the reign of Stephen VI.
In the early modern period the Kingdom of Hungary became an influential and expansionist European power; its campaigns west catalyzed the Italian Wars and conflicts with the Habsburgs and the Premyslid Dynasty of Bohemia, while in the west and south the Hungarians fought numerous conflicts with the Byzantine Empire. During the Protestant Reformation the nation remained Catholic officially, but was unable to deter the propagation of Protestant sects, which divided the nation.
The sudden deaths of King Zoltán II and Olivér in 1549 and 1560 respectively left the country in the hands of the incapable Vilmos IV, which laid the foundation for the War of the Hungarian Succession from 1569-1576. Hungary became split between east and west, the eastern kingdom falling to a series of Hungarian natives, most notably the Zápolya Dynasty, as well as the Principality of Transylvania, while the western kingdom passed into the hands of the Austrians. Both nations contended against the Byzantines throughout the Long Byzantine War of 1573-1595, which resulted in the creation of a resurgent Kingdom of Bosnia and a period of Byzantine decline. During the Forty Years’ War Hungary and Transylvania especially became major contributors to the Jungist cause.
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