page_title: Matthias Corvinus
section_title: War for the Lands of the Bohemian Crown (1468–1479)
hierarchical_section_title: Matthias Corvinus / Reign / War for the Lands of the Bohemian Crown (1468–1479)
caption_attribution_description: English: Map showing the direction of attacks in/of Hungary and in/of the surrounding countries in the middle of 15th century concentrating on the Black Army of Hungary.
context_page_description: Matthias Corvinus, also called Matthias I, was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1458 to 1490. After conducting several military campaigns, he was elected King of Bohemia in 1469 and adopted the title Duke of Austria in 1487. He was the son of John Hunyadi, Regent of Hungary, who died in 1456. In 1457, Matthias was imprisoned along with his older brother, Ladislaus Hunyadi, on the orders of King Ladislaus the Posthumous. Ladislaus Hunyadi was executed, causing a rebellion that forced King Ladislaus to flee Hungary. After the King died unexpectedly, Matthias's uncle Michael Szilágyi persuaded the Estates to unanimously proclaim Matthias king on 24 January 1458. He began his rule under his uncle's guardianship, but he took effective control of government within two weeks.
  As king, Matthias waged wars against the Czech mercenaries who dominated Upper Hungary and against Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor, who claimed Hungary for himself. In this period, the Ottoman Empire conquered Serbia and Bosnia, terminating the zone of buffer states along the southern frontiers of the Kingdom of Hungary.
context_section_description: Matthias's former brother-in-law Victor of Poděbrady invaded Austria in early 1468. Emperor Frederick appealed to Matthias for support, hinting at the possibility of Matthias's election as King of the Romans—first step towards the imperial throne. Matthias declared war on Victor's father King George of Bohemia on 31 March. He said he also wanted to help the Czech Catholic lords against their "heretic monarch" whom the Pope had excommunicated. Matthias expelled the Czech troops from Austria and invaded Moravia and Silesia. He took an active part in the fighting; he was injured during the siege of Třebíč in May 1468 and was captured at Chrudim while spying out the enemy camp in disguise in February 1469. On the latter occasion, he was released because he made his custodians believe he was a local Czech groom.
  The Diet of 1468 authorized Matthias to levy an extraordinary tax to finance the new war, but only after 8 prelates and 13 secular lords pledged on the King's behalf that he would not demand such charges in the future. Matthias also exercised royal prerogatives to increase his revenues. For instance, he ordered a Palatine's eyre in a county, the cost of which were to be covered by the local inhabitants but soon authorized the county to redeem the cancellation of this irksome duty.
  The Czech Catholics, who were led by Zdeněk of Šternberk, joined forces with Matthias in February 1469. Their united troops were encircled at Vilémov by George of Poděbrady's army. In fear of being captured, Matthias opened negotiations with his former father-in-law. They met in a nearby hovel, where Matthias persuaded George of Poděbrady to sign an armistice promising that he would mediate a reconciliation between the moderate Hussites and the Holy See. Their next meeting took place in Olomouc in April. Here the papal legates came forward with demands including the appointment of a Catholic Archbishop to the See of Prague, which could not be accepted by George of Poděbrady. The Czech Catholic Estates elected Matthias King of Bohemia in Olomouc on 3 May but he was never crowned. Moravia, Silesia and Lusatia soon accepted his rule but Bohemia proper remained faithful to George of Poděbrady. The Estates of Bohemia even acknowledged the right of Vladislaus Jagiello, the eldest son of Casimir IV of Poland, to succeed king George of Poděbrady.
  Matthias's relations with Frederick III had in the meantime deteriorated because the Emperor accused Matthias of allowing the Ottomans to march through Slavonia when raiding the Emperor's realms. The Frangepan family, whose domains in Croatia were exposed to Ottoman raids, entered into negotiations with the Emperor and the Republic of Venice. In 1469,  Matthias sent an army to Croatia to prevent the Venetians from seizing the Adriatic coastal town Senj.
  Matthias expelled George of Poděbrady's troops from Silesia. Matthias's army was encircled and routed at Uherský Brod on 2 November, forcing him to withdraw to Hungary. Matthias soon ordered the collection of an extraordinary tax without holding a Diet, raising widespread discontent among the Hungarian Estates. He visited Emperor Frederick in Vienna on 11 February 1470, hoping the Emperor would contribute to the costs of the war against Poděbrady. Although the negotiations lasted for a month, no compromise was worked out. The Emperor also refused to commit himself to promoting Matthias's election as King of the Romans. After a month, Matthias left Vienna without taking formal leave of Frederick III.
  Having realised the Hungarian Estates' growing dissatisfaction, Matthias held a Diet in November. The Diet again authorized him to levy an extraordinary tax, stipulating that the sum of all taxes payable per porta could not exceed one florin. The Estates also made it clear that they opposed the war in Bohemia. George of Poděbrady died on 22 March 1471. The Diet of Bohemia proper elected Vladislaus Jagiello king on 27 May. The papal legate Lorenzo Roverella soon declared Vladislaus's election void and confirmed Matthias's position as King of Bohemia, but the Imper
caption: Conquests of Matthias Corvinus in Central Europe
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