Kubinyi András: Matthias Rex (Budapest, 2008)
Two. From Childhood to Election as King
a development that was harmful to the interests of both the former ally Újlaki and other nobles traditionally opposed to the Hunyadi family. This latter group included the palatine László Garai, who happened to be a cousin of the murdered Ulrich of Celje as well as the father-in-law (to be) of László Hunyadi. The latter, however, seems to have trusted Garai. In the end, with the consent of the king who feared for his power, the aristocratic nobles set a trap for the Hunyadi brothers. They persuaded László Hunyadi, who was in Buda, to summon his younger brother to the capital. From his death bed, the late János Hunyadi had instructed his sons never to be present at the royal court at the same time. Matthias, however, chose to obey his elder brother and set out for Buda—against the wishes of his mother Erzsébet Szilágyi. As captain-general of Hungary, László Hunyadi wished to launch an attack against the Turks; troops had therefore been gathering in Buda. The head of the Czech force, Jan Giskra, a traditional opponent of the Hunyadi family, had also come to Buda with his army. On March 14, 1457, the king had the two Hunyadi brothers and their supporters arrested. Among the nobles arrested were János Vitéz, bishop of Várad, Sebestyén Rozgonyi (who was married to a cousin of the Hunyadi brothers) and László Kanizsai (even though he was a nephew of the palatine Garai). Other detainees included the rich burgher and landowner Pál Modrár, Gáspár Györgyi Bodó (Spirancic), Pál Horváth and Eustach Frodnacher (the latter two were mercenaries employed by the Hunyadi brothers). László Hunyadi was executed on March 16, while János Vitéz was placed under the guard of the primate Cardinal Szécsi. Vitéz was released two months later, and by November he was seen once again in the vicinity of the king’s entourage in Prague. The other detainees—with the exception of Matthias and Modrár—soon managed to escape. On March 21, Ladislaus V issued a document listing the crimes committed by János, László and Matthias Hunyadi and defending those who had taken part in proceedings against the Hunyadis, including the palatine László Garai, Miklós Újlaki, voivode of Transylvania and ban of Slavonia, Pál Bánfi de Alsólendva, master of janitors, the marshals László Buzlai and Henning Czernin de Szomszédvár, two Austrian nobles, as well as Captain Jodok from Végles (forebear of the Justh family). We know from other sources that the following men also played a role in the events: the lord chief justice László Pálóci, János Rozgonyi, voivode of Transylvania (the for-27