NEW BOOK: Eltitkolt Mohács (1526)(Concealed Mohács)

According to the tradition, the Battle of Mohács is the real national disaster what can happen to a nation. And, of course, as a national disaster it is controversial and it has been sparking debates again and again. Briefly, there are two main versions. The first, along the lines of the tradition, says, that after the death of King (Hunyadi) I. Mátyás (Matthias Corvinus or Matthias I; reigned 1458-1490) the greedy and factious magnates, prelates and noblemen took advantage of the weak, foreign kings – King II. (Jagelló) Ulászló ([Jagiełłonian] Vladislaus II; 1490-1516) and King II. Lajos (King Louis II, who ascended the throne at age of 10; 1516-1526) – and it resulted in the decline of the medieval Hungarian Kingdom and the deterioration of its capabilities to defend itself against the Ottomans. All of it led to the disaster at Mohács, and the fall of the medieval and independent Hungarian state, by dissolving into two, then three parts (Habsburg, Ottoman, and the Principality of Transylvania). Interestingly, this version seemed to be preferred by the Marxist historiography, most probably because it shows the inferiority of the ruling classes.

The second version says, briefly, that the problems what the Hungarian Kingdom faced weren’t special at all, the financial problems, the problems of the system of the mobilization weren’t unique, they were practically the features of the medieval states, even under King Matthias I. This version also says, that the battle itself shouldn’t have had to cause the fall of the Hungarian Kingdom. After the battle, even if there were heavy losses, the state was in place, there were still armies to fight, the fall of the Hungarian Kingdom was rather caused by the fact which determined the fate of the region for centuries: a new, strong power rising in the West, the Habsburgs and another power rising in the East, the Ottomans, and the small states of the region couldn’t resist these two mighty enemies.

The new book of Dr. Richárd Botlik and his colleagues and co-authors, published for the 500^th anniversary of the Battle of Mohács, doesn’t support one or the other version. They simply say that the picture what we have about the battle and the circumstances is missing some parts, while other ones just don’t fit. According to the contemporary sources and other evidences, it seems that not everyone was fully committed to fight the Ottomans, not to mention, to help King Louis II out.

The authors represent different areas of life, there are doctors, retired detective inspector, retired – former soldier – geologist with experience in archeology, independent researcher. They have the common interest in the battle and its background. Dr. Richárd Botlik himself have been researching the age and the events for more than two decades, his knowledge is outstanding and invaluable, he can give you some extra information even about the smallest details. Besides having the knowledge of an academic historian, he represents a mentality what can be described as public history. He is very creative and resourceful, using modern tools and seeking interactive discourse with the people interested in the topic and in history. He was sharing his knowledge in two freely downloadable e-books and a website (see https://mohacsicsata.hupont.hu/1/kezdolap; I use this page in my Facebook posts as well) and he is writing posts daily on their Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/istvan.brodarics.7) telling what happened in that day in 1526, sharing his thoughts and even playing a quiz game relating to the daily topic with prizes for the participants.

The new book is special as well, because Dr. Richárd Botlik invites the readers to be the historians. As he wrote, he put himself in the background, and in the first part of the book he edited a day-by-day chronology of the events of 1526 in the Hungarian Kingdom, make you see them through the contemporary sources what he collected during his research. He wrote, that it was the goal to have the least professional commentary. After the chronology, Dr. István Nemes and Dr. Balázs Tolvaj examining the birth, the death of King Louis II of Hungary, and what we know about finding his corpse. Next Viktor Orovicz explains how the Battle of Krassó (August 24, 1526; Archbishop Pál Tomori defeated Ottoman marauders) influenced the tactic used in the Battle of Mohács. Following him Árpád Eördögh inspects the questions around the battle with the experience of a detective. It could be very interesting, considering the work of a historian can be compared to a detective in many aspects – just we usually can’t catch the perpetrators and don’t wear guns. In the next essay László Gombor does georeferencing using an engraving published in 1844. Personally, I think it’s a very interesting topic as well, it’s very exciting to fit an account or a picture etc. in the actual landscape. At the end we can read, thanks to Dr. Richárd Botlik, about who participated in the battle, and who were absent. The latter category he labelled as “shadow armies”. At the end of the book there are the appendices, afterword, bibliography, and some introductory words about the authors.

The book is in Hungarian, but the authors – according to their introduction – can answer inquiries in English. Hopefully, their will be translations to other languages, because the battle had a regional significance, not to mention how many nations were present in the confrontation of the Hungarian Kingdom and the Ottoman Empire. Furthermore, the events were also monitored by, for example, Henry VIII (whose Hungarian connections were also researched by Dr. Richárd Botlik).

Some practical information:

Publisher: Unicus Műhely (https://unicusmuhely.iwk.hu/kezdooldal/)

Lector: Dr. Péter Illik

Cover Photo: Tamás Schnell, TomQuick Fotográfia (https://www.tomquick.hu/)

Technical Editor, Cover Design: András Kemény

Editor: Dr. Richárd Botlik

The manuscript of Dr. Richárd Botlik was read and corrected by Ivett Kerekes