Hungarian nobility

The people of the Medieval era strived to ensure salvation for themselves, their ancestors and their descendants in any way their social and financial status permitted. One possible means to this end was available through Mass-endowments. The current study is based on an analysis of 85 Mass-endowments from 34 Hungarian aristocratic families (1406 – 1531). Besides barons, family members—and particularly their widows and descendants—are covered in the scope of this research.

The case study attempts to review older opinions on the mostly negative impact of the nobility settling down in Hungarian towns. On the example of the free royal city of Trnava (Nagyszombat, Tyrnau), the author analyses the political and economic activities and the lifestyle of the nobility. By the 17th century the towns became temporary or permanent places of residence of the nobility, places where they received education, held official functions, spent their free time, acquired luxurious or precious goods and, last but not least, it was a place where they presented themselves.