CEU Electronic Theses and Dissertations, 2015
| Author | Szocs, Peter Levente |
|---|---|
| Title | Private Monasteries of Medieval Hungary (Eleventh to Fourteenth Centuries): A Case Study of the Akos Kindred and its Monasteries |
| Summary | The former abbey church of Ákos (Acâș, Romania) is one of the most important Romanesque monuments of medieval Hungary. I was involved as archaeologist in the research of the church which preceded and accompanied the partial renovation of the building. The rescue excavation was gradually enlarged and I have got enmeshed with issues of ecclesiastic patronage, social history of kindreds, artistic and architectural concepts on Hungarian Romanesque. The early results of the research and the overview of the connected questions were summarized in my MA thesis, defended in June 2002 at the Medieval Studies Department, Central European University. Even at that point it was clear, that the complex issue of the so called “kindred monasteries”, the category within the Abbey of Ákos was classified by the scholarship, must be treated with a more wider and complex approach. The introductory chapter of the thesis synthetizes the main debates and results in regard to the issue of kindreds and their monasteries. The three main study fields elaborated in this respect their own concepts, methodology and terminology, sometimes influencing each other. But the reciprocal borrowings of concepts were often made without proper critiques, and no attempt was made at a systematic integration. Analysis of the results of the previous scholarship demonstrated that my inquiry must start with a general overview. Moreover, in the context of the scarcity of relevant sources, it became clear that all available types of sources on monasteries should be used with joint methodology: charters and other narrative sources, archaeological discoveries and art historical considerations. In this respect the Abbey of Ákos is fortunate, as it is among the best preserved Romanesque monuments in the former Hungarian Kingdom, which allows for a detailed archaeological and architectural research – presented in the chapter VI. Very few charters are directly linked to the abbey, but the patron kindred – called like the monastery, Ákos – was among the most ancient and influential kindreds of the kingdom. Its genealogical evolution and history of possessions is reconstructed in chapter V, which made it possible to fit the patronage of Ákos Abbey into the history of the kindred. The case of this kindred proved to be significant for another issue, too. Its historical tradition, which seems to be somehow connected with the patronage of monasteries, was fortunately preserved in two ways: both in charters and in narrative sources (Magister Ákos, the chronicler was a member of the kindred). The general overview provided in chapter II addresses questions like: How many monasteries were under patronage of kindreds, or other lay persons? What was their chronological evolution, spatial distribution and affiliation? In order to get proper answers I compiled a list of monastic foundations in Hungary made before 1400 (in the appendix). Further research questions were elaborated based on the list and assumptions in the previous scholarship. In this sense, it seemed important to determine the relations of monasteries with the parishes in order to assess their spiritual role. The social status of monasteries was examined through their position in the estate structure, and their relation with the patron’s residence. I have, therefore, limited the statistical analysis to the regional level and compared systematically the papal and diocesan tithe lists with data on the estates and owners and the map of medieval Hungary by Pál Engel (chapter III). The socio-economic status of monasteries is further clarified through several case studies (in chapter IV). |
| Supervisor | Laszlovszky József; Szakács Béla Zsolt |
| Department | Medieval Studies PhD |
| Full text | https://www.etd.ceu.edu/2015/mphszp01.pdf |
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