Programme:
MESSENGERS OF BAD NEWS, OR HOW NEWS OF THE DEFEAT AT MOHÁCS SPREAD
doc. Mgr. Imrich Nagy, PhD.
News of the catastrophic defeat of the Hungarian army at Mohács and the death of the young King Louis II spread like wildfire. The earliest accounts of the battle, written by humanists such as Cuspinianus, Ursinus Velius, Brodarič, and Sriemsky, reflected the interests of their political patrons more than an attempt to reconstruct the events as they actually happened. As a result, Hungarian historical tradition came to establish an image of the Battle of Mohács as a national catastrophe, marked by the search for someone to blame for its course and outcome.
doc. Mgr. Imrich Nagy, PhD. graduated from the Faculty of Arts of Comenius University in Bratislava. Since 2000, he has worked at the Department of History of the Faculty of Arts at Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica, where he specialises primarily in researching and making historical sources and documents accessible. He has received several awards for his editions of the works of the Hungarian Baroque scholar Mátyás Bél and the renowned representative of Northern Renaissance humanism Erasmus of Rotterdam. He has introduced innovative courses into history degree programmes that combine traditional historical scholarship with modern technologies.
PARTICIPANTS IN THE BATTLE OF MOHÁCS FROM ZVOLEN COUNTY
doc. PhDr. Pavol Maliniak, PhD.
In connection with the Battle of Mohács, the participation of local nobles from Zvolen County, who were also members of the royal court, is particularly well documented. The absence of most nobles from the region shortly before Mohács enabled a miners’ uprising and their attack on Banská Bystrica. The defeat at Mohács also contributed to the preservation of the collective memory of the battle, documented by eyewitness testimonies from the areas around Krupina and Upper Hron.
doc. PhDr. Pavol Maliniak, PhD. graduated from the Faculty of Humanities and the Faculty of Natural Sciences at Matej Bel University. He worked as a historian at the Central Slovak Museum in Banská Bystrica. He later served as a research assistant at the Department of Landscape Planning and Design at the Faculty of Ecology and Environmental Sciences of the Technical University in Zvolen. He has worked at Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica since 2005, initially as a researcher and, since 2009, as a research assistant at the Department of History of the Faculty of Arts. His research focuses on the history of castle estates, economic history, and historical geography, particularly in the late Middle Ages.
THE TRANSFORMATION AND DECLINE OF RELIGIOUS COMMUNITIES AND THE SECULARISATION OF MONASTERIES
PhDr. Henrieta Žažová, PhD.
The rise of the Reformation and the Ottoman advance in the 16th century led to the widespread dissolution of monasteries and their conversion into military fortresses. There are 14 such sites in present-day Slovakia, including Bzovík and Šahy. The lecture will focus on the early stages of the transformation of religious buildings into fortifications. It will explore the architectural transformation of monastery complexes, the decline of religious orders, the expansion of military garrisons, and the emergence of a new form of administration.
PhDr. Henrieta Žažová, PhD. graduated in history from the Faculty of Humanities of Trnava University. After completing her studies, she worked as a historian and curator of collections at the Museum of Local History in Nové Zámky, followed by more than 11 years at the Archives of the Monuments Board of the Slovak Republic in Bratislava. In February 2015, she joined the Institute of History at Trnava University as a research fellow, focusing on the history of the former Trnava University. She specialises in the history of the medieval Premonstratensian order and has long been involved in regional historiography and research into the architectural history of historic buildings.
The event will be accompanied by historical music performed by the Mladosť University Chamber Orchestra of Matej Bel University in Banská Bystrica.
Free admission
