Hunyadi, János English John Hunyadi, or Huniades  ( born 1407? , Hunyad, Transylvania—died Aug. 11, 1456 , Belgrade )  Hungarian general and governor of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1446 to 1452, who was a leading commander against the Turks in the 15th century.
Early career

Hunyadi is first mentioned, probably as a small child, in the diplomas by which King Sigismund transferred possessions of Hunyad castle (now at Hunedoara, Rom.) to one of his knights, Woyk (or Vajk), who was Hunyadi’s father. János was of Walachian (a region now in Romania) ancestry.




After the death of the Habsburg German king Albert II, who, as Sigismund’s son-in-law, also was the king of Hungary, Hunyadi supported the election of the young Polish king Władysław III (Ulászló I in Hungary) in the hope of active and powerful support for a crusade against the Turks.

The “Long Campaign.” The famous “Long Campaign” took place in the autumn and winter of 1443–44. The preparations needed time. Internal troubles in Hungary and the hostility of the Habsburgs were mollified with papal help. Venice and the papacy supported Hunyadi’s army financially and diplomatically. Poland and other neighbouring countries sent troops, and in Hungary the King levied an “extraordinary” tax for the crusade. Hunyadi himself recruited some 10,000 to 12,000 well-trained soldiers, including Czech veterans of the Hussite wars. Hunyadi recognized the inefficiency and unreliability of feudal levies and was one of the first European commanders to employ a regular army on a large scale. The whole army, after having penetrated into Serbian territories under Turkish occupation, reached a total in excess of 30,000 men. The combined forces crossed the Danube in October and occupied Niš (now in YugoslaviaSerbia), Sofia (now in Bulgaria), and some fortified Turkish garrisons. Hunyadi’s troops, advancing ahead of the rest of the army, prevented the Turks from unifying their forces and dispersed them in a series of battles. The crusader force reached the Balkan Mountains in December, but frost and difficulties of supply forced its retreat. They returned to Buda at the beginning of February, having broken the Sultan’s power in Bosnia, Hercegovina, Serbia, Bulgaria, and Albania.

The success of the campaign was unprecedented in the history of Turkish wars in Europe and evoked great enthusiasm in the Christian world. Sultan Murad II sued for peace. A 10-year truce was concluded but was broken when it was learned that a Venetian fleet was sailing to the Dardanelles to prevent the Sultan from recrossing into Europe. In July the Hungarian army went on the offensive to drive the remaining Ottoman forces from Europe. When the Venetian fleet failed to reach the Dardanelles, however, the Sultan crossed over with a large army and overwhelmed the outnumbered Christian forces at Varna on Nov. 10, 1444. Although Hunyadi’s troops were able to disperse the Turkish cavalry, King Ulászló’s attack on the Sultan’s camp miscarried. The King was killed, and Hunyadi narrowly escaped.

Governor of Hungary

