Gelou - Knowledge

859:. From the relation of the conflict it results that Gelou, after being defeated somewhere on the Almaş valley, went back to his fort located on the Someş River. Since he was killed near the Căpuş River, most probably at Gilău, it can be inferred that the target of his retreat was Cluj, not Dăbâca. Had he wanted to go to Dăbâca, he would have chosen another way, a shorter one, over the hills between Alrnaş and Dăbâca". Based on toponymy, Madgearu argues that Dăbâca may have existed before the Hungarian conquest "the fact that the Dăbâca fortress bears a Slavic name is very important. If it had been built by Hungarians, its name would have also been Hungarian, like Şirioara and Cuzdrioara. Besides, we know that a place called Tiligrad (which means "complete fortress") exists 1.6 km away from the fortress. Dăbâca belongs to the group of early medieval Transylvanian fortifications with Slavic, pre-Hungarian names: Bălgrad (Alba-Iulia), Tiligrad (Blandiana), Moigrad. Since none of these names has any meaning in Romanian, it results that they were created when the Slavs were not yet assimilated". with his final conclusion about Dăbâca being that "the building of the Dăbâca fortress during the 9th century is not yet demonstrated, but remains possible. Even if this fortified settlement actually existed before the Hungarian attack, the identitfication with the residence located on the Someş is contradicted by its location, too far from the warzone described in 842:

the first stage lasted until a moment that could be placed between the last third of the 10th century and the first half of the 11th century". According to Madgearu, "stage I ended with the burning of the entire fortress ... it can be concluded that the destruction that ended the first stage occurred around the beginning of the 11th century. This means that the historical event that could be associated with this archaeological evidence is the attack of King Stephen I against the Transylvanian duke, happened in 1002 or 1003." however "the destruction of stage I had no relation with the conflict in which Gelou was involved. No earlier destruction was observed. This fact does not rule out a dating of stage I during the time of Gelou, because the fortress could have remained untouched, since, according to

1564:При внимательном чтении мы уже сейчас можем убедиться, что не только русь упомянута в космографическом введении к «Повести временных лет» дважды. Дважды упомятута и волъхва, достаточно точ¬ но помещенная между некими галичанами и римлянами, жителями Рима: это те самые франки — волохи, которые, как говорится далее, «нашедши на словени на дунайския» и сели среди них, творя насилие. Такими же «находниками» впоследствии изображает летописец и ва¬ ряжскую русь в Восточной Европе, среди славянских и финно-угорских племен. Здесь же, кстати, становится ясно, почему для обозначения фран¬ ков летописец использовал архаичный этникон волохи: франками — фрягами в его времена называли уже генуэзцев. 603: 34: 678:

heard this from an envoy, he readied himself with his warriors and, having left his companions there, went forth eastwards beyond the woods against Gelou, duke of the Vlachs. Gelou, duke of Transylvania, hearing of his arrival, gathered his army and rode speedily towards him in order to stop him at the Meszes Gates, but Tuhutum, crossing the wood in one day, arrived at the Almas river. Then both armies came upon each other, with the river lying between them. Duke Gelou planned to stop them there with his archers.

767:", forcing the local population to build a stone-and-timber enclosure at the new border. Tétény soon sent a spy, "father Agmánd Apafarkas", to reconnoitre the land east of the Mezeș Gates. The spy informed him of Transylvania's wealth and its ruler's weakness. Before the invasion, Tétény "sent his envoys" to Árpád for permission. With Árpád's consent, Tétény hurried to the Mezeș Gates; according to Madgearu, his attack was "clearly targeted toward the salt mine district" of Transylvania. 357: 22: 553:. Curta mentions two pairs of bell-shaped pendants, found outside the fort, which are similar to 9th-century Moravian artefacts. Another Romanian archaeologist, Alexandru Madgearu, writes that the bell-shaped pendants were only made after around 965, because similar jewellery was found at sites dated between the last third of the 10th century and the first half of the 11th century. Pottery finds suggest that the fortress at 813:, Alexandru Madgearu and Victor Spinei) believe that Anonymus' story of the three dukes and their realms is reliable. Madgearu says that Anonymus' "account about the conquest" of Transylvania "combines data taken from oral tradition with invented facts", but "Gelou was a real person and his name could be considered authentic". Spinei also writes that most reports in the 846:, the men of Gelou surrendered to the Hungarians after his death". Concluding his case about the excavations, Madgearu argues that "the existence of the Dăbâca fortress since the 9th century is not yet proven by the archaeological evidence, but it is still possible, since some excavations results were not published. On the other hand, if the events related by 841:

In contrast, Madgearu states that "the investigators proposed a date in the 9th century for these pendants, but this is impossible, because such pieces were found only in sites dated between the last third of the 10th century and the first half of the 11th century, therefore, these pendants show that

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occurred, mast probably, in the 930s, a date during the time of Gelou remains possible. Taking into account that stage I had two phases and that the settlement from phase 2 had two or three levels, it could be supposed that stage I lasted for about a century, which means that its beginning could be

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population, were also concentrated around the salt mines in the seventh to ninth centuries. Although the Mediaș cemeteries have been attributed to Slavs, according to Madgearu "the presence of Romanians in this context should not be ruled out". The names of many rivers in Transylvania—for instance,

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Most Hungarian historians (including István Bóna, Pál Engel and Gyula Kristó), opponing to Romanian theories, write that Anonymus had no real knowledge of the Carpathian Basin (including Transylvania) at the time of the Hungarian conquest and invented all the opponents of the Hungarians because he

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was a reliable source for the medieval history of (Romanian) Transylvania", while "the evidence published so far, albeit poorly, does contain evidence of a 9th century occupation on the site ... the impression the attentive reader will get from the 1968 archeological report is that, far from

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Then Tuhutum, having heard of the goodness of that land, sent his envoys to Duke Arpád to ask his permission to go beyond the woods to fight Duke Gelou. Duke Árpád, having taken counsel, commended Tuhutum's wish and he gave him permission to go beyond the woods to fight Duke Gelou. When Tuhutum

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as Vlachs fighting the invading Magyars. Although the majority of non-Romanian scholars consider the "Volokh" in the text to be the Franks, not the Vlachs, as they appear in other parts of the text and their state is described as being close to even England. (quote from the original text: "...do

779:(which was first mentioned in the 13th century) is located. When they heard about their lord's death the inhabitants of Transylvania conceded, acknowledging Tétény as their new lord. They swore an oath of loyalty to him at a place later named Așchileu (in Hungarian, Eskellő, which derived from 770:

Gelou "gathered his army and rode speedily" to the border to stop the invaders. Tétény crossed the forest in one day, forcing Gelou to retreat to the Almaș River and fight the Magyars there. The next day, Tétény divided his army and "sent one part a little way upstream" to cross the Almaș and

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According to Anonymus, Gelou "was not steadfast and did not have around him good warriors". The Vlachs and Slavs of Transylvania were "the basest of the whole world" because "they had nothing else for arms than bows and arrows"; Transylvanian weakness was the result of frequent raids by "the

783:, meaning "oath" in Hungarian, according to Anonymus). Anonymus ends his account of the Hungarian conquest of Transylvania by saying that Tétény governed Transylvania "peacefully and happily from that day, but his posterity possessed it only up to the times of the holy 808:

s reliability—particularly regarding Gelou, Glad, Menumorut and the other rulers described as fighting the conquering Magyars—has been debated by scholars since the publication of the chronicle during the late 18th century. Most Romanian historians (including

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right ... there are four enclosures at Dăbâca". He argues that based on two pairs of silver pendants, similar to 9th-century Moravian jewellery, that were found at the site, may prove that the first encampment existed in the 9th century.

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and chronicles, it refers to local rulers—including Gelou—who are not mentioned in other primary sources. Consequently, historians debate whether Gelou was a historical person or an imaginary figure created by the unidentified author of the

817:"are not inventions, but they have a real support, even if here and there some anachronisms occurred." He cites the role of the Cumans as an example, saying that the Hungarian word translated by Anonymus as "Cumans" 754:

recounts a meeting of three Hungarian chieftains—Teteny (or Tuhutum), Szabolcs and Tas—after their victory over Menumorut, who is described as lord of Bihor. They decided that "the border of the realm of Prince

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Histoire de la Transylvanie—La Transylvanie dans l'Etat hongrois médiéval (895–1526)—Histoire de la Transylvanie depuis la conquête hongroise jusqu'à l'époque du premier établissement de colons allemands

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History of Transylvania, Volume I.: From the Beginnings to 1606—III. Transylvania in the medieval Hungarian Kingdom (896–1526)—1. Transylvania's indigenous population at the time of the Hungarian Conquest

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was written during the second half of the 12th century or the early 13th century by an unidentified author, now known as Anonymus. It describes the Magyar conquest of the Carpathian Basin around 900.

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placed before the Hungarian conquest. However, there are no certain archaeological arguments for this idea". Additionally, Madgearu casts doubt of whether Dăbâca was indeed Gelou's capital city in

499:" north of Bulgaria. According to Pop and Georgescu, this demonstrates that a Vlach country existed in the region at the end of the ninth century. Manuscript studies indicate that the reference to 545:

were destroyed between the last decades of the 10th century and the first half of the 11th, but their existence before 900 is unproven. At Dăbâca, "the evidence published so far, albeit poorly,

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Although Romanian scholars have identified about a dozen Transylvanian fort sites in Gelou's duchy, none can be definitively dated before the turn of the ninth and tenth centuries. The forts at

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was, and there were certainly never any Romanians living near the Volga. It is also important to note that the Persian scholars did not use this name for the Vlachs, but the word "ulagh". An

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wrote that the Magyars bypassed Transylvania after crossing the northern Carpathians. However, 14th-century Hungarian chronicles preserve a tradition contradicting these narratives. In the

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mentioned in the text, it is highly probable that the text refers to the Franks, who were indeed driven out of the Carpathian Basin by the Hungarians at the time of the Hungarian conquest.

392:. The so-called "Ciumbrud group" of cemeteries, which were also unearthed near Alba Iulia, yielded earrings and clothing accessories analogous to finds from the lower Danube region and 833:

cunningly distorting or destroying the evidence, the excavators were overwhelmed by the complexity of the site and embarrassed that no substantial evidence was found to prove the

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refers to Vlachs and Cumanians and their bows and arrows. Based on Anonymus's narrative, Sălăgean says that Gelou's polity was small compared with the other five mentioned in the

879:. According to Tudor Sălăgean, the village of Gilău was apparently named for the duke. Zoltán Kordé says that the names of the village and the duke may have Hungarian or 475:

also does not consider the "Nandars" to be Romanians, but "Onogur-Bulgarians", since the text mentions them in two places, south of the country of the Hungarians and the

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dominated the Carpathian Basin from about 567. In Transylvania, archaeological evidence attributed to them around 630 is clustered in the region of the salt mines at

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who are all Christians"—who inhabited the lower Danube and the Carpathians. Pop identifies them as Romanians, but Bóna and Kristó consider them Bulgarians because

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Madgearu, Alexandru (2005a). "Salt Trade and Warfare: The Rise of Romanian-Slavic Military Organization in Early Medieval Transylvania". In Curta, Florin (ed.).

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inhabited the regions of the Transylvanian salt mines from the seventh to the ninth centuries. Although excavated weapons suggest a military elite, none of the

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Bóna, István (1994). "The Hungarian–Slav Period (895–1172)". In Köpeczi, Béla; Barta, Gábor; Bóna, István; Makkai, László; Szász, Zoltán; Borus, Judit (eds.).

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words for Vlachs and Pechenegs and the reference to their "bows and arrows" suggest that Anonymus borrowed the text from a work describing the route of the

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Kurze Geschichte Siebenbürgens—Zweiter Teil Siebenbürgen im mittalterlichen Königreich Ungarn—III. Zeit des ungarisch-slawischen Zusammenlebens (895–1172)

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were expelled in turn by the Magyars, who "took their lands and settled among the Slavs". Many scholars, including Georgescu and Madgearu, identify the

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surprise Gelou. Gelou was defeated, with many of his men killed or captured. Although he fled from the battlefield towards "his castle beside the

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Sălăgean, Tudor (2005). "Romanian Society in the Early Middle Ages (9th–14th Centuries AD)". In Pop, Ioan-Aurel; Bolovan, Ioan (eds.).

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Deletant, Dennis (1992). "Ethnos and Mythos in the History of Transylvania: the case of the chronicler Anonymus". In Péter, László (ed.).

2356:(Edited, Translated and Annotated by Martyn Rady and László Veszprémy) (2010). In: Rady, Martyn; Veszprémy, László; Bak, János M. (2010); 507:

after 1000, with the original text describing the "large country of Dacia" and its 25 Slavic tribes. According to the early-12th-century

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needed characters to be defeated by the conquerors. According to this view, Gelou is one of a half-dozen "imaginary figures"—including

452: 185: 79: 1370:"A r o m á n o k e r e d e t é r ő l , M agna V l a c h i á t ó l U ngro - V l a c h i á i g . A K á r p á t - régió magyar földrajza" 2984: 693:

and Pechenegs". According to Ioan Aurel Pop, Anonymus' description of Gelou's subjects indicates a sedentary people called to arms.

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During the late 1960s through 1989, Dăbâca was assumed the capital city of Gelou, during the excavations at Dăbâca, according to

353:"; this demonstrates that the Bulgarians controlled, at a minimum, the roads between the Transylvanian salt mines and Moravia. 316:"suggest the existence of cavalry troops of Slavs and, perhaps, Romanians in Avar service" (since Avar spur use is uncertain). 3004: 2813: 2794: 2773: 2754: 2674: 2647: 2628: 2472: 2365: 589:. According to Vlad Georgescu, more than 40 excavated Transylvanian sites can be identified as settlements in Gelou's duchy. 250: 2747:

Hungarians and Europe in the Early Middle Ages: An Introduction to Early Hungarian History (Translated by Nicholas Bodoczky)

638:, "the land beyond the woods") as a rich country with salt mines and gold-yielding rivers, inhabited by "Vlachs and Slavs" ( 2999: 233:

or other opponents known from contemporary sources, instead chronicling Magyar battles with local rulers (including Gelou,

871:, Menumorut and Zobor—named by Anonymus for a river, hill or settlement. If this theory is true, Gelou was named after 855:"Even if it was contemporary with Gelou, the fortress from Dăbâca cannot be identified with the residence mentioned in 304:

origin, indicating the historical presence of a Slavic-speaking population. According to Madgearu, two eighth-century

2864: 2845: 2735: 2716: 2697: 2609: 2590: 2571: 2550: 2531: 2512: 2491: 2451: 2432: 2407: 2393: 2379: 828:, Romanian archaeologists "made every possible effort to turn Dăbâca into a Transylvanian Troy and to prove that the 109:, based on the mention of him by Anonymus some 300 years later, Gelou is considered one of three early-10th-century 2994: 911: 1369: 887:

is of the opinion that "the cases for and against the existence of Gelou and the Vlachs simply cannot be proven".

2989: 634:" inhabited the Carpathian Basin when the Magyars invaded the territory. The chronicler describes Transylvania ( 760: 176:

as he fled towards his unnamed fortress. Gelou's subjects then yielded to Tuhutum without further resistance.

2882: 775:", Tétény's soldiers chased and killed him on the banks of the Căpuș River, near the place where the village 526:

zemlĕ Agnjanski i do Vološ'ski..." "...to the English and Voloh lands..."). Since the Vlachs never reached

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The Romanians and the Turkic Nomads North of the Danube Delta from the Tenth to the Mid-Thirteenth century

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Romanians and Hungarians from the 9th to the 14th Century: The Genesis of the Transylvanian Medieval State

504: 285: 642:) when the Magyars arrived, and records the names of five Transylvanian rivers or mountain passes. Most— 384:

demonstrates that the Bulgarians expanded their authority over this region. Other historians (including

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invaded its western regions three times between 791 and 803. A stone column erected during the reign of

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Nägler, Thomas (2005). "Transylvania between 900 and 1300". In Pop, Ioan-Aurel; Nägler, Thomas (eds.).

2974: 206: 2666: 2388:(Introduction, Translation and Commentary by Robert H. Hewsen) (1992). Dr. Ludwig Reichert Verlag. 796: 694: 643: 2402:

Chronica de Gestis Hungarorum (Edited by Dezső Dercsényi) (1970). Corvina, Taplinger Publishing.

916: 631: 578: 586: 388:) reject this theory, saying that Dridu B ceramics can only prove cultural influences from the 230: 447:" and lived east of the Moravians and the "Vistula country". The 11th-century Persian scholar 293: 289: 735: 2658: 554: 124:

describes pre-conquest Transylvania as a country rich in salt and gold, which was raided by

92:, which was written after 1150, does not indicate the enemies of the conquering Hungarians ( 784: 623: 226: 218: 8: 2659: 364:

on the eve of the "Hungarian Conquest", an early 20th-century map based primarily on the

346: 328: 256: 136:"—before the arrival of the Magyars. Archaeological research indicates that a people who 566: 549:

contain evidence of a ninth-century occupation of the site", according to archaeologist

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Curta, Florin (2001). "Transylvania around A.D. 1000". In Urbańczyk, Przemysław (ed.).

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Transylvanian fortresses uncovered can be reliably dated before the 10th century. The

2860: 2841: 2834: 2809: 2790: 2769: 2750: 2731: 2712: 2693: 2670: 2643: 2624: 2605: 2586: 2567: 2546: 2527: 2508: 2487: 2468: 2447: 2428: 2403: 2389: 2375: 2361: 1449: 1132: 673:), indicating that the Vlachs were considered the dominant Transylvanian population. 509: 472: 141: 55: 2768:. Romanian Cultural Institute (Center for Transylvanian Studies). pp. 133–207. 2711:. Romanian Cultural Institute (Center for Transylvanian Studies). pp. 198–231. 2386:

The Geography of Ananias of Širak (AŠXARHAC'OYC'): The Long and the Short Recensions

880: 651: 607: 428: 389: 361: 301: 173: 84: 39: 2560:

Kordé, Zoltán (1994). "Gyalu". In Kristó, Gyula; Engel, Pál; Makk, Ferenc (eds.).

2374:(Translated and annotated by Timothy Reuter) (1992). Manchester University Press. 1597:В данном контексте предполагалось, что под волохами лето-писец имел в виду франков 1578:К изучению мордовских исторических произве- дений в составе «Повести временных лет 730: 313: 297: 2889: 901: 884: 868: 408:; similar spurs were also commonly used in Bulgaria and by 10th-century Magyars. 341: 2895:"The Map of the Road of the Magyar Conquest – According to the Anonymous Notary" 2425:

History and Myth in Romanian Consciousness (Translated by James Christian Brown)

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commemorates the 829 death of a Bulgarian commander named Onegavon at the river

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Tara lui Gelou: Contributii la istoria Transilvaniei de Nord in secolele IX-XI

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may have been built during the ninth or tenth century. Early-medieval forts at

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by the 830s, began a westward migration after their defeat by a coalition of

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sent envoys to the Bulgarians to "ask that they should not sell salt to the

264: 1649: 825: 619: 550: 75: 513:, although the Slavs were the first settlers west of the Carpathians, the 381: 260: 896: 875:(Gyalu in Hungarian), a Transylvanian village in which Gelou dies in the 538: 221:, invading the surrounding area. Gelou is a local ruler described in the 542: 1528:

Les Volochs des Annales primitives de Kiev – Études slaves et roumaines

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were built at the turn of the 10th and 11th centuries, and the fort at

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and other Transylvanian sites demonstrate ninth-century trade with the

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as an opponent of the invading Magyars. Anonymus did not write about

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recorded by the chronicler in connection with Gelou's duchy are of

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The Medieval Hungarian Historians: A Critical and Analytical Guide

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The Realm of St Stephen: A History of Medieval Hungary, 895–1526

1622: 1620: 1559:Очерки истории народов России в древности и раннем средневековье 1355:

Hudud al-'Alam 'The Regions of the World' - A Persian Geography

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and Alexandru Madgearu, the existence of a ninth-century Vlach

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dukes with lands in the intra-Carpathian region of present-day

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region which was similar to ceramic utensils found along the

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According to Kurdt Horedt, István Bóna and other historians,

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First page of the lone manuscript preserving the text of the

2730:. Centrul de Studii Transilvane, Fundaţia Culturală Română. 2230: 1247: 1190: 1178: 1029: 1017: 2908:. Institute of History of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences 2169: 2167: 2063: 2022: 2020: 2018: 1483: 630:

According to Anonymus, "Slavs, Bulgarians, Vlachs, and the

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East Central & Eastern Europe in the Early Middle Ages

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