Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini and the Hungarian Succession

Abstract

The words taken as the motto of the study are quoted from the letter written by Aeneas Sylvius Piccolomini in 1445 who was in the service of Frederick III at that time. The letter was addressed to the Archbishop of Esztergom with the purpose to persuade him and the magnates of Hungary to accept Ladislaus Postnatus (the relative of Frederick III) King of Hungary. Piccolomini’s argument, in the last resort, is based on the principle of public utility which is well attested by the motto: internal discord and division on the one hand, external threat on the other, postulate the necessity of a king − this is the dominant motif of the letter. Arguing in favour of royal government he states that monarchy is more appropriate for the Hungarians than popular government because of Hungary’s long tradition of being a kingdom. Citing different proofs such as ius gentium, papal disposition, ancient observation as the grounds of Ladislaus’s hereditary right, the view of the author can be seen as a learned discussion of the problem of succession in general since Piccolomini was one of the most erudite intellectuals of his age.