Nicholas (I) Felsőlendvai (, ; died April or May 1325) was an influential Hungarian baron and military leader, who served as Ban of Slavonia from 1323 until his death.
Initially a familiaris of the powerful Kőszegi family, he swore loyalty to Charles I of Hungary and played eminent role in defeating the oligarchs – including his former lords – in the 1310s. The monarch entrusted him with the administration of several counties and newly regained royal castles mostly in Transdanubia before appointing him as Ban of Slavonia. His attempt to restore Hungarian suzerainty over Croatia was unsuccessful. He was the progenitor of the Felsőlendvai (or Rupolyi) family, which, however, became extinct a few decades later.
Early life Nicholas Felsőlendvai was born into the powerful and extended gens (clan) Gutkeled. His father was Amadeus Gutkeled, who administered Vas and Zala counties in the 1270s.Engel: Genealógia (Genus Gutkeled 3. Amadé branch) He died sometime before 1286. In that year, King Ladislaus IV of Hungary assured his widow and orphans that he would confirm all the royal donations he had once made in his favor, and promised to confirm the donations with a golden bull at an opportune moment if the situation in the realm improved. Among Amadeus' multiple children, only the name of Nicholas is known. His unidentified mother was still alive in 1332, outliving Nicholas.
Felsőlendvai is first mentioned by contemporary records in 1292, when he was a landowner in Bagamér in Bihar County, and took part in the process of the determination of its borders along with his neighbors. He also possessed inherited landholdings Gút in Fejér County (present-day a borough of Isztimér), the neighboring lands Marcaltő, Malomsok and Szente at the confluence of Marcal and Rába in the borderland of Veszprém and Győr counties, in addition to his main residence, the castle of Felsőlendva (or simply Lendva, present-day Grad, Slovenia) and its accessories in Vas County. He paid the remaining 50 silver marks to Stephen Dárói, a descendant of the original owner family in 1308. Similarly to the majority of nobles in the region Western Transdanubia and Slavonia, Felsőlendvai also entered the service of the powerful Kőszegi family. He was mentioned as an owner of Mórichely (present-day a borough of Nagykanizsa) in Zala County in 1307. Felsőlendvai married an unidentified daughter of Egidius Monoszló, who was once a powerful lord in the 1270s. The dying Egidius bequeathed half portion of the castle of Rupoly (or Ropoly) and its lordship in Somogy County (present-day Bőszénfa and Kaposvár) to Felsőlendvai in his last will in 1313. Thereafter, his family was also known as Rupolyi. Pál Engel argued that Felsőlendvai was only a maternal relative (cognatus) of Egidius Monoszló.
Military career Felsőlendvai remained a supporter of the Kőszegis during the era of Interregnum in the first decade of the 14th century. In the first half of 1310, he still acted as a representative and trustee of his lord, Ban Henry Kőszegi during a mortgage agreement with members of the Héder clan, regarding the estate Déshida in Somogy County. Felsőlendvai was referred to as a leading member of the entourage of John Kőszegi (Henry's son) in 1313. However, soon Charles I, who had defeated his rivals and became the undisputed King of Hungary, decided to eliminate the de facto independent oligarchic domains throughout the kingdom, including the Kőszegis' territory in Western Transdanubia and Slavonia. Charles waged war with the southern Kőszegi dominion in the first half of 1316; as a result, several familiares of John Kőszegi left his allegiance, including Felsőlendvai. He was present in the royal camp in Zsibót, Baranya County (present-day a borough of Szigetvár) in May 1316, when the monarch returned possessions to the minor sons of the late James Győr upon the request of some lords, including Felsőlendvai. He participated in the subsequent military campaign against his former lord; the power of John Kőszegi in Southern Transdanubia was eliminated by August. In the charter, Felsőlendvai is mentioned as a "baron" without holding any dignity.
In the winter of 1317, when Serbian monarch Stefan Uroš II Milutin invaded Syrmia, Charles I launched a counter-campaign across the river Sava and seized the fortress of Macsó (present-day Mačva, Serbia). Felsőlendvai took part in the campaign as commander of the vanguard and he and his troops supervised the crossing of the frozen river for the royal army. He played a role in the capture of Macsó too. In contrast, Gyula Kristó placed the date of Charles' first campaign against Serbia in the winter of 1314 (which assumes Felsőlendvai's changeover by then). In February 1317, Charles I donated the lands Berény, Dencs and Osztopán in Somogy County to Felsőlendvai, rewarding his loyalty and role in the previous year's campaign, and because he submitted 'all of his and his servants' possessions and goods" for the king's cause. Since all of these were queenly estates prior to that, Queen Maria of Bytom formally contributed to the donation. Felsőlendvai was installed as ispán of Baranya and Bács counties by May 1317, holding both positions until 1318 or 1319. Around the same time, he also became castellan of Szekcső, also a former stronghold of the Kőszegis in Baranya County, holding the position at least until early 1324. Felsőlendvai took part in the royal campaign against the dominion of Matthew Csák, the most powerful oligarch, in September–October 1317. Alongside Thomas Szécsényi and Paul Jánki, he commanded his troops to successfully besiege Visegrád, while Charles captured Komárom with the assistance of Austrian auxiliary troops.
Charles I appointed Felsőlendvai as ispán of Sopron County and castellan of Kapuvár in the second half of 1318. He held both positions until his death. In this capacity, Felsőlendvai returned the estates Csele and Jenő in Baranya County to the Dominican nuns of Margaret Island upon their request in that year. As ispán of Sopron County, Felsőlendvai played a decisive role in the crushing of the rebellion of Andrew Kőszegi against the royal authority in the spring of 1319. Charles I entrusted Alexander Köcski and him to lead a royal campaign against his remaining dominion. Their army defeated the Kőszegi troops at Szalafő and captured Andrew's last strongholds. According to a royal charter, Felsőlendvai captured six Austrian robber barons – by name, Scedeker, Gelleuser, Pronnar, Preguar, Wyrdusmodar and Preghamar –, who served in Andrew's army. Kristó argued that all sieges occurred Andrew's first (and only) rebellion in the summer of 1317, and he considered a brief Austrian-led border raid in support of Andrew Kőszegi took place only in 1319. Felsőlendvai issued a charter in Sopron in May 1319, implying that military operations were completed by then.
Sometime around 1320, Felsőlendvai was made ispán of Komárom County, also serving as the castellan of its important stronghold Komárom (first mentioned in these positions in 1323 and 1321, respectively), which protected the central areas of the kingdom from possible attacks by Matthew Csák from the northwest. When Matthew Csák died in March 1321, his province collapsed within months. Felsőlendvai gathered his troops and occupied vas majority of his domain without resistance. His soldiers seized the forts Appony (Oponice), Privigye (Prievidza), Bajmóc (Bojnice) and Ugróc (Uhrovec) in Nyitra County in April–May 1321. Felsőlendvai issued his charter in Nagytapolcsány (Topoľčany) in June 1321, starting to reward those who left Matthew's camp. Felsőlendvai handed over the castles to Charles I who arrived the region in July 1321 in order to besiege Trencsén (Trenčín). Most of the Csáks' castellans swore loyalty to the monarch.
Ban of Slavonia
Charles I decided to replace John Babonić with Nicholas Felsőlendvai as Ban of Slavonia in late 1322 or early 1323. Felsőlendvai first appears in the dignity in February 1323. Hungarian historian Attila Zsoldos argued the replacement occurred when Charles I stayed in Zagreb in October 1322. The reason for his decision is uncertain. 19th-century Hungarian historian Antal Pór considered John was perhaps not decisive enough to "settle South Slavic affairs", while Lajos Thallóczy argued the Croatian nobles resented the fact that a lord from Slavonia be their superior. Gyula Kristó argued John Babonić was the "last oligarch", and by the end of 1322 Charles saw the time had come to end his power. Zsoldos considered John Babonić did not fall out of favor with the king, since he held a courtly position until his death thereafter. However, he – since his sons had died by then – adopted his nephew John (II) as his son without the king's approval in 1321, which was contrary to Charles's policy (automatic inheritance of vast wealth, i.e. oligarchic power). Croatian historian Vjekoslav Klaić claimed that Felsőlendvai was appointed ban in 1322 and he jointly held the dignity with John Babonić for a year, but this assumption is based on two misdated royal charters. Antun Nekić argued that John Babonić was a "symbol of the preceding period; an oligarch who did not owe his position to Charles I in any way", while Felsőlendvai rose to the elite due to his loyalty and service during Charles' war against the oligarchs, he – and his successor Mikcs Ákos – were "creatures" of Charles I, belonging the king's "new aristocracy".
In April 1323, Felsőlendvai was among the signatory barons, who confirmed the peace treaty between Charles I of Hungary and Frederick the Fair with their seals ending the hostiles between them. In that year, Felsőlendvai was also included in that common Austrian–Hungarian commission whose mandate was to resolve disputed issues regarding the adjustment of borders. In this capacity, Felsőlendvai was responsible for Sopron County along its western border with the duchies of Austria, Styria and Carniola. A fragment of his wax seal of his signet ring was preserved in May 1323, depicting a triangular shield with dragon teeth, the common symbol of the Gutkeled clan, and its circumscription "+ SIG[IL]LUM MAGISTRI NIC[OLAI]", with two animals on the side (dragon or wolf).
Micha Madius de Barbazanis, a contemporary chronicler and a nobleman from Split (Spalato), narrates that John Babonić rebelled against the king (or protested against his removal) and subsequently even an armed clash occurred with the troops of Felsőlendvai upon the latter's arrival to Slavonia in May 1323. The Babonić troops attempted to prevent the army of Felsőlendvai, consisted of Hungarians and Cumans, from crossing the Drava. However, the royal army crushed the resistance, capturing numerous soldiers and 400 horses. The arriving Felsőlendvai, who was escorted by Palatine Philip Drugeth too, was entrusted to launch a military expedition to Croatia in late summer of 1323, against Ivan Nelipić, a rebellious Croatian lord, who established a sovereign power after the fall of the oligarchic Šubić family. The campaign eventually failed after short-lived successes, although, it did rise up George II Šubić against Nelipić. Hungary's suzerainty over Croatia and Dalmatia remained nominal until 1345.