A letter of confirmation

Translated letter:

Elizabeth, by the grace of God queen of Hungary to all the faithful of Christ seeing the present writing greetings in the savior of all.  Since the ornament of earthly magnificence and the glory granted by heavenly provision to princes, who live above others of the world  over whom they rule, magnifies and extolls, it ought to provoke their heart and soul to submit devotion, to follow the will of divine grace and continually appease it with works of piety, so that particularly to the holy churches in which the indulgence of sinners is demanded for the intercession of the ministers of God, they should offer generous donations, or rather more surely immense, by the testimony of best known right, by those princes to whom God gave most, and who will be lord, governor and ruler of many.  Thus it is that a virgin devoted to God, lady Elizabeth, nun from the Island of the Glorious Virgin (Island of Rabbits), our dearest kinswoman, sister of our illustrious lord king of Hungary, recently asked that a certain reginal town of ours, called Berény, located in the province of Somogy, be given by us and we would give and confer that town and possession called Berény to that lady Elizabeth, our dearest relative, effectually from the duty of relationship to that kinswoman we are held to be obliged to give to the extent it pleased her, whatever we had or possessed, most freely, from whom [so] much, namely in most precious things, like gold and riches of gems, jewels, and clothes and ready money whenever we were lacking and in need, we received from her to our will and desire; finally our said dearest relative, wished to give said town, called Berény, already given to her by us to the monastery of the most blessed archangel Michael namely Veszprém for the remedy of the soul of the illustrious king Stephen I of happy memory, her dearest father and our father-in-law; she already conferred it on that church, as she could, not unjustly, as a possession and town given absolutely to her person, to whatever private person she wished, also one in her service and office, or if she wished she could grant it freely and securely to a church of whatever place at her will, as a possession committed to her person by a most generous disposition, pressing willingly that we  would deign to fix, ratify, confirm again by our charter her said donation made to the venerable church of Veszprém.  We, wishing to acquiesce to the requests of our dearest sister-in-law while we live, [affirm that] the church possesses inviolably always and immoveably that said possession, said town called Berény, often mentioned above, the donation made by her to the venerable church of Veszprém, and through her to the provost of the church of Veszprém who was at the time in that provostial office, according to the vow of our dearest relative, so granting to the church that said possession was conferred to the provost or provosture was conferred by her, and by us, as she had conferred it, to be ratified in a similar way as soon as asked, we strengthen by the contents of our present charter the donation of our dearest relation will be validated in perpetuity, confirming as much as we can according to the desire of her heart that it is holy and just, and especially to the church of Veszprém, chiefly by reason that by the sworn relation of most honorable men and solemn persons we  ascertained that formerly the noble and magnificent lady Maria, queen of Hungary of happy memory, consort of king Béla of honored memory, had granted that town called Berény to that church of Veszprém for the remedy of her soul, when the church of Veszprém had conditionaries* in that town called Berény and a great portion of that territory from ancient times, and from the first establishment of the above-named church, truly in the destruction of the church of Veszprém, sadly done in our time, the charter made on that donation with all the things and ornaments of the church known to us all were plundered and lost, about which a certain cut charter was presented to us, less efficacious from the seal broken in great part.  Whence by most just witnesses, it appeared by other signs as we said above that our dearest relative deservedly and laudably made a donation of said possession to the holy church of Veszprém carefully, which we affirmed as right and approved most firmly by the tenor of our present charter.  Moreover we add that when our lord, the illustrious king, bestowed on us in that town Berény eight dwellings of udvarnoks** in exchange particularly of our possessions which he received from us, namely the great town Ladan, and another town called Berény in the county of Alba over the river Saar, near Alba; we, at the instance of our dearest sister-in-law lady Elizabeth, bestowed said town Berény in the manner and for the reason stated, similarly we gave those eight dwellings of udvarnoks received in exchange from the lord king with the said totality of the town of Berény, and equally for this reason to the church of Veszprém, to which said lady Elizabeth our relative gave possession and the town of Berény, and also with it the eight dwellings of udvarnoks given to us by the lord king in exchange, as the royal charter of this shows, and given by us to lady Elizabeth our relative with the whole town, as the donation of the town of Berény, so the possessions of those eight dwellings of the oft-mentioned udvarnoks, their persons, descendants and heirs, and everything they hold and possess and with the conditionaries of the church of St. Michael the Archangel, similarly, we ratify as said donation to the town of Berény and by the authority of the presents we confirm it will endure in perpetuity.  For the stability and most holy witness of which thing we have granted the present letters strengthened by the protection of our double seal.  Dated by the hand of the venerable father Thomas, by the grace of God bishop of Vaciens, our faithful chancellor of our court, in the thousand twohundred eighty third year of the lord; fourth kalends of October.

Original letter:

Elisabeth Dei gracia Regina Hungarie universis Christi fidelibus presens scriptum intuentibus salutem in omnium Saluatore.  Quoniam terrene Magnificencie decus, et gloria celesti prouisione concessa Principibus, que ipsos supra alios mundi viventes, quibus presunt, magnificat et extollit, ipsorum debet deuocionem intendere, cor, et animum prouocare, Diuine beneplacitum gracie consequi, et placare jugiter operibus pietatis, vt hi specialius Sacrosanctis Ecclesijs, in quibus Dei ministrorum suffragijs venia poscitur peccatorum, donaciones offerant largitiuas, quin imo cercius et immensas, juris notissimi testimonio, quibus Principibus plurima dedit Deus, multorumque fore Dominum, Presidem, et Rectorem.  Hinc est, quod virgo Deo devota, domina Elisabeth, sanctimonialis de Insula Virginis Gloriose, nostra cognata charissima, Illustris domini nostri Hungarie Regis soror, quandam villam nostram Reginalem Beren nomine, in Provincia Simighiensi sitam, quam a nobis iam dudum petierat sibi dari, nosque eidem domine Elisabeth, nostre cognate charissime eandem villam seu possessionem Beren nomine, liberalissime dederamus et contuleramus effectualiter ex debito parentele ejusdem nostre cognate persone duntaxat, cum sibi placeret, quidquid penes nos rerum seu possessionum existit, liberalius, ut tenemur, largiri debentes, a qua plurima, videlicet quecunque in rebus preciosissimis, veluti aureis, ditibusque gemmarum clenodijs, parata eciam, seu prompta pecunia, quandocunque opus habuimus indigentes, ab eadem semper ad nostrum accipientes beneplacitum, et optatum; demum dicta nostra cognata charissima domina Elisabeth, et dictam villam suam, et sibi a nobis jam donatam Beren nomine, quam ob remedium anime Illustris quondam Regis Stephan I felicis memorie, sui patris charissimique nostri soceri, Beatissimi Michaelis Archangeli Monasterio videlicet Vesprimiensi donare volebat, et jam eidem Ecclesie revera contulerat, prout poterat, non immerito, sicut possessionem seu villam sue persone absolute donatam, cuicunque volebat persone private, eciam in ejus servicio obsequioque constitute, vel si vellet, Ecclesie cujuscunque partis, ad sui posset beneplacitum condonare libere et secure, sicuti possessionem sue persone liberalissime disposicioni commissam, instans propensius, ut predictam suam donacionem venerabili Vesprimiensi Ecclesie factam, adhuc nostro priuilegio stabilire, ratificare, seu confirmare denuo dignaremur.  Nosque ejusdem cognate nostre charissime peticionibus, dum viuimus, condescendere cupientes, predictam villam Beren nomine, supra pluries memoratam, seu donacionem de eadem factam, venerabili Vesprimiensi Ecclesie, ut dictam possessionem eadem Ecclesia inviolabiliter semper et immote possideat, et per eam Vesprimiensis Ecclesie Prepositus, qui pro tempore fuerit in ipsa Prepositura, secundum votum cognate notre charissime, sic Ecclesie condonantis, quod per eam Preposito, se Prepositure dicta possessio conferatur, et a nobis, prout ipsa contulerat, modo simili ratificari instancius postulantis, presentis nostri privilegij serie valituram in perpetuum roboramus nostre cognate charissime donacionem, sicut expostulat sanctam et iustam secundum sui cordis desiderium quantum possumus confirmantes, et specialiter Vesprimiensi Ecclesie, ea potissimum racione, quia plurimorum honestorum virorum, et solennium personarum veridica relacione comperimus, quod olim nobilis et magnifica domina Maria Regina Hungarie felicis recordacionis, consors Regis Bele memorie recolende eandem villam Beren nomine eidem Ecclesie Vesprimiensi sue ob remedium anime condonauerat, cum et in villa eadem Beren nomine Vesprimiensis Ecclesia condicionales habeat, et magnam illius territorij procionem ab antiquissimis temporibus, atque a prima sui fundacione Ecclesie supradicte ----, verum in destruccione Vesprimiensis Ecclesie,  proh dolor, nostris in temporibus facta, privilegia super illa donacione confecta, cum omnibus Ecclesie rebus et ornamentis nobis scientibus omnia fuere direpta, et amissa, de quibus quoddam privilegium scissum, minus quasi efficax in sigillo magna ex parte rupto, nobis eciam extitit presentatum.   Vnde per justissimos tam testes, quam alia, ut supra diximus, indicia est compertum, quod cognata nostra charissima merito, et laudabiliter predicte possessionis donacionem in sanctam Vesprimiensem Ecclesiam fecerit circumspecte, quam nos ratam per omnia seu gratam habentes presentis nostri tenore privilegij firmius approbamus.  Insuper adicimus eciam, quod cum dominus noster, Rex Illustris, nobis in eadem villa Beren octo contulerit vduornicorum mansiones in concambium specialiter nostrarum possessionum, quas a nobis recepit, videlicet villam magnam Ladan, et aliam villam nomine Beren in Comitatu Albensi super fluvio Saar, prope Albam; nos ad instanciam nostre cognate charissime domine Elisabeth, cui dictam villam Beren contulimus modo et racione predicta, illas similiter octo vduornicorum mansiones in concambium a domino Rege receptas, cum predicta totalitate ville Beren donauimus, ac pari pro hac racione Vesprimiensi Ecclesie, cui dicta Domina Elisabeth nostra cognata possessionem seu villam Beren donauit, nec non cum illa eadem illas octo vduornicorum mansiones per dominum Regem nobis in concambium donatas, ut super hoc Regium patet priuilegium, ac per nos domine Elisabeth nostre cognate, cum tota villa donatas, sicut ville Beren donacionem, sic et illarum octo mansionum sepedictorum vduornicorum possessiones, personas eorum, posteros ac heredes, et omnia queque tenent et possident, et cum suis condicionibus Ecclesie Beati Michaelis Archangeli, similiter, ut predictam donacionem ville Beren ratificamus ac authoritate presencium duraturam in perpetuum confirmamus.  In cujus rei firmitatem et sanctissimum testimonium presentes concessimus litteras duplicis sigilli nostri munimine roboratas.  Datum per manus venerabilis patris Thome Dei gracia Episcopi Vaciensis, aule nostre Cancellarij, fidelis nostri, anno Domini MoCCo octuagensimo tercio; quarto kalendas Octobris.

Historical context:

At the request of her sister-in-law, the nun Elizabeth of Hungary, the queen confirms that she had the right to give the town of Berény, which the queen had given her, to the monastery of St. Michael of Veszprém.  The queen speaks warmly of the nun's gifts to her in her time of need, though Isabella had suspected Elizabeth of intriguing  against her.

Scholarly notes:

*  Condicionarii are people who belong to the estate and are obliged to perform certain unspecified services, see Attila Zsoldos, The Árpáds and Their Wives, Queenship in Early Medieval Hungary 1000-1301 (Rome:  Viella, 2019), p.50.

** Udvarnoks are royal serving people, whose principal task was to provide the royal court with food (Zsoldos, 208).

Printed source:

Árpádkori új okmánytár:  Codex diplomaticus Arpadianus continuatus, vols. I-XII, G. Wenzel ed. (Pest-Budapest: 1860-74), 4.257-59, #159.

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