A letter of restoration

Translated letter:

Elizabeth, by the grace of God queen of Hungary to all the faithful of Christ who will look at the present writing greetings in the saviour of all.  We wish to bring to the notice of all present and future by the contents of these, that we having considered and looked over the deserving services and serving merits of our faithful master Aladarius son of Csete (Cheche) and desiring to recall to light his good services which from the early years of his boyhood he showed faithfully to lord Béla our father-in-law and afterwards to lord Stephen our consort, [both] beloved and of pious memory, formerly most serene kings of Hungary, and to the kingdom, submitting himself and his things devotedly to us in the different turns of fortune, for which he ought to be rewarded with reginal generosity greater and more fully in reginal bestowals, though it may seem small, than we do at present.  In respect of what we intend to do for him in the future, a certain land called Oryavicha in the county/ispánate of Pozsega, which Peter son of Chelleus held from royal gift and possessed and which through his death without the comfort of heirs fell to our hands through the approved custom of our kingdom; it was first conferred on that master Aladarius through our mother-in-law, dearest lady Maria formerly most serene queen of Hungary, who had the right to conferring and giving that land, with the permission and consent of said lord Béla formerly king, and given because said master Aladarius had reported the first fruits of joys of the birth of our dearest son king Ladislaus and because lord Stephen our dearest consort had moved against that master Aladarius.  After it was revoked and transferred to the rule of different persons, with the good will and consent of that same our dearest son king Ladislaus and all the barons of our kingdom, we gave back and restored, rather we give and confer on that master Aladarius and through him on his heirs and successors of his heirs to be possessed by perpetual right irrrevocably in that custom and freedom by which the possessions of other nobles of Pozsega like former bans* of the land of Borych were possessed and within the same boundary limits and subscribed circumstances by which it was formerly limited, having noted expressly that all instruments and privileges/charters or whatever protections had flowed on the donation, conference and transfer of the mentioned land to Nicholas son of Lawrence or any other inhabitants of our kingdom in any way by trick or order up to the date of the presents, are held broken and invalid and voided; only the content of the present letters about our present donation and bestowal to the oftmentioned master Aladarius have force, strength, and power. We have conceded and granted also that if it happens that said master Aladarius should, let it no be so, be deprived of the solace of an heir, he would have the free and absolute ability to bequeath, give, alienate from himself or dispose of it to whomever he might wish in life or in death. 

The course of the boundaries of said possession of Oryavicha as count/ispán Geleth our man and the testimony of the chapter of St. Peter of Pozsega, transmitted for us to the present neighbors and boundary sharers of that possession with the range and limit at the time of its fixing, with no opposition from anyone, as they put it in the record for us to that master Aladarius, are designated thus.  The first boundary of that possession of Oryavicha begins from the north in a certain rise (berch) above the chapel built in honor of St. Luke the evangelist and from there westward in that berch namely from the side of Oryavicha castle it comes to a certain wall (harazth) in the south, under which is a land boundary and descending south from there by a small path it comes to a large pear tree, from here it turns west between the Oryavicha river and rises in a certain valley and crosses a certain berch, moving somewhat southward and comes to a berekyne tree, under which is a land boundary and from there moving southward it comes to a certain stream called Zwynzk creek and from there moving westward it falls into a certain river called Krytwacha creek and thence through a wood into a large space somewhat to the south and moving west falls into a certain bowl (kalysta) in the middle of Book forest and thence going straight it falls into the Zawa river and then in the course of the Zawa river it comes out of that Zawa river where Oryavicha creek falls into Zawa and thence it turns east and reaches Precopa, where through a canal the river Oryave, it falls into said Oryavicha creek and moving from there north in a good space it reaches a poplar tree under which is a land boundary that separates it from the Dragouch possession and from there moving north it comes to the river Jelsevyk, thence north it comes to a certain berch and from there moving north next to the Garad creek land it come to a certain ruined land in a berch called Omlas in the vulgate and from there turning west it descends to the Oryavicha river where it ends.  In memory and permanent stability of which we have granted the present letters fortified by the protection of our double seal.  Dated by the hand of the venerable father Philip, bishop of Vachyensis, chancellor of our court, our faithful count/ispan of Nógrád (Neugradiensis), in the thousand two hundred seventy seventh year of the lord.

Original letter:

Elyzabeth dei gracia regina Hungarie vniuersis Christi fidelibus presens scriptum inspecturis salutem in omnium saluatore.  Ad vniuersorum noticiam tam presencium quam futurorum harum serie volumus peruenire, quod nos consideratis et inspectis meritoriis obsequiis et obsequiosis meritis magistri Aladarii filii Cheche fidelis nostri et eiusdem obsequia grata et in lucem reuocare cupientes que a primeuis puericie sue annis domino B(ele) socero nostro et postmodum domino Stephano consorti nostro karissimis et pie memorie quondam serenissimis regibus Hungarie et regno fideliter exhibuit et deuote se et sua propter nos diuersis casibus fortune submittendo, pro quibus de reginali magnificencia maiora et ampliora in largicionibus reginalibus debuisset promereri, licet minima videatur que ad presens agimus.  Respectu eorum que facere intendimus eidem in futurum, quandam terram Oryauicha vocatam in comitatu de Pasaga sitam, quam Petrus filius Chelleus de donacione regia tenuit et possedit et per mortem ipsius sine heredis solacio decedentis ad manus nostras de approbata regni nostri consuetudine deuolutam, que ipsi magistro Aladario primo per socram nostram karissimam dominam M(ariam) quondam serenissimam reginam Hungarie, que ipsam terram conferendi et donandi ius habebat, collata fuerat, de permissione et consensu predicti domini B(ele) quondam regis et donata pro eo, quod primicias gaudiorum natiuitatis karissimi filii nostri regis Ladizlai eidem detulerat magister Aladarius antedictus et per dominum Stephanum consortem nostrum karissimum eo, quod contra ipsum magistrum Aladarium motus extiterat.  Reuocata et translata ad dominium diuersarum personarum de voluntate et consensu eiusdem karissimi filii nostri regis Ladizlai et omnium baronum regni nostri reddidimus et restituimus, ymo damus et conferimus ipsi magistro Aladario et per eum suis heredibus heredumque suorum successoribus iure perpetuo et irreuocabiliter possidendam in eadem consuetudine et libertate, quibus aliorum nobilium de Pasaga de genere quondam Borych bani terre et possessiones possidentur et sub eisdem metis limitibus et circumstanciis subscriptis, quibus fuerat primitus limitata, hoc expressim annotato quod omnia instrumenta et priuilegia vel quecunque munimenta, que super donacione, collacione et translacione memorate terre Nicolao filio Laurencii vel aliis quibuscunque de incolis regni nostri quocunque modo, ingenio vel ordine vsque datam presencium emanassent, cassa et irrita habeantur et uiribus careant et uitentur, solo presencium tenore litterarum circa presentem donacionem et collacionem nostram sepedicto magistro Aladario factam uigorem, robur et fortitudinem optinente.  Ceterum concessimus et concedimus, quod si dictum magistrum Aladarium, quod absit, heredis solacio destitui contingate, dictam terram legandi, donandi a se alienandi vel distrahendi cuicunque voluerit in uita vel in morte, liberam et absolutam habeat facultatem.  Cursus autem metarum predicte possessionis Oryauicha prout comes Geleth homo noster et testimonium capituli sancti Petri de Pasaga per nos transmissi presentibus vicinis et commetaneis eiusdem possessionis ambicione et limitacione tempore statucionis eiusdem, contradiccione quorumlibet non obstante, ipsi magistro Aladario facta nobis in registro detulerunt, hoc ordine dintinguntur.  Prima siquidem meta ipsius possessionis Oryauicha incipitur ab aquilone in quodam berch supra capellam in honore beati Luce ewangeliste constructam et deinde ex parte occidentali in eodem berch videlicet ex parte Oryauicha castrensi peruenit ad quoddam harazth ad partem meridionalem, sub qua est meta terrea et deinde adhuc versus meridiem descendendo per semitam paruam peruenit ad magnam arborem piri, ab hinc flectitur versus occidentem vltra fluuium Oryauicha et ascendit in quadam valle et transit quoddam berch tendendo quodam modo ad meridiem et peruenit ad arborem berekyne, sub qua est meta terrea et ab inde versus meridiem tendendo peruenit ad quemdam riuulum Zwynzkpotok nominatum et ab inde versus occidentem tendendo cadit in quoddam fluuium Krywachapotoka nuncupatum et inde per siluam in magno spacio quodam modo inter partem meridionalem et occidentalem tendendo cadit in quoddam kalysta in medio silue Book et inde directe eundo peruenit ad fluuium Chernech ad quandam clausuram Pasagaragya dictam et ab hinc directe eundo cadit in fluuium Zawa et deinde in cursu fluuii Zawa eundo exit de eodem fluuio Zaue vbi Oryauichapotok cadit in Zawam et deinde flectitur versus orientem et peruenit in Precopa, vbi per fossatum fluuius Oryaue cadit in Oryauichapotoka sepedictum et ab hinc tendendo ad aquilonem in bono spacio peruenit ad arborem populeum sub qua est meta terrea que separat a possessione Dragouch et deinde adhuc ad aquilonem tendendo peruenit ad fluuium Jelseuyk, adhuc versus aquilonem eundo peruenit ad quoddam berch et deinde iuxta terram Garadpotoka ad aquilonem tendendo peruenit ad quandam dirutam terram in quodam berch Omlas dictum in wlgari et deinde ad occidentem reflectendo descendit ad fluuium Oryauicha ibique terminantur.  In cuius rei memoriam et perpetuam firmitatem presentes concessimus litteras duplicis sigilli nostri munimine roboratas.  Datum per manus venerabilis patris Phyllippi episcopi Wachyensis aule nostre cancellarii comitis Neugradiensis fidelis nostri, anno domini millesimo CC. septuagesimo septimo.

Historical context:

The queen restores land to Aladarius which he had received from her mother-in-law, and was deprived of by her husband through some intrigue, for his service to her and the kings.  Zsoldos, The Arpads, 109, says Aladarius, son of Csete, was a member of Elizabeth’s court when she was the junior queen, became magister tavarnicorum in 1262-63, then was master of stewards for queen Isabella, from whose service he returned to Elizabeth, dowager queen, as court ispán.  By 1290 he held the same office in the court of queen Isabella.  

Scholarly notes:

• A ban was the governor of a district in medieval Hungary.

Printed source:

Codex diplomaticus regni Croatiae, Dalmatiae et Slavoniae, ed. T. Smiciklas (Zagreb, 1904-34), 6.222-24, #193.  

Date: