43 István Brodarics to Sigismund I 1 Rome, 17 May 1525 Manuscript used: BN T. 6. fol. 33r–v. 2 1. He received several letters from Sigismund in recent days in which he is requested to intervene in certain affairs; he is happy to do this. – 2. He thanks for Sigismund’s intervention on his behalf with Louis II; he strives to repay Sigismund’s goodwill. – 3. According to Johannes Rudniczki’s report, the King’s request has been in part fulfilled, in part it will be put forward to the Pope tomorrow by Brodarics and Cardinal Pucci; Sigismund will be informed about the Pope’s answer promptly. – 4. The Pope is relentless in his attempts to create peace between the Emperor and the French King; Cardinal Giovanni Salviati has been ordered to stay with the Emperor as a legate; Brodarics has been sent with him. – 5. He trusts that peace can be attained; he wrote a ciphered letter about this to Bishop of Przemiśl Andrzej Krzycki; he trusts this most of all because of the noble heart of the French King with whom he negotiated not long ago and has written about it to Sigismund. If it fails there is no other way of saving Hungary than what he had already written to Sigismund [peace agreement with the Turks]; he wishes this had been done before losing Belgrade and Szörényvár, since nobody cares about the Hungarians, they all care only about themselves. – 7. All kinds of unbelievable things are being written about the German peasants’ war, but he believes that Sigismund has more information on this than he has; it is also said that the Turks will not attack Hungary this year but this is consolation only inasmuch as it gives some respite. – 8. If there is a need for intervention regarding the Duchy of Bari, he asks Sigismund to let him know; if he happens to be away from Rome, his fellow envoy Francesco Marsupino or Cardinal Lorenzo Pucci will forward letters addressed to him. Turri or Marcus de Torre, Franciscan monk born in Venice, Polish provincial. Taught theology at the Cracow University in 1519. He was confessor of Bona Sforza, so he had excellent relationship with the Polish court. See also AT V. 242., 253.; AT VI. 268., 306.; AT VII. 63., 83., and Fraknói Vilmos, Magyarországi pápai követek jelentései... 324. 1  The text of the letter is on the Internet, in a somewhat different variant, transcribed by Péter Tóth. http://ephemeris.alcuinus.net/exempla.php. 2  Further manuscripts: BK 213fol. 525–527; BJ 6549 fol. 546–548; BCzart TN 37. fol. 259–262. 2 Marcus

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Sacratissima Regia Maiestas, Domine, Domine mihi Clementissime. Post servitiorum meorum in gratiam Vestrae Maiestatis humillimam commendationem.

[1.] Accepi aliquot litteras Vestrae Maiestatis his diebus, in quibus Vestra Maiestas scribit mihi de nonnullis suis negotiis, quae mihi perinde curae erunt, ut negotia serenissimi et gratiosissimi domini mei, carissimi nepotis Vestrae Maiestatis. Neque ulla ratione magis poterit Vestra Maiestas suam in me gratiam ostendere, quam si servitute mea quantulacunque uti fuerit dignata. Quod ut facere velit, eidem supplico humillime.

[2.] Nescio autem quibus verbis Vestrae Maiestati gratias agam, vel quibus obsequiis promereri apud eam possim eam gratiam, quam superioribus mensibus in commendando me, suo minimo servulo sacratissimae maiestati nepotis sui carissimi declaravit. Hoc unum semper et palam profitebor, et re ipsa ac servitute mea sincerissima ostendere conabor Vestram Maiestatem, quod in me conferet, in gratum ac fidelissimum servitorem collaturam, et quicquid mihi accessionis contigerit, id soli Vestrae Maiestati libens debebo. 3

[3.] Verum ut ad ea redeam, de quibus Vestra Maiestas scribit, ea partim sunt expedita, sicut mihi dominus Joannes Rudniczki rettulit, partim cras, unacum reverendissimo domino cardinale Sanctorum Quattuor, 4 sicut Vestra Maiestas iubet (de praelatorum huc missione loquor) Sanctissimo Domino Nostro referentur. De cuius voluntate faciam Vestram Maiestatem ilico certiorem.

[4.] Pontifex in facto pacis inter caesarem et Christianissimum regem faciendae vehementissime laborat, delegit eius rei gratia reverendissimum dominum cardinalem Salviati, nepotem suum ad ceasarem mittendum. 5 Cum quo consultissimum iudicaret me quoque, qui huius potissimum rei gratia a maiestate domini mei gratiosissimi missus sum, illuc proficisci. De qua pontificis voluntate scripsi ad Maiestatem Regiam. 17 Rwdynczky del., suprascr. alia manu Rudniczki 3  Brodarics asked Sigismund several times in May 1524, after György Szatmári ‘s death, to intervene for him so that he can obtain some substantial benefice, presumably some bishopric. This means that the Polish court also spoke up for him. Brodarics did not earn a bishopric at that time but he got the benefice of the Esztergom Canon added to that of Provost of Pécs, and Louis II. made a promise that he would raise Brodarics to Bishop status as soon as possible. 4  The church named after the Four Crowned Saints (Quattuor Sanctorum Coronatorum) was the titular church of Cardinal Lorenzo Pucci (Laurentius Pucius) (1458–1531), Bishop of Melf, later of Alba. 5  Clement VII appointed Cardinal Giovanni Salviati, Legate with Charles V, on 5 May 1525. His task was, as Brodarics says, first of all, creating peace between the French and the Spanish Kings and preparation for the war against the Turks.

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[5.] Si posset confici ista pax, sicut sumus in non parva spe, propter illas causas, quas ad reverendissimum dominum Premisliensem, 6 cum quo mihi notae occultiores 7 sunt, perscripsi, si, inquam, confici posset, essemus securi de salute Christianae Reipublicae, praesertim ob eum animum, quem certe magnum et excellentem in rege Christianissimo esse animadverti superioribus diebus, dum apud eum essem, 8 de quo ad Vestram Maiestatem proxime scripsi. 9 Sin minus, ego, quantumcunque cogitem, Sapientissime Rex, non video ullam aliam salutis nostrae rationem, 10 quam illam, de qua scio me aliquando ad Vestram Maiestatem scripsisse, et quam utinam ante perditum Belgradum ac dirutum Severinum 11 secuti fuissemus. Sed vetera sero querimur. Clementissime Princeps, unusquisque curat sua propria negotia, et nemo nostra, et alii Christiani sang uine Christiano inexplebiles sub tegmine alarum Vestrarum Maiestatum Sacratissimarum requiescunt. Sed de his satis, praesertim cum non sit sine periculo scribere veritatem.

[7.] De tumultu Germanico 12 mira scribuntur, sed illa scio Vestrae Maiestati quam nobis esse notiora. Affirmatur ex omnibus partibus Turcam pro hoc anno nos magna vi non agressurum. Sed hoc etiam, si verum esset, parum consolationis nobis praebere deberet, nisi quod per has moras exitium nostrum longius proferri ac prorogari videtur.

[8.] De rebus Barensis 13 scio Vestram Maiestatem a suis fieri certiorem. Si mihi ad caesarem eundum fuerit, et si quid me ibi Vestra Maiestas sibi in hoc servire voluerit, Krzycki, Bishop of Przemiśl. Brodarics uses cipher in several letters, which is only partially deciphered so far. 18  Brodarics visited the French King imprisoned by Charles V after the battle of Pavia (24 February 1525) in the town of Pizzighettone. Unfortunately, he misjudged Francis’ “noble heart”: he would recall this encounter in his report on the Battle of Mohács written 2 years later, and reproach the French ruler for promising help to Hungary against the Turks, something he did not keep. (“[...] regi Gallorum et illud in memoriam reducit [sc. Louis II], quid sibi in oppido Piczigetone captivus per oratorem suum [sc. Brodarics] de defendenda Hungaria et de ferendis, si Deus eum pristinae libertati restituisset, suppetiis promiserit [...]” See Stephanus Brodericus, De conflictu Hungarorum cum Solymano Turcarum imperatore ad Mohach historia verissima, Ed. Petrus Kulcsár, Budapest, 1985, 27–28.) 19  We do not have this letter. 10  Brodarics obviously alludes to peace to be signed with the Turks: the idea to bring the official state of war with the Turks, that began in 1521, to an end by peace agreement or armistice was considered several times in the Hungarian court but was rejected every time – partly under pressure from the Pope. The same considerations were spelled out in a letter to Sigismund on 10 June 1523, which shows that Brodarics had seen the situation clearly already then, and, as this letter demonstrates, it did not change much in 2 years. Brodarics’ warnings were heard in the Polish court at least. Sigismund, seeing the failure in Christian cooperation, signed peace with the Turks on 15 November 1525. Brodarics, in his first letter addressed to Piotr Tomicki and Andrzej Krzycki (6 September 1526), still expresses regret over the fact that Hungarians did not follow the Polish example (“O nos nunquam minus prudentes, quam tunc, cum consilia pacis cum Turco Vestris Dominationibus non suadentibus solum, sed hortantibus ac rogantibus etiam, non suscepimus.” See the letter by Brodarics on 6 September 1526.) 11  Nándorfehérvár (today: Beograd, Serbia) was occupied by the Turks on 29 August 1521; Bey of Nándorfehérvár Bali occupied Szörényvár (today: Turnu-Severin, Romania) in September 1524. 12  Reference to the German peasants’ war. 13  Brodarics had done services to Sigismund in connection to the Duchy of Bari before. (More on the case of the Duchy of Bari: AT, VIII. 295–379.) 17  16  Andrzej

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faciat me certiorem. Litterae Vestrae Maiestatis etiam si interim discederem per collegam meum, dominum Franciscum Marsupinum, qui hic erit, vel etiam per reverendissimum dominum cardinalem Sanctorum Quattuor fideliter ad me mittentur.

Me et servitia mea in gratiam Vestrae Maiestatis rursus humillime commendo. Romae 17. Maii 1525. Eiusdem Vestrae Sacratissimae Maiestatis minimus servulus Stephanus Brodericus orator On the outer side: Sacratissimae regiae maiestati Poloniae, magno duci Lithvaniae, Rwssiae, Prussiae etc. domino ac heredi, domino meo clementissimo.