Editing History of Slovakia (section)

== Medieval history ==

=== New migrations ===

[[File:Huns450.png|thumb|right|[[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] and other tribes within the Hun-dominated areas, around 450 AD]]
In the 4th century AD, the Roman Empire could no longer resist the attacks by the neighboring peoples.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=25}} The empire's frontier started to collapse along the Danube in the 370s.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=25}} The development of the [[Huns#Before Attila|Hunnic Empire]] in the [[Eurasian Steppes]] forced large groups of Germanic peoples, including the Quadi and the [[Vandals]], to leave their homelands by the Middle Danube and along the upper course of the river [[Tisza]] in the early {{nobr|5th century}}.{{sfn|Heather|2006|pp=195,202-203}} Their lands were occupied by the [[Heruli]], [[Sciri]], [[Rugii]] and other Germanic peoples.{{sfn|Bartl|Čičaj|Kohútova|Letz|2002|p=17}}{{sfn|Heather|2006|p=331}} However, the [[Carpathian Basin]] was dominated by the nomadic [[Huns]] from the early {{nobr|5th century}} and the Germanic peoples became subjects to [[Attila the Hun]].{{sfn|Bartl|Čičaj|Kohútova|Letz|2002|p=17}}{{sfn|Heather|2006|p=331}}

Disputes among Attila's sons caused the disintegration of his empire shortly after his death in 453.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=43}}{{sfn|Heather|2006|pp=353-354}} The Germanic peoples either regained their independence or left the Carpathian Basin (like the Heruli and the Sciri, respectively).{{sfn|Heather|2006|p=355}} Warriors' graves from the next century yielded large number of swords, spears, arrow heads, axes and other weapons.{{sfn|Curta|2001|p=192}} Other archaeological finds, including a glass [[Beaker (archaeology)|beaker]] from [[Zohor]], shows that the local inhabitants had close contacts with the [[Frankish Empire]] and [[Scandinavia]].{{sfn|Curta|2001|p=192}}

=== Arrival of the Slavs ===
{{see also|Early Slavs}}

Regarding the early history of Slavs, Slavic texts or a record written by a Slav dating from before the late 9th century are not known.{{sfn|Pohl|2004|p=448}} The foreign sources (mostly Greek and Latin) about Slavs are very inconsistent.{{sfn|Pohl|2004|p=448}} According to a scholarly theory, the first Slavic groups settled in the eastern region of present-day Slovakia already in the {{nobr|4th century}}.{{sfn|Bartl|Čičaj|Kohútova|Letz|2002|p=18}} The 6th-century Byzantine historian [[Jordanes]] wrote that the funeral feast at Attila's burial was called ''strava''.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=43}}{{sfn|Heather|2010|p=394}} Scholars who identify that word as a [[Slavic languages|Slavic]] expression say that Jordanes' report proves that Slavs inhabited the Carpathian Basin in the middle of the {{nobr|5th century}}.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=43}}{{sfn|Kirschbaum|1996|p=17}} However, according to a concurrent scholarly theory, ''strava'' may have been a [[Hunnic language|Hunnic]] term, because no primary source mentioned that the Slavs were present in Attila's court.{{sfn|Heather|2010|p=394}}

Settlements which represented a new [[archaeological horizon]]{{spaced ndash}}the so-called "[[Prague-Korchak cultural horizon]]"{{spaced ndash}}appeared along the northernmost fringes of the Carpathian Mountains around 500.{{sfn|Heather|2010|pp=388, 410}} Similar settlements, which are dated to the second half of the {{nobr|5th century}}, were also excavated in the region of the confluence of the Danube and the Morava.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=56}} "Prague-Korchak" settlements consisted of about 10 semi-sunken huts, each with a stone oven in a corner.{{sfn|Heather|2010|p=388}} The local inhabitants used handmade pottery and cremated the dead.{{sfn|Heather|2010|p=388}} Most historians associate the spread of the "Prague-Korchak" settlements with the expansion of the early Slavs.{{sfn|Heather|2010|pp=395-397}}{{sfn|Barford|2001|pp=43-44}}

According to historian Gabriel Fusek, written sources also evidence the presence of Slavs in the Central Europe in the first half of the {{nobr|6th century}}.{{sfn|Fusek|1994|p=20}} The 6th-century Byzantine historian, [[Procopius]], wrote of a group of the Heruli who had "passed through the territory of all of the [[Sclavenes]]", or Slavs, during their migration towards the northern "[[Thule]]".{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=53}} Procopius's report implies that the Slavs inhabited the region of the river Morava,{{sfn|Bartl|Čičaj|Kohútova|Letz|2002|p=18}}{{sfn|Heather|2010|p=408}} but its credibility is suspect.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=53}} Procopius also wrote of an exiled [[Longobard]] prince, Hildigis, who first fled to the "Sclaveni" and then to the [[Gepids]], "taking with him not only those of the Longobards who had followed him, but also many of the Sclaveni"<ref>''Procopius: History of the Wars'' (7.35.19.), pp.&nbsp;461–463.</ref> in the 540s.{{sfn|Heather|2010|p=408}}{{sfn|Curta|2001|p=82}} According to a scholarly theory, Hildigis most probably mustered his Slavic warriors in the region of the Middle Danube.{{sfn|Heather|2010|p=408}}{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=56}}

The Germanic Longobards were expanding towards the Middle Danube in the early {{nobr|6th century}}.{{sfn|Bartl|Čičaj|Kohútova|Letz|2002|p=18}} Archaeological research shows that Longobard expansion bypassed virtually the entire territory of Slovakia and they settled only in the most north-western part of the country ([[Záhorie]]).{{sfn|Fusek|1994|p=120}}{{sfn|Bystrický|2008|p=125}}{{sfn|Steinhübel|2004|p=20}} Unlike neighbouring Moravia, Slovakia (except of [[Záhorie]]) did not belong to any German empire in this time.{{sfn|Steinhübel|2004|p=20}} The Longobards and the local Slavs remained separated by the natural border formed by [[Little Carpathians|Little]] and [[White Carpathians]], respected by both sides according to [[Ján Steinhübel]]. He also writes that the Slavs, who remained "an independent third party" in strained Longobard-Gepid relations, were not interested in conflicts with their Germanic neighbours, but made raids in the faraway Byzantine Empire.{{sfn|Steinhübel|2004|p=24}}{{clarify|date=June 2015}}

=== Avar Khaganate ===
{{see also|Samo}}
[[File:Avar settlement area.jpg|thumb|right|The Avar settlement area from the 7th to the 9th century, according to Éva Garam]]
The Longobards left the Carpathian Basin for Northern Italy after the invasion of the territory by the [[Pannonian Avars|Avars]] in 568.{{sfn|Bartl|Čičaj|Kohútova|Letz|2002|p=18}} The Avars were a group of nomadic warriors of mixed origin.{{sfn|Berend|Urbańczyk|Wiszewski|2013|p=50}} They conquered the Carpathian Basin, subjugated the local peoples and launched plundering expeditions against the neighboring powers during the next decades.{{sfn|Bartl|Čičaj|Kohútova|Letz|2002|p=18}}{{sfn|Berend|Urbańczyk|Wiszewski|2013|p=50}} By the time of the Avars' arrival, the Slavs had settled in most lands that now form Slovakia, according to historian Stanislav Kirschbaum.{{sfn|Kirschbaum|1996|p=18}} Further migration waves strengthened the local Slavic population because new Slavic groups, pressed by the Avars, crossed the Eastern Carpathians, seceding from the Slavs who continued their expansion to the Balkan Peninsula.{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=56}} Dialects of Slovak still reflect that the Slavs came from different directions already in the Early Middle Ages, according to a widely accepted scholarly theory.{{sfn|Mistrík|1993|p=19}}{{sfn|Krajčovič|1988|p=15}} Czech and Slovak share some features with the [[South Slavic languages]], distinguishing them from the other [[West Slavic languages]].{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=17}}{{sfn|Sussex|Cubberley|2006|p=55}} According to archaeologist P. M. Barford, these features suggest that the Carpathian Mountains and the [[Sudetes]] separated the ancestors of the [[Slovaks]] and the [[Czechs]] from the Slavs living to the north of those mountains.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=17}} Especially the dialects of Central Slovakia, which "stand out from the continuous chain between the western and eastern dialects",{{sfn|Sussex|Cubberley|2006|p=536}} preserved South Slavic features.{{sfn|Mistrík|1993|p=390}}{{sfn|Krajčovič|1988|p=15}}{{sfn|Závodný|2013}}

The 7th-century Frankish ''[[Chronicle of Fredegar]]'' wrote that the Avars employed the Slavs, or Wends, as ''"Befulci"'', showing that the Slavs formed special military units in the [[Avar Khaganate]].{{sfn|Curta|2001|pp=59-60}} According to the same chronicle, the Wends rose up in rebellion against their Avar masters and elected a Frankish merchant, [[Samo]], their king "in the fortieth year of [[Clothar II|Clothar]]'s reign", that is in 623 or 624.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=79}}{{sfn|Curta|2001|p=60}} Modern historians agree that the Avars' defeat during the [[Siege of Constantinople (626)|siege of Constantinople in 626]] enabled Samo to consolidate his rule.{{sfn|Curta|2001|p=109}}{{sfn|Spiesz|Caplovic|Bolchazy|2006|p=17}} He routed the invading army of [[Dagobert I]], [[King of the Franks]], in the [[Battle of Wogastisburg]] in 631 or 632.{{sfn|Spiesz|Caplovic|Bolchazy|2006|p=17}} The realm of Samo, who ruled for 35 years, collapsed soon after his death.{{sfn|Spiesz|Caplovic|Bolchazy|2006|p=17}} Its exact borders cannot be determined, but it must have been located near the confluence of the Danube and the Morava rivers.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=79}} Historian Richard Marsina puts its centre to [[Lower Austria]].{{sfn|Marsina|2000|pp=93-106}}

A new horizon of mostly hand-made pottery{{spaced ndash}}the so-called "Devínska Nová Ves pottery"{{spaced ndash}}appeared between the Middle Danube and the Carpathians before the end of the {{nobr|7th century}}.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=79}} Large inhumation cemeteries yielding such pottery were unearthed at Bratislava, [[Holiare]], [[Nové Zámky]] and other places, suggesting that cemeteries were located near stable settlements.{{sfn|Barford|2001|pp=79-80}} For instance, the cemetery at [[Devínska Nová Ves]], which contained about a thousand inhumation graves and thirty cremations, was used up until the end of the {{nobr|8th century}}.{{sfn|Barford|2001|p=79}}

In the 670s, the new population of the "griffin and tendril" [[Archaeology|archaeological culture]] appeared in the Pannonian Basin expelling [[Kuber]]'s [[Bulgars]] south out of [[Sirmium]] (the westernmost part of [[Kubrat]]'s [[Onogur, Bulgaria|Onogur]]ia). Shortly afterwards the new Avar-Slav alliance could expand their territories even also over the [[Vienna Basin]]. The political and cultural development in Slovakia continued in two separate lines. Lowland areas in the southern Slovakia got under the direct military control of the Avars. The Avars held strategic centers in [[Devín]] and [[Komárno]] which belonged to the most important centers of the khaganate. The Avars from Devín controlled Moravia and from Komárno they controlled southern Slovakia. In this time, the Avars already began to adopt a more settled lifestyle. The new period introduced Slavo-Avaric symbiosis and multi-ethnic Slavo-Avaric culture.{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=65}} The Slavs in southern Slovakia adopted new burial rite (inhumation), jewelry, fashion and used also common cemeteries with the Avars. Large Slavo-Avaric cemeteries can be found in [[Devínska Nová Ves]] and [[Záhorská Bystrica]] near [[Bratislava]] and similar cemeteries, the proof of direct Avar power, south of the line [[Devín]]-[[Nitra]]-[[Levice]]-[[Želovce]]-[[Košice]]-[[Šebastovce]].{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=65}} North of this line, the Slavs preserved previous burial rite (cremation, sometimes tumuli). Natural increase of the population together with immigration from the south led to the settlement also in mountain areas.{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=65}}

In the 8th century, the Slavs increased their agricultural productivity (usage of iron plow) along with further development of crafts. Higher productivity initiated changes in the Slavic society, released a part of human resources previously required for farming and allowed to form groups of professional warriors.  The Slavs began to build heavily fortified settlements (''hradisko'' - large [[Grad (toponymy)|grad]]) protected by strong walls (8–10 m) and trenches (width 4–7 m, depth 2–3.5 m).{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=66}} Among the oldest belong [[Pobedim]], [[Nitra]]-Martinský Vrch, [[Majcichov]], [[Spišské Tomášovce]] and [[Divinka]].{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=66}} The neighborhood with Avars raised unification process and probably also formation of local military alliances.{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=66}} The archaeological findings from this period (such as an exquisite noble tomb in [[Blatnica, Slovakia|Blatnica]]) support the formation of a [[Slavic peoples|Slavic]] upper class on the territory that later became the nucleus of Great Moravia.<ref name="stefanovicova">{{cite book| last =Štefanovičová| first =Tatiana| title =Osudy starých Slovanov| publisher =Osveta| year =1989| location =Bratislava}}</ref>

A series of [[Franks|Frankish]]-[[Avar Khaganate|Avar]] wars (788–803) led to the political fall of the [[Khanate|khaganate]].<ref name="Kirschbaum">{{cite book
 |last         = Kirschbaum
 |first        = Stanislav J. <!--  | author-link = http://web.as.uky.edu/ssa/biblio/biblio_kirschbaum.htm-->
 |title        = A History of Slovakia: The Struggle for Survival
 |publisher    = [[Macmillan Publishers|Palgrave Macmillan]]; [[St. Martin's Press]]
 |date         = March 1995
 |location     = New York
 |page         = 25
 |url          = http://us.macmillan.com/ahistoryofslovakia
 |isbn         = 978-0-312-10403-0
 |access-date  = 26 April 2008
 |archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20080925041206/http://us.macmillan.com/ahistoryofslovakia
 |archive-date = 25 September 2008
 |url-status     = dead
 |df           = dmy-all
}}</ref> In 805, the Slavs attacked again.{{sfn|Steinhübel|2004|p=57}} Their offensive aimed mainly on the centers of Avar power - [[Devín]] and [[Komárno]]. The Avars were not able to resist attack and they were expelled to the right bank of [[Danube]].{{sfn|Steinhübel|2004|p=57}} The Slavs from Slovakia probably participated also in further conflicts between small Slavic dukes and remaining Avar [[tarkhan]]s.{{sfn|Steinhübel|2004|p=57}}

===Principality of Nitra===
{{Main|Principality of Nitra}}
[[File:Nitra moravia 833.png|thumb|right|alt=Map of Moravia and Nitra|A map presenting Moravia and the Principality of Nitra.]]

The ''[[Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum]]'', written around 870, narrates that [[Mojmir I of Moravia|Moimir]], the leader of the [[Great Moravia#|Moravians]], expelled one [[Pribina]], forcing him to cross (or come up) the Danube and join [[Radbod, Prefect of the Ostmark|Radbod]], who was the head of the [[March of Pannonia]] in the [[Carolingian Empire]] from around 830.{{sfn|Bowlus|2009|pp=314, 318}}{{sfn|Curta|2006|p=133}} Radbod presented Pribina to King [[Louis the German]] who ordered that Pribina be instructed in the Christian faith and baptised.{{sfn|Bowlus|2009|p=318}}{{sfn|Curta|2006|p=133}} Three of the eleven extant copies of the ''Conversio'' also contain an out of context statement which says that Adalram, who was [[Archbishop of Salzburg]] between 821 and 836, had once consecrated a church on Pribina's "estate at a place over the Danube called Nitrava".{{sfn|Bowlus|2009|p=319}} According to a widely accepted scholarly theory, "Nitrava" was identical with Nitra in present-day Slovakia{{sfn|Berend|Urbańczyk|Wiszewski|2013|p=56}} and the forced unification of Pribina's [[Principality of Nitra]] with Mojmir's Moravia gave rise to the development a new state "[[Great Moravia]]".{{sfn|Kirschbaum|1996|p=25}}

Between 800 and 832, a group of Slavic forthills in Slovakia quickly arose and disappeared.{{sfn|Třeštík|2001|p=135}} Archaeological research confirmed the fall of several important central forthills approximately around the time when Pribina was expelled, e.g. [[Pobedim]] or [[Čingov]].{{sfn|Rábik|Labanc|Tibenský|2013|p=14}} The lack of written sources does not allow to finally conclude if these events were caused by internal changes or by Moravian expansion.{{sfn|Třeštík|2001|p=135}} Pribina could be a ruler of an independent entity (the [[Principality of Nitra]]){{sfn|Kirschbaum|1996|p=25}} or in the case that Moravian expansion preceded his expulsion, he was a member of "Moravian" aristocracy.{{sfn|Třeštík|2001|p=135}}

Other historians write that [[Principality of Nitra#On the location of Pribina's Nitrava|Pribina's Nitrava cannot be identified with Nitra]].{{sfn|Berend|Urbańczyk|Wiszewski|2013|p=56}}{{sfn|Boba|1993|p=26}} Charles Bowlus says that a letter, written by [[Dietmar I, Archbishop of Salzburg|Theotmar]], [[Archbishop of Salzburg]] and his [[suffragan bishop]]s in about 900, strongly suggests that Nitra was only conquered by [[Svatopluk I of Moravia]] only in the 870s. However, according to Třeštík, this information can be explained as a reasonable mistake of the Frankish bishops who knew that the territory was in the past a separate "regnum" different from Moravia and because it was ruled by [[Svatopluk I of Moravia|Svatopluk I]], they incorrectly assumed that he also conquered it.{{sfn|Třeštík|2001|p=116}} According to archaeologist Béla Miklós Szőke, no source substantiates either the theory that Pribina was the head of an independent polity or the identification of Nitrava with Nitra.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Barotányi |first=Zoltán |title="Feltehetően nyugatra menekülnek" – Szőke Béla Miklós régész a magyarok bejöveteléről ["They allegedly flee for the West" - Archaeologist Béla Miklós Szőke on the arrival of the Hungarians] |journal=Magyar Narancs |volume=41 |date=9 October 2014|language=hu |url=http://magyarnarancs.hu/tudomany/feltehetoen-nyugatra-menekulnek-92063# |access-date=19 May 2015}}</ref>

Richard Marsina writes that the Slovak nation emerged in that principality during Pribina's reign.{{sfn|Kirschbaum|1996|p=25}} Regarding the 9th century, the archaeological researches successfully established a distinction between "9th-century Slavic-Moravian" and "steppe" burial horizons in Slovakia.{{sfn|Ota|2014|p=172}}

===Great Moravia===
{{Main|Great Moravia}}

[[File:Great Moravia.svg|thumb|right|210px|Sure and disputed borders of Great Moravia under Svatopluk I (according to modern historians)]]

Moravia emerged along the borders of the Avars' territory.{{sfn|Berend|Urbańczyk|Wiszewski|2013|pp=55-56}} Great Moravia arose around 830 when [[Mojmir I of Moravia|Mojmír I]] unified the Slavic tribes settled north of the Danube and extended the Moravian supremacy over them.<ref name='Europe'>{{cite book | last1 = Angi | first1 = János | last2 = Bárány | first2 = Attila | last3 = Orosz  | first3 = István | last4 = Papp | first4 = Imre | last5 = Pósán | first5 = László | title = Európa a korai középkorban (3-11. század) ''(Europe in the Early Middle Ages - 3–11th centuries)'' | publisher = dup, Multiplex Media - Debrecen U. P. | year = 1997 | location = Debrecen | page = 360 | isbn = 978-963-04-9196-9}}</ref> When Mojmír I endeavoured to secede from the supremacy of the king of [[East Francia]] in 846, King [[Louis the German]] deposed him and assisted Mojmír's nephew, [[Rastislav of Moravia|Rastislav]] (846–870) in acquiring the throne.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=467}}

The new monarch pursued an independent policy: after stopping a Frankish attack in 855, he also sought to weaken influence of Frankish priests preaching in his realm. Rastislav asked the [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine Emperor]] [[Michael III]] to send teachers who would interpret Christianity in the Slavic vernacular. Upon Rastislav's request, two brothers, Byzantine officials and missionaries [[Saints Cyril and Methodius]] came in 863. [[Saint Cyril the Philosopher|Cyril]] developed the [[Glagolitic alphabet|first Slavic alphabet]] and translated the Gospel into [[Old Church Slavonic]]. Rastislav was also preoccupied with the security and administration of his state. Numerous fortified castles built throughout the country are dated to his reign and some of them (''e.g.'', ''Dowina'' - [[Devín Castle]])<ref name='worldarcheology'>{{cite journal|doi=10.1080/00438243.1978.9979728|title=The Origins of Christianity in Slavonic Countries North of the Middle Danube Basin|journal=World Archaeology|year=1978|first=Josef|last=Poulik|volume=10|issue=2|pages=158–171}}</ref>{{sfn|Čaplovič|2000|pp=147-156}}<ref name="GoogleBooks-316474">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nY4jAAAAMAAJ&q=dowina+devin |title=Starosloviensky jazyk, Zväzok 1 |date=1978 |access-date=26 April 2014 |first=Ján |last=Stanislav}}</ref><ref name="GoogleBooks-5051532">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=H7q4AAAAIAAJ&q=dowina+devin |title=Veľkomoravské záhady |isbn=978-80-2220195-7 |date=1990 |access-date=26 April 2014 |first=Milan |last=Ferko|publisher=Tatran }}</ref><ref name="GoogleBooks-8837506">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bvBNAAAAMAAJ&q=dowina+devin |title=Bratislavský hrad |isbn=978-80-8881100-8 |date=1995 |access-date=26 April 2014 |first1=Andrej |last1=Fiala |first2=Jana |last2=Šulcová |first3=Peter |last3=Krútky|publisher=Vydavatel̕stvo Alfa-Press }}</ref> are also mentioned in connection with Rastislav by Frankish chronicles.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=167, 566}}<ref name="fulda">{{cite book| title =Annales Fuldenses, sive, Annales regni Francorum orientalis ab Einhardo, Ruodolfo, Meginhardo Fuldensibus, Seligenstadi, Fuldae, Mogontiaci conscripti cum continuationibus Ratisbonensi et Altahensibus / post editionem G.H. Pertzii recognovit Friderious Kurze; Accedunt Annales Fuldenses antiquissimi| publisher =Imprensis Bibliopolii Hahniani| year =1978| location =Hannover| url =http://www.medievalsources.co.uk/fulda.htm| access-date =26 February 2010| archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20100226063634/http://www.medievalsources.co.uk/fulda.htm| archive-date =26 February 2010| url-status =dead| df =dmy-all}}."</ref>

During Rastislav's reign, the Principality of Nitra was given to his nephew Svätopluk as an appanage.{{sfn|Čaplovič|2000|pp=147-156}} The rebellious prince allied himself with the Franks and overthrew his uncle in 870. Similarly to his predecessor, Svätopluk I (871–894) assumed the title of the king (''rex''). During his reign, the Great Moravian Empire reached its greatest territorial extent, when not only present-day Moravia and Slovakia but also present-day northern and central Hungary, Lower Austria, Bohemia, Silesia, Lusatia, southern Poland and northern Serbia belonged to the empire, but the exact borders of his domains are still disputed by modern authors.<ref name="stefanovicova"/>{{sfn|Tóth|1998|p=199}} Svätopluk also withstood attacks of the seminomadic [[Hungarians|Hungarian]] tribes<ref name="Kirschbaum"/> and the [[First Bulgarian Empire|Bulgarian Empire]], although sometimes it was he who hired the Hungarians when waging war against East Francia.{{sfn|Benda|1981|p=51}}

In 880, [[Pope John VIII]] set up an independent ecclesiastical province in Great Moravia with Archbishop [[Saint Methodius of Thessaloniki|Methodius]] as its head. He also named the German cleric [[Wiching]] the Bishop of Nitra.

After the death of King Svätopluk in 894, his sons [[Mojmir II of Moravia|Mojmír II]] (894–906?) and [[Svatopluk II]] succeeded him as the King of Great Moravia and the Prince of Nitra respectively.{{sfn|Čaplovič|2000|pp=147-156}} However, they started to quarrel for domination of the whole empire. Weakened by an internal conflict as well as by constant warfare with Eastern Francia, Great Moravia lost most of its peripheral territories.

In the meantime, the Hungarian tribes, having suffered a defeat from the nomadic [[Pechenegs]], left their territories east of the Carpathian Mountains, invaded the Pannonian Basin and started to occupy the territory gradually around 896.{{sfn|Tóth|1998|pp=189–211}} Their armies' advance may have been promoted by continuous wars among the countries of the region whose rulers still hired them occasionally to intervene in their struggles.{{sfn|Kristó|1996|pp=84–85}}

Both Mojmír II and Svätopluk II probably died in battles with the Hungarians between 904 and 907 because their names are not mentioned in written sources after 906. In [[Battle of Bratislava|three battles]] (4–5 July and 9 August 907) near [[Battle of Pressburg#Location|Brezalauspurc]]<ref name="GoogleBooks-3191479">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3orG2yZ9mBkC&pg=PA23 |title=Slovak History |isbn=978-0-86516-444-4 |date=January 2002 |publisher=Bolchazy-Carducci Publishers |page=23 |author1=Viliam Cicaj |author2=Vladimir Seges |author3=Julius Bartl |author4=Dusan Skvarna |author5=Robert Letz |author6=Maria Kohutova}}</ref> (now Bratislava), the Hungarians routed [[Bavaria]]n armies. Historians traditionally put this year as the date of the breakup of the Great Moravian Empire.

Great Moravia left behind a lasting legacy in Central and Eastern Europe. The [[Glagolitic script]] and its successor [[Cyrillic]] were disseminated to other Slavic countries, charting a new path in their cultural development. The administrative system of Great Moravia may have influenced the development of the administration of the [[Kingdom of Hungary]].<ref>Kurhajcová, A. (2015). The representation of great moravia and its fall in Hungarian/Magyar historiography during the period of dualism. Codrul Cosminului, 21(2), 169-188.</ref>

===High Middle Ages===
{{Main|Kingdom of Hungary (1000–1301)|Kingdom of Hungary (1301–1526)|Kingdom of Poland (1025–1385)}}

====Settlement of Hungarians in the 10th century====
{{Main|Seven chieftains of the Magyars|Grand Prince of the Hungarians}}

[[File:Europe around 900.jpg|thumb|left|210px|Europe around 900.]]
From 895 to 902,<ref name="C4WDefault-4381752">{{cite web |url=http://www.historia.hu/archivum/2001/0103gyorffy.htm |title=História 2001/03. - GYÖRFFY GYÖRGY: Honfoglalás a Kárpát-medencében |work=historia.hu |language=hu |date=26 February 2003 |access-date=26 April 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140426200447/http://www.historia.hu/archivum/2001/0103gyorffy.htm |archive-date=26 April 2014 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> the Hungarians progressively imposed their authority on the [[Pannonian Basin]]. Although some contemporary sources mention that Great Moravia disappeared without trace and its inhabitants left, archaeological research and [[Toponymy|toponyms]] suggest the continuity of Slavic population in the river valleys of the [[Carpathian Mountains|Inner Western Carpathians]].{{sfn|Kristó|1996|pp=131–132, 141}}<ref name='Kniezsa'>{{cite book | last = Kniezsa | first = István | title = Magyarország népei a XI. században | publisher = Lucidus Kiadó | year = 2000 | page = 26 | isbn = 978-963-85954-3-0}}</ref>

The oldest Hungarian graves in Slovakia are dated to the end of the 9th and the beginning of the 10th century ([[Medzibordožie]] region, Eastern Slovakia). These findings document only a relatively short stay, without direct continuation in the settlement.<ref name="ruttkay">{{cite journal |last=Ruttkay |first=Alexander |author-link=Alexander Ruttkay |title=O maďarsko-slovanských vzťahoch po rozpade Veľkej Moravy. Na prahu vzniku Uhorska |url=http://www.historickarevue.com/archiv_26.html |journal=Historická Revue |year=2002 |issue=5 |access-date=19 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140729135041/http://www.historickarevue.com/archiv_26.html |archive-date=29 July 2014 |url-status=dead |df=dmy-all }}</ref> Further findings elsewhere, in the most southern parts of Slovakia, are dated to 920-925 and consist mainly of graves of warrior type (isolated graves and smaller groups). Between 930 and 940, larger groups of Magyars began to migrate to the southern parts of today's Slovakia, but did not cross the line [[Bratislava]], [[Hlohovec]], [[Nitra]], [[Levice]], [[Lučenec]], [[Rimavská Sobota]]. The territory affected by this early migration covers about 15% of today's Slovakia (7,500&nbsp;km<sup>2</sup>). Hungarian settlements from these first two waves are not documented in the most fertile regions of [[Trnava Board]], [[Považie]] north of [[Hlohovec]], [[Ponitrie]] north of [[Nitra]] and the [[Eastern Slovak Lowland]].<ref name="ruttkay"/> The initial confrontation did not have a permanent character, and during the 10th century both populations coexisted. In southern Slovakia, the Hungarians frequently founded their villages close to the older Slavic settlements as they changed their nomadic lifestyle and settled; they occasionally joined them and used the same cemeteries.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.nogradhistoria.eu/data/files/187557951.pdf |title=Maďarsko-slovenská kontaktová zóna v Poiplí v jej historickej a kultúrnej retrospektíve |last=Botík | first=Ján |access-date=19 April 2015}}</ref> In the 11th century, the differences between Slavic and Magyar graves disappeared.{{efn|Christianisation of Hungarians for example influenced burial rite and customs like inhumation with horse parts and tacks.}}{{sfn|Pintérová|2007|p=142}} The archaeological research has also significantly changed the view on the settlement of the northern parts of the country.<ref name="ruttkay"/>{{clarify|date=May 2015}} In addition to the southern parts and river valleys of [[Nitra (river)]] and [[Váh]], a relative high population density{{quantify|date = April 2015}} is notable particularly for the [[Spiš]] region with the [[Poprad (river)|Poprad river]] valley and the [[Turiec Basin]]. [[Liptov]] and the [[Zvolen Basin]]s, [[Žilina Basin]], Central [[Orava (region)|Orava]] and northern [[Šariš]] were rather sparsely populated.<ref name="ruttkay"/>

After the fall of the state, some non-landholding noblemen joined the Hungarian forces and participated in their raids in other parts of Europe. The chroniclers of the early history of the Kingdom of Hungary recorded that the prominent noble families of the kingdom descended either from leaders of the Hungarian tribes or from immigrants, and they did not connect any of them to Great Moravia. Archeological evidence proves that to the north of the line mentioned above, not only did the older settlement structures survive, but so also did the territorial administration led by native magnates.{{efn|This older hypothesis was unanimously confirmed by archeological evidences from [[Ducové]] and [[Nitrianska Blatnica]].}}{{POV statement|date = April 2015}}<ref name="nobility" /> The Great Moravian or potential Great Moravian origin of the clan [[Hont-Pázmány|Hunt-Pázmán]] (''Hont-Pázmány'') has been advanced by some modern scholars.<ref name="lukacka">{{cite book| last =Lukačka| first =Ján| title =Formovanie vyššej šľachty na západnom Slovensku| publisher =Mistrál| year =2002| location =Bratislava}}</ref>{{sfn|Novák|1994|p=7}} 
 
The territory of the present-day Slovakia became progressively integrated into the developing state (the future [[Kingdom of Hungary]]) in the early 10th century. The ''[[Gesta Hungarorum]]'' ("Deeds of the Hungarians") mentions that Huba, head of one of the seven Hungarian tribes, received possessions around [[Nitra (river)|Nitra]] and the [[Žitava River]]; while according to the ''[[Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum]]'' ("Deeds of the Huns and Hungarians") another tribal leader, [[Lehel|Lél]], settled down around [[Hlohovec]] ({{langx|hu|Galgóc}}) and following the Hungarian victory over the Moravians, he usually stayed around Nitra.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=448}} Modern authors also claim that the north-western parts of the Pannonian Basin were occupied by one of the Hungarian tribes.{{sfn|Kristó|1994}}{{Page needed|date=December 2015}}

====''Tercia pars regni'' or Principality of Nitra (11th century)====
{{Main|Principality of Nitra|Tercia pars regni}}
[[File:Duchy of nitra 11th century.png|right|210px|thumb|alt=Duchy of Nitra|Suggested borders of the Duchy of Nitra, proposed by Ján Steinhübel based on the description of the southern frontiers of Poland under Duke [[Bolesław the Brave]] (r. 992–1025) in the late 13th-century ''[[Polish-Hungarian Chronicle]]'']]
[[File:Polska 992 - 1025.png|thumb|210px|right|Present-day Slovakia as part of Poland under the reign of [[Bolesław the Brave]] (r. 992–1025): the borders of Poland are described based on the report of the late 13th-century ''[[Polish-Hungarian Chronicle]]'', the reliability of which is not universally accepted by specialists]]

The development of the future Kingdom of Hungary started during the reign of Grand Prince [[Géza, Grand Prince of the Hungarians|Géza]] (before 972–997) who expanded his rule over the territories of present-day Slovakia west of the River [[Hron|Garam]] / [[Hron]].{{sfn|Kristó|Makk|1996|p=30}} Although, he was baptised in or after 972, he never became a convinced Christian – in contrast to his son, [[Stephen I of Hungary|Stephen]] who followed him in 997.{{sfn|Kristó|Makk|1996|pp=28, 32}} Some authors claim that following his marriage with [[Giselle of Bavaria]], Stephen received the "Duchy of Nitra" in appanage from his father.<ref name='Történeti Földrajz'>{{cite book | last = Győrffy | first = György | title = Az Árpád-kori Magyarország történeti földrajza ''The Historical Geography of Hungary in the age of the Árpáds'' | publisher = Akadémiai Kiadó | year = 1998 | location = Budapest | page = 332 | isbn = 978-963-05-7504-1}}</ref>

When Géza died, a member of the Árpád dynasty, the pagan [[Koppány]] claimed the succession, but Stephen defeated him with the assistance of his wife's German retinue.{{sfn|Kristó|Makk|1996|pp= 34–36}} A Slovak folk song mentions that ''Štefan kral'' (''i.e.'', King Stephen) could only overcome his pagan opponent with the assistance of Slovak warriors around [[Bíňa]] ({{langx|hu|Bény}}).{{sfn|Bóna|2000|p= 83}} According to István Bóna the Slovak song may be a translation of a Hungarian folk song, because in 1664, none of the inhabitants of Bíňa was Slovak.{{sfn|Bóna|2000|p= 83}} Following his victory, Stephen received a crown from [[Pope Silvester II]] and he was crowned as the first [[King of Hungary]] in 1000 or 1001.

The Kingdom of Hungary integrated elements of the former Great Moravian state organization.<ref name="stefanovicova"/><ref name="sedlak">{{cite book| last =Sedlák| first =Vincent| chapter=Onomastika a historiografia|title =Príspevky k slovenským dejinám| editor=Karin Fábrová| publisher =Prešovská univerzita v Prešove| year =2005| location =Prešov| chapter-url=http://www.pulib.sk/elpub/FF/Fabrova1/index.htm}}</ref> On the other hand, historians have not reached a consensus on this subject; ''e.g.'', it is still being debated whether the formation of the [[County (Kingdom of Hungary)|basic unit of the administration]] (''vármegye'') in the kingdom followed foreign ( Frankish, Bulgarian, Moravian or Ottonian) patterns or it was an internal innovation.{{sfn|Kristó|1988|pp=21–100}}

[[Stephen I of Hungary|Stephen]] (1000/1001–1038) established at least eight counties ''("vármegye")'' on the territories of present-day Slovakia: [[Abov]] ({{langx|hu|Abaúj}}), [[Borsod|Boršod]] ({{langx|hu|Borsod}}), [[Esztergom]], [[Hont County|Hont]], [[Komárno]] ({{langx|hu|[[Komárom]]}}), [[Nitra]] ({{langx|hu|Nyitra}}), [[Bars County|Tekov]] ({{langx|hu|Bars}}) and [[Zemplén County|Zemplín]] ({{langx|hu|Zemplén}}) were probably founded by him.{{sfn|Kristó|1988|pp=333, 352–353, 370, 374, 396, 398–399, 411}} The scarcely populated northern and north-eastern territories of today Slovakia became the kings' private forests.{{sfn|Kristó|1988|p=377}} King Stephen also set up several dioceses in his kingdom; in the 11th century, present-day Slovakia's territories were divided between the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Esztergom-Budapest|Archdiocese of Esztergom]] (established around 1000) and its suffragan, the [[Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Eger|Diocese of Eger]] (founded between 1006 and 1009).{{sfn|Kristó|1988|pp=331, 395}}

Around 1015, Duke [[Bolesław I of Poland]] took some territories of present-day Slovakia east of the River [[Morava (river)|Morava]], with Hungarian King Stephen recapturing these territories in 1018.{{sfn|Makk|1993|pp=48–49}}

Following King Stephen's death, his kingdom got involved in internal conflicts among the claimants for his crown and [[Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor]] also intervened in the struggles.{{sfn|Benda|1981|pp=83-85}} In 1042, the Emperor Henry captured some parts of today Slovakia east of the River Hron and granted them to King Stephen's cousin, [[Béla I of Hungary|Béla]], but following the withdrawal of the Emperor's armies, King [[Samuel Aba of Hungary|Samuel Aba]]'s troops recaptured the territories.{{sfn|Makk|1993|p=61}}

In 1048, King [[Andrew I of Hungary]] conceded [[Tercia pars regni|one-third of his kingdom]] (''Tercia pars regni'') in appanage to his brother, Duke Béla.{{sfn|Kristó|Makk|1996|p=79}} The duke's domains were centered around Nitra and [[Biharia|Bihar]] (in Romanian: ''Biharea'' in present-day [[Romania]]).{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=261}} During the following 60 years, the ''Tercia pars regni'' were governed separately by members of the Árpád dynasty (''i.e.'', by the Dukes [[Géza I of Hungary|Géza]], [[Ladislaus I of Hungary|Ladislaus]], [[Lampert of Hungary|Lampert]] and [[Prince Álmos|Álmos]]).{{sfn|Kristó|1994}}{{Page needed|date=December 2015}} The dukes accepted the kings' supremacy, but some of them (Béla, Géza and Álmos) rebelled against the king in order to acquire the crown and allied themselves with the rulers of the neighbouring countries (''e.g.'', the [[Holy Roman Empire]], [[Kingdom of Bohemia|Bohemia]]).{{sfn|Benda|1981|pp=85-100}}

The history of the ''Tercia pars regni'' ended in 1107, when King [[Coloman of Hungary]] occupied its territories taking advantage of the pilgrimage of Duke Álmos (his brother) to the Holy Land.{{sfn|Kristó|Makk|1996|p=145}} Although, Duke Álmos, when returned to the kingdom, tried to reoccupy his former duchy with the military assistance of [[Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor]], but he failed and was obliged to accept the ''[[status quo]]''.

==== Mongol invasion (1241–1242) ====
[[File:Spisska nova ves...castle.jpg|thumb|right|210px|The [[Mongol invasion of Europe|Mongol invasion in the 13th century]] led to construction of mighty stone castles, such as [[Spiš Castle]].]]
In 1241, the [[Mongols]] [[Mongol invasion of Europe|invaded and devastated]] the north-western parts of the kingdom. In April 1241, the Mongolian army crossed the border with [[Moravia]] near [[Starý Hrozenkov|Hrozenkov]]. [[Trenčín Castle]] resisted the attack, but nearby places were plundered and some of them have never been restored. Mongols turned to the south and devastated regions along rivers [[Váh]] and [[Nitra (river)|Nitra]]. Only the strong castles, ''e.g.'', [[Trenčín]], [[Nitra]], [[Fiľakovo]] ({{langx|hu|Fülek}}){{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=664}} and fortified towns could resist attack. A part of the unprotected population escaped to the mountains and rough terrain where they built hill forts and camps.  Most affected areas were the southwest Slovakia, Lower [[Pohronie]] to [[Zvolen]] and [[Zemplín (region)|Zemplín]]. It is estimated that at least a third of population died from famine and epidemics.{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=39}}

Following the withdrawal of the Mongol army, [[Frederick II, Duke of Austria]] invaded the country. In July 1242 his army reached [[Hlohovec]] but the Hungarian army, mainly thank to troops from Trenčín and Nitra counties repelled the attack.{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=145}} [[Bogomer Ludány|Bohumír]] (Bogomer), the [[župa]]n of Trenčín who played an important role in the suppression of Austrian units, later led the army send to help [[Bolesław V the Chaste]] (son-in-law of the Hungarian king) attacked by [[Konrad I of Masovia]]. The army consisted mainly of soldiers from the ethnic Slovak counties.{{sfn|Klein|Ruttkay|Marsina|1994|p=145}}

====Development of counties and towns====
The royal administration of the territory was developing gradually during the 11th-13th centuries: new counties were established with the partition of existing ones or central counties of the kingdom expanded their territory northward today's [[Pozsony county|Bratislava]] ({{langx|sk|Prešporok}}, {{langx|hu|Pozsony}}), [[Trencsén county|Trenčín]], Gemer-Malohont ({{langx|hu|Gömör-Kishont}}) and [[Nógrád|Novohrad]] ({{langx|hu|Nógrád}}), while the kings' private forests were organised into "forest counties" around [[Zvolen]] and [[Šariš]] Castle ({{langx|hu|Sáros}}).{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=594}}{{sfn|Kristó|1988| pp=341, 350, 378, 385–387}} Following the occupation of his brother's duchy, King Coloman set up (or re-established) the third bishopric in present-day Slovakia.{{sfn|Kristó|Makk|1996|p=144}}

Some of the towns in present-day Slovakia were granted special privileges already prior to the Mongol invasion: [[Trnava]] (1238), [[Starý Tekov]] (1240), [[Zvolen]] and [[Krupina]] (before 1241).{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=39}}  Following the withdrawal of the Mongol troops (1242), several castles were built or strengthened (''e.g.'', [[Komárno]], [[Beckov]] ({{langx|hu|Beckó}}) and [[Zvolen]]) on the order of King Béla IV.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=771}} In addition to a relatively developed network of castles, agglomerations of an urban character became more important. Medieval towns should serve both to economic and defensive purposes.

The territory of present-day Slovakia was rich in raw materials like gold, silver, copper, iron and salt and therefore the mining industry developed gradually in the region.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=80–82}} The development of the mining industry and commerce strengthened the position of some settlements and they received privileges from the kings.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=80–82, 84, 479–480, 598, 716–717}}<ref name='juck'>{{cite book | last = Juck | first = Ľubomír | title = Výsady miest a mestečiek na Slovensku (1238–1350) | publisher = Veda | year = 1984 | location = Bratislava }}</ref><ref name="slovensko">{{cite book| author=Tibenský, Ján| title =Slovensko: Dejiny| publisher =Obzor| year =1971| location =Bratislava}}</ref> The list of towns with the earliest charters contains [[Spišské Vlachy]] (1243), [[Košice]] (before 1248), [[Nitra]] (1248), [[Banská Štiavnica]] (1255), [[Nemecká Ľupča]] (1263), [[Komárno]] (1269), [[Gelnica]] (before 1270), [[Bratislava]] (1291) and [[Prešov]], [[Veľký Šariš]] and [[Sabinov]] (all in 1299).{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=39}}{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=102, 238, 370, 499}} The [[Saxons]] in [[Spiš]] ({{langx|de|Zips}}) were granted a collective charter (1271) by King [[Stephen V of Hungary]].{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=619}}

The colonisation of the northern parts of the Kingdom of Hungary continued during the period; [[Walloons|Walloon]], [[Germans|German]], [[Hungarians|Hungarian]] and [[Slavs|Slavic]] "guests" (''hospes'', as they are called in contemporary documents) arrived to the scarcely populated lands and settled down there.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=619, 636, 652, 709–710}}  The contemporary documents mention that settlers from [[Moravia]] and [[Bohemia]] arrived to the western parts of present-day Slovakia, while on the northern and eastern parts, [[Polish people|Polish]] and [[Ruthenians|Ruthenian]] "guests" settled down.{{sfn|Kristó|2003|pp=90–100}}

German guests had an important but not exclusive role in the development of towns. Smaller groups of Germans were present already prior the Mongol invasion, but their immigration took a significant rate in the 13th-14th century.{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=39}}{{sfn|Kristó|2003|pp=135, 137}} In that time, there already existed settlements with a relatively highly developed economy in the territory of present-day Slovakia,{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=45}} but Germans who came from economically and administrative more advanced regions introduced new forms of production and management, new legal system and culture. The German guests settled in Upper and Lower [[Spiš]], mining towns in Central Slovakia, their wide surroundings and many localities in Western Slovakia: Bratislava, [[Trnava]] and wine-growing towns in [[Malé Karpaty]].

In the Middle Ages, present-day Slovakia belonged to the most urbanized regions of the Kingdom of Hungary and it was an important cultural and economic base.{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=38}}  According to the decree of the King Vladislaus II Jagiello (1498) six of the ten most important towns in the kingdom were located in the present-day Slovakia: [[Košice]], [[Bratislava]], [[Bardejov]], [[Prešov]], [[Trnava]] and [[Levoča]].{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=43}}  In 1514, more than half of the royal towns and free mining towns of the kingdom were located in Slovakia.{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=43}} At the end of the Middle Ages, about two hundred other settlements had an urban character from a functional point of view. The first written mention prior 1500 is available for 2.476 settlements. The mining towns in Slovakia significantly contributed to the economy of the Kingdom of Hungary. Around the middle of the 14th century, [[Kremnica]] alone produced 400&nbsp;kg of gold per year.{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=45}} [[Banská Štiavnica]] and [[Banská Bystrica]] produced a substantial proportion of silver of the whole kingdom. During the second half of the 14th century, the Kingdom of Hungary produced cca 25% of Europe's total output.{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=45}}

The towns formed unions and associations to defend their privileges and common interests. The most important unions were the Community of Saxons of Spiš ({{langx|de|Zips}}) (later reduced and known as the province of twenty-four Spiš towns), the Lower Hungarian Mining Towns (mining towns in Central Slovakia), Pentapolis (alliance of free royal towns in present-day Eastern Slovakia) and the Upper Hungarian Mining Towns (mining towns in eastern Slovakia including two mining towns in present-day Hungary).{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|pp=45-47}}

The inhabitants of the privileged towns were mainly of German origin, followed by Slovaks and smaller number of Hungarians.{{efn|Hungarian population was dominant in free royal town Komárno, in other important towns like [[Košice]] or [[Nitra]] they lived together with substantial German and Slovak populations. Slovaks had an overwhelming majority in [[Trenčín]].}}{{sfn|Teich|Kováč|Brown|2011|p=51}}{{sfn|Štefánik|Lukačka|2010}}{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=84, 479–480, 598}} Royal privileges prove that several families of the developing local nobility (''e.g.'', the Zathureczky, Pominorszky and Viszocsányi families) were of Slavic origin.{{sfn|Kristó|2003|pp=88, 93}} The presence of [[Jew]]s in several towns (''e.g.'', in Bratislava, [[Pezinok]]) is also documented at least from the 13th century; the Jews' special status was confirmed by a charter of King [[Béla IV of Hungary]] in 1251, but decisions of local [[synods]] limited the participation of Jews (''i.e.'', they could not hold offices and they could not own lands).{{sfn|Kristó|2003|p=185}} The [[Böszörmény|Muslims]], living in the region of Nitra, also faced similar limitations; they disappeared (perhaps converted to Christianity) by the end of the 13th century.{{sfn|Kristó|2003|pp=52–53}}

====Period of the oligarchs (1290–1321)====
[[File:Oligarch domains 1301 1310.png|thumb|right|210px|Areas ruled by [[Matthew III Csák]] and [[Amade Aba]].]]
The last decades of the 13th century were characterized by discords within the royal family and among the several groups of the aristocracy.{{sfn|Benda|1981|pp=158-187}} The decay of the royal power and the rise of some powerful aristocrats gave rise to the transformation of the administrative system: the counties that had been the basic units of the royal administration ([[Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary)#Royal counties (late 10th century - late 13th century)|"royal counties"]]) transformed gradually into autonomous administrative units of the local nobility ([[Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary)#Noble counties (late 13th century - 1848)|"noble counties"]]); however, the local nobility was not able to stop the rise of oligarchs.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=484}}

Following the Mongol invasion of the kingdom, a competition started among the landowners: each of them endeavored to build a castle with or without the permission of the king.{{sfn|Fügedi|1986|p=138}} The competition started a process of differentiation among the noble families, because the nobles who were able to build a castle could also expand their influence over the neighbouring landowners.{{sfn|Fügedi|1986|p=138–142}} The conflicts among the members of the royal family also strengthened the power of the aristocrats (who sometimes received whole counties from the kings) and resulted in the formation of around eight huge territories (domains) in the kingdom, governed by powerful aristocrats in the 1290s.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=663}}
[[File:Oligarchs in the Kingdom of Hungary 14th century.svg|thumb|The provinces of the Kingdom of Hungary ruled by the "[[Oligarch (Kingdom of Hungary)|oligarchs]]" (powerful lords) in early 14th century]]
In present-day Slovakia, most of the castles were owned by two powerful aristocrats ([[Amade Aba]] and [[Matthew III Csák]]) or their followers.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=664}} Following the extinction of the Árpád dynasty (1301), both of them pretended to follow one of the claimants for the throne, but, in practice, they governed their territories independently.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=663}} Amade Aba governed the eastern parts of present-day Slovakia from his seat in [[Gönc]].{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=41}} He was killed by Charles Robert of Anjou's assassins at the south gate in [[Košice]] in 1311.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=42}}

Matthew III Csák was the ''de facto'' ruler of the western territories of present-day Slovakia, from his seat at [[Trenčín]].{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=447}} He allied himself with the murdered Amade Aba's sons against Košice, but King [[Charles I of Hungary]], who had managed to acquire the throne against his opponents, gave military assistance to the town and the royal armies defeated him at the [[Battle of Rozgony|Battle of Rozgony / Rozhanovce]] in 1312.{{sfn|Kristó|1994}}{{Page needed|date=December 2015}} However, the north-western counties remained in his power until his death in 1321 when the royal armies occupied his former castles without resistance.{{sfn|Kristó|1994}}{{Page needed|date=December 2015}}

Pressburg (Bratislava) county was ''de facto'' ruled by the [[List of rulers of Austria#Dukes of Austria#Habsburg Dukes and Archdukes of Austria|Dukes of Austria]] from 1301 to 1328 when King [[Charles I of Hungary]] reoccupied it.{{sfn|Benda|1981|p=188}}

===Late Middle Ages (14th–15th centuries)===
King Charles I strengthened the central power in the kingdom following a 20-year-long period of struggles against his opponents and the oligarchs.{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=330–331}} He concluded commercial [[Congress of Visegrád (1335)|agreements]] with Kings [[John of Bohemia]] and [[Casimir III of Poland]] in 1335 which increased the trade on the commercial routes leading from Košice to [[Kraków]] and from [[Žilina]] (hu. [[Zsolna]]) to [[Brno]].{{sfn|Kristó|1994|p=389}}

The king confirmed the privileges of the 24 "[[Carpathian Germans|Saxon]]" towns in Spiš, strengthened the special rights of [[Prešov]] and granted town privileges to [[Smolník, Gelnica District|Smolník]] (hu. [[Szomolnok]] ) The towns of present-day Slovakia were still dominated by its German citizens. However, the ''[[Privilegium pro Slavis]]'', dated to 1381, attests notably to [[nation-building]] in the wealthy towns: King [[Louis I of Hungary|Louis I]] gave the Slavs half of the seats in the municipal council of Žilina. Many of the towns (''e.g.'', Banská Bystrica, Bratislava, Košice, Kremnica and Trnava) received the status of "[[free royal cities]]" ''(liberæ regiæ civitates)'' and they were entitled to send deputies to the assemblies of the [[Estates of the realm|Estates of the Kingdom]] from 1441.{{sfn|Bán|1989a|p=42}}{{sfn|Bán|1989b|p=159}}
[[File:Mátyás király országai.png|thumb|The territories of [[Matthias Corvinus]]]]
In the first half of the 14th century, the population of the regions of the former "forest counties" increased and their territories formed new counties such as Orava, Liptov, [[Turiec]], [[Zvolen]] in the northern parts of present-day Slovakia.{{sfn|Kristó|1988|pp=380–383}} In the region of Spiš, some elements of the population received special privileges: the 24 "Saxon" towns formed an autonomous community, independent of [[Szepes county|Spiš county]], and the "nobles with ten lances" were organised into a special autonomous administrative unit ("seat").{{sfn|Kristó|1994|pp=393, 619}} In 1412, King [[Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor|Sigismund]] mortgaged 13 of the "Saxon" towns to King [[Jogaila|Władysław II of Poland]] so they ''de facto'' belonged to Poland until 1769.{{sfn|Bán|1989b|pp=174-175}}

From the 1320s, most of the lands of present-day Slovakia were owned by the kings, but [[prelate]]s and aristocratic families (''e.g.'', the [[Drugeth]], [[Szentgyörgyi]] and [[Szécsényi]] families) also hold properties on the territory.<ref name='Magyarország története (1301–1526)'>{{cite book | last1 = Engel | first1 = Pál | last2 = Kristó | first2 = Gyula | last3 = Kubinyi | first3 = András | title = Magyarország története - 1301–1526 ''(The History of Hungary—1301–1526)'' | publisher = Osiris | year = 1998 | location = Budapest | isbn = 978-963-379-171-4}}</ref> In December 1385, the future King Sigismund, who was Queen Mary of Hungary's [[prince consort]] at that time, mortgaged the territories of present-day Slovakia west of the Váh River to his cousins, the [[Jobst of Moravia|Jobst]] and [[Prokop of Moravia]]; and the former held his territories until 1389, while the latter could maintain his rule over some of the territories until 1405.{{sfn|Benda|1981|pp=228-241}} King Sigismund (1387–1437) granted vast territories to his followers (''e.g.'', to the members of the [[House of Cilli|Cillei]], [[Rozgonyi]] and [[Perényi]] families) during his reign; one of his principal advisers, the Polish [[Stibor of Stiboricz]] styled himself "Lord of the whole Váh" referring to his 15 castles around the river.{{sfn|Fügedi|1986|pp=314–323}}

Following the death of King [[Albert II of Germany|Albert]] (1439), civil war broke out among the followers of the claimants for the throne.{{sfn|Benda|1981|pp=259-270}} The Dowager Queen [[Elizabeth of Luxembourg|Elisabeth]] hired Czech [[Mercenary|mercenaries]] led by [[Jan Jiskra]] who captured several towns on the territory of present-day Slovakia (''e.g.'', Kremnica, [[Levoča]] and [[Bardejov]]) and maintained most of them until 1462 when he surrendered to King [[Matthias Corvinus of Hungary|Matthias Corvinus]].{{sfn|Benda|1981|p=279}}