The money talks, the sword clashes

The Hunyadi series (Rise of the Raven), which covers an exciting period of Hungarian history, debuted in the March of 2025. The series is full of intrigue, bloodshed, heroes and love, but there's more to it than that. The warring period against the Turks was also an exciting time for coinage. As the saying goes, "the money talks, the sword clashes." Our numismatic scholar will provide valuable insights into the context of the coinage of the time, in chronological parallel with the television series. We invite you to visit the Money Museum, where you can also admire some of the coins of the period.
Sigismund of Luxembourg reigned as King of Hungary for 50 years, during this time he was also crowned as King of Croatia, Germany and Bohemia, and was later crowned Holy Roman Emperor. He introduced several monetary reforms and sought to maintain the quality of his coinage, particularly the gold forints. The C118 gold forint, on display at the Money Museum, is an early example of his coinage. The obverse features a quartered shield, Hungarian stripes of Árpád, and an eagle, symbolising the title of Margrave of Brandenburg. The circumscription reads 'SIGISMUNDI : D : G : R : UNGARIAE', meaning 'Sigismund, by the grace of God, King of Hungary'. The reverse features King Saint Ladislaus depicted in an open cloak and his attribute, a short-handled hatchet in his right hand, a cross-bearing orb in his left. The inscription identifies him as "S. LADISLAVS AVS REX", meaning "King Saint Ladislaus”. The reverse bears the mark of Franciscus Bernardi, a chamberlain of Italian origin.

Who is minting the money?

In medieval Hungary, coinage was a symbol of royal authority and therefore a matter of royal prerogative. Consequently, counterfeiters were subject to severe punishment, as their actions were considered an offence against royalty. However, there have been instances throughout history when the king has made concessions and granted individuals the right to mint money. This did not, of course, entail the minting of their own currency. Instead, they were granted permission to mint royal coins in the name of the king, but for their own financial benefit.

Sigismund gives, but also takes

In addition to his own minting activities, Sigismund of Luxemburg granted the right to mint money to interested parties, with the aim of securing financial support for defence against the Turks. In 1411, he donated the mint of Baia Mare (Nagybánya) to the Serbian prince and despot Stefan Lazarević, with the understanding that it would be used to mint money for his own benefit. Lazarević proved to be a loyal ally, so Sigismund guaranteed him the defence of Serbia against the Turks and, in the event of his son's death without issue, the succession of his nephew Đurađ Branković. In return, Lazarević provided support to the Hungarian armies, and pledged that all 17 castles, including Belgrade (Nándorfehérvár) and Golubac (Galambóc), would revert to the Hungarian crown upon his death. Following the despot's death in 1427, the succession was indeed transferred to Branković, however the transfer of the castles proved challenging. Duke Jeremija, the captain of Golubac, demanded 12,000 gold pieces from Sigismund in exchange for the surrender of Golubac, citing Stefan Lazarević. King Sigismund was unwilling or unable to pay this, so when the captain was declined the sum, he surrendered the city to the Ottomans. Branković subsequently proved less reliable as an ally than his predecessor, and in 1444 John Hunyadi, by then Voivode of Transylvania, seized the mint of Nagybánya from him.

Following the agreement, Sigismund granted the Teutonic Knights the revenues of the Brașov (Brassó) and Sibiu (Nagyszeben) taxes, as well as the Banate of Severin (Szörényi bánság) in exchange for the defence of the southern border. However, in 1432, the territory of the Order of the Teutonic Knights was devastated by the Turks, resulting in the majority of its knights perishing.

The third donor to the king was Vlad Dracul, the father of Vlad Tepes (known as Dracula). Sigismund supported Vlad's ambition to become a voivode of the Wallachian plains. Vlad settled in Sighisoara (Segesvár) and eventually gained the title of voivode after having his rivals murdered.