Petar Zrinski
Encyclopedia
Petar Zrinski (6 June 1621 – 30 April 1671) was a Croatian
Ban
(Viceroy) and writer. A member of the Zrinski
noble family, he was noted for his role in the attempted Croatian-Hungarian rebellion of 1664-1670 which ultimately led to his execution for high treason.
, a small town near Zagreb
, the son of Juraj V Zrinski
and Magdalena Szechy. His father and great-grandfather (Nikola Šubić Zrinski
) had been viceroys or Ban
of Croatia
, which was a nominal Kingdom in personal union with Hungarian Kingdom
at the time.
His family had possessed large estates throughout all of Croatia and had family ties with the second largest Croatian landowners, the Frankopan
family. He married Anna Katarina
, the half-sister of Fran Krsto Frankopan
, and they lived in the large Čakovec Castle
in Medjimurje, northernmost county of Croatia.
(1664) between Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I
and the Ottoman Empire
, Hungarian and Croatian nobility were disappointed by the failure to remove the Ottomans completely from Hungarian territory and embarked on a conspiracy to remove foreign influence, including Habsburg
rule, from the Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen
.
Petar Zrinski was involved in the poorly organized rebellion together with his older brother Nikola Zrinski and his brother-in-law Fran Krsto Frankopan
and Hungarian noblemen. In the preparations of the plot, plans were disrupted by the death of Nikola Zrinski in the woods near Čakovec
by a wounded wild boar — later rumours claimed he was murdered by Habsburg agents, however, this claim could never be substantiated. Petar succeeded his brother as Ban of Croatia
.
The conspirators, who hoped to gain foreign aid in their attempts, entered into secret negotiations with a number of nations — including France, Sweden, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Republic of Venice, even the Ottomans; nevertheless, no state wanted to intervene – in fact, the High Porte informed Leopold of the conspiracy in 1666. The Austrians also had informants inside the group of nobles. However, no action was taken, because the conspirators had made little traction and were bound by inaction.
Zrinski and Frankopan, unaware of their detection, nevertheless continued planning the plot. When they tried to trigger a revolt by taking command of the Croatian troops, they were quickly repulsed, and the revolt collapsed. Finding themselves in a desperate position, they finally went to Vienna to ask emperor Leopold I
of the Habsburg
dynasty for pardon. They were offered safe conduct but were arrested. A tribunal chaired by chancellor Johann Paul Hocher sentenced them to death for high treason
on 23 and 25 April 1671.
For Petar Zrinski the verdict was read as follows:
Zrinski and Frankopan were executed by beheading on 30 April 1671 in Wiener Neustadt
. Their estates were confiscated and their families relocated — Zrinski's wife, Katarina Zrinska
, was interned in the Dominican
convent in Graz
where she fell mentally ill and remained until her death in 1673, two of his daughters died in a monastery, and his son Ivan Antun
(John Anthony) died in madness, after twenty years of terrible imprisonment and torture, on 11 November 1703. The oldest daughter Jelena, already married in northeastern Upper Hungary
, survived and continued the resistance.
Some 2,000 other nobles were arrested as part of a mass crackdown. Two more leading conspirators — Ferenc Nádasdy, Chief Justice of Hungary, and Styrian governor, Count Hans Erasmus von Tattenbach — were executed (the latter in Graz
on 1 December 1671).
In the view of Emperor Leopold, the Croats and Hungarians had forfeited their right to self-administration through their role in the attempted rebellion. Leopold suspended the constitution - already, the Zrinski trial had been conducted by an Austrian, not a Hungarian court - and ruled Hungary like a conquered province.
Cathedral.
Zrinski and Frankopan are still widely regarded as national heroes in Croatia as well as Hungary. Their portraits are depicted on the obverse
of the Croatian 5 kuna
banknote, issued in 1993 and 2001.
Croats
Croats are a South Slavic ethnic group mostly living in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and nearby countries. There are around 4 million Croats living inside Croatia and up to 4.5 million throughout the rest of the world. Responding to political, social and economic pressure, many Croats have...
Ban
Ban (title)
Ban was a title used in several states in central and south-eastern Europe between the 7th century and the 20th century.-Etymology:The word ban has entered the English language probably as a borrowing from South Slavic ban, meaning "lord, master; ruler". The Slavic word is probably borrowed from...
(Viceroy) and writer. A member of the Zrinski
Zrinski
The Zrinski family was a Croatian noble family, influential during the period in history marked by the Ottoman wars in Europe in the Kingdom of Croatia and Hungary and in the later Austro-Hungarian Empire...
noble family, he was noted for his role in the attempted Croatian-Hungarian rebellion of 1664-1670 which ultimately led to his execution for high treason.
Zrinski family
Petar Zrinski was born in VrbovecVrbovec
Vrbovec is city in Zagreb county, Croatia, lying to the northeast of the capital Zagreb.-Geography:The town of Vrbovec lies to the north-east of Zagreb, either along the highway A4 , and then B28 expressway Vrbovec is city in Zagreb county, Croatia, lying to the northeast of the capital...
, a small town near Zagreb
Zagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
, the son of Juraj V Zrinski
Juraj V Zrinski
Juraj V Zrinski was a Croatian Ban , warrior and member of the Zrinski noble family.-Biography:Juraj V Zrinski was born in Čakovec, a town in the Međimurje County, the northernmost county of Croatia...
and Magdalena Szechy. His father and great-grandfather (Nikola Šubić Zrinski
Nikola Šubic Zrinski
Nikola Šubić Zrinski , was a Croatian nobleman and general in service of Habsburg Monarchy, ban of Croatia from 1542 to 1556, and member of the Zrinski noble family...
) had been viceroys or Ban
Ban of Croatia
Ban of Croatia was the title of local rulers and after 1102 viceroys of Croatia. From earliest periods of Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by Bans as a rulers representative and supreme military commander. In the 18th century, Croatian bans eventually become chief government officials in...
of Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
, which was a nominal Kingdom in personal union with Hungarian Kingdom
Croatia in personal union with Hungary
Kingdom of Croatia after the succession crisis become a part of Kingdom of Hungary and — depending on sources — either was incorporated into Hungary or Croatia existed in a personal union with Hungary....
at the time.
His family had possessed large estates throughout all of Croatia and had family ties with the second largest Croatian landowners, the Frankopan
Frankopan
The Frankopans are a Croatian noble family. Also called Frankapan, Frangepán in Hungarian, and Frangipani in Italian.The Frankopan family is the leading princely Croatian aristocratic family which dates back to the 12th Century and even earlier to Roman times...
family. He married Anna Katarina
Katarina Zrinska
Countess Ana Katarina Zrinska was a Croatian noblewoman, born into the House of Frankopan noble family. She married Count Petar Zrinski of the House of Zrinski in 1641 and later became known as Katarina Zrinska. She is remembered in Croatia as a patron of the arts, a writer and patriot...
, the half-sister of Fran Krsto Frankopan
Fran Krsto Frankopan
Fran Krsto Frankopan was a Croatian baroque poet, nobleman and politician in the 17th century. He is remembered primarily for his involvement in the failed Zrinski-Frankopan conspiracy.-Early life and poetry:...
, and they lived in the large Čakovec Castle
Cakovec Castle
Čakovec Castle or Zrinski Castle is a castle in Čakovec, northern Croatia.The castle is located in Zrinski Park, not far from the city's central square. It was built in the 13th century by Count Dimitrius Csáky, after whom the city of Čakovec is named...
in Medjimurje, northernmost county of Croatia.
Zrinski-Frankopan plot
After the unpopular Peace of VasvárPeace of Vasvár
The Peace of Vasvár was a treaty between the Austrian Habsburg Monarchy and the Ottoman Empire which followed the Battle of Saint Gotthard of August 1, 1664, and concluded the Austro-Turkish War...
(1664) between Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I
Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
| style="float:right;" | Leopold I was a Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary and King of Bohemia. A member of the Habsburg family, he was the second son of Emperor Ferdinand III and his first wife, Maria Anna of Spain. His maternal grandparents were Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria...
and the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, Hungarian and Croatian nobility were disappointed by the failure to remove the Ottomans completely from Hungarian territory and embarked on a conspiracy to remove foreign influence, including Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
rule, from the Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen
Crown of St. Stephen
The Holy Crown of Hungary , also known as the Crown of Saint Stephen, was the coronation crown used by the Kingdom of Hungary for most of its existence.The Crown was bound to the Lands of the Crown of Saint Stephen, The Holy Crown of Hungary (Hungarian: Magyar Szent Korona, German: Stephanskrone,...
.
Petar Zrinski was involved in the poorly organized rebellion together with his older brother Nikola Zrinski and his brother-in-law Fran Krsto Frankopan
Fran Krsto Frankopan
Fran Krsto Frankopan was a Croatian baroque poet, nobleman and politician in the 17th century. He is remembered primarily for his involvement in the failed Zrinski-Frankopan conspiracy.-Early life and poetry:...
and Hungarian noblemen. In the preparations of the plot, plans were disrupted by the death of Nikola Zrinski in the woods near Čakovec
Cakovec
Čakovec is a city in northern Croatia, located around 90 kilometres north of Zagreb, the Croatian capital. Čakovec is both the county seat and largest city of Međimurje County, the northernmost, smallest and most densely populated Croatian county.-Population:...
by a wounded wild boar — later rumours claimed he was murdered by Habsburg agents, however, this claim could never be substantiated. Petar succeeded his brother as Ban of Croatia
Ban of Croatia
Ban of Croatia was the title of local rulers and after 1102 viceroys of Croatia. From earliest periods of Croatian state, some provinces were ruled by Bans as a rulers representative and supreme military commander. In the 18th century, Croatian bans eventually become chief government officials in...
.
The conspirators, who hoped to gain foreign aid in their attempts, entered into secret negotiations with a number of nations — including France, Sweden, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth and the Republic of Venice, even the Ottomans; nevertheless, no state wanted to intervene – in fact, the High Porte informed Leopold of the conspiracy in 1666. The Austrians also had informants inside the group of nobles. However, no action was taken, because the conspirators had made little traction and were bound by inaction.
Final revolt and suppression
Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
| style="float:right;" | Leopold I was a Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary and King of Bohemia. A member of the Habsburg family, he was the second son of Emperor Ferdinand III and his first wife, Maria Anna of Spain. His maternal grandparents were Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria...
of the Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
dynasty for pardon. They were offered safe conduct but were arrested. A tribunal chaired by chancellor Johann Paul Hocher sentenced them to death for high treason
High treason
High treason is criminal disloyalty to one's government. Participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplomats, or its secret services for a hostile and foreign power, or attempting to kill its head of state are perhaps...
on 23 and 25 April 1671.
For Petar Zrinski the verdict was read as follows:
- ...he committed the greater sin than the others in aspiring to obtain the same station as his Majesty, that is, to be an independent Croatian ruler, and therefore he indeed deserves to be crowned not with a crown, but with a bloody sword.
Wiener Neustadt
-Main sights:* The Late-Romanesque Dom, consecrated in 1279 and cathedral from 1469 to 1785. The choir and transept, in Gothic style, are from the 14th century. In the late 15th century 12 statues of the Apostles were added in the apse, while the bust of Cardinal Melchior Klesl is attributed to...
. Their estates were confiscated and their families relocated — Zrinski's wife, Katarina Zrinska
Katarina Zrinska
Countess Ana Katarina Zrinska was a Croatian noblewoman, born into the House of Frankopan noble family. She married Count Petar Zrinski of the House of Zrinski in 1641 and later became known as Katarina Zrinska. She is remembered in Croatia as a patron of the arts, a writer and patriot...
, was interned in the Dominican
Dominican Order
The Order of Preachers , after the 15th century more commonly known as the Dominican Order or Dominicans, is a Catholic religious order founded by Saint Dominic and approved by Pope Honorius III on 22 December 1216 in France...
convent in Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
where she fell mentally ill and remained until her death in 1673, two of his daughters died in a monastery, and his son Ivan Antun
Ivan Antun Zrinski
Ivan Antun Zrinski , , was a Croatian count, a member of the Zrinski noble family, its last male descendant.-Life:...
(John Anthony) died in madness, after twenty years of terrible imprisonment and torture, on 11 November 1703. The oldest daughter Jelena, already married in northeastern Upper Hungary
Upper Hungary
Upper Hungary is the usual English translation for the area that was historically the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, now mostly present-day Slovakia...
, survived and continued the resistance.
Some 2,000 other nobles were arrested as part of a mass crackdown. Two more leading conspirators — Ferenc Nádasdy, Chief Justice of Hungary, and Styrian governor, Count Hans Erasmus von Tattenbach — were executed (the latter in Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
on 1 December 1671).
In the view of Emperor Leopold, the Croats and Hungarians had forfeited their right to self-administration through their role in the attempted rebellion. Leopold suspended the constitution - already, the Zrinski trial had been conducted by an Austrian, not a Hungarian court - and ruled Hungary like a conquered province.
Legacy
The bones of Zrinski and Frankopan were found in Austria in 1907 and brought to Zagreb in 1919, where they were reburied in the ZagrebZagreb
Zagreb is the capital and the largest city of the Republic of Croatia. It is in the northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the Medvednica mountain. Zagreb lies at an elevation of approximately above sea level. According to the last official census, Zagreb's city...
Cathedral.
Zrinski and Frankopan are still widely regarded as national heroes in Croatia as well as Hungary. Their portraits are depicted on the obverse
Obverse and reverse
Obverse and its opposite, reverse, refer to the two flat faces of coins and some other two-sided objects, including paper money, flags , seals, medals, drawings, old master prints and other works of art, and printed fabrics. In this usage, obverse means the front face of the object and reverse...
of the Croatian 5 kuna
Croatian kuna
The kuna is the currency of Croatia since 1994 . It is subdivided into 100 lipa. The kuna is issued by the Croatian National Bank and the coins are minted by the Croatian Monetary Institute....
banknote, issued in 1993 and 2001.
See also
- Zrinski family treeZrinski family treeThis is the family tree of the Princes of Zrin, a Croatian noble family, from 1347 to 1703.- See also :* House of Zrinski* House of Šubić* Šubić family tree* Frankopan family tree* List of rulers of Croatia...
- Zrinski–Frankopan conspiracy
- Wesselényi conspiracy