Koppány

File:István és Koppány.jpg

Medieval depiction of the battle between István and Koppány.

Koppány was a Hungarian nobleman of the tenth century. Brother of Chief Prince Géza of the Árpád dynasty, Koppány ruled as Prince of Somogy in the region south of Lake Balaton. Following the death of Géza he claimed the right of succession: inheritance of the crown was determined by the principle of seniority, and Koppány was the oldest surviving member of the House of Árpád. However, his claim to power was challenged by Géza's son Vajk, Koppány's nephew, who had by then been baptized a Christian and given the name of István.

István claimed a divine right to succession and wanted to make Hungary into a Christian kingdom; Koppány in contrast stood for the old tribal values and pagan religion of the ancient Magyars. The inevitable battle between the supporters of István and followers of Koppány was fought in 998 A.D. near Veszprém. István's army, bolstered by the support of a regiment of Bavarian knights, won a decisive victory over Koppány and had him executed.

The victory of the Christian István over the pagan Koppány in the battle for succession determined the entire future course of Hungarian history. István became King and Hungary became a Christian kingdom, and began a period of territorial expansion as well as consolidation of the Magyar tribes into one nation.

References

Lendvai, Paul: The Hungarians: A Thousand Years of Victory in Defeat, Princeton University Press, 2003. pp 29-31