Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin

Part of a series on the
History of Hungary
Early history Hungarian prehistory The Carpathian Basin before the Hungarian conquest Roman Pannonia Hunnic Empire
Early medieval Kingdom of the Gepids 454–567 Ostrogothic Kingdom 469–553 Avar Khaganate 567–822 Hungarian invasions of Europe ~800–970 Hungarian conquest 862–895
Medieval Principality of Hungary 895–1000 Kingdom of Hungary 1000–1301 Personal union with Croatia 1102–1918 Golden Bull 1222 Mongol invasion of Hungary 1241–1242 Kingdom of Hungary 1301–1526 Ottoman Wars 1366–1526
Early modern Reformation 1520 Ottoman Wars 1526–1699 Eastern Hungarian Kingdom 1526–1570 Royal Hungary 1526–1699 Ottoman Hungary 1541–1699 Principality of Transylvania 1570–1711 Bocskai uprising 1604–1606 Wesselényi conspiracy 1664–1671 Principality of Upper Hungary 1682–1685 Kingdom of Hungary 1699–1867
Late modern Rákóczi's War of Independence 1703–1711 Principality of Transylvania 1711–1867 Hungarian Reform Era 1825–1848 Revolution of 1848 1848–1849 Hungarian State 1849 Austro-Hungarian Monarchy 1867–1918 Lands of the Crown of St. Stephen 1867–1918 World War I 1914–1918 Interwar period 1918–1941 Hungarian People's Republic 1918–1919 Hungarian Soviet Republic 1919 Hungarian Republic 1919–1920 Treaty of Trianon 1920 Kingdom of Hungary 1920–1946 First Vienna Award 1938 Governorate of Subcarpathia 1939–1945 Second Vienna Award 1940 Revisions of Délvidék 1941 World War II 1941–1945
Contemporary Second Hungarian Republic 1946–1949 Hungarian People's Republic 1949–1989 Revolution of 1956 1956 Goulash Communism 1956–1989 Third Hungarian Republic 1989–2012 Hungary since 2012
Topics Hungarians Timeline History of Hungary History of Transylvania Hungarian language Árpád dynasty Holy Crown Hungarian Kings Transylvanian Princes Nobility Military List of Wars Christianity Economy Flag Coat of arms Literature Music Székelys Jews Budapest
Hungary portal
v t e

The Hungarian conquest of the Carpathian Basin,^[1] also known as the Hungarian conquest^[2] or the Hungarian land-taking^[3] (Hungarian: honfoglalás, lit. 'taking/conquest of the homeland'),^[4] was a series of historical events ending with the settlement of the Hungarians in Central Europe in the late 9th and early 10th century. Before the arrival of the Hungarians, three early medieval powers, the First Bulgarian Empire, East Francia, and Moravia, had fought each other for control of the Carpathian Basin. They occasionally hired Hungarian horsemen as soldiers. Therefore, the Hungarians who dwelt on the Pontic-Caspian Steppe east of the Carpathian Mountains were familiar with what would become their homeland when their conquest started.

The Hungarian conquest started in the context of a "late or 'small' migration of peoples".^[1] The Hungarians took possession of the Carpathian Basin in a pre-planned manner, with a long move-in between 862–895.^[5] Other theories assert that the Hungarians crossed the Carpathian Mountains following a joint attack by the Pechenegs and Bulgarians in 894 or 895. They first took control over the lowlands east of the river Danube and attacked and occupied Pannonia (the region to the west of the river) in 900. They exploited internal conflicts in Moravia and annihilated this state sometime between 902 and 906.

The Hungarians strengthened their control over the Carpathian Basin by defeating the Bavarian army in a battle fought at Brezalauspurc on 4 July 907. They launched a series of campaigns to Western Europe between 899 and 955 and also targeted the Byzantine Empire between 943 and 971. However, they gradually settled in the basin and established a Christian monarchy, the Kingdom of Hungary, around 1000.