John Vitéz, Thomas Bakócz, Paul Tomori

John (János) Vitéz

He was born around 1408, as son of a common nobleman, Dénes Zrednamelléki. They lived in county Kőrös in Slavonia. He studied in Zagreb, then from 1434 at the university of Vienna. During Sigismund's reign he was employed in the secret chancellery as a clerk, then later as a judging master. In 1440 he was a member of the committee in Krakkow which gave Wladislas I a chance to become king. He was a distant relative of the Hunyadi family. He was the guardian of Hunyadi's children during his governorship. In 1445 he received the bishopric of Várad. He was a governor and a diplomat as Matthias' chancellor. From 1465 on he was the Archbishop of Esztergom. He was an educated humanist, and as an archbishop he founded the university of Pozsony in 1465. He sponsored his nephew, Janus Pannonius, who studied in Italy. Later he gained the bishopric of Pécs for him. In 1471 he became the main organiser of a plot against Matthias. At first Matthias pardoned him, then he had him imprisoned in Visegrád, finally he was kept in Esztergom in home custody, where he died in the summer of 1472.

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Thomas (Tamás) Bakócz

He was born in 1442 on the Drágffy family estate in Erdőd in county Szatmár, where his father was a wheelwright villain. With the help of his brother, Valentine, who was the prepost of Titel, he received a noble title in 1459. He became a doctor of law in Bologne, then a clerk at a chancellery, then a secretary. From 1480 he became the prepost of Titel, from 1486 to 1491 the Bishop of Győr, from 1490 a secret chancellor, then from 1491 chief- and secret chancellor. From 1498 he was the Archbishop of Esztergom, from 1507 an honourable patriarch of Constantinople. In 1513, after Julius's death, he applied for the Papal throne, but the position was gained by John Medici (Leo X). In 1514 he declared a crusade, which later turned into a peasants' revolt. After 1516 he lived in retirement. He died in Esztergom on 16 June, 1521. He left a large fortune to his relatives of the Erdődy name.

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Paul (Pál) Tomori

He was born around 1475 to a common noble family in county Abaúj. At first he held different offices in the treasury, and he was in charge of the royal estates. After the deaths of his two fiancés - and because of the fact that he did not become the governor of the prior district of Várna - he joined the Franciscan order in 1520. From 1523 he was appointed Archbishop of Kalocsa and chief captain of Lower Hungary. After the defeat at Nándorfehérvár he was the one who reorganised the system of border fortresses. In 1526 he was appointed joint-commander of the Hungarian army - with George Szapolyai - and together they fought against the sultan's army. He died in the battle of Mohács on 29 August.

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