H. Kolba Judit szerk.: Historical Exhibition of the Hungarian National Museum Guide 2 - From the Foundation of the State until the Expulsion of the Ottomans - The history of Hungary in the 11th to 17th centuries (Budapest, 2005)

ROOM 5 - The Age of Matthias Hunyadi (second half of the 15th century)

36. Painted wooden body-shield with the character M indicating King Matthias, 2nd half of the 15th century under the weight of precious works of goldsmith's art. Now there are but few objects extant which can be brought without doubt into connection with the person of Matthias. The Hungarian National Museum keeps the huge Venetian glass goblet of Matthias, whose authentic story is preserved in the inscription incised in its metal foot of a later date (Fig. 35). Matthias recaptured the castle of Kőszeg in the course of his Austrian campaign of 1482: the luxurious objects from the late 15th century excavated there are relics of the Kőszeg sojourn of the Royal Court. In royal palaces costly Gothic stoves stood; here we have exhibited some tiles of a socalled Knight Stove stove and of one with the coat of arms of Matthias. From a third stove there is a tile, made using a mixed glaze technique, in other words with the simultaneous application of tin and lead glaze, representing Matthias enthroned. From the mid1470s onwards, Italian, and, later, Hungarian masters operated a majolica-producing workshop in Buda; the tin glazed floor tiles of the Buda palace were made there. THE ARMY OF KING MATTHIAS The role of the noble militia and the militia portalis lost their importance during the reign of Matthias. Having settled his finances, Matthias kept a mercenary army, recruited mostly from foreigners (Bohemians, Germans) and consisting of several thousand soldiers, whose number may have risen during campaigns to between 10,000 and 15,000 men. (This force was called the Black Army only after the king's death, and even then only a part of it was called this. The origin of the name is as yet unclear.) This army, an important military formation, was divided into four branches: heavy cavalry, light cavalry, infantry, and artillery. Its most effective branch was the heavy cavalry: the importance of light cavalry became evident primarily during the Turkish wars of the late 15th century. The infantry, growing gradually in number, consisted of soldiers equipped with heavy arms, soldiers with shields, soldiers with light arms, and soldiers with crossbows and muskets. (Fig. 36). We know from a letter written by Matthias that the king preferred ballistas and catapults to cannon. He had, all the same, several guns; we know