The Tsangos of Romania - Corvinus Library - Hungarian History

THE HISTORY OF THE CSÁNGÓSIn order to understand the origins of the Csángós, wehave to start with a brief history of the Hungarians from the IXthcentury. As we know, the people who later settled theCarpathian basin came through Magna Hungaria, left it in 600only to arrive at Etelköz in 840-850. As the area could not beproperly protected, the Hungarians were eager to move on.Another factor resulted as the moving force for the Hungariantribes and those were the Petchenegs (Besenyös). ThoseHungarian tribes, with Árpád as their leader, moved on andcrossed the Verecke mountain pass. Those tribes by the Prut,Szeret, and Danube rivers, crossed the Carpathians in thevalleys made by the rivers, while those tribes still further southmoved across the Vaskapu (Irongates) mountain pass.Historians believe that not all the members of the Hungariantribes left, but it is possible that the older and peaceful onesremained behind, while many who had left before the attacks ofthe Petchenegs, returned later on. While the Hungarians werepushed westward by the Petchenegs, their homeland wasseized by the Uz and then was conquered by the Cumanians. SoCumania and Transylvania became neighbouring countries.In 1071 with the leading of Ozul, the Cumanians brokeinto Hungary over the Transylvanian mountain passes. Theyraided the country, captured men, women, and animals. TheHungarians managed to stop them and chased them back toCumania but in the years that followed they tried to invade thecountry several more times,in 1085, 1091, and 1099, butalways without success. So as we can see in the first century ofthe new Hungarian monarchy, had to defend it's borders fromthe Cumanians. In these fights the Hungarian king alwaysheaded these fights while the Cumanians were lead by theirtribal chiefsAround 1162, Géza the second, invited Germans fromthe Rhine and Flanders to settle around Szeben and Beszterce.These became known as the Transylvanian-Saxons.After hundred years of relative peace in the 12th century,the Cumanians invaded the country again and ravaged theBarcaság.Endre the second, was the king, who decided to end this