The entrance of Michael the Brave with his armed forces to Transylvania in the autumn of 1599, and their defeat of the Transylvanian army of Prince Andrew Báthory at Șelimbăr on 28 October 1599, was precipitated by changes within the anti-Ottoman alliance in which Transylvania, Wallachia and Moldova had jointly fought since 1595. The Principalities’ collaboration was successful in 1595, when Transylvanian, Wallachian and Moldovan troops driving the Ottoman army led by Sinan Pasha south of the Danube. However, in the subsequent period, the alliance only limped on, as Jeremiah Movilă was installed as ruler of Moldova with the support of the Polish forces. Lingering uncertainties about the end of the war between the Habsburgs and Ottomans, and the repeated abdications of Sigismund Báthory in 1598 and 1599, ultimately placed Cardinal Andrew Báthory on the throne of Transylvania in 1599.

Michael the Brave was one of the most energetic combatants in the anti-Ottoman war, involved in military actions starting in autumn 1594 and continuing from 1595 to 1598. He did not have direct relationship with Emperor Rudolph II, but his interactions with him were mediated by Sigismund Báthory, suzerain of Wallachia and Moldova, due to treaties signed in Alba Iulia on 20 May and 3 June 1595. The first treaty subordinated Wallachia to the Prince and Diet of Transylvania, thus diminishing the ruler’s political, judicial, and fiscal powers. At the same time, the treaty placed the Orthodox Church of Transylvania under the jurisdiction of the Metropolitan Seat of Wallachia.

Sigismund Báthory’s abdication in March 1599 resulted in the signing of a treaty between Michael the Brave and Rudolph II. As Prince Andrew Báthory initiated peace negotiations with the Ottomans, Michael the Brave’s position became endangered. The ruler of Wallachia saw himself surrounded by potential enemies, with Ottomans to the south and the rulers of Transylvania and Moldova in the north. Both rulers were influenced by Poland’s policy of peace with the Ottoman Empire. Thus, to prevent an attack by his northern neighbour, Michael prepared and launched the campaign in Transylvania.

After his victory at Șelimbăr on 1 November 1599, the ruler of Wallachia made a triumphal entrance through the St George Gate of Alba Iulia Fortress. One of his first acts was to install his headquarters in the princely palace. From this place, he governed the principality by appointing his men to roles in the fortresses, cities and the key governmental posts. He also appointed representatives of the Transylvanian estates to prominent roles. In this period, various sources refer to Michael the Brave’s activities in Alba Iulia. Among these, the most detailed are the reports of the Habsburg envoys which describe the official and secret meetings held in the council room or another smaller room of the princely palace.

Michael the Brave organized a Diet in Alba Iulia, to sit from 20 to 28 November 1599, and requested that the estates make an oath of allegiance to the emperor and to himself, as governor. Although he legitimated his rule over Transylvania as the governor (councillor, general captain) of Emperor Rudolph II, Michael the Brave repeatedly expressed his desire for the emperor to recognize his hereditary rule over Wallachia and Transylvania (and since May 1600, after expelling Jeremiah Movilă from Moldova, over the Principality as well). He envisioned the establishment of a dynastic rule over the three Principalities.

He tried to cooperate with the Transylvanian estates, among which the nobility was the most influential, and kept the laws and institutions of Transylvania almost unchanged. He did introduce some legal initiatives, inspired by Counter-Reformation, which aimed to consolidate the Catholic confession and eliminate the Protestant ones. At the Diet held in Alba Iulia from 20 to 28 July 1600, he requested approval of some measures favouring Transylvania’s Romanian villages (the right to pasture flocks on uncultivated land belonging to Hungarian or Saxon villages) and the exemption from labour duties of Romanian Orthodox priests. The latter measure was intended to place the Romanian clergy on equal footing with the clergy of other Transylvanian confessions. Michael the Brave had an important role in the institutional consolidation of the Orthodox Church in Transylvania. He agreed with Emperor Rudolph II to declare Orthodoxy among the legally recognized confessions of Transylvania.

However, being perceived as a foreigner, his rule was not appreciated by the Transylvanian elites, who wished to elect a prince from among the natives of the principality. The Romanian ruler commanded an experienced army, consisting of Balkan, Cossack, Hungarian and Szekler mercenaries alongside the Wallachian troops. However, he lacked the funds to pay the huge salaries required by the mercenaries, depending instead upon sums sent by the emperor, usually after long delays, which contributed to the worsening of his relationship with the Transylvanian estates. As the mercenaries were not paid on time, they started to sack local villages. The huge military expenses also led to an unbearable increase in taxation. Romanian tenant peasants became unruly and started to flee to the areas inhabited by Szeklers and Saxons, to the great dissatisfaction of their landlords.

This situation contributed to a rebellion by the Transylvanian nobility, which was convened in Turda on 1 September 1600, well away from Sebeș where Michael the Brave had summoned the Diet. In alliance with Habsburg forces led by General George Basta, the Transylvanian nobility defeated Michael the Brave at Mirăslău (40 km north of Alba Iulia) on 16 September 1600, ending his rule over Transylvania. Michael was forced to retreat to Wallachia, where he tried unsuccessfully to reject the Polish troops bringing Simion Movilă, brother of Jeremiah Movilă, as pretender to the throne of Wallachia. Simion began to rule the principality in November 1600. In early 1601, Michael the Brave was in Vienna, where he tried to obtain the support of the emperor to raise a new army. After the Transylvanian estates rebelled against the emperor, elected Sigismund Báthory, and kicked George Basta out of the Principality in the spring of 1601, Rudolph II authorized a new action by the Habsburg troops in the Principality. The army led by Michael the Brave and General Basta defeated Sigismund Báthory at Guruslău on 3 August 1601. But on 19 August 1601, Michael the Brave was assassinated at Câmpia Turzii.

Michael the Brave’s short rule from Alba Iulia has, over the generations, triggered various reactions depending on the political leanings, ethnic, social and confessional identities of commentators. Romanians came to consider and appreciate his deeds in national terms, starting around the nineteenth century, when his example became a strong component of the Romanian national project, incidentally granting Alba Iulia a special place in the national consciousness. (C.P.G.)