Captaincies of the Kingdom of Hungary

The Captaincies of the Kingdom of Hungary (Hungarian: Magyar királyi főkapitányságok) were administrative divisions, military districts in the 16th and 17th centuries. The Ottoman Empire meant a constant threat to the kingdom therefore the Habsburg Hungarian kings needed to establish a well-working military administration. The captaincy (főkapitányság) was administered by the Royal Captain-general of the Captaincy.

In 1542, the Hungarian kingdom, primarily for military and administrative purposes, was divided into two captaincies, Captaincy of Cisdanubia (largely present-day Slovakia) and Captaincy of Transdanubia (the remaining Royal Hungary). Captaincy of Győr was founded in 1556. In 1563 Captaincy of Lower Hungary was established at the regions of present-day western and central Slovakia. By 1566, Kanizsa at southwestern Transdanubia also evolved into a new captaincy.

Irrespective of the military districts, there were coexistent superior (nemesi - noble) captaincies, with their own captain-generals, however their role was different (organization of insurrectio, logistics etc.).

The Captaincy of Győr (also called Duna-Balaton Köz) was located mainly at the western parts of Kingdom of Hungary (the territories between lake Balaton and river Danube). The captaincy was established in 1556, because of newly arisen military and administrative concerns, though it formally worked as a separate district from 1554. Its seat was in town of Győr. In 1594, the Ottomans captured Győr, however the united armies reconquered it in 1598.

The Captaincy of Kanizsa or Captaincy of Balaton-Drávaköz was established in 1566. Its territory was situated mainly between the Lake Balaton and River Drava. Initially, the main military center of the southern territories was in Szigetvár, however, in 1566 the town fell to the Turks. The seat got to the newly formed captaincy of Kanizsa. In 1600 Kanizsa also fell. In 1607 Körmend became the new center of the reorganized captaincy.

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