Stephen II Csák

Stephen (II) from the kindred Csák (Hungarian: Csák nembeli (II.) István; d. 1307/09) was a Hungarian noble who served as Wildgrave of Bakony in 1280.

He was born into the Trencsén branch of the gens Csák as the second son of Mark I. His cousin was the oligarch Matthew III. Stephen had four children: Mark II; Peter III, who functioned as master of the horse between 1314 and 1317; Stephen III and a daughter, who married Roland III Rátót, son of palatine Roland II Rátót.

Stephen and his descendants remained landowners near the ancient estate of the genus, Csákvár, while his cousins, Matthew III and Csák acquired possessions in the north-western counties of the Kingdom of Hungary, where later Matthew III, as the most powerful oligarch, ruled de facto independently of the king and usurped royal prerogatives on his realm. Stephen also tried to establish a dominion independently of the central power, expanding his influence over the territories that surrounded his possessions and centre, the Csókakő Castle. His land acquisition methods were violent. Andrew III of Hungary called him a "powerful tyrant of the country" (Latin: fortissimus tirannus regni nostri) in 1295, when Stephen captured and imprisoned the members of the Süttői family from the kindred Szák in Esztergom County. In 1301, Henry, abbot of Bakonybél complained to the king that Stephen oppressed the whole of Veszprém County. Six years later the chapter of Esztergom protested against him because Stephen forcibly occupied Gyermely, Epöl and Dorog from the provost of the archdiocese for 20 years.