Vlad Tepes and Stephen the Great

Vlad Tepes

Wallachian ruler Vlad Țepeş (ruled mainly 1456-1462) refused to pay tribute to the Porte any longer. He spent much of his rule campaigning against the Ottoman Empire.

His most celebrated action was the Night Attack at Tȃrgoviste (1462). He was eventually defeated at Poenari by his brother Radu cel Frumos – an ally of the Ottomans who wanted the throne for himself. He went into exile in Hungary, where he was imprisoned by Matei Corvin. Helped by Stephen the Great, briefly returned to rule Wallachia in 1476, but was assassinated.

Stephen the Great

During the rule of Stephen the Great (1433-1504), Moldova fought against the ambitions of Hungary, Poland, and the Ottoman Empire. In fact, he extended its borders and acquired influence in Transylvania and a protectorate over Wallachia

The majority of his army was comprised of free, landowning peasants (razesi) and townspeople who fought in exchange for certain privileges. Boyars also fought but din not predominate. It was a native army with few mercenaries.

Boyar opposition to his rule was weak. Moldova was stable and prosperous during his rule. It traded

extensively with the Orient (spices, precious stones, metals, rugs) and the West (weapons, textiles). This trade and the taxes collected from it enabled Stephen to fund his campaigns.

He was by most accounts a pious man, helping to endow many monasteries

Stephen’s Foreign Policy

In 1459 Stephen becomes a vassal of the King of Poland. This earns him the enmity of Matei Corvin (Hunyadi Matyas), who was an enemy of Cazimir IV because the Polish king claimed the throne of Hungary for himself. In 1467, Stephen supports the rebellion of the Saxons and the Transylvanian nobility against Matei Corvin. In retaliation, Matei Corvin invades Moldova but was defeated at the Battle of Baia.

However, the most significant threat came from the expanding Ottoman Empire, who in 1453 had conquered Constantinople. Stephen’s most significant victory against the Ottomans came at the Battle of Vaslui (1475). Fearing a renewed Ottoman offensive, Stephen became a vassal of

Hungary in exchange for military assistance. In the end, his search for European assistance against the Turks

met with little success and he was eventually forced to pay tribute.