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Nitra: when did it become a part of the Moravian realm? Evidence in the Frankish sources
Author(s) -
Bowlus Charles R.
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
early medieval europe
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.1
H-Index - 24
eISSN - 1468-0254
pISSN - 0963-9462
DOI - 10.1111/j.1468-0254.2009.00279.x
Subject(s) - realm , reign , scrutiny , history , ancient history , philosophy , classics , art , theology , law , archaeology , political science , politics
It is frequently asserted that Imre Boba's attempt to relocate the heartland of ninth‐century Moravia cannot be correct because it is a well‐known ‘fact’ that c .830 Moimar, the first Moravian duke, drove his rival Pribina from the fort of Nitra north of the Danube. However, the only source (the so‐called Conversio Bagoariorum et Carantanorum ) ever cited to support this ‘fact’ makes no such statement. While modern printed editions of the Conversio do contain a statement connecting Pribina with Nitra, editors of the text recognize that this connection must have been a marginal gloss that found its way into some manuscripts much later. Assertions that two other sources, the Heimo‐Urkunde and the Theotmarbrief , prove that Nitra was a part of a Moravian realm as early as c. 830 cannot stand careful scrutiny. The Heimo‐Urkunde , an original source dated 888, does not mention Nitra at all. While it does make a passing reference to Moravians, it does not locate them geographically. The Theomarbrief , if its authenticity can be trusted, dates from c .900 and can only establish that Nitra first became a part of the Moravian realm during the reign of Duke Sventibald ( c .870–94), who conquered it and converted its pagan residents.