Transylvania

Transylvania (Romanian, ‘Beyond the Forest’) High plateau region in central and nw Romania, separated from the rest of Romania by the Carpathian Mountains and the Transylvanian Alps. Its major cities are Cluj-Napoca, Braşov, and Sibiu. In ad 107, it became part of the Roman province of Dacia. Hungary conquered it at the beginning of the 11th century. In 1526, the ruler of Transylvania, John Zapolya, defeated the Hungarian army, and claimed the Hungarian throne as John I. The Ottoman Turks supported his claim and, following Zapolya's death in 1540, occupied Transylvania on the pretext of ensuring his son's succession. For the next two centuries, Transylvania retained its semi-independent status by playing off the competing imperial claims of Turkey and Austria. During the 17th century, it flourished as Hungary's intellectual and cultural centre, but in 1765 it became an Austrian province. In 1867, Hungary reasserted its authority. After World War I, Hungary ceded the territory to Romania, which embarked on a wholesale process of land redistribution and forced assimilation of other nationalities. Hungary annexed part of Transylvania in World War 2, but was forced to return it in 1947. Transylvania is the legendary home of vampires.