VIII, 2012, 2
Bogdan-Petru Maleon (†), Gabriela E. Dima
Moldavia in Iulius Ruggieri’s Writings | p. 111–140
Keywords
anti-Ottoman fight, historical sources, Iulius Ruggieri, Moldavian-Polish relations
Abstract
The present paper aims to introduce to the Romanian historiography some excerpts from Iulius Ruggieri’s writings regarding the Principality of Moldavia during the 14th–16th centuries. The author was an Apostolic Nuncio in Poland (1566–1568) and at the end of his tenure he made a comprehensive report to Pope Pius V, which contained a detailed religious, economic and political analysis of Poland in the mid 16th century. Moreover, in 1571 Iulius Ruggieri made a speech on the role Poland could have had within the anti-Ottoman coalition. Both texts contained extensive references to the Moldavian-Polish relations and to how the Principality East of the Carpathians managed its relations with the Ottoman Empire during the 15th–16th centuries. Only a few fragments from the two sources were edited by N. Iorga in the late 19th century. The texts do not have a documentary value in terms of Moldavia’s event-history, but offer a new perspective on the role the Principality East of the Carpathians had in the Pontifical plans of anti-Ottoman battle. It should also be noted that the analyzed writings render the image of Stephen the Great as a great fighter against the Turks and the Poles. They also try to identify how the successors of the Great Prince could be attracted, together with Poland, in an anti-Ottoman action.