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House of Basarab
House of Basarab
Princely noble house
Country	Wallachia
Founded	1310
Founder	Basarab I of Wallachia
Final ruler	Alexandru Coconul (Drăculești, 1623–27); Moise (Dănești, 1529–30);
Titles	Prince; (Voivode; Hospodar)
Estate(s)	of Wallachia
Cadet branches	House of Dănești; House of Drăculești

The House of Basarab (sometimes spelled as Bazarab, Romanian: Basarab pronounced [basaˈrab] ^ⓘ) was a ruling family that established the Principality of Wallachia, giving the country its first line of Princes, one closely related with the Mușatin rulers of Moldavia. Its status as a dynasty is rendered problematic by the official elective system, which implied that male members of the same family, including illegitimate offspring, were chosen to rule by a council of boyars (more often than not, the election was conditioned by the military force exercised by candidates). After the rule of Alexandru I Aldea (ended in 1436), the house was split by the conflict between the Dănești and the Drăculești, both of which claimed legitimacy.^[1] Several late rulers of the Craiovești claimed direct descent from the House after its eventual demise, including Neagoe Basarab, Matei Basarab, Constantin Șerban, Șerban Cantacuzino, and Constantin Brâncoveanu.

Rulers usually mentioned as members of the House include (in chronological order of first rule) Mircea the Elder, Dan II, Vlad II Dracul, Vlad III the Impaler, Vlad the Monk, Radu IV the Great, and Radu of Afumați.

Name and origins

The dynasty was named after Voivode Basarab I (r. around 1320 – 1352), who gained the independence of Wallachia from the Kingdom of Hungary.^[2]

The origin of the family is highly disputed, with theories suggesting either a Vlach,^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]^[7]^[8] or Romanianized Cuman^[9]^[10]^[11] background. However, there is no scholarly consensus on their actual origin. The Cuman hypothesis is largely based on the origin of Basarab's name, but remains unproven.^[12] At least four royal charters from the 14th century refer to Basarab as a 'Vlach'^[13] and in his lifetime Basarab would have certainly considered himself as a member of the Romanian elite of Wallachia.^[12]

The name Basarab is of Cuman or Pecheneg Turkic origin and most likely meant "conquering or reigning father"; Bas was the present participle of the verb "to rule", while the second part is believed to derive from the honorary title -aba "father", recognizable in many Cuman names, such as Terteroba, Arslanapa, and Ursoba.^[14] Besides the Cumans, the name was also common among Romanians in medieval Wallachia and Transylvania.^[12]^[2] Basarab's baptismal name was most likely "Ioan" or "Ivanco", as noted in the preface to the Dušan Code and other Serbian and Bulgarian documents.^[15]^[3] Basarab's "possible" father Thocomerius likely bore a Latin rendering of the Slavic name "Tihomir", a common name amongst Vlachs and South Slavs in the Middle Ages.^[16]^[2] Alternatively, the name is identified as Toq-tämir, a Cuman and Tatar name attested in the 13th century.^[17] Some historians consider the name's origin a weak argument to support the Dynasty's Cuman origin, while they believe contemporary documents that universally regard Basarab as "Vlach" to be of greater relevance.^[3]^[4]^[5]^[6]^[7]

Genealogy

The following genealogical tree is a simplified version, meant to show the ruling princes, their documented brothers and sisters, and the spouses/extramarital liaisons of those who had ruling heirs, following the conventions:

Ruling princes have their name emphasized and their ruling years in Wallachia.
Several members of House of Basarab ruled in Moldavia; those reigning years are marked with M.
Small numbers at the end of each name are meant to indicate the mother of each offspring.
There are two branches of the dynasty: Drăculeşti (DR) and Dăneşti (DA)
If the prince died while ruling, the last year is preceded by a cross.
Spouses and extramarital liaisons are separated by a horizontal line.

House of Basarab

Basarab I
1310-†1352

Margareta

Theodora of Wallachia

Ivan Alexander of Bulgaria

Nicolae Alexandru
1352-†1364

Maria Lackfy¹
Clara Dobokai²
Maria Dabkai³

Royal dynasty of Bulgaria

Vladislav I¹
1364-†1377

Radu I¹
1377-†1383

Ana¹
Kalinikia²

Vladislaus II of Opole With Catarine Elis¹

Elisabeth of Wallachia

Vojislav¹

Anna of Wallachia ²

Ivan Sratsimir of Bulgaria

Anca²

Stephen Uroš V of Serbia

Dan I^DA1
1383-†1386

Maria of Serbia

Staico²

Mircea I²
1386-1394
1397-†1418

Maria Tolmay ¹
Anca²

Royal dynasty of Silesia

Royal dynasty of Bulgaria

Royal dynasty of Serbia

Dan II ^DA
1422-1427
1427-†1431

?

Ioan

Vlad I?1394-†1397

Mihail I¹
1418-†1420

?

Radu II¹
1420-1422
†1427

Alexandru I¹
1431-†1436

Vlad II Dracul^DR,1
1436-1442
1444-†1447

?¹
Vassilissa of Moldavia²

Călţuna³
?⁴

Basarab II^DA
1442-1444

Maria

Dan III of Wallachia

Stanciul

Vladislav II^DA
1447-1448
1448-†1456

Neacşa

Basarab III^DA
1473
1474
1475-1476
1476-1477

Radu

Mihail

Mircea II^DR,1
1442

Vlad IV Calugarul^DR

Radu III the Fair^DR

Alexandra²

Vlad III the Impaler^DR

Mircea (Illegitimate)^DR,4
1480

Vladislav

Neagoe Basarab
CRAIOVEŞTI

Vladislav III of Wallachia

Vlad Vintilă de la Slatina

Vlad VI Înecatul

Mircea III Dracul

Teodosie of Wallachia

Stephen IV of Moldavia

A printed family tree

Legacy

The Basarab name is the origin of several place names, including the region of Bessarabia (today part of Moldova and Ukraine) and a few towns, such as Basarabi in Romania, Basarabeasca in the Republic of Moldova, and Basarbovo in Bulgaria.

Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom herself was descended from Princess Stanca of Basarab (1518?-1601) as an eighth-generation descendant of Claudine Rhédey von Kis-Rhéde of Erdőszentgyörgy, a Hungarian countess from the Teck-Cambridge family. Elizabeth was thus also a great-grandniece of Vlad IV the Monk.^[18]^[19]

References

^ Grumeza 2010, p. 2.
^ ^a ^b ^c Cazacu 2017, p. 3.
^ ^a ^b ^c *Cazacu, Matei; Mureșan, Dan Ioan (2013). Ioan Basarab, un domn român la începuturile Țării Românești [Ioan Basarab, a Romanian Prince at the Beginning of Wallachia] (in Romanian). Cartier. ISBN 978-9975-79-807-5.
^ ^a ^b Istoria românilor din cele mai vechi timpuri până astăzi (1971), p. 190 & 209, Giurescu & Giurescu
^ ^a ^b "Bazarab, filium Thocomerii, scismaticum, in nostrum et sacre corone non modicum derogamen detinebantur, adissemus, idem Bazarab, infidelis Olacus noster"
Pascu S, Cihodaru C, Gündisch K, Mioc D, Pervain V. Documenta Romaniae Historica: DRH, 1977, D. Relații între Țările Române, seria D. [Documenta Romaniae Historica: DRH, 1977, D Relations between Romanian states, series D] (in Romanian).Institutul de Istorie „George Barițiu” al Academiei Române Filiala Cluj-Napoca, Institutul de Istorie „Nicolae Iorga” București. 1977. p. 50
^ ^a ^b "per Bazarab Olacum et filiis eius"
Pascu S, Cihodaru C, Gündisch K, Mioc D, Pervain V. Documenta Romaniae Historica: DRH, 1977, D. Relații între Țările Române, seria D. [Documenta Romaniae Historica: DRH, 1977, D Relations between Romanian states, series D] (in Romanian).Institutul de Istorie „George Barițiu” al Academiei Române Filiala Cluj-Napoca, Institutul de Istorie „Nicolae Iorga” București. 1977. p. 57
^ ^a ^b "contra Bazarad Olacum"
Imre Nagy et al., Codex diplomaticus patrius [Hazai okmánytár], vol. II, Gyor, 1865, nr. 91, p. 131.
^ Mosneanu, Cristian. “Ivanco Bessarab-Bessarab the Great (1315/1320?-1352)/Ivanco Basarab / Basarab Cel Mare (1315/1320?- 1352.” ORDER OF THE BASSARABIAN CHIVALRY (2020)
^ Sedlar 2011, p. 24.
^ Vásáry, István (2009). Cumans and Tatars: Oriental Military in the Pre-Ottoman Balkans, 1185–1365 (1st ed.). Cambridge University Press. doi:10.1017/CBO9780511496622. ISBN 978-0521120289. The Cumans were the co-founders of three successive Bulgarian dynasties (Asenids, Romanian: Basarab Terterids and Shishmanids) and the Wallachian dynasty (Basarabids). They also played an active role in Byzantium, Hungary and Serbia, with Cuman immigrants being integrated into each country's elite.
^ Rădvan 2010, p. 129.
^ ^a ^b ^c Spinei 2009, p. 353.
^ Cazacu & Mureșan 2013, pp. 27–29.
^ Vásáry 2005, p. 151.
^ Mosneanu, Cristian. “Ivanco Bessarab-Bessarab the Great (1315/1320?-1352)/Ivanco Basarab / Basarab Cel Mare (1315/1320?- 1352.” ORDER OF THE BASSARABIAN CHIVALRY (2020): pag. 111-113
^ Mosneanu, Cristian. “Ivanco Bessarab-Bessarab the Great (1315/1320?-1352)/Ivanco Basarab / Basarab Cel Mare (1315/1320?- 1352.” ORDER OF THE BASSARABIAN CHIVALRY (2020): pag. 114-115
^ Vásáry 2005, p. 153.
^ Korva Coleman (November 8, 2012). "Why Prince Charles Has A Stake In Transylvania". NPR. Retrieved August 11, 2021. Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, dropped this nugget last year on an interviewer: "Transylvania is in my blood. The genealogy shows that I'm descended from Vlad the Impaler, you see. So I do have a bit of a stake in the country."
^ CBS News (October 28, 2011). "Vlad the Impaler: How is Prince Charles, Queen Elizabeth related to him?". CBS. Retrieved August 11, 2021.

Sources

Cazacu, Matei (2017). Dracula. Brill. ISBN 9789004349216.
Grumeza, Ion (2010). The Roots of Balkanization: Eastern Europe C.E. 500-1500. University Press of America. ISBN 978-0-7618-5134-9.
Rădvan, Laurențiu (2010). At Europe's Borders: Medieval Towns in the Romanian Principalities. Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-18010-9.
Sedlar, Jean W (2011). East Central Europe in the Middle Ages, 1000-1500. University of Washington Press. ISBN 978-0-295-80064-6.
Spinei, Victor (2009). The Romanians and the Turkic Nomads North of the Danube Delta from the Tenth to the Mid-Thirteenth century. Brill. ISBN 978-90-04-17536-5.
Vásáry, István (2005). Cumans and Tatars: Oriental Military in the Pre-Ottoman Balkans, 1185–1365. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-83756-1.