Glad (duke)
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Glad was, according to the Gesta Hungarorum, a dux (voivod) from Bundyn (Vidin), ruler of the territory of Banat, during the 9th and 10th centuries. He also ruled part of south Transylvania, and Vidin region, and was a local governor or vassal of the First Bulgarian Empire under Bulgarian tsar Simeon. Glad had authority over the Slavs and Vlachs, which consisted most of the population of mentioned regions at the time.
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[edit] History
Glad was defeated by the Hungarians during the 10th century. The Hungarians sent an army against duke Glad and subdued the population between the Morisio (Mureş) and Temes (Timiş) rivers. When they tried to pass the Timiş river Glad came against them with a great army including Cuman, Bulgarian and Vlach support. On the following day Glad was defeated by the Hungarians. The Hungarian attack against the duke Glad in Banat is dated in 934.
One of his descendants, Ahtum, was a duke of Banat and the last ruler who opposed to the establishment of the Hungarian Kingdom in the 11th century, but he was too, defeated by the Hungarian Crown.
[edit] Name
In Banat there are still today villages Gladna and Galad, which probably were named after duke Glad. Town Kladovo near Danube in Serbia was probably also named after duke Glad (Original name of this town could be Gladovo, with meaning "a place that belong to Glad" in the Slavic languages). In the 15th century, near the river Zlatica in Banat, fortress Galad was built. Fortress gained that name because place where it was founded was named Galad. There was also a record about Glad monastery (Galadmonostra) in 1426.
The origin of the name Glad is not certain. It could be of Slavic, Latin, or Celtic origin, thought meaning of the name is not clear. The Slavic origin of the name could be supported by the fact that near the Baltic Sea there are places named Gladichov, Gladyšov, near the river Biese, and Gladišov near the river Radgošć. In Balkan region, places with names similar to name Glad could be found in area, where the earliest Slavic names appeared: Gladnica, Gladnić, Gladnik, Gladojević, Gladović, Gladovići, Glade, Gladov do, Gladova vrtača, Gladov vrh, Gladov krš (all in Republika Srpska), Gladište (in Montenegro), Gladišev Dol (in Metohia). However, in other parts of Europe there are also placenames like Galaţi, Galata, Galatia, Galicia, Calatis, attesting the presence of the Celts (Gauls), or the name could come from latin Gladius or Gladiator. The Romanian historian Neagu Djuvara suggest that Glad probably was a Bulgarian by origin.
[edit] Sources
Main historical source about duke Glad is historical chronicle known as Gesta Hungarorum, written by Peter, a high priest in Buda, during the time of Hungarian King Bela III in the late 12th century.
[edit] Literature
- Jovan M. Pejin, Iz prošlosti Kikinde, Kikinda, 2000.
- Prof.dr Radmilo Petrović, Vojvodina, Beograd, 2003.
- O scurta istorie a romanilor, povestita celor tineri de Neagu Djuvara, Bucuresti, 2002 (Translated into Serbian as Njagu Đuvara, Kratka istorija Rumuna za mlade, Novi Sad, 2004).
