“Turk-Slayer” – Medieval Hungarian Ballad of John Hunyadi (Ottoman Defeat at Belgrade, 1456)

“Törökverő” (Turk-Slayer) / Históriás ének A medieval Hungarian ballad recounting the life, victories, and death of John Hunyadi (Hunyadi János), the Hungarian commander who led the Christian forces to victory over Sultan Mehmed II during the Siege of Belgrade (Nándorfehérvár) in 1456. The ballad is written in Medieval Early Modern Hungarian. While it remains largely intelligible to modern Hungarian speakers, many of its words, grammatical forms, and expressions are now considered archaic. Historical note: You have very likely heard of this battle without realizing it, perhaps even every day. Following the Christian victory at the Siege of Belgrade in 1456, Pope Callixtus III ordered church bells throughout Christendom to be rung. The custom of ringing church bells at noon has continued ever since. Thus, whenever you hear Catholic church bells ringing at noon, you're hearing an echo of Hungary & Hunyadi's victory over the Ottomans at Belgrade nearly 570 years ago. Subtitles & Translations included: • Hungarian (original) • Croatian • Romanian • Slovak • Armenian (Eastern, traditional orthography) • German (traditional orthography) • Spanish • English