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List of administrative divisions of the Kingdom of Hungary

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The following lists show the administrative divisions of the lands belonging to the Hungarian crown (1000 -1918) at selected points of time. The names are given in the main official language used in the Kingdom at the times in question.

For details on the functioning and development of the counties and some other administrative divisions see Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary).

Map of the counties in the Kingdom of Hungary around 1900

Notes

This article does not show all states of administrative divisions that existed throughout the centuries, only the major ones. Especially for the medieval period, various sources often give slightly different divisions. Also, the lists of the individual points of time stem from different sources so that the fist-level categorization is not necessarily compatible over time.

It is also important to bear in mind that it is more correct to translate the Hungarian counties as "comitatuses", because they were completely different from territories of British counts or German Graf.

Around 1074

Around 1074, the whole Kingdom of Hungary consisted of some 45-50 counties. The existence of many of them is disputed for this time period.

Counties

Frontier counties

The following castles are assumed to have been seats of frontier counties (marchiae, határispanságok), it is probable that other castles were such seats as well (ordered from the north to the south):

15th century

In the late 14th and in the 15th century there were around 70 counties, out of which 7(?) under the voivode of Transylvania, 7 under the banus of Slavonia and 21 completely or partly on the territory of Slovakia.

Counties

Hungary proper

Transylvania

Slavonia

Croatia

-

The Banates

  • Alba Graeca (Hungarian:Nándorfehérvári banátság)
  • Jaitza (Hungarian: Jajcai banátság)
  • Macva (Hungarian: Macsói banátság)
  • Severin (Hungarian:Szörényi banátság)
  • Szrebernik (Hungarian:Szreberniki banátság)

Special status

Hungary proper

Transylvania

Free royal towns and the mining towns (Liberae regiae civitate et civitates montanae)

Their number was changing (the mining towns were largely situated in Slovakia)

17th-18th century

Captaincies (1547 - around 1700)

In 1547, Royal Hungary was divided for military and partly also administrative purposes in two captaincies-general (Hungarian: főispánságok, Slovak: hlavné kapitanáty):

  • Cisdanubia (largely present-day Slovakia)
  • Transdanubia (the remaining Royal Hungary).

Later on, these captaincies were further subdivided, so that e. g. after 1606 there were the following captaincies-general:

  • Upper Hungary (eastern Slovakia and adjacent northeastern present-day Hungary and Carpathian Ruthenia, created 1563)
  • Cis-Danubia and the Mining Captaincy(western and central Slovakia, created 1563)
  • Between the Danube and the Balaton (Burgeland and northwastern present-day Hungary)
  • Between the Balaton and the Drava (present-day border region of Austria, Slovenia, Hungary)
  • Croatia (western Croatia)
  • Vend


Counties (17th - 18th century)

Note that many of the counties ceased to exist during the Turkish occupation (app. 1541 - 1699/1718). For administrative divisions on the Turkish territory see Ottoman Empire.

After the defeat of the Turks (around 1700) there were some 70 counties in the whole Kingdom of Hungary again. After the final defeat of the Turks in 1718, the three southern counties Temesiensis, Torontaliensis and Krassovinsis created the special administrative district Banatus Temesiensis (Hungarian: Temesi Bánság). This district was dissolved again in 1779, but its southermost part remained part of the Military Frontier (Confiniaria militaria) till the late 19th century.

The following list does not show Transylvania. The "districtus" is only a traditional formal division. Note that some of the previous counties, e. g. the Zarandiensis, were part of Transylvania at this time.

(a) Districtus Cis-Danubianus (13):

(b) Districtus Trans-Danubianus (11):

(c) Districtus Cis-Tybiscanus (10):

(d) Districtus Trans-Tibiscanus (12):

(e) Counties between the Drava and Sava (after the defeat of the Turks around 1700, they were considered part of Croatia-Slavonia):

Free districts (Circuli/Districtus liberi)

These were priviledged territories, which were totally exempt from the county system. It is possible that there were more of them, but only the following are known:

Free royal towns and the mining towns (Liberae regiae civitate et civitates montanae)

Their number was changing

Temporary administrative divisions (1785-1790)

The Kingdom of Hungary, including Croatia and Slavonia, was divided into 10 military/administrative districts:

Each district consisted of 4 to 7 counties, whose borders were changed in 1786. In 1790, the pre-1785 system was restored.

After the 1848/1849 Revolution

For details see Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary)

1849-1860

During this period, Croatia, Slavonia, the Military Frontier, Voivodina (Szerb vajdaság) and the Banatus Temesiensis (temesi bánság) were separated from the Kingdom of Hungary and directly subordinated to Vienna (Austria). The remaining territory of the Kingdom of Hungary (which did not include Transylvania at that time) was divided into 5 Districts:

These Districts were divided into counties, whose traditional territories however were modified in 1850 and 1853.

1860-1867

In October 1860, the Districts were abolished and the pre-1848 counties were restored.

1867 - 1918

Since 1867 the administrative and political divisions of the lands belonging to the Hungarian crown (Kingdom of Hungary) have been in great measure remodelled. In 1868 Transylvania was definitely reunited to Hungary proper, and the town and district of Rijeka (Fiume) declared autonomous. In 1873 part of the Military Frontier was united with Hungary proper and part with Croatia-Slavonia. Hungary proper, according to ancient usage, was generally divided into four great divisions or circles, and Transylvania up to 1876 was regarded as the fifth.

In 1876 a general system of counties was introduced. According to this division Hungary proper was divided into seven circles, of which Transylvania forms one.

The following administrative divisions existed between 1886 and 1918:

Rural Counties

In the following, the text in the brackets gives the capital towns around 1910 first (note however that the capitals were usually changing throughout the centuries) and then the abbreviation for the country in which the territory is situated today:

  1. H = present-day Hungary
  2. SK= present-day Slovakia
  3. U = present-day Ukraine
  4. A = present-day Austria
  5. ROM= present-day Romania
  6. HR = present-day Croatia
  7. SCG = present-day Serbia and Montenegro
  8. SLO = present-day Slovenia

The Kingdom of Hungary was divided into the following 71 counties:

Hungary proper

(a) The circle on the left bank of the Danube contained eleven counties:

  1. Árva (Dolný Kubín, SK)
  2. Bars (Zlaté Moravce, SK)
  3. Esztergom (Esztergom, SK, H)
  4. Hont (Šahy, SK, H)
  5. Liptó (Liptovský Mikuláš, SK)
  6. Nógrád (Balassagyarmat, SK, H)
  7. Nyitra (Nitra, SK)
  8. Pozsony (Bratislava, SK)
  9. Trencsén (Trenčín, SK)
  10. Turóc (Martin, SK)
  11. Zólyom (Banská Bystrica, SK)

(b) The circle on the right bank of the Danube contained eleven counties :

  1. Baranya (Pécs, H, HR)
  2. Fejér (Székesfehérvár, H)
  3. Győr (Győr, H)
  4. Komárom (Komárno, SK, H)
  5. Moson (Mosonmagyaróvár, H, A, SK)
  6. Somogy (Kaposvár, H)
  7. Sopron (Sopron, H, A)
  8. Tolna (Szekszárd, H)
  9. Vas (Szombathely, H, A, SLO)
  10. Veszprém (Veszprém, H)
  11. Zala (Zalaegerszeg, H, HR, SLO)

(c) The circle between the Danube and Theiss (Tisza) contained five counties:

  1. Bács-Bodrog (Sombor, H, SCG)
  2. Csongrád (Szentes, H)
  3. Heves (Eger, H)
  4. Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok (Szolnok, H)
  5. Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun (Budapest, H)

(d) The circle on the right bank of the Theiss contained eight counties:

  1. Abaúj-Torna (Košice, SK, H)
  2. Bereg (Berehove, U, H)
  3. Borsod (Miskolc, H)
  4. Gömör-Kishont (Rimavská Sobota, SK, H)
  5. Sáros (Prešov, SK)
  6. Szepes (Levoča, SK)
  7. Ung (Uzhhorod, SK, U)
  8. Zemplén (Sátoraljaújhely, SK, H)

(e) The circle on the left bank of the Theiss contained eight counties:

  1. Békés (Gyula, H)
  2. Bihar (Oradea, ROM, H) (see also Bihor)
  3. Hajdú (Debrecen, H)
  4. Máramaros (Sighetu Marmaţiei, U, ROM) (see also Maramureş)
  5. Szabolcs (Nyíregyháza, H)
  6. Szatmár (Carei, ROM, H) (see also Satu Mare)
  7. Szilágy (Zalău, ROM) (see also Sălaj)
  8. Ugocsa (Vynohradiv, U, ROM)

(f) The circle between the Theiss and the Maros contained five counties:

  1. Arad (Arad, ROM, H)
  2. Csanád (Makó, H, ROM)
  3. Krassó-Szörény (Lugoj, ROM) (see also Caraş-Severin)
  4. Temes (Timişoara, ROM, SCG) (see also Timiş)
  5. Torontál (Zrenjanin, SCG, ROM, H)

(g) Transylvania contained fifteen counties (all in present-day Romania):

  1. Alsó-Fehér (Aiud, see also Alba)
  2. Beszterce-Naszód (Bistriţa, see also Bistriţa-Năsăud)
  3. Brassó (Braşov, see also Braşov county)
  4. Csík (Miercurea Ciuc, see also Ciuc)
  5. Fogaras (Făgăraş)
  6. Háromszék (Sfântu Gheorghe, see also Treiscaune)
  7. Hunyad (Deva, see also Hunedoara (county))
  8. Kis-Küküllõ (Târnăveni)
  9. Kolozs (Cluj-Napoca, see also Cluj)
  10. Maros-Torda (Târgu Mureş, see also Mureş)
  11. Nagy-Küküllõ (Sighişoara)
  12. Szeben (Sibiu)
  13. Szolnok-Doboka (Dej)
  14. Torda-Aranyos (Turda)
  15. Udvarhely (Odorheiu Secuiesc)

Croatia-Slavonia

Croatia-Slavonia was divided into eight counties (all, except for most of Szerém, in present-day Croatia):

  1. Belovár-Körös (Bjelovar, HR)
  2. Lika-Krbava (Gospić, HR)
  3. Modrus-Fiume (Ogulin, HR)
  4. Pozsega (Požega, HR)
  5. Szerém (Vukovar, see also Srem, HR, SCG)
  6. Varasd (Varaždin, HR)
  7. Verőce (Osijek, HR)
  8. Zágráb (Zagreb, HR)

Towns with municipal rights

The following 30 Hungarian towns had municipal rights:

Hungary proper

Hungary proper had twenty-six urban counties or towns with municipal rights. These were:

Croatia-Slavonia

In Croatia-Slavonia there were four urban counties or towns with municipal rights namely:

Rijeka (Fiume)

The town and district of Rijeka (Fiume) formed a separate division. It was a subject of dispute between Hungary proper and Croatia-Slavonia and changed hands several times (its desirability as a seaport caused it to change hands even after the Hungarian-Croatian union eventually broke up).

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