Magnates and their honours · Kingdom of Hungary · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Kaplon kindred

The kindred of the Szatmár plain and the Avas (Oaș) hills.

Their kin monastery is the Benedictine house of St Martin at Kaplony, dated by one historian to 1080 from a lost charter of 1195 and by others to the mid-twelfth century. By the end of the twelfth century they held the greater part of the Avas forest. Some historians think they arrived only when the Szatmár castle district was set up, about 1100. Károly (Carei), their later seat, is theirs only from the later thirteenth century.

Who he is

Name
No head named for 1200. Andrew I, son of Joshua (died before 1219), is the member nearest the date; Christopher of the kindred is King Emeric's bailiff (pristaldus) in 1203
Title
Kindred (nemzetség) of free landholders
Since
not pinned
Born
not pinned
Family
Named after Kaplon, by Anonymus a son of the chieftain Kond who settled the Nyírség. Joshua (active about 1150-1180) held a share of Vada; his son Andrew I's widow and sons Simon I and Michael were at law with the Szatmár castle folk over Vada (1219). Later lines: Károlyi, Vetési, Bagossy.
Confidence
medium

English Wikipedia (Kaplon (genus)).

Overlord

King Emeric.

What it holds

  • Kaplony with the kindred's Benedictine monastery of St Martin.
  • A share of Vada, north-west of Károly (Joshua's, about 1150-1180).
  • The greater part of the Avas forest (Oaș) by the end of the twelfth century.

How it was acquired

Hereditary (tradition) or grants about 1100 (Németh).

Allies and rivals

At law with the Szatmár castle folk over Vada (1219).

How things stand that morning

Holds Kaplony and the Avas forest as its own; serves the king (a member is Emeric's bailiff in 1203).

Wealth

Forest, pasture and the monastery's lands.

Military

Retainers only.

Places of note

  • Kaplony abbey: Benedictine monastery of St Martin, the kindred's house.

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: Monastery and Avas holdings are on record; individual tenure in 1200 rests on dated members either side.

On the map: Approximate blocks.

Primary sources for Hungary

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

4 more in the sources library for Poland, Hungary and the Adriatic.

Sources and studies

  1. Kaplon (genus) (English Wikipedia)

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.