Stephen (I) from the kindred Ákos (; died 1315) was an influential baron in the Kingdom of Hungary in the late and the early . He was born into an ancient Hungarian clan. He was a staunch supporter of Andrew III of Hungary. He served as Judge royal between 1298 and 1300, and Palatine of Hungary from 1301 to 1307.
Establishing a province in Borsod County, he was among the so-called oligarchs, who ruled de facto independently their dominions during the era of feudal anarchy. He built the Diósgyőr Castle, the centre of his domain. Initially, he was a partisan of Wenceslaus after the extinction of the Árpád dynasty, but later acknowledged Charles' claim to the throne and gradually retired from politics. After his death in 1315, his sons rebelled against Charles and their dominion had collapsed in the subsequent years.
Life and career Early years He was the only son of Ernye Ákos who held several offices during the reigns of Béla IV, Stephen V and Ladislaus IV. Ernye belonged to the ancient and prestigious gens (clan) Ákos, but originated from its lesser branch, which had some landholdings in Bihar County. During Béla's reign, he elevated into the most powerful barons due to his military successes. He retained his influence between the anarchic conditions under Ladislaus' rule. When Stephen was born in the early 1260s, his father was already a prominent landowner in Borsod County, who built Dédes Castle and possessed large-scale estates in the region. The so-called Ernye branch rose to prominence due to its paterfamilias' influence and aptitude. Stephen's uncles were Albert the Great (Master of the horse from 1270 to 1272 and Ban of Severin in 1272), and Erdő II. One of his cousins was Mojs I, who functioned as Count of the Székelys in 1291.Engel: Genealógia (Genus Ákos 3., Erne branch)
Stephen Ákos was first mentioned in 1281, when already reached adulthood. At that time he was ispán, or head, of Borsod and Gömör Counties. In the 1280s, he was a close supporter of Ladislaus IV of Hungary. According to a royal charter's narratio, Stephen spent his youth in the royal court, performing various services and earning merit. Stephen participated in the royal campaign against the rebellious Finta Aba in mid-1281. He was present at the siege of Gede Castle (present-day Hodejov in Slovakia), according to his own charter from 1284. During the action, he was captured and imprisoned for a short time. He recovered his liberty after a ransom of 60 marks was paid by his familiaris Albert Szuhai. Stephen Ákos also fought against the rebellious Cumans in the battle at Lake Hód (near present-day Hódmezővásárhely) in 1282 and participated in the siege of Borostyánkő (now Bernstein in Austria) at the end of the year, which was held by the Kőszegis. The Kőszegis resisted, forcing Ladislaus to lift the siege in early 1283.
It seems, Stephen lost political influence at the royal court and his promising career has stalled after 1283. There is no record of royal land donations and he did not hold any specific offices in these years. His biographer, historian Péter Kis considers Stephen voluntarily retired from the royal court to manage his growing possessions in Borsod County, which became the basis of his future's domain.
Andrew's partisan
As a royal charter formulates from 1298, Stephen Ákos belonged to the "familiares" of Andrew III of Hungary since his arrival to Hungary in early 1290. The king made Stephen the queen's treasurer in 1293. He held the dignity until the death of Andrew's first spouse Fenenna of Kuyavia in 1295. Albeit Stephen was considered a strong pillar of the royal power, Andrew III did not support his all efforts. For instance, when Andrew, Bishop of Eger complaint to the king in 1296 that Stephen had unlawfully seized the bishopric's two estates (Cserép and Kisgyőr), King Andrew permitted him to launch a lawsuit in any court. Beside his activity in Hungary, Stephen established interests in the Kingdom of Bohemia too, already in the early 1290s. He provided assistance to Wenceslaus II to conquer the Duchy of Kraków. As a result, Thasso de Vissinburg, Wenceslaus' viceroy as captain of Kraków and Sandomierz, donated two estates called Wirvitzy (possibly Wierzbica) beyond the river Vistula to Stephen in August 1294. Stephen remained a supporter of Wenceslaus' efforts in Kraków. Therefore, captain Vocco donated the right of stone transport and other privileges (tax exemption) in the aforementioned region to Stephen in 1300.
Stephen was appointed Judge royal in the summer of 1298, serving in this capacity at least until August 1300 (but it is also presumable that he held the dignity until Andrew's death in early 1301). The importance of the position had deteriorated by then, since Hungary was in a state of constant anarchy during the second half of Andrew's reign. While Stephen Ákos' dignity became a symbolic position and a "prey" in the feudal civil wars, when various groups of barons fought each other, his deputy, the vice-judge royal, as the monarch's personally appointed confidential expert, elevated into an effective judicial role. For instance, when Stephen Ákos acted as Judge royal, his "deputy" Stephen issued more documents in cases of litigation proceedings, than him. In 1298, vice-judge royal Stephen still used his nominal superior's seal, but by 1300, he adopted his own seal. Stephen Ákos was the last Judge royal during the era of the Árpád dynasty. Thereafter the position was in a state of vacancy for a decade, when the Kingdom of Hungary had disintegrated into autonomous provinces ruled by powerful oligarchs.
Andrew held an assembly of the prelates, noblemen, Saxons, Székelys, and Cumans in Pest in the summer of 1298. Its decrees authorized Andrew to destroy forts built without permission and ordered the punishment of those who had seized landed property with force, but also threatened Andrew with excommunication if he did not apply the decrees. After the close of the diet, Andrew entered into a formal alliance with five influential noblemen – Amadeus Aba, Stephen Ákos, Dominic Rátót, Demetrius Balassa and Paul Szécs – who stated that they were willing to support him against the "rebellious lords", which term definitely covered Matthew Csák and the Kőszegi family. Only Stephen Ákos' contract had been preserved. Andrew committed himself that he will support Stephen and his kinship in their efforts and will make peace with the rebellious lords only with the consent of Stephen Ákos. In response, Stephen accepted Andrew as his "natural lord" and swore an oath that will defend his king against his all opponents, even against the Pope. According to the treaty, he had a friendly relationship with Demetrius Balassa, another ally of Andrew III. Through his unidentified daughter, Stephen also related to Dominic Rátót, who established a dominion in the neighboring Nógrád County with his brothers and cousins. The Rátót and Ákos provinces cut off the expanding Csák domain from the royal lands, while Stephen Ákos and Dominic Rátót also received royal support to defend their landholdings and to isolate the Csáks and the Kőszegis from each other. Thereafter Stephen Ákos was a member of the royal council and acted in various occasions alongside his allies, who also concluded their alliance with Andrew.
In response to Andrew's newly formed league, a group of powerful lords —including the Kőszegis, Matthew Csák and Roland Borsa — urged Charles II of Naples to send his grandson, the 12-year-old Charles Robert, to Hungary in order to become king, according to the Illuminated Chronicle. The young prince disembarked in Split in August 1300, supported by most Croatian and Slavonian lords. However, the Kőszegis and Matthew Csák were shortly reconciled with Andrew, preventing Charles' success. Historian Attila Zsoldos argued Andrew III entered into a new feudal contract with the barons in the summer of 1300: Matthew Csák and Ivan Kőszegi became "perpetual" Palatines and Andrew accepted their suzerainty over their provinces, while the king's two most powerful partisans, Amadeus Aba and Stephen Ákos were also granted this privilege. In addition to them, two co-palatines of the previous year, Roland Rátót and Apor Péc also received the title as a counterweight, according to Zsoldos' theory. Therefore, the historian considers Stephen already bore the dignity of Palatine in the last regnal year of Andrew.
A loyal oligarch Andrew III died on 14 January 1301. With his death, the House of Árpád became extinct. Stephen Ákos referred to Andrew as "the last golden branch" of the tree of King St Stephen's family, years after the king's death. According to his narration, the people of the realm, regardless of social status, mourned their lord, as "Rachel wept for her children". A civil war between various claimants to the throne—Charles of Anjou, Wenceslaus of Bohemia, and Otto of Bavaria—followed Andrew's death and lasted for seven years. Hungary had disintegrated into about a dozen independent provinces, each ruled by a powerful lord, or oligarch. Among them, Matthew Csák dominated the northwestern parts of Hungary (which now form the western territories of present-day Slovakia), Amadeus Aba controlled the northeastern lands, the Kőszegis ruled Transdanubia, James Borsa dominated Tiszántúl, and Ladislaus Kán governed Transylvania. Stephen Ákos was the de facto ruler of Borsod and Gömör counties, his small dominion wedged between the extensive empires of Matthew Csák and Amadeus Aba.
Historian Attila Zsoldos draws a distinction between the "oligarchs" (e.g. Matthew Csák and the Kőszegis) and "provincial lords" (e.g. Ugrin Csák) regarding the role of the royal power in the provincial administration. Alongside Amadeus Aba or Ladislaus Kán, Stephen Ákos exercised sovereign rights in his domain but remained loyal to the kings, and never rebelled against Andrew III or Charles I. Therefore, Zsoldos refers to him as a "loyal oligarch".