Ján Zápolský očami súčasníkov i následovníkov

This paper presents a portrayal of Ján Zápolský the man, based on historical documents and literary output. Zápolský, the only king on the Hungarian throne (from 1526 to 1540) to come from what is nowadays Slovakia, is one of the most contradictory figures in Hungarian and Slovak history. He was de iure elected Hungarian king, but Ferdinand I of Habsburg also had a claim to the throne based on hereditary arrangements, resulting in an insoluble situation which led both men to act in a way that only exacerbated the entire marasmus brought about at the time primarily by Oæoman incursions and their influence on the territory.