Julius I Kán

Julius (I) from the kindred Kán (Hungarian: Kán nembeli (I.) Gyula; died 1237) was a powerful Hungarian baron and landowner, who held several secular positions during the reign of kings Emeric, Ladislaus III and Andrew II. He was the ancestor of the gens Kán which originated from Baranya County.

Julius I married to the unknown surname Helena (died before 1250). They had two sons, by name Ladislaus I, who served as palatine (1242–1244/5), and Julius II, master of the cupbearers (1222–1228).

His name was first mentioned by records as voivode of Transylvania in 1201. Besides voivodeship he also functioned as ispán (comes) of Fehér County. He held the office of judge royal between 1202 and 1204, besides that he was the ispán of Csanád (1202–1203) and Nyitra Counties (1204).

After the death of Ladislaus III, he became an ardent admirer of Andrew II. He served as ispán of Sopron County in 1205. After that he was appointed ispán of Bodrog County in 1206, a position which he held until 1212. Between 1212 and 1213, he again became judge royal, besides that he received the manor of Bács County as ispán. In 1213, he was appointed ban of Slavonia and ispán of Vas County. One year later, he became voivode of Transylvania for the second term, besides that he functioned as ispán of Szolnok County.

Julius I Kán was appointed palatine of Hungary, the second-highest secular office after the king in 1215 and held the position until 1217. According to a non-authentic charter he also functioned as palatine in 1218. He also served as ispán of Sopron County in 1215. During Andrew II's Fifth Crusade (1217–1218), Julius could not prevent the emergence of anarchical conditions, as a result he lost his political influence for a short time.

He regained his former influence, as he was appointed ban of Slavonia and ispán of Somogy County in 1219. He served as ispán of Szolnok and Bodrog Counties from 1220 to 1221. In 1221, he became a member of the queen's court, as the master of the treasury and judge royal for Queen Yolanda de Courtenay. One year later he was appointed palatine for the second time (1222–1226) and ispán of Bodrog County (1222–1224). He served as ispán of Sopron County between 1224 and 1226. This latter position was also held by Julius from 1228 to 1230. For the third time, he functioned as ban of Slavonia between 1229 and 1235. Meanwhile, he held the position of judge royal for the queen, secondly, in 1232.

After the death of Andrew II (1235), he had been disgraced and was imprisoned by the new king, Béla IV of Hungary. He died in captivity in 1237. Julius I founded the Nekcseszentmárton (Martin, Croatia) estate of the Knights Templar.

The above career is consistent and gapless, thus can refer to a single person, nevertheless it is not free from doubts: it may arise, that Julius during the rule of Emeric was a different person from Julius, baron of Andrew II, because of the political-historical conditions (prince Andrew rebelled against his older brother's reign). However this theory is can be eliminated by the possibility that Julius was also a secret supporter of prince Andrew, as many others.

It is neither reassuring that Julius' career began with too high positions, without the introductory section of smaller offices. Historian Mór Wertner identified all occurring Julius with the person from the kindred Kán during the first decades of the 13th century, unless he had no reason to act differently. In contrast, János Karácsonyi gave an overview about Julius I Kán's career from the year of 1219, when he was already easily distinguishable from Julius I Rátót, judge royal (1219–1221; 1235–1239) and voivode of Transylvania (1229–1231).

• Engel, Pál (2001). The Realm of St Stephen: A History of Medieval Hungary, 895-1526. I.B. Tauris Publishers. ISBN 1-86064-061-3.
• (in Hungarian) Markó, László (2006). A magyar állam főméltóságai Szent Istvántól napjainkig – Életrajzi Lexikon ("The High Officers of the Hungarian State from Saint Stephen to the Present Days – A Biographical Encyclopedia") (2nd edition); Helikon Kiadó Kft., Budapest; ISBN 963-547-085-1.
• (in Hungarian) Zsoldos, Attila (2011). Magyarország világi archontológiája, 1000–1301 ("Secular Archontology of Hungary, 1000–1301"). História, MTA Történettudományi Intézete. Budapest. ISBN 978-963-9627-38-3