Bukovina

Bukovina is a historical region at the crossroads of Central and Eastern Europe. It is located on the northern slopes of the central Eastern Carpathians and the adjoining plains, today divided between Romania and Ukraine. It is inhabited mainly by Romanians (in southern regions) and Ukrainians (in northern regions). Settled throughout history by various cultures and peoples, it became part of the Kievan Rus' in the 10th century, but the region was also affected by Pechenegs and Cumans. Consequently, the culture of the Kievan Rus' spread in the region, that belonged to the Principality of Halych. During the time of the Golden Horde, namely in the 14th century, Bukovina became part of the Principality of Moldavia, that was under the suzerainty of the medieval Kingdom of Hungary. In that region, the capital of Moldavia, Suceava, was founded. According to the Moldo-Russian Chronicle, the Hungarian king Vladislav (Ladislaus) asked the Old Romans (i.e. Byzantines) and the New Romans (i.e. Vlachs) to fight the Tatars. During the same event, it writes that Dragoș was one of the New Romans. Eventually, Dragoș dismounted Moldavia named from a river (Moldova River) flowing in Bukovina. During a Vlach revolt in Bukovina against Balc, Dragoș's grandson, Bogdan the Founder joined the revolt and deposed Balc, securing independence from the Kingdom of Hungary. In 1497, at the Battle of the Cosmin Forest, Stephen III of Moldavia defeated the much-stronger but demoralized army of King John I Albert of Poland. The battle is known in Polish popular culture as "the battle when the Knights have perished". After the Russo-Ottoman Treaty of Küçük Kaynarca (21 July 1774), the Habsburg Monarchy captured the region in October 1774. Under the Austro-Ottoman Convention of Pera (7 May 1775), the region that came to be known as Bukovina was officially ceded to the...