WAaron the Tyrant or Aron Vodă, sometimes credited as Aron Emanoil or Emanuel Aaron, was twice the Prince of Moldavia: between September 1591 and June 1592, and October 1592 to May 3 or 4, 1595. He was of mysterious origin, and possibly of Jewish extraction, but presented himself as the son of Alexandru Lăpușneanu, and was recognized as such in some circles. His appointment by the Ottoman Empire followed an informal race, during which candidates engaging in particularly exorbitant bribery and accepted unprecedented increases of the haraç. Though resented by the Janissaries, he was backed by a powerful lobby, comprising Solomon Ashkenazi, Edward Barton, Hoca Sadeddin Efendi, and Patriarch Jeremias II. Victorious but heavily indebted, Aaron allowed his creditors to interfere directly in fiscal policy, while adopting methods of extortion against the taxpaying peasantry. He eventually turned against the bankers, staging the execution of Bartolomeo Brutti.
WLuca Arbore or Arbure was a Moldavian boyar, diplomat, and statesman, several times commander of the country's military. He first rose to prominence in 1486, during the rule of Stephen III, Prince of Moldavia, to whom he was possibly related. He became the long-serving gatekeeper of Suceava, bridging military defense and administrative functions with a diplomatic career. Arbore therefore organized the defense of Suceava during the Polish invasion of 1497, after which he was confirmed as one of Moldavia's leading courtiers.
WUdrea Băleanu, also known as Băleanul, Banul Udrea, or Udrea of Băleni, was a Wallachian and Moldavian statesman and military commander. He was especially noted as a key supporter, and alleged uncle, of the unifying Prince Michael the Brave, serving under his command in the Long Turkish War. In the early stages of Michael's revolt against the Ottoman Empire, Băleanu drove the Wallachian military forces into Rumelia, relieving Nikopol. He served as Ban of Oltenia, then commanded supporting contingents in the 1599 campaign to annex Transylvania. The following year, Michael employed him as one of his four regents in Moldavia, and also made him commander of the Moldavian army, with the title of Hetman. This assignment made Băleanu a direct enemy of the Movilă dynasty, which claimed the Moldavian throne, and of the Movilăs' backers in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
WBanul Mărăcine or Mărăcină, common rendition of Barbu III Craiovescu, Barbu Mărăcine or Barbu Basarab, was a historical figure in Wallachia, who claimed the title of Prince. He was one of several Craiovești pretenders to the throne, a category which also included his father, Preda Craiovescu. Mărăcine himself entered historical record in 1532, when, as an opponent of Prince Vlad VI, he had his estate confiscated. He returned to favor later that year, with the crowning of Vlad Vintilă de la Slatina. Like Preda before him, Mărăcine served as Ban of Oltenia, becoming the last of his family to hold that title. According to various accounts, he turned against his new lord, from organizing armed resistance in Oltenia to involving himself in Vlad Vintilă's assassination. He was able to maintain his position following the crowning of Radu Paisie, but was eventually toppled by the latter in mid 1535.
WNeagoe Basarab V, was the Voivode (Prince) of Wallachia between 1512 and 1521. Born into the boyar family of the Craioveşti as the son of Pârvu Craiovescu or Basarab Țepeluș cel Tânăr, Neagoe Basarab, who replaced Vlad cel Tânăr after the latter rejected Craioveşti tutelage, was noted for his abilities and competence.
WBogdan III the One-Eyed or Bogdan III the Blind was Voivode of Moldavia from July 2, 1504 to 1517.
WCostea Bucioc or Coste Băcioc was a Moldavian statesman, commander of the military forces, and father-in-law of Prince Lupu (Vasile) Coci. He began his political career in the 1580s, emerging in the late 1590s as an ally of the Movilești dynasty, with then-Prince Ieremia Movilă advancing him to the post of Clucer. From 1601, he was Constantin Movilă's Paharnic, receiving from him the estate of Deleni and other villages around Hârlău, which formed part of a Bucioc domain that also extended into Bukovina and Bessarabia. Together with the Movilești, he became one of the great landowners of his generation, and one of the first Moldavian boyars known to have owned serfs. Some of his assets went into refurbishing Râșca Monastery, of which he was patron, or ktitor.
WMarcu Cercel, also known as Marco Cercel, Marcu-Vodă, or Marco-Voevod, was a Wallachian adventurer who served as Prince of Moldavia in July–September 1600. His father, Petru Cercel, was Prince of Wallachia in the 1580s, and alleged son of Pătrașcu the Good. This probably meant that Marcu was a nephew of Michael the Brave, who in 1599–1601 managed to control Wallachia, Moldavia, and the Principality of Transylvania, making Marcu his representative or regional co-ruler. It is not precisely known who Marcu's mother was, but she was likely Turkish and related to the Köprülüs; she may be the same as Lady Stanca, who went on to marry Aaron the Tyrant, also Prince of Moldavia.
WPetru II Cercel, was a Voivode (Prince) of Wallachia from 1583 to 1585, legitimate son to Pătrașcu cel Bun and alleged half-brother of Mihai Viteazul. A polyglot and a minor figure as a poet, Petru is noted for having written his verses in Tuscan.
WDoamna Chiajna (1525–1588) was a Princess consort of Wallachia. She was married to Mircea the Shepherd. She was regent in Wallachia in 1559–1575.
WAnastasie Crimca was a Moldavian Eastern orthodox clergyman, as well as a calligrapher, illuminator, and writer.
WDoamna Stanca was the wife of Michael the Brave. Tradition says that they were married in the Proieni church, Vâlcea County, in 1584.
WIacob Heraclid, born Basilicò and also known as Iacobus Heraclides, Heraclid Despotul, or Despot Vodă, was a Greek Maltese soldier, adventurer and intellectual, who reigned as Prince of Moldavia from November 1561 to November 1563. He is remembered as a pioneer of the Protestant faith in Eastern Europe, a champion of Renaissance humanism, and a founder of academic life in Moldavia. Active within the Greek diaspora in several countries, he was a student of Hermodorus Lestarchus, and worked as a scribe alongside his cousin, Iakobos Diassorinos. Heraclid forged his genealogy several times, claiming to be a member of the Branković dynasty; he was more reliably related to the Byzantine nobility in Rhodes, and claimed the titular lordship of Samos. In the late 1540s and early '50s, he studied medicine at the University of Montpellier, and married a local. A duelist and alleged infanticide, Heraclid fled over the border with the Holy Roman Empire before he could be executed for murder. He was slowly won over by the Reformation, serving the Protestant princes of the Upper Saxon Circle.
WBaron István Jósika de Branyicska or Ștefan Jósika was a Hungarian noble in the Principality of Transylvania, who served as Chancellor of Transylvania from Autumn 1594 to August 1598. He was the ancestor and first prominent member of the Baron Jósika de Branyicska family.
WAndronikos Kantakouzenos, also known as Mihaloğlu Derviş, was an Ottoman Greek entrepreneur and political figure, primarily active in Wallachia and Moldavia. He was the son of Michael Kantakouzenos Şeytanoğlu, a powerful merchant of the Ottoman Empire, executed by Murad III in 1578. Forced to honor his father's outstanding debt, and briefly imprisoned as a galley slave, he rebuilt the fortune through commerce and political intrigues. In the 1590s, he was continuing his father's involvement as kingmaker for both Wallachia and Moldavia, acting as patron for a succession of Hospodars: Stephen the Deaf, Petru Cercel, Aaron the Tyrant and Peter the Lame all benefited from his financing. From 1591, he involved himself directly in the administration of both countries. Integrated within Moldo–Wallachian boyardom, he was Vistier, and then the first-ever Ban of Oltenia to be appointed directly by the Ottomans.
WRadu IV the Great, was a Voivode (Prince) of Wallachia from September 1495 to April 1508. He succeeded his father, Vlad Călugărul, who was one of the three brothers to Vlad III the Impaler. He was married to Princess Catalina Crnojević of Zeta, daughter of Andrija Crnojević. The marriage was arranged by her uncle Ivan Crnojević, Prince of Zeta after her father's death. Radu was succeeded by his first cousin Mihnea cel Rău, son to his uncle Vlad Țepeș.
WRuxandra Lăpușneanu was a princess consort of Moldavia by her marriage to Alexandru Lăpușneanu in 1564. Ruxandra was the daughter of Peter IV Rareș and Princess Jelena Branković. From 1568 until 1570 she was regent in Moldavia on behalf of her son Bogdan IV of Moldavia.
WMaria Christina of Austria, was a Princess of Transylvania by marriage to Sigismund Báthory, and for a period in 1598 elected sovereign Princess regnant of Transylvania.
WMichael the Brave was the Prince of Wallachia, Prince of Moldavia (1600) and de facto ruler of Transylvania (1599–1600). He is considered one of Romania's greatest national heroes. Since the 19th-century Michael was seen by nationalists as a symbol of Romanian unity, as under his reign was the first time when all principalities inhabited by Romanians were under the same ruler.
WMihnea II Turcitul was Prince (Voivode) of Wallachia between September 1577 and July 1583, and again from April 1585 to May 1591.
WMilica Despina was the Princess consort of Wallachia by marriage to Neagoe Basarab. She was regent of Wallachia from 1521 to 1522, on the behalf of her son Teodosie of Wallachia. In later years she became a nun, and took the name Platonida.
WMircea the Shepherd, in Romanian Mircea Ciobanul, was the Voivode of Wallachia three times: January 1545 –16 November 1552; May 1553–28 February 1554 ; and January 1558–21 September 1559.
WAlexandru II Mircea was a Voivode or Prince of Wallachia from 1568 to 1574 and 1574 to 1577. He was the father of Mihnea II Turcitul. His parents were Mircea III Dracul and Maria Despina. Raised by the Turks in Istanbul, he hardly knew his country of origin before gaining the throne of Wallachia.
WMoise was a Voivode (Prince) of Wallachia from January or March 1529 to June 1530, son of Vladislav III. His rule marks the willingness of the boyars to compromise, in order to prevent rules like that of Basarab VI - in which the Ottomans appointed the Prince and profited of his submission.
WIeremia Movilă, was a Voivode (Prince) of Moldavia between August 1595 and May 1600, and again between September 1600 and July 10, 1606.
WNicolae Pătrașcu, Petrașco, or Petrașcu, also styled Nicolae Vo[i]evod, was the titular Prince of Wallachia, an only son of Michael the Brave and Lady Stanca, and a putative grandson of Pătrașcu the Good. His early childhood coincided with Michael's quick rise through the ranks of boyardom, peaking in 1593, when Michael became Prince and Nicolae his heir apparent. As he began a quest to emancipate Wallachia from the Ottoman Empire, Michael used his son as a party to alliances with the Holy Roman Empire and the Principality of Transylvania, proposing him as either a hostage or a matrimonial guarantee. While entering the Long Turkish War on the Christian side, Michael also negotiated a settlement with the Ottomans, again offering Nicolae as a guarantee.
WNicolaus Olahus ; 10 January 1493 – 15 January 1568) was the Archbishop of Esztergom, Primate of Hungary, and a distinguished Catholic prelate, humanist and historiographer.
WPătrașcu the Good, was a ruler of the principality of Wallachia, between 1554 and 24 December 1557, one of many rulers of Wallachia during the 16th century. A member of the House of Drăculești, he was the son of Radu Paisie.
WPeter the Younger was the Voivode (Prince) of Wallachia between 25 September 1559 and 8 June 1568. The eldest son of Mircea the Shepherd and Doamna Chiajna, his named "the Young" because, at the moment of crowning, he was only 13.
WRadu of Afumați was Voivode (Prince) of Wallachia between January 1522 and January 1529. He began his reign with a victory against Mehmed-bey, a pretender to Wallachia's throne. From 1522 to 1525 he battled the Turks, who supported Vladislav III and Radu Bădica, both claimants of the throne. The inscription on his tombstone lists 20 battles. He was killed by decapitation on 2 January 1529 near Râmnicu Vâlcea, at Cetățuia Church. He was later buried in the Curtea de Argeș Cathedral.
WRadu VII Paisie, also known as Radu vodă Măjescul, Radu vodă Călugărul, Petru I, and Petru de la Argeș, was Prince of Wallachia almost continuously from June 1535 to February 1545. A man of uncertain origins, he depicted himself as an heir to the House of Basarab and the Drăculești, the son of Prince Radu the Great and half-brother of Vlad Vintilă and Radu of Afumați. The scholar Nicolaus Olahus partly supported this account and further claimed that Paisie was his own cousin. The descent is endorsed by some modern historians, whereas others suggest that Paisie was a regular member of the boyar class, or even a fishmonger. He is known to have been a monk of the Wallachian Orthodox Church before his coronation.
WCatherine Salvaresso, or Ecaterina Salvaresso was a princess consort of Wallachia. She was married to Alexandru II Mircea and was the mother of Mihnea Turcitul. She was the regent of Wallachia during the minority of her son from 1577 until 1583.
WVlad VI of Wallachia was the voivode [prince] who ruled Wallachia between June 1530 and September 1532. He has been historically referenced as Vlad Înecatul ["Vlad the Drowned"], as a description of the manner of his death.
WDoamna Maria Voichița was a Princess consort of Moldavia (1480–1511), daughter of Radu III the Handsome and a niece of Vlad the Impaler. She was regarded to have an influence upon the policy of her spouse, Prince Stephen III of Moldavia, whom she married in 1478.