of his father's hereditary domain of _Transylvania_,
having no control over any portion of Hungary proper.

Somewhat to the disappointment of Ferdinand, the old monarch immediately
married a young bride. A son was born to them, and in fourteen days
after his birth the father died of a stroke of apoplexy. The child was
entitled to the viceroyship of Transylvania, while all the rest of
Hungary was to pass unincumbered to Ferdinand. But Isabella, the
ambitious young mother, who had married the decrepit monarch that she
might enjoy wealth and station, had no intention that her babe should be
less of a king than his father was. She was the daughter of Sigismond,
King of Poland, and relying upon the support of her regal father she
claimed the crown of Hungary for her boy, in defiance of the solemn
compact. In that age of chivalry a young and beautiful woman could
easily find defenders whatever might be her claims. Isabella soon
rallied around her banner many Hungarian nobles, and a large number of
adventurous knights from Poland.

Under her influence a large party of nobles met, chose the babe their
king, and crowned him, under the name of Stephen, with a great display
of military and religious pomp. They then conveyed him and his mother to
the strong castle of Buda and dispatched an embassy to the sultan at
Constantinople, avowing homage to him, as their feudal lord, and
imploring his immediate and vigorous support.

Ferdinand, thus defrauded, and conscious of his inability to rescue the
crown from the united forces of the Hungarian partisans of Stephen, and
from the Turks, condescended also to send a message to the sultan,
offering to hold the crown as his fief and to pay to the Porte the same
tribute which John had paid, if the sultan would support his claim. The
imperious Turk, knowing that he could depose the baby king at his
pleasure, insultingly rejected the proposals which Ferdinand had
humiliated himself in advancing. He returned in answer, that he
demanded, as the price of peace, not only that Ferdinand should renounce
all claim whatever to the crown of Hungary, but that he should also
acknowledge the Austrian territories as under vassalage to the Turkish
empire, and pay tribute accordingly.

Ferdinand, at the same time that he sent his embassy to Constantinople,
without waiting for a reply dispatched an army into Hungary, which
reached Buda and besieged Isabella and her son in the citadel.

He pressed the sieg