Arms and Armour

Giorgio Basta

Giorgio Basta (Albanian: Gjergj Basta) also known as Count of Huszt or Gheorghe Basta (1550 – 1607) was an Italian general, diplomat, and writer of Arbëreshë Albanian origin, employed by the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II to command Habsburg forces in the Long War of 1593–1606. He was later sent to administer Transylvania as an Imperial vassal and to restore Catholicism as the dominant religion in the region. On his orders, his ally Michael the Brave, who ruled Transylvania, Wallachia, and Moldavia, was assassinated on 9 August 1601, a few days after the common victory at the Battle of Guruslău, for trying to turn against Rudolf II. For this, he is often depicted as disloyal and violent by Romanian and Hungarian historians. Basta was also the author of books on the art of military leadership.

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See also

• ▸Gusuku
• ▸Fridtjof Nansen Land
• ▸Battle of Lincoln (1217)

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