Familia nobililor Cândea / Lupşai de Lupșa din comitatul Turda (1366-1590)
The Noble Family Cândea / Lupșai of Lupșa From Turda County (1366–1590)

Summary/Abstract: The Cândea (Kende) or Lupșan (Lupsai, Lwpsay) family of Lupșa, from the Arieș Valley, is the most prominent family of Romanian nobles of knezial origin in Turda County during the 14th–16th centuries. Having converted to Catholicism before 1366, the knezes of Lupșa obtained recognition of their noble status at the highest level of the Hungarian Kingdom that year, with the help of the Catholic Chapter of Alba Iulia. Nonetheless, for a long time, their relations with the village community retained the traditional knezial character, which was also typical of other Romanian nobles originating from knezes.The nobles of Lupșa were forced to engage in lengthy conflicts and lawsuits to defend their ancestral estate against their formidable neighbours in the area: the nobles of Rimetea (Trascău), the privileged townspeople of Baia de Arieș, and sometimes even their own protectors, the Chapter of Alba Iulia. They fortified and expanded their holdings through regular participation in military campaigns of the period and by exploiting the valuable metals within Lupșa's boundaries. From the second half of the 15th century onwards, through marriages within the neighbouring nobility and by relocating some family members to other localities, the Lupșa family gradually assimilated into the predominantly Hungarian and Catholic nobility of the region.

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