Editing Ajtony (section)

{{Short description|11th century ruler of Banat}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
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{{History of Banat}}
'''Ajtony''', '''Ahtum''' or '''Achtum''' ({{langx|hu|Ajtony}}, {{langx|bg|Охтум}}, {{langx|ro|Ahtum}}, {{langx|sr|Ахтум}}) was an early-11th-century ruler in the territory now known as [[Banat]] in present [[Romania]] and [[Serbia]]. His primary source is the ''[[Long Life of Saint Gerard]]'', a 14th-century [[hagiography]]. Ajtony was a powerful ruler who owned many horses, cattle and sheep and was baptised according to the [[Eastern Orthodox Church|Orthodox]] rite in [[Vidin]]. He taxed salt which was transferred to King [[Stephen I of Hungary]] on the [[Mureș River]]. The king sent [[Csanád]], Ajtony's former commander-in-chief, against him at the head of a large army. Csanád defeated and killed Ajtony, occupying his realm. In the territory, at least one [[County (Kingdom of Hungary)|county]] and a [[Roman Catholic]] [[diocese]] were established.

Historians disagree on the year of Ajtony's defeat; it may have occurred in 1002, 1008 or between 1027 and 1030. His ethnicity is also a subject of historical debate; he may have been [[Hungarians|Hungarian]], [[Kabars|Kabar]] or [[Pechenegs|Pecheneg]].