By Alexandru Madgeadru
Ephemeris Napocensis, Vol.11 (2001)
Introduction: For medieval man, salt was a strategic resource as important as iron and gold. Control over salt resources and trade was an important aspect of medieval politics and warfare, particularly in the case of nomadic horsemen. It may explain, for example, the conquest of Translyvania by the Magyars in the early 10th century, as well as the conflict between King Stephen of Hungary and Duke Achtum of Banat in the early 11th century. The latter was started because Achtum took control over the salt traffice of the Mures valley. True or false, these assertions recorded by the medieval Hungarian sources reveal the place of salt it the early medieval warfare and economy.