Stephen I

King of Hungary (r. 997-1038)

• Born: 975
• Birthplace: Esztergom, Hungary
• Died: August 15, 1038
• Place of death: Alba Regia (now Székesfehérvár), Hungary

Stephen I zealously spread the Christian faith to his largely pagan people, taking a great interest in the welfare of the poorest of his subjects and establishing numerous churches and monasteries both at home and abroad to place Christianity at the center of Hungarian life.

Early Life

Stephen was born with the name of Vajk at Esztergom, Hungary, to Géza, the fourth duke of the Hungarians, and Sarloth (or Sarolta). Stephen was baptized by the renowned missionary to the Hungarians, Saint Adalbert, bishop of Prague, the man responsible for converting his father to Christianity. Adalbert educated young Stephen in the mysteries of the Christian faith, a religion with few Hungarian adherents. Stephen was also strengthened in the faith by his tutor, Count Theodatus, whose piety mirrored that of Adalbert. Together these men impressed on Stephen that by taking Christianity as its guide, a pagan and therefore ungodly nation could be transformed into a nation dedicated to peace and inner harmony.

Both Adalbert and Theodatus believed that Stephen had the potential to lead his country by applying Christian principles, and great time and effort were therefore given to his education. When Géza died in 997, Stephen became duke and assumed leadership of the state and its army. An able military leader who deplored bloodshed and prayed that his soldiers would not harm the enemy, Stephen made peace with neighboring states. By establishing a peaceful relationship with others, Stephen was able to make missionary work, which he had seen Adalbert doing in Hungary, his chief preoccupation. He gathered a band of itinerant ministers of the gospel to preach to anyone who would listen to their message. In their company, Stephen traveled extensively throughout his dukedom, proclaiming God’s liberation of humankind through Jesus’s death on the cross at Jerusalem. Such proclamations, Stephen hoped, would convert the pagans to Christianity and free them from their bondage to superstition and fear.

Stephen’s efforts in converting the masses to Christianity were so successful that a number of pagan chieftains were angry with him and discussed making war on Stephen’s entourage. The most important of these chieftains, Koppány, took action and attacked Stephen’s forces at the town of Veszprém. Stephen’s army, though badly outnumbered by Koppány’s forces, was able to rout and kill many pagan troops. Koppány was captured and executed, thus ending the most serious threat to Stephen’s attempt to impose his religion on unbelievers. In celebration of this impressive victory, Stephen founded a monastery, which became widely known throughout Christendom as Martinsberg, in honor of Saint Martin. Subsequently, Stephen invited many holy men from surrounding countries not only to visit but also to live permanently at Martinsberg and help him establish the Christian religion as the nation’s singular faith.

Life’s Work

As a result of his victory against Koppány, Stephen was crowned king of Hungary. Moreover, the title he bore was not merely “king” but “apostolic majesty.” To his subjects, he became known as Stephen, the apostle of Hungary. He was crowned on August 15, 1000, by Pope Sylvester II. The pope admired Stephen’s dedication to the Vatican and included him among the preferred monarchs, on whom many favors were bestowed. At the time of his coronation, Stephen dedicated his kingdom to Mary, the Blessed Virgin, the patroness of Hungary, and made veneration of her a centerpiece of the Catholic faith in that country.

As king, Stephen took his high office seriously and worked from the outset of his reign to change Hungary into a humane, Christian kingdom where the dignity of the individual was of central importance. He created a new constitution, which survived into the twentieth century, that advocated and promoted Christian standards of conduct and provided for punishment of those who violated the strictures. At Alba Regia, Stephen built a great church that was to serve as the burial place of all Hungarian kings and a center of national religious life. He built another imposing monastery, named for Saint Peter and Saint Paul, in the city of Buda, and created the Church of Saint Stephen in Rome near the inn he constructed for Hungarian pilgrims. Under his guidance, many smaller churches and monasteries were established throughout Hungary.

In a politically significant move, Stephen married Gisela, sister of the German king and emperor-to-be, Henry II, known as Saint Henry. Henry was an administrative genius who divided his German territory into counties to be administered by people he appointed. By so doing, he made certain that the provinces were ruled by the monarchy rather than the often-rapacious local gentry. Applying these ideas and others given to him by Henry II, Stephen did much to bring order to his kingdom, which added to his popularity. In near-total control of the kingdom, Stephen was not only able to make pagan religious observances and practices illegal but was also empowered to put an end to the lawlessness that had been the hallmark of pre-Christian Hungary. Murder, robbery, assault, and other crimes were punished severely, and impiety and acts against the newly established church received ferocious punishment.

On a few occasions, Stephen had to resort to the threat of warfare in order to safeguard his kingdom from incursions by neighboring states. One marauder who brought his army into Hungary was Stephen’s cousin, the prince of Transylvania, who, after being defeated in battle, divested of his lands, and taken prisoner, was released unharmed on the condition that he allow Christianity to be preached in his domain. Stephen’s kingdom was also confronted by Bulgarian forces, who mysteriously retreated without fighting, which Stephen attributed to his prayers to God for protection against bloodshed. In general, however, Stephen ruled over a tranquil kingdom that was unblemished by large-scale war or threats of war. His constitution, which guaranteed the rights of citizens, proved to be a sound basis for a society, for Hungary flourished under its protection. Stephen was well loved by his people, who regarded him as an ideal monarch.

The latter part of Stephen’s reign, however, was marred by personal tragedy. All of his children died of various conditions, including his much-relied-on eldest son, Emeric (Imre), who had greatly assisted Stephen in governing the kingdom. After the death of Henry, Stephen again had to contend with the possibility of war, this time the invasion of Hungary by the Germans under Henry’s successor, Conrad II . Stephen was said to have again prayed to God that there would be no conflict, and, as in the past, the invader did an about-face and retreated to its territory. No blood had been spilled. This seeming miracle added to Stephen’s reputation as a saintly king who had a close relationship with God.

At the end of his life, Stephen was the object of a murder plot created by knights who wanted to usurp his power. The plot was not carried out because the man who was to strike the killing blow against Stephen fell to his knees and begged the king’s forgiveness. He was forgiven, but his fellow conspirators were executed. Stephen, reminded by this murder attempt that his life was coming to a close, commended his kingdom to the care of the Virgin Mary and was then given the last rites of the Catholic Church. He died on August 15, 1038, having reigned over Hungary for a remarkable forty-one years. His remains were enshrined by request of Saint László I, the king of Hungary (r. 1077-1095), within the latter’s own chapel at Buda. Stephen was later canonized by Pope Benedict IX.

Significance

Stephen I was a ruler who did much for his country during his long and relatively peaceful period of rule. One of his most illustrious achievements from a historical perspective was that he created the nation of Hungary from an assortment of miniature states. Without Stephen’s unifying genius and the guidance from Henry II, Hungary may have remained a divided nation or fallen under the sway of more powerful neighboring states. As an administrator, Stephen devised a fair, comprehensive, and consistent constitution that endured for many centuries. As an apostle, he succeeded in spreading Christianity throughout his kingdom. Not only did Stephen preach Christian ideals, but he also put them in practice in his daily life, even to the extent of washing the feet of the poor people whom he invited to his palace. His unusual degree of sympathy for the poor helped make him a widely popular and beloved king.

Stephen is perhaps most important as a source of national pride for Hungarians during the past ten centuries, for he was one of the most humane, resourceful, and brave monarchs of his time. His humility, love of peace, hatred of impiety, and compassion for the least fortunate members of society make him one of history’s most admirable figures.

Árp´d Kings of Hungary, c. 896-1301

Reign

• Ruler

c. 896-907

• Árp´d

d. 947

• Zsolt

d. 972

• Taksony

997

• Géza

997-1038

• Saint Stephen (István) I

1038-1041

• Peter Orseleo

1041-1044

• Samuel

1044-1046

• Peter (second rule)

1047-1060

• Andrew I

1060-1063

• Béla I

1063-1074

• Salamon

1074-1077

• Géza I

1077-1095

• Saint László (Ladislas) I

1095-1116

• Kalman

1116-1131

• Stephen II

1131-1141

• Béla II

1141-1162

• Géza II

1162-1163

• László II

1163-1172

• Stephen III

1163-1165

• Stephen IV

1172-1196

• Béla III

1196-1204

• Imre

1204-1205

• László III

1205-1235

• Andrew II

1235-1270

• Béla IV

1270-1272

• Stephen V

1272-1290

• László IV

1290-1301

• Andrew III

Bibliography

Engel, Pál. The Realm of St. Stephen: A History of Medieval Hungary, 895-1526. Translated by Tamás Pálosfalvi. Edited by Andrew Ayton. New York: I. B. Tauris, 2001. A comprehensive study of the history of Hungary during the time of Stephen through the sixteenth century. Explores the economic, social, political, cultural, and military history of the Magyars. Written especially for readers with little or no knowledge of the region and time period. Maps, tables, bibliography, index.

Englebert, Omer. The Lives of the Saints. Translated by Christopher Freemantle and Anne Freemantle. New York: D. McKay, 1951. A good summary of how Stephen extended the power of the Catholic Church in Europe, especially Eastern Europe, where the Church felt it needed to assert its authority.

Head, Thomas, ed. Medieval Hagiography: An Anthology. New York: Garland, 2000. Presents a collection of biographical sketches about Stephen. Includes an introduction by the editor, a guide to further reading, and a general bibliography.

Hoyt, Robert S. Europe in the Middle Ages. 3d ed. New York: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1976. Discusses Stephen’s successes as short-lived, destroyed by the inept kings who followed him. Illustrations, bibliography, index.

Kosztolnyik, Z. J. Hungary Under the Early Árpáds, 890’s to 1063. Boulder, Colo.: East European Monographs, 2002. A historical survey of the House of Árpád, which includes Stephen as king. Discusses the early years of the Magyars, their migrations and settlement patterns, military campaigns, and more. Genealogical tables, maps, bibliography, index.

Lázár, István. Hungary: A Brief History. Translated by Albert Tezla. 6th ed. Budapest: Corvina Press, 2001. Presents a brief but concise history of Hungary, from its beginnings during the days of Árpád (Stephen’s predecessor) through the twentieth century. Maps, index.

Lendavi, Paul. The Hungarians: A Thousand Years of Victory in Defeat. Translated by Ann Major. Princeton, N.J.: Princeton University Press, 2003. Comprehensively traces the history of the Hungarians from the Magyars’ entry into the Carpathian region in the 890’s to the end of the Cold War in the late twentieth century. Includes a summary, maps, chronology, bibliography, and an index.

Poulet, Dom Charles. A History of the Catholic Church. Edited by Sidney A. Raemers. 2 vols. St. Louis, Mo.: B. Herder, 1941-1943. Vol. 1 presents a still-useful and solid discussion of Stephen’s struggles and ultimate victory against pagans and paganism. Bibliography.

Thurston, Herbert, and Donald Attwater, eds. Butler’s Lives of the Saints, Complete Edition. 1956. Reprint. Vol. 3. Westminster, Md.: Christian Classics, 1990. Extensive discussion of how Stephen I made Hungary a thoroughly Christian country, with special emphasis on his saintly character and his application of the Christian virtues to his dealings with the poor and disenfranchised. Bibliography.

Watkins, Dom Basil, ed. The Book of Saints: A Comprehensive Biographical Dictionary. 7th rev. ed. New York: Continuum, 2002. An informative assessment of the major accomplishments of Stephen I that places him within the context of the Europe of his time. Brief bibliography.