The Island - Saint Margaret and the Dominicans (new exhibition in Budapest)

A new temporary exhibition opened at the Budapest History Museum, dedicated to St Margaret and the Dominican monastery on Margaret Island. The story and fate of Saint Margaret, the thirteenth-century saintly princess, has always captured the imagination of people interested in history. The exhibition offers visitors a selection of artifacts never before exhibited anywhere. The occasion for the exhibition is the 750th anniversary of Margaret's death in 2020, and the fact that in the last two decades our knowledge of the religious institution that was the home of the young princess of the Árpád dynasty has increased considerably. This is primarily thanks to the research of Eszter Kovács, who passed away in 2018 and who had carried out several small-scale excavations in the area of the Dominican monastery. This is how the fragments of wall paintings, probably dating from the 14th and 15th centuries, were found, which are on display for the first time in this exhibition.

Margaret, the daughter of King Béla IV, was born in 1242 at the time of the Mongol invasion.  We know that she was brought up as a child in the Dominican monastery in Veszprém, which had been founded shortly before, and at the age of 10, she was transferred to the monastery on Margaret Island, which her parents had built. During her canonization process, the testimonies of her contemporaries, recorded in 1276, tell of her dedicated, sacrificial, and self-sacrificing lifestyle, her unending faith in Christ, and the miracles that took place in her life and at her tomb. Margaret's role model was her aunt, the sister of Béla IV, St Elizabeth of Hungary, who was canonized as early as 1235.

Despite all attempts and royal support, Margaret's canonization was not achieved in the Middle Ages. It was her brother, Stephen V, who was the first to attempt this: but neither he, nor Ladislas IV, nor their successors from the House of Anjou were successful. We don't know exactly when she was elevated to the Blessed, but there are many records of this from the 15th century and we also know of many medieval depictions of Margaret. Her cult in Hungary developed soon after her death: she was buried in front of the main sanctuary of the Dominican church, and later an ornate white marble sarcophagus was made for her body, with reliefs depicting her miraculous deeds. Based on her oldest legend and the canonization records, further versions of the legend were written, and a Hungarian-language version was produced at the end of the Middle Ages. The veneration of St Margaret has been almost unbroken over the centuries. Her relics and bones were taken to Pozsony (Bratislava) by the nuns in the 16th century to escape the Ottoman threat. Most of the bones were lost in the 18th century, but perhaps her most famous relic, her penitential belt, has survived, and its ornate reliquary box and an authentic replica of the medieval object can also be admired in the exhibition. Also on display is the funerary crown of King Stephen V (Margaret's brother), also buried on Margaret Island, from the collection of the Hungarian National Museum, the discovery of which in 1838 marked the start of systematic excavations of the monastery ruins.

Funerary crown of King Stephen V (Hungarian National Museum)

Thanks to the excavations, the extent of the former monastery and its church is well-known, and it has been possible to reconstruct the most important phases of its construction. Among the spectacular results of the recent research are the fragments of wall paintings, most of which can now be seen by the public for the first time thanks to the restoration work of Eszter Harsányi. Wall paintings have been found in several parts of the monastery, including the small room where the staircase leading from the monastery to the nuns' choir was located in the late Middle Ages. The colorful pieces of plaster fragments preserving halos and faces hint at the relationship of St Margaret and her fellow nuns to images: her legend describes the role of Calvary images and other representations in her prayer and contemplation. 

Imitation marble painting from the monastery building

Ignác Roskovics: Saint Margaret (for the Royal Palace)

When the nuns were forced to flee from the Ottoman attacks in the sixteenth century, the monastery complex became abandoned. It was only used during sieges, for example as a field hospital during the recapture of Buda in 1686. The greatest destruction, however, was not caused by the wars, but by the landscaping of the island in the 19th century, when the owner of the area, Archduke Joseph of Austria, had it turned into an English garden. Like so many other monuments of the Hungarian Middle Ages, our image of the Dominican monastery on Margaret Island must be pieced together from small fragments. The current state of research on Saint Margaret and her cult was presented at a conference organized jointly by the Apostolic Congregation of the Dominican Sisters, the Károli Gáspár Reformed University, and the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, while the Budapest History Museum has collected the material relics essential for the reconstruction. The exhibition will allow us to recall the figure of Saint Margaret and the monastery where she spent most of her life and which became the center of her cult.

The curator of the exhibition is Ágoston Takács. This text is based on the speech I gave at the opening of the exhibition on November 17, 2022. The exhibition is on view until March 19, 2023.

Zsombor Jékely speaking at the opening ceremony - Photo by Magyar Kurír

New Websites on Saint Ladislas

The reliquary of Saint Ladislas from Várad cathedral, early 15th century (Győr, Cathedral) 

2017 has been declared the Saint Ladislas (László) memorial year, to mark the 940th anniversary of Saint Ladislas (1077-1095) becoming the king of Hungary and the 825th anniversary of his canonization. One of the most popular Hungarian saints, Ladislas was the embodiment of the ideal Christian knight. He was canonized in 1192; his feast day is June 27.

Ladislas I belonged to the Árpád dynasty and was the son of King Béla I and the Polish princess Richeza. He was born around 1040 in Poland and ascended the throne of the Hungarian kingdom in 1077 after decades of internal power struggle within the newly founded Christian monarchy. He died in 1095, and the two decades of his rule brought consolidation and relative peace, which was further preserved with the introduction of several new laws regarding the protection of private property and the judiciary system. The new cathedrals (Várad [Oradea] and Zagreb) and monasteries he founded, along with the canonization of his predecessors, King Stephen I and his son Emeric in 1083, strengthened the position of Christianity in the country.  He died in 1095 and was buried at the cathedral of Várad. After the death of Ladislas, many healing miracles were associated with him and his burial place, and as a result, he was officially canonized in 1192, and shortly thereafter at the beginning of the thirteenth century his legend was written. Várad became the center of his cult and his head relics were put on display there in a marvelous reliquary bust. Apart from individual cult images, the most characteristic medieval depiction of Ladislas shows him in the 1068 battle of Kerlés against the Petchenegs (Cumans), in which Ladislas saved an abducted Hungarian girl. The painted narrative of this heroic struggle is found on the walls of countless Hungarian churches as well as in manuscripts. After the cathedral of Várad was destroyed during the Reformation and the Turkish wars, the relics of Ladislas were transported to Győr (1607), where they are kept today. A number of popular stories and legends are associated with his name, and László is still a popular given name in Hungary.

 The battle of Saint Ladislas with the Cuman, initial from the Illuminated Chronicle
 (Budapest, National Széchényi Library) 

The memorial year of 2017 provided an opportunity for numerous conferences, smaller exhibitions and a variety of other events, which are listed on the Facebook page of the year. Now as the year is coming to a close, the results of other projects carried out in the framework of the memorial year have also become available. I would like to call attention to two new websites, which provide further information about Saint Ladislas and his cult.  

Bögöz (Mugeni), frescoes of the church, with the Legend of Saint Ladislas in the top row

The website dedicated to Saint Ladislas, the knight king features various locations from Hungary and Transylvania with a connection to the Holy ruler. At the time of the launch, 44 locations connected to the history and legend of Saint Ladislas are featured. The project is an ongoing one, and will be developed to include other regions from within the Carpathian Basin. The website, which is available in English and Romanian as well, features a number of important medieval churches which are either dedicated to Saint Ladislas, or contain his depictions. It provides information and photos about the monuments, as well as practical information for visitor of the route of Saint Ladislas. There is even a route planner, where you can select medieval wall paintings, for example. The information provided about medieval monuments is well-researched and the image galleries provide great material on the churches. You may want to have a look at Bögöz (Mugeni), Gelence (Ghelinţa) or perhaps Türje - or just keep browsing.

http://www.knightking.org/

Detail of the Legend of Saint Ladislas at Homoródkarácsonyfalva (Crăciunel)

The other website, titled Szent László, focuses only on medieval paintings depicting the Legend of Saint Ladislas, more specifically the story of his battle against the invading Cumans, and the rescue of an abducted Hungarian girl. The painted cycle of this battle is perhaps the most significant contribution of medieval Hungary to the common heritage of the European Middle Ages. The complex and extensive cycle appeared within a short time all over the territory of the Kingdom, and was especially common in wall painting. For well over a century – during the reign of the Angevin kings Charles Robert and Louis the Great, as well as their successor, Sigismund of Luxemburg – the cycle was the most popular painted narrative in Hungary. If we count surviving monuments today, as well as a few examples only known from 19th century copies, we know just about 45 cycles of wall paintings with this narrative – and there are several other documented examples which have disappeared from the walls of churches. This website - developed by the Arany Griff Association (Odorheiu Secuiesc, Romania) - aims to collect images of these painted cycles. So far, they provide information on and photos of 32 painted cycles, which makes it the most comprehensive website on the legend. You can find images of the painted cycles from all over the territory of the medieval Kingdom of Hungary. 

http://www.szentlaszlo.com/

Detail of the Legend of Saint Ladislas at Szepesmindszent (Bijacove)

New medieval history books from CEU Press

Ever since the Department of Medieval Studies has been established at the Central European University (Budapest) in the early 1990s, CEU Press has been publishing a number of important books on medieval subjects. Most of these books are dedicated to the medieval history of East Central Europe. The series of Central European Medieval Texts made important primary sources from this region available in English translation. CEU Medievalia, on the other hand, is a series largely dedicated to publications by members of the Department. A couple of new books have recently been published in these two series.


The latest book is dedicated to one of the founders of the Department, Gábor Klaniczay:


Promoting the Saints Cults and Their Contexts from Late Antiquity until the Early Modern Period. Essays in Honor of Gábor Klaniczay for His 60th Birthday. Eds. Ottó Gecser, József Laszlovszky, Balázs Nagy, Marcell Sebők, Katalin Szende (CEU Medievalia - CEU Press, 2010). For the contents, click here.

Another new volume, the 13th in the CEU Medievalia series is a monograph on a long-neglected subject: Zsolt Hunyadi: The Hospitallers in the Medieval Kingdom of Hungary, c. 1150–1387  (CEU Press, 2010). For more information, click here.

The fifth volume in the Central European Medieval Texts Series has also just been published: Anonymus and Master Roger [Central European Medieval Texts Series Volume V]. Ed. János M. Bak, Martyn Rady, László Veszprémy (CEU Press, 2010). For more information on the book and the series, click here.

This book, along with János Bak's collected studies (János M. Bak: Studying Medieval Rulers and Their Subjects: Central Europe and Beyond (Variorum Collected Studies Series). Ed. Balázs Nagy, Gábor Klaniczay. Ashgate, 2010) will be presented on November 10 at the Department of Medieval Studies at CEU. For an invitation and the detailed program, click here. For other medieval history books published or distributed by CEU Press, see here.

The CEU Medievalia series and the Central European Medieval Texts Series are both available from Amazon (click on the covers below for more information).