Stephen I, also known as King Saint Stephen, was the last Grand Prince of the Hungarians between 997 and 1000 or 1001, and the first King of Hungary from 1000 or 1001 until his death in 1038.
Background
Even though there is no surety about the exact year that Stephen was born, there are events that happened in his lifetime that make it likely that he was born in the year 975, in Esztergom north of Hungary. When Stephen was born he was named Vajk a pagan name, which he went on to change after baptism. He was the only son of his father Geza, and his mother Sarolt who were heirs of the gyulas a well-known family in the land of Hungary.
Stephen was born as Vajk, a name derived from the Turkic word baj, meaning "hero", "master", "prince" or "rich". Stephen's Greater Legend narrates that he was baptized by the saintly Bishop Adalbert of Prague, who stayed in Géza's court several times between 983 and 994.
Education
Some sources have claimed that “He was fully instructed in the knowledge of grammatical art” during his childhood, which is meant to imply that he had studied the Latin language. Even so, there has been a rise in they that oppose this notion claiming that during those times very few people including Kings could not write.
He was trained in the ways of a young Prince and later into kingship. There is certainty though that Stephen I received Christianity teachings. Like was the norm, all princes, and future Kings went ahead to receive Military and Hunting practical lessons.
This would prepare them for the challenges that lay ahead of them as heirs of the kingdom, considering the fact that they would have the responsibility of taking care of an entire kingdom, the responsibility of accommodating people of all caliber, there was need to instill a sense of discipline and wisdom in them, so they would be able to sail through and become successful Kings.
During the time that Stephen reigned, there were no formal schools, leave alone colleges. But this should not imply that he and others did not attend lessons. Of course, there were trainers, those who had been born before them and knew what was required of royalism. These are the people who would train them and give them the survival skills they needed in life.
Career
From the moment he was born, Stephen was destined for greatness. First being the only son of his parents, the only thing that lay between him and the kingship was vanity. From transitioning from paganism to Christianity, Stephen had all the determination to succeed his father even when it was indeed his cousin Koppany who was according to the Hungarian tradition the one supposed to have succeeded Stephen’s father.
When Géza died in 997, his son Stephen took a more direct action some three years later by appealing to Pope Sylvester II, asking that he be baptized and crowned Christian king of Hungary. This move reduced the possibility that the Holy Roman Emperor might assume the role of feudal lord over Hungary, making the Hungarian ruler his vassal.
Acting quickly, Sylvester II sent a bishop and a group of clergy; he also sent a crown which was slightly damaged en route. When the coronation took place on Christmas Day in the year 1000, that same crown with its bent cross was set on Stephen's head; the defect remains to this day, symbolizing the origin and function of the crown and its wearer.
Stephen was faced with great problems from all sides as he began the task of organizing, defending, Christianizing, and bringing his nation into the European fold. One of these problems was the revolt of a cousin who ruled in Transylvania. Koppàny claimed not only the throne, but the hand of Stephen's widowed mother. Immediately moving against him, Stephen finally defeated Koppàny, executing him in 1003. Then another Magyar—known only by the title Gyula—claimed the rule in Transylvania and usurped it. He too was disposed of by the new king, who was actively supported by German knights in the service of his wife/ queen, Gisela, a Bavarian princess.
Stephen established the seat of his kingdom at Esztergom, site of an old Roman settlement called Strigonium, allegedly where the Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius wrote his Meditations. He lost no time in setting up a number of bishoprics and instituting a vigorous program of Christianization of his people. Some have reported that this was accomplished through forceful means—in much the same manner as the Frankish king Clovis Christianized his pagan tribesmen in the sixth century, and the Emperor Constantine his Roman subjects in the fourth century.
Stephen I ruled for four decades. Considering that his father Géza, who began the first attempts to Christianize the Magyars, had been anything but successful, Stephen achieved nearly miraculous results, leaving a clear majority of his subjects following the new religion at his death in 1038. In addition to establishing dioceses for the propagation of the faith, Stephen established schools and churches and encouraged his nobility to endow monasteries. He also invited Jewish and Muslim traders into the kingdom to build up the economy, ordering a strict toleration of their religious practices in order to profit from their trading activities.
He sponsored the drafting and enactment of law codes for his new nation, in what appears—retroactively—to be a close adaptation of what other European monarchs of the period were accomplishing. One element that makes Stephen's legal pronouncements different from the others is that he sought, with some degree of success, to prevent Hungary from becoming a theocratic protectorate. The laws were Christianized versions of Magyar customs and traditions; they reflected the need of his people as much as the requirement for order.
He allied himself with the Byzantine emperor, Basil II, in his battle with the Bulgarian ruler John Vladislav in 1018, the results of which action saw the establishment of pilgrimage routes to Jerusalem through Constantinople. In later years, Stephen's treatment of Bulgarian prisoners was humane and considerate and led to a satisfying relaxation of tensions between the two kingdoms. This was especially fruitful when the German emperor Conrad II launched attacks against the western parts of Hungary in 1030. Since he didn't have to worry about his eastern and southern flanks, Stephen was able to concentrate his forces and defeat the Germans in the west, forcing their withdrawal.
Stephen's personal life included a series of tragedies. His only son Imre (Emeric), who enjoyed a reputation for virtue and valor, died in what has been reported as a hunting accident (killed by a "wild boar"). But Stephen Sisa, in his book The Spirit of Hungary, alleges that the death was a successful assassination attempt by the Thonuzoba family, who were resisting conversion to Christianity. Sisa points out that the term, thonuzoba, means "wild boar" in the language of the Petcheneg (a pre-Christian steppe-dwelling people, some of whom settled in Transylvania). Because he had led an exemplary life and was well-loved by the Hungarian peoples who had accepted Christianity, Imre was canonized in the late 11th century, at about the same time as his father.
Stephen died on 15 August 1038. He was buried in the basilica of Székesfehérvár. His reign was followed by a long period of civil wars, pagan uprisings and foreign invasions. The instability ended in 1077 when Ladislaus, a grandson of Vazul, ascended the throne.
Stephen I went down in history as king of Hungary, who went from pagan tribal leader to Christian leader of a powerful nation in the space of one generation and left a remarkable imprint on the history of Europe and the world. Stephen has always been considered one of the most important statesmen in the history of Hungary. His main achievement was the establishment of a Christian state that ensured that the Hungarians survived in the Carpathian Basin, in contrast to the Huns, Avars and other peoples who had previously controlled the same territory.
He was canonized by Pope Gregory VII, together with his son, Emeric, and Bishop Gerard of Csanád, in 1083. Stephen is a popular saint in Hungary and the neighboring territories. In Hungary, his feast day (celebrated on 20 August) is also a public holiday commemorating the foundation of the state.
Religion
Stephens’s strong Christian values are undisputable. Being born a pagan never held him back from turning his ways and becoming baptized and later on becoming a devoted Roman catholic.
He believed that everybody in his kingdom was under the obligation to become a Christian. Actually, there was no option apart from Christianity. He would destroy all those who still held up to paganism.
During his reign, there was a notable rise in Church construction, with the setting up of Dioceses throughout the larger part of Hungary. He is said to have captured regions and built dioceses in each area he captured.
His passion for Christianity was unstoppable, he has been quoted as saying: “If someone has such a hardened heart—God forbid it to any Christian—that he does not want to confess his faults according to the counsel of a priest, he shall lie without any divine service and alms like an infidel. If his relatives and neighbors fail to summon the priest, and therefore he should die unconfessed, prayers and alms should be offered, but his relatives shall wash away their negligence by fasting in accordance with the judgment of the priests. Those who die a sudden death shall be buried with all ecclesiastical honor; for divine judgment is hidden from us and unknown.”
Politics
In a series of wars against semi-independent tribes and chieftains—including the Black Hungarians and his uncle, Gyula the Younger—he unified the Carpathian Basin. He protected the independence of his kingdom by forcing the invading troops of Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor, to withdraw from Hungary in 1030.
Stephen established at least one archbishopric, six bishoprics and three Benedictine monasteries; thus the Church in Hungary developed independently of the archbishops of the Holy Roman Empire. He encouraged the spread of Christianity with severe punishments for ignoring Christian customs. His system of local administration was based on counties organized around fortresses and administered by royal officials. Hungary, which enjoyed a lasting period of peace during his reign, became a preferred route for pilgrims and merchants traveling between Western Europe and the Holy Land or Constantinople.
By appointing people to ensure the implementation of his policies he ensured the success of Hungary during his reign.
Views
He believed in peace with his reign having received commendation for being the most peaceful that ever was in Hungary. He encouraged his people to work hard to make their living conditions favorable.
Quotations:
"Be humble in this life, that God may raise you up in the next. Be truly moderate and do not punish or condemn anyone immoderately. Be gentle so that you may never oppose justice. Be honorable so that you may never voluntarily bring disgrace upon anyone. Be chaste so that you may avoid all the foulness of lust like the pangs of death."
"Be obedient to me, my son. You are a child, descendant of rich parents, living among soft pillows, who has been caressed and brought up in all kinds of comforts; you have had a part neither in the troubles of the campaigns nor in the various attacks of the pagans in which almost my whole life has been worn away."— Stephen's Admonitions to his son, Emeric.
Personality
He was empathetic. When his son Emeric whom he had wanted to be his successor died, it is said that he mourned him for many days, and even wrote down quotes for him. Dedication and determination defined this man, who was wise and intuitive enough to devise escape routes during difficult moments. He was unstoppable and energetic. He always achieved what he set out to do.
Physical Characteristics:
There has not been a mention to show what he looked like, but according to his diverse actions, we can only conclude that he was calm looking, probably with a smiling but reassuring face and kind looking eyes.
Quotes from others about the person
As Bryan Cartledge emphasizes, Stephen also gave his kingdom "forty years of relative peace and sound but unspectacular rule".
Connections
Stephen married Gisela, a daughter of Duke Henry the Wrangler of Bavaria, who was a nephew of Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor. Gisela's mother was Gisela of Burgundy, a member of the Welf dynasty. Born around 985, Gisela was younger than her husband, whom she survived. She left Hungary in 1045 and died as Abbess of the Niedernburg Abbey in Passau in Bavaria around 1060.
Although the Illuminated Chronicle states that Stephen "begot many sons", only two of them, Otto and Emeric, are known by name. Otto, who was named after Otto III, seems to have been born before 1002. He died as a child.
Emeric, who received the name of his maternal uncle, Emperor Henry II, was born around 1007. His Legend from the early 12th century describes him as a saintly prince who preserved his chastity even during his marriage.
Father:
Géza of Hungary
(c. 940 – 997)
He was Grand Prince of the Hungarians from the early 970s.
Mother:
Sarolt
(c. 950 – c. 1008)
She was wife of Géza, Grand Prince of the Hungarians.
Spouse:
Blessed Gisela of Hungary
(985 – 7 May 1065)
She was the first queen consort of Hungary by marriage to Saint Stephen of Hungary, and the sister of Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor.
Son:
Otto
Son:
Saint Emeric
(1007 – 2 September 1031)
He was the son of King St. Stephen I of Hungary and Giselle of Bavaria.
