Saint Stephen (997-1038) was Hungary’s first Christian monarch, credited with establishing the modern medieval Christian state of Hungary. He consolidated his power by defeating internal rivals and forming a strategic alliance through marriage to a daughter of a powerful Bavarian family. His father-in-law and brother-in-law ruled the Holy Roman Empire for over two decades, giving him the time he needed to strengthen his reign and organise the state and church. Remarkably, an authentic image of Saint Stephen can be viewed at the Hungarian National Museum.
A troubled history
Most Hungarian artworks from the Middle Ages were destroyed during the Ottoman conquest and the subsequent wars of the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries. However, a few notable exceptions, such as the coronation regalia, have survived. Thanks to the Royal Crown Guard, despite German occupation and the brutal rule of the Hungarian Nazis led by Ferenc Szálasi in the final months of World War II, …