Esztergom: The Cathedral, The Treasury and The Castle Museum [antikvár]

The holy hill of Hungary, the "Hungárián Sión", as it was often referred to during the country's age-old history, is none other than the Castle Hill of Esztergom, which at the same time represents the eradle of Hungárián statehood and the joining of Hungary to community of Christendom. Predestined by its natural endowments it was an important outpost and had been a cultural centre since the days of antiquity. Known as Solva to the Romans, it occupied an important position in their fortified bordér, limes, guarding the lifeline of a trade route crossing the Danube. It was in this area, in a camp set up at the confluence of the river Garam that Román Emperor Marcus Aurelius jötted down his Meditations somé time between ad 170 and 180. In the period of the Great Migrations a series of peoples - Ostrogoths, Sarmatians, Slavs and Avars - had appeared and had left behind somé trace or other. Of the successors of Chieftain Árpád who had led his people, the Magyars into the Carpathian Basin, Prince Géza - this we know for certain - had a relatively permanent settlement established atop the hill. This was where his wife, Sarolt, in 972 or 973 gave birth to their son. Prompted by a vision which had appeared in the sky, at baptism he was given the name of István or Stephen. The palace built by Prince Géza and the church adjoining it and named after St. Stephen the Protomartyr has survived, even if in ruins, to witness the dawn of the Modern Age. Another important event that took place here was the coronation of Stephen at Christmas in the year 1000 with the crown sent by Popé Sylvester 11. The newly anointed king, the very first in the long row of Hungárián monarchs, then set to work to organize the Hungárián Church piacing it under the spiritual influence of Rome. This was a momentous decision; it was a decision arrived in a buffer zone stretching between Byzantium and the Holy Román Empire, it was a decision whose effects are felt to this very day. This step taken by Stephen had led Hungary into Europe and settled it down at its life-giving source, Western Christianity. In the period prior to Stephen having made his choice Hungary had fostered friendly relations with Byzantium in the political and ecclesiastical fields alike. Stephen's true statesmanship is shown in his boldness at 7 making such a far-reaching decision. Attempts had repeatedly been made ever since - by Byzantium, the Tatars, the Turks, the Russians and more recently by the Soviets, in other words the forces representing the East - with the aim of coaxing Hungary into joining another sphere of interest, but each time the nation succeeded in staving off and surviving these endeavours. We can only guess the appearance of the palace and the town of Esztergom in the days of Stephen. Obviously it was such as corresponded to the requirements of royal representation since it actually served as the monarch's seat for more than two hundred years. As regards its other function, it has acted as the country's ecclesiastical centre up to this very day, not counting the periods of occupation of Hungary by the Turks and the Germans. What has come down and is visible of the onetime royal castle today is dated to the reign of King Béla m (1172-1196). Archaeological investigation has pointed to the existence of other buildings as well, among other things to the foundation walls of a round church, but as to their functions we can only guess. What can be stated with certainty however is that King Stephen had made liberal provisions for the royal and ecclesiastical courts and had the necessary buildings - palaces and a cathedral - erected for both himself and the archbishop. We alsó know of his decrees and laws promulgated in order to pacify his people. The Mongols who invaded Hungary in 1241-42 failed to capture the castle of Esztergom though they managed to devastate the royal town around it, together with the greater part of the country. After repeated unsuccessful attempts, the Ottoman Turks finally occupied Esztergom in 1543; this event was two years after Buda, the country's capital at the time, had fallen into their hands. In the various minor as well as major attacks launched against Esztergom in the intervening period, such as those led by Máté Csák, a local báron, the voivode Stibor (regent of Transylvania), János Zápolya, later king of Hungary, and King Ferdinánd of Habsburg, the town was robbed only of its movable properties. When the menace of the oncoming Turkish armies had threatened Esztergom, the