The Hungarian Crown and Other Regalia [antikvár]

o matter how far we go back in the history of mari, sovereign power has always had distinctive signs which, assuming a constant character, be-came symbols. The great period for symbols was the Middle Ages when every office, function or duty had its symbols, the ceremóniái conferring of which onto the holder was an important part of his inauguration. That is what occured on conferring the highest worldly power, that of the king, during corona-tion. The foundation of the world order of the Middle Ages was the precept that all power came from God. Therefore its conferring onto the ruler took place through the mediation of the Church, the coronation being performed by her prelates. The most important parts of the ceremony were the royal oath, the consecration of the king, the anointing with holy oil, the conferring of the symbols representing royal power and the seating on the throne. The rulers of Christian Europe were inaugurated essentially according to the same liturgy, the ceremonies set down in writing show no significant differences as to the symbols. Among the coronation insignia handed down to posterity from the Middle Ages, one of the most complete sets is the Hungárián, which has survived in excellent condition. According to the traditional ceremony, practised with changes from the age of King Stephen on it is only the ring, the arm straps and somé less important parts of the attire that are now missing. Naturally, the most important insignum is the crown itself which, with the mantle, represents the distinctive attire, the chief ornament of the ruler. "It symbolizes the glory and honour of holiness to rule infinitely among the glorious knights who are adorned by the gems of virtues and crowned with the reward of eternal happiness " runs the ordinatio at the point when the crown is being placed on the ruler's head. As the sceptre is handed over, the prelate has to say "take the rod of virtue and justice". The sword symbolizes the right and duty of the king to wield the power of justice, protect the Church and its followers and destroy the enemies of Christianity. The orb, which is a version of the symbol representing the globe of antiquity, surmounted with the cross, symbolizes power over the universe. The grave furniture of King Béla III, who was buried in 1196, contains, in addition to the pieces corresponding to the surviving regalia, a bracelet, a ring, a pair of spurs and a relic holder worn around the neck. The finds in the grave of a king buried regio more, (in the ruler's ornament) gives us a complete inventory of the coronation symbols used in Hungary in the twelvth century. (The spear still existing in the period of Saint Stephen will be discussed below.) There is a specifically Hungárián element which obviously contributed to the careful preservation of the coronation symbols. In Western Europe the anointing was the most important moment of coronation, but in Hungary the symbols—primarily the crown—and two other circumstances were of crucial importance. The precept which was valid for the entire Middle Ages was stated in the fifteenth century by Helene Kottanner, the nurse of Ladislas V (who herself had an important role in the history of the crown): " the Hungarians have three laws and if any one is not kept to, the person in question is not held to be a lawful king. One law is that the king of Hungary must be crowned with the Holy Crown. The second is that he must be crowned by the Archbishop of Esztergom. The third is that the coronation is to take place in the city of Alba [Fehérvár]." n