An episode from the Legend of Saint Ladislaus provided the subjects for numerous murals painted in medieval churches in Hungary during the 14th to 16th century.
An episode from the Legend of Saint Ladislaus provided the subjects for numerous murals painted in medieval churches in Hungary during the 14th to 16th century.
Ladislaus I of Hungary was a chivalrous king in Hungary in the 11th century. Before becoming the ruler, together with his brother Géza, and king Solomon of Hungary, he fought in Transylvania against armies of Pechenegs and Cumans invading from the steppes. In the story illustrated by the murals, at the Kerlés battlefield Ladislaus observed that à Petscheneg warrior tried to abduct a Hungarian girl. The royal saint pursued and overcame the warrior and liberated the girl. The battle of the Christian king symbolises the victory of Christianity over paganism. The legends of King Saint Ladislaus have been written about by chroniclers and depicted in various ways in the visual arts. Frescoes and paintings of the legend can be found on the walls of many medieval Hungarian churches. [1] [2]
The sequence of the events portrayed is generally similar all over the churches in medieval Hungary.
Archaeologist Gyula László collected the documents of fifty churches all around the Carpathian basin, where mural had been painted in medieval churches in Hungary. Some of them had been demolished (for example the churches at Homoródszentmárton and Homoródokland), but some of them had been copied in 19th century sketches by József Huszka. These are preserved in the National Heritage Protection Office in Hungary.
Most of the murals were painted during the reigns of Charles I of Hungary, Louis I of Hungary, and Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor. During their period of rule Saint Ladislaus became the ideal of the ruler kings therefore these kings chose their burying-place at the cathedral of Nagyvárad.
Before Gyula László, Géza Nagy suggested that an ancient Eurasian myth is behind the Christianized mural painting. The old myth is expressed by the fight between the two heroes representing light and darkness. In the literature the ballad of Anna Molnár also is related to the Saint Ladislaus legend. [3]
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. The year of his birth is uncertain, but many details of his life suggest that he was born in, or after, 975, in Esztergom. He was given the pagan name Vajk at birth, but the date of his baptism is unknown. He was the only son of Grand Prince Géza and his wife, Sarolt, who was descended from a prominent family of gyulas. Although both of his parents were baptized, Stephen was the first member of his family to become a devout Christian. He married Gisela of Bavaria, a scion of the imperial Ottonian dynasty.
Ladislaus I, also known as Saint Ladislas, was King of Hungary from 1077 and King of Croatia from 1091. He was the second son of King Béla I of Hungary and Richeza of Poland. After Béla's death in 1063, Ladislaus and his elder brother, Géza, acknowledged their cousin Solomon as the lawful king in exchange for receiving their father's former duchy, which included one-third of the kingdom. They cooperated with Solomon for the next decade. Ladislaus's most popular legend, which narrates his fight with a "Cuman" who abducted a Hungarian girl, is connected to this period. The brothers' relationship with Solomon deteriorated in the early 1070s, and they rebelled against him. Géza was proclaimed king in 1074, but Solomon maintained control of the western regions of his kingdom. During Géza's reign, Ladislaus was his brother's most influential adviser.
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