Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary - Significance of St. Stephen To Hungarians

Significance of St. Stephen To Hungarians

The order is the namesake of Hungary’s most famous king, Stephen I (969 – 1038), whose reign (997 – 1038) was marked by his consolidation of power among the various ethnic groups in Hungary, and for his adoption of Christianity as the state religion. His coronation, as recognized in the Church, dated 1001. He died on August 15, 1038, during the Feast of the Assumption. Canonized by Pope Gregory VII in 1083 along with his son Imre (who preceded him in death, after a hunting accident, 1031) and Bishop Gerhard of Hungary, St. Stephen is the patron saint of "Hungary, kings, the death of children, masons, stonecutters, and bricklayers." Though its exact provenance is somewhat disputed, the Crown of St. Stephen is said to have been a gift from Pope Silvester II, upon Stephen’s 1001 coronation.