Rebellion and Vata's Mob
András (Andrew), Béla and Levente were the sons of Vazul, cousin of Saint Stephen. During the reign of Samuel Aba, they had fled the country in fear of their lives, Béla to Poland and András and Levente to Kiev. In 1046, András and Béla returned to Újvár (today: Abaújvár) in Hungary from their exile and quickly gained popular support to the throne, especially among the pagan populace, despite the fact that András was Christian (Levente had remained pagan). On their return, a rebellion began, which András and Levente initially supported.
During this rebellion, a pagan noble named Vata (or Vatha) gained power over a group of rebels who wished to abolish Christian rule and revert to paganism. According to legend Vata shaved his head in the pagan fashion, leaving three braids remaining, and declared war on the Christians. A slaughter of priests and Christians by Vata's mob ensued.
King Peter is said to have fled towards Székesfehérvár, where he was killed by the rebellious townspeople, and András, as the oldest brother, pronounced himself king. As András and Levente's men moved towards Pest, the bishops Gellért (Ital. Gerard), Besztrik (Hung. Beszteréd, Slovak Bystrík) Buldi (Hung. Bőd) and Beneta gathered to greet them.
In Pest, on September 24, the bishops were attacked by Vata's mob, who began stoning the bishops. Buldi was stoned to death. As the pagans threw rocks at him, Gellért repeatedly made the sign of the cross, which further infuriated the pagans. Gellért was taken up Kelenhegy hill, where he was put into a cart and pushed off a cliff, onto the banks of the Danube. Besztrik and Beneta managed to flee across the river, where Besztrik was injured by pagans before they could be rescued by András and Levente. Only Beneta survived.
Gellért was later canonized for his martyrdom and the hill from which he had been thrown was renamed Gellért Hill. Now in central Budapest, the hill has a monument on the cliff where Gellért, now a patron saint of Hungary, was killed.
Read more about this topic: Vata Pagan Uprising
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