When Bratislava was the capital of Hungary

A review of "Korunovacne Slavnosti Bratislava 1563-1830" 

This is a book in Slovak about the time when Bratislava, the national capital of modern Slovakia, was the “coronation capital” of the Kingdom of Hungary. At the time, Bratislava was known as Pozsony, Pressburg or Posonium. With two exceptions, all Hungarian monarchs were crowned here from 1563 to 1830. All of them were simultaneously rulers of Austria. Many were also Holy Roman emperors (in effect, German rulers). All belonged to the house of Habsburg. I think it's safe to say that both Germany and Austria were more important Habsburg domains than Hungary (which at the time comprised both modern Hungary and Slovakia). Hungary was overrun by the Ottomans after the battle of Mohács in 1526. In 1543, Székesfehérvár – the seat of the Hungarian kings – was captured by the Ottomans, forcing the Hungarian nobility to relocate their capital to Bratislava instead.

The two Habsburg rulers of Hungary who weren't crowned at Bratislava were Joseph II and Francis I (somewhat confusingly also known as Francis II). Joseph II, the enlightened despot of Austria who was a contemporary of both Mozart and Salieri, wasn't crowned as King of Hungary at all, despite ruling the Hungarian lands. Apparently, he regarded the ceremony as antiquated and even had the Hungarian royal regalia confiscated as interesting museum pieces! This was almost a sacrilegious act, since the crown used by the Hungarian kings was considered a holy relic, being associated with the first king of Hungary, the supposedly saintly Stephen I. Joseph II, undaunted, commissioned a report claiming that the crown had nothing to do with Saint Stephen, being of much later vintage. Francis I, more respectful of his Hungarian subjects, decided to get crowned in Buda in 1792, that particular town being regarded as the new capital of Hungary after its recapture from the Ottomans in 1686.

Stefan Holcík's book contains descriptions of all coronations taking place in Bratislava from 1563 to 1830, both those of the monarchs, and those of their consorts. The most well known coronation ceremony took place in 1741, when Maria Theresa was crowned reigning Queen of Hungary, the only female ruler to undergo the ceremony. I admit that I only skimmed these parts of the book, not being *that* much of a history buff!

Of more interest was the author's description of the Hungarian royal regalia. The so-called crown of St Stephen consists of several different parts. It carries inscriptions in Greek, Latin and Greco-Slav, but (ironically) no inscriptions in Hungarian. It's heavily Byzantine in inspiration, showing the portrait of a Byzantine prince and of Christ as Pantokrator. Geza Magnus (a later king than Stephen) is mentioned in one of the inscriptions as king of the Turks! The scepter is adorned by a quartz crystal on which three lions have been carved. It's apparently a work made in Persia and is also of a later date than the holy king. There is also a sword, which the author believes may actually have belonged to Stephen I. However, its original provenance is more mysterious, since it carries the inscription “Ulfberht”. It could be a Viking sword, perhaps reaching Hungary through Constantinople, where Norse mercenaries known as Varangians served the Byzantine emperors…

Well, it's good to know that the holy king of the Magyars was multi-ethnic, as behooves a true Christian king!

With that, I close this little discussion.