Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary


The Order of Saint Stephen is an order of chivalry founded in 1764 by Maria Theresa. In 1938, Miklós Horthy took the rights and activities of Grand Master as Regent of Hungary. The name of the Order changed to the Royal Hungarian Order of Saint Stephen. The Order was terminated at the time of the proclamation of the Second Hungarian Republic in 1946. It was recreated in 2011 as the Hungarian Order of Saint Stephen, and to this day remains the highest order in Hungary.

Significance to Hungarians

The order is named after Hungary's most famous king, Stephen I, whose reign was marked by his consolidation of the monarchy, the establishment of the medieval state of Hungary, and his adoption of Christianity as the state religion. His coronation, as recognized in the Church, is dated 1001. He died August 15, 1038, during the Feast of the Assumption. His feast day in Hungary is August 20. Canonized by Pope Gregory VII in 1083 along with his son Imre 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.

Creation and qualifications for membership

Empress Maria Theresa and her son, Emperor Joseph II, made several political concessions to ease tensions within their empire—most especially between Austria and Hungary, among them being the creation of the Order. Membership was available to various members of the Hungarian nobility. To receive the Order, according to collector and historian Stephen Herold,

Insignia

; Grand Cross : For ceremonial purposes, a full set of robes were prescribed, following the tradition of other orders, such as the Austrian and Spanish Orders of the Golden Fleece and Great Britain's Order of the Garter. The robes were crimson and green, and were lined with ermine. A collar of gold was worn about the neck and shoulders, with the badge of the Order suspended from the collar. For normal occasions and every-day wear, a sash of crimson, edged with green, was worn over the right shoulder and extended to the left hip, the distinctive badge of the Order suspended from the sash at the hip. An eight-pointed star was worn on the left breast. During the waning days of the monarchy, especially during the Great War, a less formal option was also authorized, whereby a miniature of the breast star was affixed to the center of the ribbon of an ordinary knight's cross, and was worn on the left breast with other orders and military medals, in order of precedence.
; Commanders : Wore the badge of the Order at the throat, suspended from the crimson edged with green ribbon about the neck. During the Great War, the informal wear of the miniature, gold, Crown of Saint Stephen kleine Decoration was worn on an ordinary knight's cross, to delineate them from ordinary knights and Grand Cross knights, and worn on the left breast with other orders and military medals, in order of precedence.
; Knights : Wore the badge of the Order, suspended from a tri-fold ribbon of crimson, edged in green, on the left breast with other orders and military medals, in order of precedence.

List of members

Grand Masters

Order of St. Stephen – Kingdom of Hungary (1764–1918)

Knights, Grand Cross

Knights Commander

  • Johann Karl Chotek, Count of Chotkov und Wognin, Statesman and Chancellor in Bohemia; Feldzeugmeister; invested as Knight Commander upon the founding of the Order, 1764; later invested with the Grand Cross
  • Leopold Stephen Graf Pálffy, invested as Knight Commander upon the founding of the Order, 1764; later invested with the Grand Cross
  • Heinrich Kajetan Graf Blumegen, Landeshauptleute of Bohemia; invested as Knight Commander upon the founding of the Order, 1764; later invested with the Grand Cross
  • Johann Vencel Graf Paar, invested as Knight Commander upon the founding of the Order, 1764; later invested with the Grand Cross
  • Fetete Georgy Graf Galanthai, invested as Knight Commander upon the founding of the Order, 1764
  • Ludwig Friedrich Riechsgraf von Zinzendorf und Pottendorf, invested as Knight Commander upon the founding of the Order, 1764
  • Johann Amadeus Franz de Paula Baron von Thugut, Austrian diplomat, 1769 – 1793; Foreign Minister of Austria, 1793 – 1800
  • Count Charles Emerick Alexander von Rewischny, Hungarian diplomat,
  • Miklós (Nicholas) grof Vay, member of the Hungarian Privy Council and the Hungarian Parliament; invested as Knight Commander, 1846.
  • Ferenc (Francis) grof Haller, Ban of Croatia, invested as Knight Commander, 1847
  • Feldzeugmeister Franz graf Gyulay, Austrian Minister of War; invested as Knight Commander, 1848.
  • Cardinal János Scitovszky, Bishop of Rozsnyó and Pécs; Cardinal 1853; invested as Knight Commander, 1849.
  • Cardinal György Haulik, Archbishop of Zagreb and Ban of Croatia; invested as Knight Commander, 1849
  • Ferenc (Francis) grof Zichy, Secretary of State for Commerce, Széchenyi ministry of 1848, and later Austro-Hungarian Ambassador to Constantinople; invested as Knight Commander, 1849.
  • Batthyány Imre, Jurist and Lord Lieutenant of Latvia; invested as Knight Commander, 1861.
  • Stephen Melczer, member of the Hungarian Privy Council and House of the Lords; invested as Knight Commander, 1867.
  • Baron Levin Rauch de Nyék, viceroy of Croatia-Slavonia, and of Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia for four years ; invested as knight Commander, 1869.
  • Joseph Szlávy, Hungarian Prime Minister and later president of the Hungarian House of the Lords; invested as knight Commander, 1869.
  • Baron Béla Orczy, Minister of Defense and Minister of the Interior; invested as Knight Commander, 1873.
  • Feldzeugmeister Franz von Uchatius, ordnance expert and master artillerist, and member of the Viennese Academy of Sciences; invested as Knight Commander, 1875.
  • Károly Csemegi, Hungarian judge and jurist; instrumental in the creation of the first criminal code in Hungary ; first Presiding Judge in the Hungarian Supreme Court; invested as Knight Commander, 1878.
  • Sándor Matlekovits, Hungarian economist and author of several treatises on trade policy within the Austro-Hungarian Empire; invested as Knight Commander, 1885.
  • Beniczky Ferenc, Hungarian aristocrat and Intendant of the Budapest Academy of Music and the Budapest Opera, from 1888; invested as Knight Commander, 1890.
  • Daruváry Alajos, politician, member of both houses of the Hungarian Parliament, vice president 1898 – 1900; invested as Knight Commander, 1892.
  • Generaloberst Artur frhr von Bolfras, chairman of the Military Chancery and general adjutant to Franz Josef I, 1889 – 1917; invested as Knight Commander, 1892.
  • Dr. Heinrich Wittek, Austrian politician: Director General of the Ministry of Commerce, 1886 – 1897, Minister of Railways, 1897 – 1905; invested as Knight Commander, 1893.
  • Semsey Andor, Hungarian naturalist and geologist; eventual member of the Hungarian Parliament; invested as Knight Commander, 1896.
  • Dr. Miksa Falk, tutored Emperor Franz Josef I in the Hungarian language; invested as Knight Commander, 1898.
  • Feldzeugmeister Oskar Potiorek, III Corps commander, 1897; eventual IG of the K.u.K., Military Governor of Bosnia-Herzegovina, and 6th Army Commander ; invested as Knight Commander, 1906.
  • Baron Guenther Heinrich von Berg German Statesman, awarded June 9, 1820.

Knights

  • Johann Christoph frhr von Bartenstein, Statesman and Privy Councilor to Karl VI, responsible for obtaining succession of Maria Theresa to the throne, personal tutor / educator of Josef II; Director of the House Archives; invested as a Knight of the Order upon its founding, 1764
  • Johann Anton Graf Pergen, invested as a Knight of the Order upon its founding, 1764
  • Friedrich frhr von Binder, invested as a Knight of the Order upon its founding, 1764; later invested as Knight Commander
  • Koller Ferenc Nagymányai, invested as a Knight of the Order upon its founding, 1764; later invested as Knight Commander
  • Franz Anton Felix Edler von Zeiller, Imperial and Royal Courtier; Jurist, legal scholar, theorist and philosopher; Member of the academy; Invested as a Knight of the Order, 1810
  • Feldzeugmeister Joseph frhr Philippovic von Philippsberg, Commander of the 2nd Army and veteran of campaigns in Croatia, Prussia, Bosnia and Herzegovina; Invested as a Knight of the Order, November 24, 1864
  • General der Kavallerie Arthur frhr von Gieslingen, member of the General Staff, commander of the Theresian Military Academy, division commander in World War One, and member of the Privy Council; Invested as a Knight of the Order, March 12, 1909
  • Feldmarschalleutnant Rudolph Schamshula, member of the General Staff, Chief of the Telegraph Bureau, and eventual commander of the 52nd Infantry Division during the Great War; invested 1918
  • Oberst Ludwig von Sündermann, Chief of Staff, VIII. Corps, during the Great War; invested 1918
  • Generalmajor Johann Straub von Burgauhof, member of the General Staff; Chief and commandant of Military Railroads; invested 1918
  • Generalmajor Josef Ritter von Paić, invested 1918
  • Feldmarschalleutnant Árpád Kiss von Nagy-Sittke, invested 1918
  • Feldmarschalleutnant Kolomann Török von Harasztos, invested 1918
  • Generalmajor Heinrich Graf von Hoyos, invested 1918
  • Feldmarschalleutnant Karl Andreas Aloys frhr von Bienerth, invested 1918
  • Oberst Theodor Zeynek, member of the General Staff; invested 1918
  • Major Rudolf Kundmann, member of the General Staff; Adjutant to Chief of Staff Hötzendorf; kept a diary of life inside the General Staff; invested 1918
  • Generalmajor Anton Hellebronth von Tiszabeö, invested 1918

The Royal Hungarian Order of Saint Stephen – Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946)

After the dissolution of Austria-Hungary, Hungary and Austria could not make a legal agreement on the rights of the Order. The base of the argument was whether Maria Theresa founded the Order de jure as the sovereign of Hungary, or the sovereign of Austria, or as Holy Roman Empress. In 1938, when Austria as a de jure successor state of Austria-Hungary ceased to exist by becoming part of Germany, Horthy issued an addendum to be attached on 4 November 1938 to the statutes of the Order which declared that as long as the Regent was the head of the Kingdom of Hungary, he also held the powers and duties of the Grand Master.

Knights, Grand Cross

Knights Commander

  • István Uray, Chief of the Regent's cabinet, invested 1943