Révay Péter

The Monarchia, the work of Péter Révay crown guard (1568–1622) has received little attention from the researchers so far, who studied more Révay’s smaller work, the Commentarius (1613) instead. The Monarchia, however, is approximately eight times longer, and was written later than the Commentarius (it was made some time between 1619–1622, but it was printed only in 1659); furthermore, in comparison with the Commentarius it is more than a political essay: it is a veritable country history.
What is primarily apparent in Révay’s work is the radical change in the political situation in Hungary in 1618–1619. In 1618, an intransigent Catholic monarch, Ferdinand II took the throne of Hungary – with the effective help of the pope and cardinal Péter Pázmány – which seriously concerned the protestant orders in Hungary, as they were afraid that the agreement between the estates and the Habsburgs in 1608 could be compromised. This concern is manifested in the work: the author asserts the rights of the orders very frequently, discusses in detail the agreement of 1608, firmly condemns the political engagement of the clergy and the pope, and generally expresses a strong Lutheran historical approach. In addition, Révay, following the neostoicism of Lipsius and the popular king mirrors (Guevara), warns the current monarch (but obviously alluding to Ferdinand II) through historical examples and axiome-like sentences not to go beyond his limits and not to become a tyrant.
Finally, in the Monarchia plenty of new data can be found about the Hungarian Holy Crown and the coronations; and it can also be observed that Révay developed further his concepts about the Holy Crown in this work. He elaborated the theory that the Greek letters and the pictures of Greek emperors on the crown prove its Byzantine origins. The additional motive of this theory for Révay was evidently to weaken the Catholic character of the cult around the crown (including that of King St. Stephen), with the purpose of thus making the crown - and also the first Hungarian monarch (who was alleged to have been given the Holy Crown from the Pope) - more acceptable for the Protestants. This theory later caused serious controversy between Catholic and Protestant scholars in the 18th century.

Aus dem Gesichtspunkt der Funeralrepäsentation des Stammes Révai hatte eine zentrale Bedeu­tung im 16. und 17. Jahrhundert vor allem die Kirche des heiligen Martinus in Martin. Hier wurden vor allem die Angehorigen der Familie begraben, die die Funktion des Hauptgespans bekleideten und ihre Familienangehorigen. Aus dieser Zeit befanden sich in der Kirche urspri.inglich bis zehn Grabmäler, aus diesen sind bis heute nur zwei erhalten. Die älteste und zugleich die wertvollste ist die Grabplatte des František I. Révai aus dem roten Marmor, die nicht nur unter den Sakraldenkrnä­ler der Familie, sonder auch im Rahmen der Gesamtproduktion der Grabplastik in Ungarn einzig­artig ist. Das weitere, bis heute erhaltene Sepulkraldenkrnal ist der Trauerschild des Obersten und Gespans Pavol 1. Révai (tl635). ,,Mortuarium" seines Vaters Peter I. (tl622), das schon im Jahre 1911 auf der Pilote aufgezeichnet war, ist verloren oder vernichtet. Die mehreren Angehorigen der Familie hatten als Sepulkraldenkrnal eine Pfanne mit Anschrift, aber bisher wurde keine erhalten. Die Angehorigen der Trebostover Linie der Familie Révai wurden vor allem in der Kirche des hei­ligen Petrus in Turčiansky Peter begraben. Die Familientradition hat Ladislav III. abgebrochen, der umfangreiche Vermogen in Beckov erworben hat. In dortiger Pfarrkirche hat er neue Grabstätte gegri.indet, wo er im Jahre 1662 seine Tochter und seine Ehefrau allzu friih begraben hat. Um einige Jahre wurde auch er hier begraben, wobei in der Kirche auch sein „Mortuarium" angebracht wurde. Ähnlich wie in dem Fall anderer ungarischen Stämme, wurden die weiblichen Angehorigen der Familie Révai auf dem Gutsbesitz ihrer Eltern begraben, Ehemänner, Erzieher, Familiären auf ihrem Gutsbesitz, die Familienangehorige im Priesterstand in den Kirchen.

[The use of Hungarian topoi in Early Modern Netherlands. Saint Gerardus, Saint Stephen, Holy Mary and the Hungarian crown in the Dutch literature, art and pamphlets]

This is an study in Hungarian about the use of certain Hungarian themes in Early Modern Dutch literature and art. It shows that the image and description of holy Gerardus, holy king Stefanus of Hungary, Virgin Mary of Hungary and the holy crown of Hungary were used to legitimate certain political goals. It also draws the attention to an image of the Carmelite Saint Gerardus of Hungary in the Carmelite convent of Boxmeer and its political and cultural background.

This study examines how the princely court as a concept and the Habsburg dynasty as an actual power appears in the history of Hungary entitled De monarchia et sacra corona Regni Hungariae centuriae septem, written by the Lutheran lord and royal councilor, Péter Révay (1568–1622), and it also examines how he depicts the royal coronations held in Pozsony (today’s Bratislava). In his work, the author repeatedly referred to the problem of the court as a center of power, which was embodied in the exhortations addressed to the prince's counselors and to the prince himself. In this respect he was strongly influenced by the political literature of the time (mainly the works of Guevara and Lipsius, and to a lesser extent Bodin). Révay's relationship to actual princely power, that is, to the Habsburgs, is characterized by loyalty, but he made it a condition that the privileges of the secular elite be respected, namely, under the laws of 1608. The author considered Pozsony, and not Vienna, to be the capital of the country, and wrote in particular detail about the coronations of Anna of Tyrol and Ferdinand II (1613, 1618), which took place there. During these occasions, the old Hungarian royal court briefly came to life, as the members of the Hungarian elite actively revived their court positions (master of the table, etc.), and Révay was the chief organizer of the two ceremonies as a Royal Courtmaster. Presumably this is why it was important for him to capture these coronations, and because in this way he was able to emphasize the old glory and independence of the Kingdom of Hungary.