Why is 20 August Hungary’s national holiday? Here is what we celebrate

20th August is also called St. Stephen’s Day and it is a public holiday in Hungary. Hungarians celebrate the foundation of the Hungarian state with various programmes and spectacular fireworks. Read our article to find out more about the history of Hungary!

St. Stephen, the Hungarian state founder

St. Stephen’s name is associated with the organization of the Hungarian church and state. After defeating the resistant tribal leaders, he laid the foundations of the Hungarian state. With the transformation of the semi-nomadic social order, the adoption of Christianity, and the rise of Latin-speaking European culture, Hungary became an integral part of Europe, writes Arcanum. In addition, he divided Hungary into counties. There were significant royal estates in each county, with a castle at their centre. In the castles and in the villages around them, there were craftsmen who performed various services. The king regularly visited these castles, legislated there, and took over the taxes collected from the area of the given county. The Pope also appreciated St. Stephen’s actions as a state founder and crowned him on 25 December, 1000.

Hungarians had to face many hardships

Although Hungary began to rise during the reign of St. Stephen, the small country had to face many hardships later. In 1242, the Mongol invaders, referred to only as Tatars in Europe, ravaged and plundered Hungary, writes finnugor.elte.hu. The king’s life was also in immediate danger, and the conquerors chased Béla IV all the way to Trau Castle in Dalmatia. Not long after this, the Turks threatened the whole of Europe, including Hungary. In 1456, the Turks besieged Nándorfehérvár (Belgrade). However, the armed men of János Hunyadi and the crusaders led by János Kapisztrán defeated the Turkish army. In 1526, Sülejmán II’s armies defeated the Hungarians at Mohács and besieged Buda in 1541. A sad day in Hungarian history: Hungary was divided into three parts.