page_title: Stephen I Báncsa
section_title: Archbishop of Esztergom
hierarchical_section_title: Stephen I Báncsa / Prelate in Hungary / Archbishop of Esztergom
caption_attribution_description: http://www.idg.hu/expo/hosok_tere/korona/4belahu.htm
context_page_description: Stephen (I) Báncsa was the first Hungarian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Prior to that, he served as Bishop of Vác from 1240 or 1241 to 1243, then Archbishop of Esztergom from 1242 until his creation as cardinal.
context_section_description: Pope Innocent IV, elected on 25 June 1243, confirmed Báncsa's appointment as Archbishop of Esztergom, being transferred from the Diocese of Vác with the permission of the Roman Curia, granted on 7 July 1243. On 19 July 1243, Pope Innocent wrote a letter to Báncsa, appointing him Apostolic Legate in Croatia and Dalmatia. Accordingly, he was instructed to take action against the "growing heresy" in the province. However this document again refers to Báncsa as archbishop-elect, in addition to the charter of the Cathedral Chapter of Esztergom in August 1243, where Báncsa appears as procurator of the archdiocese. According to Gergely Kiss, this transitional status lasted until the first half of 1244.
  After 1244, Stephen Báncsa sought to strengthen the authority of the Metropolitan Archdiocese over the chapters and monastic orders in Hungary. His most important mainstay was Pope Innocent in these endeavors. For instance, Albert, provost of Arad was forced to acknowledge the supremacy of Esztergom over his chapter in 1246. Pope Innocent ordered the monks of the Mount of Saint Martin (Pannonhalma) to promise obedience to the Archdiocese of Esztergom as their exarchate in 1247. When Béla confirmed the privileges of the hospes in Beregszász (today Berehove, Ukraine) in December 1247, the king assigned the jurisdiction of Esztergom to the Saxon community. The Premonstratensian provostry of Hatvan was also a subject of the archdiocese's spiritual jurisdiction. The acquired area was settled with colonists by Báncsa since the early 1240s. Báncsa expanded the archbishopric' landed property with purchases, exchanges and donations. He donated the tithe of wine production to the canons of the St. Adalbert Cathedral in 1244. Upon his request, Nicholas, custos of Esztergom and dean of Sasvár (today part of Šaštín-Stráže, Slovakia) and the Esztergom Chapter were granted the estates of Szőlő and Rendvég (belonged to Nógrád Castle) by Béla IV in 1248. Báncsa donated the land of Tyrna to the collegiate chapter in 1250.
  Báncsa even represented the church's interests against the monarch, thus there relationship worsened since the mid-1240s. For instance, Béla filed a complaint that Zlaudus Ják was elected Bishop of Veszprém without his consent in 1245, which "contradicted the old customary law". Innocent instructed Benedict of Kalocsa to invetigate the case in February 1245. According to his letter, Stephen Báncsa confirmed Zlaudus' election despite the king's opposition. Béla did not recognize the election and ignored Zlaudus in the royal council (his charters refer to the Diocese of Veszprém "in vacancy"). The conflict has been resolved by December 1245. Báncsa's growing influence in the Roman Curia was reflected by Pope Innocent's letter in February 1247, when ordered Báncsa and Benedict to ensure the strengthening of the castles and forts against a possible upcoming Mongol invasion. In March 1249, Béla donated the royal castle of Esztergom to the archdiocese. At Christmas 1248, Pope Innocent IV dispensed annually forty-day plenary indulgence to the Esztergom Cathedral due to the intercession of Báncsa, which further increased his influence. The chapter also received the "exemption of interdictum" at the end of 1247, which allowed the uninterrupted continuation of certain liturgical acts even in the case of excommunication.
  During his ten-year primacy, Báncsa supported the spread of various religious orders in Hungary. In 1246, Eusebius asked Báncsa for permission to leave his profession to become a hermit. Conscious sacrifice led him to hermitage. He settled in a cave north of Pilisszántó. He placed a large wooden cross in front of the entrance of his cave where he prayed and did his contemplations. Four years later he is said to have been admonished in a vision to gather into community the other hermits living in the vicinity, for whom he built a monastery and church the ruins of which are near the village of Pilisszentlélek (today a part of Esztergom). In the same year Eusebius proposed and obtained affiliation with the Patach community und
caption: Béla IV of Hungary
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