Nyírbátor is a small town in south-eastern Szabolcs-Szatmár-Bereg County, in the core of Nyír region, with a population of 14,000 people. One can reach in the locality set at 35 km from Nyíregyháza from the direction Carei via DN F1 road and via secondary road 4915.
Nyírbátor was first mentioned in documents in 1279. Its name comes from the word Batur, which means a positive hero in ancient Turkish. In the 13th century, the owners of the village were the Gutkeleds (Bathory family ancestors). Later, the town became the economic center of the Bathori estate and the family burial place. The settlement remained in family ownership until the death of Gabriel Bathory, prince of Transylvania, in 1613. As part of the Ecedea domain, Nyírbátor was inherited by Sofia Báthori, and then after her marriage, it became the property of the Rákóczi family. After the uprising of Francisc Rákóczi II (1703-1711) was defeated, it became the possession of the Károlyi family. The settlement has long held the rank of oppidum (borough), playing the role of regional crafts center, but also being an important military outlaws. Following the administrative reorganization of 1872, Nyírbátor lost its town status until 1973.
The family that took the town's name, Báthori, built a mansion in Nyírbátor in the 14th and 15th centuries. The written sources mention for the first time curia in 1433, locating it near the chapel Corpus Christi, specifically in the area where archaeological excavations have revealed traces of the castle rebuilt in the 1500s. In the 18th century, the building was in a state of ruin, and the functional part was used as granary. Báthori Castle was restored in 2006 - thanks to the restoration it can receive visitors today - and is the only side of the old building that preserves in its walls medieval artifacts.
In memory of the victory from the Câmpul Pâinii (Bread Field) from 1479, Stephen Báthori founded the Minorite monastery in the locality. Prince Petrasko's attack in 1587 devastated the monastery in and largely destroyed the church. The devastated and abandoned building came back to a new life in the first half of the 18th century, when it was renovated with the support of Alexander Károlyi. The count of Carei called a Minorite monk, and the first to come was Kelemen Didak. The church with a single nave and provided with buttresses on the eastern facade has an elongated apse with polygonal closure. Following the Franciscan tradition, the sanctuary has a quadrangle tower attached to its north side. The southern facade of the church is divided by slender buttresses in three stages. Among buttresses are trigeminal ogival windows with stone moldings. Above the western gate opens a large trigeminal ogive window decorated with stone moldings in the late Gothic style. The main cornice is crowned with a baroque gable in segments of circles, divided vertically by two pairs of plaster pillars. From the medieval inside was preserved ogival arch of triumph that separated the nave from the sanctuary. The inside church stands out throuh the baroque style arrangement. It is obvious at first glance that wood carvings, proof of the baroque style, were made in the same workshop, following a unitary artistic conception. The calculations register of the monastery, started in 1728, contains detailed information on furniture making. The Krucsay altar was made by a sculptor in Prešov and the main altar with the two side altars were made by a sculptor from Levoča, which can certainly be identified in the person of Johann Georg Strecius. Payments were made in 1730-1732. The main altar and the Pócs altar were placed in the church in 1729, and the side altar with the Holy Redeemer altar in 1731. The pulpit originally added to the south wall of the sanctuary near the Pietà altar, was placed in 1775 where it stands today. The crown of the polygonal pulpit is divided by twisted columns standing on consoles, creating niches that contain sculptures of the Four Evangelists.
The Minorite monastery hosts today Ștefan Báthori Museum. A detailed description of the objective in 1749 reported that the rectangular building was added to the north wall of the church, marking a large courtyard. The wing linked to the vestry, made of wood, was also the oldest part of the building. Next, was the built wing of the monastery, also characterized in the description as being old. Once the current building was built in 1734-1744, the wooden eastern wing became useless and was demolished in 1749.
Nyírbátor church was first documented in 1326. In 1433 it is noted a round chapel, whose walls are assumed to have been identical with the remains of the church with octagonal nave and polygonal apse unearthed by archaeological excavations near the northwest corner of the present church. The building of the worship edifice which is standing today was unfurling in 1484 and ended in the last years of the 15th century. The current Calvinist Church consists of a single large sized nave and an apse with polygonal closing in the eastern part. In the southwestern part of the nave is added a small tower, and the chapel in the north-east, which was originally superimposed. The huge body of the church is broken by high buttresses and twin ogival windows. The northern facade is closed. Near the tower that houses the stairwells, which is shifted towards the north from the axis, opens the gate, richly ornamented with twisted rods. Above the gate is placed the Bátori family carved coat of arms. Above, in the gate axis, the façade broke into an ogive window. On the southern facade, the church access is assured by the Renaissance dual-gate, in front of which was built a porch with tympanum in the 18th century. The base stone of the gate is made in Gothic style, but the frame and gable are Renaissance. The entry exceeds the width of the frame. On both sides is the Bathory family coat of arms, and between them, there is a Latin text written with Antiqua letters, that states that the church dedicated to St. Mary and St. George was built at the expense of Andrew Bathory and his son, Andrew. The shield, topped by a horse head is surrounded by dragons and ornaments made of fruit strings. At the bottom of the sculpture is engraved the year 1488.
The interior is dominated by a fine vault standing on wooden columns. Outside the sanctuary, each column is set at two thirds of its height, with a niche for sculptures and stepped niches at the top and bottom. The double grooved ribs of the arch, arranged like crossed arches, are placed on polygonal consoles that rise like palm leaves and then vanish in the cell network of the vault. There is also an indoor triple cedilla opened in the southern wall of the sanctuary and the tabernacle on the north wall, both works of high quality standards, representatives of the School of Florence.
The Church of Nyírbátor became the final resting place of the Báthori family, and later of the Bethlen family. Tradition says that Prince Ştefan, the hero from the Bread Field was originally buried in the Minorite Church, but this was a temporary location, because his tomb is in the Calvinist Church since the 16th century. The red marble tomb plate, dated to the 15th century, is in the place of the former church altar. The relief depicts a life-sized man statue, dressed in chain mail and breastplate, which rests on a sheet and a brocade pillow. A seated lion supports his spurred boots. Under the broadsword, on a shield made in the late Gothic style is represented the family coat of arms. Here is also the stone sarcophagus of the psalmist and palatine Báthori István since the 17th century.
From the original furniture of the Calvinist Church of Nyírbátor were only preserved two rows of pews with backrest, one of which is exposed at the National Museum of Budapest and the other one can be admired at the Báthori Museum. One of the pews is complete, but the other one lacks the arched cornice, adorned with the motif of the dolphin. The two stalls have 14 seats and 12, respectively. In the front of the backrest pews is another row of pews with 11 seats. The bench sides and the cornice are richly carved with ornamental plants and figures. Volutes ends that separate the seats are decorated with rosettes.
In the first row of the pew, the feet threshold is fit with mirrors, and the upper backrest is decorated with marquetry. In addition to the rich vegetal decoration, the row of benches in the rear is fit with chandeliers supported by two angels, holding the Báthori family coat of arms. On the back pew are four cards similar to open doors, and the vertical side of the first bank reveals an inscription. It says that the banks were ordered by Gheorghe Báthori, the royal court equerry, Ștefan, equerry of Timiş captain of the South, and Andrew, equerry of Satu Mare and Szabolcs. It also mentions the construction date (1511) and the craftsman's name (F. Marone). This data links the making of pews to the Renaissance carpentry workshop Via dei Servi of Florence.
