The Co-Cathedral of Our Lady of Hungary
One of Nyíregyháza's most renowned buildings is the two-towered, Romanesque cathedral located in the main square, the votive church of József Samassa, Archbishop of Eger. Archbishop Samassa – in memory of his Golden Jubilee Mass, offered in 1902 in the Hungarian Chapel of Aachen Cathedral – bestowed this monumental church upon Nyíregyháza, then the county seat of Szabolcs. The Church of Our Lady of Hungary, which has been the Co-Cathedral of the Diocese of Debrecen-Nyíregyháza since 1993, with its twin towers, proportions, structural perfection, and pure style, stands as an outstanding achievement of Hungarian ecclesiastical architecture and a protected monument. Archbishop Samassa himself consecrated it on 20 August 1904.
The exterior of the church – with its rich articulation, buttresses, and decorative elements – is captivating. Churches with a similar richness of exterior detailing are rarely found in our country. The height of the two massive rectangular towers – each divided into three storeys – is 43.6 metres. Between the two towers are the richly decorated main entrance and the grand gable. The relief in the tympanum of the main entrance depicts the Blessed Virgin with the Child Jesus – accompanied by Saint Joseph and Saint John the Baptist – as Kings Saint Stephen and Saint Ladislaus pay homage before her.
A bust of the church's founder, Cardinal Samassa, crafted by sculptor Sándor Tóth in 2002, is placed in a niche in the wall of the south tower.
The exterior of the church remains in its original state, with the exception that in 1970, parish priest Ferenc Csépányi replaced the entire church roof with Austrian heritage slate, and in 1983, a new, electrically controlled clock was installed in the tower. Then, in 1995, parish priest József Váradi had the buttresses and foundation stones renovated.
Upon entering, one finds a similar variety to the church's exterior, with all the beauty of the Romanesque style. The pillars on the right and left support a ribbed vault comprising six smaller bays and one larger bay at the transept. The nave receives pleasant light from 5-5 colourful windows, unified by common arches. The transept lends a monumental character to the church, beyond which is the sanctuary, illuminated by seven semi-circular windows. The central window displays the votive image, depicting the church's founder, Archbishop Samassa, paying homage before the Holy Family and entrusting the church to the patronage of the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Hungary, just as our King Saint Stephen did with his crown and country before his death. The votive image is a work by Miksa Róth, Imperial and Royal Court stained-glass artist and mosaicist.
The sanctuary is surrounded by an ambulatory (sacristy and treasury). The side aisles, which are half the height and width of the nave, receive light through 3-3 semi-circular windows. Their complete renovation was carried out in 2000 by restorer Eszter Mezősi. The church's high altar is made of marble, with its upper part carved from oak. To the right of the tabernacle are statues of Saint Stephen, Saint Ladislaus, Saint Emeric, Saint Jerome, Saint Elizabeth of Hungary, and Saint Margaret of Hungary. In the upper part of the altar, to the right, are 3-3 statues of adoring angels. At the centre of the high altar, replacing an altarpiece, is a monumental crucifix with the symbols of the Evangelists at its trefoiled ends. All of these are works carved from linden wood by sculptor János Kopits.
At the centre of the new liturgical space stands the marble *versus populum* altar, constructed in 1971 during the pastorate of Ferenc Csépányi, using elements from the high altar of the Chapel of the English Ladies in Eger. In 2000, underfloor heating and marble flooring were installed. In the south apse of the transept is the Altar of the Blessed Virgin Mary (with paintings by artist János Stefin and a statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary by János Kopits), and in the north apse is the Altar of Saint Joseph (also with a statue of Saint Joseph by János Kopits and paintings by János Stefin). The marble pulpit rests on a massive marble column, with figures of the four Evangelists on its sides (work by János Kopits).
The baptismal font is also made of marble and is supported by five marble columns. The organ originates from the Pécs organ-building workshop of Angster József és Fia. The organ, originally with two manuals and 24 principal and 20 accessory stops, was expanded to 27 registers in 1984-85 during the pastorate of parish priest Ferenc Csépányi, and again in 1997 during the pastorate of parish priest József Váradi. The interior painting of the church evokes 13th-century Romanesque church frescoes.
During the 1984 renovation, the walls were repainted without altering the original ornamentation and colours, thus preserving the church's original stylistic features for posterity.