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Between Sources and Formal Analysis: the Peculiar Case of St. Mary Magdalene in Čazma

Despite later restorations, the Church of St. Mary Magdalene in Čazma, managed to largely preserve its original form from mid-13th century. The discovery of windows from the transitional period from Romanesque to Gothic stylistic forms in the 1990s not only spurred on the decision to restore the original exterior of the church, but also inspired researchers to discuss the originality of this kind of layout-spatial solution, as well as the origin of the pair of towers that accompany the front façade, despite the unique stylistic characteristics of the entire ensemble. Sources agree that the Church of St. Mary Magdalene was commissioned by Bishop Stephen II, but nowhere do they mention the Dominicans who the newly- erected edifice would serve. Despite all of the above, here we will offer a correlation. However much historians disagree on the exact year of the Dominicans’ arrival to Čazma, it is agreed that this occurred sometime between the years 1229 and 1234, as the Order accompanied Koloman (1226-1241), the Duke of Slavonia and younger brother of King Bela IV, to Bosnia in a crusade against the Bosnian Patarens on four occasions between the years 1234 and 1238. It is important to note that Duke Koloman, after being wounded in battle against the Tatars on the river Šajo (hung. Sajó, slovak. Slaná) on 11th April 1241, was transferred to Čazma where he soon succumbed to his injuries. It is duly indicative that Bishop Stephen II, a devotee of the royal court of Hungary, was also buried in Čazma! It is precisely this pair of bell towers, as well as the omission of the usual monastery structures with a cloister, that speaks against the Church of St. Mary Magdalene being an erstwhile Dominican church at all. These bell-towers represent an exception among other churches built for this mendicant order and not only in the area of the Zagreb Bishopric and continental Croatia, but also on a wider regional level. Considering that the towers are part of the original structure of the church, they remain the primary reason for the dilemma on its origin – was the Church of St. Mary Magdalene built for the Dominican Order in the first place and, if so, what was its intended purpose? The archeological excavations, conducted during the last 20 years, have brought forth various results which have yet to be adequately interpreted. About the originality of the structure we can offer some explanations – despite its constructive and stylistic unity, the church was erected during two separate, but close, consecutive construction phases ; firstly, the Dominican church had been erected, which closely resembled some Cistercian churches in its form ; secondly, after the year 1241 and the death of Duke Koloman, the edifice was expanded towards the west. During this phase, the two towers were erected, as well as the projecting entrance, while the side aisles are the result of a subsequent intervention. Therefore, one church was expanded by adding a second church of similar layout on its western side, resulting in a double Latin cross layout and exposing a double, or duplicate, church. The Dominican Order established their main stronghold for the expulsion of heretics from Bosnia in Čazma, building a church there during the third decade of the 13th century. After the death and burial of his brother, Duke Koloman, in 1241 with the Dominicans in Čazma, King Bela IV decides to have a special royal chapel built in his honor next to the church. Therefore, the bell-towers become a straightforward sign of royal presence, as well as marks of a powerful investor who could, with his money and influence, change the original construction project and impose what would in other circumstances, be an inacceptable solution for the Dominicans. The final form of the structure was developed in accordance with the westwerk tradition, which exemplified unity and duality of leadership of church and state, the regnum and the sacredotium, at the same time! It is exactly this firm, almost inseparable integration of two churches into one single and new meaningful whole that speaks volumes of the significance that the Dominicans held for Duke Koloman.

Medieval church architecture, Transitional style, Bishop Stephen II, Duke Koloman, a pair of bell towers, double church

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