The village of Geszternye, which was destroyed in Turkish times, was repopulated by settlers from Somorja (now Šamorín, Slovakia) in Csallóköz (Great Rye Island) in 1686 (hence today’s name of Pusztasomorja). The medieval church was rebuilt between 1713 and 1735 in Baroque style. Its furnishings include Baroque works, such as the pulpit (with a relief of the Sower on its balustrade), the gilded-painted statue of Mary and the statue of Our Lady of Sorrows. There are statues of King St Stephen, Prince St Emeric and King St Ladislaus on the neo-Romanesque high altar. A plaque on the side wall of the church commemorates Pusztasomorja’s heroic dead of World War II. There is a 19th-century stone cross in front of the church.
The church was built on foundations from the Árpád Era, which is evidenced by the ashlars of the lower third of the tower and the columns in front of the facade. The 16th-century church, which was destroyed several times over the years, was rebuilt in its present Neo-Romaneesque style in 1906. The relief of the high altar depicts St Peter, while statues of King St Stephen and St Elizabeth of the House of Árpád stand beside it. The side altars feature statues of Our Lady of Hungary and the Heart of Jesus. The ceiling frescos of the church’s interior, painted in 1938, depict the Last Supper, St Stephen offering up the country and a view of Pannonhalma.
The Baroque church was built in 1769 at the behest of the Archduchess Maria Christina and her husband Albert Casimir, Elector of Saxony . The church is adorned with a pulpit boasting a relief of the Good Shepherd, late-Baroque benches as well as lovely statues and altars. The high altarpiece depicts the baptism of Jesus. The votive image, which, according to its German inscription “was created by the Szentjános market town on 1 June 1765, in honour of the miraculous Kiscell Mary and the patron saints of herdsmen, St Wendel and St Leonard”, is particularly interesting. The lower part of the work shows the creatures in need of protection, behind them the silhouette of heavenly patronage, the two saints in the middle, and the Kiscell devotional picture above. The ceiling’s frescos, which depict the Last Judgement, the Sermon on the Mount, the Assumption of Mary, the Evangelists and musical angels, were created in 1928. The names of the stations on the Way of the Cross are in German. Marble plaques in Hungarian and German on the church’s wall commemorate the Mosonszentjános victims of the two world wars and the 1946 deportation. There is a Baroque statue of St John of Nepomuk in front of the church.
The Baroque church was built in 1761 after the bishop’s approval, and a tower was erected in front of its facade in 1794. The altarpiece depicts the Holy Trinity crowning Mary, while the lunette picture above it is of the Archangel St Michael. The frescos were painted by Ferenc Malasits and Zoltán Závory in 1928 and 1982, respectively. The stained glass windows depict St Anne, St Helena, St Joseph and St Wendel. The statue of St Francis embracing Jesus bending down from the cross is a particularly beautiful work. There are a number of Hövej lace covers and liturgical textiles, which are listed as county values. Other noteworthy sacral attractions in the village include chapels built in honour of Our Lady of Sorrow and Mary of Lourdes.
The ornate, three-storey castle with three corner towers is guarded by two sphinxes in a park of centuries-old trees. According to the chronicles, Grand Prince Géza bestowed the Szigetköz on a German knight called Héder at the end of the 10th century. The castle of Héder became the centre of the demesne, which united the serf villages in the area. At the beginning of the 16th century, the Héderváry family built a renaissance castle next to the austere, Gothic medieval castle, which had grown uncomfortable to live in. The palace was remodelled in the 18th century, gaining Baroque ornaments and another storey. The ornately painted chapel, which spans two floors, was added to the west wing at this time. The chapel is decorated with a painting depicting Mary and the Infant Jesus.
The octagonal roadside Peregrine Chapel was erected in 1709 at the behest of Jób Viczay’s wife, Eszter Ebergényi in honour of the patron saint of wanderers and those suffering from foot ailments. Local legend tells a different story about the chapel: that a peeress came to Hédervár on foot from France and she was so worn out by the journey that she collapsed on reaching the market town, where the chapel stands. She was taken to the castle to be cared for. In her fever, St Peregrine appeared before her and healed her. In gratitude, she had a chapel built in honour of the saint and adorned with a painting of her saviour as she had seen him in her dream. (Many hospitals around the world are named after the Servite monk, St Peregrine, the intercessor for those with gout, foot ailments and cancer, who lived at the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries.)
Records show that there was already a chapel here in the first half of the 13th century. The predecessor of today’s building was probably erected in 1397. The recesses on the church’s facade contain stone statues of St Florian and St Wendel in Swiss costume. The wrought-iron cross next to the church formerly stood in the old cemetery and, according to tradition, dates back to the 14th century. The sanctuary wall is adorned with a 19th-century image of Christ. The rich altar structure boasts a picture of St Michael fighting Evil between gilded statues of St Stephen and St Ladislaus. The wooden statues of the St John of Nepomuk altar represent the symbols of Faith, Love and Hope. On the other side altar, there is a copy of the Tearful Mary picture in Győr Cathedral. The octagonal, Gothic baptismal fountain is made of red marble and decorated with Hungary’s national coat-of-arms and the Héderváry coat-of-arms. According to art historians, the inscription “Anno Domini 1031’ does not refer to its year of production. The sanctuary wall is decorated with a memorial to the victims of the First and Second World Wars.
The village’s ornament, a county value, is listed in the Győr-Moson-Sopron County Value Depository. Records show that it was built between 1296 and 1303. The single-naved building was once the parish church, a shrine to Mary and the funeral chapel of the Héderváry family at the same time. A new crypt and a Loreto chapel with built onto its north side in the second half of the 17th century. It was then rebuilt in neo-Gothic style in the 19th century. The sanctuary’s eastern wall has a, presumably original, Romanesque window. Five red marble tombstones can be seen on the sanctuary wall. The ornate urn in the Loreto chapel contains the heart of the first Károly Khuen-Háederváry. There is also an urn surrounded by carved snakes on a stylised Corinthian column. Next to it are three large silver urns in a recess covered with a coat-of-arms. There is a wooden screen reminiscent of Greek Orthodox churches behind the chapel’s altar and above its ledge, there are imperial, royal and family coats-of-arms surrounded by Baroque decorations. There is a statue of the Virgin Mary carved from ebony behind the screen in a statue recess. The Chapel Gallery also hosts temporary exhibitions.
The Reformation was quick to reach Harka, from 1571, the Evangelical preachers were known by name, and the village’s inhabitants held their church services in the spirit of Luther. The church was removed in 1673, due to the Counter-Reformation. As a result of the Edict of Tolerance, an Evangelical congregation was formed in 1783 and a new church was built in 1786-87. The tower was equipped with three bells in 1886, while the church was rebuilt in neo-Gothic style. The König organ dates from 1819 and the pulpit altar from 1843. Harka’s Evangelical congregation declined due to the deportation of its German-speaking inhabitants in 1946; however, the large church inherited from their forefathers has been renovated inside and out in the last few years.
In the Árpád Era, the inhabitants of the settlement were the fish suppliers to the Moson royal court. It became a market town in 1550. The late-Baroque church dedicated to St Martin was built in 1777 at the behest of Archduchess Mary Christina. The church is the largest in the Szigetköz in terms of floor area. Its high altar features a painting by Maulbertsch’s disciples, a composition depicting the wonders of St Martin. There are statues of St Florian and St Leopold on either side of the altar. The sanctuary windows depict St Stephen and St Emeric. The pulpit is carved in Rococo style. The Chapel of St John of Nepomuk near the Moson-Danube bridge was built in 1895. The inhabitants of the small village of Arak, which belonged to Halászi until 1934, when it became independent, built their church dedicated in honour of St Teresa of Lisieux in 1937 through community service.
The altar of the church rebuilt after the 1779 earthquake commemorates the martyrdom and glorification of St John of Nepomuk. There is a copy of the Celldömölk Mary statue below it. The pulpit’s two carved pictures depict the St Paul the Apostle and the Archangel St Michael defeating Satan. The central figure of the painting above the main altar is King St Ladislaus, wearing armour, offering his sword to Our Lady of Hungary. Glass artist, Vajk Farkas created the five windows’ images in 2008. Two of them depict princesses of the House of Árpád: Byzantine Empress St Irene (daughter of St Ladislaus) with a map of historical Hungary in her hand and St Elizabeth of the Árpád House (daughter of Andrew II) with roses in her apron. Three glass images commemorate Sára Salkaházi, Vilmos Apor and János Brenner, who were recently beatified. There is a gate in front of the church, erected in 2000, as a gift “with God’s help” from the twinned Transylvanian village of Székelyszentkirály. A statue of St John of Nepomuk, erected in 1722, stands next to the cycle path leading to Győr.
Built in 1700 by Ferenc Eszterházy, the chapel with a distinct pediment and string-course cornice stands at the edge of a deep grove in a grassy, wooded area. Formerly used for funeral ceremonies, it is currently closed.
The modern church, erected in 1927, was consecrated by Archbishop of Esztergom, Jusztinián Serédi. There is a statue of Jesus on the facade. Antal Borsa painted the image of Christ on the sanctuary wall and the Golgotha scene of the nave’s side fresco. He also designed the relief on the tabernacle door and the ornate side altar with its statue of Mary. The latter was consecrated in December 1943 by Zoltán Meszlényi, Suffragan Bishop of Esztergom, who became one of communism’s victims in the early 1950s and was beatified in 2009.
The church was consecrated in 1807. The tower, still visible today, was built in 1904 and provided with bells. The larger ones were removed during World War I but were replaced in 1926. The church was renovated in 1938, when it was also blessed with new pews. In 1940, a teacher’s flat was built next to the church. The church and the vicarage were renovated once again between 2004 and 2011.
The Church of the Reformed Parish of Győrszemere was built in 1786 in late Baroque style. It can accommodate up to 120 people. Its tower was built in the early 1800s and houses two bells. It was a place of articulation at the time of the Counter-Reformation: worship of the Reformed Church was only allowed to be held here, so the faithful came here from as far away as Mosonmagyaróvár. The most beautiful altar-cloths and valuable devotional objects belonging to the congregation date from this period, some of which can be seen in the Pannonia Reformata Museum in Pápa. The most unique treasure among these objects is the coconut chalice dating from 1646. The dome of the church’s baptismal font preserves the memory of the former wooden church, because it was originally its spire.
The church was built in 1749 in Baroque style. The high altarpiece depicts Deacon St Lawrence’s martyrdom. Besides the altarpiece, two frescos also feature scenes from his life. In the left-hand picture, he is attending Mass with his bishop, with angelic symbols and in the company of St Tarcisius, patron saint of acolytes. In the other picture, St Lawrence is caring for the poor and the sick.
The worshippers from the village and its neighbouring villages supported the construction of the church by their donations and work. It was dedicated on 22 August 1958. Its entrance is adorned with a statue of the Virgin Mary, while those entering it are welcomed by a relief of St Anthony. The altarpiece depicting St Joseph and his apprentice, the adolescent Jesus, in the carpentry workshop was painted by Antal Borsa. The pictures at the 14 stations of the Way of the Cross are also his work. The sanctuary boasts a statue of Mary and a statue of the Heart of Jesus. The bell was cast in 1799 by Gáspár Hendel. The stone cross in front of the church was created in 1904, while the stone statue of St Joseph in the churchyard is from the Ursulines in Győr.
Until 1964, the two Protestant dominations had a common bell on the Kiáltó Hill in Ság, which is now housed in the Reformed church’s tower. The bell of the Evangelical Church built in 1958 was once a small bell at the Sopron Evangelical Teacher Training Institute. The steel bell, 62 cm in diameter, comes from Bochum in Germany and was cast in 1858. The baptismal and communion vessels owned by the congregation are the same age as the church. The Ciborium, or wafer holder, was a gift from those confirmed in 2002. The interior was remodelled based on Gábor Winkler’s plans, with an ambo replacing the demolished pulpit altar.
In 1683, the Turkish army besieging Pannonhalma also destroyed Ság and its church. The Reformed worshippers built a teacher’s flat, a school and a church with mud-plastered walls. The current church with its ten-metre-high tower was built by Ság’s small congregation without any outside support. The interior of the building consecrated by Bishop Benő Békerfi measures 7 metres by 17 metres and can seat 130. The church has a memorial plaque to János Szecsei, the martyred galley-slave priest. The memorial plaque on the wall proclaims: “Built to the glory of God in 1963-1968.” The 95-kg bell was cast in 1872 by Frigyes Seltenhofer in Sopron.
The church was built in 1748 on the ruins of the Árpád-era chapel. It was extended in 1910 and a chapel added. The Baroque high altar features gilded statues of St Florian and St Paul. The altarpiece between them depicts St Anne, St Joachim and their daughter Mary. The side altar’s colourful statue of the Virgin Mary was carved from linden from Győrság by the worshippers to give thanks for the heavenly shelter experienced during the war.