Sarolta was a legendary woman in Hungarian history, yet her life and personality are not well-known. This is odd as she was the wife of Géza, the Grand Prince of the wandering Hungarian people and it was their child who became the first King of the Hungarians, Saint Stephen.
Veszprém, the City of Queens, played an important role in the life of Sarolta, as it did in the lives of so many of our queens. Legend has it that the rebel Koppány, wanting the Hungarian throne for himself, also wished to marry Sarolta, so he attacked Veszprém, where the Empress was residing at the time. Ultimately, his attack was unsuccessful.
Contemporary accounts note that Sarolta’s nature and lifestyle resembled that of her husband, Grand Prince Géza. She was strong-willed and domineering, the equal of any man in riding, drinking and brawling alike. She also dominated her husband, acting as the true power behind the throne, at least according to the chronicles of the time.
Although Sarolta is a key figure in Hungarian history, the circumstances of her birth and death are unknown.
