300 Years of Ursuline Presence and Work in Győr, Hungary
09/06/2026
1726 - 2026
On May 29th, 2026 in Győr, Hungary, the Ursuline sisters celebrated the Anniversary of 300 years of their presence and apostolate in their town.
The first Ursulines came to Gyor from Vienna in 1726 accompanied by a Viennese noblewoman Maria-Anna Neupauer, the foundress of their convent. They were invited to provide the education for young girls. The sisters opened the school and very soon they needed to extend it due to the growing numbers of students. They opened also a Teacher Training College and prepared generations of well qualified teachers.
In the course of almost three centuries the educational apostolate of the Ursulines has been highly esteemed. This ministry was abruptly interrupted in 1948 by the decision of the government. The sisters experienced many sufferings and were deprived of their rights: to live religious life, carry out their apostolate, and their properties were confiscated.
However this situation didn’t break the spirit of the sisters: they remained faithful to their deep sense of prayer and charism of St. Angela Merici.
As soon as the possibility of re-opening the schools occurred, they came back to their ministries and they reopened the boarding schools in Győr and Eger, and the school in Dombovar.
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The Jubilee celebrations were preceded on 28 May by the opening of an exhibition at the diocesan museum. The exhibits, which come from the Ursuline convent, church and school, are beautifully displayed and are open to all visitors.
The Mass in the basilica of the Assumption of Our Lady was celebrated by Bishop Veres Andras and Ursuline sisters from Gyor, representatives from the Generalate, Austria and Slovakia travelled to Gyor for the Jubilee celebrations and were present at the Mass.
The current and former teachers and students from the former Ursuline school Prohaska, the boarders, and many guests came together to express their gratitude to the Ursulines for developing good intellectual education for girls and the strengthening of their faith.
This legacy that the Ursuline sisters began still continues in the city today!
As a sign of gratitude to Sr. Maria Emerica, Sr. Rozalia and Sr. Terezia for their steadfast faith, perseverance and immense hard work, and as an appreciation to those, on whose shoulders we stand today a special Papal blessing was offered:
“ To Sr. Maria Emerica Matkovics and Ursulines of the Roman Union in Győr
on the occasion of the 300th Anniversary of the Ursulines presence in Győr
invoking through the intersession of the Blessed Virgin Mary
an abundance of Divine graces”.
sr. Benigna Kania OSU
