Nicholas is mentioned as
Bishop of Várad in the only extant royal charter of Géza II's brother,
Stephen IV, in 1163. Stephen IV had seized the throne with Byzantine support from Géza II's minor son,
Stephen III. The presence of Nicholas among the signatories on Stephen IV's charter evidences that he supported the usurper, along with his superior,
Mikó, Archbishop of Kalocsa. A 14th-century (1370s) regulation (
statutum) of the cathedral chapter of the Diocese of Várad refers to Nicholas as bishop, "who was head of the Várad Church around the beginning of the reign of
Béla III of Hungary" (thus around 1172). This suggests that Nicholas, similarly to other prelates, managed to retain his influence and position after the fall of Stephen IV. Nicholas functioned as Bishop of Várad until no later than 1181. His successor John is mentioned in the bishop list of the Várad Chapter with the year 1180, which was corrected to 1181 by historians Vince Bunyitay and Gábor Thoroczkay. Nicholas was elected Archbishop of Esztergom following the death of
Lucas, the most influential prelate in the 12th-century Hungary. Nicholas first appears as archbishop in a royal document of 1181, when Béla returned fleeing serfs to the
Cégény Abbey in accordance with the verdict of
Farkas Gatal,
Palatine of Hungary. Nicholas crowned the eight-year-old prince
Emeric king on 16 May 1182, which confirmed Emeric's right to succeed his father, according to the narration of French chronicler
Geoffroy du Breuil. Nicholas is the first archbishop, whose own charter was preserved. Accordingly, the Esztergom Chapter sold a portion of land in
Kéménd (present-day Kamenín, Slovakia) to Farkas Gatal for two
marks in 1183. The document contains the phrase "
sigillum authenticum" (official authentic seal), which guaranteed systematically the contractants' transactions recorded in writing.
Pope Alexander III distinguished that type of document from private seals in 1166, beginning with his papal decretals. The permanent royal chancellery also emerged during the brief bishopric of Nicholas. Whether he was a promoter of court reforms, it is not known. Nevertheless, Béla separated the issuance of royal charters from the court clergy with that step after the experience of his long lasting jurisdictional conflicts with the strong-willed Lucas. Nicholas died either in 1183 or 1184, as his successor
Job appears as archbishop since 1185. == References ==