Agria 38. (Az Egri Múzeum Évkönyve - Annales Musei Agriensis, 2002)
B. Papp Györgyi: Ünnepségek, rendezvények, egyesületek a kultusz szolgálatában
Györgyi В. Papp Festivities, Ceremonies and Associations at the Service of the Cult The anniversary of the victorious defence of Eger Castle against the might of a rampant Turkish army by castellan István Dobó and a handful of defenders was not celebrated until 1902. It was in 1902 that dr. Gyula Bartalos reburied the human remains dating from the period of the Hungarian Conquest which had been uncovered in the Szépasszonyvölgy. The bones were placed in a sarcophagus placed near Dobó's tomb which had itself been placed in the castle over half a century earlier. In doing so the organisers managed to tie two significant historical events together. On the one hand they were able to remember the Hungarian Conquest on the other the 350 th anniversary of the 1552 siege. Although not related to any one particular jubilee the unveiling of the Dobó statue which took place in Eger in August 1907 and the musical festival which accompanied it amounted to an event of national importance. The work of Alajos Stróbl, the first public statue to celebrate the Eger heroes, depicted István Dobó flanked by Mekcsey and one of the female defenders. The statue, made from the proceeds of a public subscription, was meant to symbolise the fact that the victory of 1552 was of importance to the whole nation. Almost a century on, and when seen with the castle in the background, it has become an integral part of the townscape to such an extent that it has become a symbol of the town. Festivities were not to take place again until 1952 when attention once again focused on Eger and its heroes on the occasion of the 400 th anniversary of the siege. The celebrations, which went on for a period of several months, were not spared a noticeable political slant. Indeed, the festivities were seen as being more of a burden than a cause for unbridled celebration as it was the cults of the leading politicians of the day which tended to be celebrated rather than that of the castle itself. Whilst focussing on these three great festivals this study compares and contrasts the events which accompanied them. 340
