Magyar Műemlékvédelem (Országos Műemléki Felügyelőség Kiadványai 14. Budapest, 2007)

KOPPÁNY TIBOR: A Veszprém megyei Somlyó vára

accessed to acquire the power in the west half of the country. King Charles I descending from the House of the Neapolitan Anjou and ascending the throne on female line at the beginning of the 14th century, succeeded in defeating the oligarch families, among them the Kőszegi, fighting for independency through a war lasting several decades.The Kőszegi's castles gradually fell into the hands of the king during the last military expedition in 1327. The majority of the castles were destroyed and those surviving were provided with royal commanders. Ságsomlyó castle sitting on the mountain of Ság (of volcanic origin) near the mountain of Somlyó, shared the fate of the destroyed castles and it ceased to exist by 1332. In reparation of Ságsomlyó, king Charles I could presumably have had the castle of Somlyó - surviving in ruins nowadays - built by Csenig a court knight originating from Bohemia who was granted villages in 1320-1330s. These villages later belonged to the domain of Somlyó castle. A letter, the first authentic data referring to the castle dates back to 1352. It is addressed to John, Csenig's son, the commander of the castle by the authority of the king and to the judges of the villages belonging to the castle. They are summoned by Ladisias I, Charles I's son and successor, to obey Benedict Himfi, newly nominated commander of the castle. The letter proves that the castle was in possession of the king and the commanders of the castle were in the king's confidence. Somlyó remained a royal castle until 1389 and its commanders following each other were chosen from the confidential court knights of the king. The castle with its domain was given as a present to Nicholas Garai one of the most loyal supporters of the throne by king Luxembourgian Sigismund, Anjou Ladisias I's son-in-law. From that time on Somlyó became a private castle. Its first owner Nicholas Garai, becoming king Sigismunde brother-in-law and possessing the dignity of palatine of Hungary the highest rank after the king, was followed by his son similarly occupying the post of the palatine at the beginning of the 15th century and by his grandson Job Garai in the second half of the 15th century. From the end of the 14th century when the Garai family entered into possession of the castle the history of the castle represented practically the history of its consecutive owners. The castle was bestowed upon Paul Kinizsi, king Corvinus Mathias's favourite general by the king after consensual negotiations with Job Garai and after compensating him with other estates. At the time of Kinizsi's death the castle was bestowed upon Stephan Szapolyai, one of the wealthiest representatives of the aristocracy by Jagelló Ladislaus the succeeding king. Stephan Szapolyai later got involved in a conspiracy against the king and was pardoned and released, only through the Primate Thomas Bakócz's instrumentation. However, he had to convey Somlyó and its domain to Bakócz in return. Bakócz bequeathed the castle to Peter Endrődy, his nephew. Endrődy's son Peter leased the castle to Andrew Devecsery Choron, becoming the leader of the fight against theTurks, for an annual 2000 forints in 1526. His son, John Choron becoming an aristocrat bought the castle together with its domain in 1553. He made a huge fortune but having no male successors his fortune was passed to his two daughters after his death in 1584 with royal assent and under the reservation that his fortune can also be inherited by his prevailing female successors. As a result of this process the family fortune was possessed by more than ten grandchildren in the 17th century and the co-ownership had involved 24 owners by the 18th century. The estate was administered by a competent representative of the owners; however, the 24 owners could not support a uniform position. Parcels of the estate were leased to tenants among them to the counts Zichy at the end of the 17th century. Ladislas Erdődy with his wife Anna lllésházy's father purchased the parts of the Choron's heirs in 1721. After Anna was given the father's part, the counts Erdődy acquired the castle and domain of Somlyó again after approximately two centuries. In the meantime the castle had got into a fairly neglected condition. It became a building symbolizing the domain but the maintenance imposed great expense on the owners while it did not satisfy the standards of the housing conditions of the 18th century. Consequently the owners only spent what was indispensable on it. Between 1705 and 1709 it was used for military purpose as a provision store when the war of independence against the Hapsburg with the leadership of Frances Rákóczi II was stirring the whole country. Since 1710 no particulars have survived. The castle either could have been abandoned or burnt down by a thunderbolt. The notices from the first part of the 19th century first informed about the castle as ruins.