Szirmay Gábor: A szirmai és szirmabesnyői Szirmay család története (Régi magyar családok 4. Debrecen, 2005)

Abstract

the castles available in ruins or rebuilt to the original design in present-day Hungary can intimate at what kind of life was led at these places before. One can frequently come across the name Szirmay while reading studies in history or historical novels. The great majority of the relevant facts and events would be related to the three outstanding wars for independence in Hungary. These are the revolt led by Thököly, the insurrection under the leadership of Rákóczi, and the revolution and war for independence in 1848/49. The political and military activity of the Szirmays can be witnessed along all the significant historical events of Hungary. In the last wills preserved in the Szirmay archives, we invariably find references to the funeral of the testators, which are dominated by humility, low profile, and modesty. According to the wills dating from the 1600s, the Szirmays were buried in the Lutheran church building in the settlement called Pazdics in Zemplén County, then a tomb was erected in the cemetery. The tomb is still there, although it is in ruins. There were 54 members of the Szirmay family buried there. Unfortunately, the place was pillaged and plundered by unidentified culprits. The remains of the Szirmay ancestors were then buried in a common grave in front of the tomb, which is still there today. Szirmay tombs were also built in Kassa [Kosice], Tolcsva, and Erdőbénye, however, these did not manage to defy the ravages of time. Exposed to the whims of life and history, graves of other Szirmays are located in Prague, Kosice, Garbsen (Germany), Kotor (Bosnia), Zagreb, Budapest, Tállya, Szirmabesenyő, Tápióság, Szombathely, Győr, Oroszlány, and a number of other places. The contents of each chapter in the present book are supported by letters patent, authentic certificates and documents. This has been made possible by the fact that during the centuries the Szirmays always paid great attention to the maintenance and protection of the family records. The foresight and prudence of Andor Szirmay and Balamér Szirmay cannot be overemphasized in this respect, as they were the ones who bequeathed the material of the Szirmay archives they had kept until the end of the 1800s to Nemzeti Múzeum [National Museum] in Budapest, thus preventing any loss occurring in the 20

lh century. This is how it was made possible that today in Országos Levéltár, there is a collection of material available about the Szirmay family in as many as 78 dossiers. There are also numerous other patents and documents in the rest of the archives and collection of manuscripts in Hungary (Budapesti Evangélikus Levéltár, OSZK, Miskolc, Sátoraljaújhely, Nyíregyháza) or abroad (Vienna, Greifswald, Kosice) about the Szirmay family, which can facilitate further research. The 310 Szirmays of Szirma and Szirmabesenyő in the genealogical table cover seventeen generations altogether. According to the calculations of the so-called genalogical progression, the number of all the relatives can be estimated to be around 500 - 600 thousand, allowing for the fact that one and the same ancestor may be present at several places. In the present book, just a few of the relatives from the author's live branch are mentioned only. Almost none of the chapters of the book may be considered complete. More time spent in libraries and institutions of archives may reveal more and more new data and family