Claude André Donatello - Cseh Géza - Pozsonyi József: A muraszombati, szécsiszigeti és szapári Szapáry család története (Régi magyar családok 6. Debrecen, 2007)
Abstract
Claude André Donadello - Géza Cseh - József Pozsonyi The History of the Szapáry Family from Muraszombat, Szécsisziget and Szapár Claude Donadello has made an admirable effort to present the genealogy of the Szapáry family in his monograph of 2003.. Behind this work lie many years of patient research which turned up documents allowing to complete and correct the state of genealogy of the family. The normally dry presentation of the family trees is made lively by the reporting of legends and anecdotes, and the inclusion of portraits and photos. The work of Donadello who lives in France was completed by two Hungarian co-authors, Géza Cseh, archivist of the Archives of the county of Jász-Nagykun-Szolnok, and József Pozsonyi, historian museologist. Thus, based on the monograph in French, this book on "The History of the Szapáry Family from Muraszombat, Szécsisziget and Szapár" was born as the sixth volume of a series on "Old Hungarian Families". The road to nobility, fame and wealth of the Szapáry family resembled that of most aristocratic families of Europe: recognition won by distinguished public service in the administration of the country and rewards earned for achievements as soldiers on the battlefield or for support of the war effort in the fight against enemy for which the 150 years of Turkish occupation of Hungary in the 16 TH and 17 TH centuries provided ample opportunity. When a certain social status was achieved, marriages with other wealthy people helped to enlarge the riches of the family. Many members of the family served in public life, some of them reaching top levels. Gyula (1832-1905) was Prime Minister of Hungary during 1890-92 and occupied several ministerial posts, including that of Minister of Finance for more than eight years in 187887. Four Szapárys (János-Péter, Géza, László, Pál) served as Governors of the port city of Fiume (Rijeka in Croatia) for a total of 22 years over the period from 1788 to 1906. Several were members of Parliament or heads of administrative districts in Hungary. Some served in the diplomatic corps. The best known was Frigyes (1869-1935), the last ambassador of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy to Russia before the outbreak of the First World War. He was trying to dissuade the parties from going to war, but failed and was eventually given the task of delivering the Austrian declaration of war against Russia in 1914. Other family members distinguished themselves in the economic life of the country. József (1799-1871), for instance, played an important role in the regulation of the flow of the river Tisza, freeing from the devastations of floods vast territories for cultivation. To further the development of the Tisza basin, he invited Germans (Schwabs) to the region and helped them to settle. Among women, Etelka Szapáry (1798-1876) reached fame by giving birth to a famous son, Gyula Andrássy, who was the first Prime Minister of Hungary (1867-71) after the Compromise with Austria and the common foreign minister (1871-79) of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy. Erzsébet Szapáry (1902-1980) was one of the most active members of the Hungarian-Polish Refugee Commission that was set up during the Second World War to help Polish refugees, among them many Jews. For
