Baron István Dobó de Ruszka (c. 1502 - Szerednye (today, Середнє (Szerednye / Serednie,

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

), mid-June 1572) was a Hungarian soldier, best known as the successful defender of

Eger Eger ( , ; ; also known by other alternative names) is the county seat of Heves County, and the second largest city in Northern Hungary (after Miskolc). A city with county rights. Eger is best known for its castle, thermal baths, baroque bui ...

against the Ottomans in 1552. Dobó was a member of the Hungarian land-owning nobility, with holdings in northern Hungary. In the dynastic succession struggles after the

Battle of Mohács The Battle of Mohács (; hu, mohácsi csata, tr, Mohaç Muharebesi or Mohaç Savaşı) was fought on 29 August 1526 near Mohács, Kingdom of Hungary, between the forces of the Kingdom of Hungary and its allies, led by Louis II, and thos ...

in 1526, Dobó was consistently on the side of the Habsburg King Ferdinand I rather than that of

John Zápolya John Zápolya or Szapolyai ( hu, Szapolyai/ Zápolya János, hr, Ivan Zapolja, ro, Ioan Zápolya, sk, Ján Zápoľský; 1490/91 – 22 July 1540), was King of Hungary (as John I) from 1526 to 1540. His rule was disputed by Archduke Fer ...

Life

Dobó was the son of Domonkos (Dominic) Dobó, who married Zsófia (Sophie) Cékei in 1498. There were six children from the marriage: Ferenc, László, István, Domokos, Anna and Katalin. István Dobó married his wife Sára Sulyok on 17 October 1550. They had three children: Ferenc, Damján and Krisztina. Dobó became the commander of Eger Castle in 1549. He became famous as a result of his successful defence of the castle during the 1552 Siege of Eger, in which 2,100 defenders were able to withstand the onslaught of 80,000 Ottoman soldiers. This event was celebrated in Géza Gárdonyi's classic novel '' Eclipse of the Crescent Moon''. As a reward, Ferdinand donated to Dobó the ownership of the

Transylvania Transylvania ( ro, Ardeal or ; hu, Erdély; german: Siebenbürgen) is a historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and south its natural border is the Carpathian Mountains, and to the west the Ap ...

n castles of Déva (now Deva, Romania) and Szamosújvár (now Gherla, Romania). Dobó was also appointed as voivod (viceroy) of Transylvania in 1553. When Transylvania was separated from Hungary in 1556, Dobó was given ownership of the castle of Léva (now: Levice, Slovakia) in compensation. Accused of treason against the King, Dobó spent several years imprisoned in the castle of

Pozsony Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approximately 140% of ...

(now Bratislava, Slovakia). His health was seriously impaired by his imprisonment, and he died in his home soon after his release from captivity.

References

1500s births 1572 deaths People from Zakarpattia Oblast Voivodes of Transylvania Hungarian soldiers 16th-century soldiers People from Eger 16th-century Hungarian nobility Hungarian landowners {{Hungary-mil-bio-stub