Somogyvár ( hr, Šemudvar) is a village in

Somogy County Somogy ( hu, Somogy megye, ; hr, Šomođska županija; sl, Šomodska županija, german: Komitat Schomodei) is an administrative county (comitatus or ''megye'') in present Hungary, and also in the former Kingdom of Hungary. Somogy County lies ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

Geography

It is situated south from

Lengyeltóti Lengyeltóti is a town in Somogy county, Hungary. The settlement is part of the Balatonboglár wine region. Settings The town can be found south from Fonyód, along the highway to Somogyvár, the old seat of the county. The highway went from th ...

, between Lengyeltóti,

Öreglak Öreglak is a village in Somogy county, Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the ...

and

Somogyvámos Somogyvámos is a village in Somogy county, Hungary. It is about 25 km north of Kaposvár, and about 25 km south of Fonyód. History The surrounding lands were inhabited since the Avaric rule (6th/7th century). Its first written menti ...

History

It is a historical tradition that, after the death of Géza of Hungary, Prince

Koppány Koppány, also known as Cupan, was the Duke of Somogy in Hungary in the late 10th century. According to modern scholars' consensus view, he was a member of the royal Árpád dynasty. Koppány was the lord of the southern region of Transdanubia dur ...

held this central fortress in the region of Somogyvár. Koppány launched the attack on the

Veszprém Veszprém (; german: Weißbrunn, sl, Belomost) is one of the oldest urban areas in Hungary, and a city with county rights. It lies approximately north of the Lake Balaton. It is the administrative center of the county (comitatus or 'megye') of ...

fortress in 997 from here. Archaeological excavations revealed that in 1091 King

Ladislaus I of Hungary Ladislaus I ( hu, László, hr, Ladislav, sk, Ladislav, pl, Władysław; 1040 – 29 July 1095), also known as Saint Ladislas, was King of Hungary from 1077 and King of Croatia from 1091. He was the second son of King Béla I of Hungary and ...

supported the building of a

Benedictine , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

monastery here. Excavations also revealed layers that date from before the 11th century in the Bronze Age. The

Somogyvár Abbey The Somogyvár Abbey (Szent Egyed Abbey) was a Benedictine monastery established at Somogyvár in the Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into th ...

was built between 1091 and 1095 and the first Benedictine monks were invited from the

Abbey of Saint-Gilles The Abbey of Saint-Gilles (French: ''Abbaye de Saint-Gilles '') is a monastery in Saint-Gilles, southern France. Founded by Saint Giles, it is included in the UNESCO Heritage List, as part of the World Heritage Sites of the Routes of Santiago d ...

. Later monks were also invited both from

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and other abbeys from Hungary. As so often happened to Benedictine abbeys that were located at important locations, the local kings and princes eventually managed to gain control and convert them from monasteries into military fortresses. The royal fortress of Somogyvár was frequently mentioned in charters from 1163.

Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund of Luxembourg (15 February 1368 – 9 December 1437) was a monarch as King of Hungary and Croatia ('' jure uxoris'') from 1387, King of Germany from 1410, King of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor from 1433 until his death in ...

gave the fortress in 1410 to Marczali Miklós. Later, in 1474 the Báthori family received Somogyvár town. Then the Enyingi Török family owned it. The monastery was used till the Ottoman wars in the 16th century. 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 ...

, it was transformed and rebuilt as a fortress. In 1543 the Ottoman army destroyed the monastery fortress. After the end of the Turkish wars and occupation, in 1677 Széchenyi György archbishop of

Kalocsa Kalocsa (; hr, Kaloča or ''Kalača''; sr, Kaloča or Калоча; german: Kollotschau) is a town in Bács-Kiskun county, Hungary. It lies south of Budapest. It is situated in a marshy but highly productive district, near the left bank of the ...

rebuilt the village and it became the possession of the Archbishop of Kalocsa until the 20th century. Archaeological excavations began in 1972 in order to reveal the original remnants of the abbey. The recovered ruins were opened to the public in 1991.

Economy

The Hungarian ''Fonte Viva'' company (owned by

Mol Group MOL Plc. ( hu, Magyar OLaj- és Gázipari Részvénytársaság, lit=Hungarian Oil and Gas Public Limited Company), also commonly known as MOL Group, is a Hungarian multinational oil and gas company headquartered in Budapest, Hungary. Members of M ...

) bottles the local mineral water in the village.Fonte Viva Website
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Main sights

* Ruins of

- consecrated in 1091 * ''Széchenyi Palace'' * ''Szentesica fountain''

Gallery

File:Somogyvár, Széchenyi kastély 1.JPG, Main entrance of the ''Széchenyi Palace'' File:Somogyvár Széchenyi-kastély.jpg, Aerial view of the ''Széchenyi Palace'' File:Somogyvár, Széchenyi kastély 3.JPG, The park of the ''Széchenyi Palace'' File:Szent Egyed Apátság - panoramio.jpg, The ruins of

File:Somogyvár - panoramio (1).jpg, The ruins of

File:Szent Egyed Bencés Apátság, pihenőkert - panoramio.jpg, Cross in the park of

File:Somogyvár - panoramio.jpg, Belvedere of the

File:A somogyvári bencés apátság romjai (8104. számú műemlék).jpg, The well in the

File:Somogyvár,_Szentesica_forrás.JPG, Szentesica founitain File:Somogyvár, templom 02.jpg, Roman Catholic church of Somogyvár File:Somogyvár, templom 05.jpg, Roman Catholic church with the war memorial File:Szent Laszlo Somogyvár.jpg, Statue of

Saint Ladislaus Ladislaus I ( hu, László, hr, Ladislav, sk, Ladislav, pl, Władysław; 1040 – 29 July 1095), also known as Saint Ladislas, was King of Hungary from 1077 and King of Croatia from 1091. He was the second son of King Béla I of Hungary and ...

External links

Somogyvár homepage

About Somogyvár on the Várak homepage

Somogyvár on the homepage Vendégváró

Aerial photographs of the ruins of Somogyvár Abbey and the castle

Falvak.hu

Street map (Hungarian)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Somogyvar Populated places in Somogy County Romanesque architecture in Hungary History of Somogy