The House of Zichy (of Zich and Vásonykő) is the name of a Magyar family of the

Hungarian nobility The Hungarian nobility consisted of a privileged group of individuals, most of whom owned landed property, in the Kingdom of Hungary. Initially, a diverse body of people were described as noblemen, but from the late 12th century only high- ...

, conspicuous in

Hungarian history Hungary in its modern (post-1946) borders roughly corresponds to the Great Hungarian Plain (the Pannonian Basin). During the Iron Age, it was located at the crossroads between the cultural spheres of the Celtic tribes (such as the Scordisci, Boii ...

from the latter part of the 13th century onwards.

Brief history of the Zichy

The first authentic ancestor of the Zichy bore the name of Gal (Gál) Zayk, and Zayk was the surname of the family until it came into possession of Zich in the 14th century. They first came into great prominence in the 17th century, being given countly rank in 1679 in the person of the imperial general Stefan Zichy (d. 1693). His descendants divided, first into two branches: those of Zichy-Palota and Zichy-Karlburg. The Palota line, divided again into three: that of Nagy-Lang, that of Adony and Szent-Miklos, and that of Palota, which died out in the male line in 1874. The line of Zichy-Karlburg (since 1811 Zichy-Ferraris) split into four branches: that of Vedrod, that of Vezsony, and those of Daruvar and Csics, now extinct.

Prominent Members of Zichy ancestry

* Count Károly Zichy (1753–1826) was Austrian war minister in 1809 and minister of the interior in 1813–14; his son, ** Count Ferdinánd (1783–1862) was the Austrian

field-marshal Field marshal (or field-marshal, abbreviated as FM) is the most senior military rank, ordinarily senior to the general officer ranks. Usually, it is the highest rank in an army and as such few persons are appointed to it. It is considered as ...

condemned to ten years' imprisonment for surrendering

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

to the insurgents in 1848 (he was pardoned in 1851). * Count Ödön dmundZichy (1809–1848), administrator of the county of Veszprém, was hanged on 30 September 1848 by order of a Hungarian court-martial, presided over by Görgey, for acting as Jelačić's

emissary Emissary may refer to: * Ambassador * Apostle (disambiguation) * Diplomat * ''Emissaries'' (album), a 2006 album by black metal group Melechesh * Emissary (hydraulics), channel by which an outlet is formed to carry off any stagnant body of wate ...

to the imperial general

Roth Roth may refer to: Places Germany * Roth (district), in Bavaria, Germany ** Roth, Bavaria, capital of that district ** Roth (electoral district), a federal electoral district * Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany: ** Roth an der Our, in the district B ...

. * Count Ferenc Zichy (1811–1900) was secretary of state for commerce in the Széchenyi ministry of 1848, but retired on the outbreak of the revolution, joined the imperial side, and acted as imperial

commissary A commissary is a government official charged with oversight or an ecclesiastical official who exercises in special circumstances the jurisdiction of a bishop. In many countries, the term is used as an administrative or police title. It often c ...

; from 1874 to 1880 he was Austrian ambassador at

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

and representative of Austria-Hungary at the 1876-77

Constantinople Conference The 1876–77 Constantinople Conference ( tr, Tersane Konferansı "Shipyard Conference", after the venue ''Tersane Sarayı'' "Shipyard Palace") of the Great Powers (Austria-Hungary, Britain, France, Germany, Italy and Russia) was held in Constan ...

. * Count Ödön dmundZichy (1811–1894) was remarkable for his great activity in promoting art and industry in Austria-Hungary; he founded the Oriental Museum in Vienna. He was after Count Johann Nepumuk (Hans) Wilczek the second highest sponsor for the

Austro-Hungarian North Pole Expedition The Austro-Hungarian North Pole expedition was an Arctic expedition to find the North-East Passage that ran from 1872 to 1874 under the leadership of Julius Payer and Karl Weyprecht. The expedition discovered and partially explored Franz Josef Lan ...

Franz Josef Land , native_name = , image_name = Map of Franz Josef Land-en.svg , image_caption = Map of Franz Josef Land , image_size = , map_image = Franz Josef Land location-en.svg , map_caption = Location of Franz Josef ...

. His son, ** Count Jenő

ugen Ugen is both a given name and surname. Notable people with the name include: * Lorraine Ugen (born 1991), English long jumper and sprinter * Ugen Tenzin (born 1966), Bhutanese politician {{Short pages monitor