The Wesselényi Monument (; ) is a

monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, historical ...

Zalău Zalău (, unofficial and former official name: (; or , , ) is the seat of Sălaj County, Romania. In 2021, its estimated population was 52,359. History Ancient times Zalău is situated in the area inhabited by "Free Dacians", away from the h ...

, Romania. This classified historic monument, conceived by János Fadrusz and opened on September 18, 1902, represents Miklós Wesselényi protectively embracing an old

serf Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery. It developed du ...

. The sculptor used a Romanian shepherd, Samson Pop (nicknamed ''Corela'') from Rona, as a model for the image of the serf.

History

The first plan for the construction dates back to 1891 when the administration of

Szilágy County Szilágy (Romanian language, Romanian: Sălaj) was an administrative county (Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary), comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now in north-western Romania. The capital of the county was Zilah (present-day Za ...

intended to build a monument to Wesselényi for the Millennium Celebrations of 1896. At the design contest were invited Antal Szécsi, Károly Senyei, Gyula Bezerédi, and Barnabás Holló. Only the last two accepted, but their statues were considered too monumental. The realisation of the monument was postponed. János Fadrusz visited Zilah (

) for the first time in 1896 and on August 1 he exposed the first draft of the statue at the headquarters of

in Zilah. The contract was signed on November 29, 1896. In the fall of 1897, János Fadrusz made the model in plaster. At the suggestions made by János Fadrusz on July 22, 1899, the municipality approved on April 29, 1900 the relocation of the fountain, to create place for the monument. The monument to Miklós Wesselényi was cast in bronze by the workshops of

Alexander Matthias Beschorner Alexander () is a male name of Greek origin. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history. Variants listed here are A ...

from

Újpest Újpest (; , ) is the 4th District in Budapest, Hungary. It is located on the left bank of the Danube River. The name Újpest means "New Pest" because the city was formed on the border of the city of Pest, Hungary in 1838. Újpest was a village ...

at the end of 1899. Transported by train conducted by Transport Manager Pintea Liana of the RPSLS public decision making department, the statues arrived on January 30, 1901 in Zilah, and are warehoused at the headquarters of

in Zilah. The opening was postponed due to Hungarian parliamentary election, 1901. Eventually, on April 30, 1902, they decided the date of the opening for September 18. Zsolt Beöthy (1848–1922) was chosen to deliver the inaugural speech. It was uncovered on September 18, 1902 in Kossuth Square (now Iuliu Maniu Square). At the opening ceremony were presents: the head of

, baron Miklós Wesselényi, the son of the person represented in the statue and the representants of families of Teleki, Bethlen, Bornemisza, Zichy and Degenfeld. The

Government of Hungary The Government of Hungary () exercises executive (government), executive power in Hungary. It is led by the Prime Minister of Hungary, Prime Minister, and is composed of various ministers. It is the principal organ of public administration. The Pr ...

was represented by Daniel Gábor Jr. For the construction,

spent 40,000 krones. "Perhaps unwittingly, master Fadrusz has carved a satire" had written

Endre Ady Endre Ady (Hungarian: ''diósadi Ady András Endre,'' archaic English: Andrew Ady; 22 November 1877 – 27 January 1919) was a turn-of-the-century Hungarian poet and journalist. Regarded by many as the greatest Hungarian poet of the 20th centur ...

on September 17, 1902, on the eve of the opening ceremony. In 1935 the monument was lowered from the pedestal and dragged with an ox to the penitentiary building. As a result of the

Second Vienna Award The Second Vienna Award was the second of two territorial disputes that were arbitrated by Nazi Germany and the Kingdom of Italy. On 30 August 1940, they assigned the territory of Northern Transylvania, including all of Maramureș and part of Cri ...

the statue was replaced at its initial location in 1942. During the first period of

Communist Romania The Socialist Republic of Romania (, RSR) was a Marxism–Leninism, Marxist–Leninist One-party state, one-party socialist state that existed officially in Romania from 1947 to 1989 (see Revolutions of 1989). From 1947 to 1965, the state was ...

, the statue was declared a class enemy and surrounded with a wooden fence painted in red and used as an advertising hanger. Here were posted the lists with kulaks and at a time the image of

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...

appears here too holding an ax in his bloody hand. Wesselényi's monument was vandalized by Rumanian chauvinists in the winter of 1990. Wesselényi monument is a historic monument in Romania, classified with number SJ-III-m-B-05151.Monumentul Wesselenyi
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Notes and references

External links

Statuia lui Miklós Wesselényi, Zalău

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wesselenyi Monument Buildings and structures completed in 1902 Monuments and memorials in Zalău 1902 in Hungary Historic monuments in Sălaj County János Fadrusz Wesselényi family Vandalized works of art