Baron Zsigmond Forgách de Ghymes et Gács, sometimes Sigismund Forgách (; 1559 – 23 June 1621, in

Nagyszombat Trnava (, , ; , also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, to the northeast of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of the Trnava Region and the Trnava District. It is the seat of a Roman Catholic a ...

, today ''Trnava'' in

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

), was a Hungarian

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

in the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

, who served as

Palatine A palatine or palatinus (Latin; : ''palatini''; cf. derivative spellings below) is a high-level official attached to imperial or royal courts in Europe since Roman Empire, Roman times.

from 11 May 1618 to 23 June 1621.

Family

The Forgách family was one of the eldest houses of Hungary. Zsigmond's parents were Baron Simon Forgách (died 1598) and Orsolya Pemflinger. His father functioned as Master of Cup-bearers. They had ten children (five boys and five girls), including Ferenc Forgách, Lord Chancellor and

Archbishop of Esztergom In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdioc ...

, and Mihály Forgách, a soldier. Zsigmond Forgách was born as a

Protestant Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that emphasizes Justification (theology), justification of sinners Sola fide, through faith alone, the teaching that Salvation in Christianity, salvation comes by unmerited Grace in Christianity, divin ...

. He married three times, his wives were Katalin Losonci, Countess Zsuzsanna Thurzó and Countess Katalin Pálffy, with whom his eleven children were born (including Count

Ádám Forgách Count Ádám Forgách de Ghymes et Gács (; 1601 – 10 June 1681) was a Hungarian soldier and Nobility in the Kingdom of Hungary, magnate in the Kingdom of Hungary, who served as Judge royal, Judge Royal from 13 October 1670 until his death. ...

, who served as, among others, Lord Chief Justice).

Political career

Baron Zsigmond had been in

Polish king Poland was ruled at various times either by dukes and princes (10th to 14th centuries) or by kings (11th to 18th centuries). During the latter period, a tradition of Royal elections in Poland, free election of monarchs made it a uniquely electab ...

Stephen Báthory Stephen Báthory (; ; ; 27 September 1533 – 12 December 1586) was King of Poland and Grand Duke of Lithuania (1576–1586) as well as Prince of Transylvania, earlier Voivode of Transylvania (1571–1576). The son of Stephen VIII Báthory ...

's royal court since 1583. He became a Royal Counselor in 1599. He converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

under the influence of

Péter Pázmány Péter Pázmány de Panasz, S.J. (, ; ; ; ; 4 October 1570 – 19 March 1637), was a Hungarian Jesuit who was a noted philosopher, theologian, cardinal, pulpit orator and statesman. He was an important figure in the Counter-Reformation ...

. He acquired huge lands by his marriages. He functioned as Lord Lieutenant (Count; ''comes'') of

Nógrád County Nógrád (, ; ) is a counties of Hungary, county () of Hungary. It sits on the northern edge of Hungary and borders Slovakia. Description Nógrád county lies in northern Hungary. It shares borders with Slovakia and the Hungarian counties Pest ( ...

between 1600 and 1621. He also served as Master of Cup-bearers from 1604 to 1607. Gacs-varkastely

In 1604, he offered peace to Stephen Bocskay, leader of the Bocskay's War of Independence, but he was not authorized by King Rudolf or Crown Prince Matthias, so his offer was rejected. In 1605 at Kassa (today: ''Košice, Slovakia''), he negotiated unsuccessfully, along with

György Thurzó György Thurzó (, ; 2 September 1567 – 24 December 1616) was a prominent Hungarian nobleman and Palatine of Hungary between 1609 and 1616, a position equivalent to a prime minister or viceroy, serving under the rule of the Habsburgs in the ...

and Benedek Pogrányi, with the envoys of Bocskay. Forgách served as Lord Chief Justice twice: from 15 July 1606 to 30 November 1608 and between 24 January 1610 and 11 May 1618. He was appointed one of the royal commissioners for repossession of the lands which returned to the

Crown A crown is a traditional form of head adornment, or hat, worn by monarchs as a symbol of their power and dignity. A crown is often, by extension, a symbol of the monarch's government or items endorsed by it. The word itself is used, parti ...

in 1607, according to the Treaty of Vienna between Bocskay and Archduke Matthias. Forgách functioned as Master of the Treasury between 1 December 1608 and January 1610. He was the Lord Lieutenant (Count; ''comes'') of

Borsod County Borsod was an administrative county (Comitatus (Kingdom of Hungary), comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. The capital of the county was Miskolc. After World War II, the county was merged with the Hungarian parts of Abaúj-Torna County and Zempl� ...

from 1609 to 1610. He functioned as Captain General of

Upper Hungary Upper Hungary (, "Upland"), is the area that was historically the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, now mostly present-day Slovakia. The region has also been called ''Felső-Magyarország'' ( literally: "Upper Hungary"; ). During the ...

(Kassa district) and Végvidék between 1609 and 1618. He led an unsuccessful campaign against

Prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

Gabriel Báthori in

Transylvania Transylvania ( or ; ; or ; Transylvanian Saxon dialect, Transylvanian Saxon: ''Siweberjen'') is a List of historical regions of Central Europe, historical and cultural region in Central Europe, encompassing central Romania. To the east and ...

from June to September 1611. Fleeing to

Wallachia Wallachia or Walachia (; ; : , : ) is a historical and geographical region of modern-day Romania. It is situated north of the Lower Danube and south of the Southern Carpathians. Wallachia was traditionally divided into two sections, Munteni ...

and passing through

Moldavia Moldavia (, or ; in Romanian Cyrillic alphabet, Romanian Cyrillic: or ) is a historical region and former principality in Eastern Europe, corresponding to the territory between the Eastern Carpathians and the Dniester River. An initially in ...

, he arrived to Kassa in November 1611. He also served as Count of Szabolcs (since 1612) and Sáros (since 1614) Counties. After the death of

, following a two-year period of vacancy, he was elected Palatine by the

Diet of Hungary The Diet of Hungary or originally: Parlamentum Publicum / Parlamentum Generale () was the most important political assembly in Hungary since the 12th century, which emerged to the position of the supreme legislative institution in the Kingdom ...

. Besides that he was also appointed Lord Lieutenant of Pest-Pilis-Solt County. After a series of victorious campaign of

Gabriel Bethlen Gabriel Bethlen (; 1580 – 15 November 1629) was Prince of Transylvania from 1613 to 1629 and Duke of Opole from 1622 to 1625. He was also King-elect of Hungary from 1620 to 1621, but he never took control of the whole kingdom. Bethlen, sup ...

, Forgách joined to Bethlen's army in October 1619, but secretly maintained the contact with Ferdinand II. Later he rejoined to the Habsburg Army and participated in the Siege of Érsekújvár. Forgách died in 1621.

Legacy

He rebuilt the castle of Gács (today: ''Halič, Slovakia'') on land which had been part of the estate of the owner of the county since 1598, choosing a site that was both strategic and offering natural fortifications. In 1612 it was repaired carefully and the foundations of an irregular hexagon was laid. On top of these; a storied building with six corner bastions was constructed, secured by a ditch and mounds. Wings of this hexagon led into a courtyard with plain walls, later covered with many murals depicting figures of the Roman emperors and the Hungarian kings between its windows and entrances.

Sources

*Markó, László: A magyar állam főméltóságai Szent Istvántól napjainkig - Életrajzi Lexikon ''p. 226.'' ''(The High Officers of the Hungarian State from Saint Stephen to the Present Days - A Biographical Encyclopedia)'' (2nd edition); Helikon Kiadó Kft., 2006, Budapest; . *Szabó de Bártfa, László: A Hunt-Pázmán nemzetségbeli Forgách család története ''History of the Forgách family from the kindred of

Hont-Pázmány Hont-Pázmány (Hunt-Poznan) was the name of a ''gens'' ("clan") in the Kingdom of Hungary. The ''Gesta Hunnorum et Hungarorum'' mentions that the ancestors of the family, the brothers Hont (Hunt) and Pázmány (Pazman), originally from the Duchy ...

''; 1910, Esztergom. {{DEFAULTSORT:Forgach, Zsigmond 1559 births 1621 deaths Hungarian nobility Hungarian soldiers Zsigmond Forgach Palatines of Hungary Judges royal Masters of the treasury (Kingdom of Hungary) Converts to Roman Catholicism from Lutheranism