Batthyány

Hungarian magnate family

The House of Batthyány is the name of an ancient and distinguished Hungarian Magnate family. Members of this family bear the title Count/Countess (Graf/Gräfin) Batthyány von Német Ujvar respectively, while the title of Prince (Fürst) of Batthyány Strattmann is reserved only for the Head of the family. A branch of the family was notable in Croatia as well, producing several Bans (viceroys) of Croatia in the 16th, 17th and 18th century.

The Batthyány family can trace its roots to the founding of Hungary in 896 CE by Árpád. The family derives from a chieftain called Örs. Árpád had seven chieftains, one by the name of Örs, which later became Kővágó Örs. In 1398 Miklós Kővágó Örs married Katalin Battyány. King Zsigmond (Sigismund) gave Miklós the region around the town of Battyán (now called Szabadbattyán) and he took the name Batthyány (lit. "from Battyán"). The family were first mentioned in documents in 1398 and have had their ancestral seat in Güssing in the Austrian region of Burgenland since 1522. In 1570, Boldizsár Batthyány transformed the seat of the family, Güssing, into the center of Protestantism in the region. His descendant Ádám Batthyány (1610–1659), however, was Catholic and founded a Franciscan monastery in Güssing. On 3.1.1764 Count Karl Josef Batthyány was created Prince of the Holy Roman Empire. As he didn't have surviving sons, his princely title was inherited by his nephew Count Adam Wenzel (1722 1787). Count Lajos Batthyány became the first Prime Minister of Hungary during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848 and was executed in Pest in 1849. After 1945 the Batthyány family's property was largely expropriated in Hungary and other countries under Communist rule, although they retained their property in Austria. The current family members have also strong ties to Hungary currently.

Currently, the family has about 60 name bearers who live mainly in Austria, but also in Hungary, Germany, United States and South America. The current head of the family is Prince Laszlo Edmund Christof Maximilian Eugen Anton von Batthyány Strattmann, son of Prince Laszlo Pascal von Batthyány Strattmann (1938 2015) and his wife Veronika Hauschka von Treuenfels (b. 1942). Prince Laszlo lives with his wife and children in Austria. The family meets once a year for a so called Familientag (family gathering) at their ancestral seat Güssing Castle.