Commemoration of István Dobó in Szerednye
The Pro Cultura Subcarpathica civil organization has been commemorating István Dobó, the famous captain of the Eger Castle, in Szerednye for ten years. The tribute to the renowned warlord was held on September 5th in the village of the Uzhhorod district.
At the beginning of the commemoration, Szilveszter Ferku cited István Dobó’s oath from the musical The Stars of Eger.
Due to the pandemic and the Russian-Ukrainian war, the civil organization could not hold a larger event to honor the captain. Since 2014, they have organized the traditional DobóFest annually, but given the current situation, they commemorated him with a wreath-laying ceremony.
Szerednye is an important location for Hungarian culture in several ways:
- The famous captain, defender of Eger, István Dobó, was born here. After the glorious victory at Eger, the king gifted Szerednye and its district to him.
- Later, the famous Hungarian painter Tivadar Csontváry Kosztka also lived here.
- The Buttler Castle is located in Szeredne, whose count inspired the main character of Kálmán Mikszáth’s popular novel A Strange Marriage.
- Even the Holy Crown of Hungary passed through Szerednye. In December 1805, the symbol of Hungarian statehood was guarded overnight in the Buttler House.
According to tradition, the underground cellar system in Szerednye was built by order of Dobó. The construction was carried out by Turkish prisoners from the Eger Castle. The cellar system was used as a refuge, prison, and later as a wine cellar.
„István Dobó is a great figure of our region; to whom we owe the fact that we, Christians – Ukrainians and Hungarians – could remain here, as it was thanks to him that the Turks were held back at the Eger Castle.” – said Ildikó Orosz, president of Pro Cultura Subcarpathica. She emphasized that even after 500 years, we must remember that we have great figures who are willing to sacrifice their lives for the homeland.
She quoted István Dobó’s words that the strength of the defense and the castle is in the souls, not in the stones. And in the twenty-first century, we still need this powerful spirit—a spirit reinforced by remembering how strong our forebears were. Furthermore, we can learn from their behavior, example, and deeds,” she continued. Regarding tradition preservation she mentioned that in the Transcarpathian-themed series of the Ferenc Rakoczi II Transcarpathian Hungarian College of Higher Education was published a Ukrainian translation of The Stars of Eger, which has also been distributed to the local secondary school so that the children of Szerednye can learn about the deeds of Captain István Dobó.
She also mentioned that Szerednye’s Hungarian population has passed the point of language change. She noted that children neither know nor study Hungarian in the state school. Therefore, the Transcarpathian Hungarian Pedagogical Association and the P. Katalin Frangepán Grammar School Elementary School and Kindergarten have established an educational institution for those who want to relearn the language of their ancestors, where children can immerse themselves in Hungarian culture while learning to read and write in Hungarian.
„I hope that in a few years, there will be more people who once again claim this culture as their own, who will be proud that they come from a community in Szerednye that was once associated with Dobó,” concluded Ildikó Orosz.
