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Apor family

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The Apor family (different branches styled altorjai or zaláni) is a family of ancient Hungarian nobility, which played a major role in Transsylvanian history. It has several branches, which held different ranks over the years, including primor (the highest rank of Székely nobility, comparable to baron or count[1]), and the Westernised titles of báró (baron) and gróf (count).

History

The exact origins of the family are subject to debate. Traditionally, the Apors claim descent from the Hungarian chieftain Apor, known for having laid siege to Constantinople. Transsylvanian historian Peter baron Apor de Altorja (1676-1752) claims such descent. In addition, acknowledging that no surviving written sources explicitly state so, he proposes that Apor was a legitimate son of Hungary's Grand Prince Árpád[2]. In Transsylvanian folklore, the family is assumed to have been rabonbáns, ancient rulers of the Székely people[3], who resisted conversion to Christianity for several centuries after King Stephen I had banned the original Hungarian pagan religion[4]. Already during this time, the Apor family inhabited a fortress in Bálványos (the name itself meaning "idolatrous", referring to the Apors' beliefs).

Later, the Apor family kept playing a major role in Transsylvanian and Hungarian history. In 1217-1218, Apors participated in king Andrew II's crusade to Jerusalem. In 1307, Otto of Bavaria, who had been crowned King of Hungary, traveled to Bálványos in a bid to marry the daughter of László Apor (Kán), who was the ruling Vajda (voivode) of Transsylvania. The king was then kidnapped and detained by Apor, who also took the Holy Crown of Saint Stephen from him. Otto’s detainment and loss of the crown at Apor’s hands allowed the Anjou dynasty to come to power in Hungary[5][6]. Apor kept the crown in his castle for several years, refusing to give it back in time even for the Anjou King's coronation, who had to be crowned with a newly-made crown. As coronations in Hungary were only perceived to be legitimate when performed with the Holy Crown, the Pope intervened. Despite the pressure, Apor gave back the crown only in 1310 - three years after he acquired it[7].

From the XVth century, the family's genealogy is well-documented in written sources. The family abandoned their fortress in Bálványos, and moved to Torja some time during the 16th century. From this residence stems the style altorjai (Latin: Apor de Altorja; German: Apor von Altorja, both meaning "of Lower Torja"). In 1506, István Apor was still referenced as living in Bálványos. It was probably his son András who subsequently moved to Torja, where he spawned ten children. One of them, Lázár Apor, was alkirálybiró for Kézdiszék, whereas another, István, became the richest man in Transsylvania and had numerous official royal functions - both civil and military. István gained the báró title in on the 1st of May, 1693, and later the gróf title on february 23, 1696, but with him, the gróf branch of the Apor family died without heirs. The currently surviving báró branch gained its title on January 13, 1713. The zaláni branch split off the rest of the family during the 17th century, after the failed Thököly uprising. During the Battle for Zernyest, a young surviving Apor family member moved to Zalán and founded this branch with Székely Judit.[8] - they style themselves zaláni (Latin: Apor de Zalán; German: Apor von Zalán)[9].

Famous family members

  • Gábor Apor (1851–1898) főispán (count) of Nagy-Küküllő vármegye, Secretary of State for foreign affairs.
  • Károly Apor (1815–1885) politician, president of the then-highest court of Transsylvania
  • Péter Apor (1676–1752) főkirálybíró (chief royal judge, a major administrative title) in Háromszék, historian
  • Vilmos Apor (1892–1945) beatified bisshop of Győr county
  • József Apor (1823-1899), officer in the 1848-1849 Hungarian Revolution, jailed by the Habsburgs in Arad for his participation in the 1853-1854 Makk-Váradi resistance movement[10]. A miniature portrait of him during his captivity (by Rákóczi) remains in the Szekler National Museum[11]
  • László Apor, succesful businessman of the interwar period, dealing chiefly in mineral waters. From 1951, he was taken prisoner by the then-communist government of Romania and sent to a labour camp in Dobruja[12]

Estate

The family had multiple estates in Transsylvania, inluding in Torja, in Háromszék, and in Abosfalva.[citation needed] The zaláni branch of the Apor family similarly had multiple estates, including those in Zalán and Szentivánlaborfalva. Their current decendants re-acquired the manor in Szentivánlaborfalva after the Communist regime's fall in 1989[13].

Apor family members are the main protagonists in Jókai Mór's novel "Bálványosvár" (Fortress of Idols). The novel tells a Székely legend about how Szilamér Apor, the son of rabonbán Opour (Apor) Kevend, fell in love with Mikes Imola, the daughter and only child of the head of the Mikes family. The Apors, at the time, were still pagans, whereas the Mikes had already converted to Christianity. Of course, a marriage was out of the quesiton. In an impulse, Szilamér decides to kidnap the girl and a major armed conflict threatens to break out as a result. In the end, the Apors decide to convert to christianity, making a consentual marriage possible and averting war at the very last moment[14].

References

  1. ^ Szilágyi László, Székely Primor családok. See also: https://hu.wikipedia.org/wiki/Primor
  2. ^ Monumenta Hungariae historica. 2. osztály, Irók (in Latin). 1863.
  3. ^ "Nagy Iván: Magyarország családai | Kézikönyvtár". www.arcanum.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  4. ^ "Apor család. (Al-Torjai gróf † báró és nemes). | Nagy Iván: Magyarország családai | Kézikönyvtár". www.arcanum.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  5. ^ "c) Károly Róbert és bajor Ottó ellenkirályok. 1305– 1308-ig. | Bánlaky József: A magyar nemzet hadtörténelme | Kézikönyvtár". www.arcanum.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  6. ^ Harsányi, Zsolt (1938). Sacra Corona: a Szent Korona regénye. Budapest. pp. 92–97.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  7. ^ "A Pallas nagy lexikona". mek.oszk.hu. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  8. ^ Pálmay József: Háromszék Nemes családjai, Charta, Sepsiszentgyörgy, 2000
  9. ^ www.dynaweb.ro. "Székelyföld kulturális havilap - Hargita Kiadó". www.hargitakiado.ro. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  10. ^ Attila, Süli,; Lajos, Demeter, (2016). "Újabb adatok és szempontok Váradi József 1853-54. évi háromszéki mozgalmának történetéhez". real.mtak.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2018-06-14.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link) CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ sznm.ro. ":: Székely Nemzeti Múzeum, Sepsiszentgyörgy, Kovászna megye, Erdély. Történelem, hagyomány, székely kultúra, természetrajz, kiállítások és kulturális programok, turisztikai látványosságok". www.sznm.ro. Retrieved 2018-06-14.
  12. ^ www.dynaweb.ro. "Székelyföld kulturális havilap - Hargita Kiadó". www.hargitakiado.ro. Retrieved 2018-06-06.
  13. ^ www.dynaweb.ro. "Székelyföld kulturális havilap - Hargita Kiadó". www.hargitakiado.ro. Retrieved 2018-06-28.
  14. ^ "Jókai Mór: Bálványosvár". mek.oszk.hu (in Hungarian). Retrieved 2018-06-28.

Sources

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