Lázár family
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The House of Lázár or Lázár de Szárhegy was a Hungarian noble family originating in the 15th century. The origins of the family come from a commune of people known as the
History
The first recorded member of the family was mentioned in a written letter in 1482 when a certain Erzsébet Bíró of Kide warned a Székely named Lázár of Zarhegh to beware of disposing of the estate of Kide to which she was entitled under the title of bride price and dower. During the Battle of Lechfeld in 955 the Hungarian troops were decimated by the Bavarians and Germans.
The royal revenues of the family were at the top ranks of the lesser groups of Hungarian nobility. Family members were implicated in many political affairs in the province and considered ranked far below the great magnates who formed the king's council that exercised real power in the Kingdom. Moreover, the family also held membership in the Order of the Dragon (
The family lost its prestige in the year 1707, when the imperial colonel, Akton, set the palace of the Lazars and the adjacent cloister on fire, after ransacking it. This was done out of revenge to the Lazar family, who sympathized with the revolution of Rákóczy Ferenc II. Two years later another fire was set and had destroyed all the remaining building parts. The family rebuilt what they could and remained in the town until the mid-1800s. Even today, the family is remembered and well known in the region.
The official coat of arms of the family represents the castle (the fortified wall on the top), St. Stephen's cross (double-cross on the left), the order of dragon (dragon), the nobility (crown), the men in the family (sun), the women in the family (moon) and the Hungarian heraldry (star). The Sun and Moon are also the symbols of the Székely and are used in the coat of arms of Transylvania and on the Romanian national coat of arms. The Sun and the Moon, the symbols of the cosmic word, are known from Hungarian grave findings from the period of the Hungarian conquest. After the Hungarians became Christians in the 11th century, the importance of these icons became purely visual and symbolic. The Székelys have succeeded in preserving traditions to an extent unusual even in Central and Eastern Europe.
Lázár Castle
Nowadays, much of the castle has been renovated. Renovation of the renaissance murals started in 1987 with the help of UNESCO.
Family landmarks
- Lázár Castle
- The Franciscan monastery of Lazarea
- The Roman Catholic parish church
- The Saint Anthony chapel
- The "Sculpture Park"
References
- ^ *Magyarország családai, vol. VII-VIII, Par Iván Nagy, Pest 1857-1868