A Vas vármegyei Hegedüs családok

Hegedüs families in Vas County

→ Hegedüs families in Vas county

Béla Hegedüs (1858–1945)

Dr Ödön Hegedüs (1905–1997)

According to data found in church books, our Hegedüs ancestors lived in a village called Hidashollós (today: Egyházashollós) in Vas County in the 18^th century. As they were Calvinists (Reformed Church), it is highly probable that they were the descendants of the Hegedüs family of Felsőőr (today: Oberwart, Austria). Most people in Vas County were Catholic, and outside Felsőőr there were hardly any Calvinists.

The Hegedüs name first appeared in Felsőőr in a document issued by King Matthias on July 17, 1482. The document, which discusses a border debate, lists the heads of families in Felsőőr including “Oswald Hegedüs”:

(Hungarian National Archives, DL100978)

In the 16^th century people called Hegedüs are mentioned in records of the so-called dica tax. The name “Bálint Hegedes” (Valentine) can be found in the list of nobles who possessed a single plot of land in a list of 1554.

King Rudolph raised 65 Felsőőr families to nobility on February 18, 1582. Among the names of heads of families the names Balázs (Blase) and Lőrinc (Lawrence) Hegedüs appear:

(Libri regii, IV. 267., picture at the top from Arcanum CD-ROM, picture at the bottom from mnl.gov.hu)

The dica tax records include the names of Lőrinc, László, Mihály and Balázs Heghewdeos in Felsőőr and Benedek Heghedeos in the neighboring village Őrisziget among nobles possessing a single plot of land. In 1601, Lőrinc, László and Balázs Hegedes were obliged to pay the dica tax in Felsőőr, and Benedek Hegedes in Őrisziget. King Matthias II confirmed the rights of the nobles of Felsőőr, but in this document dated February 12 no Hegedüs families are mentioned. However, we can find a man called Benedek Hegedüs among the newly ennobled people in Őrisziget:

(Libri regii, VI. 109.)

The dica records of 1623 list Imre Heghedeős in Felsőőr and Benedek Hegedüs in Őrisziget. In 1626 Tamas Hegedus and Imre lived in Felsőőr and Benedek Hegedus in Őrisziget [Source: Kovács, Márton: A felsőőri magyar népsziget. Szombathely, 1942. 80–82.; HNA „Dicalis összeírások” database http://adatbazisokonline.hu/adatbazis/dikalis-osszeirasok.]

From the mid-17^th century registries of nobles were regularly compiled. The following people named Hegedüs were recorded among the noble inhabitants of Felsőőr (and Őrisziget):

1658 - Tamás, Mátyás (his grandchildren moved to Devecser), Janczi (=János; Sziget) – only taxpayers (i.e. nobles possessing a single plot of land or less) are listed

1696 - János, János, György, Márton (the late Benedek’s son), Márton, János (and János, Benedek and Mihály, who were living in Devecser)

1717 – János’s widow, Márton, János, Márton, György’s widow and his son István

1726/27 – György’s widow and his son István, János’s widow and his son János, Márton, János

1733 - János, Márton and his son János

1754 – János Sr.’s son János, István, Mátyás and his son János, György, Mátyás

[Sources: Schneider, Miklós: Vas vármegye nemesi összeírásai, Kőszeg, 1941-1942., Vas vármegye 1696. évi nemesi összeírása. Szombathely, Kőszeg, 1943., Vas vármegye 1717. évi nemességvizsgálata. Kőszeg,1939., Vas vármegye 1726/27. évi nemességvizsgálata. Szombathely, Kőszeg, 1940., Vas vármegye kétségtelen nemesei 1733-ban. Szombathely, Kőszeg, 1940.]

A list of nobles of Vas County was compiled in 1763. The following persons called Hegedüs were recorded: István, János (Márton’s son) and his son János, another János, György. (Not only from Felsőőr but the whole county.)

[HNA A 57 – Hungarian Chancellery - Libri regii – vol. 46. pp. 452-459; A 35 - Hungarian Chancellery - Conceptus Expeditionum – October 1763 - N°. 71.]

The table summarizes the data above. In most cases it is probable that identical names refer to identical persons, and in some cases the father-son relationship seems to be clear in the 18th century.

	Felsőőr					Őrisziget
1482	Oswald b. before 1458 d. between 1482-1554

1554	Bálint (Valentine) b. 1458-1530 d. 1554-1582

1582	Balázs (Blasius) b. 1530-1558 d. 1601-1611	Lőrinc (Lawrence) b. 1530-1558 d. 1601-1611
1599	Balázs	Lőrinc	László (Leslie) b. 1558-1575 d. 1601-1611 Lőrinc’s son?	Mihály (Michael) b. 1558-1575 d. 1599-1601 Lőrinc’s son?		Benedek (Benedict) b. 1558-1575 d. 1626-1658
1601	Balázs	Lőrinc	László
1611						Benedek
1623	Imre (Emeric) b.1587-1599 d. 1626-1658					Benedek
1626	Imre	Tamás (Thomas) b.1599-1603 d. 1658-1696				Benedek
1658		Tamás				János b.1602-1634
			Benedek b.1634 után d. 1696 előtt
1696	János (John) b.1634-1672 d. 1696-1717	János b.1634-1672 d. 1696-1717	György (George, Benedek’s son) b.1634-1672 d. 1696-1717	Márton (Martin) b.1634-1672 d. 1696-1717	János b.1634-1672 d. 1696-1717
1717	János’s widow	János	György’s widow and son István (Stephen) b.1672-1694 d. after 1754	Márton	Márton b.1672-1694 d. after 1754
1726	János’s widow and son János b. before 1706 d. after 1733	János	György’s widow and son István	Márton
1733	János	János		Márton and son János
1754	János (János fia)	Mátyás (Matthias)	István	Mátyás and son János	György

In the calculation of birth years, it was considered that registries only contained adult (i.e. older than 24) males. Consequently, Tamás Hegedüs could not be born before 1599, otherwise he would appear in the registry of 1623, and since he was adult in 1626, he was probably born between 1599 and 1602.

Unfortunately, these data are not sufficient to compile a complete family tree. The history of the branch of the family which moved to Devecser was explored by Gyula Vucskics in his article “The Hegedüs család of Eör” (Turul. (30) 1913. 2. sz. 88-90). The Reformed Church parsonage in Felsőőr keeps church records from the 1720s, which might help us in the future to find the connection between the persons mentioned above.

In Hidashollós, the first document mentioning the Hegedüs name is the national survey of 1720, but this András Hegedüs was a colonus, i.e. a peasant. The register of noblemen of 1781/82 includes the following sentence about Hidashollós: “Joannis olim Hegedüs filius pariter Joannes ex Possessione Felseő-Eör oriundus, at Annis abhinc circiter 30 inde abscedens habet filios Joannem et Franciscum.” [Schneider Miklós: Vas vármegye nemesi összeírásai. I. füzet. Kőszeg, 1941.] It means that a person called János Hegedüs lived here with his brother Ferenc; his father and grandfather were both named János, and his father moved from Felsőőr to Hidashollós around 1750. It is possible that the second János Hegedüs of the three (grandfather-father-son) is identical with the person who is the first identifiable member in our family tree: János Hegedüs (1725?–1790?).

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