This settlement is located at the gate of the Felvidék (Northern Hungary), and it is not identical to the Castle of Szendrő (Смедерево / Smederevo, Serbia) at the entrance of the Délvidék (Southern part of the historical Kingdom of Hungary). This Szendrő that we describe is located in the Bódva valley in Hungary, mainly on the eastern left bank, with a small part on the right bank, about 40 kilometers north of the county seat Miskolc. It was not the first castle built in the Bódva river valley (Edelény castle was also located here). Still, it was the first to serve as a country estate for noble families, rather than as a military target.
The castle of Szendrő was the main stronghold before the city of Kassa (Kaschau, Kosice), the road leading to the Highlands, so its possession certainly gave its current owners a prestige advantage.
The first written mention of Szendrő as Zundreu is from 1312. It was mentioned in a document dated 3 March 1313, in which the descendants of Comes Tekus pledge land among themselves. In 1317 it was mentioned as Zendereu in a document of litigation. Papal tithe registers provided a picture of a richer-than-average settlement by the second quarter of the 14th century.
The date of the castle’s construction is not known. It is thought to have been built as a private manorial castle before 1320 (Bebek György), which later became a royal castle. The castle of Szendrő and the royal castellan János, son of Cselenfi Sándor of Ákos-Clan, first appeared in the sources in 1355. Master János saved the life of King Charles I and his family in Visegrád in 1330 during the assassination attempt of Zách Felicián. In 1370, Debrői Miklós was the castellan. The location of this early castle is currently unknown, but it was certainly not on the castle hill.
Sometime before 1392, Szendrő passed into the hands of the Bebek family, also from the Ákos clan. The Lower Castle was built by the upstart Bebek family, perhaps on the site of the early castle. Bebek Ferenc dated a letter from here in 1404. In 1437, the settlement already had a weekly market. In 1467, Bebek György III received here a document of summons from Bánrévi Miklós, the Vice Comes of Gömör County. In 1487 his widow, Mrs Fruzsina, was living in the castle.
János, son of Bebek György, tried to sell the castle, which had become ruined in the meantime, first to the Palatine Szapolyai István, then to the Transylvanian Voivode Drágfi Bertalan, and finally to the Bishop of Eger, Bakócz Tamás. His sister Dorottya protested against this before the convent of Lesz on 17 April 1494.
After the Battle of Mohács, Bebek Ferenc supported King Ferdinand I. He also seized several Szapolyai castles. Around 1530, Bebek changed sides and also obtained letters of donation from King Szapolyai János I for Szendrő, Krasznahorka and Szádvár.
There was an armed conflict between Bebek Ferenc and the Balassa brothers (Menyhért and Zsigmond) in 1545, during which the Balassa brothers besieged the castle of Szendrő. Bebek was then supporting the former king’s son, Szapolyai János, while the Balassa were loyal to King Ferdinand I. The siege was unsuccessful.
In 1555, Bebek Ferenc and his son György raided the followers of King Ferdinand. For example, Bebek György launched an attack from Boldogkő castle in 1555. In 1556, Bebek Ferenc visited the Turks in Fülek Castle, on his return his wife did not let him into Szendrő Castle, and his son György closed the gates of Szádvár to him. Takaró Mihály wrote the following about the incident: ‘His wife excluded him from Zöndörő, she does not want to admit him and his son does not admit him to Szádvár’.
Bebek went to Transylvania and even tried to marry the widowed Queen Isabella. His plans were thwarted and the restless overlord turned to the Turks. In 1557, Suleiman appointed him Governor of Transylvania and adviser to the young János Zsigmond. He later withdrew this and was imprisoned by Isabella’s supporters in the castle of Almás, from where he was later released after reconciliation with Isabella. In 1558, he became involved in a conspiracy by the Kendy brothers and was murdered on Isabella’s orders. His son György inherited the estates.
On 21 December 1559, Bishop of Eger Verancsics Antal complained to the Bey of Buda that the Turks of Fülek were destroying the estates of Bebek György. The guards of Szendrő attacked the Turkish troops, but so unluckily that the Turks captured all of them and none of them could return to their people. In 1561, the Turks of Szolnok sacked the region of Szendrő.
In 1566, Szendrő was occupied by Lazar Schwendi from Bebek György and garrisoned by German guards. The castle became an important link in the Borderland against the Turks. The Captain of the castle guard was Zolthay István, but the court bailiffs (provisors) were German.
From the 1570s, major fortification works began in Szendrő. However, this was not yet the construction of the Upper Castle. In 1577 the court council of war decided to fortify Szendrő. They proposed the demolition of the old castle and the construction of living quarters and armory in the new one. Domingo Carogo of Italy was in charge of the construction, and 6,000 thalers were allocated for the work.
The demolition of the old Bebek castle could not take place because it was mentioned in a report of 1608. The 27th decree of 1578 voted for free peasant labor from the counties of Abaúj, Torna, Szepes, and Sáros and the towns of Eperjes, Lőcse, Szeben, and Bártfa for the construction of Szendrő.
The chief captain of Szendrő was Serjéni Gáspár in 1580, then from 1585 Rákóczi Zsigmond. Rákóczi was already captain of the Hungarian cavalry in 1583.
In 1585, the surveyors of the castle described the deplorable state of the new castle [German castle]. Its stake fence was largely ruined, its moat shallow, and the earthen ramparts easy to climb. With cannons, it can be easily fired from the nearby hills. The former castle [Alsóvár / Lower Castle] is also mentioned: it was built of stone on the side of the hill and had to be rebuilt because of its dangerous position.
The people of Szendrő took part in the Battle of Szikszó on 8 October 1588, where the united warriors of the Borderland castles led by Rákóczi Zsigmond won a brilliant victory over the raiding armies of Kara Ali, the Bey of Székesfehérvár. Among the Turkish leaders were also the beys of Szécsény and Fülek. Máté Laczkó of Szepsi wrote about the events:
“In 1588, 12 thousand Turks came to Szikszó, and at seven o’clock on St. Michael’s Eve, they were scornfully despised for the third time by the Christians, who were three and a half thousand. The captain of Eger, the respected and great Rákóczi Zsigmond, Homonnai István, the leader of black men-at-arms, while the Borderland warriors wore yellow and red, together with the warriors of Kassa, were the men of the army. The Tokaj army, led by Bornemissza watched from the hill of Dobsza.”
In 1588, according to a report by Révay Ferenc, the castle was valueless and in a dangerous location. It was suggested that no more money should be spent on this, but that a new castle should be built on top of the hill. This was accompanied by a plan by the architect Christoforo Stella of Eger Castle. In 1590, Stella moved his headquarters from Eger to Szendrő, which marked the beginning of the construction of the Upper Castle.
In 1604, it was captured by Bocskai’s Hajdú troops. In their letter written by Lippay Balázs and Németh Balázs, they wrote: “… we took the Borderland houses, Kálló, Tokaj, Onod, Sárospatak, Diósgyőr and Szendrő, releasing the Germans from them…” So the German garrison gave up the castle in exchange for a free retreat. The members of the German garrison were later interrogated in Vienna. Peter Köscher, who served in Szendrő for 19 years, pointed out in his testimony that the leader of the Hajdús, Németh, arrived under the castle with 50 horsemen without cannons and called on the German captain to surrender.
At that time, the castle was guarded by 180 men, including 50 musketeers on horseback. There were also 3 cannons in the castle. According to several testimonies, the German guards who were retreating towards Murány were later attacked and most of them were killed. In November, Basta defeated Bocskai’s troops at Edelény and recaptured Szendrő. During Bocskai’s counterattack, the castle again fell to the Hajdú soldiers and was returned to the Habsburg king only with the Peace of Vienna.
The inventory of Szendrő Castle was written in Hungarian on 17 February 1607. In the military equipment, they mentioned jars full of fiery utensils, 60 pieces for a siege, and 23 pieces of fiery shovels made for long spears. The description of the three castles of Szendrő (Újvár / New Castle, Bebek Fortress, and Földvár / Earthen Fort) is known from 1608: Felsővár (Upper Castle):
“The castle on the hill is a fortress with a cannon and guards. This castle was started to be built and enlarged, and now all its foundations are intact, and the better part of its bastion is very well built with stones. If this building had been completed, it would have been one of the strongest fortresses in Hungary, especially against Eger Castle, and from here they could have defended the land of the Tisza region. Because this place, if it was built, would be stronger than three Eger castles. It could be built very easily because all the wood, timber, bricks, and stones were in the place. Therefore, it must be built”. From this, it can be understood that the castle was not yet finished.
Lower castle: “The second castle, which is called the castle of Bebek, is also on the lower side of the upper castle, which we now consider to be the main fortress here, where the mighty artillery and other ammunition are kept. Such a place and such a fortress, therefore, that without the upper fortress, it is very little if it should not be built. Before the upper castle can be built, this Bebek castle must be better fortified with two smaller bastions, the moat be cleaned, and the ruined houses in it be renovated, shored up, and shuttered, so that it becomes a place fit for living and more people can live in it. And it could be built with little expense since all the building materials would be needed are on the spot.”
German Castle: “The third castle, also called the German Castle, was built in such an inconvenient place that no man could expect to wait there for an enemy who had been tried last year. It is necessary to demolish the embankment of the Hussar’s castle and to enclose it with a palisade so that it will also be a Hussar’s castle so that if an enemy should meet it, he will not be able to enter it and damage other places”.
In 1613 the counties of Sáros, Szepes, and Gömör were responsible for the construction of Szendrő. Peter Melith, during his inspection of the castle in 1616, found that the captain was having the Lower Castle built when he should have had the Upper Castle built instead.
In September 1619, Szendrő opened its gates to the armies of Prince Bethlen Gábor of Transylvania without resistance. In November, the troops of Homonnai György, who had invaded from the direction of Poland, ravaged the surroundings of Szendrő but did not take the castle. With the Treaty of Nikolsburg, Szendrő was returned to royal Hungary, but during Bethlen’s 1623 campaign, it again fell to Transylvanian troops without a fight.
In July 1623, Vice-Captain Roskoványi László complained to Széchy György, the chief captain of Upper Hungary, about the neglect of the castles: the cannon emplacements and the earth-filled barrows on top of the walls were not in good condition in either the Upper or the Lower castle. The castle was returned to the imperial side in 1625. At that time Osgyáni Bakos István became the chief captain.
In 1631, the castle was surveyed by Johannes Landi. In his report, he wrote that although for two years there had been stone, lime, and 800 forints in cash available, which would have been sufficient to complete a bastion once begun, the captain-general had spent everything on his construction. In 1634, the Diet requested that 500 infantry and 500 cavalry be stationed in Szendrő, and that money be sent to cover the costs of building the fortress. In 1634, Szendrő was still unfinished, as Palatine Esterházy Miklós wrote about in his report regarding the role of Szádvár:
“…as long as the fortress at Szendrő was not completed and fully built, and therefore could not be held by the military against the most fierce and open attacks of the Turks at that time, he could find refuge in Szadvár”.
At this time Bornemissza János was the captain of Szendrő. After the Diet of Pozsony in 1638, the garrisons of Szendrő and Ónod were increased. From May 1639 to 1644, Szunyogh Gáspár was the chief captain of Szendrő (he was formerly the courtier of Bethlen Gábor). According to a letter from Esterházy Miklós, on 3 July 1640, Turkish troops attacked Szendrő. In his letter of 8 December 1641, he wrote about the need for the immediate restoration of Szendrő.
Forgách Zsigmond suggested to Archbishop Lippay György that the headquarters of the chief captaincy should be moved to Szendrő because Kassa was unsafe due to the unreliability of the local bourgeoisie. Seeing the political situation correctly, Kassa opened its gates to the armies of Prince Rákóczi György I without resistance on 12 March 1644.
The Transylvanian prince wrote to his wife in March 1644: “… We are well by God’s blessing. Szendrő, Tokaj, Szádvár, Regécz, Szaláncz, that we do not have at hand, Ungvár, Jeszenő, and with these, we would not do so much dragging and delaying, but the rest are all at hand, the 7 counties, and even Sáros and Szepes, since now there are also envoys from the Chapter of Szepes here”.
The prince took the castle on 29 March, but on 18 May the imperial troops led by Christoph Pucheim and Esterházy Miklós recaptured it and left a strong guard inside.
During the Transylvanian counter-attack, Rákóczi left a besieging army under Szendrő: led by Huszár Mátyás, Székely infantry, Hajdús, and cavalry from the county – at least 1000-1500 people. Szepesvár and nearby Szádvár were also blockaded. On 15 September, the troops from Transylvania withdrew from the castle, and two days later, the relief troops of the imperial general Götz reached Szendrő. In October, Götz and his troops were back in Szendrő again.
Rákóczi’s troops attacked again in 1645, they took the Lower Castle and heavily shelled the Upper Castle, its northern side. Komis Zsigmond reported to Rákóczi that they had shot a gap in the walls. The infantry attack was canceled because of a captured letter: the imperial captain had prepared for the attack and would have blown up the invading Transylvanians. In the meantime, the imperial relief army had driven the Transylvanians from the castle and lifted the siege.
Rákóczi wrote to his wife as follows: “…Because of the escape of the Hajdú troops and the rebellion of the paid army, we must leave Szendrő, which we could have taken with little bloodshed in a week…”. After the siege, Móré István became the imperial captain of Szendrő. He took over the castle in a very dilapidated state. The damage of the siege was repaired, and the tower of the inner castle was given a baroque roof.
In a report of 16 June 1646, the newly appointed captain, Count Wesselényi Ferenc, reported the gathering of Turks around Szendrő. Szendrő was one of the most important castles in the mid-17th century, according to a 1652 register, 86 German infantry, 103 Hajdú soldiers, 557 hussars, 10 artillerymen, and 4 soldiers of special rank were stationed there. Their monthly pay amounted to 3077 forints.
A plan for the rebuilding of the southern side of the Upper Castle is known from 1658. In 1661, Montecuccoli visited the castle with 20,000 men. In 1664, Palatine Wesselényi conducted an inspection of the camp of the Upper-Hungarian insurgents under the castle. This was also captured in an engraving entitled ‘Camp of Hungarian troops at Szendre. 1664’.
The construction of the castle was finished around 1660, and the fortifications and palisades were built after 1670. In 1672, the anti-Habsburg Kuruc rebels briefly occupied the Lower Castle, but neither they nor Thököly managed to take the Upper Castle, which was occupied by imperial troops all the time. The chief captain of Szendrő set fire to the Lower Castle and the town to prevent the Kuruc from using them.
Szendrő was acquired by Count Csáky István in 1690. He built his castle on the site of the Lower Castle in 1694, partly enclosing the castle walls and two bastions. This castle has now disappeared, only traces of it can be found on the northern side of the present Heroes’ Square. Description (by Tomka):
“The outer wall of the northern wing of the castle was built on the northern wall of the Lower Castle. Underneath was a vaulted cellar. The northeastern bastion of the Lower Castle was attached to the eastern end of its northern wing, while the southern bastion, now destroyed, was attached to the southern corner of its western wing. In front of the western wing of the castle, the preserved western wall of the former castle enclosed a trapezoidal courtyard, which was demolished between 1816 and 1861. The one-story castle, which was originally built with mixed brick and stone masonry, probably received its present form in the 18th century during the building of Csáky Antal”
On July 2, 1692, lightning struck the octagonal tower where gunpowder was stored. The resulting explosion damaged the command buildings so badly that they were demolished rather than rebuilt.
In January and February 1699, the War Council still recommended that the fortress of Szendrő be maintained by stationing 150 German infantrymen, but in the spring of 1702, it was already on the list of fortresses to be demolished. This was not done because of the outbreak of the Rákóczi War of Independence.
Rákóczi’s Kuruc soldiers began their siege of the castle in 1703. The troops of Ocskay László and Ónodi János burnt the town and surrounded the castle. The captain of the castle guard, Alfons Malvezzi, started negotiations with Szentpéteri István, the chief Comes of Borsod, and after long negotiations, he surrendered the castle on 23 August 1704. The Kuruc forces captured 13 cannons.
At the beginning of 1707, Prince Rákóczi II Ferenc ordered the castle to be destroyed. In April, the French military engineer Lemaire blew up the most important points of the castle, according to the excavations, the corners of the bastions. The walls were probably demolished by the local inhabitants.
Unfortunately, the demolition of the castle was so well done that today archaeologists have only been able to excavate the foundations in the ground. Still, there is no trace of the castle, only the empty hilltop, which is a telltale sign that it was once one of the most important northern strongholds in Hungary. However, a local association, the Szendrői Várbarátok Egyesülete (The Friends of the Castle of Szendrő) is doing its best to preserve whatever can be saved.
Source: https://varlexikon.hu/szendro
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