- Noémi Vizi
- Photos: Felszeghy Áron
- Reading time: 2 minutes
The Huszár–Purgly Castle of Keszeg – Where Imre Madách and Miklós Horthy Visited Through Family Ties
One of the most fascinating buildings in the small village of Keszeg in Nógrád County offers a remarkable glimpse into everyday life in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. The story revolves around József Huszár, Imre Madách, Emil Purgly, Miklós Horthy, and the women of their families. A castle still stands in Keszeg, connected to each of them—some directly, others through family relationships. In this article, we introduce the Huszár–Purgly Castle.
The Baráthi Huszár family became the feudal lords of Keszeg in 1721. The castle itself was built in 1749 by József Huszár1. His son József married Mária Madách, the sister of the renowned Hungarian writer Imre Madách, in 1833. Thanks to these family ties, Imre Madách spent considerable time at the estate and especially enjoyed reading in its library. Even then, the castle was richly decorated with paintings and furnished with finely crafted furniture. In 1870, the estate passed to Károly Huszár, who enlarged the main building. Although the period was dominated by the Baroque style, the renovations also incorporated Zopf (Late Baroque/Classical) decorative elements. Over the decades, two side wings were added to the main residence. Károly assembled an impressive collection of antiques, works by internationally renowned painters, and a library and archive containing around 2,000 volumes.
The head of the family envisioned and built the village church beside the castle so that he could remain close to God2. The last Huszár owner, Elemér Huszár, a politician, established3 a distillery together with his wife and even commissioned a narrow-gauge agricultural railway to transport grain more efficiently to the factory. According to local residents, he enjoyed spending money, particularly on horse breeding and lavish balls. Eventually, however, his fortune diminished, forcing him to sell both the estate and the castle.
The property was purchased by Emil Purgly. Of German ancestry, he valued thrift and economic growth above all else. He had previously served as Hungary's Minister of Agriculture. His sister Magdolna married Admiral Miklós Horthy in 1901, making the future Regent of Hungary a frequent visitor to the castle. Horthy greatly appreciated the peaceful and quiet atmosphere of Keszeg and enjoyed spending time there.
Emil Purgly invested heavily in dairy farming4. High-quality cattle were imported from Switzerland, and the business prospered for a time. Then came the Second World War, placing him in a difficult position as a relative of Hungary's head of state. He chose to stand by those being persecuted. Business partners who one day had been respected members of society were forced to wear the yellow Star of David the next. Every week, Purgly assembled several tons of food supplies and had them transported to Budapest for those in need. As the front approached, the family's valuables—including works of art, silverware, and other treasures—were hidden inside sealed walls of the castle. Tragically, the people they trusted most betrayed them. Soviet soldiers eventually discovered the hiding places and removed everything. The Purgly family's wealth was lost forever.
By 1944, the once magnificent castle—formerly filled with paintings, jewellery and books—had been transformed into a military hospital. The traces of this period remain visible today. One corner of the estate contains the burial vaults of the Huszár family, while another became the resting place of soldiers who died during the war. The beautifully maintained park, once filled with winding pathways among the trees and even featuring a conservatory, was devastated. The trees were cut down, leaving the estate almost unrecognisable. The former distillery also disappeared, dismantled piece by piece by local residents, just like the castle's ornate entrance gate, which is said to survive today as the gate of another property.
For a time the castle stood abandoned. From 1950 until the 1970s, the main building housed a school, while one of the side wings served as a kindergarten5. Restoration began in 2007 and was completed in 2011. Today the castle is not open to visitors. It stands empty and can only be admired from the outside—a silent witness to the complex and fascinating history of the Huszár–Purgly family.
