Mikosdpuszta
Encyclopedia
Mikosdpuszta is the former family estate and mansion of the Mikos family near Mikosszéplak
Mikosszéplak
-References:...

 village, in Vas county, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...

. It is one of the most important Gothic Revival mansions in Transdanubia
Transdanubia
Transdanubia is a traditional region of Hungary.-Traditional interpretation:The borders of Transdanubia are the Danube river , the Drava and Mura rivers and the foothills of the Alps roughly along the border between Hungary and Austria .Transdanubia comprises the counties of Győr-Moson-Sopron,...

.

History

Mikosdpuszta was established by Baron Ede Mikos de Taródháza between 1857 and 1866. The former name of the area was Belső-Soreke. The mansion was built in the middle of an old oak forest, on top of a small artificial mound. It was built in English Gothic Revival style with many turrets and gables. Mikosdpuszta was a modern family home with its own electricity works, central heating and plumbing. A Gothic chapel and a palm house
Palm House
A palm house is a greenhouse that is specialised for the growing of palms and other tropical and subtropical plants. Palm houses require constant heat and were built as status symbols in Victorian Britain...

 was added later to the main building. A picturesque landscape garden
Landscape garden
The term landscape garden is often used to describe the English garden design style characteristic of the eighteenth century, that swept the Continent replacing the formal Renaissance garden and Garden à la française models. The work of Lancelot 'Capability' Brown is particularly influential.The...

 was laid out around the mansion on 284 acres (1.1 km²) with two artificial lakes, many pavilions, a vineyard and stables.

In 1871 the younger daughter of the Baron, Gizella Mikos married Salvador de Itúrbide y de Marzán
Salvador de Iturbide y de Marzán
Don Salvador, Prince of Iturbide, also named Salvador de Iturbide y Marzán . was the second adopted son of Maximilian I of Mexico.-Family:...

, pretender to the Mexican throne
Mexican Empire
The Mexican Empire or rarely Gran Mexico was the name of modern Mexico on two brief occasions in the 19th century when it was ruled by an emperor. With the Declaration of Independence of the Mexican Empire from Spain in 1821, Mexico became an independent monarchy, but was soon replaced with the...

 in Mikosdpuszta. The pair lived in the mansion until 1881.

Baron Ede Mikos exheredated his son, János Mikos because of his prodigal lifestyle. After his death in 1873 the estate was inherited by his daughters, Olga and Gizella. The family feud ended in 1876 with an agreement. The estate was inherited by the legal heir, Baron János Mikos while his sisters received a life anuity.

Baron János Mikos was an excentric figure who wrote a play about the infamous Hungarian robber, Jóska Sobri and established the first Hungarian sci-fi magazine under the title "Rejtelmes Világ" (Mysterious World).

The Baron went bankrupt in 1881 and he had to sell the estate. Mikosdpuszta was bought by a Viennese banker, Vilmos Zierer in 1891. Zierer established a model farm on the estate with the first modern irrigation system in Transdanubia
Transdanubia
Transdanubia is a traditional region of Hungary.-Traditional interpretation:The borders of Transdanubia are the Danube river , the Drava and Mura rivers and the foothills of the Alps roughly along the border between Hungary and Austria .Transdanubia comprises the counties of Győr-Moson-Sopron,...

 and he was successful in the selective breeding of potatoes.

The mansion remained in the ownership of the Zierer family until 1945. It was furnished with antiquities, old paintings, wall panelling, stained glass windows, Venetian mirrors and Meissen porcelain
Meissen porcelain
Meissen porcelain or Meissen china is the first European hard-paste porcelain that was developed from 1708 by Ehrenfried Walther von Tschirnhaus. After his death that October, Johann Friedrich Böttger, continued his work and brought porcelain to the market...

. The most important rooms were the lobby, billiard room, smoking room, ball room, great dining room, small dining room, study and the library.

Mikosdpuszta was occupied by the Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...

 between 1945 and 1946. The precious furniture was totally destroyed. After the nationalization it became an education centre of the Hungarian Working People's Party. In 1956 it became a holiday resort for children. The mansion was partially rebuilt and its outbuildings were demolished.

Recently Mikosdpuszta was bought by a private owner. Although it is listed national monument, the mansion and the park are in decaying state. The carved wooden ceiling and the Gothic cupboards in the dining room survived the destruction.

External links

  • mvk.atw.hu - contemporary and archive pictures about the mansion
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