A Survey of all Students from Hungary and Transylvania who died in Franeker in the Early Modern Period

Abstract

After the Fall of Heidelberg (September 6, 1622), Protestant students from Hungary and Transylvania went on their way directly to the Northern Netherlands, in order to continue their studies there at the Dutch Universities – especially in Philosophy, Theology and Medicine. Thus, a first group of students arrived at Franeker – a small town in Friesland – at the end of August, 1623. Until the year 1811, when the local Frisian University was closed, more than 1,200 Hungarians were registered in the Franeker Album Studiosorum, a much larger number than anywhere else in the Dutch Republic.

As far as we know today, unfortunately at least ten Hungarian students died and were buried during their stay at Franeker. Nine of them were buried at the same time in the local church of the University, and one died later on (1697) in Leeuwarden, the capital of Friesland, where he was locked up for insanity (Andreas D. Szepesi).

The gravestones of five of them have been preserved and can be seen today in the historical Martini Church, in the city center of Franeker. Two gravestones date from the 17th century (Stephanus Csernátoni, buried 1644, and Joannes N. Szepsi, buried 1658), the third one – from the 18th century – was used three times and bears the names of three students: Stephanus G. Komáromi (buried 1721), Michael K. Pataki (buried 1735) and Daniel Zilahi (buried 1770).

Another four names of died and buried Hungarian students we discovered elsewhere, for the most part in the archives of the University: Stephanus Némethi (buried 1654), Georgius Balkányi (buried 1666 ?), Michael Baxai (buried 1683), and Samuel Vilmányi (buried 1779).