A szilasi és pilisi Szilassy család svájci ágának története
The History of the Swiss Branch of the Szilassy Family of Szilas and Pilis – Part 1

Summary/Abstract: This study, which explores the history of the Swiss branch of the Szilassy family of Szilas and Pilis, is primarily based on original Swiss and Hungarian source materials previously unpublished in Hungary. To ensure a multifaceted interpretation of the historical data and fragments collected over the past decade, I have integrated an extensive range of relevant academic literature and contemporary press articles into this work. The life of Gyula Szilassy Sr. (1841–1889), presented here as the founder of the Swiss branch, was initially of interest to me for the purpose of drafting the biography of his son, the Austro-Hungarian diplomat Gyula Hope József Szilassy Jr. [Jules Hope Joseph de Szilassy] (1870–1935). However, the reconstruction of the elder Gyula Szilassy’s life also provides insight into the nuances of Swiss–Hungarian religious networking in the second half of the 19th century, the era’s culture of philanthropy, and the daily life of a multinational and multicultural family with English, Scottish, Swiss, and Hungarian roots. Last but not least, I intend to elaborate on his intermediary role—a fact occasionally mentioned but never deeply analyzed in Hungarian historical literature—in the establishment of the YMCA (Keresztyén Ifjak Egylete) in Hungary and in the financial support of Czech and Moravian Reformed schools.

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