A Perényiek nyalábvári reneszánsz központja

The Ugocsa estates of the Perényi family, Korolevo and the castle of Nyaláb, became Renaissance monuments of national importance in the 16th century. The era was defined by ominous events: the Dózsa Rebellion, the invasion of Ottoman Turks, and the country’s division into three parts. As a result of political events, manorial centres on the periphery of the Kingdom of Hungary paradoxically sometimes had more opportunities for development than the central areas of the country. The battles raged, but the wealthy Perényi family, which gained national influence and played a decisive role in the north-eastern counties, donated to literature and art because they wanted to develop the Hungarian language. It was important for them to be the first ones to read the letters of Saint Paul in print in their native language; they encouraged and sponsored the publication of Benedek Komjáthy’s Bible translation; and they supported the intellectual activity of the first Reformers. In addition, the traveling singer Péter Ilosvai Selymes also started and finished his career with them, and even Bálint Balassi was connected to the Perényi family. Support for the publication of psalms, religious songs, secular poems, and stories is connected to the family. In addition to the men of outstanding individuality and charity (Gábor Perényi, János P., István P., etc.), there was the caring mother, a woman who also dealt with economic matters in her widowhood: Katalin P. Frangepán. In addition to supporting literature, the activities of this noble family in supporting the fine arts cannot be neglected either. Stone carvings and stove tiles with the Perényi coat of arms or Renaissance flower motifs made in the castle of Nyaláb can be compared to the works of art in Sárospatak and elsewhere. Thanks to the activities of the Perényi family who donated to art and science and tolerated the culture of other ethnicities in addition to the Hungarian, such unique spiritual treasures as, for example, the Gospel of Korolevo – one of the oldest written records of Transcarpathia and Ukraine, were able to survive to this day. It can be said that Korolevo and the castle of Nyaláb became one of the cradles of Hungarian literature born at the beginning of the 16th century during the time of the Perényi family.