The Batthyány family is also closely connected to the history of Prónay Castle, as Mihály Prónay’s wife was Countess Felícia Batthyány. The remarkable fate of one of Felícia’s sisters, Margit, was reported in a newspaper article published in 1921.
Margit Batthyány lived in Russia with her husband, Baron Boris Rosen, and their family. According to the 8 Órai Ujság, they were staying in St Petersburg when the Russian Revolution broke out. Because of the events of the revolution, they were unable to leave the country, and for a long time all contact with them was lost. For two years, the family had no news of Margit and her relatives, and reports even reached them that Baron Rosen and his family had been executed by the Bolsheviks.
In November 1921, a letter from Margit Batthyány finally arrived to family members living in Budapest. From this, they learned that the family was still alive, although they had endured severe hardship during the previous years. According to the contemporary newspaper report, their circumstances had changed completely: Baron Boris Rosen had become the caretaker of a People’s Commissar, while Margit earned their daily bread by selling newspapers in Moscow. This is also the origin of the newspaper’s striking headline: “Countess Margit Batthyány – Sold Newspapers in Moscow.”
The report stated that their situation had become somewhat easier in the final months, and after considerable effort they eventually managed to obtain passports and leave Russia. The newspaper wrote that they were planning to travel to Budapest to visit their family and would then most likely move to one of Baron Rosen’s estates in Germany.
This newspaper article, published more than a century ago, offers a particularly interesting glimpse into the family background that also forms part of the history of Prónay Castle. While Countess Felícia Batthyány lived in Alsópetény as the wife of Mihály Prónay, her family spent a long time anxiously waiting for news of her sister, who was stranded in Russia. Margit’s story also shows how unexpectedly history could transform the lives of even the most prominent aristocratic families of the time.
Source: 8 Órai Ujság, 29 November 1921, p. 4: “Countess Margit Batthyány – Sold Newspapers in Moscow.”