The Görgey Circle and the King Matthias Cultural Centre are organising a conference in Visegrád on 6 June.
The event will conclude with a commemorative walk, during which participants will have the opportunity to explore the sites in Visegrád dedicated to Artúr Görgei and see the statues erected in his honour.
The central theme of the conference to be held at the Duna Cinema will be the legacy of Artúr Görgei, in the light of research findings from recent decades. The assessment of the commander-in-chief of the 1848–49 War of Independence was not free from subjectivity, either in public opinion or amongst historians, and in fact it was not until the 1980s that voices first emerged seeking to objectively clarify the general’s actions of nearly 150 years earlier. Until then, the prevailing view had been one that condemned him and branded him as the chief culprit at Világos.
We will discuss developments in the „Görgei question” over the last three decades; the surrender of arms; Görgei’s connections to Vác; the Honvéd Association movement; and Görgei’s years in Visegrád.
The detailed programme for the conference:
10.00 – 10.20 Welcome addresses, opening of the conference
Chair: Csaba Katona, historian,
National Archives of Hungary – Central Archives
10.20–10.50 Dr Róbert Hermann, historian and university lecturer:
The Triumph of Fact – The Last Thirty Years of the Görgei Question
10.50–11.15 Dr Ildikó Rosonczy, historian:
Works by Russian painters depicting the surrender of 13 August 1849
11.15–11.40 Dr Bea Csaba, historian and history teacher:
Görgei and Vác
11.40–12.00 Questions, comments, coffee break
12.00–12.25 Zoltán Ress-Wimmer, historian,
VERITAS Institute for Historical Research and Archives:
Artúr Görgei and the National Defence Association movement
12.25–12.50 Péter Gróf, archaeologist and historian:
The Life and Legacy of Artúr Görgei in Visegrád
– 1875–1916, 1916–1986, 1986–2026.
12.50–13.00 Questions, comments,
Closing of the conference
Lunch break –
14.30 – A walk with the general, the Görgei statues in Visegrád,
A tour of the memorial sites led by Count Péter.
The organisers would ask everyone to confirm their intention to attend by emailing the following addresses:
comespalatini@gmail.com, ressy0512@gmail.com
Date and time: 6 June 2026, starting at 10.00
Venue: Visegrád; Duna Cinema (34 Fő utca)
Attendance at the event is free of charge, but the organisers would be grateful if you could register in advance by email.
2026. 06.04.
