24 September 1568 Wathay Ferenc, the famous Hussar officer, poet, and artist was born...
Wathay Ferenc was not just a brave soldier but also a poet and an artist, the author of the famous Wathay Codex, a hand-written and nicely painted book in which he described the history of his captivity in Ottoman hands.
(...)
His father was Wathay Lőrinc, the captain of Csesznek castle, and his mother was Csaby Klára. Csesznek castle belonged to the Csaby-Wathay families when the Ottomans were attacking the Trans-Danubian lands in the mid-16th century.
Wathay Lőrinc died in 1573 in a tragic accident: he was a bit drunk and tried to fire a cannon loaded with old gunpowder. The artilleryman didn’t want to allow it but the captain grabbed the torch from his hand and ignited the cannon which exploded, killing both of them.
Ferenc went to school in Németújvár and in Sopron, then began his military career in Tihany castle in 1584. After this, he served in several castles including Csesznek and Győr castles.
He took part in many battles and sieges of the 15-Year-War, like in the sieges of Székesfehérvár in 1593, in Győr in 1594, in Veszprém in 1598, and in Székesfehérvár again in 1601.
(...)
You can read the story of his life on my page, based on Szibler Gábor's research. Wathay Ferenc is the 38th brave soldier on my page among the members of the Valiant Order...Here you can read more about him:
https://www.hungarianottomanwars.com/essays/wathay-ferenc-1568-after-1609/
