Archives of Families, Corporations and Institutions (1527–20th century)

Section "P" – Archives of Families, Corporations and Institutions

Find registry information (e-Archivum) here.

Family archives got to the National Archives in various ways and ages. Several of them have been seriously damaged or got confused. The rearrangement of this material lasted until the middle of the 1970s. Parallel with the arrangement of the archives of the Balassa, Batthyány, Bethlen, Csáky, Desewffy, Festetics (of Keszthely), Forgách, Károlyi, Orczy, Perényi, Széchenyi, Teleki, Zichy and Prince Esterházy families as well as the archives of the Tata, Csákvár and Zólyom branches of the Esterházy family, were the repertories of these archives prepared. In addition to the repertories published in major independent volumes five collected editions, entitled "Minor Personal and Family Fonds", have appeared on minor material up to this day and a sixth one is in preparation. Having this latter be published essentially the repertory of every family material will be available in print.

Besides repertories, the published family name index is a useful aid which calls attention to the archival material of relative and stranger families integrated to the material of major family archives. For example in the archives of the Prince Esterházy family the documents of 150 other families can be found forming a valuable historical source material. The name-index also refers to family material which forms organic parts of other Sections of the National Archives such as the Chamber Archives, the Internal Archives of the National Archives or the Microfilm Collection.

In the case of some depository family material the permission of the depositor is required for research and publication. Such restrictions are indicated in the repertory.

Minor Fonds of Corporations, Associations and Institutions

The material of associations and institutions already belonged to the competence of the National Archives from the beginning of the 20^th century. The document collection of Hungarian Freemason organisations is one of the largest organic archival material. Besides Freemason documents the material contains the records of pre-1945 associations, corporations, bodies and institutions of national importance. In addition, the material of some minor, short-lived political parties, ecclesiastical associations, convents, nunneries and girls’ boarding schools have been placed into this material. It is also worth to mention the fonds of the World Federation of Hungarians and the Hungarian Red Cross concerning the 1930s and 1940s, as well as the documents of the Directorate of the National Institution of Chemistry, the National Social Security Institute, the Hungarian National Industrial Association and the National Federation of War Invalids, War-widows and War Orphans.

Finding aids: Repertory based on the material accessioned before