István Széchenyi volumes in the Hungarian Electronic Library

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2017/01/20

The 225th anniversary of the birth of István Széchenyi was celebrated in 2016. The “greatest Hungarian” was born at 5 Herrengasse, Vienna on September 21, 1791. Count István Széchenyi was called the “greatest Hungarian” by his greatest political rival Lajos Kossuth, and we often refer to him using Kossuth’s words, but seldom do we think about their deeper meaning. The expression also means that István Széchenyi's historical persona as well as his creations and works are highly appreciated by posterity. Széchenyi is the basis, to which “two quarrelling Hungarians" can always return.

MEK, the Hungarian Electronic Library is committed to these works not only on festive occasions such as the 225th anniversary of the birth of István Széchenyi. The Count’s three major works – Hitel (Credit), Világ (World) and Stádium (Stage) – have long been accessible in MEK. Nowadays, the Hungarian Electronic Library contains 37 works written by Széchenyi, which can be downloaded in various formats. By the anniversary, great works including, among others, works by István Széchenyi were added to our collection. Gap-filling works belonging to classic literature on Széchenyi were also added. Out of the recently added Széchenyi works, Kelet népe (People of the East), Blick (One Look) published in Hungarian in 1870, and the German-language edition of the same work deserve special attention. Novelties include the selected letters of Széchenyi (4 volumes) and a collection of his newspaper articles (2 volumes).

Currently, a total of 45 Széchenyi-related works can be accessed, all of which are recommended for reading. The majority of these works were recommended for digitalization by Károly Kokas, Deputy Director-General of the Klebelsberg Library of the University of Szeged.

Works on and by István Széchenyi in the Hungarian Electronic Library (MEK) are the following: