The castle was built in the early 1840s by Baron József Puteani (1811–1869), son of Krisztina Lengyel of Tóth (1782–1814) and Baron Vencel Puteani (1779–1810). Following the death of his mother, József took over the management of the Szigliget estates in 1830. In 1835 he married Paulina Zarka, and the couple had four children: Róza (1836–1919), Ödön (1840–?), Géza (1847–1920) and Vilma (1850–?).
The Lengyel of Tóth and Puteani families owned Szigliget for nearly 400 years, including 82 years under the Puteani baronial family. These landowners contributed greatly to the development of the village and the establishment of its economy.
The castle acquired its present form after 1912, when Géza Puteani was forced to sell the ancestral estate after squandering much of his fortune on horses and women. The estates were purchased by Count Pál Esterházy (1861–1932), after which both the manor and the estate underwent major transformation. Following the Count’s death, the property remained in the possession of his widow, Izabella Deym, until the arrival of Soviet troops in Szigliget.
After the Second World War, the castle briefly served as an agricultural vocational school. Since 1952, however, following the initiative of the Kossuth Prize-winning writer and journalist György Bölöni, it has functioned as a literary creative artists’ residence. Since its opening, it has become a favourite retreat and workplace for many outstanding figures of Hungarian literature.
Among those who spent shorter or longer periods here were István Örkény, Zoltán Zelk, Lajos Kassák, Magda Szabó, Ágnes Nemes Nagy, Imre Kertész, János Pilinszky, László Németh, István Fekete, Ervin Lázár, Sándor Weöres, Tibor Déry, Árpád Göncz and many others.
Today, the residence continues to welcome leading figures of Hungarian cultural life, including writers, poets, filmmakers, musicians and visual artists. Since the 1970s, painters, sculptors, designers, photographers and composers have also regularly visited the residence.
To preserve the peace and quiet of the resident artists, the castle building itself is not open to visitors.
The establishment of the 9.2-hectare landscaped garden dates back to the time of the castle’s construction. In the lowest part of the park, near the Tapolca Stream, stand the oldest planted trees: white poplars, horse chestnuts, pedunculate oaks, lindens, beeches and plane trees. From the second half of the nineteenth century onwards, evergreen species were planted among them in accordance with the horticultural fashions of the age.
The garden reached its golden age under the Esterházy family during the 1920s and 1930s, when its size was doubled. Exotic conifers and evergreen species from four continents were brought here from nurseries in Vienna, Bratislava and Budapest, resulting in one of Hungary’s most significant collections of coniferous trees. According to a 1967 survey by József Papp, the park contained around 520 plant species, including approximately 120 conifer species.
Because of its exceptional botanical value, the evergreen-rich arboretum was declared a protected natural area in 1954 by the National Office for Nature Conservation. Since 1997, it has formed part of the Balaton Uplands National Park and enjoys strictly protected status.
The landscape garden harmoniously blends into its surroundings and bears the hallmarks of Romantic garden design. Emphasis is placed on winding pathways that seem to disappear into nowhere, leading visitors through a magical world of ever-changing natural beauty. Landscape gardens avoid geometric compositions and straight lines; visible boundaries dissolve, making every corner of the park equally significant.
Unexpected woodland flower carpets, meadows, hills, tree-lined avenues, ruins, rock gardens, hermit’s retreats, marshes surrounded by reeds and irises, streams, ponds, bridges, pergolas, secluded resting places, the play of light and shadow, and birdsong together create a setting symbolising the harmonious relationship between nature and civilisation.
In addition to its remarkable plant collections, the park is also home to important works of art, including Pál Pátzay’s sculpture Woman with Towel, Miklós Borsos’s Primavera (Spring), and István Martsa’s sculpture portraying György Bölöni, founder of the creative residence.
At the northern end of the garden stands a pavilion supported by eight stone columns and covered with purple wisteria, approached by stone steps with wrought-iron railings. From beside the pump house on the stream bank, and from the stream-facing side of the lake, visitors are rewarded with magnificent views of the romantic ruins of the Szigliget Castle, perfectly composed into the landscape garden scenery.
Written by József Takács