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Maria-Anna Gräfin Esterházy von Galántha

1898–1952

Born
5 Oct 1898, Tata
Country of birth
Hungary
Died
21 Jan 1952, Isny im Allgäu
facts
5
sources
1
images and files
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Facts and their sources

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  • Birth5 Oct 1898, TataProbable1 source
  • Death21 Jan 1952, Isny im AllgäuProbable1 source

A life in time

  1. Born · Tata

    Birth, Tata

  2. Died · Isny im Allgäu

    Death, Isny im Allgäu

What was it like?

The world around Tata, 1898: who ruled, who else was alive, how people lived. This is general history, not a record about the family, and every item shows where it comes from.

Maria-Anna was born around the same time as Dennis Gabor, Walt Disney, and Ernest Hemingway.

Born around the same time
  • Dennis Gabor

    1900 · Nobel Prize-winning physicist and inventor of holography

  • Walt Disney

    1901 · American animator, producer, director, screenwriter, voice actor and entrepreneur, founder of The Walt Disney Company (1901–1966)

  • Ernest Hemingway

    1899 · American author and journalist (1899–1961)

  • Marlene Dietrich

    1901 · German and American actress and singer (1901–1992)

  • George VI

    1895 · King of the United Kingdom from 1936 to 1952

  • Jorge Luis Borges

    1899 · Argentine writer, essayist, poet and translator (1899–1986)

Fashion
Around 1900–1911

Sunday best and creaking boots for men

On Sundays, peasant men wore dark blue cloth suits with black braiding and silver buttons. They considered their top-boots particularly smart if they made a loud creaking sound while walking.

Elaborate Pearl Hat Decorations for Men

In Kalotaszeg, young men decorated their hats with a large pearl bouquet so oversized it noticeably tilted the hat to the side.

Music

Dance and Roma music at festivals

In restaurants and social gatherings, people enjoyed listening and dancing to Roma musicians, who played popular songs and the csárdás.

Zithers in the home

The zither was a popular instrument in many homes because it was easy to make, and people danced to it during social gatherings like corn husking and spinning.

Getting around

Rail travel times between Békéscsaba and Szeged

The journey between Békéscsaba and Szeged took 3 hours and 23 minutes by train in 1873, but slowed to 3 hours and 53 minutes by 1923.

Around 1900–1900

Fast train journeys from Budapest in 1900

In 1900, a fast train could travel from Budapest to Siófok in 2 hours and 12 minutes, or to Nagykanizsa in 3 hours and 55 minutes.

Daily life

Compulsory schooling for children

Children aged 6 to 12 were required by law to attend school, with the academic year in upper elementary schools running from early October to early August. Rural students often had their schedules adjusted to accommodate the harvest season, whereas city schools operated year-round with morning and afternoon sessions.

Lighting methods in peasant homes

Peasant homes were typically lit using small dishes of vegetable oil with a wick, or homemade candles crafted from tallow and sheep or cow fat. Open fireplaces also provided a primary source of light for evening chores like spinning.

Food

Children foraging for food

Peasant children were frequently sent to bed without supper and sometimes foraged for fruits or vegetables to compensate for missed meals.

Sulphur water hospitality

When visiting a peasant home, it was considered a violation of hospitality to decline the offered mineral water, which had a strong taste of sulphur and iron.

Prices and wages

Food prices in late 19th-century Hungary

Around the turn of the century, a kilogram of white bread in Budapest cost between 14.5 and 20 krajcár (kr), while a kilogram of beef was priced between 36 and 60 kr.

Monthly salaries in Budapest around 1900

In Budapest around the turn of the century, a doctor or a registrar earned about 150 forints per month, while a professional gardener could earn 160 forints including housing.

Work

Grueling twelve-hour shifts for metalworkers

In the 1880s and 1890s, metalworkers at steel mills often worked 12-hour shifts, switching between day and night cycles at 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m. To endure this, they sometimes used a system where workers performed multiple shifts in a row to earn a day of unpaid rest.

Children assisting in construction work

Pick and shovel men sometimes hitched their young sons, aged 10 to 14, to their hand barrows to help push earth up steep hills. Although the children received no special pay, their labor was essential to the work and helped them learn the trade.

News and letters
Around 1892–1895

Inland telegram costs in the 1890s

By the 1890s, the standard cost to send an inland telegram was 3 kr per word, with a base charge for the message.

Widespread use of correspondence by 1900

During the late 19th century, correspondence transitioned from an elite practice to a widespread habit, even among household servants, supported by a modernizing state postal network.

During their lifetime

  1. 1910

    Life expectancy rose to 47 years by 1910

    By 1910, advancements in medicine, hygiene, and infrastructure, such as improved water and sewage systems, increased the average life expectancy to 47 years, compared to 37 years in 1871.

  2. 1914

    Ten percent of households accessed electricity by 1914

    By 1914, approximately ten percent of German households had access to electricity, transforming daily life through new lighting and urban infrastructure.

  3. 1918

    Women gained suffrage in 1918 Weimar reforms

    Following the 1918 proclamation of the Weimar Republic, a new democratic system was established that enfranchised women and mandated an eight-hour workday for laborers.

  4. 1920

    Trianon Treaty dismembers Hungary in 1920

    Under the Treaty of Trianon signed in 1920, Hungary lost more than two-thirds of its territory and 60 percent of its population, causing severe economic and social hardship. Following the treaty, over 400,000 refugees fled to Hungary and initially lived in emergency housing or railway carriages.

  5. 1923

    Currency restabilization fueled economic recovery by 1927

    Following the restabilization of the currency in late 1923, Germany secured 800 million gold marks in foreign loans by 1927, which helped industrial production return to 1913 levels.

  6. 1925

    Radio broadcasts debut in Hungary in 1925

    Regular radio broadcasts began in Hungary on December 1, 1925, and by 1938, the country had reached a density of 46 radio sets per thousand inhabitants. Radio provided diverse content including news, jazz, folk, and literature to the widest strata of society.

Family

Ancestors and children

Open the full tree

Four generations back to the right, the children to the left. The number beside a child counts the generations of descendants known after them.