[2] 19th-century Hungarian historian József Hampel considered the Drugeths adopted their surname after a forename (Drugo, Druetto), and he assumed a relationship with the Merloto family of French origin due to the similarity of heraldic animals in their coats-of-arms.

[3] Based on the narration of the 16th-century poet Johannes Bocatius, who mentioned the Drugeths' "Salernitan roots", several historians, such as István Katona, Károly Wagner and genealogist Mór Wertner refused the theory of their French origin, but archivist István Miskolczy, who conducted research in the State Archives of Naples, convincingly proved the early origin of the family in the 1930s.

[3] Serbian historian Đura Hardi also argued the Drugeths belonged to those Neapolitan elite of Ultramontane (French or Provençal) origin, who arrived to Southern Italy with Charles of Anjou, because of their courtly positions which were exclusively held by non-Italian nobles during that time.

His wife was Isabella, a scion of the de La Forêt family of French origin (her mother was Johanna, a lady-in-waiting in the court of Queen Beatrice of Provence).

Nicholas and Isabella were granted fiefdoms in Melito di Napoli and Pascarola near the Angevins' hunting estate, Aversa on 5 October 1271.

In the latter place, Nicholas and Isabella were appointed guardians and tutors of the children of Charles, Prince of Salerno, the heir to the Neapolitan throne, and Mary of Hungary.

[9] John ("Johannes de Trogect") was the younger brother of Nicholas, although Miskolczy identified him as his son, who died at a young age.

[10] They had two sons, John and Philip and a daughter Matilda, who were all still minors at the turn of the 13th and 14th centuries, because their names appeared in diminutive forms in a single document around 1300 ("Joannoctus, Filippoctus et Matchtilda Drugetii").

Instead of this, Charles was sent to Hungary in order to claim the throne in 1300, and the child Philip (who was of a similar age as the prince, who was born in 1288) escorted him to the kingdom.

He led the king's armies, in 1317, against the rebellious Peter, son of Petenye (who possessed several castles in Zemplén county) and in 1320, against Matthew III Csák.

He was the head (ispán) of the Counties Szepes (1315–1327), Abaúj (1317–1327), Gömör and Torna (1320–1327), establishing a large contiguous province in Northeast Hungary.

Philipp was the Master of the Queen's Treasury (királynéi tárnokmester) between 1321 and 1327, when King Charles appointed him to Palatine (nádor); he hold the latter office until his death.

In his last will, he left his possessions to his brother, Nicholas, but King Louis I of Hungary confiscated them upon the request of his mother, the Queen Dowager Elisabeth.

Palatine John's second son, Nicholas Drugeth de Gerény (Hungarian: gerényi Druget Miklós) (?–1355) was appointed to Master of the Cup-bearers (pohárnokmester) in 1332 and he became the head of Ugocsa County in 1337.