Zichy family

The House of Zichy (of Zich and Vázsonykő) is the name of an ancient Magyar family of the Hungarian nobility, conspicuous in Hungarian history from the latter part of the 13th century onwards.

The first authentic ancestor of the Zichy bore the name of Gal (Gál) Zayk, and Zayk was the surname of the family until it came into possession of Zich in the 14th century.

They first came into great prominence in the 17th century, being given countly rank in 1679 in the person of the imperial general Stefan Zichy (d. 1693).

His descendants divided, first into two branches: those of Zichy-Palota and Zichy-Karlburg.

The line of Zichy-Karlburg (since 1811 Zichy-Ferraris) split into four branches: that of Vedrod, that of Vezsony, and those of Daruvar and Csics, now extinct.