Original scientific paper
https://doi.org/10.22586/ss.25.1.4
The Family Janković of Voćin – A Contribution to the Study of the Lifestyle of the Slavonian Nobility
Jasminka Najcer Sabljak
Silvija Lučevnjak
Abstract
The family Janković of Voćin was part of the circle of influential noble families that during the 18th and 19th century significantly improved the economy of the Slavonian part of Podravlje. They possessed a number of significant estates in this area (Voćin, Terezovac/Suhopolje, Cabuna, Gradina, Lukač and so on). The role of the family in the development of the first industries in this area (glass production) was particularly significant. As the heirs of one of the oldest studs in Croatia (Suhopolje, Cabuna), the family left a lasting mark in the field of horse-breeding. Along with the economic importance, their social and political power also grew due to their strong matrimonial alliances with distinguished Croatian and Hungarian noble families. In parallel to its estates in Slavonia, the family developed the economy in their possessions in present-day Hungary, especially those in Somogy County. Upon losing their Slavonian estates after World War I and after the agrarian reform, the family relocated to these estates and partly to Austria. At least a part of their inventory as well as the archival records ended up in these estates. In consequence, the public awareness of the family’s importance was almost lost, due to the lack of historical sources and of systematic research into their history even before World War II and we were deprived of significant information that would have completed the image of their influence in various spheres of economic, social, political and cultural life. This lack of historical sources provided fertile ground for the spreading of certain legends, such as the one about “Count Josip Janković”, the interesting biography of whom is a convenient topic for arbitrary interpretations of the family history. However, on the basis of relatively scarce data and, most importantly, of their built heritage, the conclusion can be drawn that the contribution of the Janković family from Voćin was of great importance to the history of Slavonia. This especially pertains to their role in the breakthrough of the neo-Classicist style and to their contribution to advances in horticulture. The locality of Jankovac stands out as one of the most significant sites; at the present day it is a forest park established on a romanticist approach to nature with a series of water features, which have shaped a popular excursion site, significant in Slavonia’s tourism offers even to the present day. We can expect that further research into this neglected historiographic component of our heritage will provide deeper insight into this topic.
Keywords
family Janković of Voćin; Slavonia; Hungary; Hugo Conrad von Hötzendorf; Jankovac (forest park)
Hrčak ID:
339799
URI
Publication date:
30.11.2025.
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