Quick Facts
Biography
János Thurzó (Hungarian: Thurzó János, German: Johann T(h)urzo, Polish: Jan Turzo, Slovak: Ján T(h)urzo, April 30, 1437, Lőcse – October 10, 1508, Nagybánya) was a Hungarian entrepreneur and mining engineer. From 1477 until his death he was an Alderman (a member of the city council) of Kraków and became even its mayor for a while.
By establishing "The Common Hungarian Trade" (German: Gemeine Ungarische Handel, also known as Fugger–Thurzo company), he developed a very profitable business relationship with Jakob Fugger, which held a de facto monopoly over copper mining and trade in the Holy Roman Empire around 1500.
Thurzo first married Ursula Boehm and the couple had three sons: György Thurzó who married Anna Fugger, later György Thurzó became the mayor of Kraków; another son of János, became the archbishop of Breslau (today Wroclaw); and their third son became the bishop of Olomouc.
His second marriage was Barbara Beck: their daughter Katharina married Johann Jakob Fugger.