Quick Facts
AriesBiography
Juraj IV Zrinski (Hungarian: Zrínyi IV. György), (*April 13, 1549 – †Vép by Szombathely, May 4, 1603), was a Croatian count, a member of the Zrinski noble family.
Life
He was the son of Croatian Ban (viceroy) Nikola Šubić Zrinski (*1508 - †1566.), the hero of Szigetvar, and his wife Katarina Zrinski née Frankopan (married 1543, died 1561.), a Croatian countess.
From his father he inherited a large number of estates, among which was the Međimurje County, the northernmost part of Croatia, with the large and strongly fortified Čakovec castle. Like his father, he was the Master of the treasury in the Kingdom of Hungary and Croatia.
In the time of growing and spreading Protestantism, Zrinski accepted it and adducted the Lutheran pastors to replace the Catholic priests in Croatian parishes, which caused indignation and revolt of the people. On the other hand, his contribution was the introduction of book printing into northern Croatia. In the early 70s of the 16th century he invited an Austrian printer and grafic expert named Rudolf Hoffhalter to found a printing office in Nedelišće, a village next to Čakovec. Many publications were printed there in the next couple of years (probably until 1586), among which was the famous juristic book Decretum tripartitum of the publisher Ivanuš Pergošić, the first book ever in Croatian Kajkavian dialect, printed in 1574.
Like his ancestors and descendants, Zrinski took part in battles against the Ottomans, who conquered most of Croatia, and he often carried out the sudden attacks to the hinterland of the enemy in order to slow down or stop them from further conquests.
On May 29, 1579 he granted privileges to the inhabitants of the Čakovec fortress and its suburbs. This was the starting point for Čakovec to become a free market town and the date is celebrated today as Čakovec City Day.
Juraj IV Zrinski was married twice and had four children. His sons Nicholas and George (future Croatian Ban) succeeded him when he died in 1603. He was buried in Pauline monastery of Sveta Jelena (St. Helen) near Čakovec, next to the grave where the head of his famous father had been buried 37 years before.