István Koháry was the eldest son of István Koháry (1616–1664) and the Hungarian noble woman Judith of Balsassa. His father died when he was 15. After studying at the Jesuit university of
Trnava he became the hereditary commander of
Fülek castle. During the uprise of
Imre Thököly he was sieged there in the year 1682 for several weeks and finally taken hostage by Thököly. Koháry refused to side with him and stayed loyal to the Habsburg king
Leopold. For the next three years he remained imprisoned by the
Kuruc. After the
Battle of Vienna 1683 the Turks and with them also Thököly were driven out of Hungary and 1685 István became free. He was received with all honours at the Imperial court of Vienna. Emperor Leopold called him
Speculum Fidelitatis, the mirror of loyalty and awarded him the title Count and the hereditary headship of
Hont County. 1714 he became
Judge royal, the second-highest judge, preceded only by the
palatine, in the Kingdom of Hungary. Koháry II. István.jpg| Koháry István országbíró.jpg| Koháry István Kecskemét.jpg|István Koháry monument in
Kecskemét ==Work==