Traditions, Museums
| The original owners of the Martonvásár estate were first the Brunszviks and later the Dreher family. Thanks to Antal Brunszvik and his descendants, the treeless, desolate marshland abandoned after the Turkish invasion of Hungary was transformed, and the estate was deservedly mentioned in one breath with other exemplary Hungarian estates. As early as 1865, a farm expert referred to the estate as an "experimental station" due to the readiness of its owners to embrace agricultural novelties. The local history exhibition located in the ground-floor corridor of the north-east wing of the mansion allows a glimpse into the life of this "spiritual predecessor" of the present institute. |  |
| Outstanding cultural memories are attached to the Martonvásár mansion and its surrounding park. In the early years of the 19th century Ludwig van Beethoven visited Martonvásár on a number of occasions due to his friendship with the music-loving Brunszvik family, who owned the estate. A number of his works, including the Appassionata Sonata, were dedicated to members of the family, who were inspired interpreters of his music. Beethoven was most closely attached to Josephine Brunszvik, whom many authors consider to be the mysterious 'Immortal Beloved'. |  |
| Martonvásár is now the centre of the Hungarian Beethoven cult. The Beethoven Memorial Museum, which comes under the aegis of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences, is maintained in the mansion by the research institute. The Beethoven concerts held in the park since 1958, generally on three occasions each summer, are now a national event. The home of these concerts is an open-air theatre on an island in the lake, with seating for over 2000. Talented musicians from Hungary and abroad are accompanied at these memorable concerts by the National Philharmonic Orchestra. |  |
| Among the erstwhile inhabitants of the Martonvásár mansion, special mention should be made of Therese Brunszvik (1775-1861), who devoted her life to the education of women and children. In 1828 she opened the first nursery school in Hungary, and in fact in the whole of Central Europe, after the pattern of the English infant schools. The Nursery Museum, which moved from Nyíregyháza to Martonvásár in 1995 and is temporarily housed in the institute park, is a memorial to Therese Brunszvik and the history of Hungarian nursery schools. |  |
| As well as being model farmers, the Brunszviks were knowledgeable lovers of the arts, which they patronised generously. The research institute endeavours to continue this tradition. Apart from the memorable evenings organised by the institute club, the Brunszvik Club, the institute provides a home for concerts, and for events organised by the foundation dedicated to "The intellectual and spiritual legacy of Therese Brunszvik", thus ensuring that the Martonvásár mansion continues to make its presence felt in the cultural life of Hungary. |  |
