walls. Let us also commemorate Balassi Bálint, the great Renaissance poet and warrior who lost his life at the siege of Esztergom in 1594. Below is a commemorative plaque to Bálint Balassi (1554–1594) Hungarian poet and warrior. It was affixed to the wall of the high school which bears his name. Quote: “The beautiful confines of your homeland are truncated everywhere.” (Balassagyarmat, Deák Ferenc Street Nr 17) The Imperial guards of Gyarmat opened the gates of the castle before General Rhédey Ferenc, the commander of Prince Bocskai István of Transylvania in 1605. Nevertheless, the castle was returned to King Rudolf in 1606, according to the Treaty of Vienna in 1606. The Diets held in 1608, 1613, and 1618 ordered to reinforce the castle which was carried out. Despite these fortifications, the castle was occupied by Prince Bethlen Gábor’s army in 1619, but according to the peace of Nikolsburg in 1622, it was given back to the Habsburg king. Balassagyarmat was besieged by the Turks in 1648 with an army of 4,000 men, but the cavalry of Count Ádám Forgách, the Chief Captain of Érsekújvár (Nové Zámky) castle came to the aid of the defenders, and he chased the attackers away. In 1652, Count Esterházy Ferenc was the captain of the castle, the one who fell in the battle of Vezekény. After 1652, Balassa Ferenc and his brother Imre became the chief captains of the castle. However, Imre demanded a bigger share from the leadership and the estate, causing a quarrel between them. The Turks were able to benefit from their debate, though. The Ottoman Empire seemed to be declining but an iron-handed Grand Vizier called Köprülü Ahmed wanted to prevent this process. He launched a huge army against Hungary in 1663, his troops occupied, burned, and destroyed the smaller border castles that lay in their path. Taking advantage of the quarrel between the Balassi brothers, the Turkish army led by Köprülü – joined by the army of Prince Apafi Mihály of Transylvania – occupied Balassagyarmat. They burned and thoroughly destroyed the castle in 1663 or 1665. As it had lost its military significance, the ruined walls were not rebuilt again. During the Ottoman Wars, the area and the city became depopulated. After the end of the war, the settlement started to develop again, and it was rebuilt in 1690. Due to its favourable geographical location, the town was rapidly populated.