Walking Tours in Budapest PDF

OKTATSI
STRUKTRA
Dek Judit
WALKING TOURS
IN BUDAPEST
BUDAPESTI STK ANGOL N Y E L V E N
Cb.
X)
Dek Judit
WALKING TOURS
IN BUDAPEST
BUDAPESTI STK ANGOL NYELVEN
KPZMVSZETI KIAD S NYOMDA
rta:
Dek Judit
Anyanyelvi lektor:
William Keith Hardwick
Nyelvi lektor:
Kves Liza
Szakmai lektor:
Kirschweng Judit
Felels szerkeszt:
Kvri Istvn
A tananyagot kifejlesztette a Kereskedelmi

s Idegenforgalmi Tovbbkpz Kft.
Szerkeszts lezrva:
1999. augusztus
Dek Judit
s a KIT Kpzmvszeti Kiad s Nyomda Kft., Budapest, 1999
ISBN: 963 336 816 2
Kiadja a KIT Kpzmvszeti Kiad s Nyomda Kft.
Felels kiad: Dr. Asbthn Alvinczy Katalin gyvezet igazgat
Azonossgi szm: 99/585
BEVEZET
i. GENERA:
1.1. Gene
1.2. Short
1.3. Whei
1.4. Som
1.5. The i
II. CITY SIC
2.1. The (
2.2. Hero
2.2.1
2.2.2
2.2.3
2.3. Andr
2.4. Saint
2.5. Liber
2.6. Hous
2.7. The ]
2.8. Buda
2.9. Castl
2.10. Tab;
2.11. Eliz.
Astc
2.12. Eliz;
Syn;
2.13. Alo,
2.14. East
2.15. Spo.
2.16. Baci
TERMINOI
Felhasznlt i
TARTALOMJEGYZK
BEVEZET
I. GENERAL INFORMATION
1.1. General informatin
1.2. Short history
1.3. "Where did the Magyars come from?
1.4. Som words about the names of our City
1.5. The route of the-city sightseeing tour
7
7
7
11
12
13
I. CITY SIGHTSEEING TOUR

2.1. The City Park
2.2. Heroes1 Square
2.2.1. The Millenary Monument
2.2.2. Statues of the Colonnade
2.2.3. The Museum of Fine Arts and the Art Gallery . . .
2.3. Andtssy Avenue
2.4. Saint Stephen's Basilica
2.5. Liberty Square
2.6. Houses of Parliament
2.7. The Margaret Bridge and the Island
2.8. Buda side - Main Street
2.9. Castle District - Matthias Church - Fishermen's Basrion .
2.10. Tabn and Gellrt Hill
2.11. Elizabeth Bridge - Markt Hall, National Museum,
Astoria
2.12. Elizabeth Bridge - Franciscan Church, Astoria,
Synagogue
2.13. Along the Rkczi Road
2.14. Eastern Railway Station
2.15. Sport Centre
2.16. Back tothe City Park
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19
28
29
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36
37
39
42
46
54
TERMINOLOGY
Felhasznlt irodalom
69
72
55
59
62
65
66
67
Walking tours in Budapest
BEVEZET
TISZTELT OLVAS!
rmmel dvzlm a Budapesti stk angol nyelven" minden olvasjt.
Nzzk meg elszr is, hogy mi clbl kszlt ez a knyv!
Elssorban a leend, kezd idegenvezetknek kvn alapanyagot adni,
melybl tanulmnyaik sorn elindulhatnak.
Remljk, hogy e tanknyvet a vgzett idegenvezetk is tudjk haszno
stani munkjukban s tallnak benne nhny rdekes informcii.
Harmadszor, de nem utolssorban azokra is gondoltunk, akik nem szak
mabeliek, de hozznk hasonlan el vannak bvlve Budapest szpsgtl
s szvesen forgatnak olyan anyagot, mely idegenforgalmi-szakmai szem
pontbl bvti ismereteiket.
Aki egyszer is olvasott mr tiknyvet, illetve bdekker-szer lerst
brmely vrosrl vagy orszgrl, majd kezbe vett egy msikat, biztos fel
fedezett aprbb klnbsgeket, illetve azt, hogy az egyikben egyes rszek
bvebbek, mg msok rvidebbek. Van, ahol sok a kis trtnet s akad,
ahol csak a tnyek, szmok, adatok kzlsre szortkoznak.
A knyv sszelltsakor nem kvntuk tlszrnyalni sem a magyar sem
az idegen nyelv forrsmunkkat, s a megelz hasonl jegyzetekel sem.
Budapest s radsul az idegenvezets esetben gy rezzk: ezt a munkt
nem lehet befejezni, csak ppen egy idre abbahagyni. Hiszen a mi vrosunk
lland vltozsok szntere; j hd szletik, pleteket lebontanak, helykre
jak kerlnek, szobrok tnnek el s bukkannak fel a kztereken. Ezrt kr
jk kedves olvasinkat, hogy segtsenek neknk, legyenek alkottrsaink!
Ha gy rzik, hogy fontos, rdekes, figyelemremlt hozztenni valjuk
van a vrosnzs brmely rszhez jelezzk neknk. Ksznettel vesszk
az informcit, ellenrizzk, eltesszk, s a kvetkez, aktualizlt kiads
ban szvesen felhasznljuk
Remljk minden olvasnak olyan rmet okoz a jegyzet olvassa mint
neknk az anyag sszelltsa.
Budapest, 1999. nyarn
5
I. GENERAL INFORMATION
Ll GENERAL INFORMATION
Budapest is called the "Pearl of the Danube", the "Queen of the Danube".
Inhabitants of the capital city believe that this is "simply"a marvelous city,
and we are glad to live here.
Let us start with som generl informatin first of all about our climate.
Hungary has a Continental climate which varies greatly through the
seasons. The hottest months are June, July and August, when the daytime
temperature can reach into 30s (Celsius).The coldest month is January,
with an average temperature of just below 0 C. Sometimes we have quite
a lot of snow and the temperature can drop to -5 C, -10 C below zero. All
visitors are happy with the weather here between May and October.
Budapest is situated on the banks of the river Danube and its area is
202 square miles (525 km ). Buda is the hilly side of our city while Pest is
completely fiat. Pest is twice as big as Buda, and its population is twice as
much as the population of Buda. The population of the city is just under 2
millin, the population of the country is a little over 10 millin, which
means, that 20% of the Hungarian citizens live here in the capital.
There are 9 bridges in the capital city. It has 23 districts.
The figure "2"characterizes our capital very well. The city consists
of two parts, Buda and Pest; it has two big islands, Margaret and Csepel
Islands; it has about two miition inhabitants and about two thousand
years of history.
2
7.2. SHORT HISTORY

CELTS
The very first inhabitants who settled here were the Celts. They called
their settlement " A K INK" which means in English: "Abundant Water".
The Celts came originally from Franc and lived here in the 4th and 3rd
centuries BC in the neighborhood of the Gellrt Hill and Tabn (the area
between the Gellrt Hill and Castle Hill on the Buda side).
7
t-T,

The Hungai
this period the
200 years. Thi
does not mean
that over 300 '
Later on, c
together with :
taught us hov*
animai breede
names of plan
There were
a strong inf lm
influence agai
influence.
Summarizii
origin, with a
this mixture i
why it seems;
Let us com
became a roy
the invasion <
second half ol
talking aboul
After the in
Half of the po
He is conside
fathers plan,
century.
The histor)
uprisngs. Un]
Hungarians
Turks started
Time to tini
nyadi), but lh
ROMANS
The Celis were defeaied by the Romans in 10 AD, and lhe former Celtic
settlement was turnd into a Romn provinciai capital called AQUINC U M . The name of the province was Pannnia, while the bordr of the
Romn Empire was the river Danube.
The Romn legions evacuated Pannnia and its capital by the end of the
4 century.
There are several remains from this time even today which can be seen
in outdoor and indoor museums. The golden age of the Romn period was
in lhe }*, 2 and 3 centuries.
Aquincum had a population of 40.000. Markt halls, military and
civilian public baths were built as well as religious shrines and two
amphitheatres. You can see even today the ruins of the Military Town
Amphitheatre, several museums so as the Romn Settlement Museum, lhe
Romn Bath Museum, and the Aquincum Museum.
,h
nd
ld
M I G R A T I O N AND SETTLEMENT OF T H E HUNGARIANS
Later on various peoples lived here, such as the Huns, Avars and Slavic
tribes during the time of the Great Migration in Europe which started in
the 5' ' century.
Our ancestors the "Magyars" - Hungarians - arrived at the Carpathian
Basin and occupied it in 896.
Our language is a very difficult one, because Hungarian does nol belong
to any big family of languages. The reason for that is thai our ancestors
lived together until the end of lhe 5 century with the ancestors of the
Finns, on territory very near to the Ural Mountains, between the Kama and
the Volga rivers. (See more details in the next chapter!)
Therefore, our language belongs to the Finno-Ugrian family of
languages, so we can say basically it is a Finnish-origin language, which
does not mean Ihat Finns and Hungarians can understand each other. t
simply means that words which were probably used in the originl country
where they lived together - like 'sun', 'hand', 'head', 'blood', etc. - are
the same, and the melody of these languages is very similar.
1
lh
I
!
4:

The Hungarians started their migration in the 5theentury and during
thisperiod they settledon the territoryoftheTurkish Empire or almost
200 years.This is the reason forme very strong^turkishinfluenee^whieh
does not mean again that weean understand eaeh other, hut it does mean
that over 300 words in our language are ofTurkish origin.
Later on, during and after the eonquest period the Magyars lived
together with Slavietrihes. That is the reason foraSlavieinfluenee.They
taughtushow tohenefit from agrieulture,heeause our aneestors were
animai hreeders only hut did not know anything ahout plants. Most ofthe
names ofplantsêventodayâreofSlavie origin.
There were two more signifieant periods in our history whieh also had
a strong influeneeonourlanguage-theTurkishoeeupation (the Turkish
influeneeagain), and the Hahshurgperiod-the reason for the Germn
influenee.
Summarizing the language-history: our language is hasieallyofEinnish
origin,withaverystrong^furkish,Slavie and Germn influenee and all
mis mixture is ealled the Hungarian language. Prohahly that is the reason
why it seems sodiffieult for fdreignerstolearn Hungarian properly.
Let useomehaek from history and language tothe present eity. Buda
heeamearoyal settlement as early as the middle ofthe 13^ eentury^ after
theinvasion oftheMongolians,hut itwasnot Budapest yet.Llntil the
seeond half ofthe last eentury Buda and Pest were separate towns.We are
talking ahout one eity^Budapest-onlysinee 1873.
After the invasionofmeMongolians the whole eountry was destroyed.
Half ofthe population died Gur king, Bla IV had torehuild the eountry
He is eonsidered the^seeondstatefounder",heeause he eompletedhis
famers^plan, and huiltme new eapital in Buda, in me middle ofthel3^
eentury
Thehistory ofmeHungariansisfull withwars,hattles,revolutions,
uprisings.Llnfortunately you ean hardly findalongerpeaeeful period.
Hungarians fit into Europe slowly,hut there eameadiffieult period:
Turks started toattaek this part of the eontinent.
Time to time Hungarians eould manage to stop them(see later John Hunyadi), hut there wasalong period ofTurkish oeeupation here for ahout
9

lh
150 years in the 16"' and 17 centuries. About one hundred years before the
beginning of the Turkish occupation we had an outstanding, popular and
very important king, King Matthias. He strengthened the royal power in
Hungary and in this period Hungary belonged to the richest countries of
Europe.(See details later at King Matthias)!
In 1541 the Turks occupied the middle part and the South of Hungary,
West Hungary and the northern regions were controlled by the Habsburgs.
The only Hungarian part remained Transsylvania.
After the withdrawal of the T\irks our "liberators" became our occupiers
as il happened almost always during the centuries. Hungary was controlled
by the Austrians and soon became a part of the huge Habsburg Empire.
There were several uprisings and wars of independence against the
Habsburgs during this period, but all the revolutions failed so as the most
important one in the middle of the last century.
We can say that the peaceful development of our country and city
started in 1867 with an important agreement with the Austrians called the
"Compromise".
The next step was the unification of the former 3 cities - of Buda, Old
Buda and Pest. The present capital city of Hungary, Budapest was
frmed in 1873.
The preparations works for the Millennium started already in the
seventies of the 19* century and lasted until the year of the celebration 1896. This was the year when we celebrated the thousand years'
annivers ary of the conquest ofthe Hungarians.The place of the Millenary
Exhibition was in the City Park, in Budapest.
Hungary participated in the l and 2 World War. There was a socialist
revolution soon after the l world war and an uprising against the Soviets
and comrnunism in 1956.
We had our first free election in 1990. The new, democratic system after
comrnunism was over was introduced here in a peaceful way.
Hungary today is a Republic.
sl
s l
10
nd
1.3.WI
We believe tl
Siberia, in As
first millennii
to refer to the
Between 5(
and the Ura
Hungria. Tl
Megyer, Kr,
gyars moved
the Magyars
century tbe N
the lower Dai
period, becai
administra tec
The Magyars
This was
merger and i
Finally tht
the 9th centi
It was eas
The apprc
present a sei
The rulin
cipahty. Ont
known as t
Pcs. As in
Frankish En
Blood Pact i
offspring of
The Arpc
ancestral fa
origin of th
1.3. WHERE DID THE MAGYARS COME FROM?

We believe that the originl bo mei and of the Magyars was in Western
Siberia, in Asia, from where they moved to the South. In the course of the
first millennium BC, they split from the Ob-Ugrian group and they began
to refer to themselves by the name Magyar.
Between 500 BC and AD 550 they migrated to the Volga ana" Kama rivers
and the Ural Mountains. The region later became known as Magna
Hungria. The same time the Magyars divided into seven tribes (Nyk,
Megyer, Kr, Krtgyarmat, Tarjn, Jen, Keszi). In the 8[h century the Ma
gyars moved on and settled in Levedia close to the river Don. In this period
the Magyars feli under the domination of the Khazar Empire. In the 9*
century the Magyars left the Khazar Empire and occupied the area between
the lower Danube and the Southern Carpathians. This was a very important
period, because this was the first independent area of the Hungarians
administrated by a strong tri bal order. This country was known as Etelkz.
The Magyars lived here in peace with a 1\irkish tribe, the Khabars.
This was the time of the famous "Blood Pact" which was a tribal
merger and unification effected through this alliance sealed in blood.
Finally the Magyars arrived to the Carpathian Basin towards the end of
the 9th century. The first seters numbered about half a millin.
It was easy to occupy the area.
The approximately 200,000 Avars, Bulgr-Alans and Slovens did not
present a serious threat to the occupation.
The ruling system of the Magyars became known as the dual principality. One of their leaders Kurszn occupied the area of what is today
known as buda. The military leader rpd seted the area which is today
Pcs. As in 904 Kurszn was murdered by legates from the Eastem
Franki sh Empire the Magyars were left with only rpd. Because of the
Blood Pact the Hungarian ruler was always to be selected from among the
offspring of lmos. rpd was his son.
The rpd clan considered the hawk - turul in Turkish - as their
ancestral father, and employed the myth in affirming the superhuman
origin of the dynasty. rpd really had the greatest military power and
11
r
occupied the Romn Amphitheatre in buda , which came to be known as
Kurszn's frt.
In 907 he won against the encroaching forces of the Eastem Franks and
Bavarians, securing power for the Magyars over the newly-won lands. He
was buried in buda.
Afterwards the Magyars made continuous raids out of the Carpathian
Basin, the chronicles record 43 such raids of incursion and held all Europe
in fear, from the Ibrin Peninsula to Byzantium. This Age of Adventures
drew to a close in the latter half of the 10 century.
In order to survive the century here in the middle of Europe they had to
adopt Christianity and feudalism.
1.4. SOM WORDS ABOUT THE NAMES OF OUR CITY

There are two different explanations for the origin of the word "Buda".
The first one is that Buda was the brother of lhe famous Hun king Attila - as you know he spent a part of his life here, and he died here as well.
He is buried somewhere on the present terrltory of Hungary.
Anyhow, there is another version as well. You remember the Romn
name of the capital was AQUINCUM, ln this word you find another Latin
word "AQUA" - which means water. The Romans had already found on
the terrltory of our capital som of those hot springs which we still use.
The Slavs found som of these springs again, so they called the settlement,
"VODA", which means water in Slavic. We think that the present BUDA
may derive from this word.
The name of the other part of the city definitely originates from the
Slavic word "RJECS", which means oven, or stove. The most unusual
experience for our ancestors were the houses of the inhabitants which were
built of bricks - the nomadic Hungarians always lived in tents - therefore,
they decided to call the setement afler the name of the special ovens
where they burnt the bricks to build their houses. This is the explanation
of the origin of the word PEST.
12
1.5. THE,
We start the ci
hotel where c
slation or at t
duction aboul
Of course Aqi
we take our g
So the rou
City Park Liberty Squa
Margaret ISI
(Matthias Chi
Bridge - (Ve:
Astoria) -(Vei
- Rkczi Rc
Center - Stef

TUS
1.5. THE ROUTE OF THE CITYSIGHTSEEING TOUR
and
.He
We start the city tour on Heroes' Square but the tour generally starts at the
hotel where our visitors stay (we can start at the airport, at the rail way
station or at the pier as well). First of all we have to give a short introduction about the city and than we have to explain the sights we pass by.
Of course Aquincum should be introduced on the way to Szentendre when
we take our group on a Danube Bend excursion.
'an
pe
es
bad to
So the route of the tour in case we start on Heroes' Square:

City Park - Andrssy Avenue (Opera House) - St Stephen's BasilicaLiberty Square - Kossuth Square (Parliament) - Margaret Bridge Margaret Island - Main Street - Adam Clark Square - Case Hill
(Matthias Church, Fishermen's Bastion) - Tabn - Gellrt Hill - Elizabeth
Bridge - (Version A: Markt Hall - Calvin Square, National Museum Astoria) -(Version B: Franciscan Church, Kossuth Lajos Street - Astoria)
- Rkczi Road - Blaha Lujza Square - Eastem Railway Station - Sport
Center - Stefnia Road - City Park
ITY
uda".
gAttas well.
Romn
Latin
und on
"I use.
ement,
\BUDA
from the
unusual
'ch were
therefore,
1 ovens
lanaon
i
i
IL CITY SIGHTSEEING TOUR

2.1. THE CITY PARK
On our right we see a restaurant on the lak - which is actually a manmade lak, as is the island an artificial island. It is a small, decent, de luxe
restaurant, called Robinson.
The one on your lelt is probably the most famous Hungarian restaurant
ever built: this is the Gundel Restaurant. You'll find its name in all
guide-books. As "Gundel" it has been open since 1894 and became world
famous for its excellent meals, like Gundel pancakes with nutcream and
chocolate sauce aud all kinds of low-calorie stuff!
The founder of the Gundel-dynasty came to Hungary in the 50's of the
19 century. He was Johann Gundel, the most talented inn-keeper of his
age, and one of his sons, Charles, became the famous Gundel, who ran this
restaurant for many decades.
This is one ofthe most exclusive restaurants in town and you had better
make a reservation before you come here. If you want to take a nice gift
back home with special Hungarian recipes you'd better buy Gundel's
Cook Book which has been published in English as well.
The next sight is the Zoo. The Municipal Zooiogical and Botanical
Gardens opened in 1866 on the initiative of the Academy of Sciences and
in particular of Jnos Xantus (1825-94), a natural scientist who spent
much of his life in the United States.
Taken over by the City Council in 1907 it has been modernized several
times. Som of lhe architecture of the Zoo represents significant examples
of Hungarian Art Nouveau, such as the main gate from 1912, and the
clephant house from 1910. All zoo regl ars are found here - elephants,
giraffes, hippos, bears, tigers, lions, monkeys, ele. The palin house (a
product of the Eiffel workshop) has snakes and crocodiles.
The Budapest Zoo is lhe second oldest in Europe and has been badly
damaged during World War II. Just 12 animals survived the war. Now there
arc morc than 5,000 animals und 15,000 different species of plants here.
lh
14

Next tothe Zoo is m e M u m e i p a l G l ^
first circns in Pest, the HetzTheater,was opened in 1783 on the site of
today'sEutheranchurch in downtown, hut hecauseoffire danger it moved
several times.The first permanent circus was hullt on the present site hy
Ede Wulff, Germn entrepreneur, in 1891.
(Gpenthroughouttheyear, tiekets availahle on the spot,huthooking
recommended).
Gn the opposite side of the circus you seeatheater-lookinghuilding
which is in factaswinmnng pool and thermal ham.This is the ^zeheny
Thermal Bath, designed hy Gyz Gziegler and Ede Dvorzsk,huilt in
1909^13, extendedinl^.
The spa has open-air and covered swimmingpools^lmeanopen-air in
winter aswell.lt is considered as the hottest spa in Europe supported hya
spring nearhy.The temperature ofthe spring is74 degrees Gelsius(almost
hoiling water) ft must he eooled down in order to use it in the spa and in
the Zoo.
Gn your left again you see the ûnrâir (Vidm Park)^ Its first part is
the small children's fairground. Before the war it was called the English
(Angol) Park. (Gpen all year round with limited operation in winter).
Soon we turn tothe right, hutinthe corner near the junction stands the
largeTransport^luseum (Kzlekedsi Mzeum). The exhihitions cover
the history of shipping, road and rail transport. There are many models on
display, hoth large and small, as well as vetern vehicles. Som of these
are actually right-handdrive,priortoWorldWarfl(1941)Pfungarians
droveon the left!
Thehuildingon therightisme theatercalled theRouodTheater,
which worksas a theaterin summeronly, whenall theotherregular
theaters are closed.We've got som more summertheaters,som of them
are to he found in the courtyardsof som nicely restored palaces, hut the
most heaudful one is definitely the open-airtneater ofthe Margaret Island.
Gn the right this is the hack ofthe spa again, you can see the hot water
steaming nearhy here
The huilding which appears on our far left hehind the trees is the castle
huilt for the same anniversaryas all the other monuments and sightson
15

Heroes' Square, in 1896.lt was designed by Ignc Alpr (1855-1928), you
will see his statue next to the entrance of the Vajdahunvad Castle - he is
dressed like an old guild-master and proudly looking at his masterpiece.
ft was designed as a temporary structure for the Millenary Exhibition
which opened in the Park in May 1896. The idea was to present in one
building the different architectural styles which could be found and were
used in Hungary. Due to its popularity Alpr was later commissioned to
rebuild the structure in a permanent form: the present building actually
dates from 1907.
Different paris ofthe building are copies of different Hungarian cases,
palaces, churches, monasteries. This section facing the lak is a copy of
part ofthe originl Vajdahunyad Case in Transylvania (today Hunedoara,
Romnia) from which the whole complex takes its name. That castle there
was buill in the 15* century by the mother of King Matthias.
To the left of the main gate are copies of towers of former castles in
Upper Hungary (today Slovakia) while to the right is a copy of a tower in
Segesvr (Sighisoara, Romnia today).
n the courtyard on the other side is the "Palace-section", containing a
mixture of Romanesque and Gothic styles (still a copy of the Transsyl
vanin part). Further on to the left a small building is to be seen with n
balcony copied from Srospatak Castle in eastem Hungary.
Next to it lo the right appears the large "Baroque" building, based on
details of various 18C mansions.
This Baroque pari houses the Museum of Agriculture (Mezgazdasgi
Mzeum), including the development of tools and machines, such as
bors-, sheep- and cattlebreeding, hunting and fishing, and wine-making.
We can see a statue on the opposite side of lhe entrance of the museum.
He was a chronicler in the 12* century or early 13* century of the Ma
gyars, probably worked for King Bla III. The sculplor was Mikls Lige
ti, in 1903, the name of the statue: Anonymus. He was the "nameless
chronicler". It is remarkable that we don't know his real name - Anony
mus - so we can't see his face. He wrote the first history book of the life
of our ancestors, based mainly on legends and tales. lt was very rare that
the sculplor was able to choose a perfect place for his statue but this time
16
the artist had the

under the trees.
Not too far fr
be erected in Eu
3 millin Hung;
for by donations
in Cleveland.
Start the tour in

to see perfectly
built and opene
the Hungarians.
the square. It al
when our ance;
monuments on
were built to :
between the 9lh
There was a 1
in 1896 in the *
through Heroes
outstanding per
There is a fla
statues. This is
herin 1929, W
I. The inscriptic
their lives for tr
2.2.1. T H E MI
The most attrac
Millenary Moi
anniversary of i

the ardsthad the right todoso, and it was he, whoehose this exeellentspot
under the trees.
Not too far from here stands the first statneofGeorgeWashingtonto
heereetedinBurope(CyulaBezerdi^ 1906).In the period 1871-1903 over
3 nnllion Hungarians emigrated tothe United States. The statue was paid
^rhydonadonseolleetedhy various Hungarian-Ameriean societies, mosdy
ln Cleveland.
2 ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
Start the tour in the middle ofthe Square,from where the visitors are ahle
to see perfectly all the sights.Thishuildingon the right is the Art Callery
huilt and opened for the thousand years'anniversaryof the setdementof
me Hungarians,as were most ofthe other sightson the square and around
the square. Itali happened in 1896,while the conquest took place in 896,
when our ancestors, the ancient Hungarians occupied tfnsterritory.The
monumentson your left in the middle ofthe square, as in the hackground,
were huilt to show the most important figures of Hungarian history
hetween the 9*and the 19* century.
There wasaMillenaryExhihitionorganized and held here Idr6months
in 1896 in me City Park, and all the visitors of the exhihition had togo
through Heroes^Square, sin this way they hecameacquainted with the
outstanding personalitiesofHungarian history.
There isaflat stone to he seen in front of the eolumn and the equestrian
statues.This is the Heroes^ Monnment.The originl memrii, placed
here in 1929,was dedieated tothe unknown soldier who died in World War
1. The inscripdon reads: "Tothe memory ofthe heroes who have sacrificed
their lives for the freedom of our people and national independence".
^LTHElV^LEN^
The most atrracuvemonument in the middle ofthe square is ohviously the
MillenaryMonument.lt was hudttocommemorate the thousand years
anniversaty ofthe Hungarian settlement.
17

I would like lo start my short introduction to our history with the origin
of our people. The Hungarians (or as we call ourselves: Magyars) came
from Asia. Our ancestors lived together with the ancestors of the Finns on
mc present lerrilory of Russia near the Ural mountains between the Volga
and tbe Kama* rivers, until the end of tbe 5 century. That was lhe time
wben tbe Hungarians were separated from the others and started their
migration. At the end of the 9 century they arrived at lhe Carpathian
Basin and occupied it including the present lerrilory of our country.
There were many different inhabitants living here before lhe Magyars/
Hungarians came, like Celts, Romans, Avars, Huns, ele.
Here in front of you we can see the equestrian statues of tbe chieftains
of the seven Hungarian tribes with rpd in the middle: his descendants
later frmed lhe only Hungarian royal dynasty which died out in 1301.
You have lo know thai our ancestors werc nomd ic people, they lived in
tribes, their society and their way of life was very different from other
societies and "other nations' customs in Europe.
In the middle, on lhe lop of the column you can sec the statue of the
Archangcl Gbriel - the symbol of lhe Romn Catholic religion in Hungary.
There is a real great contrast belween tbc two: the nomadic chieftains at
lhe botlom of the column and the symbol of religion on the top.
Our first king, Stephen, - we will see his statue later on - was clever
enough to reaxc that these nomadic people had to take this new religion
here in Central Europe - otherwise they would not be able to survive lhe
century here.
Thcr are several religious symbols lo be seen in both hands of the
Archangcl: the apostoli cross and the boly crown.
Please don't mix tbc apostoli cross with the Greek cross! The apostoli
cross has a special meaning: the Pop was only able to n omin ale dignilarics in Hungary wilh the permission of lhe king. All Hungarian kings
inherited this right from our first king, lhe state-founder, St. Stephen.
The Hungarians became Christians during his reign and Ihat is why he
bas got lhe name 'Apostoli King' and all the privileges of being apostol ic
king, and lhe symbol of it as well which was the apostoli cross. This right
was inherited up to this century.
[h
th
18
Walking tours in Budapest ,

Under each statue there is a relief which shows the duration of their
reigns. You can see here two semi circular colonnades with figures on the
top and seven statues on both sides.
These people were the most important personalities in Hungarian
history between the 10 and the 19 centuries and are in chronological
order from left to right. We have had many more kings in our history.
These ones here are the really outstanding figures for various reasons. On
the top of the colonnades from left to right you see the allegorical figures
of Work and Welfare, War, Peace, Knowledge and Glory.
lh
lh
2.2.2. STATUES OF THE COLONNADE

I. (Szent) Istvn, 997-1038 (Saint Stephen)
(Kroly Senyi, 1911)
He is known as the founder of the Hungarian state. He was crowned in
1001 and got the crown from the pope. This is the oldest royal crown in
Europe which still exists. We got it back in 1978 from the US and now it
is exhibited in the Hungarian National Museum.
It was Stephen - as you may remember - who forced our ancestors, the
nomadic Hungarians, to become Christians, so they had to take the new
religion. That is the reason why he was canonized in 1083 on the initiative
of Ladislaus, whose statue is the next one here. Even today about 70% of
the population of Hungary is Romn Catholic.
Stephen really did a great job for the new state and for the new religion.
He invited Benedictine monks to settle down in our country and he
founded som abbeys for them.
At the same time the wild Hungarians were dealing with fighting,
hunting and animai breeding before they were taught how to deal with
agriculture.
Stephen had good relationships with his neighbors and with the
Christian Church. He married a Germn princess. He had five children but
none of them could follow him on the throne. One of his sons Imre
(Emeric) was supposed to be the next king but, unfortunately, he died as
well on his 21 birthday, so Stephen died without an heir.
sl
19

LLszl^077^^^Ladislaus)
(Ede Teles, 1911)
He was fighting against those nomadie Hungarians who did not want to
aeeeptthenew religion, the Romn Catbolie religion, and who deeidedto
remain pagans but, finally, Ladislaus defeated mem Tne Cumanians
wanted tooeeupy the southern part ofHungary but Eadislaus was able to
defeat the Cumanians aswelb He was not only anexeellentpolitieian but
and outstanding soldier, too. After he bad defeated tbe Cumanians he let
the prisonerssettle in Hungary.
ln 1091 he oeeupied Croatia and annexed ittoHungary.He entered into
anallianee with Emperor Henry IV He was preparing foraerusade and
was assigned leader of this hnt his death prevented him ftom taking part.
He was a very important kinginourbistory. Eirstof all bestabilized
Cbristianity in Hungary and with striet laws tightened puhlieseeurity in
the eountry
On the relief we see the battle against the Cumanians and the moment
when tbe king reseuesaChristiangirlfromapagan man.
Knyves Klmn, 109^flf6(Coloman the Beauelere)
(RiehardEredi,1906)
He wasaveryedueated person, you ean see those books beneath his
band.Heeouldread and writeheeansehe wassnpposed toheapriest
originally,thatiswbyhehasgothisniekname,"Eooklover".Heoeeupied
Dalmatia and regulated our relationship witb Croatia.
Hungarian women bless him, beeauseit was he who forhade women being hurnt as witehes. There were eountries in Europe and in other
eontinentsas well where women were stillhurnedas witehes eenturies
later.This law was inttodueed in Hungary as early as in the beginning of
the 12^ eentury.
Gn the relief you ean seeawoman in the rigbt eorner,waitingto he
burned while the new law ofthe king is being read to her whieh luekily
forbidsberexeeution.
20

ILAndrs, 1205-1235 (Andrew If)
(Kroly Senyi, 1906)
The rulingstyle and the system were ehanged during his reign. He gave
lotôf property, hugelandsto som nohlemen.The Hungarian nohlemen
did notlike the influeneeofhis Germn wife in his polities heing involved.
He, as som omer Hungarian kings hefore him, eontinued the praetiee
ofseeuringfollowershy making land grants. He ldaGrusadeto the Holy
Land, to Jerusalem, shown on the relief.
It was he who issued the Golden Gharterin 1222, hased on the English
MagnaGarta, whieh was issued^years earlier. This doeumenthadagreat
importanee, in that it gave the right tothe Hungarian nohlemento take up
arms even against me king, if his orders were eontraryto the interestsof
me ndon. The Golden Gharter for all purposes determined the prineiple
ofequality hetween nohles and oeeupiedaeentral plaee in the thought of
the Hungarian aristoeraey for eenturies. Andrew H was too weak to
enforee the deerees ofthe Golden Gharter.
His daughter Elisaheth was eanonized later on and playedan important
rolein Germn history asthewifeof Louis ofThringia. She always
helped the poor throughout her whole lifetime.We will see her statue later
oninSt.Stephen^sBasiliea.
IV.Bla,1235-1270(BâIV)
(MikldsKll,1905)
HewasthesonofAndrewII.(Bytnewayyoueanseeheremorefathers
and sonson Heroes^ Square. These two, thelollowingtwoand thefirstand
seeond figures at the heginning ofthe right side. 14 outstanding figures
and6outof them are father and son.)
He was one of the mostimportantkingsinourhistory.Whenwe started
weealledSt.Stephena"statefounder",Bla IV is eonsidered the "seeond
statefounderôf our eountry
During his reign Hungary suffered from the Mongols and Tatars. Almost
me whole eountry was destroyed and more than half ofthe population died
out.After the invasion was over-notheeauseweeould heat them, hut the
Khanhaek in Asiadied,^thearmy left Hungary withinafewdays.
21
Walkmg tours in Budapest

After they leftthe eountry thekingordered houses and eastlestohe
huiltof stone everywhere in Hungary in order to he defended next time.
Hemanagedto rehuitdthe eountry and eompletedmedreamof his
father-he moved the royal eourt from the previous eapital(Esztergom)to
Buda in the middle of the 3* eentury In other words during his lifetime
Buda heeame the eapitalofHungary.
During the invasion hoth his daughters died, so the king madeavow.
Aeeordingto that ifhe ever had anotherdaughter he would offer her tothe
service ofGod. One year later Prineess Margaret was horn. He sent her to
aeonvent whieh was huitt for heron the fslandofRahhits,she went there
when she wasând she died there when she was 29.This island is ealled
now Margaret island as is the hridgenearhy.
The relief showsavery sad seene: the destroyed eountry after the Mongol invasion.
3i years after King Bia'sdeath the only Hungarian royal dynasty died
out Beeauseof therelationship with the ttahanhranehof the Anjou
dynasty the next two figures we see here eame from this foreign family.
They are father and son, Charles Rohert and Louis the Great.
Rhert Kroly, f ^ - f ^ 2 ( C h a r l e s R o h e r t )
(Gyrgy Kiss, 1905)
Hewas the firstkinginHungary who eamefromaforeign eountry,
ahhough through his greatgrandmother he was inadistant relationship
with the Hungarian royal dynasty.
He had to he erowned three times until he was aeeeptedas the legt king
of Hungary He soon stopped the fight hythe Hungarian nohlemen tor the
royal power. He was the first who made eommeree and industry prosper
withinoureountry and was thefirstHungarianking who ordered the
minting of gold eoinson the Plorentine pattern. (Florence was the king's
nativetown.)Thatis why the nameofourcurrencyisForintêven today
^this word derives from the Italian word "Florentine"or"Fiorini".
He had good relations with the neighhoring countries and organizedan
important conference with me kings of the Czech and the Polish
lîngdoms.This was the famous "Visegrd Meeting",in 1335.Asaresult
22

of that the threekingsagreedthatGharlesRohert^ssonwillinherit the
Polish throne. (His wife came from Poland.)
During his reignHungary hecame aflourishing kingdom, Hungary
hecame rich and powerful.
GhatlesRohertemhodied the idel of the knight king. His knighdy order
was modelled on the Erench, and hecame the second of its kind in Europe.
This is the only relief which does not descrihean important event in the
hfe ofthe person ahove hut showsahattleat Morvamez inl278 which
took plaee 30 years hefore he heeame king
Nagy Laôs, 1 3 ^ 1 ^ (Louis the Great)
(Gyrgy Zala, 1927)
He followed his father on the Hungarian throneso also he was the Polish
king from 1370. He continued his father's efforts for creating and
strengtheningapowerful and large country in the middle of Europe. He
occupied huge territories and attached them to the country.We have never
had as much landas wehadduringhisreign.Atthat time thenatural
hordersof Hungary were the Adriatic-,the Black-and the Baltic Seas.
Asopposedto his father^s rule, Eouis's term in power was marked hy
an aggressive military policy. He had personally led the troops into hatde
sixteen dmes. In his Balkan campaign, he extended provisional rule over
Dalmatia,Serhia, Bosnia and Bulgria.
He didalot for rehgion and supported culture.He founded the first
university in Hungaryinl367 which still exists.
The relief shows his strangehatde against Naples where his hrother was
murderedhy his own wife.Therefore, Louis the Great decided to attack
Naples, hut instead ofsoldiers they were received hy women with flowers
at the iimits ofthe town, so he decided not tofight.lt is helieved that the
soldiers hroughthackaserious epidemicfromthereand that was the
reason for the king's death as well
Hunyadi ^no^144-145^(ôhn Hunyadi)
(EdeMarg,190)
He is the first figure here who was notaking hutn outstanding personality in Hungarian history. He was the Governorof Hungary for 10
23

years. This was qui te a peculiar dignity and at the same time a special job
in our country. During our history we had altogether six governors, three
of them became well-known, and two of them are to be seen here: the first
and the last figure here on the right colonnade.
The relief which shows a battle at Nndorfehrvr. (This is called today
Belgrd, capital of Yugoslavia.)
This was the most important event in his life - this battle against the
Turks. But it is not so simple, because it was not a fight between Hungarians and Turks only, but the two parties represented the Christian and the
Moslem world. It was won by the Christians, by Hunyadi. Therefore the
Hungarians could stop the Turks for 70 years and in this way the Hungarians saved Europe from the Moslems for this period. This was a very
important victory.
The battle was over at noontime, 12 o'clock, so the Pop ordered to ring
the bells all over the Christian world at noon, so that is why you can bear
the bells ringing every where, even today. We commemorate his victory
dating back to 1456.
Two weeks after his victory he died of plague and soon after that his
younger son was elected King of Hungary.
Mtys, 1458-1490 (Matthias)
(Gyrgy Zala, 1905)
Matthias was one of the most popular - if not the most popular of
Hungarian kings.
His father was very well-known and his sons were very strong
candidates for being Hungarian kings. The older son was executed and his
younger son - Matthias - became the elected king of Hungary when he
was less than 16. He was elected on the frozen ice of the River Danube.
He often put on disguise because he wanted to know what was going on
in his country. He was always just, that is why he became known as
Matthias the Just.
His reign was the golden period of medieval Hungary. He had a very
centralized power supported by his very strong, professional army. This
was called the "Black Army". He wanted in the near future to become the
24
German-Romar
respected counl
like the populat
His third wifi
in Italy, the Hui
Europe. Som
his royal court.
da and in Vise|
Matthias Churc
tour, it s locate
The relief sf
above-mention
to the originl 1
Shortly aftei
because of lhe
belonged to th
belonged io i
Transylvania garian part of t
After Matth:
World War peri
who were impc
Three of the
ing pri nees the
Bocskai Isti
(Barnabs H
In the so caf
drive oul lhe 1
leader of a wa
1604-1606. At
"Viennese pea<
religion.
Walking tonrs in Budapest

German-RomanEmperor.Hnngary was one ofthemost important and
respectedconntries in Central Enrope.Thepopnladonwas^rnillion just
like the popnladonof England at that time.
His third wife was Italian, and hecanseofher relations with the Medicis
in Italy, the Hungarian royal court hecame the center ofRenaissance art in
Europe.Some ofthe famous contemporary artists and scientists lived in
his royal court. He ordered torehuild and enlarge the royal palaces in Buda and inVisegrdsoas the Church ofOnrEady in Buda,which hecame
Matthias Chnrch after his death.This church isan important sight ofthe
tonr,it is located in the Castle District area.
Therelief shows him among Italian architectswiththemodelof the
ahove-mentionedchurch.Heheldhisweddings there and attachedatower
tothe originl huilding.
Shordy after Matthias' death Hnngary wasdividedinto threeparts
hecauseoftheThrkish occupation.The rniddlepart-inclnding B u d a helonged to theTurks, thenorthern and westernpartsof thecountry
helonged to Austria (ruled hy the Hapshurgs) and the third part
Transylvania-whichistodayapartofRomania-remained the only Hungarian part ofthe country.
ATterMatthias thenext five statues were originally-heforethe2^
World Warperiod-tamousHapshurg kings and the ûeen Maria Theresa,
who were important personalities in Hungarian history as well.
Three ofthenextfivestatues represent Transylvania-they were reigning prinees there.
Bocskai Istvo, 1^4-16^ (StepbeoBoeskai)
(BarnahsHolld,!^
fnmeso called 15 Years War with the help of the Hapshurgs he tried to
drive out uêTurks from the Hungarian territories, hut soon hecame the
leader o f a w a r o f independence fought against the Hapshurgs hetween
1604^1606. Atthe end ofuê war me agreement ofthe two parties the
"Viennesepeace^guaranteed equal rights toeveryoneto practice his own
religion.
25

After the war was over he gave land to his soldiers and setded them in
the Eastem part of the country on the Great Hungarian Plain.
The relief shows him among his soldiers:
Bethlen Gbor, 1613-1629 (Gbor Bethlen)
(Gyrgy ifj. Vastagh, 1902)
He was an excellent politician and participated in the 30 Years War on
the side of the Protestants. His clever foreign policy and efficient internl
policy secured the independence of Transylv'ania for a long time.
His period is considered as the "Golden Age" or "Highlight" of Transylvania.
The relief shows him concluding an alliance with the Czechs in 1620.
Thkly Imre 1682-85, (Emeric Thkly)
(Jen Abonyi Gartner, 1955)
Ever since Hungary became a part of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy
from time to time there were several revolutions, uprisings and wars of
independence fought by the Hungarians against the Hapsburgs.
One of these wars was led by Imre Thkly. Though this revoltion
fai led - as did most of the revolutions - it frmed a wide, strong base for
the following war of independence led by the next figure here, Ferenc R
kczi. Thkly's wife participated in the war and her activities in
de fend ing her castle made her very famous.
Her son is the following figure. He derived from her first marriage, so
Thkly is the step-father of Prince Rkczi II.
II. Rkczi Ferenc, 1703-1711 (Prince Francis Rkczi II)
(Zsigmond Kisfaludy Strbl, 1955)
The above-mentioned numbers are the beginning and ending years of
his famous and really very important war of indepenee. Both his
grandfathers, his mother and his step-father participated in different
conspiracies, revolutions and wars against the Hapsburgs for Hungary's
freedom and independence. This background supported him in becoming
the leader of the most important freedom fight in the 18,h century in Hun-
26
gary. He was
of 1703 witl
proudly bore
gary and the
largest rivers
nistrated, Vi<
csny) Hung:
that in Polant
Rkczi had
Hapsburgs concessions.
concept of e(
Although
Hapsburgs, t
expected hel]
visit Tzar P
c ap tai n-gene
signed a peai
After the
died there. .
the year whe
the funeral p
On the rel
Ferenc Rk
Kossuth I
(Zsigmon<
He was an
tury as the lt
Hapsburgs. '
last century
beginning o
Many of i
deserted and
walldngtoursinBudapest
gary. He was abroad forawbile and erossedbaek into tbe eountry in lune
of 1703 witb anarmy madeupof soldiers wbo, likeTbkly'smen,
proudly bore tbe name ofKuruts.By!703,tbey bad liberated Upper Hungary and me area bordered by tbe Danube and Tisza rivers-two oftbe
largestrivers in Hungary-and bad made ineursions into separately administrated, Vienneseeontrolled Transylvania. At tbeDietin 1705 (Szesny) Hungary ebanged its government toafeudaleonfederaey similar to
tbatin Poland. Rkczi was elected rulingprinee and eommanderîn-ebief.
Rkczi bad full autbority over foreign policy, defense and finance.Tbe
Hapsburgs-because oftbe success of Rkczid war^badto give more
concessions. ln addition, for tbe first time in Hungarian bistory, tbe
concept of equal taxation was formulated.
Altbougb tbe parliament proclatmed tbe detbronement of tbe
Hapsburgs,tbefigbtwasnot over and,unfortunately,tbepromised and
expected belp from abroad was delayed.Wbile Rkczi wentto Russia to
visitTza^PetermeGreat,andwas seeking belp from fm, one oftbe
captain-generals entered into agreement witbtbeimperialloyalists and
signedapeaeetreatyin 1711 and laid down arms.
After tbe war was over Rkczi bad togo into exiletoTurkey and be
died tbere. His remains were brougbt back to Hungary in 1906.Tnis was
tbe year wbenapartofamain road in Budapest was named after bim after
tbe funeralprocession passed by tbere.
Dn tbe relief you can seeTams Esze, one of bis generals,welcoming
Eerenc Rkcziiion bis return from Poland.
KossutbLaôs, 1848-49 (LooisKossutb)
(Zsigmond Kisfalud! Strbl, 1955)
He was an outstanding personalityinHungarian bistory in tbe 19* een
turyas tbe leader of tbe Revolution and War of Independence against tbe
Hapsburgs. Tbis was tbe most important Hungarian freedom-figbt in tbe
last century and bad severalgreatsuccessesas bad Rkczid war at tbe
beginning oftbe previous eentury.
Many of tbose Hungarian soldiers wbo served intbeHapsburg army
deserted and joined tbe resolution. After many great victories tbey were
27
finally defeated in 1849, but Kossuth really did a great job, he organized
the new Hungarian Government, founded the National Parliament, established the Independent Hungarian Ministries, etc. Kossuth had to go into
exile and went to the United States to Philadelphia where he became a
senator. He was the second foreigner in the world, after La Fayette, who
was allowed to deliver a speech in the U.S: senate. He has several statues
in the U.S. and a small town in Illinois is. actually named after him. He
died in Turin, Italy.
The relief shows one of his enthusiastic recruiting speeches.
Andrssy t is
km from the no
It was originl
renamed after
Minister of th
(1823-1890). F
Construction o
was symptomz
following the 1
Dual Monarch
looking avenue
This old-fasl
from the end O
was carefully d
three different
Down town and
part of the city.
This is the f
for its low-buil
express that W
rban" part of
The second
has narrow sen
the gardens dis
(Service-roa
those ladies an
road was used
When we re;
are no gardens
order to show t
A very imp
underneath thi
2.2.3. THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS AND THE ART G A L L E R Y

There are two museums to be seen on both sides of the Square:the one on
our left is the Art Gallery. This is the largest museum - as a building - in
the city and in the whole country. Both museums were designed by Albert
Schikedanz and Flp Herzog. It was built in eclec ti cal-classical style and
was \ opened for the Millenary Exhibition in 1896.This museum has
temporary exhibitions only, no permanent exhibitions. The tympanum
shows the foundation of the first Abbey in South-Hungary. The mosaic in
the middle deseribes our first king St. Stephen as patron of art.
The other museum on the opposite side of the square is the famous
Museum of Fine Arts. It was decided to erect it in 1896 and the building
was completed in 1906.
The Greek word "Museion" means "Garden of Muses" therefore they
thought the most appropriate building for this was a Greek temple. The
main facade of the building looks like a Greek church, the tympanum on
the top shows the battle between the Lapids and the Centaurs and is a real
copy of a Zeus temple in Olympia, Greece.
This collection was based on different private-collections, and it was
enlarged by donations and by purchasing.
This is the best museum in the country for foreign art. We have the
second largest Spanish collection of old Spanish Masters after the Prado
in Madrid, and excellent Dutch, Flemish, Germn, Italian, English and
French pain ling s as well.
28
r
2.3. ANDRSSY AVENUE

Andrssy t is one of the major thoroughfares of Pest. It stretches for 2.5
km from the north-east corner of Erzsbet tr to the City Park (Vrosliget).
It was originally called Sugr t (Radial Avenue) then in 1885 it was
renamed after the one-time Hungarian Prime Minister and later Foreign
Minister of the Austro-Hungaran Monarchy, Count Gyula Andrssy
(1823-1890). For a dme after World War H it was called Stalin Avenue.
Construction of the avenue followed a deliberate act of law in 1870 and
was symptomatic of Budapest's expanding wealth and rban renewal
following the 1867 Compromise with Austria and the establishment of the
Dual Monarchy. The building of this somewhat pompous and seriouslooking avenue started in 1872 and within 12 years it was completed.
This old-fashioned elegant road looks like a main road, which it was
from the end of the last century until the middle of this century. This road
was carefully designed for the time of the exhibition. There are altogether
three different sections of this road to show the distance between
Downtown and the City Park, which was at that time in 1896 a village-like
part of the city, far from the center.
This is the first section here, the nearest one to the City Park, famous
for its low-built houses, gardens, service-roads. The designer wanted to
express that we are far from the city-center and pretty close to the "nonurban" part of the city.
The second section of the road - which starts at the next Circus - still
has narrow service-roads and som gardens, but the houses are higher, and
the gardens disappear just to show that we are getting closer to Downtown.
(Service-roads were covered originally with wood and were used by
those ladies and gentlemen who went riding on horseback, and the main
road was used by ears.)
When we reach the third section of the road you will notice that there
are no gardens, no service-roads at all, the buildings became higher in
order to show that we have arrived downtown, at the center of the city.
A very important means of transport in Budapest is to be found
underneath this avenue;this is the old underground (GB) [subway (US)].
29

This is the oldest undergroundon the Europen eontinent.ft was completed for tne âmeanniversary, theMillennium, as were all monuments,
museums and many other Important huildings inBudapestand in the
whole country
Justafewexamples ahout thisflourishingperiodofthelast century.
Right after the Revolution and War of Independence which took place in
the middle ofthe 19* century-rememher the statue ofKossuth, last figure
on Heroes'Square-so in the fifties the totai length ofthe railways in Hungary was 700 kms. Bythe middle ofthe nineties this grewto 17 000 kms.
The Art CalleryonHeroes'Square was opened, as were the Museum of
pphedArts^ the Franz Joseph hridge, the third hridgeof the city,afterth^
Chain-andthe Margaret Bridge.The most heautiful-recently restored
theater-near the Margaret Bridge ^Vfgszfnhz^ was opened,as was the
Fishermen's Bastion on the Buda side, and five hundred elementary
schools throughout the countt y.
And now hackto the underground.We know that the "Tuhe" in London
was opened ahout 30 years hefore this onein Budapest, hut itsounds much
hetterto have the first undergroundonthecontinent-which is true, as
Great-Britainissituatedonanisland-than tohavetheseeondonein
Europe. So this first electric undergroundrailway still functions with its
originl traeks and trains eonneeting the City Bark and the eenter of
Downtown.The opening eeremony took plaee in the presenee ofthe royal
couple; Franz Joseph and Sissy, in May,l896.
The first section ofthe road is called: Diplomatic District. ûiteafew
emhassies,like theûgoslav, Russian etc,are to he found here,as are the
residenees where the employees of the emhassies live. The huildingon the
left is the Headquarters ofthe Society ofthe Hungarian Journalists.
We are getting eloser now toaCireus named afterafamous Hungarian
music-composer and teacher Zoltn Kodly. He lived his last years in the
houseatthelefthand side ofthe square Today there isamuseum in his
lastapartment.
He was th^ contemporary and close friend ofBlaBartdk.Both of them
wenttoeolieet Hungarian folk songs in the eountry. Hundredsof almost
30
forgottn songs^
the Hungarian fe
Kodly work^
called the relativ
standahleevenf^
is widely useda^
is used from kin^
You can see fc
Cyrgy,Zrfnyi ^
attention to those
preparedforthe
Square. They wa
sgrafitti,hutunn
finish these hous^
After this trafl
ge.Thereisath^
relief next tothe
Academy o f M u
an excellent exhi
ofhisfurniture ^
Wehavefinisl
Oetagon,atthe^
^ ^ B o u l e v a r d again.
toRome". I n B
Danuhe" Allth^
thisareawepas
Hungarian resta^
After the hig
avenue The one
writer ofthe last
statue here (Ala
FuppetTheater,^
The square op^
ofMusicisloca
^
forgottn songs were saved by tbem in this way and could remain part of
the Hungarian folk-art treasury.
Kodly worked out his famous music-teaching system, which was
called the relative solfeggio system, which makes music easy and understandable even for children in kindergartens as well. This teaching-system
is widely used all over the world from Japn to the United Kingdom and
is used from kindergartens to Academies.
You can see four attractive bronz-statues decorating the square (Szondi
Gyrgy, Zrnyi Mikls, Balassi Blint, Vak Bottyn ). Let me call your
attention to those houses on the right side of the corner decorated by sgrafitti
prepared for the same anniversary as well. as the other sights of Heroes'
Square. They wanted to decorate the whole avenue, all the buildings with
sgrafitti, but unfortunately, ran out of time and money-so they could only
finish these houses here and one more which you will see very soon.
;
After this traffic light on your left you see the facade of the Art Colle
ge. There is a theater in the same block, which is the Puppet Theatre. The
relief next to the corner reminds us of Franz Liszt, first director of the Old
Academy of Music which was originally located in this building. There is
an excellent exhibition here including the piano of Liszt and som pieces
of his frni ture. He himself lived for a while in this house.
. We have finished the second section of the road and have arrived at the
Octagon, at the square which has eight corners. Here we cross the Grand
Boulevard again. There is a saying as you probably know: "All roads lead
to Rom". In Budapest we can say: "All the boulevards lead to the
Danube". All the three boulevards of the city start and end at theriver.In
this area we pass by som fast-food restaurants - which are not typical
Hungarian restaurants, but of American origin.
After the big square there are two smaller ones on both sides of the
avenue. The one on the right is named after the most famous Hungrin
writer of the last century Mr Jkai (1825-1904). We can see his bronz
statue here. (Alajos Strbl, 1921). In the background you find the second
Puppet Theater, always a favorit with children of all ages.
The square opposite is named after Franz Liszt, as the present Academy
bf Music is located here, at the other end of the square.- On our left the
f o c n e / f [ A 'ja.'.,! '
t--^'
31

sr-':h
statue of Endre Ady (1867-1919) was erected, a polemical journalist and

one of the greatest poets of his period (Gza Csorga, 1960).
There is the oldest department store of Pest to be seen on our right
called Divatcsarnok (literally "Fashion Hall") built originally in 1882 by
Austrian architect Gusztv Petschacher. It was used first as a gentlemen's
club. Its present form dates from 1908-1912, following renewals made for
lhe Prizsi Nagy ruhz (Grand Parisian Department Store).
In its hyay the Parisian was one of the city's most fashionable grand
stores. It had a restaurant on the roof in summer and a skating rink in the
winter. The main facade is a good sample of Art Nouveau.
The next street we are crossing at the moment (Nagymez utca) has
" traditionally been one of the centers of Budapest night life and quite a few
theaters are also located here, such as the Operetta Theater, several small
theaters, as well as a cabaret.
We are approaching slowly the two most attractive buildings of the
avenue, the State Opera on our right and the Ballet Institute on our left.
The Hungarian State Opera House is one of the grandest buildings in
the country. It is worth a visit even for non-opera lovers. Apart from during
performances, the interior of the Opera House can also be viewed every
day in the aftemoon at 15,00 and 16.00 p.m., meet by the side entrance on
the right.
The architect of the Opera House was Mikls Ybl who built the opera
in his favorit style, in Italian neo-Renaissance. The construction took nine
years, they started in 1875 and completed in 1884. It was built on the site
of a former flea-market. In December 1881, during the course of the
construction, there was a very serious fire at Vienna's Ringtheater, where,
unfortunately, over 400 people died. This was the most serious fire acci(_<(. j.<yi_ -
w -
: Yrr
- . - - .
yi.'W-'
<
dent which plagued theaters in those days in Europe and it prompted the
incorporation in the Budapest Opera of the latest safety designs involving
.all metl, hydraulic stage machinery, making it the most modern in the
-world at that time. The hydraulic equipment lasted for nearly 100 years.
The facade of the Opera is decorated with som fine staines. Right and
left from the main entrance we can see the portraits of Ferenc Liszt and
Ferenc Erkel - he was the creator of the Hungarian national opera and the
32
first director c
here like Gust;
There are rr.
Mozart, Beelf
ballets are oflc
Terpsichore, 1
poetry, comed
The buildin
Institute. It da
designed by C
their later Hun
Before we 1<
the road here i
former section
The corner
small bul attr
displays of co;
service. There
sending messa
tape machine.
This is lhe e
Elizabeth Sqi
one of the big
used as a ceme
left the yellow
in the lown, u
largesl Romn
This will be ou
there, let me le
Almost 70% o

first director of the institute. (There were several world-famous directors
here like Gustav Mahler, Ott Klemperer, etc.)
There are more - 18 statues on the second floor outside - Montevei di,
Mozart, Beethoven, etc. - world famous composers, whose operas or.
ballets are often performed here.In the corner-niches of the first floor are
Terpsichore, Erato, Thalia and Melpomene, representing dance, love
poetry, comedy and tragedy.
The building on the opposite side of the avenue is the State Ballet
Institute. It dates from 1883. It was built in French neo-Renaissance style,
designed by dn Lechner and Gyula Prtos, who are better known for
their later Hungarian Art Nouveau productions.
Before we leave the avenue let me teli you two more things. First, Ihat
the road here is 34 m wide only - remember, this is the third section, bom
former sections we have seen are -including the service roads - 45 m wide.
The corner building at the very end of the avenue on your left is the
small but attractive Postai Museum, which has life-size models and
displays of coaches and equipment from the history of Hungary's postai
service. There is som opportunity to 'play' with the machines, e.g. by
sending messages through a dispatch-tube or operating an early telegraph
tape machine.
This is the end of the Avenue. Ahead of you and on your left you see the
Elizabeth Square which is the Long Distance Coach Terminal. This is
one of the biggest squares in the city center, 20,000 sq. m, which was first
used as a cemetery, later a market-place, today a coach-station. On your far
left the yellow building with the green roof is the largest Lutheran church
in the town, while the one nearby here on your right is the back of the
largest Romn Catholic Cathedral in the city, St. Stephen's Basilica.
.
2 A. SAINT STEPHEN'S BASILICA

This will be our next stop, we will be there in a few minutes. Before getting
there, let me teli you something about the different religions in Hungary.
Almost 70% of the population is Romn Catholic, as I told you earlier at
33

Heroes' Square, about 28% are Protestants, about 1% is Jewish, and less
than 1% is the other religions, like Moslems, Greek-Orthodox, etc.
This is the largest Romn Catholic church in the city and the third
largest one in the country. It is called "basilica", because it is a huge
cathedral although it is not 'basilica' because it has no 'basilion' groundplan, so it is not a basilica by design.
There was an important World Eucharistic Congress hosted by Budapest in 1938, when Cardinal Pacelli - who became the Pop afterwards granted the title 'Basilica Minor' to the church. This is a great honor,
although 'Basilica Mayor's are to be found only in Italy, and there are only
four of them there.
Any how there was a little hill in front of the present cathedral - qui te a
few people were able to survive the Great Flood of 1838 there and decided
to give thanks for their lives to God in this way, by building a church the
biggest one in the town. The construction started in 1851 and took more
than fifty years, until 1905. It was built by three different Hungarian
architects, in three different architectural styles.
Jzsef Hild started in Neo-Classical style, but he died in 1867. Mikls
Ybl took it over and continued the construction is his favorit style which
was the neo-Renaissance. Disaster occurred in January 1868 when the
dorne collapsed during a storm^The incomplete building had to be
dcmoshed and work started a fresh. By 1891 Ybl himself died, and it was
finished by a third architect, Jzsef Kauser, whose favorit style was the
neo-Baroque. / ^ ' ' '* ' /
The church covers an area of over 4000sq m, the dome is 96 m high.
Whenever you enter a Romn Catholic Church you can usually see a
statue of Jcsus Christ or a painting of Virgin Mary on the high altar, but
not here. In this cathedral you can see the statue of our first king, Saint
Stephen - who became a saint in 1083, because he converted the nomadic
Hungarians to Christianity. Anybow, they had to ask special papai
permission to put his statue to the high altar. The church is dedicated to
Saint Stephen but has nothing to do with the St Stephen's church in
Vienna. The church there is dedicated to another Stephen who died in
Jerusalem in the Holy Land and was one of the marlyrs of the Catholic
r V (..:.<?/?;:,/
A
Ju
34

religion. So the statue on the high altar deseribes on the one hand the Saint
who did a lot for religion and introduced it in the country, which was a
great job, but on the other hand he was aTayman as well, the first king of
the Hungarians.
* '/he s <
'./
If you look around you can see a few other statues as well nearby. The one
ahe ad of you, a bit on the right is the one of St Ladislaus, who was the
second figure on Heroes' Square. That one behind you, on your right is Gellrt - Gerardus in Italian, who helped our first king to convert the nation to
Christianity, but on the other hand he was the teacher of the King's son Imre as well. Later on we'll visit the Gellrt Hill and I will teli you more about
him and his activities. The statue on your left is St Elizabeth of Hungary. She
was the daughter of Andrew H - you may remember the King from the
Heroes' Square, who issued lhe Golden Charter and led a Crusade to
Jerusalem. Ebzabeth married a Germn prince, lived in Germany and she
helped lhe poor during her whole life. Her husband did not like her ideas
about helping the poor- there is a legend, according to which, that when
Elizabeth went again with som bread and food in her aprn to poor people
she met unexpectedly with her husband who was very angry and wanted to
know what she was carrying in her aprn. God helped Elizabeth and
changed the bread to roses, so after she answered "There are only roses here" she could show the flowers immediately.
There are two second - or side-altar paintings to be seen on your left and
right. The one on yourrightis famous, painted by Gyula Benczr (a famous
Hungarian painter of the last century). St Stephen offers his land to the
Virgin Mary.Stephen, who died without a successor when Imre died young
in a hunting accident, preferred to symbolically offer his crown to the Virgin
rather than to either the Pop or the Holy Romn Emperor. Ever since, Mary
has been regarded as a Patroness of Hungary, and Ihis image pf her with
Stephen offering the crown appears frequently in Hungarian iconography.
If you look around you can see that everything is covered with marble the floor, the walls, the ceiling. They used 50 (!) different kinds of marble
here to decorate the building inside. The most famous and expensive marble
deri ves from Carrara, this white marble is the material of all the statues
here. All the other marble types comefromdifferent parts of Hungary.
L
:L
If you look up there, behind you can see the organ. This is the largest
organ in Budapest and has 6,000 pipes. Som of them are huge, as you see,
but there are lite tiny ones as well, just a few cms or mms. This organ is
the third largest one in the country. You can find bigger ones in two
counlry towns.tn Szeged and in Esztergom.
The basilica houses what is believed to be St Stephen's right hand. The
relic can be inspected in the Chapel of the Holy Right Hand (Szent Jobb
Kpolna) behind the main altar.
In Hungary the churches are functioning, everybody is free to practice
his religion. There are religious elementary - and highschools, even
universities here of all main religions - and aslo the only rabbinicai college in Central Europe.
Now we continue the tour but before we leave this area please have a
look at this corner building, left from the basilica - this is one of the few
in Hungary clearly inspired by Venetian Gothic (French Wieser, 1853-57).
The architect traveled a lot, and was married to an Englishwoman. This
building indicates he was probably familiar with John Ruskin's influential
work, "The Stones of Venice".
A I, I !. \,.
2.5. LIBERTY SQUARE

We are going to pass by two important squares and attractive buildings in
a couple of minutes. In tbe mean time let me teli you that now we are in the
5lh district of Budapest, which is known on the one hand as the famous
Downtown, with many shops, department stores, the walking-area, but on
the other hand this district of the city is the center of the political,
financial, cultural life ofthe capital as well. Many ofthe buildings here are
bankcentres, offices, ministries, etc, so, a little bit similarly to the City of
London, it is very crowded during the day and silent and empty at night.
(With the exception, of course of the entertainment area).
No.7 al the corner of Zrnyi utca is one of the area's most representative
neo-Classical buildings (Jzsef Hild, 1830-32). Neo-Classical style was
greally favored when this area of the city was originally built in the first
half of the 19th century.
36
But now we
your right is i
Modern Intern,
Ahead of yo
National Banl
designs of Ign<
On the oppe
Exchange, whi
one of the mo
designed by lg
commodity ex<
headquarters o;
Across the |
Lige, 1936). ]
after the supp
supported Rom
and was kept in
here in July 191
The yellow
United States.
The monum'
Army Memor
several monum
Red Army, befe
them with the
communist era
We are approac
ding from the p
Parliament.
For centuries

But now we have arrived.at the LihertySquare.Lhe first huildingon
your right is the reeently ereeted (lzsef Finta, 1995) massive, Post
Modern International Bank Center.
Aheadof you on the right this large, Beleetiehuilding is the seat ofthe
National Bank of Hungary. Lhe hank was eompleted in 1905 tothe
designsoflgne Alpr, originally asanAustro-Hungarian Bank.
Gn the opposite side ofthe square you ean see the huge former Stoek
Bxehange,whiehoeeupies the entire eastem side ofLihertySquare.lt is
oneofthemostimposingstrueturesin the whole of Budapest, lt was
designed hylgne Alpr, eompleted in 1905.Itfunetionedasastoek and
eommodity exehangeuntil 1948. Sineethemid 1950s,ithasheenthe
headquarters of the HungarianLelevision.
Aeross the park stands the statue o f H a r r y Hill Bandholz (Mikls
Ligeti, 1936).Bandholz,aUSgeneral,was present in Budapest in 1919
after the suppression of the Hungarian Couneil Repuhlie hy Allied
supported Romnin and Czeehtroops. Lhe statue was removed after 1945
and was kept in the garden ofthe US amhassador'sresidenee.ltreappeared
here in lulyl989 just hefore US President George Bush visited Budapest.
Lhe yellow huilding here, hehindme statue, is the Emhassy o f i h e
United States.Youeaneasiiyreeognizeitheeause ofthe flag.
Lhemonument,thelarge, white ohelisk in front ofus is the Soviet
Army Memrii (Kroly Antal, 1945). Until 1990, thereused to he
several monumentslike this in the eapitaleommemorating the Russian
Red Army, hefore the system ehanged, hut the City Couneil removed all of
them withtheexeeptionofthisone. All the other monumentsof the
eornmunist era are to he found in an open air museum on the Buda side.
2 ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
We are approaehing the square,whereyouTl see the most important huiL
dingfromthepolitiealpointofview,whiehis,ofeourse, the Houses of
Parliament.
For eenturies the Hungarian parliamentaryassemhlies had no permanent
37
Walking tours n Budapest

home. n 1843 a resolution was passed at the Pozsony (Bratislava - today
Slovakia).--Diet to erect a permanent building in Pest, though the plans were
delayed by the revolutionary events of 1848-49. There was an intemational
competition to design the Parliament building in 1882. There were som
excellent designs, therefore the committee decided to build the first-, the
second- and the third-prize winner buildings on the same square. This is the
only square on earth where you see three parliament buildings. The huge
building on your left won, of course the first prize, this is used as a
Parliament. The one on our righl won the third prize, this is lhe Ministry
of Agriculture and Rginl Development. The next building on this
side, a lHe further on won the second prize.lt used to be the Supreme
Court, then the Fine Arts Gallery, today it is a Museum of Ethnography
(Alajos Hauszmann, 1893-1896)
The Parliament is the most expensive building which was ever built in
the gountry. A small town with about 40 000 inhabitants could have been
built for the costs of the construction of Parliament.
The building has 691 rooms, it is 268 m long, 118 m wide and 96 m
high. lt has 10 court-yards, 27 gates and 29 staircases. The outside walls
are dccorated witb statues of the most important Hungarian personalities.
40 kg of 22 carat gold were used for the inside decorations. They started
to build the Parliament in 1885 and finished in 1904. This huge Eclectic
building was mainly built in neo-Gothic style.
Of course they wanted to finish it by 1896, for the Millenary Exhibition,
bul ihey had a delay, although the structure and the main hall was completed .Thai was the reason why the formai opening ceremony of the Millenary celebrations was held here in the semi-finished Parliament on May
2nd, 1896.
a
By ihat time all Parliaments had two chambers; a House of Lords and
House of Commons, that is the reason for the two, symmetrical parts of
the building.
(Look at the other two buildings of the square! They are also completely
symmetrical for the same reason.)
During the commuiiist system, we always had one party, the party had
one candidate in each district, we had to voie for him and this was called
38

an election.A multi-party, parliamentary system was finally reintroduced
in 1990.
Today the Parliament has 386 members, about a quarter of the MPs are
women.
.,^
?
The Library of the Parliament, a designated U N Library, collects
foreign and Hungarian books on political science, law and history, and is
open to the public. Now we have elections every four years. There are the
representatives of 6 parties in the Parliament, three of them form the
coalition and three of them are in opposition.
Parliament is surroundcd by several statues, from here we can see two of
them: the equestrian statue of Prince Rkczi on our left (Jnos Psztor,
1937) and the other one is Luis Kossuth (Zsigmond Strbl Kisfaludy,
1952), further on our far left.
2.7. THE MARGARET BRIDGE AND THE ISLAND

Soon we reach the 'Blue Danube', which is never blue anymore. Perhaps
Johann Strauss, the famous Austrian composer, loved the red Hungarian wine
which helped him to see the blue color of theriver,which is a lite overdoing
it. The water was not so polluted of course at that time. Sometimes, when the
sky reflects on the water and you have blue sunglasses, you may say that the
river is blue. Otherwise it is brown, gray or more simply, it is dirty.
The Danube is a very important river that flows through 8 countries, 4
capitals, Vienna, Bratislava, Budapest and Belgrd, It rises in the Black
Forest, Germany, and flows into the Black Sea, Ukraine.
Ahead of us we can see the Margaret Island and the Margaret
Bridge, and Buda on the other side of the Danube. In a minute we'll cross
over the bridge from where you'll have an excellent view of the town.
On our right we see a white building, the former 'White House' which
used to be the headquarters of the former Hungarian Workers' Socialist
Party, actually it was the communist party being the only one in the
country. Just before the system changed recently, the party had 800,000
members, 8% of the totai population. Well, the building today serves as
39

the offiees for MPs, and the different parliament-eommittees and faetions
hold their meetings here.
This is our Frenehhridgeaheadofus, the Margaret Bridge, designed
hyaFrenehengineer(Gouin).his interesting thatitdoesn'teross the river
straight.Why7 When the hridge was huilt (1872-1876),the requirement
was that it shouid follow the hne ofthe street leading up tit, in other
words,it should seem likeaeontinuation ofthe street. So, from the Pest
side tothe middle of the hridge,itisaeontinuation ofthe Szent Istvn krt (St Stephen Boulevard), and from the middle on,it follows the line of
the Margit-krt (Margaret Boulevard) on the Buda side.Later onasmall
hraneh ofthe hridge was huilttolinkittotheMaigaret Island whieh is the
prettiest island in Budapest, midway hetween Buda and Pest.
The hridge itself is over 600m long and 25m wide. ErnestGouin worked
for the Soeit des Battignoles whieh was known as ^BiffeLseompany'.
Biffelhimselfloved the eity and he deeidedto live in oureity, moved here with his family and stayed here for 12 years The oldest railway stations
theWesternRailway station, is his firm's work aswelf
From the hridgeweean see the view on our left and the island on our
right hand side.
The Margaret fslandisalovely,elean park.lt is 2.5 km long from one
end tothe other and is great for taking walks.Weean'tdrive in from he
re, it is forhiddento doso in order to keep the air ofthe island fresh and
elean There isaregular eity hus whieh ean drive in, or you ean drive in
from theotherend,fromtheotherhridge.Youean also takeaferry in the
high season-in other words,in summer-from many piers in Budapest
toeome tothe island.
Margaretlsland used to he known asThe Island ofRahhits-itwasa
royal gamereserve atthe time ofthe rpd (the first and only Hungarian
royal) dynasty.
Bla IV hadaeonventhuilton the island for Dominieannuns in the 13*
eenturyand,forawhile, under his patronage the nunsheeame the largest
eeelesiastieallandowners in the eountry
Aeeording to tradition, Bla vowed duriug the Mongol iuvasion middle ofthe!3^ eentury-that ifHungarysurvived his daughter Margaret
^
40

would be brought up as nun. She went to the island when she was 9 and
she died there when she was 29. The island was named after her at the end
of the 19 century.
'
' ,
Even today you can see there the ruins of the convent such as a little
church which was founded in the 13 century. There are two hotels here on the island, the former 'Grand Hotel', which
belongs today to the Ramada hotel chain. It was built in 1873 by Mikls
Ybl, and functioned originally as a sanatorium attched to a medicinal
bath built at the end of the 9"' century.
The neighboring Thermal Hotel was built on the site of a former bath
(Gyula Kri, 1978). There is a small rock garden here which is also
botanical garden with exotc plants, streams, waterfall and ponds. Tropical
lh
lh
:.->f.ap'^'v
..J^-fi.^ .
water lilies and small fish thrive n the warm water ponds.
There are several entertainment facilities as well on the island, such as
the Open Air Theater (Pter Kaffka, 1938), which is the most beautiful
open air theater in the country.
Nearby you can see the replica of Pter Bodor's Musical Fountain built
in 1820 in the center of Marosvsrhely in Transylvania. Originally the
musical mechanism played by the force of water. Today it is driven by
electricity and, when working, plays for about five minutes on the hour.
The medical facilities of the hotels are based on thermal springs which
are to be found on the island. There are swimming pools there as well, like
the huge, 70,000sq m Palatnus Bath (Istvn Janky and Gyrgy Masirevich, 1937).The main pool is enormous - over lOOm in length!
There is another swimming pool nearby known as the National Sports
Pool, which was opened in 1935 with indoor facilities. This is used mosy
by Hungarian competitors, swimmers and water-polo players who have
had - for decades - excellent result at Europen- and World Championships such as at the Olympics.
Close to the bridge there is a stdium and 14,000sq m grounds of the
Athletic Center (Tibor Hbner, 1949).
Have a look at the middle of the road - there stands the lOm bronz
Centenary Monument, erected in 1973 to mark the 100 anniversary of
the unification of Buda, Pest and buda.
f
th
41
2.8. BUDA SIDE - MAIN STREET

This is the other side of the city, called Buda. WeTl turn back under the
bridge and continue the tour along the oldest street of the town.
Let me call your attention to those very 'French-Iike' designs on the
pillars of the bridge. People say that the Margaret Bridge is very similar to
the bridges on the Seine in Paris, because with its form it doesn't interrupt
the surroundings.lts most attractive 'decoration1 is the wonderful view
itself which you can enjoy from the bridge.
The large Hon statue at the Buda end of the bridge (Szilrd Szdy,1932)
was erected to the memory of those who feli in World War I at Premysl
Castle in Poland, which at that time stood in a part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. An inscription on the plinth reads in part: 'They fought like
Ar
Hons'.
'
We have arrived al Bem Square - right here on yourrighthand side you
can see the Polish general's statue. Jospeh Bem (1794-1850) fought in
lhe Polish uprising of 1830-30, then against the Hapsburgs in 1848 in the
Vienna re volt and later with the Hungarians during the 1848-49 War of
Independence. After the defeat of the war he went into exile, becoming a
Muslm and a Turkish citizen. He fought in Syria, then a Turkish province,
helping, ironically, to put down a rebellion against Turkish rule. He is
buried in Syria in Aleppo.
One of the major events of the 1956 Uprising took place in Bem Jzsef
tr. On 23 October, the first day of the revoltion, the first huge protest
rally gathered in front of Bem's statue.On your left, on the other side of
the square, this building is the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (State
Deparlment-US)
Now we start our tour in the Main Street (F utca), which is one of the
oldest rods n all Hungary. This was used by the Romans, about 2000
years ago, it was called "Via Romna" and was one of the main roads of
the Province Pannnia, which was the western part of the present Hunga
ry, and which served as a border-province of the Romn Empire. The river
Danube itself was the natural bordr and there were 108 military watch
towers built along the bordr. This road here ran parallel with the bordr.
42
ti
This street W
of the Tatars, K
gom (previous c
present Castle P
The first buil
Nepauer, 1760)
The next buil
Turkish period.
Arshlan and Pas
long Turkish oc
[This very nai
Water town (V:
flood-area of tl
inhabitants dow
the Middle Agt
trades and, of cc
The King's 1
Turkish baths. C
med into Turkisl
This bath is s
Wednesdays, Fri
is closed on Sun
During the 14
buildings as wel
have built man;
tombs and ceme
Further on th
Justice, where 1
tried in secret an
ilding was a judi
the Gestapo prii
period.
The building
almsrhouse It w

This street was used in the 13 eentury as well, when after the invasion
oftheTatars, King Bla IVdecidedto move the royal court from Esztergom (previous capital ofHungary)toBuda.The royal court moved tothe
present Castle Hill-Casde District area.
The first huildingon your right is the ChapefofStFloriao (Mtys
Nepauer, 1760) which is todayaCreek Catholic parisa church.
The next huilding is one of Budapest few remaining relics from the
Turkish period.lt is called Kirly (King's) Bath, and was huilthyBasha
Arshlan and PashaSokoh Mustr hetween 1566-70, during the 145 years
long Turkish occupation.
^This very narrow part hetween the hill and the Danuhe has heen called:
Watertown(Vfzivros)sinceuê Middle Ages.This was always the only
floodareaof thehilly Buda side and was surrounded hy walls The
inhahitants down here were poorer than their neighhors upon the hill.In
theMiddle Agespeople were tradingin Watertownin variouscrafts,
trades and, of course, fishing.]
TheKiog'sBathwashuiltinsidethewalls-as were all the other
Turkish haths.Chnrches-within the walls ofWatertown-were transformed intoTurkishmosques.
This hamis still in use. Itisasteam^hath open for men onMondays,
Wednesdays,Bridays, for women onTuesdays, ThursdaysandSaturdays.lt
is closed onSundays.
During thel45 years theTurks may have destroyed churches and other
huildingsaswell,hutduringthistime-thel6*andl7^centuries^they
have huilt many new huildings, like steam-haths, mosques, minarets,
tomhsandcemeteries.
Burmeronme large huildingon our right is the Military Coortof
ôstiê,wherelnê Nagy (BrimeMimster during me'56 Uprising
tried in secret and sentencedtodeathinlune, 1956. Eormany years the building wasajudicial center and police headquarters and was used hy hoth
theCestapopriorto 1945andthe secret policeinHungary'sStalinist
period
The building on the left-whiehframesaehurch^was the former
alms^house.ltwashuiltbyphilanthropistlstvnMarczibnyi (1752-1810)
^
Walking tours in Budapesl

for charitable purposes. The inscription above the entrance reads: "A shelter
for the defenseless, 1805". Later it was given to the Sisters of Elizabeth
order and has been returned to them recently.
The Church of the St. Elizabeth Nuns was built between 1731-1757.
Originally it belonged to the Franci scans, hence the statues of St Francis
of Assisi and Anthony pf Padua on the facade between the image of the
Immaculate.
In the mean time we have arrived at Batthyny Square which is really
worth visiting. Two Baroque buildings on our right from the 1790s - the
first built in so called "Piait" the second in "Rococo" style. The reliefs
above the ground floor symbolize the four seasons. The next facade
belonged to the famous White Cross Inn. The asymmetrical character
indicates that it was frmed from two buildings. In the late 18* century the
inn was a popular and elegant place of entertainment where theatrical
peiformances were given. The legend says that Casanova once stayed here, hence the name of the present-day night club.
On our right further on, is a huge markt hall from 1902. Between 1896
and 1906 there were six grand markel halls opened in the capital. It was
badly damaged in World War II, so after a long reconstruction it was
reopened in 1975.
There is no question that the most important sight of the square is the
Church of St Anne (Szent Anna templom). People say that this is the
most beautiful Romn Catholic church in Budapest built in Baroque style.
They started to build the church in 1740 and could finish completely only
in 1805 because of financial problems and an earlhquake in 1763.
(Architects: Kristf Hmon, Mtys Nepauer and Mihly Hamm)
You can see lhe Buda coat of arms in the tympanum and above it the
trangular God's eye motif between two kneeling angels.
The church is dedicated to Mary's mother St Anne. (The high altar of
lhe church is remarkable:there is a group of statues there representing the
young Mary being presented by her mother, St. Anne, in the Temple of
Jerusalem.)
Very soon on our left we'll see the neo-Gothic Calvinist Church, built
in 1893-96 by Samu Petz.He used the style of the medieval Catholic
44
church architt
celebrate lhe
1896. The lan
church were c
At the corner
statue of the a
Now, if yoi
reason why w
the towers of
corner of the
1900) This ho
folklr perfo:
There are s
levl of the m
the present on
On our rig
Monastery. 1
Szumrk). Th
On the southe
are Turkish dc
On our left
Intzet), desij
This a real cer
exhibitions, la
a pleasant caft
On the opp<
modern husin
the 17 centur
Via Romna,
In a few m
exciting squan
for the monun
On our left
first permaner
Ih

church architecture. This is one of those landmarks which were huiltto
celehratethe 1000 anniversary of the setdementof the Hungarians, in
189.The land was given hy the GityGouncil and all the expenses ofthe
church were donatedhyheheversofmeGalvinistGhurch ofthe district.
At me corner ofme church you can seeasmalldrirn^ngfountain with the
statue ofthe architect.
Now, ifyou look upto the hill,after the right corner you will see the
reason why we came along this way^ there we'll see Matthias Ghurch and
the towers of the Fishermen'sBastion.Thehuildingon our right atthe
corner ofthe square is the Bndai Vigad (Mr Kalhna, Aladr rkay,
1900) This house is the home ofthe Hungarian State FolkBnsemhle and
folklr performances are often performed here.
There are som parts ofthe street where you can still see the originl
levl ofthe medieval street,which was ahout 1.5m lower than the levl of
the present one, like here on our left we can see that.
Gnourrightthenext sight is thelormer Gapoehin Ghnrehand
Monastery.The present form dates froml84-5 (Ferenc Reitter, Fi
Szurrirk).The originl medieval church was used asaTurkishmosque.
Gnmesouthern wall, visihlehom from inside and outside as well, there
areTurkishdoors and window frames
Gn our left tmsFost-Modernhuilding is the Freneh Institute (Francia
Intzet), designed hyFrenchman George Maurios and opened it in 1992.
Thisareal center ofFrench culture here^ they regularly organize coneerts,
exhihitions,language classes.There isan excellent lihrary,hookshop and
a pleasant caf here.
Gn the opposite side ofthe street we can see the rentains in front o f a
modern husinesscenterofamedieval house which was reconstructed in
the 17* century, hut underneath there are som stones to he seen from the
Via Romna, from the 3^ century.
Inafewminutes we reach AdantGlark Square, whieh isthe most
exciting square inBuda.There is so much to see there^ Let me prepare you
for the monuments hefore we get therel
Gn our left youTl see the famous Ghain Bridge (Lnehtd), the city's
first permanent hridgehuilt hetween 1839-49, designed hy the Scottish
45

engineer Adam Clark and constructed by the English William Thierny
Clark.
Although it is the oldest, the narrowest and the shortest bridge of Budapest now, at that time with its 380m length it was one of the largest
suspension bridges in Europe.
Ahead of us on the other side you can see that strange-shaped Zero
Kilomter Stone (Mikls Borsos, 1975). It is from this spot that all
Hungary's road distances from Budapest are measured, therefore,
theoretically it is considered as the center of the country.
Next to it is the entrance to the Buda Castle Funicular (Budavri
Sikl), opened originally on 2 March, 1870, as the second funicular in the
world.
Thts was built to connect Adam Clark Square with the former Royal
Palace above. It was damaged several times and lately reopened in 1986.
The design of the carriages is as the originl, but in place of the earlier
steam engine they are now operated electrically.
The building up there the former Royal Palace, rules over the square.
One thing I have to mention now: this is not used as a royal palace - and
never was - but this is the largest museum of Hungarian art and it called
Hungarian National Gallery.
Under the hill on your right you see the neo-Classical entrance of the
Castle Hill Tunnel (Alagt), built by Adam Clark between 1853-1857.
Now we turn here to the right and start to climb up - this very
comfortable way - to the Castle Hill.
2.9. CASTLE DISTRICT - MATTHIAS CHURCH FISHERMEN'S BASTION

We may divide the hill into two parts: the Case itself and the so-called
Castle District. Bla V moved the royal court to this hill in Buda in the
Bth century. Members of the royal family lived there, officials and the
upper class of the common people lived in the Case District and in
Water town.
46
In from '
soon the to
look to the
and the wh
This wal
lighter ston
We start
of military
monumentt
area becam
Lets stop
One of tl
Independer
To prse:
that war, it
the Buda
collection i
The worl
official ina
due to vai
memrii
name from
of the Milli
In the cei
vd" raises
the soldier,
angel can b
And now
capital in t
wander abc
Trnok
Holy Trinit
mester (trei
street was B
1

ln front ofuswe see already the stairsof the Eishermen'sBastion and
soon the tower of Matthias Chureh. Now the street turns to left, hut ifyou
look tothe right you have anexeellent view from here ofthe Parliament
and me whole Pest side.
This wallon our right dates from the medieval times-lookat those
lighter stones they are still parts ofthe originl wall.
We start our walking tour at Disz tr (ParadeSqoare).lt was the venue
of military pards in thel9theentury.The houses here are arehiteetural
monuments. More man 90^ ofmeCasdeDistriet area are landmarks. This
area heeameapart ofthe world heritage in 1988 proposed hy UNESCO.
Eets stop foramomentat^heBHpovd Memriid
Dne ofme outstanding ^ a ^ o f arms ofthe 1848-49 Hungarian War of
Independence was the reeaptureofBuda Castle on May 21, 1849.
Topreserve the memory of'honvd'(the Hungarian word for soldier in
that war, itmeans^defenderof the homeland)troops who feli in the hattle,
the Buda and Dhuda assoeiadons of honvd veterans organized a
collection in 1871.
^^ ^B^^
The work of art, hyCyrgy Zala, was erected here in 1892, however, the
official inauguradonof the sculpture was only effected on May 21,1893,
due to various political wranglings. The architectnral seetion of the
memria! wasdesignedhy Alhert Schikedauz.Ydu may rememherhis
name from Heroes'Square, he wasacolleagueofZalainthe construction
of the MillenaryMonument and ofthe museums there. ^ ^
^
mmecenterof medynarmegroupof statues, onahroken carmona^honvd" raisesaftagon high. The inscripdon reads "EihertyorDeath''.Behind
mesoldier,who holds msswprd in his right hand,awinged flgure ofan
angel can he seen holding mewreamof victory over the soldier'shead.
And now here isarecord! Budapest has more eaves than aoy other
capital in the world. s o w i n g thatshouldmakeadifferenceto you as you
wander ahout onmecoohledstreetsof the Casde District.
Trnok Street runs from here upto the n ^ n square ofthe district to
HolyTrinity Square. The name ofme street derives from the word trnok
mester(treasurer),aeourt dignitary who dealt with the royal revenues The
street wasacenterof commerce in the Middle Ages.
47

Before getting to the square, on our left in this corner building you can
see the Arany Sas (Golden Eagle) Pharmacy Museum. There was a
pharmacy there, established in 1688 by Ferenc Ignc Bosinger, a former
. mayor of Buda. It was the first pharmacy in Buda Castle after the
"expulsion of the Turks. The building was formerly a merchant's house and
dates from the early 15* century.
Just beyond the museum stands a female-figure fountain, by Pl
Ptzay. The artist modeled it in 1930 while on a scholarship in Rom, but
curiously it was only erected in 1975, a few years before his death.
We have arrived at Holy Trinity Square and before we would go to the
church let me show you the most important sights of the place. In the
middle of the square - ahead of you - that monument is to be found from
which the square gained its name. This is the Holy Trinity Column,
erected by the city council at the beginning of the 18 century, after a great
plague, the "black death". It was built between 1710-1713 by Anion Hrger
and Philip Ungleich. Reliefs on the pinth depict biblical King Dvid
praying for the passing of the plague.
The building on your left is the former Buda Town Hall, designed by
Italian architect Venerio Ceresola at the beginning of the I8th century.
Originally the building was designed in Baroque style which you can
hardly notice today. It served as a municipal headquarters until the unification of Buda, Pest and buda in 1873. Today it houses a number of
academic institutes.
At the corner of this building there is an attractive statue of Pallas
Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom and protector of the cities.The Buda coat of arms can be seen on her shield and in her left hand she holds a
spear.
Further on your left there is a tiny street with a tiny pastry shop called
Ruszwurm Cukrszda. There used to be a gingrbread shop here in the
Middle Ages, and there has been a pastry shop and caf here since 1827,
which makes the Ruszwurm one of the oldest in the city. The name comes
from a former owner, Vilmos Ruszwurm, who ran the caf from 1884 for
40 years. The interior of the caf and its furniture reminds you very much
of the old days.
h
lh
48

The building on the other side of the square, ahead of you, behind the
monument, is the former Ministry of Finnc, built by Sndor Fellner in
1906 in late-Eclectic style with Hungarian Secessionist ornamentation.
Today it houses a variety of institutes, exhibition halls and offices.
Next to it, right from the building stands the Budapest Hilton Hotel.
I think this is the most unusual Hilton you have ever seen - they signed an
agreement, according to which the main facade of the building had tofit
these medieval surroundings. A. Dominican church and monastery stood
here in the Middle Ages, the ruins of which have been ncorporated into
the hotel's Dominican Courtyard. The hotel was opened in 1976, designed
by Bla Pintr.
The next sight, and of course the most important monument of the
square is the 700 years old Matthias Church which we are going to vist
later on together, so before going into the church let me show you the last
two monuments of this area, namely the equestrian statue of St Stephen,
and behind it the Fishermen's Bastion.
From time to time during the tour we meet the name of our first king,
St Stephen.We saw his statue on Heroes' Square, we've visited the
cathedral dedicated to him. The bronz equestrian statue of the king (Alajos Strbl, 1906) is to be seen right in front of the Fishermen's Bastion.
Alajos Strbl worked on it for ten years. He collected all the informatin
he could connected with eleventh-century Hungarian art history, aiming at
perfect historical accuracy down to the..smallest .detail. He depicted
Stephen sitting on an ornately ftteci-out stallion - the King wearing the
Hungarian crown and the coronaon mantle, and holding the apostoli
cross of Lorraine symbolizing Hungary's conversion to Christianity. The
four reliefs on the pedestal, designed in Romanesque style and surroundcd
by a rticulated balusrade] depict the principal moments of St Stephen's
reign. The one in front depicts the giving of laws, the one on the right his
coronation, the one on the left the homage of Vienna, and the one at the
back the foundation of the church. "-" "
,
The decorative "promenade" with towers behind the statue is the Fishermen's Bastion.
It was designed by Frigyes Schulek at the turning point of the century 49

on the one hand, this was a part of the huge construction which the country
made to celebrate the thousand years anniversary of the settlement of the
Hungarians. On the other hand this was a part of the reconstruction of
Matthias Church, which took place at the end of the last century.
The function of the present Fishermen's. Bastion s both decorative and
to srve as a look-out terrace over the Danube.
There are two different explanations for the name Fishermen's. Version
A says that in the Middle Ages there was a huge fishmarket here, and the
name derives from this marketplace. According to versioni in medieval,
limes, when the masters of the different jobs met in their guilds'it was the "
task of the Fishermen's Guild to defend this part of the city in case of
attack. Whichever explanation you prefer the name of the place is
Fishermen's Bastion.
The architect wanted to frame in this way the mighty tower of Matthias
Church with the smaller lowers of the bastion; he wanted to express that
our ancestors lived in these strange-shaped tents, that is why the towers
look like unusual tents. The reason for the number of the towers is that
there were seven Hungarian tribes who occupied the country in 896.
The first name of this church was the Church of our Lady, later on
became the well-known Matthias Church, but it was called for a while
Coronation Church as well.
Tradition has it that in 1015 King Stephen built a small church to Mary
here which was completely destroyed by the Mongolians. It was Bla IV
who moved the royal court to here, to Buda after the Mongolians left, and
he ordered this church to be built and the originl Royal Palace on Castle
Hill. The first written document about the church dates from 1255. We
believe that this church was built between 1255-1269.
The originl style of the building, of course, was the Romanesque, but,
unforlunately, there is not too much left, with the exception of the Mary
-portai where we came in, and som parts of the lower-church.
If you enter here today and look around your first impression is
probably tbat this is a Gothic church, but with strong orientl elements.
The reason for Ihat is that whenever the church has been enlarged or
rebuilt il always happened in Glhic style. At the turn of the 14 century
th
50
Wallring tonrs in Budapest

me ehnreh was remodeledintoahall-ehnreh in high Gothie style hyLonis
the Great and SigismnndofLnxemhnrg.Aroyalbratory was hniltdnring
the reignof King Matthias andthe tower whieh eollapsed in 1384was
rehnilt.Theehnrehheeame the seeneofeeremonies and politieal events.
Matthias's two marriageeeremonies (with GatherineFodehrad and Beatrice ofAragon) hoth took plaee here midst great splendor.^ ^ ^
TheTnrksoeenpiedBndainl541 and converted the ehnrehto the eity's
main mosqne.Thememevalfnrnishings were destroyed as were the wall
decorations.
Two ornamentalchandeliers ahove the high altar were taken to Gonstantinople where they still hang in StSophia's.Bnda was finally recap-^
tnred from theTnrks in 1686, following which the church was given tothe ^
Branciscans and later to the Jesuits, who restored the hnilding,decorating
its Interior in rich Barom slyle. The church regamed tts former
importance in the second half ofthe 19* century-thesplendidcoronation
ofBmperor Branz Josef asaKingofffungary took place here (in 1867) to
the music ofLiszt^sGoronation Mass, whieh had heen specialty composed
fortheoccasion.
The last king of Hungary, GharlesIV,wascrowned here in 1916 during
the Birst World War. During the sigeofBudapestin the winter of 1944^45
thechurch was hadly damaged andpostwar restoratlon work was not
completed until 1970.
The acoustics ofthe church have always heen excellent. As early as the
15^êntury, in the reignof King Matthias,achoirof 70 was singing
chorales here. The tradition continues, and many concerts are held throughont the year.
1 have already mentioned you som eoronadons whieh took plaee
here.The very flrst one waslnl309, when GharlesRohert was erowned here, thefirstrulerwhodidnothelong tothe originl royalHungarian
dyna^ty, tothe rpd dynasty, and this is the reason that sometimes the
church was caliedGoronationGhurch.
Gn the tympanum ofthe main (west) portai facing Szenthromsg tr
there is a relief of theMadonnaenthroned with angels (LajosLantai,
1890). This deeoration as so many others ontside and inside was
^ ^
51

completed hyFrigyesSchulek,thedesignerof the Bishermen's Bastion,
who reconstructed the church according tothat'Cothic'style which they
considered asneo^Cothie in the second part o f t h e i r eentury.
Let us see the wall-and column-paintings inside! When the church was
turnd intoamosquetheTurks were not allowed-hecause oftheir Korn
-toseepaintingandstatuesof men or women, notevenof anyother
humn heings, therefore they painted those special, very colorful pattems
on me columns. Because of the influence of those originl Lurkish
column-paintings, Schulekdecided torepaintthe wholeinteriorin that
style. So there areîntime-very mixed parts in the church, such as when
we enter, the originl Matthias coat of arms from thel5^century, right
next Kroly Lotz paintings from thel9* century, etc.
Lhere are several chapels in the church worth visiting, such as the Loreto
Chapel, meStfmre Chapel, and the St Stephen Chapel in the crypt.
Lhe Loreto Chapel is to he found very near tothe Mary Portai which
dates from the period of Luis the Creat-second part o f t h e i r century
Lhis is one ofthe oldest originl decorations ofthe church
Lhere isan entrance to the Loreto Chapel which is normally closed hut
you can havealook atthe Madonna through the doorCn the altar there is
aBaroque Madonna to he seen offtalian style fromcfÔO.Several stories
relate to mis statue.Cneofthem telis ofthe had luckoftheTurks. During
the fight for the recaptureof Buda the walls ofthe chapel feli down, the
little Madonna statue appeared, hecame visihletotheTurks and they were
very frightened hecause ofthe power oftheVirgin Mary who helps the
Hungarians
Cn the north side ofthe church the first chapel is the Stfrore Chapel
Lhepainterofthewalldecorations was one ofthegreatest Hungarian
artists ofthe last century: Bertalan Szkely and you can see here different
scenes ofthe life ofStLrancisof Assisi.Lhe three figures ofthe altar are:
St Stephen,father ofBmeric,St Imre his son who died atthe age of24and
Bishop Cellrt, his tutor who was one of the symholsofChristianity in
Hungary in thellth century
Lhe next Chapel's name is Holy Trmity.You ean see there thedouhle
sarcophagusofKingBlalff andhis wifeAnnaChatillon.Lhey were
52

buried - as were all the other Hungarian kings - at Szkesfehrvr in the
cathedral. They found these graves in 1848 and they were brought to Buda to the Matthias Church. The chapel is an imitation of a 12 century
French cathedral interior.
There is a side chapel near the main altar. The paintings show the life
and the funeral of St Ladislaus, where you can see a very good por trait of
him. It was Ladislaus and King Matthias who were described always in the
same way, so we believe that their portraits are real ones and not only the
imagination of the artists.
Near the high altar there is the entrance to the Collection of Ecclesiastical Art. Monstrances, chalics and various other ecclesiastical items
are on display here.
After leaving the Case District we are driving along the rear walls of
the Royal Palace. It is too big to see well from here, but from a certain
distance you will recognize its size.
The Royal Palace - as I told you before - was built in the middle of the
13* century. It was built originally in Romanesque-, later on rebuilt and
enlarged in Gothic style. Then during the time of the Turkish occupation
(1541-1686) the Palace was not completely used by the Turks, but it was
damaged during the bates, and after the withdrawal of the Turks the
whole Palace was in ruins.
Than the Hapsburgs came in and decided to build their new royal palace
here - which they never used as a royal palace, no kings lived here since
the end of the 17* century. They decided to build the new palace not instead
of the first case, but on the top of it. So they filled in the ruins, in this way
they made an artificial hill - this is the Case Hill - and they built the new
palace on the top of the hill. The 'new* palace derives from the end of the
17* - beginning of the 18* century. Today it is the largest museum in Hungary including Hungarian paintings, statues and the History Museum's
exhbion shows the history of the former palaces.
lh
53
2.10. TABN AND GELLERT HILL

Here we pass by the statue of Gyrgy Dzsa, who was the leader of a
peasanl revolution in Hungary which took place in 1514. Now we are
facing again the Gellrt Hill and we are passing by a part of the town
called Tabn. This is a green area to the north of the Rc Bath - which
you can see on your far right, an old-fashioned, yellow building, one of lhe ^ ^ ^
thermal spas of the city. The name probably comes from lhe tamiing ' " /
workshops which existed in this area during the Turkish period. Towards
the end of the 17"' century many Serbs fled here from the Turks,and around
1,700, out of tbc nearly 3,000 inhabitants 95% were Serbs. There were
several fi res here, and it became a poor, but romantic area. The City
Council decided to demolish it in 1908, but did not finish before 1930.
On your righl you can see 2 pieces of the Berlin Wall, as monuments
of tbc most recent history of lhe 20 century.
We turn now to the right, but on your left you can see the statue of
St Gellrt, on ie slope of the hill. We have seen already his statue in St.
Stephen's Basilica. He was a bishop from Venice, Italy, who wanted lo go
to Jerusalem, to the Holy Land. Bul he got sick, while in Hungary, and this
was the period (1025-1035) when the King Stephen converted the nation
to Christianity. He asked the help of Gellrt, who decided lo stay here,
instead of going to the Holy Land. In the meantime he was the teacher of
lhe King's son, Emeric, as well. After the King's death, in 1047 there was
an uprising in Hungary againsl the new religion, the Romn Catholic
religion. Gellrt, as a symbol of it was murdered by pagans here, on lhe
hill. So he became lhe first martyr of Christianity in Hungary.
On our left we see a water reservoir behind those brown walls, and after
the traffic light on our right there is a public observatory.
Soon we arrive at the top of Gellrt Hill. There are two remarkable
things to see there: the Citadel and the Liberation Monument. And the third
one which is not there, but you can see it from there is the magnificent
view of Budapest which you can enjoy from lhe top of Gellrt Hill.
The Citadel was built as a military forlress between 1850-54, by the
Austrians, as barracks for their soldiers. This was built right afler the
Hungarian I
Austrians wa
best place fn
Today this
casino. We \
lot, and we'f
The Libei
(Kisfaludy S
figure holdin
symbolical fi
with the fire
2.11.
ELIZ
th
54
Ali the bridge

World War FI.
While the oth
Elizabeth Bric
Bridge was de
site ofa formt
which, until
construction
re develop men
(We have a
traffic use and
The next si
dapest - and 1,
from Vienna tt
and Septembe:
Ahead of u
Bridge. This is
1896 by Empei

Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence failed, in 1849. The
Austrians wanted to control the capital of the Hungarians, and this was the
best place from the military point of view.
Today this is a peaceful place for night clubs, restaurants, a hotel and
casino. We will drive around the Citadel, come back here to the parking
lot, and weTl walk together to see the view from the top of the hill.
The Liberation Monument was erected after World War II in 1947
(Kisfaludy Strbl Zsigmond). As you see, the main figure is a female
figure holding an olive branch in her hands. On both sides you can see
symbolical figures. The young man's victory over the dragon and the man
with the fire respectively represent the defeat of fascism.
2.11. ELIZABETH BRIDGE-MARKET HALL-NATIONAL

MUSEUM-ASTORIA
All the bridges of Budapest were blown up by the retreating Nazis during
World War II. To the right we can see the Elizabeth Bridge (Erzsbet hd).
While the other bridges were reconstructed in their originl form, only the
Elizabeth Bridge was newly designed. The striking, white, 380m Elizabeth
Bridge was designed by Pl Svoly and opened in 1964. It was built on the
site of a former chain bridge of the same name which opened in 1903 and
which, until 1926, was the largest single-span bridge in Europe. The
construction of the bridge was accompanied by considerable rban
redevelopment on the Pest side.
(We have altogether 9 bridges in Budapest, seven bridges for norml
traffic use and two for the rail ways. The newest one was completed in 1996).
The next sight is the International Pier now. If you ever return to Budapest - and I do hope you will - you could try the hydrofoil, which comes
from Vienna to Budapest every day during the high season, belween May
and September.
Ahead of us on our right we can see the next bridge, the Liberty
Bridge. This is the shortest bridge of the city. It was opened on 4* October
1896 by Emperor Franz Joseph and bore his name until 1945.
55

The nearest building in Pest is the University of Economics, we see this
building ahead of us, left of the bridge.
lt was designed by Mikls Ybl in Eclectic, neo-Renaissance style and
buih between 1871 and 1874 as the Main Customs Office. A series of
lunnels connected the building to the Danube embankment. The 170m
facade overlooking the river has 10 allegorical statues by the Viennese
sculplor, August Sommer.
The building was reconstructed in 1945 and opened as a university in
1951. The university was named after Kari Marx, whose large bronz
statue can still be seen in the trium - the main hall - of the building.
Now we turn left but I would suggest you to have a look to your right
now, where we can see the Central Markt Hall.
It was designed by Samu Petz, built between 1893-96. This is the most
impressive of the six Budapest markt halls built in the 1890s.
The huge iron framework covering more than 10,000 sqm was originally
built as the city's main wholesale markt, but for many years now the building has been used primarily for retail purposes.
The markt is always a popular attraction - Margaret Thatcher was
photographed buying paprika here in 1984. All kinds of fresh meat,
vegetables, fruits, flowers can be found here. It is really well worth a look
inside.
This road here is the Little Boulevard where the City Walls of Pest stood
in the Middle Ages. The wall surrounding the present Downtown was 2 km
long and over 8 m high and was exacy built along it.
We are approaching Calvin Square, an important intersection of our
capital. The Kecskemt Gate - part of the old city walls, used to stand here until it was pulled down in 1794. On our left the Mercure Hotel Korona
(Csaba Csontos, 1990) today occupies the site where the gate used to stand.
Nothing else but Romn Catholic churches were permitted to be built
within the city walls - which stood for about 200 years here. That is the
reason why you can see on your right side (which means: outside of the
ancient city walls) the sngle-nave Calvinist Church (Reformtus Templom). It was designed by Jzsef Hofrichter, built between 1816 and 1830,
although the tympanum and the entrance were added by Jzsef Hild in
56
1848 and the

pulpit (1831)
Countess Zi<
statue is by f
The church i
On our fai
ding of the F
Constructi
although bor
homeland. H
the architecti
century. Whe
such nationa]
Shortly afl
most celebrl
goes, from th
by the youn
recited his ro'
the poem hav
year on 15 M;
open-air perf
The facade
eight Corinth
central-seatec
occupying toi
the sciences
The large
looking the b
The side figi
Rozgonyi anc
classic figure:
and translate
publication o)
The collect

1848 and the spire dates from 1859.Hildaiso added the upper part ofthe
pulpit(1831)andme organ loft(1854).Theneo-Gothicsepulchre ofthe
Countess Zichy can be found in the wall ofthe church on the left.The
statue is by Raymond Gayard and the framework by Erigyes Eeszl (1854).
The church is normally closed outside times ofworship.
Dn our far rigbt behind those treeswe can see the neo-Classical buil
ding ofthe Hungarian National Museum.
Construction ofthe museum began in 1837 hyMihTyPollack,who,
althoughborn in Viennaandtrainedin Italy, adoptedHungary ashis
homeland. His neo-Classical public buildings and town houses typified
mearchitectureof meReform Period inthe second quarter ofthe 19*
century.When the National Museum was opened in 1847 it was the fourth
such national museum built in Europe.
Shortly after its opening, the museum became the sceneof one ofthe
most celebrated events ofthel848revolution.lt was here, ors the story
goes, from the wide steps ofme building, thatahugecrowd was addressed
by the young revolutionaryleaderofPest,thepoet Sndor Petfi, who
recited his rousing National Song (Nemzeti Dal). The event, the place and
the poem have all found meir place in Hungarian mstory and usually every
year on 15 March me museum is decked out with the national colors and an
open-airpertorniance takes place onthe steps recalling the events of 1848^
The facade ofthe museum is dominatedbyahuge central portico with
eight Corinthian columns supportingalarge tympanum with statues. The
central seated figure is Pannnia (the name of the Romn province
occupyingtoday's Western Hungary). The figures on each side represent
the sciences and art.
The large bronz and limestone statue in front ofthe museum, overlooking the boulevard, is of the poetôos Arany (Alajos Strbl,1893).
The side figures represent characters in one of his epic works (Piroska
Rozgonyi and MiklsToldi-TolmTrilogy). Arany (1817-82), one ofthe
classic figures ofHungarian literature, was anepicpoetandaballadwriter
and translated many works of Shakespeare andwas instrumental intbe
publication of the Bard's first complete works in Hungarian.
The collection ofthe museum dates back tol802
57

Both major exhibitions are historical ones, the "History of Hungary
from 1000 to 1990" and the "Hungarian Crown Jewels and Coronation
Regalia".
The crown was used for centuries at the coronation of Hungarian kings.
Possession and being crowned with it was always a matter of great
political significance. Several times it has been removed from the country:
the most recent absence lasted 34 years. At the end of World War II il was
taken by Hungarian Nazis to Germany from where it was taken to the USA
and kept in Fort Knox. It was not returned to Hungary until January 1978,
after US-Hungarian relations had been normalized for som lime.
The complex of large buildings on our right is the Faculty of Natural
Sciences of Etvs Lornd University, from lhe 1880s. Next to the main
building on our right we can see the most curious building, the Glyavr
('Stork Castle' - 'stork' in Hungarian is equivalenl to university
'fresher'). Il was built in six months in 1897 to the design of Samu Petz, a
professor al the Technical University, which was then based there. The
building played a role in the build-up to the 1918-19 revolutionary
upheaval. Radical intellectuals often used to meet here and hold lectures.
Further on the righl is located the East-West Trade Center. (Lajos
Zala vary)
Before turning to the right, to the main road, please have a look at the
left corner. This is the Hotel Astoria - a land mark in the center - recently
redecorated retaining its old fashioned style (Emil goston and Rezs
Hikish, 1912-14). The first democratic government was founded here - the
one that declared secession from Austria in 1918.
The building suffered severe damage during the fighting in 1956, when
for a time it functioned as the headquarters ofthe Soviet Forces. Today the
renovated interior, in particular the attractive Art Nouveau coffee lounge
on the ground floor, recalls the atmosphere of pre-World War II Budapest.
(Upon going on a different route - such as from Elizabeth Bridge
towards the Hotel Astoria - we are going to see lhe following sights):
58
2.72. E
On our rig
expensive
famous Hi
and gipsy
One of
City Pari;
usually op
the city.
Al the
built here
pd (whicl
Louis, Ma
of the matt
In the U
present si:
returned i>
Following
damaged a
rebuilt in !
Gothic re a
from lhe I
the high al
Just to
CONTRA
294 under:
called U M
year old R
Church an(
Left froi
University
school (Pia
2.12. ELIZABETH BRIDGE - FRANCISCAN CHURCH,

ASTORIA, THE SYNAGOGUE
On our right you can see the most famous - and, of course one of the most
expensive downtown restaurants the Matthias Cellar, named after lhe
famous Hungarian King. This is a de luxe restaurant with excellent food
and gipsy music.
One of the most important churches in the Downtown area is the Inner
City Parish Church (Belvrosi Plbniatemplom). This church, which is
usually open every day, traces its roots back much farmer than others in
the city.
At the end of the 12 century, a triple-aisled Romanesque church was
built here and in 1211 Princess (later Saint) Elizabeth of the House of rpd (which was the only Hungarian royal dynasty) was betrothed here lo
Louis, Marquis of Thringia. History has not reeorded what she thought
of the matter, since she was only 4 years old at that time! (And he was 11!)
In the 14* century the church was rebuilt in Gothic style and attained its
present size. The Turks used the church as a mosque, but later they
returned it and for a while it was the only Christian church in Pest.
Following the expulsion of the Turks from the city in 1686 the church was
damaged and in 1723 it burnt down. In lhe following decade it was partly
rebuilt in Baroque style resulting in the present curious combination of
Gothic rear and Baroque front. Inside, the neo-Classical organ loft dates
from the 1830s. War damage necessitated reconstruction after 1945 and
the high altar dates from that time.
Just to the north of the church is a small, open-air museum called
CONTRA-AQUINCUM. It was the name of the Romn fortress built in
294 under Emperor Diocletian to help defend the Imperiai bordr - as they
called LIMES - which ran along the Danube. A few stones from this 1700
year old Romn forlification were used to build the Inner City Parish
Church and these can be found in the originl walls.
Left from the church you can see the building of the Etvs Lornd
University Arts Faculty. It was founded in 1717 as a religious secondary
school (Piarst), while the present building was built during World War I.
,h
59
Walking lours in Budapesl

fl has been occupied hy lhe Universily since 1950. fl became animporlanl
center for leaching bolh lhe Hungarian language and sciences. The
physicisi Lornd Blvs, afler whom lhe university is named, sludied here from 1857-65.
Onlhelefl-shordy afler lhe churchyou will see lhe main shopping
sireel of Ihelowncalled Vci utea.Thispedesliianisedslreel, wilbils
exclusiveshops, is lhe cenlreof Ibis pari of lhe cily.
Two high, prominenl buildings known as lhe Klotild Palacesdominale
lhe wesl end ofihe square. Named afler lhe daughier-in-lawofBalaline
Archduke Joseph, ihey were designed byBlrisKorb and Klmn Giergl
in Secessionisislylc wilh Spanish Rococoelemenlsin1902.
The nexl imporlani landmarkon your lefldales from 1909 fl was
designed hy Henrik Schmahl for lhe purpose of lhe Cily Saving Bank. He
usedarich,ec1eciicmixofVene1ianGolhic,fla1ianRenaissanceandlv1oorlsbe1emenls.fl is worlhvisiling lhe courtyard ofihe building,which is
calledBrizsi Udvar (Baris Yard).Thenamederivesfromaprevious,
early 19* century passage here, which then imitaled the Baris-style shopping arcade.
The NereidsFooofaio (Ferenc Uhrl and JzsefBess1)slands in fronlof
the church. ft was originally placed here in 1835 and was Fest'sfirst sculpturelodecorateapublicwelk
TheFraoeiêao Church (Ferences templom) stands atthe righl corner
ofthe square.The Franciscanshadachurchandamonastery here as early
as in the second half ofthe13* century. During theTurkish occupation it
was turnd intoamosque.Nothing survives today ofthe originl building.
The present church was begun in 1727 tothe plans ofFranciscan masters
andconsecralcdin 1743 Above lhe enlranceisaslone relief depicling
Cbrist on the road loCalvary.Thespire was constructed in 1758,though
tbe decorative elements appeared in lhe!860s.
Thefrescoes in ihechurch werepaintedpartlyby Kroly Lotz.The
stone crucifixoutside lhe church, bylhe entrance, dates from 1763, but lhe
sculplure is unknown
Ifyou look uplo your righl lo lhe side wall ofihe church, you'll see lhe
relief commemorating the CreatFloodof 1838 (Barnabs Holl, 1905)
60

The relief is dedicated to Bron Mikls Wesselnyi, the Hero of the
Flood. This flood, Pest's most serious natural disaster, began on the night
of 13-14 March, 1838. The Danube burst its banks and caused a huge
flood which lasted several days. Over 400 people died and 2,000 houses
were destroyed.
This road is named after Louis Kossuth, leader of the War of
Independence 1848-49.
There are qui te a few stores and department houses to be seen on both
sides of the road. Generally shops open at 9-10 a. m. and close at 6-7 p.
m. Most of them are closed on Saturday afternoons and Sundays. There is
no lunchbreak, they are open permaneny during the whole day.
Yu can use every where the 'Forint', the local currency to pay, but in
several shops they accept your travellers cheques or credit cards, which is
clearly shown on the shop-windows near the entrances.
We are approaching the Hotel Astoria (see details earlier) and the
husiest avenue of the city, Rkczi Road.
We find the largest Synagogue in the city, and in Europe near here, in
Dohny Street.
There are altogether 22 synagogues in function in Budapest - this is the
largest, and the most beautiful one.
It was built between 1854 and 1859. Lenght of the temple: 53 m, width
of the temple: 26 m, there are 1492 seats for men and 1472 for women in
the temple.
The Ark of the Covenant is 8,2 m high.
There is a quotation from the Bible above the gate: "Woszuli mikds,
vschnti btochm. " "And prepare a sanctuaryfor me, so that may live
among them ".
(II Moses, 25-8) The sum of the numerical value of the letters marked
with an asterisk gives the date of building the synagogue - the year of
1859.
The temple of Dohny Street played a style-making role in the
Hungarian art of synagogues, it was built by the Austrian Frster-firm.
The word synagogue deri ves from the Greek "synagog" expression. It
is the place of religious service and school at the same time.
61

The Talmud - the greatest collection of Jewish literature after the Bible
- prescribes that the temple should be erected at the highest point of the
town. During later centuries the Jews living outside the Holy Land were
allowed to build temples only on the outskirts of, or outside the town, in
most cases. This practice was realized in the case of the temple of Dohny
Street, too.
The synagogue of Dohny Street is practically a basilican combined
space. It is nothing but a 19 century adaptation of the early Christian
basilicas, as well as hasi lic as of late centuries.
The effect of the great world-religion - catholicism - can also be felt on
lhe internl space of the synagoue of Dohny Street.
The love of fine arts was not strange to the Jewish world of ideas in spite
of the pro bibi ting commandment say ing "Do not make a grave n image for
you!" The creators of lhe art of the synagogues focussed on the poetic
sentence of Moses' paean: "This is my Lord, let me adorn him!" This
"adornment" had become the source of their art.
The creators of the Dohny temple were not Jews. They created a place
which is made up of lhe known structural elements of the Christian church.
There is a Jewish community in Hungary. There are about 70-80,000
Jewish people in Budapest, and another 30,000 in the country.
th
2.13. ALONG THE RKCZI ROAD

Ferenc Rkczi (1616-1735) a Hungarian prince who became the Regent,
led the War of Independence between 1703 and 1711. He died in exile in
Turkey.
The road obtained its name in 1906 - when the mortal remains of the
Prince were brought back to Hungary and the funeral procession went
along this road.
This road is actually the main road of the present city - later we are
going to see the main road of the 19'" century Budapest.
This is the busiest shopping centre with the department stores and all
kinds of shops. On our right we can see an old-fashioned Moorish-style
62
Walldng tours in Budapest

building from the last century which serves asacinematoday.Tbe same
building houses the Draroa and Film Academy asweli.
Aheadofuson our right-hand side you see this little yellow chapel, the
StRoeh(Rkns)Ghapel,completedin 1711.Next toitisahospital,which
is the oldest one in Pest, founded in the first half ofthe 18thcentury.lt was
built outside ofmeancient city walls of Pest, because it was an epidemic
hospitl.
Lateron,mis was me place whereDoctorSernmelweiss worked. He
was tbe famous Hungarian gynaecologist who fought against the child-bed
fever. Ashe wasHungarian,he washuried in the city.Thereisa very
interesting museum on the other side ofthe river, conceming the generai
history of medieine and details from the life of Semmelweis. As he
invented antiseptic birthing methods, he is considered tbe not only the
father of modern obstretrics, but the father of modern surgery as well.
This isme junction ofthe Great Boulevard and Rkczi t, the square
here is named after me"Nighdngaleof the Nation",LujzaBlaha, the most
popularactressof her day (1850-1926).
Thisjuncdonis one the busiest spots in Pest-underneath the square
you find the station ofthe "red" suhway line, No2.
The square is often referred tosimplyasÊMKE'.The letters derive
from the name of the Hungarian Transylvanian Association for the
Promotion of Leaming. Brom 1894 the BMKBGaf hecame famous.lt
used tooccupy the ground floor and survived until recent times, butfinally
disappearedwhenmeGhicagoopenedhereasamodernised American
restaurantBharinl992.
Gn meomerside-on the righthandside ofthe square stands the Gor
vin DepartmentStore-oneofthelargestinthe city when originally built
in 1926. Present appearance dates from the 1960s'recontruction. The next
building to me right is the center of many editoralofficesof different
newspapers and magazines. This was where the old 'Barty^ newspapers
were produced fbr many years.
The hluewhitedecorated building aheadofusabiton the right was
built in me90sofme!9m century. This isahotel and was very famous fbr
its cuisine atthe turn of the century.TheBclectichuilding houses the
National (Nemzeti)Hotel.
63:

Just before cross ing this junction here, let me call your attention to the
"New York Palace" located left of the square. This building is a
wondevful mixture of the neo-Renaissance and the Art Nouveau. H was
built for an American insurance company first, between 1891 and 1895,
and was designed by the famous Hungarian architect Alajos Hauszmann,
The New York Caf and Restaurant on the ground floor is a classic
coffee-house from lhe pre-1945 era.
It was one of the central meeting places for writers, poets, painters,
sculptors, composers singers, actors and, later, film directors. lt played an
outstanding role in the literary, artistic and cultural life of Budapest up to
the Second World War.
Many of the journalisis worked in editorial offices in the building
above, so tht the latter became popularly known as the 'Press Palace'.
We are crossing now the almost 3 mile (4. 5) km long Great Boulevard
which starts and ends at the Danube. More than 100 years ago a narrow
and shallow branch of the Danube was filled up here to form the present
boulevard.
Under this road runs the second underground (GB) / subway (US) line,
completed in 1972. Its tolal length is 7. 5 miles (12 kms). It is 33 yards
(30m) deep and connects the Buda and the Pest side under the Danube.
A few words about the public transportation of the city. Our fees are
reasonable compared to the other capitals of Europe.
You can buy a single ti eket which is valid for all vehicles, like trams
(GB), s tree tears (US), trolleybuses, buses and the same price applies to the
underground/subway.
You can buy a one-day or a three-days travel card which is valid for all
vehicles within the city limits.
There are no conductors, just controllers sometime, therefore you have
to buy your licket before you start your journey and have to validate it,
otherwise you have to pay a fine.
You can buy tickets and travelcards at all underground stations - they are
marked with a big " M " letter everywhere (METR), with different colors.
So lhe oldest subway line is called the Ist line, and it is yellow, the 2 nd
line is red and lhe 3 one is blue.
f
rd
64
Under
you'll fim
As you
main faca
station is
this area (
Not too
of Budapt
much you
going to p
company <
no differei
the buildii
And now
style in 18
You cai
(1736-18H
side the st
who imprc
the famou
This is i
because it
trains go t<
place here.
We driv
side of the
would see
Baross (
Minister oi
system. wh
and traffic
in 1902.
Walking toursinBudapest
Under each corner and square in town to he marked with the hig^lvL
youTl find an underground station.
As you look ahead, you can seeahig yellow huilding there which is the
main facade of the EasternBailway(GB)Bailroad (US) Statioo. The
station is one ofthe reasons for the many hotels,shops and restaurants in
this area ofthe city.
Not too far from here on lhe right hand side ls the second Opera House
of Budapest called the Erkel Theatre.lt is called^second^hecauseit is
muchyoungerthantheoriginalonehuilt in the last century and we are
going to pass hy that one. There isavery important thing torememher: the
company ofthis opera ls the same as the one ln the main opera, so there ts
no difference in the levl of the performances ofthe two opera houses. But
thehuildingsareverydifferent: the main opera house looks likeapalace.
2 ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^
And now hack tothe station!ltwashuilt in Bclectic,neo-Benaissance
style in 1881-84 hy Gyula Rochlitz and Jnos Beketehzi.
You canseeonthemain facade on the right the statue ofJamesWatt
(1736-1819), the Scottishinventor ofthe steam engine),and on the other
side the statue of George Stephenson (1781-1848), the Bngllsh engineer
who improved the steam locomotive and initiated the first railway in 1825,
the famous Stockton-Darlington line).
Tms is the largest railway station in the country.lt is called'Bastern',
hecauseit is located in the eastem part ofthe city, and not hecause the
trainsgo tome east. Most ofme intemational rail traffic ofHungary takes
place here.
We drive now straight ahead hut let metli you,that on the Northern
side of the square-wmch is practically me other side ofthe huilding we
would see the statue ofGhor Baross (Antal Szcsi, 1898).
Baross (1848-92)wasaleadingliheralpoliticanandatthe same time
MinisterofTransport. He started the development ofHungary'srailway
system,which involved the nationalisationof six privt rail companies
and traffic scales to encourage rail usage. The square was named after him
in 1902
65

2.15. SPORT
CENTRE
On the right you can see the Trotting Race Track, while the People's
Stdium comes up on our left.
The People's Stdium was built during the first so called 'five year
plan', between 1948 and 1953, originally for 100,000 spectators, but
according to lhe usual Hungarian manner - they ran oul of time and
money, so finally there are about 80 000 seals now. The chief architect of
the stdium was Charles Dvid who designed e. g. stadiums in Rom,
Mexico City, etc. In order to avoid accidents the audience can leave the
stdium through 50 huge entrance gates. This was perhaps the most
symbolic building project of Hungary's Stalinist cra.
If you are familiar with the standard of the present Hungarian national
eleven, the present number of seals are more Ihan enough at the moment,
unfortunately the quality of Hungarian football has dramatically changed
since the 50's.
The electrically operated score-boards of the stdium have a Hungarian
patent and can be found in many other countries and the Olympic
Stadiums of Grenoble, Munich, Moscow and so on.
This is the Sport Center of Budapest. There are quite a few sport-halls,
smaller or bigger, open-air and covered stadiums around here.
The next building on the left hand side is the Hotel Stdium which has
excellent facilities to accommodate the participants of the various sport
events.
The next round building behind the hotel is the Budapest Sport Hall.
This is the largest covered sport hall in Hungary, built in 1982, designed
by Istvn Kiss. The capacity of the hall is 12,500 and it is the venue of
important World and Europen Championships. The first event right after
the opening was a Women's Team Handball World Championship.
In fact, the Budapest Sport Hall is used not for sport events only, but for
many other different activities as well, such as conferences, congresses,
parly-meetings and of course pop and rock concerts.
Now we turn lo lhe left and we can see a long-distance coach terminl,
serving Hungary nation-wide, and the olher side of the Budapest Sport Hall.
66
We are ge
and in its p
decorated w
sports.
On your |,
it. This is tl
really very c
the most fa:
Lechner, an(
This is tin
Diplomac ]
On both s
srve as emi
the dark win
way, militar
We are appix
Park' In the
reserve in lh
It was tbc Qi
the canalizin
of the park
anniversary
Over 200
industrial ar
village was \
to demonstr:
The great
passengers v
was ripped t
The park 1

We are getting closer again to the People's Stdium, from the other side
and in its park you can see on our left 'The Garden of Youth'. It is
decorated with with groups of statues symbolizing different sorts of
sports.
On your left you can see this fancy building with a globe on the top of
it. This is the Hungarian State Geological Institute. As you see it is
really very colourfully decorated and is a unique sight. It was designed by
the most famous representative of the Hungarian Art Nouveau, dn
Lechner, and built in 1898-99.
This is the most popular district of the Pest side, we call it the 'second
Diplomatic District'. The first one is located near Heroes'Square.
* On both sides of this road you see elegant, old-fashioned vills which
srve as embassies or apartments. The modern building on our left with
the dark windows is the Summer Club of the Hungarian Army. By the
way, military service in Hungary is compulsory for men, for 9 months.
2.16. BACK TO THE CITY
PARK
We are approaching one of the largest parks in our city called simply 'City
Park'. In the Middle Ages there was a big swamp around here with a game
reserve in the center part which always belonged to the Hungarian Kings.
It was the Queen, Maria Theresa who ordered trees to be planted here and
the canalizing of the swamp. The most important date in the development
of the park is certainly 1896 when Hungary celebrated the 1000 years
anniversary of the conquest.
Over 200 halls and pavilions were erected to display the agricultural,
industrial and commercial life of the country. Hungary's first museum
village was built to represent peasant life and real "peasants" were on hand
to demonstrate authenticy.
The great attraction was the balloon that rose 500m providing its
passengers with a panoramic view of the city. The balloon, unfortunately,
was ripped by a storm during the celebratory year.
The park has also been a traditional focal point for the labour movement
67

such as for the May Day celebrations, which date back well beyond 1945.
The very first one took place in 1890 when up to 40 000 marched in the
City Park.
The tradilion continues today with festivities every 1 May, it is really
very alive and colourful.
The buildings on your right belong to the largest Hungarian Trade
Un ions: this boring style was typical in the 50's in Hungary. These
buildings are exactly what they look like:headquarters of trade unions.
On our right there used to be Stalin's statue which was pulled down in
1956. This is one of the places where the '56 Revolution started.
Nine years later a Lenin statue was erected here on the same spot. As
lhe politieal system has changed it was moved from here to an open air
museum where all the significant statues, reliefs, etc. - relics of the
communist system are exhibited.
1.2.
Celts
province
migration
1.3.
tribe
"Blood Pact'
hawk
ransom
2.1.
conquest
equestrian sta
vehiele
courtyard
guild
monastery
2.2.2.
to commemoi
ancestor
descendant
to inherit
reign
semicircular
welfare
to canonize
abbey
68
TERMINOLOGY
1.2.
Celts
province
migration
keltk
provincia
(np)vndorls
1.3.
tribe
"Blood Pact"
hawk
ransom
trzs
Vrszerzds
slyom
vltsgdj
2.1.
conquest
equestrian statue
vehiele
courtyard
guild
monastery
hdts, legyzs
lovasszobor
kzlekedsi eszkz
(Bels) udvar
ch
kolostor
2.2.2.
to commemorate
ancestor
descendant
to inherit
reign
semicircular
welfare
to canonize
abbey
megemlkezni
s
leszrmazott
rkl
uralkods
flkrves
jlt
szentt avat
aptsg
69

hcir
Cumanian
vvitch
monk
execution
vow
scene
knightly order
dignity
candidate
uprising
concession *
recruiting speech
utd
kun
boszorkny
szerzetes
kivgzs
esk
jelenet
lovagrend
mltsg
jellt
felkels
engedmny
toborz beszd
2.3.
heyday
virgzs, tetfok
2.4.
collapsed
aprn
pipe
sszeomlott, beomlott
ktny
2.5.
stock exchange
sp
tzsde
2.6.
competition
Ethnography
MP
verseny
Nprajz
kpvisel (A Parlament Tagja)
2.7.
polluted
faclion
nun
szennyezett
frakci
apca
70
convent
unification
2.8.
mosque
Military Coi
kneeling an*
2.9.
cave
Holy Trinity
7 1\
Z.LXJ.
olive branch
2.11.
embankmeni
Crown Jewel
2.12.
roots
to dominate
Franciscan
natural disasi
2.13.
ex ile
gynaecologis
2.15.
audience
score-boards
geological
2.16.
swamp

convent
unification
zrda
egyests
2.8.
mosque
Military Court of Justice
kneeling angel
mecset
Katonai gyszsg
trdepl angyal
2.9.
cave
barlang
tjoly Trinity
Szenthromsg
2.10.
olive branch
2.11.
embankment
Crown Jewels
2.12.
roots
to dominate
Franci scan
natural disaster
2.13.
exile
gynaecologist
olajg
rakpart
koronzsi kszerek
gykerek
ural
ferences
termszeti katasztrfa
szmzs
ngygysz
2.15.
audience
score-boards
geological
kznsg
eredmnyjelz-tblk
fldtani
2.16.
swamp
mocsr
71
FELHASZNLT IRODALOM
HEROES' SQUARE Budapest

(Bp, Corvina, 1990)
ANDRS GER:
BOB DENTT Blue
Guide Budapest
(A and C Black, London, 1996)
- MIHLY GZA: The City of Budapest
(Bp, Fine Arts Publishing House, 1988)
ZSOLT SZABKY
The Synagogue of Dohny Street

(Bp, MTOK, 1989)
ALFRD SCHNER:
Nagy Budapest knyv

(Bp, CORVINA, 1998)
TRK ANDRS:
- KUBESCH MRIA: Budapest vrosnzs magyar

nyelven (Bp, KTT, 1990)
WINTERNITZ ANTALN
Budapest vrosnzs angol nyelven

(Bp, KIL, 1990)
DEK JUDIT:
72
~1
' . '
! '
I
i-
'
X.'
'
'
^
.
- ' .
r"
f'
;,'
f -

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OKTATSI

KPZMVSZETI KIAD S NYOMDA

A tananyagot kifejlesztette a Kereskedelmi

I. CITY SIGHTSEEING TOUR

Walking tours in Budapest

Walking tours in Budapest

7.2. SHORT HISTORY

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M I G R A T I O N AND SETTLEMENT OF T H E HUNGARIANS

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Walking tours in Budapest

Walking tours in Budapest

1.3. WHERE DID THE MAGYARS COME FROM?

1.4. SOM WORDS ABOUT THE NAMES OF OUR CITY

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1.5. THE ROUTE OF THE CITYSIGHTSEEING TOUR

So the route of the tour in case we start on Heroes' Square:

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IL CITY SIGHTSEEING TOUR

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Walking tours in Budapest

the artist had the

Start the tour in

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Walking tours in Budapest ,

2.2.2. STATUES OF THE COLONNADE

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2.2.3. THE MUSEUM OF FINE ARTS AND THE ART G A L L E R Y

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2.3. ANDRSSY AVENUE

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statue of Endre Ady (1867-1919) was erected, a polemical journalist and

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2 A. SAINT STEPHEN'S BASILICA

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2.5. LIBERTY SQUARE

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2.7. THE MARGARET BRIDGE AND THE ISLAND

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2.8. BUDA SIDE - MAIN STREET

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2.9. CASTLE DISTRICT - MATTHIAS CHURCH FISHERMEN'S BASTION

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Walking tours in Budapesl