Introduction
Photograph:The Danube River flows through central Budapest. Hungary's Parliament building is at right, on the …
* The Danube River flows through central Budapest. Hungary's Parliament building is at right, on the …
Budapest, the capital of Hungary, is one of the largest cities of Eastern Europe. Built on the banks of the Danube River in northern Hungary, Budapest is an important artistic, cultural, and scientific center. It was once popularly known as the “Queen of the Danube.”
Budapest consists of two principal parts that were merged in 1873. Buda is located on the west bank of the Danube. Pest is on the opposite, east bank. Buda features many hills, while Pest is relatively flat. A railway tunnel and several bridges—the first of which was built in 1849—connect them. To the north the Danube splits into two channels around Margaret's Island, a park.
Places of interest
Buda is the older and more picturesque part of the city. Many of the historic sites of the city are located on or around three hills near the Danube. The central hill, Castle Hill, is the site of an old fortress and the royal palace. The old town developed to the north of these buildings, dominated by Matthias Church, where many of Hungary's kings were crowned. To the south is Gellért Hill, which features the 19th-century Citadel. Rózsa Hill lies north of Castle Hill. It is the most fashionable district of Budapest, where Hungary's wealthy have houses.
Pest, the more modern part of the city, was a small community until it grew in the 19th century as a commercial and industrial center. It features several museums, including the Museum of Fine Arts and the National Museum, the Opera House, and the zoo. The city also has numerous universities and colleges.
Economy
Budapest is Europe's largest spa town; there are more than 100 hot springs that spout from Buda's limestone bedrock. Partly because of the reputation of its spas, it is a major tourist destination. Budapest is also the major industrial center in Hungary. Industry, which is mainly concentrated on the fringes of the city, includes metalworking and engineering, textiles, electronics, chemicals, and food processing. The Budapest factories specialize in the production of railroad equipment, buses, and river craft.
History
There is evidence of human settlement on the western bank of the Danube from as early as 2000 BC. One of the first organized settlements on the site, though, was the Roman fortress of Aquincum. Aquincum was built at an easy crossing place on the Danube at the end of the 1st century AD.
With the arrival of the Magyar tribes in the 10th century, the city became a major trading center. In 1541 the Turks took the area and held it until 1686; the city changed very little during this time. Most of the present buildings date from the 18th and 19th centuries, when Hungary was ruled by Austria and the city was rebuilt in the Austrian style.
At the end of the 19th century many industries were established, and the city became an important Danube port. German troops occupied Budapest and the rest of Hungary during World War II. The city was severely damaged during fighting between German and Soviet forces at the end of the war. All the bridges and about three quarters of the housing were destroyed, making much rebuilding necessary. The Soviet forces won the battles. After the war they established a Communist government, and in 1949 Budapest became the capital of the Hungarian People's Republic. The city suffered further damage in 1956, when Soviet forces entered it to put down an uprising against the Communist government. In the late 1980s Budapest became the center of the reform movement that swept Eastern Europe and led to the fall of the Communist government. Population (2000 estimate), 1,811,500.
