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Historical Hungarian CastlesA Selection of Magyar Fortresses Packed With History and Legend
Although Hungary doesn't have the same reputation as Germany or Slovakia for castles and fortresses, it nevertheless has a good selection of both worth exploring.
Many of the Hungarian castles are forlorn ruins on lonely hilltops, but despite their physical condition, they evoke the history of past ages. After the defeat of the Hungarians by the Austrians in the early 1700s most of the country's castles were destroyed least they become rallying points for Hungarian nationalism. Rakoczi CastleOne of the castles that played a leading role in the fight against the Austrians was the Rákóczi castle at Sárospatak. Dating from the 15th Century, it was in the Knight's Hall that Hungarian nobles pledged their support against the Austrians in 1670. Nowadays the castle is a museum, with memorabilia devoted to the uprising, and also displaying castle life of the period. The oldest section of the castle - the Red Tower - dates from the 15th century, and there's also a delightful 17th century Italian loggia. Eger CastleProbably the best known castle in Hungarian history is the one at Eger. The legend of the potent red wine - Egri Bikavér (Bull's blood) - originated during the Turkish siege in 1552. For over a month, 2,000 Hungarian soldiers commanded by István Dobó, held out against 100,000 Turks - the numbers vary according to which account you read! When human spirits lagged, the Captain broke out the reserves of red wine in the castle cellars to fortify his men, and the Turks, seeing beards and armour stained red, became convinced that the Hungarians were drinking bull's blood for strength, and retreated. However, their return attack in 1596 was successful - they captured the castle. "Eclipse of the crescent moon" by Géza Gárdonyi is a fictional account of the siege and defence of the castle. The book is available at most bookshops, as it's one of the most popular books in Hungary. Holloko CastleAnother well-known and much photographed castle, is the one at Hollóko, a World Heritage village to the north east of Budapest. It's a tiny but atmospheric castle, and one of the few to be almost completely renovated. Information plaques in English and German explain the functions of the various chambers. Visegrad CastleVisegrád Castle, at the top of Sibrik Hill, was established in the 10th century, and renovated between 1247 and 1265 by King Béla. The lower castle, overlooking the river, was built during the Middle Ages. It was during this period, in 1335, that King Charles Robert met with European rulers: the Polish, Czech and Slovak kings, (The Visegrád Four) and members of royal families from various states in Germany. It reached its heyday between 1458 and 1490, when King Matthias Corvinus and Queen Beatrice, using Italian renaissance builders and decorators, renovated the original Gothic building, and it is these elements - Gothic and Renaissance, which can be seen today amongst the ruins. Queen's CastleThe Queen's castle at Diósgyor also reached its zenith during the Renaissance, after King Sigismund had given the castle to his Queen for a summer residence. It then became tradition for subsequent Queens to spend time there, and it became known as the Queens' castle. The four towers are now museums, one featuring arms. The biggest collection of waxwork figures in Central Europe is housed in another tower, and one has a working mint, turning out coins and medallions. You can have a small medallion pressed as a souvenir of your visit. Sumeg CastleSümeg castle, the largest and best preserved medieval castle in Hungary holds the honour of not being taken by the Turks.
The copyright of the article Historical Hungarian Castles in Hungary Travel is owned by Christiane Birkett. Permission to republish Historical Hungarian Castles in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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