In Buda, contrary to many other capitals, the royal castle really is at the
top of a hill, as it is in all the best old stories. Known as the Royal
Palace of
Buda, it is visible from virtually every point in the city.
When locals say Buda Castle they are usually referring not just to the Royal
Palace but to the whole of the medicval town built on Castle Hill, with its
charming squares, narrow twisting streets, and fantastic views over the city.
Some of the old houses sport Gothic decorated door and window frames. It
is worth looking into the courtyards and long gateways, for you can sometimes
see a Buda speciality, the medicval sedilia. In olden times the retinue accompanying
an important guest could rest awhile in these hollowed-out stone seats with
their Romanesque, Gothic and Renaissance decorations.
The church of royal weddings
One of the most beautiful Gothic churches in all Hungary stands next to the
Holy Trinity Column commemorating the plague of 1709 in Szentháromság
Square in Buda. The Church of Our Lady – more commonly known as the Matthias
Church – was founded at the same time as the first of the Buda Castles,
by King Béla IV. Later rulers left their mark on it, adding a tower
here and a door there, and generally enlarging the building, and for a while
it was also used as a coronation church. It came to be called the Matthias
Church in honour of King Matthias, Hungary’s illustrious monarch, who
held both his marriage ceremonies here. Its appearance today results largely
from nineteenth century reconstruction, and its excellent acoustics make it
a favourite venue for organ recitals and orchestral concerts.
A somewhat newer attraction on Szentháromság Square is the House
of Hungarian Wines (Magyar Borok Háza), where 450 wines from all 22
of Hungary’s historical wine-producing regions can be tried in the huge
cellars. Visitors receive a small cup on arrival and can begin their adventure,
for 70 to 80 different types can be tasted within the admission price.
If you walk up to the Castle District in the evening from the Danube embankment,
the illuminated, snow-white towers of the Fishermen’s Bastion (Halászbástya)
rise up ahead, like so many sugar-loaves. You are more likely to associate
the sight with fairy tales than with soldiers, although it is the latter who
are the rightful users of a bastion. The Fishermen’s Bastion has never
served as a defence; it was built in 1905 purely as a lookout terrace and to
augment the cityscape. It follows the line of the old city walls and is near
the site of a former fish market. And the connection with fishermen? Back in
the mists of time it was the Fishermen’s Guild who were responsible for
defending this section of the castle ramparts.
On the northern and western slopes of Castle Hill it has been known for people
to go out into their garden and suddenly find a cave, sometimes with spring
water gushing up in it! The northern and central parts of Castle Hill have
more holes in them than an Emmental cheese! The caves are very old and were
formed by thermal springs. They were developed and enlarged in the Middle Ages
and, extending to over six miles, they really did become like an underground
town. In times of war they served both as somewhere to hide and as a place
where the defence forces could regroup in secret.
A part of the system of natural and man-made passages, the Buda Castle Labyrinth,
is open to the public.
Among the many ways in which Budapest can be summed up, one is as a City of
Caves. It is the only city in the world where there are surface openings to
cave systems in built-up residential districts. One such is the Pálvölgy
dripstone cave system; it is Hungary’s third longest, a protected site
and open to visitors for guided tours starting hourly and extending for 500
metres. A 300 metre-long, recently renovated section of the Szemlo-hegy cave
is also open to visitors. This is one of those rare instances where the entrance
is fully accessible to visitors with impaired mobility.
The Lánchíd (Chain Bridge), the symbol of Budapest, was the first
permanent crossing over the Danube on 
Hungarian territory, and only the second
along its entire length. The river had long bisected an important trade route,
and in early times people were ferried across in boats. By the beginning of
the fifteenth century pontoon bridges were being used, and although in winter
when the river froze over people could cross on foot or with horse and cart,
when the ice started to thaw the two shores were completely cut off from each
other. In a particularly cold December in 1820, Count István Széchenyi
had to wait a whole week to cross, as there wasn’t a boatman willing
to take the chance of carrying him from Pest to Buda between the ice flows.
Széchenyi is a legend in Hungarian history for the things he did to
develop the capital and the country, and after this experience he declared
he would give a whole year’s income towards the building of a permanent
bridge. There had been plans earlier than 
this. One that originated from the
end of the 1700’s took the multiple buttressed Charles Bridge in Prague
as its model, but this was not adopted. In England Count Széchenyi saw
the bridges of William Tierney Clark and, on the basis of those, commissioned
him to design the first bridge over the Hungarian Danube. Construction was
entrusted to the Scottish engineer Adam Clark (no relation), and the Chain
Bridge was officially opened on 20th November, 1849. Traffic crossing the bridge
from Pest still had to wait a few more years, though, before it could continue
its journey westwards without diverting around Castle Hill. The Tunnel under
the hill was constructed in just 7? months in 1853; it is 32 feet wide and
32 feet tall, and, at 382 yards long, exactly the same length as its neighbour
the Chain Bridge. One of the many anecdotes about these landmarks says that
when it rains the Bridge can be pushed into the Tunnel to prevent it from getting
wet!
The seven-buttress Margaret Bridge, built to a French design, was Budapest’s
second permanent river crossing and opened in 1876. From the central buttress
a spur links to Margaret Island, unquestionably the city’s most beautiful
park. After the Mongol invasion it became home for several monastic orders;
it was at that time known as the Island of Hares, and only later assumed its
current name in honour of the pious daughter of King Béla IV. His 
Margaret
joined the Dominican nuns in their new convent in 1252, and remained there
until her death.
In its time Margaret Island has also been a royal hunting ground, and from
the nineteenth century, a 250-acre municipal park. Hidden behind its noble
trees are sports grounds, swimming pools, the capital’s largest open-air
leisure pool, an outdoor theatre, and two spa hotels. The island, which can
also be reached by small boat, is free from traffic, and a very popular way
of getting around it is by hiring a “bringóhintó” family
cycle car. The north end of the island is connected by Árpád
Bridge to both Buda and Pest.
Roman Town
The part of the city now known as Óbuda is the site of the principal
town of the Roman province of Pannonia. The frontier of the Empire ran along
the line of the Danube, and Budapest’s 2,000-year old forerunner was
called Aquincum. It was an important military centre, but a civilian town of
merchants and artisans also grew up around it. Remains of the military amphitheatre
can be seen at Óbuda and, a mile further on, ruins of the streets of
the civilian town and some of its houses.