Budakeszi
Encyclopedia
Budakeszi is a town in Pest County, in the Budapest metropolitan area
, Hungary
. It is located beyond the Jánoshegy
hill at the western city limits of Budapest
, about 12 km (7 mi) west of the Zero Kilometre Stone
in the city centre. A popular recreational area, the landscape is charcterized by extended forests, predominantly oak
s, by vineyards and orchards.
is the western side of Budapest, Keszi was one of the seven ancient Hungarian tribes.
was first mentioned about 1270, it was completely devastated during the Ottoman Siege of Buda
in 1541. In the aftermath of the Ottoman defeat at the 1683 Battle of Vienna
, the depopulated area was re-settled with "Danube Swabian
" (most of them actually descending from Lorraine
, the Palatinate and Alsace
) immigrants by the order of the Habsburg King Leopold I
. Budakeszi was for centuries a predominantly "Schwabian" (ethnic German) village.
After World War II
Budakeszi's history was greatly influenced by the deportation of its ethnic German population according to Article 12 of the 1945 Potsdam Agreement
. Though the expulsion was ordered under pressure of the Soviet
forces, many Hungarians relished in the humiliation of ethnic Germans throughout the region and collectively took part in organized, forced deportations of German-speaking citizens to Germany proper. Most of these expellees had never been to Germany before, as even their great-grand parents had been born in Hungary. Budakeszi lost a great number of its citizens due to the above and the vacuum was later filled with the settlement of families from other regions, such as Transylvania
.
Although Budakeszi is a town, it still looks nothing more than a charming and picturesque village with a historic main street and a quaint baroque Roman Catholic church in its valley. There is also a lovely Protestant church worth visiting, its cemetery has largely German-named headstones, some of which date back to the early 19th century. (There are also about a dozen WW2 Polish soldiers buried in the cemetery, their graves nicely maintained by their brethren Hungarians).
Today its population is mixed; Hungarians, Schwabian-Germans, Transylvanians all of whom share this small town and live in harmony with each other. The surrounding hills are ideal for tourists. Near the town there is an airfield for sail planes (gliders) and for small planes.
with:
, born in 1948, German foreign minister from 1998-2005. Fischer today holds a honorary citizenship.
Budapest metropolitan area
The Budapest Metropolitan Area is a metropolitan area in Central Hungary. It consists of Budapest capital and the surrounding suburbs. It has a population of 2.525 million...
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
. It is located beyond the Jánoshegy
Jánoshegy
Jánoshegy The tallest of the Buda hills, it rises to 528m. From the tower on top of the hill, known as Erzsébet kilátó, one can get an imposing panoramic view of Budapest. The hill is in close proximity to Normafa and can also be accessed by the Libegő, a chairlift which connects it with...
hill at the western city limits of Budapest
Budapest
Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter...
, about 12 km (7 mi) west of the Zero Kilometre Stone
Zero Kilometre Stone (Budapest)
The Zero Kilometre Stone is a 3 m high limestone sculpture in Budapest, forming a zero sign, with an inscription on its pedestal reading "KM" for kilometres. This stone marks the reference point from which all road distances to Budapest are measured in the country...
in the city centre. A popular recreational area, the landscape is charcterized by extended forests, predominantly oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
s, by vineyards and orchards.
Meaning of the name
BudaBuda
For detailed information see: History of Buda CastleBuda is the western part of the Hungarian capital Budapest on the west bank of the Danube. The name Buda takes its name from the name of Bleda the Hun ruler, whose name is also Buda in Hungarian.Buda comprises about one-third of Budapest's...
is the western side of Budapest, Keszi was one of the seven ancient Hungarian tribes.
History
The settlement in the Kingdom of HungaryKingdom of Hungary in the Middle Ages
The Kingdom of Hungary was formed from the previous Principality of Hungarywith the coronation of Stephen I in AD 1000. This was a result of the conversion of Géza of Hungary to the Western Church in the 970s....
was first mentioned about 1270, it was completely devastated during the Ottoman Siege of Buda
Siege of Buda (1541)
The Siege of Buda in 1541 resulted in the capture of the city of Buda by the Ottoman Emperor Suleiman the Magnificent, as he invaded central Hungary. The battle is part of the Little War in Hungary.-The Siege :...
in 1541. In the aftermath of the Ottoman defeat at the 1683 Battle of Vienna
Battle of Vienna
The Battle of Vienna took place on 11 and 12 September 1683 after Vienna had been besieged by the Ottoman Empire for two months...
, the depopulated area was re-settled with "Danube Swabian
Danube Swabians
The Danube Swabians is a collective term for the German-speaking population who lived in the former Kingdom of Hungary, especially alongside the Danube River valley. Because of different developments within the territory settled, the Danube Swabians cannot be seen as a unified people...
" (most of them actually descending from Lorraine
Lorraine (région)
Lorraine is one of the 27 régions of France. The administrative region has two cities of equal importance, Metz and Nancy. Metz is considered to be the official capital since that is where the regional parliament is situated...
, the Palatinate and Alsace
Alsace
Alsace is the fifth-smallest of the 27 regions of France in land area , and the smallest in metropolitan France. It is also the seventh-most densely populated region in France and third most densely populated region in metropolitan France, with ca. 220 inhabitants per km²...
) immigrants by the order of the Habsburg King Leopold I
Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor
| style="float:right;" | Leopold I was a Holy Roman Emperor, King of Hungary and King of Bohemia. A member of the Habsburg family, he was the second son of Emperor Ferdinand III and his first wife, Maria Anna of Spain. His maternal grandparents were Philip III of Spain and Margaret of Austria...
. Budakeszi was for centuries a predominantly "Schwabian" (ethnic German) village.
After World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
Budakeszi's history was greatly influenced by the deportation of its ethnic German population according to Article 12 of the 1945 Potsdam Agreement
Potsdam Agreement
The Potsdam Agreement was the Allied plan of tripartite military occupation and reconstruction of Germany—referring to the German Reich with its pre-war 1937 borders including the former eastern territories—and the entire European Theatre of War territory...
. Though the expulsion was ordered under pressure of the Soviet
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
forces, many Hungarians relished in the humiliation of ethnic Germans throughout the region and collectively took part in organized, forced deportations of German-speaking citizens to Germany proper. Most of these expellees had never been to Germany before, as even their great-grand parents had been born in Hungary. Budakeszi lost a great number of its citizens due to the above and the vacuum was later filled with the settlement of families from other regions, such as Transylvania
Transylvania
Transylvania is a historical region in the central part of Romania. Bounded on the east and south by the Carpathian mountain range, historical Transylvania extended in the west to the Apuseni Mountains; however, the term sometimes encompasses not only Transylvania proper, but also the historical...
.
Budakeszi today
Most of the citizens go to work every morning to the capital. With mass transportation (No. 22 bus or Volánbusz intercity bus) this normally takes about 15 minutes.Although Budakeszi is a town, it still looks nothing more than a charming and picturesque village with a historic main street and a quaint baroque Roman Catholic church in its valley. There is also a lovely Protestant church worth visiting, its cemetery has largely German-named headstones, some of which date back to the early 19th century. (There are also about a dozen WW2 Polish soldiers buried in the cemetery, their graves nicely maintained by their brethren Hungarians).
Today its population is mixed; Hungarians, Schwabian-Germans, Transylvanians all of whom share this small town and live in harmony with each other. The surrounding hills are ideal for tourists. Near the town there is an airfield for sail planes (gliders) and for small planes.
Twin towns — Sister cities
Budakeszi is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
| City | Country | Year |
|---|---|---|
| Delbrück-Westenholz |  Germany |
|
| Deyda |  Ukraine |
|
| Lich Lich, Germany Lich is a town in the district of Gießen, in Hesse, Germany. It is situated 12 km southeast of Gießen.-Constituent communities:Besides the main town, which bears the same name as the whole municipality, Lich is divided into the following communities:... |
Germany |
|
| Neckarsulm Neckarsulm Neckarsulm is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, near Stuttgart, and part of the district Heilbronn. As of 2004, Neckarsulm had 27,296 inhabitants.... |
Germany |
|
| Snakt Margarethen an Raab |  Austria |
|
| Toplita Toplita Toplița is a city in Harghita County, Romania.The settlement has had multiple name changes: Taplócza, Toplicza, Gyergyó-Toplicza, from February 3, 1861 Oláh-Toplicza, or "Romanian Toplița", then from January 1, 1907 Maroshévíz, until 1918, when it received the Romanian name Toplița Română... |
 Romania |
Notable citizens
Among the ethnic Germans expelled from Budakeszi in 1946 were the parents of Joseph "Joschka" FischerJoschka Fischer
Joseph Martin "Joschka" Fischer is a German politician of the Alliance '90/The Greens. He served as Foreign Minister and Vice Chancellor of Germany in the cabinet of Gerhard Schröder from 1998 to 2005...
, born in 1948, German foreign minister from 1998-2005. Fischer today holds a honorary citizenship.
- András BalczóAndrás BalczóAndrás Balczó is a Hungarian modern pentathlete and Olympic champion.-Olympics:Balczó participated on the Hungarian team which won the gold medal at the 1960 Summer Olympics in Rome...
, Olympic gold medalist (Modern PentathlonModern pentathlonThe modern pentathlon is a sports contest that includes five events: pistol shooting, épée fencing, 200 m freestyle swimming, show jumping, and a 3 km cross-country run...
, 1972) - Gáspár NagyGáspár NagyGáspár Nagy was a Hungarian poet and writer.-Life:He graduated from the Benedictine Grammar School of Pannonhalma where he studied Library Science in Szombathely, then Aesthetics and Sociology in Budapest....
, poetPoetA poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
, Kossuth Prize winner - Zsolt Vajda, Media artist
- Csaba PléhCsaba PléhCsaba Pléh is a Hungarian psychologist and linguist, professor at the Department of Cognitive Science, Budapest University of Technology and Economics.-Academic career:...
, psychologistPsychologyPsychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
, linguistLinguisticsLinguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
, Széchenyi PrizeSzéchenyi PrizeThe Széchenyi Prize , named after István Széchenyi, is a prize given in Hungary by the state, replacing the former State Prize in 1990 in recognition of those who have made an outstanding contribution to academic life in Hungary.-External links:*...
winner