Heroes' Square (Budapest)
Encyclopedia
Hősök tere is one of the major squares of Budapest
, Hungary
, rich with historic and political connotations. Its iconic statue complex, the Millennium Memorial, was completed in 1900, the same year the square was named "Heroes' Square". It lies at the end of Andrássy Avenue
(with which it comprises part of an extensive World Heritage site), next to City Park
.
Hősök tere is surrounded by two important buildings, Museum of Fine Arts
on the left and Palace of Art
(or more accurately Hall of Art) on the right. On the other side it faces Andrássy Avenue
which has two buildings looking at the square — one is residential and the other one is the embassy of Serbia
(former Yugoslavian embassy where Imre Nagy
secured sanctuary in 1956).
The central site of the hero's square, as well as a landmark of Budapest, is the Millennium Memorial (also known as Millennium Monument or Millenary Monument) with statues of the leaders of the seven tribes that founded Hungary in the 9th century and other outstanding figures of Hungarian history (see below). The construction of the memorial was started when the one thousandth anniversary was celebrated (in 1896), but it was finished only in 1900 and the square got its name then.
When the monument was originally constructed, Hungary was a part of the Austrian Empire
and thus the last five spaces for statues on the left of the colonnade were reserved for members of the ruling Habsburg dynasty. From left to right these were: Ferdinand I
(relief: Defense of the Castle at Eger); Leopold I
(relief: Eugene of Savoy defeats the Turks at Zenta), Charles III
, Maria Theresa (relief: The Hungarian Diet votes support "vitam et sanguinem") and Franz Joseph (relief: Franz Joseph crowned by Gyula Andrássy) The monument was damaged in World War II and when it was rebuilt the Habsburgs were replaced by the current figures.
On the 16th June 1989 a crowd of 250,000 gathered at the square for the historic reburial of Imre Nagy
, who had been executed in June 1958.
It is also a station
of the yellow M1 (Millennium Underground) line of the Budapest Metro
.
There are also three other squares in Budapest entitled Hősök tere, in Soroksár, Békásmegyer
and Rákosliget
.
Behind the cenotaph but within the decorative chain is a flat bronze plate which marks the site of an artesian well whose drilling was completed in 1878 by Vilmos Zsigmondy. This well provides water for the Széchenyi Baths behind the monument and the Dagály Baths in the Népfürdő utca. The well reached a depth of 971 meters and produces 831 liters of hot water per minute at 74 degrees Celsius
The Heroes' Square monument has a 90% duplicate in Shanghai Global Paradise, Shanghai
. Since its opening in 1996, it has been mostly degraded and most statues removed. (See an article about the place and photos of the duplicate monument in a Hungarian article.)
surrounded by an ornamental iron chain. The cenotaph is dedicated "To the memory of the heroes who gave their lives for the freedom of our people and our national independence." While some guide books refer to this as a "tomb" it is not a burial place.
Directly behind the cenotaph is a column topped by a statue of the archangel Gabriel
. In his right hand the angel holds the Holy Crown of St. Stephen (Istvan), the first king of Hungary. In his left hand the angel holds a two barred apostolic cross
, a symbol awarded to St. Stephen by the Pope in recognition of his efforts to convert Hungary to Christianity. In Hungarian it is referred to as the double cross or the apostolic double cross.
At the base of the column is a group of seven mounted figures representing the Magyar chieftains
who led the Hungarian people into the Carpathian basin. In the front is Árpád
, considered the founder of the Hungarian nation. Behind him are the chieftains Előd, Ond, Kond, Tas, Huba, and Töhötöm (Tétény). Little survives in the historical record about these individuals and both their costumes and their horses are considered to be more fanciful than historically accurate.
The back of the monument consists of two matched colonnades, each with seven statues representing great figures of Hungarian history. Topping the outer edge of the left colonnade is a statue of a man with a scythe and a woman sowing seed, representing Labor and Wealth. In the corresponding position on the right colonnade is a statue of a man holding a statue and a woman with a palm frond representing Knowledge and Glory.
At the inner top edge of the left colonnade is a male figure driving a chariot using a snake as a whip representing War, while on the facing end of the right colonnade is a female figure in a chariot holding a palm frond representing Peace.
This is a list of the statesmen who are portrayed by the sculptures in the semi-circular arcades of the monument. The topic of the relief below each figure is given below the name.
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...
, 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...
, rich with historic and political connotations. Its iconic statue complex, the Millennium Memorial, was completed in 1900, the same year the square was named "Heroes' Square". It lies at the end of Andrássy Avenue
Andrássy Avenue
Andrássy Avenue is an iconic boulevard in Budapest, Hungary, dating back to 1872. It links Erzsébet Square with the Városliget. Lined with spectacular Neo-renaissance mansions and townhouses featuring fine facades and interiors, it was recognised as a World Heritage Site in 2002...
(with which it comprises part of an extensive World Heritage site), next to City Park
City Park (Budapest)
Városliget is a public park in Budapest, Hungary close to the city centre. It is located in District XIV of Budapest. Its main entrance is Heroes' Square , one of Hungary's World Heritage sites.-Name:The area was formerly called Ökör-dűlő, meaning "Oxmeadow"...
.
The site
Hősök tere is surrounded by two important buildings, Museum of Fine Arts
Museum of Fine Arts (Budapest)
The Museum of Fine Arts is a museum in Heroes' Square, Budapest, Hungary, facing the Palace of Art.It was built by the plans of Albert Schickedanz and Fülöp Herzog in an eclectic-neoclassical style, between 1900 and 1906. The museum's collection is made up of international art , including all...
on the left and Palace of Art
Palace of Art (Budapest)
*Kunsthalle Budapest is a contemporary art museum in Budapest. The building, built in 1895, is located in Heroes' Square, facing the Museum of Fine Arts....
(or more accurately Hall of Art) on the right. On the other side it faces Andrássy Avenue
Andrássy Avenue
Andrássy Avenue is an iconic boulevard in Budapest, Hungary, dating back to 1872. It links Erzsébet Square with the Városliget. Lined with spectacular Neo-renaissance mansions and townhouses featuring fine facades and interiors, it was recognised as a World Heritage Site in 2002...
which has two buildings looking at the square — one is residential and the other one is the embassy of Serbia
Embassy of Serbia in Budapest
The Serbian Embassy in Budapest is Serbia's diplomatic mission to Hungary. It is located at 1068, Dózsa György út 92/b, Budapest, Hungary.The current Serbian ambassador to Hungary is Dejan Šahović.- History :...
(former Yugoslavian embassy where Imre Nagy
Imre Nagy
Imre Nagy was a Hungarian communist politician who was appointed Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the People's Republic of Hungary on two occasions...
secured sanctuary in 1956).
The central site of the hero's square, as well as a landmark of Budapest, is the Millennium Memorial (also known as Millennium Monument or Millenary Monument) with statues of the leaders of the seven tribes that founded Hungary in the 9th century and other outstanding figures of Hungarian history (see below). The construction of the memorial was started when the one thousandth anniversary was celebrated (in 1896), but it was finished only in 1900 and the square got its name then.
When the monument was originally constructed, Hungary was a part of the Austrian Empire
Austrian Empire
The Austrian Empire was a modern era successor empire, which was centered on what is today's Austria and which officially lasted from 1804 to 1867. It was followed by the Empire of Austria-Hungary, whose proclamation was a diplomatic move that elevated Hungary's status within the Austrian Empire...
and thus the last five spaces for statues on the left of the colonnade were reserved for members of the ruling Habsburg dynasty. From left to right these were: Ferdinand I
Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
Ferdinand I was Holy Roman Emperor from 1558 and king of Bohemia and Hungary from 1526 until his death. Before his accession, he ruled the Austrian hereditary lands of the Habsburgs in the name of his elder brother, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.The key events during his reign were the contest...
(relief: Defense of the Castle at Eger); 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...
(relief: Eugene of Savoy defeats the Turks at Zenta), Charles III
Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles VI was the penultimate Habsburg sovereign of the Habsburg Empire. He succeeded his elder brother, Joseph I, as Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia , Hungary and Croatia , Archduke of Austria, etc., in 1711...
, Maria Theresa (relief: The Hungarian Diet votes support "vitam et sanguinem") and Franz Joseph (relief: Franz Joseph crowned by Gyula Andrássy) The monument was damaged in World War II and when it was rebuilt the Habsburgs were replaced by the current figures.
On the 16th June 1989 a crowd of 250,000 gathered at the square for the historic reburial of Imre Nagy
Imre Nagy
Imre Nagy was a Hungarian communist politician who was appointed Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the People's Republic of Hungary on two occasions...
, who had been executed in June 1958.
It is also a station
Hosök tere (Budapest Metro)
Hősök tere is a station of the yellow M1 line of the Budapest Metro under Hősök tere. It was formerly called Aréna út Station....
of the yellow M1 (Millennium Underground) line of the Budapest Metro
Budapest Metro
The Budapest Metro is the rapid transit system in the Hungarian capital Budapest. It is the second-oldest underground metro system in the world after the London Underground. Its iconic Line 1, dating from 1896, was declared a World Heritage Site in 2002.-Lines:The Metro consists of three lines,...
.
There are also three other squares in Budapest entitled Hősök tere, in Soroksár, Békásmegyer
Békásmegyer
Békásmegyer is a neighbourhood in Budapest, Hungary. It belongs administratively to District III. Békásmegyer is consisted of two different parts, a huge high rise housing estate and the traditional Ófalu with older houses. Békásmegyer is divided into two by the Szentendre HÉV line. It was an...
and Rákosliget
Rákosliget
Rákosliget is a part of the 17th district of Budapest since January 1, 1950. It is known to locals as 'Liget'-History:In 1896 The Workmen's Insurance Society started to build a homes for workmen in an unpopulated neighbourhood of Rákoskeresztúr...
.
Behind the cenotaph but within the decorative chain is a flat bronze plate which marks the site of an artesian well whose drilling was completed in 1878 by Vilmos Zsigmondy. This well provides water for the Széchenyi Baths behind the monument and the Dagály Baths in the Népfürdő utca. The well reached a depth of 971 meters and produces 831 liters of hot water per minute at 74 degrees Celsius
The Heroes' Square monument has a 90% duplicate in Shanghai Global Paradise, Shanghai
Shanghai
Shanghai is the largest city by population in China and the largest city proper in the world. It is one of the four province-level municipalities in the People's Republic of China, with a total population of over 23 million as of 2010...
. Since its opening in 1996, it has been mostly degraded and most statues removed. (See an article about the place and photos of the duplicate monument in a Hungarian article.)
Millennium Monument
At the front of the monument is a large stone cenotaphCenotaph
A cenotaph is an "empty tomb" or a monument erected in honour of a person or group of people whose remains are elsewhere. It can also be the initial tomb for a person who has since been interred elsewhere. The word derives from the Greek κενοτάφιον = kenotaphion...
surrounded by an ornamental iron chain. The cenotaph is dedicated "To the memory of the heroes who gave their lives for the freedom of our people and our national independence." While some guide books refer to this as a "tomb" it is not a burial place.
Directly behind the cenotaph is a column topped by a statue of the archangel Gabriel
Gabriel
In Abrahamic religions, Gabriel is an Archangel who typically serves as a messenger to humans from God.He first appears in the Book of Daniel, delivering explanations of Daniel's visions. In the Gospel of Luke Gabriel foretells the births of both John the Baptist and of Jesus...
. In his right hand the angel holds the Holy Crown of St. Stephen (Istvan), the first king of Hungary. In his left hand the angel holds a two barred apostolic cross
Patriarchal cross
The Patriarchal cross is a variant of the Christian cross, the religious symbol of Christianity. Similar to the familiar Latin cross, the Patriarchal cross possesses a smaller crossbar placed above the main one, so that both crossbars are near the top. Sometimes the patriarchal cross has a short,...
, a symbol awarded to St. Stephen by the Pope in recognition of his efforts to convert Hungary to Christianity. In Hungarian it is referred to as the double cross or the apostolic double cross.
At the base of the column is a group of seven mounted figures representing the Magyar chieftains
Seven chieftains of the Magyars
The Seven chieftains of the Magyars were the leaders of the seven tribes of the Hungarians at the time of their arrival to the Carpathian Basin in 895 AD. Constantine VII, emperor of the Byzantine Empire names the seven tribes in his De Administrando Imperio, a list that can be verified with names...
who led the Hungarian people into the Carpathian basin. In the front is Árpád
Árpád
Árpád was the second Grand Prince of the Hungarians . Under his rule the Hungarian people settled in the Carpathian basin. The dynasty descending from him ruled the Hungarian tribes and later the Kingdom of Hungary until 1301...
, considered the founder of the Hungarian nation. Behind him are the chieftains Előd, Ond, Kond, Tas, Huba, and Töhötöm (Tétény). Little survives in the historical record about these individuals and both their costumes and their horses are considered to be more fanciful than historically accurate.
The back of the monument consists of two matched colonnades, each with seven statues representing great figures of Hungarian history. Topping the outer edge of the left colonnade is a statue of a man with a scythe and a woman sowing seed, representing Labor and Wealth. In the corresponding position on the right colonnade is a statue of a man holding a statue and a woman with a palm frond representing Knowledge and Glory.
At the inner top edge of the left colonnade is a male figure driving a chariot using a snake as a whip representing War, while on the facing end of the right colonnade is a female figure in a chariot holding a palm frond representing Peace.
This is a list of the statesmen who are portrayed by the sculptures in the semi-circular arcades of the monument. The topic of the relief below each figure is given below the name.
- St. Stephen receives the crown from an emissary of the Pope
- St. Ladislaus slays the Cumanian abductor
- Coloman prohibits the burning of witches
- Andrew II of HungaryAndrew II of HungaryAndrew II the Jerosolimitan was King of Hungary and Croatia . He was the younger son of King Béla III of Hungary, who invested him with the government of the Principality of Halych...
- Andrew II of Hungary
- Andrew leads a crusade
- Béla IV of HungaryBéla IV of HungaryBéla IV , King of Hungary and of Croatia , duke of Styria 1254–58. One of the most famous kings of Hungary, he distinguished himself through his policy of strengthening of the royal power following the example of his grandfather Bela III, and by the rebuilding Hungary after the catastrophe of the...
- Béla IV of Hungary
- Béla rebuilds the country after the Mongol invasion
- Charles I of HungaryCharles I of HungaryCharles I , also known as Charles Robert , was the first King of Hungary and Croatia of the House of Anjou. He was also descended from the old Hungarian Árpád dynasty. His claim to the throne of Hungary was contested by several pretenders...
- Charles I of Hungary
- Ladislaus IV defeats Ottogar at the battle of Marchfeld
- Louis the Great occupies NaplesNaplesNaples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
- John HunyadiJohn HunyadiJohn Hunyadi John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: Ioannes Corvinus or Ioannes de Hunyad, Romanian: Iancu (Ioan) de Hunedoara, Croatian: Janko Hunjadi, Serbian: Сибињанин Јанко / Sibinjanin Janko, Slovak: Ján Huňady) John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: ...
- John Hunyadi
- The Siege of Belgrade (1456)
- Matthias Corvinus
- Matthias with his scholars
- István Bocskay
- Hajdú soldiers defeat the imperial forces
- Gabriel BethlenGabriel BethlenGabriel Bethlen was a prince of Transylvania , duke of Opole and leader of an anti-Habsburg insurrection in the Habsburg Royal Hungary. His last armed intervention in 1626 was part of the Thirty Years' War...
- Gabriel Bethlen
- Bethlen concludes a treaty with Bohemia
- Imre ThökölyImre ThökölyCount Imre Thököly de Késmárk was a Hungarian statesman, leader of an anti-Habsburg uprising, Prince of Transylvania, and vassal king of Upper Hungary.- Early life :Imre Thököly was born at Késmárk, Royal Hungary Count Imre Thököly de Késmárk (Thököly/Tököly/Tökölli Imre in Hungarian, Mirko...
- Imre Thököly
- The battle of SzikszóBattle of SzikszóThe Battle of Szikszó was fought in October 1588 between the Kingdom of Hungary and the Ottoman Empire as part of the Long War. The Hungarian forces were fewer in number, but were victorious over the Ottomans. This unexpected victory was even mentioned by Emperor Rudolf decades after the battle....
- Francis II RákócziFrancis II RákócziFrancis II Rákóczi Hungarian aristocrat, he was the leader of the Hungarian uprising against the Habsburgs in 1703-11 as the prince of the Estates Confederated for Liberty of the Kingdom of Hungary. He was also Prince of Transylvania, an Imperial Prince, and a member of the Order of the Golden...
- Francis II Rákóczi
- Rákóczi returns from Poland
- Lajos KossuthLajos KossuthLajos Kossuth de Udvard et Kossuthfalva was a Hungarian lawyer, journalist, politician and Regent-President of Hungary in 1849. He was widely honored during his lifetime, including in the United Kingdom and the United States, as a freedom fighter and bellwether of democracy in Europe.-Family:Lajos...
- Lajos Kossuth
- Kossuth rallies the peasants of the Great Plain