Pest Attractions, Hungary

Parliament Building
The most imposing building on the Pest bank of the Danube is the giant Neo-Gothic Parliament Building. It is considered one of the outstanding architectural achievements in Budapest and is one of the city's landmarks. The decision was made in 1867, following the settlement with Austria, to erect a building in Budapest where the Hungarian state parliament could meet, but it was some time before this came to fruition. Until 1847 parliament met in Pressburg (now Bratislava) and then in various buildings in Pest while it awaited the completion of its new seat. The giant complex took 20 years to complete (1884--1904). Behind the predominantly Neo-Gothic façade lurks an ultra-modern iron construction which gives the necessary stability to the complex arrangement of rooms. The obvious similarity of Imre Steindl's design to that of the British Houses of Parliament on the River Thames is clearly no accident.

Elisabeth Bridge
The modern Elisabeth Bridge (Erzsébet-híd) replaces a predecessor built at the turn of the century which, for many years, was the largest arched bridge in the world and which was destroyed in the Second World War. The modern suspension bridge, built between 1961 and 1964 to plans by Pál Sávoly, is 378m (1239ft) long and 27m (90ft) wide.
There is a sculpture by György Zala of the earlier Hungarian Queen Elisabeth, who was murdered in Geneva in 1898.

Freedom Square
Freedom Square (Szabadság tér), laid out in the last century after the demolition of a barracks where many Hungarian freedom fighters of 1848/49 were executed, forms with the surrounding buildings one of the most charming architectural ensembles of Budapest.
On the west side stands the Exchange Building, on the east the Hungarian National Bank (Magyar Nemzeti Bank). Both of these buildings were designed by the architect Ignác Alpár and date from 1905. The former Exchange is in Secessionist style, while the National Bank is a first-class example of a Late Classical building. The northern arc is lined by buildings in the Neo-Romanesque-eclectic manner. Near the bank, but oriented towards Hold utca, is the former Post Office Savings Bank (No. 4) by Ödön Lechner, who was here anxious to create a new Hungarian architectural style. The building, which was opened in 1901, is characterized by variegated majolica decoration.

St Stephen's Basilica
St Stephen's Basilica (Szent István bazilika), in Neo-Renaissance style, is one of the most imposing ecclesiastical buildings of the Hungarian capital. The church is of monumental proportions with a central dome 96m (315ft) high, and two 80m (262ft) high towers at the west end. Building began in 1851. The plans were largely the work of Jószef Hild, the great exponent of Classical architecture. After Hild's death and the collapse of the dome in 1868, Miklós Ybl proposed new plans for the church. After Ybl's death in 1905 Josef Kauser completed the work.
Magnificent works of art adorn the interior, including figures by Alajos Stróbl and János Fadrusz. The mosaics on the dome were produced in the Salviati workshop in Venice. At the magnificent High Altar is a statue of St Stephen made of Carrara marble by Alajos Stróbl.
Of particular note is the painting on the second side-altar to the right of the main entrance; it is a work by Gyula Benczúr and shows St Stephen offering the Hungarian crown to Mary.
The sacristy, which has been converted to a chapel, contains the "Holy Laws" drawn up by the great Hungarian ruler.
The Fessler statues are one of the special features of St Stephen's Basilica. On the exterior wall of the apse the Twelve Apostles can be seen; the Four Evangelists stand in niches on the outside of the dome; in niches on the towers of the main façade are likenesses of the Fathers of the Church, while in the tympanum of the narthex can be seen the Patrona Hungariae, surrounded by Hungarian saints.
 

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