Diósgyőr Castle
| Diósgyőr Castle | ||
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 Aerial view of Diósgyőr Castle (before restoration) |
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| Creation time : | 1271 | |
| Castle type : | Niederungsburg, location | |
| Conservation status: | ruin | |
| Place: | Diósgyőr | |
| Geographical location | 48 ° 5 '52.2 " N , 20 ° 41' 21.7" E | |
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The Diósgyőr Castle [ ˈdi.oːʒɟøːr ] is located in the formerly independent town of Diósgyőr in the north-east of Hungary , which is now a district of Miskolc . The fortification with its four mighty corner towers is shown on the Hungarian 200 forint banknote and on postage stamps.
history
In the area surrounding today's fort, there was probably a mound castle since the 12th century , which was destroyed in the clashes with Batu Khan from 1241 to 1242 . The current castle was first mentioned in 1271 and probably goes back to Béla IV. , Who drove the construction of castles on many mountain elevations after the Mongols had left the country again after the death of their great khan Ugedai . The first present on the enclosure documents speak of an oval system with an area surrounded by a square wall keep . In 1316 this is known as the new castle, which supports the assumption that it was built in place of a ruined structure. According to the city tax lists from 1330, the city around the castle was one of the richest in the country.
The castle had its best time during the reign of Ludwig I. The close distance of the castle to the road to Poland gave it some importance. Ludwig's mother, Elisabeth of Poland , was a Polish princess, and Ludwig himself became king in Poland in 1370. Ludwig had the castle rebuilt and modernized. The inner castle complex was built around a square courtyard and surrounded by various walls with a tower in each corner. The storage rooms were on the ground floor and above them the 25 m long and 13 m wide knight's hall and other rooms. The modernization was completed under Mary of Hungary , the daughter of Ludwig. The castle was surrounded by a 4 m deep moat .
In 1364 the nearby town of Miskolc was added to the Diósgyőr area. The Treaty of Turin was concluded in the Diósgyőr Castle in 1381. In this treaty the city of Venice was forced to the flag of the dynasty of Anjou every Sunday at the St. Mark's Square to hoist. In the north-eastern tower of the castle there is a wax figure representation of Ludwig I and the Venetian ambassador.
With the end of Ludwig's rule as king in personal union over Hungary and Poland, Diósgyőr lost some of its importance, he divided the countries between his daughters Maria and Hedwig . For the next centuries the castle remained the summer residence of the queens. The last was Maria , the wife of Ludwig II. She officially gave up the castle in 1546, at which time the castle was already occupied by the ruling prince of Transylvania .
When the army of the Ottoman Empire began to occupy the southern parts of Hungary, the castle was further fortified. Its owners, the Gyarmati Balassa family, transformed the castle into a large fortress, and an Italian-style roundabout was built on the north-western tower. The delicate turrets were replaced by strong bulwarks, it was the last renovation of the complex. After 1564 the castle changed hands several times and it gradually fell into disrepair.
In 1596 the Ottoman army captured the Eger castle and defeated the Christian army at Mezőkeresztes , 35 km south of Miskolc. Diósgyőr Castle also fell and was converted into a summer residence. It was later no longer intended to be expanded to form a strong fortification against sieges by foreign armies. From that time until the liberation of this part of the country in 1687, the castle and the surrounding area were under Ottoman rule by the Pasha of Eger. After the liberation at the latest, the castle lost all military importance. During the Turkish occupation, the complex was badly damaged and the castle is now partially in ruins.
Museum and Castle Festival
In 1953, restoration work began on the castle. Originally only the parts at risk of collapse were repaired, and archaeological excavations have also been taking place since 1960. An exhibition of the history of the castle and the Pauline monastery has been set up in the north-eastern tower, which probably also houses the king’s rooms , as well as weapons and wax figures representing the signing of the Turin Peace Agreement.
The north-west tower also serves as a viewing platform that offers a view of Diósgyőr and the surrounding mountains. There is a small coin on the ground floor where tourists can mint commemorative coins by hand. The southeast tower with the Queen's rooms cannot be visited, it is mainly used as a changing room for the actors of the Castle Festival. The southwest tower is in ruins.
A tourist attraction is also a larger wax figure exhibition in the outer parts of the castle complex, depicting six scenes of daily medieval life in Diósgyőr and one of the larger wax figure exhibitions in Central Europe.
The castle festival takes place every year in May and August. The Middle Ages, the reign of King Ludwig and events in Hungarian history are presented. There are tournaments, open-air events and a medieval fair near the castle.
In contrast to the castles of Eger and Kőszeg, the castle is surrounded by concrete buildings instead of a beautiful old town, but it is still a popular destination for tourists. The castle festival, the museum, the wax figure exhibitions and Mrs. Déry's House , a small museum dedicated to the 19th century actress Róza Széppataki Déry and located in her former home, all contribute to this.
Representation in art
In the Romantic era , the plant was one of the most popular subjects in Hungarian landscape painting.
Others
In the museum in the northeast tower, visitors can also see the original picture that served as a template for the back of the 200 forint banknote.
A memorial plaque was placed on a castle wall, commemorating the visit of the famous poet Sándor Petőfi to Diósgyőr on July 8, 1847, where he wrote his poem Alkony ("Sunset").
photos
Diósgyőr Castle ruins (2005)
Web links
- Website of the castle ( Memento from April 24, 2011 in the Internet Archive )
- The Queens Castle - Diósgyőr (multilingual)
- Aerial photos of the castle (Hungarian)
- Pictures of the castle and its expansion in the Middle Ages (Hungarian) ( Memento from March 23, 2010 in the Internet Archive )