Szigetvár

Szigetvár

Aerial Photography: Szigetvár - Castle

Coat of arms
Szigetvár
Coordinates: 46°02′54″N 17°48′45″E / 46.048269°N 17.812569°E / 46.048269; 17.812569Coordinates: 46°02′54″N 17°48′45″E / 46.048269°N 17.812569°E / 46.048269; 17.812569
Country  Hungary
County Baranya
Area
  Total 39.51 km2 (15.25 sq mi)
Population (2009)
  Total 10,900
  Density 288.33/km2 (746.8/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
  Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code 7900
Area code(s) 73

Szigetvár (Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈsiɡɛtvaːr]; Croatian: Siget; Turkish: Zigetvar; German: Inselburg) is a town in Baranya County in southern Hungary.

History

Turkish attack on the river fortress of Szigetvár (1566)

The town's fortress was the setting of the Battle of Szigetvár in 1566. It was a sanjak centre at first in Budin Province (1566–1601), later in Kanije Province (1601–1689). There was already a fortress in the marshland back in Celtic and Roman times.[1] The former Andrássy Palace is next to them. Some other monuments in the town date back to Turkish times. Two years after the siege, the mosque of Ali Pasha was built, later - in 1788 - to be transformed into a Christian church: the Roman Catholic parish church. The two minarets, as well as the windows and niches with ogee arches indicate its original function. The Turkish House of red raw brick walls and interlaced steel window grills in Bástya Street was originally destined to be a caravanserai. The two holy-water basins of the Franciscan Church were made of Turkish washbasins. The carved main altar of the Baroque Church is another sight to see. In 1966, on the 400th anniversary of the siege, Szigetvár regained its old rank of a chartered ancient city. Development began to gather speed. Today it has a population of 12,000. In October 2011, the city received the title Civitas Invicta from the Hungarian Parliament.[2]

In 1994, the Hungarian-Turkish Friendship Park (Hungarian: Magyar-Török Barátság Park) was established as a public park, dedicated in memorial to the Battle of Szigetvár.[3]

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

Szigetvár is twinned with:

See also

References

  1. Misiroglu, Kadir (2009). Sokullu Mehmed Pasa. Istanbul: Sebil Yayinevi. p. 101. ISBN 9789755800455.
  2. Karikó, Sándor & Tibor Szabó (December 6–8, 2009). Ferrari, Angelo, ed. "A Hungarian-Turkish Cultural Heritage: Scandal and Reconciliation". PROCEEDINGS 4th International Congress on “Science and Technology for the Safeguard of Cultural Heritage in the Mediterranean Basin”. Cairo, Egypt. 1: 18. Retrieved 2013-08-26.
  3. "City Twins". Imatra. Retrieved 4 May 2014.
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