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Szeged, the "City of Sunshine"...

SZEGED LIVE CAM

Szeged is the cultural center of South-East Hungary. It is located under the mouth of Tisza and Maros rivers. The border of the lowland location is the deepest part of the country (78 to 79 meters above sea level). The sun is shining for more than 2000 hours a year above the land, rich in oil, natural gas, thermal waters.

The chief Hungarian conquerors arranged the matters of the country and held the first Parliament at Szer (at present Ópusztaszer) located north of the city.

Following the Tatar invasion of Hungary, Bela IV. built a stone castle, and mentioned Szeged as a city in the donation letter of 1247. The location became a significant military and church center until the Turkish (Ottoman) occupation. Janos Hunyadi left from here in 1456 to the victorious Nandorfehervar (Belgrade) battle against the Turks. The city received privileges from King Matyas and became a free royal city in 1498. Its welfare was due to animal husbandry and wine trade. During the Turks rule from 1543 to 1686 it was an estate of the Sultan, its population reduced. In 1686, the city and the castle were reoccupied by the imperial army. In 1719 Karoly III. declared Szeged again a free royal city. The coat and arms of the city was made at that time.

The people of the city considerably participated in the War of Independent against the Habsburgs. In 1849 it became the capital of Hungary. Lajos Kossuth delivered his last Hungarian public speech here. The industrial and commercial life prospered after the Compromise of 1867. This was broken for a short time by the great flood of 1879 which almost destroyed entirely the city of 70 thousand inhabitants. With domestic and foreign help Szeged was reborn as a modern European city.

As a consequence of the Peace of Trianon following the First World War, the frontier was placed close to the city. The evacuated university of Kolozsvar was transferred to Szeged. In 1923, the bishop of Csanad changed his seat from Temesvar to Szeged. The building of the Votive Church set up in the memory of flood reconstruction which was completed by 1930. The group of buildings in Dom square has been giving a monumental scene of the open air plays since 1931. The famous scientists, artists and writers of the city known over the country are determining personalities of the mentality of Szeged. One of the most outstanding scientist is Albert Szent-Gyorgyi professor who obtained international reputation for his city, too. He received his Nobel Price in 1937 for extracting vitamin C from the paprika.

The development of the city started slowly after the Second World War, which first of all destroyed its bridges.

Szeged is a city of schools with several universities and colleges. The number of its students is equal to the population of an average Hungarian town. The international fairs and exhibitions founded in 1876, as well as the open-air plays which changed the "City of Sunshine" to a festival city each year.

The Votive Church

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