Horváth M. Ferenc (szerk.): Vác The heart of the Danube Bend. A historical guide for residents and globetrotters (Vác, 2009)
Tartalom
148 THE 1 9TH CENTURY - THE CENTURY OF GREAT CHANGES Guide to the education of the deaf and mute, 1803 At the beginning of the 19th century Vác became the centre of attention not only in the country but in the Empire too. In 1802 Royal Commissioner Pál Almásy inaugurated the first deaf and mute institution of the country, where teachers for the school were also trained between 1867-1904. The school was the fruit of years of hard work on the part of András Cházár, Judge of the County Court of Gömör County. During the 19th century several students from Vác attended foreign universities, among others the Military Academy of Vienna, and the faculties of divinity, philosophy, law, pharmacy and medicine at the University of Vienna. The latter one was attended by László Kolonics, later the director of the deaf and mute institute, between 1854 and 1860. The Technical University of Vienna was also attended by several students from Vác, including a member of the Meissner family. István and György Czvián, members of the Czvián family who played an important role in 1849, were students of the Academy of Military Engineering of Vienna. The faculty of philosophy of the University of Basel and the faculties of mathematics and chemical engineering of the University of Zurich were also attended by students from Vác in the 18th and 19th centuries. A SIKET-NÉMÁK' NEVELES. es TANÍT AS AHÉTATOs'KERKSZTftNYEKKÍ HASZNOS TAGJAIVÁ Li S A N A K IRAS. m § The deaf mute institution Map of Vác of 1878 A SIGHTSEEING TOUR IN THE 19th CENTURY TOWN The end of the 18th century saw busy architectural activities being finished off. By this time the Roman Catholic, the Calvinist and the Orthodox Churches had already completed the construction of their churches and other buildings that were necessary for their functioning. Important secular public buildings had also been constructed. During the 19th century hardly any changes could be observed in the appearance of the town. Hiibschl Kálmán, later the chief architect of the town also wrote that “Vác sank to the standard of a village and stayed there..." Development was hindered View of Vác in the 1870s both by external circumstances and the fact that the leaders ofVác mismanaged the finances of the town. It was only in the 1880s and 90s that the inhabitants started to renovate their houses, many of which had been built on medieval walls, or replace the old-fashioned houses with new ones. However, these constructions were often carried out without any professional assistance, and there
