Gál Éva: Margaret Island - Our Budapest (Budapest, 2000)

Turning Points in History

Since its first mention in historical documents, the island has been referred to by several names. In the thirteenth century it was variously mentioned as the Island of Hares, the Lords’ Island, Buda Island, and the Island of the Blessed Virgin. Later, in the seventeenth century, it is already referred to by its present name as the Island of Margaret. Between the 1790s and the 1850s the name Palatínus Island also appears, owing to the fact that it was then owned by Hungary’s Palatine (palatínus in Latin).

It was a commonly held belief in earlier times that there must have been Roman edifices on Margaret Island, too, as it seemed unlikely that the Romans should not have included the island in the system of fortifications called limes. A number of nineteenth-century historians and archaeologists declared the remains of thick walls along the north-western and eastern banks, still clearly visible

The Island of Hares

ON AN 18™ CENTURY MAP

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