Zádor Anna: Neoclassical Pest - Our Budapest (Budapest, 1993)
Opinions must have been divided, as is the case with every great building. However, there is something else to consider: by the time the museum was finished, the most educated people stopped looking to ancient classicism for inspiration; instead, they turned to the revived Gothic style. Imre Henszlmann’s work entitled “Parallel” appeared in 1841, and in it he pointed to German Gothic art as the only model for a middle-class society. István Széchenyi found neoclassicism boring and monotonous right from the beginning, and regarded the Gothic Revival in England as the example to be followed. These opinions did not, however, diminish the fact that everybody was proud of the realized majestic and solemn building, and used its halls on every possible occasion. The Ceremonial Hall on the first floor was the House of Parliament in 1848, and the spacious vestibule at the entrance on the ground floor housed various temporary exhibitions. There is a living legend among the Hungarian people, according to which Petőfi first recited his poem “National Song" on the steps of this museum. It is undeniable that the museum was one of the major scenes of the 1848 revolution. Since then it has been more than an important model building of high artistic quality: it embodies the unification of Hungarian culture and elevated national identity to a level unapproachable by any other of our buildings. The Ludoviceum, home of the first Hungarian Military Academy, can also be regarded as a cultural institution. It is not surprising that its realization was only possible after another long struggle. The Hungarian nation, with its awakening identity and the Viennese court were in contention again. The Ludoviceum, or Ludovika Academy, at the end of üllői út, was erected between 1829 and 1836 according to plans prepared by Pollack in a relatively short time. Its present condition bears witness to József Kauser’s modifications and decorations added in 1880. Inside only the staircase starting in the vestibule at the entrance, and the chapel reveal signs of more meticulous interior design. We should include with these the ceremonial hall on the first floor: these are more or less accessible today as well. We must mention here the battles waged and lost by the architect in his efforts to win support for the inclusion of works by “the first Hungarian sculptor”, István Ferenczy, both 26
