Hajós György: Heroes' Square - Our Budapest (Budapest, 2001)

having shed the last traces of Eclecticism, the two-part building is a significant and well-balanced achievement of Art Nouveau architecture. (During its modernisation in the late 1930s, the corner building was deprived of its original appearance.) The building on the north corner of the same junction is a three-storey apartment block designed by Miklós Réczey.

Covering an area of about 15 acres, the City Park Lake flanking Heroes’ Square on the east is what was left of the water after the marshland was drained. On Széchenyi Island, the only island in the lake, stands Vajdahunyad Castle, an architectonic compendium of various representative details copied from Hungary’s most characteristic buildings. Designed by Ignác Alpár, the building was erected in 1896 as part of the main section of the Millenary Exhibition. The temporary construction was such a success that it was rebuilt of durable materials and now houses the Museum of Agriculture.

The bottom of the lake was cleared and given a concrete surface in 1906. In winter the boaters are replaced by skaters, as it is here that the Ice Rink operates.

Vajdahunyad Castle

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