St. Stephen’s Basilica

2025 Cruise up the Danube River, Churches, Hungary

 

From the Buda side of Budapest, we got a great view of the Pest side of the  city. Standing out in the city, was St Stephen’s Basilica which is a fairly modern structure. This church has a rough history. Not what you would call blessed by God.

 

Though planning started much earlier, construction began in 1851 but was seriously delayed when the dome collapsed in 1858. As a result, everything up to then had to be demolished and rebuilt again from the ground up.  And of course, funds had to be raised for that purpose. It was consecrated in 1905.

The basilica suffered significant damage from bombing in the Siege of Budapest (1944–1945), during the Second World War. Its walls, towers and the roof all had to be rebuilt a second time. Several subsequent renovations, in the late twentieth century, left the church in its current state. But the Hungarians were determined to keep going.

The church is huge with a length of 87 metres and a width of 55 metres and a maximum height of 87 metres, precisely the height of the Parliament building. The equivalence was intended to teach us that worldly and spiritual thinking were equally important, but I am not sure that either realm ever believed that.

In terms of its dimensions, St Stephen’s is immense, spanning a length of 87 metres, a width of 55 metres and a maximum height of 96 metres, exactly the same height as the Parliament building. The enormous church honours St Stephen I, the first king of Hungary, (c. 975–1038), who established Christianity  and the kingdom of Hungary. His mummified right hand is house inside as a relic. I don’t understand why anyone would want to keep that, but no one asked me for my opinion. I am not a big fan of collecting body parts whether in Hungary or Canada, but I know this is an unpopular minority view.

It is certainly considered one of the landmarks of Budapest and Hungary.  It is the third largest church in Hungary and the largest in Budapest. It is part of that region that has been declared a part of the UNESCO World Heritage site.

The church provided shelter for many refugees during the Second World War. It was a place of sanctuary, something people used to consider worthy and important.

It is certainly one of the landmarks of Budapest, and I am told a wonderful place to listen to organ concerts. I St Stephen’s Basilica is one of the most important landmarks in Budapest is. It is a work of art, and in my view should have been given the appropriate space. You can see from my photo how it is clogged up in the city. That is a pity.

Budapest: A City of UNESCO World Heritage Sites

2025 Cruise up the Danube River, Hungary

 

 

This is Matthias Church from the opposite site of the Danube River

The city of Budapest enjoys a rich a rich history, an unequalled architectural heritage, and a surprising number of UNESCO World Heritage sites. Budapest contains one large interconnected World Heritage site that consists of 3 areas all tied together and all close to the Danube River. We spent 3 days here, but sadly, they were marred by Christiane’s severe cold, or some form of respiratory illness, or whatever it was she had and which I may have given to her.  Almost everyone on the boat got it.

 

The World Heritage site includes the Danube River Banks area which I explored relentlessly on foot. I took long walks, abandoning my wife to the hotel room and the cold. My bad, but I think she wanted me to go. I was not helping here.

 

The first is the Danube River Banks which I explored relentlessly, to see the Parliament on one side of the river and the historic Buda Castle on the other. A simple stroll down the river included stunning views of the river, the Parliament Building, and bridges like the Chain Bridge. Budapest is famous for its bridges. I remember in 2004 my friend Bill had been determined to travel high up the hills to get a photograph of the city with the river snaking through it laced with fantastic bridges.

 

The second area, The Buda Castle Quarter, included the historic district with Buda Castle, Matthias Church, and Fishermen’s Bastion.

 

The third area, not far away is the grand Andrássy Avenue with the Millennium Underground Railway and fantastic architecture leading to Heroes’ Square where we started our tour during our first morning. Frankly, with my limited time I spent most of my time in this area.

 

These elements were added to the list in stages (Buda Castle & Danube in 1987, Andrássy Ave in 2002), but are recognized as a unified cultural landscape.

Together these and other treasures attract approximately 4.5 million tourists a year, including this year, us, as it had in 2004. The city also boasts 220 museums, including the National Museum which contains valuable artifacts of Hungarian history that date back to Ancient Rome.

 

The city is also famous for its medicinal baths and open-air pools and a closely aligned network of baths and spas many of which were built during the Ottoman occupation. The 150-year-old Lukacs Thermal Bath is known to treat joint problems and in effect turn old men into bounding young colts again. Well maybe, not much.

 

My first task was to see the Parliament on one side of the river and the historic Buda Castle on the other. A simple stroll down the river included stunning views of the river, the Parliament Building, and bridges like the Chain Bridge. Budapest is famous for its bridges. I remember in 2004 my friend Bill had been determined to travel high up the hills to get a photograph of the city with the river snaking through it laced with fantastic bridges. Maybe I should have done that too.

 

 

The third area, not far away is the grand Andrássy Avenue with the Millennium Underground Railway and fantastic architecture leading to Heroes’ Square where we started our tour during our first morning. Frankly, with my limited time I spent most of my time in these 3 areas.

 

These elements were added to the list in stages (Buda Castle & Danube in 1987, Andrássy Ave in 2002), but are recognized as a unified cultural landscape.

 

I remember our tour guide in Budapest in 2004 telling us how under communism people were not free to invest in the stock market, but after communism fell, they were free to lose as much money on the stock market as they wanted.

 

Our guide in 2004 had uncharitably pointed out that during the period of communism, the Danube River was treated with so little respect that it was now only blue if one wore blue shades. Now it is a World Heritage Site. Is it a monument to pollution? To me the water did not look bad, but I did not look too closely. Maybe that was for the best. Maybe it was cleaned up

In 2004 Christiane and I took a night time cruise on the Danube through the city with friend from Australia Bill and Jennie. The cruise offered stunning views of the Danube and the fantastic buildings at night.  I was jealous of Bill who had a digital camera. I had never used one yet, but by the end of the trip I was convinced I would have to get one.  Fortuitously, my camera broke down near  the end of that trip and when I got home I bought a digital camera. But I hatedcit at the time because I came back home with blank slides for about a third of the trip.   Now I have the same thing.

 

I

Royal Palace/ Buda Castle

2025 Cruise up the Danube River, castle, Hungary, Modern History

Buda Castle with an Avalon river cruise ship

Once upon a time, there were 2 cities across from each other on the Danube River. Buda was the royal capital with its old hilltop castle, and narrow winding cobbled streets. Pest was more modern with a vibrant commercial centre. It has grand boulevards, scintillating night life, and complete independence from Buda. They remained separate cities until they were amalgamated in 1873 with a third city, Óbuda. The merged cities were then united under the name Budapest. Óbuda got left out in the naming department. A bridge was then built across the Danube River called Chain Bridge. After that bridge was built the cities cooperated more with each other and each benefit from the merger. As a unit the city became a major European city.

 

On our city tour of Budapest, we drove by the Buda Castle, on the Buda side of the Danube. but I got most of my photos of it, from the Pest side of the river. Our bus really drove too close to get good photos. Photographing buildings requires standing away from it. But then, of course, other buildings often intrude.

 

Located on the aptly named Castle Hill, Buda Castle was constructed in 1259 to be the residence of Hungarian kings, but much of the structure we see today was added in the mid-18th century.  It is nearly 1,000 years old. Today, the castle houses the Budapest History Museum and the Hungarian National Gallery. The building, along with much of Castle Hill, is listed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site. We did not get to go inside this day, and sadly, I was not able to get to it the next day either. A dreadful pity.

 

The National Gallery, which is now part of the Buda Castle, contains the largest public collection of Hungarian fine art in the world. The museum is housed within the Royal Palace and displays a wide assortment of Hungarian art work from the medieval period up to the 20th century. It also contains the best collection of European art in the country.

 

I have been told that the art collection included approximately 6,000 paintings, 2,100 sculptures, 3,100 medals, 11,000 drawings, 5,000 prints, but has now been expanded to include even more art.

 

 

This was the castle where the Hungarian Kings—those “heroes of Heroes’ Square—lived and conducted their kingly business. Of course, there have been many changes in millennium of its existence.

Today the castle also houses the Budapest Historical Museum and the National Széchényi Library all worthy elements of Western Civilization.

 

The Baroque palace that now occupies most of the site was built between 1749 and 1769, and like so many other wonderful buildings in the city was pummelled in World War by the modern barbarians. The reconstruction was started by the next barbarians—the Communist government during the communist era.

 

 

The castle was required by King Sigismund when he was the Holy Roman Emperor.  Emperor’s need castles. Like peasants need hovels. In fact, he needed a magnificent castle, just like Donald Trump needs a magnificent White House.  Unfortunately, the current president of the United States has a rather tacky taste. During the reign of King Sigismund it became the largest Gothic Palace of the late Middle Ages.

 

After the Battle of Mohács in 1526, which I posted about earlier, the Kingdom of Hungary collapsed and the Ottoman Turks occupied the town which had been evacuated. The town of Buda was then sacked and burned but the Royal Palace was not damaged. Of course, the victor, Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, who I also posted about earlier, carried away the best bronze statues and carried them off to Constantinople. Unfortunately, that is where they were destroyed in a rebellion a few years later. Look out if you hang around kings. Showing himself to be a learned man however, the Sultan also carried away many volumes from the library. Then the Ottomans left, but returned once more in 1529 and this time made sure that the palace was badly damaged. Again, remember what kings do. Buda then became formally, a part of the Ottoman empire.  The original German and Hungarian population had vanished by then, for their own good.

 

In 1686 the Holy League, a coalition of Christian European nations was formed during the war with Turkey for the purposes of stopping the expansion of the Ottoman empire into Europe. It was very successful at that, though the costs were high. Large areas of ceded land, were recovered during this time. It was often called the “14th Crusade.” This period was a great turning point in European history that diminished the Ottoman empire and propelled the coalition European partners to greater glories. At least that was how they perceived it.

 

Much of the damage to Buda and its buildings was caused by Europeans that were led by Habsburgs because they repeatedly laid siege to the city to try to get it back from the Ottomans. For imperial purposes any damage is justified. They had launched sieges in 1542, 1598, 1603 and 1684, before the finally victory in 1686. The old palace was destroyed during that final siege in 1686. The army of the Holy League was about 65,000 to 100,000 men at that time. Some of the buildings were used by the Turks to store gunpowder, and went hit by the Europeans artillery they blew up and caused considerable damage.

 

The new Ottoman government allowed the palace to go to ruin. They used the barracks as a storage place for stuff and stables for animals. Other than that, they didn’t even use it. But they called it, the Palace of the Golden Apples. Perhaps because the horses liked them.

 

In the 19th century, after Franz Joseph was crowned King of Hungary peace was declared between the nation of Hungary and the Habsburg empire. During this time the city of Buda experienced rapid economic growth and a lot of attention was paid to the castle and restoring it to be comparable with Vienna’s grand Hofburg Palace which Christiane and I toured during our visits to Vienna.

 

In the Second World War the castle was occupied by the Nazis, who lived in it lavishly. Then the Russians laid a modern siege to the palace near the end of World II, and it was damaged some more. During the time of the communist regime much of it was deliberately destroyed by the communists who saw it as contrary to their image of Soviet communists. They represented the people, not the royalty.

 

After communism collapsed, the new government of Hungary tried to restore much of it. Now of course, it is under siege by tourists—like us.

 

All of this occupation by barbarians caused an enormous amount of destruction, but the people of Hungary repeatedly rebuilt it.

 

Fisherman’s Bastion

2025 Cruise up the Danube River

Fisherman’s Bastion is right in front of the Mattias Church

Close to the Mattias Church, was Fisherman’s Bastion, completed in 1902. In fact, the Church is right behind the Bastion. To me it looked brand new. It was that clean. Fisherman’s Bastion is a stunning architectural icon of the city. Built in the neo-Gothic/neo-Romanesque it features breathtaking views of the city from its perch on Castle Hill. Fisherman’s Bastion includes seven towers to represent the seven Magyar tribes, celebrated at Heroes’ Square.

A statue of St. Stephen

This bastion does not look like much of a military structure, but it is more defensive than it appears at first sight. The ornate terraces were part of constructions made between 1895 and 1902 in celebration of the state’s 1000th anniversary. At the time the terraces were intended as observation points for looking out across the magnificent views, just as tourists do today. Clearly, it was built to impress rather than protect. Sort of like Donald Trump’s military parade he begged for and, of course, got. And modern tourists are usually impressed.

 

The neo-Romanesque structure, now called Fisherman’s Bastion, was designed  with seven towers, each representing one of the seven Hungarian leaders who led their tribes to establish the country in 895.  These were the so-called “heroes” of the Heroes Square.

There was an equestrian bronze statue of Saint Stephan, the first Hungarian king (1906) also takes pride of place on this historic monument. The bastion was designed to have a T shape that would incorporate the Church of Our Lady and connect the hilltop castle with the Fishtown (Watertown) settlement on the banks of the Danube. Visitors to the bastion climb a wide staircase which leads up to the Castle Hill entrance. Historic statues line the staircase.

 

The terrace has the feel and look of a fairy tale castle, the towers are topped with pointed turrets and the white walls seem to flow rather than being harsh as you would expect in a real military structure. Visitors to the bastion can also see the Church of Our Lady and St. Michael Chapel. The chapel is an underground medieval space which was discovered during the construction of the Fisherman’s Bastion.

The City Tour of Budapest: Mattias Church

2025 Cruise up the Danube River, art, Churches, Hungary, photography, Thoughts o n Travel

 

The entire area around the Danube River near the Chain Bridge, which was also near our hotel, has been declared a World Heritage site. This made it very convenient.  The first half day, our entire group went on bus excursion of the area. We got off a few times to explore led by our fearless leaders. Our leader led a long line of tourist through the streets to the famous and spectacularly beautiful Mattias Church.

Although I enjoyed the walk immensely, I did have one complaint. It is the same complaint I have about every European city. That complaints centres around the unfortunate fact that each magnificent structure is located in the middle of a city. Other buildings encroach on territory which ideally would allow tourists, and others, to get a good look at the buildings.  It is very difficult to do that with most of the fantastic sites, even World Heritage Sites.  Every city permits commercial interests to encroach on this space that I would call sacred space. Sacred space for the appreciation of great art. That is what great architecture deserves but never gets. None of us gets to properly appreciate the art. Great art really deserves great space to be seen properly.

Using space like this would not be wasted space as some assert. It is necessary space that should be respected, and not encroached upon.  Secondly, hordes of tourists should not be allowed to mar this sacred space either. Instead, in every city, and Budapest was no exception, as was every city we visited, the great buildings were pinched in by other structures and hordes of disrespectful tourists, like us. Great art should be allowed to breathe and show us its glories. Usually, that is not allowed. The art is pinched in by pinched minds.

All of this is particularly annoying to someone like me who wants to photograph them. It is extremely difficult, and often, impossible. The AI “remove” feature on  photographic programs like Lightroom helps a lot. I did find out later when I had a chance to look at my photographs that at least this feature  helped to eliminate parts of other buildings in some cases, and people too. But space would be much better. On the above photograph I left some people in the photo to give a sense of scale. I wish cities could find a way to expand the sacred space instead.

 

 

 

The highlight of our short city tour was passing by Mattias Church and driving up the hillside to the Castle district on the Buda side of Budapest.  My photographing of the city was greatly hindered by the hordes of tourists. Wherever there are beautiful places, there are also tourists. How can I complain? After all, what was I doing here? The same thing they were doing here. I just wished they would leave me alone in the city to explore it without them. No such luck. That day will never come, so I must compromise or go home.

 

On the Buda side of the Danube River we saw the Mattias Church also known as the church of Our Lady or Nagyboldogasszony Templom. It is located in the Buda Castle District near to the Fisherman’s Bastion. It is a rare Catholic church that is not named after a saint. It was originally built in 1255 and named after King Matthias Corvinus who reigned from 1458-90 and was married here twice. The church underwent many renovations, additions and changes over the years with the changing trends in architecture.

In 1541, in the style of Europe and the Middle East, the church was turned into a mosque when the Turks occupied the city. Much of the original treasure and many of the frescoes were destroyed or removed. When the Turks were expelled in 1686 restoration began but only really took off in 1874 under the direction of Frigyes Schulek who redesigned the church in the Neo-Gothic style and restored much of the church’s former glory, as a Christian church. At least this was an improvement to the Christians. The Muslims probably disagreed.

Ludicrously Beautiful

2025 Cruise up the Danube River, Hungary, photography

Ludicrously Beautiful

Finally, we arrived by boat in Budapest, the capital city of Hungary and the last city on our tour of the Balkans.  Many don’t actually consider Hungary to be part of the Balkans. To me it fits in. It feels like the Balkans. And, like the Balkans, it was dominated by Russia, Habsburgs, and Turks at various times.

Budapest is the capital city of Hungary and its most populous city with a population of about 1.8 million people. That makes it smaller than Toronto. It is located in the centre of the country and is its heart and soul. Budapest is also one of the most beautiful cities in the world. I am not sure I have ever seen a more beautiful city.

 

That inveterate traveler and lover of food, Anthony Bourdain, said, “of course, Budapest is beautiful. But it is in fact almost ludicrously beautiful.” I thought that was a pretty good description.

On the first morning after we arrived in the city and enjoyed a lovely breakfast, we took a tour of the city offered by our touring company. Frankly, it was a bit of a whirlwind tour. We saw a lot and remembered only a little.

This was our second time in Budapest. The first was on our Grand Sabbatical Tour in 2004. That year I was the first of the law partners in our firm to take advantage of our new “compulsory” sabbatical program. Our senior partner, was supposed to go, but refused. He was not ready. I happily stepped in as his replacement. I was more than ready. I was eager.  That year we took 3 months to travel around the world. 1 month in eastern Canada, 1 month in Europe—1 week on a quick tour of Europe and 3 weeks in Florence. The sabbatical lasted 3 months and changed my life forever.

I still remember how shocked we were in 2004 at how beautiful Budapest was. We had been told how beautiful Prague was. That was true. But no one mentioned Budapest to us. But we thought Budapest the most beautiful city we saw.

Today, we realized we were right the first time. It really was beautiful, particularly along the Danube from which I never travelled very far. In Budapest, everything comes together in the Danube River. That is why some call it the Queen of the Danube. Others call it the Pearl of the Danube.  But you get the idea.

Bourdain may have been exaggerating, but I certainly think it is one of the most beautiful cities in the world.

 

Heroes?

2025 Cruise up the Danube River, Exploitation, Hungary, Pluralism

Our first stop of the day was at Heroes’ Square a UNESCO World Heritage site that features the Millennium Monument with statues of Hungarian Kings or chief-tans of the Magyars, the ancient Hungarians, as well as some other important leaders. It is considered an iconic plaza in Budapest of which the local are extremely proud.

 

We delighted in a Guided Sightseeing tour of Budapest, including the iconic Heroes’ Square, where we got off the bus and took a walk around the heroes and then followed this with a city tour of the exquisitely beautiful city of Budapest (pronounced Buda Pesht).

 

The monument was commissioned in 1896 to commemorate the foundation of the Hungarian state formed when the Magyars conquered the Carpathian Basin. In other words, that is when the Magyars took the land away from the indigenous people that occupied it at the time. Isn’t that how states work? It is called conquest, and conquests are rarely pretty. I wondered what was really heroic about that? Did the people from whom they took the land see them as heroes?

The monument consists of a semicircle of Doris columns with statues of various Hungarian figures on them. There is also an obelisk crowned with a statue of the Archangel Gabriel. I guess they are claiming that the conquest had God’s blessings. Aren’t Gods always thanked for military victories?

It was called Heroes’ Square for the first time, in 1906. In 1906 the Habsburgs ruled Hungary and they expected to add more of their family as years went by, for of course, they expected to rule forever. But the Hapsburgs lost their empire 12 years later. In fact, the Habsburg empire which had lasted for centuries, and in 1906 was commonly believed that it would endure forever, actually collapsed shortly after World War I ended

 

The Habsburgs lost their empire of Hungary with the collapse of Austria-Hungary following World War I, when Hungary declared independence and the last Emperor, Charles I, renounced his role, formally ending centuries of Habsburg rule over Hungarian lands, thus and ushering in a republic. That lasted until the communists of Russian captured it after World War II. All of these empires remind me of a famous English poem which I studied in high school.

 

 

 

 

Ozymandias

 

By Percy Bysshe Shelley

I met a traveller from an antique land,

Who said—“Two vast and trunkless legs of stone

Stand in the desert. . . . Near them, on the sand,

Half sunk a shattered visage lies, whose frown,

And wrinkled lip, and sneer of cold command,

Tell that its sculptor well those passions read

Which yet survive, stamped on these lifeless things,

The hand that mocked them, and the heart that fed;

And on the pedestal, these words appear:

My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;

Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!”

Nothing beside remains. Round the decay

Of that colossal Wreck, boundless and bare

The lone and level sands stretch far away.

Similarly, nothing remains of the glory of the Hapsburgs, though members of their family are still alive and well. Empires fade in time. Thankfully.

 

At the site we also saw the tomb of the unknown soldier as is commonly exhibited around Europe. I suppose it was intended to persuade the common people that it was heroic of them to offer their lives for the Habsburgs.  I am not so sure that one such tomb is worth the price. Unlike some of the tombs in Europe this one contains no human remains.

Who thinks it is worth it? Who thinks there is anything heroic here?

 

I wish more monuments were put up for people who worked hard at helping people to live together. Heroes for pluralism. That’s what we really need. Heroes for plunder not so much.

The square remains a focal point in Budapest and celebrations, ceremonies and the occasional protest are known to take place here. It’s a popular place for tourists to visit in the summer, and its giant proportions remain impressive.

 

Yet tourists are always brought here. We were brought here by our tour guide in 2004 and again this year. Just like last time, I got out of the coach and took a few photos. They call it a World Heritage Site and I think I have to photograph it.

Mohács: A place of Syncretism

2025 Cruise up the Danube River, Hungary, Moral Humility, Music, Philosophy/Ideas, Pluralism, religion, syncretism

 

After seeing the watermills, the next thing we did was to tour the town of Mohács. The first thing that struck me, was the lovely pastel colours of the buildings.  I could not remember seeing anything like them. I could not resist photographing them.

The most interesting thing in the city centre where we walked was a large concrete Catholic Church. What interested me is that the church was designed in the style of a mosque.  And as we know, imitation is the most sincere form of flattery. It was not a case of a mosque being taken over by Christians; it was a case of Christians giving a nod to Islam.

 

This area of the world had been rocked by wars with a deep element of religious opposition for centuries, but here was a case of one religion admitting maybe the other religion had something good as well. This was a case of them living together in peace. A marvel. Imagine that, Christians admitting they could learn something from Muslims. For once, after the Christians took over Mohács they did not have to destroy a mosque or cover it with a new building, they could admit we can learn from each other. Could this herald a new world order? I sure hope so.

I have for a long time thought that syncretism, as a philosophy, is the way to go.  Syncretism refers to the  blending of elements from one culture, religion, or philosophy with another to create something new in the process. Religions, or philosophies, or cultures don’t have to compete, they don’t have to claim superiority. They can join hands and make something better.

One good example, is the celebration of Christmas in Europe and North America actually merges various traditions of their own with traditions in the Egypt or the Near East  and with traditions of the winter solstice in northern Europe.  Some claim this is heretical. Personally, I celebrate the combination. Another good example is combining elements of Christian religion with spiritual traditions of North American Indigenous people. The fusion can create wonderful new creations.

This photo is from inside that church.

Musicians and artists have been doing this forever . For example, combining  Jazz artists with European musical notations and African elements  to produce a unique sound. For another , I have long loved the combing of rock, country, and bluegrass music.

No single genre or culture has the secret to it all. No single religion has a monopoly on truth. No philosophy has all the answers.  Culture is always a rich tapestry of strands that multiply the magic.  James W. Loewen, the author of the book Lies My Teacher Told Me, said this: “ultimately syncretism illustrates he interconnectedness of human societies and the shared nature of cultural development.”

In my view, syncretism can be used to defeat the narrow-mindedness of those who live under the illusion that their philosophy, or their religion, or their ideas are the fount of all wisdom.