The History of Budapest Trivia Quiz

Answer: Gellert Hill

Gellert Hill is named after the Hungarian name for Saint Gerard, who was martyred on the hill in 1046, when he was killed by pagans. Prior to this, Gellert Hill had been called Mons Pestiensis. It remained in Celtic hands until the Romans took it and renamed it Aquincum.

Answer: Arpad

The Romans had fought to keep Budapest under their control, but it was too far away from Rome and was on the border of the empire. They gave up Budapest in the 5th century when Attila the Hun took it over some time later. In the ninth century Arpad led groups of people, now called the Hungarian Confederation.

These people settled throughout Eastern Europe, but Arpad settled along the Danube in what is now Budapest.

Answer: Protecting Buda and Pest from Mongol invaders in 1285.

The Mongols had much success conquering territory in Europe, but when they reached Hungary, they were repelled by King Ladislaus IV. The Mongols had been weakened in the Carpathian Mountains during wintertime. Because of their defeat, the Mongols became hesitant to invade Hungary again.

Answer: Matyas

Amongst the reforms performed by Matyas, or Matthias Corvinus or Matthias as he is otherwise known as, and his wife Beatrice of Naples were: an increase in taxes and the introduction of Italian-style arts to Hungary. Queen Beatrice was from Italy and, upon her marriage, brought many of the Italian ideas with her and encouraged them. Also during Matyas' rule, Buda became economically prosperous as merchants and traders flocked to the city, despite the high taxes.

Answer: False

Suleiman only led the Siege of Buda when he took both cities in one fell swoop and the Austrian general Wilhelm von Roggendorf, who was defending Buda, was killed. The Siege of Pest in 1542 was an attempt by the Austrian Habsburgs, who claimed Hungary after the 1526 Battle of Mohacs saw a partition of Hungary, to reclaim the cities.

They failed again and the Ottomans continued their reign.

Answer: Buda and Pest returned to Habsburg rule.

The Holy Roman Empire had attempted to take Buda and Pest since the Ottomans first won them. However, they always failed to do so. In 1684, the Holy League was formed as an alliance between the Holy Roman Empire, Poland-Lithuania and Venice to oppose the Ottoman Empire. The Holy League failed. However, the Holy Roman Empire alone was able to defeat the Ottomans in 1686. The Habsburgs were seen as the rightful rulers of Buda and Pest and Joseph I was declared King of Hungary.

The 1686 battle is often considered one of the most gruesome battles in modern history as many Jews and Turks were mutilated and thrown in the Danube to drown. Many mosques and Jewish temples were burned and vandalized in an attempt to drive out non-Christians from Buda and Pest.

Answer: Chain Bridge

The Chain Bridge is also called Szechenyi Lanchid after Count Szechenyi who conceived the idea for the bridge. It was considered one of the most modern bridges and feats of engineering in its day and linked Buda and Pest permanently. The Chain Bridge also symbolized a new dawning in Hungary as Count Szechnyi looked to advance the cities and Hungary beyond the stagnancy that had dominated in the 18th century.

Answer: Petofi Sandor

The legend goes that Petofi Sandor delivered the Nemzeti Dal, the National Song, to gain support for the revolution. His words were so moving that it worked and the people joined in. However, the Hungarians lost and the Habsburgs built numerous sites in Buda and Pest to show their dominance.

However, by 1867, Hungary regained some power when Austria-Hungary was formed, following the defeat of the Austrian Empire by the Prussians in 1866.

Answer: Obuda

Obuda was once part of Buda and was considered to be the old town. The union of the cities was also accompanied by great renovations. Pest, in particular, was redesigned to look like Paris. Pest was notably smaller than Buda. Buda was home to many palaces and castles, including the important Buda Castle, but Pest held few significant locations and was a small, walled city. Today, Pest is home to the Hungarian Parliament, while Buda contains Sandor Palace, the official home of the Hungarian president. Obuda contains many museums including the Aquincum Museum that displays ancient Roman artifacts.

Answer: The Aster Revolution forced Charles IV to abdicate.

The Aster Revolution was an event that took place in Hungary after World War I and saw the development of a Communist government.

Budapest was considered a safer city for the Jewish community because Hungary was an ally of Nazi Germany. Many Jewish people from Germany, Poland and Austria fled their home countries and went to Budapest. Hungary did have discriminatory policies against the Jews, but there was no policy of extermination. Once the Nazis occupied Hungary in 1944, however, Jews began being sent to Auschwitz. By the end of the war, about half of Budapest's Jewish people was still alive, but Hungarian Jews outside Budapest had only a 10% chance of surviving.

The Nazis helped the Arrow Cross Party gain control of Hungary. The Arrow Cross Party essentially enslaved the Jews, forced them to do manual labor and shot them if they refused. The Arrow Cross was thrown out of power shortly before the war ended.

The Germans blew up most of Budapest's bridges to prevent the Soviet Army from liberating Budapest and sending reinforcements and supplies. During the later stages of the war, Budapest saw fierce fighting and significant damage and loss of life. The city was under siege from December 1944 to February 1945 and when the city fell the Soviet Army embarked on a prolonged spree of rape and pillage.