The Citadel Budapest

[Elia Khensamphanh]

The Citadella (.mw-parser-output .IPA-label-smallfont-size:85%.mw-parser-output .references .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .infobox .IPA-label-small,.mw-parser-output .navbox .IPA-label-smallfont-size:100%Hungarian pronunciation: [ˈt͡sitɒdɛlːa]) is the fortification located upon the top of Gellrt Hill in Budapest, Hungary. Citadella is the Hungarian word for citadel, a kind of fortress. The word is exclusively used by other languages to refer to the Gellrt Hill citadel which occupies a place which held strategic importance in Budapest's military history.

The fortress was built in 1851 by Julius Jacob von Haynau, a commander of the Austrian Empire, and was designed by Emmanuel Zitta and Ferenc Kasselik, after the Hungarian Revolution of 1848. It occupies almost the entire 235 metres high plateau. The fortress is a U-shaped structure built about a central courtyard, being 220 metres long, 60 metres wide, and 4 metres tall. It had a complement of sixty cannons.[1]

Actually built by Hungarian forced labourers, it was finished in 1854. In June 1854 Austrian troops settled in the citadel. After the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 and the establishment of Austria-Hungary, the Hungarians demanded the destruction of the Citadel, but the garrison troops left only in 1897, when the main gate was symbolically damaged. It was not until late 1899 when the city took possession of the Citadel. A few months later, in 1900, the walls were demolished.

Next to the Danube-facing longitudinal wall of the Citadella, there is an open-air display of a small collection of Red Army weaponry, most of them from the Second World War. The pieces are the following (going left to right on the picture):

The Citadella was constructed in 1854 by the Hapsburgs as part of their strategy to supervise formerly rebellious Budapest and Hungary to prevent another uprising. The Citadella remains a symbol of oppression as well as liberty.

A massive structure 220 meters long, 60 meters wide, and 4 meters tall, the Citadella was occupied by the Austrians until 1899. The locals, still angered by that symbol of foreign oppression started the demolition of the walls, however, most of the citadel structure still stands, and was subsequently used by both Nazis and Communists as a surveillance position, taking advantage of its amazing view over the city.

The Nazis used the Citadella mainly as an anti-aircraft position and bunker. Once the Red Army advanced to the city and recovered the territory, the Citadella was used by the Communists as well. After the Hungarian uprising in 1956, the mounted weapons were pointed not to the skies but to the civilian population below.

The Communists also took advantage of the high position of the structure and decided to erect a monument that would remind the locals of the sacrifice made by the Eastern liberators who freed the city from the German invaders.

Once the monument was finished, it displayed five statues: A woman carrying a torch, representing progress; a man fighting a five-headed dragon symbolizing the struggle against the forces of evil (the Axis powers probably); two Red Army soldiers, representing the liberators; and atop the monument, a 14-meter statue of a woman holding a palm leaf with both hands up to the sky, representing liberty. Once the Communist influence vanished after the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991, the statue of the Red Army soldiers were removed and taken to the Statue Park along with the remaining works of art honoring the invaders of an occupation that lasted four decades.

Nowadays the Citadella remains a popular tourist destination. It is a fascinating site where one can see all the wonders of a city that has been called the Paris of Central Europe, as well as explore its troubled history.

This war museum is situated in a large air-raid shelter from World War Two, which stands in the centre of the Budapest citadel. The bunker has three floors and 17 rooms. It houses wax statues and a large exhibition with wartime photographs of Budapest.

Looking for reliable information or news facts about WW2? Do you want to create your own battlefield tour to sights of wars from the past? Or are you interested in war medals and their recipients? TracesOfWar.com tells you more!

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