Fascinating photos from the Hungarian Fortepan archive detail how one of Europe's most beautiful cities was built (and rebuilt).
Building (And Rebuilding) Budapest
- By Amos Chapple
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1893: A heavy-duty roof being constructed for the Dosza Gyorgy Road subway station. Budapest’s Metro is the world’s second-oldest after the London Underground.
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1893: Matthias Church, near Buda Castle, under reconstruction. The church was originally built in the 14th century but rebuilt over more than two decades in the late 1800s with various architectural flourishes, including gargoyles and a patterned tile roof.
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1894: A busy work site near the spire of the Saint Catherine of Alexandria Church (top right), just south of Buda Castle.
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1900: Children from an upper-class family on Gellert Hill as the Elizabeth Bridge is constructed in the background.
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1900: Another view of the Elizabeth Bridge being built. Budapest’s Citadella is visible at top right. The famously elegant bridge was destroyed during World War II and replaced with a basic suspension span by Hungary’s socialist regime.
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1903: Women laborers pause for a photograph during reconstruction of Budapest’s Ministry of Finance building, near Buda Castle.
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1903: Workers inside another hall of the same ministry. The building was heavily damaged during WWII and rebuilt on a smaller scale with simpler decor.
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1913: The foundations for the iconic Hegedus Villa being built on Gellert Hill.
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1914: The Szechenyi Chain Bridge undergoing major restoration. The beloved bridge is today lit by hundreds of electric bulbs after sunset. It was first built in 1849 but had its cast-iron span strengthened through 1914.
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1914: Work under way on the Szechenyi Chain Bridge. In background is the Art Nouveau-style Gresham Palace, which today houses one of Budapest’s glitziest hotels.
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1930: Roadworks under way on Kozraktar Street, along the riverbank of the Danube in southern Budapest.
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1937: A cross being raised onto the spire of the Church of the Holy Spirit as it nears completion.
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1937: Laborers at work on a residential house at 20 Szent Umre Street, in Budapest’s eastern suburbs.
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1949: A Metro line being built beneath Clark Adam Square under the war-ruined Buda Castle. Budapest was heavily damaged after Hungary sided with Nazi forces and endured an assault from the Red Army, backed by Allied bombing raids.
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1950: Digging of a Metro terminus under Kerepesi Street in Budapest’s eastern suburbs.
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1952: An underground passageway being built in Fovam Square, central Budapest.
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1955: Construction under way in central Budapest. In the background, an original arch of the Elizabeth Bridge can be seen. The bridge was demolished and rebuilt a few years after this picture was taken.
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1969: Workers at a building site in summer. After several decades of socialism in Hungary, money for grand public projects began drying up.
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1975: A building complex next to Balaton Street. By the 1970s, many major construction projects were charmless affairs that are today considered blots on Budapest’s urban landscape.
