Happy birthday, Budapest! – Hungarian capital celebrates 150th birthday

150 years ago, on 17 November 1873, Budapest was created by the merger of Pest, Buda and Óbuda.

On 17 November 1873, the Budapest Municipal Council began its work. To commemorate this event, the General Assembly of the Capital of Budapest decided on 21 March 1991 to make 17 November the capital’s birthday, 24.hu writes.

The unification of Pest and Buda was first suggested by István Széchenyi (widely considered to be the “Greatest Hungarian”) in the 1830s. He was also the one who proposed the name Budapest.

The Municipal Council and the first mayor of Budapest

Budapest in 1900. Source: Fortepan / Czógler Gusztáv

The number of members of the Municipal Council was set at 400. As regards the city government, it was decided that the King would nominate three persons for the post of Lord Mayor, from whom the Assembly could elect the incumbent for a term of six years.

The Lord Mayor represented the government, and his main task was to safeguard the interests of the state. The mayor was the head of the municipal administration and president of the council of the main municipal officials, assisted by two deputy mayors. The districts were managed by the magistrates, who were assisted by a board of jurors.

On 25 October 1873, the elected deputies gathered in the Vigadó and declared the jurisdiction of Budapest established. The Chief Notary read out a letter from Franz Joseph I of Austria, in which the ruler named his three candidates for the office of Lord Mayor. The post was won by Károly Ráth, Vice-President of the Court of Justice, with 209 votes. Károly Kamermayer, elected on 4 November, became the first mayor of Budapest.

Budapest as a global city

Budapest in 1904. Source: Fortepan / Deutsche Fotothek/Brück und Sohn

On 22 March 1991, the Municipal Assembly of Budapest declared 17 November a holiday to commemorate the unification of Budapest. The unification paved the way for Budapest’s development as a global city, facilitating the rapid and large-scale growth of industry and commerce, and the development of public institutions. At the time of the unification, Buda had 54,000 inhabitants, Pest 200,000 and Ó-Buda 16,000. By 1890, this number had exceeded half a million. While in 1870, Pest-Buda was still the 17th largest European city, in 1900, Budapest was already the eighth.

As we reported, public transport in Budapest is practically free today: take part in an unlimited travel experience in Budapest on its 150th birthday! Details HERE.

The National Bank of Hungary is releasing new commemorative coins today – read more and check out the coins HERE.