- Type
- Fortress
- Built
- c. 1850 · 19th century
- Coordinates
- 47.4869°, 19.0464°
History
After crushing the Hungarian revolution of 1848–49, the Austrians decided to station troops on Gellért Hill, from where their guns could reach both Buda and Pest. Work on the Citadella, designed by Emmanuel Zitta, began in 1850, and in June 1854 an Austrian garrison moved in; it was a long, low fort with thick walls and room for 60 guns. Its purpose was above all to intimidate – its cannons never fired on the city. After the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 it lost its point, but the army left only at the end of the 19th century; at that point, under pressure from the townspeople, part of the wall above the gate was symbolically pulled down and the fortress passed to the city. In the winter of 1944–45 German troops held out here, and in 1947 the Liberty Statue was raised in front of the fort. Closed from 2014, the Citadella was rebuilt in the 2020s, with parts of its walls demolished.
What to see
What remains of the Citadella's walls runs along the top of the hill, high above the Danube; after its rebuilding the site reopened in April 2026, with a park and promenade inside that are free to visit during the day and in the evening. In front of the fort stands the Liberty Statue, a woman holding a palm leaf, visible from almost anywhere in the city. The terraces offer one of the widest panoramas of Budapest, over the Danube and its bridges, the Royal Palace and the Parliament. Park paths wind down the slopes to Elisabeth Bridge.
Wikipedia article Official website Wikidata Q206170
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