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ESZTERGOM |
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Beautifully situated in a crook of the Danube facing Slovakia,
ESZTERGOM , 25km on from Visegrád, is dominated by its basilica, whose
dome is visible for miles around. The sight is richly symbolic, since it
was here that Prince Géza and his son Vajk (the future king and saint
Stephen) brought Hungary into the fold of Roman Catholic (not Orthodox)
Christendom, in the nation's first cathedral. Even after the court moved
to Buda following the Mongol invasion, Esztergom remained the centre of
Catholicism until the Turkish conquest, when the clergy dispersed to
safer towns and it became an Ottoman stronghold, besieged by Christian
armies. While the town recovered in the eighteenth century, it wasn't
until the 1820s that it became the Primal See again, following a
nationwide campaign. As part of the ancien régime , the Church was
ruthlessly persecuted during the Rákosi era (though the basilica was
well maintained, allegedly because the wife of the Soviet leader
Khrushchev liked it). From the 1960s onwards, however, the Communists
settled for a modus vivendi , hoping to enlist the Church's help with
social problems and to harness the patriotic spirit of the faithful. The
avowedly Christian government elected in 1990 did its best to restore
Church property and influence, and, while this process slowed down after
the Communists returned to power, their concordat with the Vatican in
1997 eased fears of it going into reverse.
Esztergom combines historic monuments and small-town charm in just the
right doses, with a summer festival as an inducement to linger. The
town's layout is easily grasped and most of the restaurants and pensions
are within walking distance of the centre
The Town
The main focal point of the town is Basilica Hill , whose landscaped
slope appears on maps as Szent István tér. After seeing the basilica and
the castle remains here, you'll probably want some refreshment before
heading downhill to the Víziváros , where art buffs can get stuck into
the Christian Museum and others will be drawn to the shady korzó beside
the Kis-Duna, separating Prímás Sziget from the lower town . In the
lower town, the emphasis is on enjoyment, with cafés, bars and discos
and an outdoor thermal pool.
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