Paks is a small town in
Tolna county
Tolna ( hu, Tolna megye, ; german: Komitat Tolnau) is an administrative county (comitatus or megye) in present Hungary as it was of the former Kingdom of Hungary. It lies in central Hungary, on the west bank of the river Danube. It shares borde ...
, in the south of
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croa ...
, on the right bank of the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
River, 100 km south of
Budapest
Budapest (, ; ) is the capital and most populous city of Hungary. It is the ninth-largest city in the European Union by population within city limits and the second-largest city on the Danube river; the city has an estimated population ...
. Paks as a former agricultural settlement is now the home of the only Hungarian
nuclear power plant
A nuclear power plant (NPP) is a thermal power station in which the heat source is a nuclear reactor. As is typical of thermal power stations, heat is used to generate steam that drives a steam turbine connected to a generator that produces ...
, which provides about 40% of the country's electricity consumption.
History
The settlement was already inhabited in ancient times. It has played a role in the
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
times and during
Rákóczi's War of Independence
Rákóczi's War of Independence (1703–11) was the first significant attempt to topple the rule of the Habsburgs over Hungary. The war was conducted by a group of noblemen, wealthy and high-ranking progressives and was led by Francis II Rák� ...
. In the
Budapest offensive in the final stages of the
Second World War
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...
, Soviet troops occupied the town at great cost, followed by four decades of communist rule. Meanwhile, it was famous for its cannery, wine and fish soup. The country's only nuclear power plant was built in Paks in the 1980s, the final decade of Soviet rule within the country.
Description
In the 19th century, several mansions were built in the center of the old town, such as those in Szent István Tér, the main square of the town. The
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
three-isled,
basilica
In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its nam ...
style Sacred Heart church was consecrated in 1901. There is a tablet in the wall of the baroque Szeniczey mansion to commemorate
Ferenc Deák, 'the Sage of the Country'. The Town Museum is housed in the former Cseh-Vigyázó mansion. The
Calvinist
Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John ...
and the
Lutheran
Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...
churches were built in 1775 and 1884 respectively.
The Catholic Holy Spirit church, built according to the design of
Imre Makovecz is considered to be an outstanding work of 20th-century architecture. There is a hundred-year-old
chestnut
The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere.
The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce.
The unrelate ...
alley lining the walkway on the
Danube River
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
bank. The town hosts the Spring Festival at Whitsuntide and the International Festival of Blues, Jazz, Rock and Gastronomy.
Sport
Paksi FC is a Hungarian football club based in Paks.
Atomerőmű SE is a Hungarian basketball club based in Paks.
Bronze Age hoard
A
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pr ...
gold hoard of jewelry was found between Paks and
Dunaföldvár on the right bank of the
Danube
The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...
in the 19th century. The treasure is now in the collections of the
British Museum
The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is among the largest and most comprehensive in existence. It docu ...
.
Twin towns – sister cities
Paks is
twinned with:
*
Galanta
Galanta ( hu, Galánta, german: Gallandau) is a town (about 15,000 inhabitants) in the Trnava Region of Slovakia. It is situated 50 km due east of the Slovak capital Bratislava.
Etymology
The name is derived from a Slavic name ''Golęta'' (i ...
, Slovakia
*
Gornji Vakuf-Uskoplje, Bosnia and Herzegovina
*
Loviisa
Loviisa (; sv, Lovisa ; formerly Degerby) is a municipality and town of inhabitants () on the southern coast of Finland. It is located from Helsinki and from Porvoo. About 43 per cent of the population is Swedish-speaking.
The municipality c ...
, Finland
*
Novovoronezh, Russia
*
Reichertshofen, Germany
*
Târgu Secuiesc
Târgu Secuiesc (; hu, Kézdivásárhely, ; german: Szekler Neumarkt; la, Neoforum Siculorum) is a city in Covasna County, Transylvania, Romania. It administers one village, Lunga (''Nyujtód'').
History
The town was first mentioned in 1407 a ...
Romania
*
Vyshkovo, Ukraine
See also
*
Forró
The term forró (*) refers to a musical genre, a rhythm, a dance and the event itself where forró music is played and danced. Forró is an important part of the culture of the Northeastern Region of Brazil. It encompasses various dance type ...
for another Bronze Age hoard from Hungary
*
Zsujta for a Bronze Age
hoard
A hoard or "wealth deposit" is an archaeological term for a collection of valuable objects or artifacts, sometimes purposely buried in the ground, in which case it is sometimes also known as a cache. This would usually be with the intention of ...
from northern Hungary
References
External links
* in Hungarian, English and Russian
The jewish community in PaksOn
JewishGen
JewishGen is a non-profit organization founded in 1987 as an international electronic resource for Jewish genealogy. In 2003, JewishGen became an affiliate of the Museum of Jewish Heritage – A Living Memorial to the Holocaust in New York C ...
website.
Populated places in Tolna County
Socialist planned cities
Planned cities in Hungary
Jewish communities in Hungary
Jewish communities destroyed in the Holocaust
{{Tolna-geo-stub