The Dark Gate (or alternatively Dark Portal,
Hungarian: ''Sötétkapu'') is a tunnel located under the artificial slopes of Castle Hill near
St. Adalbert's Basilica in
Esztergom
Esztergom ( ; german: Gran; la, Solva or ; sk, Ostrihom, known by alternative names) is a city with county rights in northern Hungary, northwest of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom County, on the right bank of the river Dan ...
,
Hungary
Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the ...
.
The tunnel is 90 metres long and follows the line of the castle's former eastern walls. The entire tunnel is
vaulted
In architecture, a vault (French ''voûte'', from Italian ''volta'') is a self-supporting arched form, usually of stone or brick, serving to cover a space with a ceiling or roof. As in building an arch, a temporary support is needed while ring ...
and built in
Neo-classical style.
History
Construction of the Dark Gate started in 1824 by
Alexander Rudnay,
Archbishop of Esztergom, two years after the foundation stones of St. Adalbert's Basilica were laid. It became known as Dark Gate due to the lack of lighting. The main purpose of the tunnel was to directly connect the
Canonic houses with the
Seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...
, but it also connects the
Szentgyörgymező neighborhood with downtown Esztergom. Above the southern entrance, a
Latin
Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
sign carved in
red marble commemorates Archbishop Rudnay and the year of construction: "PRINCEPS PRIMAS ALEXANDER A RUDNA MDCCCXXIV" ("
Prince Primate Alexander Rudnay 1824"). From both sides of the tunnel, a huge 3700 m²
wine cellar
A wine cellar is a storage room for wine in bottles or barrels, or more rarely in carboys, amphorae, or plastic containers. In an ''active'' wine cellar, important factors such as temperature and humidity are maintained by a climate control system ...
opens, where the wines of the
Archdiocese of Esztergom
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associate ...
were kept.
During the
1956 revolution, significant events occurred in Esztergom. On 26 October 1956, fourteen people died in the Dark Gate when a
T-34
The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank introduced in 1940. When introduced its 76.2 mm (3 in) tank gun was less powerful than its contemporaries while its 60-degree sloped armour provided good protection against anti-tank weapons. The C ...
tank shot into a bus heading towards the seminary, which was used as a Russian military facility at the time.
The Dark Gate, the seminary, and its surroundings were completely renovated by 2006, the 150th anniversary of the dedication of the cathedral.
Architectural lighting
Architectural lighting design is a field of work or study that is concerned with the design of lighting systems within the built environment, both interior and exterior. It can include manipulation and design of both daylight and electr ...
was added to both the basilica and the tunnel.
One-way traffic is allowed from the seminary to downtown Esztergom.
Gallery
image:Esztergom.tabla.1956.JPG, Commemorative plaque with the names of people who died in 1956 in the tunnel
image:Esztergom.sotetkapu.JPG, The southern entrance from downtown
image:Esztergom-Bazilika+Sotetkapu.JPG, The cathedral and the northern entrance
image:Esztergom-Dark Gate+Wine Cellar.JPG, A door to the wine cellar at the end of the tunnel
image:Sotetkapu.JPG
References
Komárom-Esztergom megye műemlékjegyzéke*Kovács László: Az 1956-os forradalom története Esztergomban
*https://web.archive.org/web/20110520141422/http://www.privatbankar.hu/html/cikk/cikk.php?kommentar=25192
{{coord, 47, 47, 58.4, N, 18, 44, 16, E, region:HU_type:landmark, display=title
Tunnels in Hungary
Buildings and structures in Esztergom