Király Bath or Király fürdő () was a
thermal bath
A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring (hydrology), spring water (sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa health treatments are known as balneotherapy. The belief in the curative powers of mineral waters and Hot spring, ...
that was built in
Hungary
Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much 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 south, Croatia and ...
between 1566-1572, during the time of
Ottoman rule. Its construction was commissioned by
Sokollu Mustafa Pasha who was the longest-serving governor general (1566-1578) of the Ottoman province of
Budin and who built similar baths at
Rudas,
Rác and Veli bej which are also operational in Budapest. The bath and its neighborhood then became part of the consolidated city of
Budapest
Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...
.
The bath receives its water from springs located near the
Lukács Baths
The Lukács Thermal Bath () is a historic indoor/outdoor thermal bath spa in Budapest, Hungary, heated by natural hotsprings, hot springs. All pools and four saunas can be used by all guests except for the optional area of the sauna world, which ...
and Császár baths, which the Turks led into the city via underground pipes.
The bath was sold to the Königs family in the 18th century, who reconstructed the bath in a classicist style. Due to its new ownership, the bath became known as Königsbad, or Király (King) Bath.
It retained many of the key elements of a
Turkish bath
A hammam (), also often called a Turkish bath by Westerners, is a type of steam bath or a place of public bathing associated with the Islamic world. It is a prominent feature in the culture of the Muslim world and was inherited from the model ...
, exemplified by its Turkish dome and octagonal pool. It is located at the corner of Fő utca and Ganz utca. Its address and entrance was Fő utca 82-84 while the exterior of the bath proper is on Ganz utca (domed stone structure).
Components of thermal water included sodium, calcium, magnesium bicarbonate, sulphate-chloride and a significant amount of fluoride ion. The water temperature in the four different pools varied between 26 and 40 °C.
The Király Baths have been closed since 15 March 2020.
The baths are undergoing renovation and are remaining closed until works are completed, for an indefinite period.
The baths were last renovated in the 1800s.
Notes
External links
Official website
*
Thermen in Budapest
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kiraly Baths
Buildings and structures completed in 1572
Ottoman architecture in Hungary
Thermal baths in Budapest
Ottoman baths
Hot springs of Hungary