Veszprém was an administrative county (
comitatus
Comitatus may refer to:
*Comitatus (warband), a Germanic warband who follow a leader
* ''Comitatus'', the office of a Roman or Frankish comes, translated as count.
* ''Comitatus'', translated as county, a territory such as governed by medieval cou ...
) of the
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...
. Its territory, which was smaller than that of present
Veszprém county
Veszprém (, ; ) is an administrative county (''vármegye'') in Hungary. Veszprém is also the name of the capital city of Veszprém county.
Veszprém county
Veszprém county lies in western Hungary. It covers the Bakony hills and the norther ...
, in western
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 ...
. The capital of the county was
Veszprém
Veszprém (; , , , ) is one of the oldest urban areas in Hungary, and a city with county rights. It lies approximately north of the Lake Balaton. It is the administrative center of the county of the same name.
Etymology
The city's name derives ...
.
Geography
Veszprém county shared borders with the Hungarian counties
Vas,
Sopron
Sopron (; , ) is a city in Hungary on the Austrian border, near Lake Neusiedl/Lake Fertő.
History
Ancient times-13th century
In the Iron Age a hilltop settlement with a burial ground existed in the neighbourhood of Sopron-Várhely.
When ...
,
Győr
Győr ( , ; ; names of European cities in different languages: E-H#G, names in other languages) is the main city of northwest Hungary, the capital of Győr-Moson-Sopron County and Western Transdanubia, Western Transdanubia region, and – halfwa ...
,
Komárom,
Fejér,
Tolna,
Somogy and
Zala. It covered the
Bakony
Bakony () is a mountainous region in Transdanubia, Hungary. It forms the largest part of the Transdanubian Mountains. It is located north of Lake Balaton and lies almost entirely in Veszprém county.
The Bakony is divided into the Northern and ...
hills, the eastern tip of
Lake Balaton
Lake Balaton () is a freshwater rift lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lake in Central Europe, and one of the region's foremost tourist destinations. The Zala River provides the larges ...
and the region southeast of the lake. The river
Marcal
The Marcal is a right tributary of the Rába which rises near Sümeg in the Bakony region of western Hungary. The river flows north and reaches Ukk on the Little Hungarian Plain. The Marcal follows a path similar to the Rába, and in many pla ...
formed its western border. Its area was 3953 km
2 around 1910.
History
Veszprém county arose as one of the first ''comitatuses'' of the Kingdom of Hungary, in the 11th century.
The city
Siófok
Siófok (; ; ) is a town in Somogy County, Hungary on the southern bank of Lake Balaton. It is the Somogy County#Municipalities, second largest municipality in Somogy County and the seat of Siófok District. It covers an area of about between Lak ...
, which used to be in
Somogy county before the 1850s, went back from Veszprém county to Somogy county before
World War II
World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. After World War II, the territory of Veszprém county was again modified: a small region west of
Pápa, which used to be part of Vas county, and the northern shore of
Lake Balaton
Lake Balaton () is a freshwater rift lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lake in Central Europe, and one of the region's foremost tourist destinations. The Zala River provides the larges ...
, which used to be part of
Zala county, were added. The region south-east of
Lake Balaton
Lake Balaton () is a freshwater rift lake in the Transdanubian region of Hungary. It is the List of largest lakes of Europe, largest lake in Central Europe, and one of the region's foremost tourist destinations. The Zala River provides the larges ...
(around
Enying) went to
Fejér county.
Demographics
1900
In 1900, the county had a population of 222,024 people and was composed of the following linguistic communities:
Total:
*
Hungarian: 187,160 (84,3%)
*
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
: 32,522 (14,6%)
*
Slovak: 1,758 (0,8%)
*
Romanian: 121 (0,1%)
*
Croatian: 35 (0,0%)
*
Serbian: 4 (0,0%)
*
Ruthenian: 2 (0,0%)
* Other or unknown: 422 (0,2%)
According to the census of 1900, the county was composed of the following religious communities:
Total:
*
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
: 143,192 (64,5%)
*
Calvinist
Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...
: 44,820 (20,2%)
*
Lutheran
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
: 24,393 (11,0%)
*
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
: 9,343 (4,2%)
*
Greek Catholic Greek Catholic Church or Byzantine-Catholic Church may refer to:
* The Catholic Church in Greece
* The Eastern Catholic Churches
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also known as the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Ea ...
: 78 (0,0%)
*
Greek Orthodox
Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Rom ...
: 98 (0,1%)
*
Unitarian: 52 (0,0%)
* Other or unknown: 48 (0,0%)
1910
In 1910, the county had a population of 229,776 people and was composed of the following linguistic communities:
Total:
*
Hungarian: 199,063 (86.63%)
*
German
German(s) may refer to:
* Germany, the country of the Germans and German things
**Germania (Roman era)
* Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language
** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
: 29,283 (12.74%)
*
Slovak: 917 (0.4%)
*
Croatian: 55 (0.02%)
*
Romanian: 41 (0.02%)
*
Serbian: 17 (0.01%)
*
Ruthenian: 5 (0.0%)
* Other or unknown: 395 (0.17%)
According to the census of 1910, the county was composed of the following religious communities:
Total:
*
Roman Catholic
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
: 151,831 (66.08%)
*
Calvinist
Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...
: 44,507 (19.37%)
*
Lutheran
Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...
: 24,905 (10.84%)
*
Jewish
Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...
: 8,282 (3.6%)
*
Greek Catholic Greek Catholic Church or Byzantine-Catholic Church may refer to:
* The Catholic Church in Greece
* The Eastern Catholic Churches
The Eastern Catholic Churches or Oriental Catholic Churches, also known as the Eastern-Rite Catholic Churches, Ea ...
: 106 (0.05%)
*
Greek Orthodox
Greek Orthodox Church (, , ) is a term that can refer to any one of three classes of Christian Churches, each associated in some way with Greek Christianity, Levantine Arabic-speaking Christians or more broadly the rite used in the Eastern Rom ...
: 61 (0.03%)
*
Unitarian: 57 (0.02%)
* Other or unknown: 27 (0.01%)
Subdivisions
In the early 20th century, the subdivisions of Veszprém county were:
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Veszprem County (Former)
Counties in the Kingdom of Hungary