Várpalota (; German: Burgschloß) is a town 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 ...

, in the Transdanubian county of

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 ...

. It was a

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

town during the

Socialist Socialism is an economic ideology, economic and political philosophy encompassing diverse Economic system, economic and social systems characterised by social ownership of the means of production, as opposed to private ownership. It describes ...

era, but the mines have been closed. Most of the citizens work in the nearby cities,

Székesfehérvár Székesfehérvár (; ; ; ; Serbian language, Serbian: ''Стони Београд''; ), known colloquially as Fehérvár (), is a city in central Hungary, and the country's ninth-largest city. It is the Regions of Hungary, regional capital of C ...

History

The town's origins are linked to the

Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of Roman civilization *Epistle to the Romans, shortened to Romans, a letter w ...

and Avar periods, as testified verified by

burial mound Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

s, tombstones and Roman artifacts in the outskirts of the town, some of which can be found in the lapidary of Thury Castle. In the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

it was a flourishing market town. It was successfully besieged by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

in October 1593 during the

Long Turkish War The Long Turkish War (, ), Long War (; , ), or Thirteen Years' War was an indecisive land war between the Holy Roman Empire (primarily the Habsburg monarchy) and the Ottoman Empire, primarily over the principalities of Wallachia, Transylvania, ...

. In the 20th century it became a center for coal mining.

Main sights

*The Thury castle, located in the heart of the town. It was commanded, among the others, by

György Thury György () is a Hungarian version of the name ''George''. Some notable people with this given name: * György Alexits (1899–1978), Hungarian mathematician * György Almásy (1867–1933), Hungarian asiologist, traveler, zoologist and ethnogra ...

. It is currently home to the Museum of

Chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

, and the collection of the memories of

coal mining Coal mining is the process of resource extraction, extracting coal from the ground or from a mine. Coal is valued for its Energy value of coal, energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to Electricity generation, generate electr ...

. Concerts and theatre performances are held there every summer. *The old Catholic church, home to Romanesque and early-

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, a Germanic people **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Gothic alphabet, an alphabet used to write the Gothic language ** Gothic ( ...

fresco Fresco ( or frescoes) is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaster, the painting become ...

s in a particularly good condition. One of the World War I memorials erected in those days and destroyed in the tempests of the history can be found here. *Jó Szerencsét (Good Luck) Community Centre, which houses four large-sized

Gobelin Gobelin was the name of a family of dyers, who in all probability came originally from Reims, France, and who in the middle of the 15th century established themselves in the Faubourg Saint Marcel, Paris, on the banks of the Bièvre. The first ...

works of

Noémi Ferenczy Noémi Ferenczy (18 June 1890 – 20 December 1957) was a Hungarian artist, best known for her tapestry designs. She wove her own tapestries, and was influenced by the Nagybánya art movement. She was born in Szentendre, the twin sister of sculpt ...

. The one-man exhibition of Frigyes Matzon, one of the significant representatives of

constructivism Constructivism may refer to: Art and architecture * Constructivism (art), an early 20th-century artistic movement that extols art as a practice for social purposes * Constructivist architecture, an architectural movement in the Soviet Union in t ...

can be visited in the nearby Nagy Gyula Gallery, which was converted from a

synagogue A synagogue, also called a shul or a temple, is a place of worship for Jews and Samaritans. It is a place for prayer (the main sanctuary and sometimes smaller chapels) where Jews attend religious services or special ceremonies such as wed ...

. *Baroque Reformed church with its irregularly arched western façade. It was built on the walls of the formerly Hussar Castle. It houses the memorial plaque of Mária Molnár. *Zichy Castle. The library-room with its wooden cover and its

s recalling mythological ages, is a regular place of cultural events. It also includes the Zichy-Chapel and the altar carved from sandstone in the Catholic cemetery. Among the graves are the memorial of militiaman

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...

s of the Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence belonging to the earl's family. *Memorials of the Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence in 1848–49, of the World War heroes and victims, of the heroes of

Revolution In political science, a revolution (, 'a turn around') is a rapid, fundamental transformation of a society's class, state, ethnic or religious structures. According to sociologist Jack Goldstone, all revolutions contain "a common set of elements ...

in 1956.

Twin towns – sister cities

Várpalota is twinned with: *

Bad Nauheim Bad Nauheim () is a town in the Wetteraukreis district of Hesse state of Germany. As of 2020, Bad Nauheim has a population of 32,493. The town is approximately north of Frankfurt am Main, on the east edge of the Taunus mountain range. It is a w ...

, Germany *

Borgo San Lorenzo Borgo San Lorenzo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Florence in the Italy, Italian region Tuscany, located about northeast of Florence. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 18,085 and an area of .All demograph ...

, Italy *

Collesalvetti Collesalvetti is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Livorno in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southwest of Florence, northeast of Livorno and only south from Pisa. Geography Collesalvetti borders the following municipalit ...

, Italy *

Fermo Fermo (; ancient: Firmum Picenum) is a town and ''comune'' of the Marche, Italy, in the Province of Fermo. Fermo is on a hill, the Sabulo, elevation , on a branch from Porto San Giorgio on the Adriatic coast railway. History The oldest huma ...

, Italy *

Grottazzolina Grottazzolina is a town and comune in the province of Fermo, in the Marche region of Italy. Twin towns - twin cities * Várpalota Várpalota (; German: Burgschloß) is a town in Western Hungary, in the Transdanubian county of Veszprém (county) ...

, Italy *

Kremnica Kremnica (; , ) is a town in central Slovakia. It has around 5,300 inhabitants. The well-preserved medieval town built above important gold mines is the site of the oldest still-working mint in the world. Name The name is derived from Slovak '' ...

, Slovakia *

Laukuva Laukuva ( Samogitian: ''Laukova'') is a town in Šilalė district municipality, Tauragė County, Lithuania. According to the 2011 census, the town has a population of 832 people. Climate Laukuva has a humid continental climate (Köppen Köppen i ...

, Lithuania *

Montegiorgio Montegiorgio is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Fermo in the Italy, Italian region Marche, located about south of Ancona and about north of Ascoli Piceno. Montegiorgio borders the following municipalities: Belmonte Piceno, Faleron ...

, Italy * Petroşani, Romania *

Rychnov nad Kněžnou Rychnov nad Kněžnou (; ) is a town in the Hradec Králové Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 11,000 inhabitants. The historic town centre is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument zones, urban m ...

, Czech Republic *

Sant'Elpidio a Mare Sant'Elpidio a Mare is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Fermo, in the Marche region of Italy. Geography Sant'Elpidio a Mare is located on a ridge of Marche Apennine, elevation above sea level, between the lower river valleys of the ri ...

, Italy *

Slovenj Gradec Slovenj Gradec (; '', ''after about 1900 ''Windischgraz'') is a town in northern Slovenia. It is the centre of the Urban Municipality of Slovenj Gradec. It is part of the historical Styria region, and since 2005 it has belonged to the NUTS-3 C ...

, Slovenia * Wolfsberg, Austria Várpalota also maintains friendly relations with: * Casper, Wyoming, United States *

Cupramontana Cupramontana is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Ancona in the Italian region Marche, located about southwest of Ancona. Cupramontana borders the following municipalities: Apiro, Maiolati Spontini, Mergo, Monte Roberto, Rosora, ...

, Italy *

Hanušovice Hanušovice () is a town in Šumperk District in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 2,900 inhabitants. The Holba brewery is located in the town. Administrative division Hanušovice consists of five municipal parts (in brackets ...

, Czech Republic *

Ilok Ilok () is the easternmost town in Croatia forming a geographic salient surrounded by Vojvodina. Located in the Syrmia region, it lies on the Fruška Gora hill overlooking the Danube river, which forms the border with the Bačka region of Serbi ...

, Croatia *

Jesi Jesi () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Ancona, in the Italian region of Marche. It is an important industrial and artistic center in the floodplain on the left (north) bank of the Esino river, before its mouth on the Adria ...

, Italy *

Osimo Osimo is a town and ''comune'' of the Marche region of Italy, in the province of Ancona. The municipality covers a hilly area located approximately south of the port city of Ancona and the Adriatic Sea. History The oldest archaeological evide ...

, Italy * Paşcani, Romania * Prelog, Croatia *

Viesīte Viesīte (; ) is a town in the western part of Jēkabpils Municipality in the Selonia region of Latvia. The population in 2020 was 1,500. Viesīte is a typical Selonia town located in the hills in the centre of the district. Selonia is a cultura ...

, Latvia

References

External links

Várpalota Home Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Varpalota Populated places in Veszprém County Socialist planned cities Planned communities in Hungary