Location
Hungary borders in the north with the Slovak Republic, in the north-east with Ukraine (Transcarpathian region), in the east with Romania, in the south with Croatia and the Republic of Serbia (province Vojvodina), in the south-west with Sloveniaand in the west with Austria (Burgenland).
Hungary lies mainly in the Pannonian basin, which is surrounded by the Alpine mountain system (in the west, north and south). The Hungarian Lowland, which was created by subsidence and is separated by the Hungarian Central Uplands into the Small Hungarian Lowland (Kisalföld) in the north-west and the Great Hungarian Lowland (Alföld) in the east and south, takes up most of the territory.
84% of it is below 200 m and over 14% between 200 and 400 m above sea level. Significant rivers are the Danube, Raab, Drau, Zala and Sió in the western part of the country and the Tisza, Sajó, Maros and Körös in the eastern part of the country. The largest natural lakes are Lake Balaton, Lake Velence and Lake Neusiedl, which only belongs to Hungary with its southern part (the northern part belongs to Austria).
The Danube (Hungarian portion 417 km) with a breakthrough valley near Visegrád divides the Hungarian low mountain range into the western Transdanubian and the eastern Northern Hungarian low mountain range, characterized by deep valleys and karst caves, in which the Kékes of the Matra Mountains at 1,015 m above sea level highest point in Hungary.
South of the Transdanubian low mountain range, the fertile loess plain of the Mezőföld extends between Lake Balaton and the Danube, which slopes steeply to the east to the 50–60 m lower lying Danube valley. The south west of Hungary is taken between the Danube and the Drava by the Transdanubian hill country, from which the Mecsek Mountains (682 m above sea level) rise in the south. On the border with Austria, the Ödenburger and Günser Mountains reach into Hungary from the foothills of the Eastern Alps.
The Hungarian Puszta (World Heritage)
The Hortobágy National Park is the first and, at over 800 km², the largest national park in Hungary. The Pusz Valley landscape is made up of a grass steppe interspersed with fish ponds, reed and water landscapes, swamps along the oxbow lakes of the Tisza and the artificial Lake Tisza. The different natural areas of the national park offer a rich flora and fauna habitat. Characteristic are the traditional forms of agriculture, which are also geared towards saving protected domestic animal breeds from extinction.
The Hungarian puszta: facts
| Official title: | Hortobágy National Park – the »Puszta« |
| Cultural monument: | Around 820 km² national park, for the most part a biosphere reserve; consisting of ao large grass steppe Puszta Nagyivan; Hortobágy fish ponds, 60 km² of artificially created reed and water landscape over the last 100 years; Pusztakosci swamps on the oxbow lakes of the Tisza; Theiss Lake, a reservoir created in the 1970s; numerous dry and aquatic plant species, e.g. T. endemic; Over 300 species of birds, more than 150 of which nest here, including herons, spoonbills, bustards, swallows, ducks; important resting place for migratory birds, more than 50,000 cranes |
| Continent: | Europe |
| Country: | Hungary |
| Location: | 200 km east of Budapest |
| Appointment: | 1999 |
| Meaning: | Cultural landscape with unique flora and fauna; outstanding testimony to more than a thousand years of management |
The Hungarian puszta: history
| 9th century | Settlement of the Magyars in the former meadow landscape |
| 1241 | Invasion of the Mongols, flight of the rural population |
| 1526 | Invasion of the Turks, in the following period deforestation, increasing desertification of the region |
| From 17th century | Extensive sheep grazing |
| Mid 19th century | Drainage of the swamps, river regulation, further desertification and salinization |
| 1827 | Construction of the stone “nine-arch bridge” near Hortobágy |
| 1915 | Creation of fish ponds |
| 1973 | Landscape protection area |
Pécs Cemetery (World Heritage)
According to eningbo, the chapels and burial chambers with their unique frescoes are stone witnesses of the early Christian funeral cult. The »mausoleum«, which was only uncovered in the 1970s, is outstanding. The early Christian cemetery dates from the 4th century.
Pécs cemetery: facts
| Official title: | Early Christian cemetery of Pécs (Fünfkirchen) |
| Cultural monument: | Early Christian cemetery from the 4th century under today’s Cathedral Square; numerous chapels and burial chambers; including the so-called »mausoleum« with an underground burial chamber with painted wall surfaces and a white marble sarcophagus; “Peter and Paul burial chamber”, two-storey barrel vault building with portraits of the apostles Peter and Paul; Walls with numerous frescoes depicting biblical scenes; »Jug burial chamber«, named after the jug representation in a small niche in the northern wall of the chamber with rich decorations on the walls in a geometric shape and plant ornaments to symbolize paradise |
| Continent: | Europe |
| Country: | Hungary |
| Location: | Pécs (Fünfkirchen), Baranaya |
| Appointment: | 2000 |
| Meaning: | Outstanding testimony to the funeral cult of early Christianity; Early Christian cultural property that is unique in its abundance and diversity |
Pécs cemetery: history
| 2nd century | Foundation of the Sopianae settlement by the Romans on the site of today’s Pécs |
| 3rd century | Sopianae capital of the Roman province of Pannonia |
| 313 | Edict of Milan; Sopianae center of early Christianity |
| 381 | Declaration of Christianity as the Roman state religion |
| 1009 | Foundation of the diocese by Stephan I. |
| 11th century | Start of construction of the four-tower cathedral |
| 1543-1686 | Turkish occupation |
| 1782 | Discovery of the Peter and Paul burial chamber |
| 1970 | Discovery of the mausoleum |
