Facts about Pecs
Pecs is the fifth largest city of Hungary. It is located in the south-west of the country. Pecs is the administrative and economical centre of Baranya county. Pécs has been selected to be the European Capital of Culture in 2010 sharing the title together with Essen and Istanbul. The earliest name for the territory was its Roman name of Sopianæ. The name Sopianæ possibly comes from the plural of the Celtic sop meaning marsh. Contrary to the popular belief, there are no traces of an encircling wall from the Roman era. The medieval city was first mentioned in 871 under the name Quinque Basilicae ("five cathedrals".) The old name of the city i.e. Quinque Basilicae refers to the fact that when constructing the churches of the city, the builders used material from five old Christian chapels. The area has been inhabited since ancient times, with the oldest archaeological findings being 6000 years old. Before the Roman era the place where Pecs is was inhabited by Celts. When Western Hungary was a province of the Roman Empire (named Pannonia), the Romans founded several wine-producing colonies under the collective name of Sopianae where Pécs now stands, in the early 2nd century. When the Hungarians conquered the area of modern-day Hungary in the (late 9th–early 10th century) and founded the comitatus Baranya, the capital of the comitatus was not Pécs but a nearby castle, Baranyavár ("Baranya Castle".) Pécs, however, became an important religious centre and episcopal seat. In 1064 when King Solomon made peace with his cousin, the later King Géza I, they celebrated Easter in Pécs. The cathedral was burnt down in the 11th century and was rebuilt in the same century. In 1181 there was already a hospital in the city. The first Dominican monastery of the country was built in Pécs in 1238. King Louis the Great founded a university in Pécs in 1367 following the advice of William, the bishop of Pécs, who was also the king's chancellor. The founding document is almost word for word identical with that of the University of Vienna, stating that the university has the right to teach all arts and sciences, with the exception of theology. The university founded by King Louis in Pecs was the first university in Hungary. In 1459 Janus Pannonius, the most important medieval poet of Hungary became the bishop of Pécs. He played an important role in strengthening the cultural importance of pecs. After the Battle of Mohács (1526) in which the invading Ottoman army defeated the armies of King Louis II, the armies of Suleiman occupied and pillaged Pécs. In the summer of 1527 Ferdinand defeated the armies of Szapolyai and was crowned king on November 3. In 1529 the Ottomans captured Pécs again. After occupying the city the Ottomans fortified it and turned it into a real Ottoman city. The Christian churches were turned into mosques; Turkish baths and minarets were built, Quran schools were founded, there was a bazaar in place of the market. The city was ruled by Muslim officials according to the Sharia law. For a hundred years the city was an island of peace in a land of war. According to the first census of Pecs which was held in 1787 by the order of Joseph II there were 1474 houses and 1834 families in Pécs, a total of 8853 residents, of which 133 were priests and 117 were noblemen. In 1785 the Academy of Gyor was moved to Pécs. This academy eventually evolved into a law school. The first stonework theatre of the city was built in 1839. During the revolution in 1848–49 Pécs was occupied by Croatian armies for a short time, but it was freed from them by Habsburg armies in January 1849. During World War II Pécs suffered only minor damages, even though a large tank-battle took place 20–25 km south of the city, close to the Villány area late in the war, when the advancing Red Army fought its way towards Austria. Zoltán Gera, the football player was born in Pecs. János Horvay, the sculptor was also born in Pecs. Joe Rudán, the singer was born in Pecs. |
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