Page 9 - Szeged 2021

The Great Flood of 1879 destroyed Szeged almost completely,

but, thanks to careful planning, the whole city was reborn on

the designers’ drawing table after the disaster. At the turn of the
19th and 20th century, all the competing architectural styles
appeared here and, despite their differences, created a uniquely

harmonious cityscape. The value-preserving modernization of

Kárász Street and Klauzál Square was recognized by the Euro-
„Unique pean architectures with the Europa Nostra Award in 2004. Th is
work was continued with the complete renovation of Kölcsey

Street, Dugonics Square and Somogyi Street. Thus now, the
buildings of the city centre from before the Great Flood - the
sights of Rector’s Office of the University of Szeged, Kárász House, Kiss

Dávid House - and the palaces built in the first years of the 20th
century, such as the Ungar-Mayer Palace, or the Reök Palace,
Szeged” one of the most beautiful Art Nouveau buildings of Europe,
are now located in an eye-catching and modern environment.
Szeged also has several other Art Nouveau buildings: the
Deutsch Palace, the Vadász (Hunter’s) House, the Gróf
Our built heritage (Count’s) Palace, the Református (Calvinist) Palace and the

Móricz House, are great examples of the efforts of this spe-
cial style’s followers to harmonize functionality and beautiful

appearance. The víztorony (Water Tower) in Szent István
Square is a special structure of industrial history, which was
made entirely out of reinforced concrete in 1904, and still serves
its original function. The beautifully restored tower houses a

spectacular exhibition of soda-making tools, and one can see
the view of the city from the top. The tower is surrounded by

the busts of the engineers who greatly determined the cityscape
of Szeged.
The eclectic tenement palaces of the same building height,

the lively Neo-Baroque Town Hall, and the Szeged National
Theatre, give an elegant atmosphere to Széchenyi Square and

its surroundings, while the Castle Ruin, which reminds us of
ancient times, and the neoclassical Közművelődési palota (Pa-
lace of Public Culture - Móra Ferenc Museum) with its antique
symmetry, decorate the banks of the River Tisza.
However, the mixture of styles does not disturb the visitor,
as the generously designed street network and the spacious
squares create unity and rhythm, making the diversity of Szeged
easy to admire.

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