Szeged

Szeged, city with county status and seat of Csongrád megye (county), southeastern Hungary. It lies on the Tisza River, west (downstream) of its confluence with the Maros and a few miles from the intersection of Hungary, Romania, and Serbia.

Szeged was a military stronghold and trade centre in the time of the Árpád kings (10th–15th century) and was sacked by the Tatars and the Turks. Flourishing as a centre of commerce, it was one of Hungary’s largest cities in the early 16th century, though it suffered under Turkish rule in the late 16th century and under Austrian rule from the late 17th century. Industry boosted the city’s fortunes in the 19th century.

Szeged was replanned after the devastating flood of 1879, with concentric boulevards and radial avenues. It has since been protected by dikes. Újszeged (New Szeged) is on the left bank opposite the main Tisza bridge. The large principal square, Széchényitér, is flanked by the strikingly unusual Neo-Baroque town hall (1883) and by public buildings. The oldest relics are the remains of the 13th-century tower of St. Demetrius, discovered when an 18th-century church was demolished in 1924, and the Alsóvárosi Templom in Alsóváros (Lower Town). The city has a notable cathedral, the twin-spired Votive Church (1912–29). Since 1931 an open-air theatre and music festival have been held in front of the Votive Church.

The city is home to Hungary’s arguably most prestigious institution of higher learning, the University of Szeged, which provides an educational base that has helped transform Szeged into one of the country’s most important centres for research and development, especially in the fields of life sciences, biotechnology, laser technology, and information technology. The Biological Research Center of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences is also located in Szeged. Opened in 1883, the Neo-Baroque Szeged National Theatre stages performances of drama, dance, and opera. Szeged is also famous for its paprika and salami. Pop. (2011) 168,048; (2019 est.) 160,766.