Why it's the capital
Buda became the capital of Hungary in 1361. The separate cities of Buda, Óbuda and Pest were officially joined into one city, Budapest, in 1873.
Budapest
Capital of HungaryBudapest stands on the Danube at the centre of the Pannonian Basin. Hilly Buda lies on the western bank, and Pest spreads across a flat plain on the eastern bank.
Fun facts
- In 1896, Budapest opened the first underground railway line on the European continent, which is still in use as line M1.
- About 125 thermal springs produce some 70 million litres of warm water a day, at up to 58 °C.
- The Romans built a town here called Aquincum, which became the main city of the province of Pannonia Inferior in 106 AD; its site is in the Óbuda district.
Finding it on the globe
Follow the Danube downstream from Vienna and Bratislava: the next capital on the river is Budapest, about 216 km south-east of Vienna by car.
Easy to mix up
Budapest is often confused with Bucharest, the capital of Romania. Budapest is the capital of Hungary, split in two by the Danube.
Sources: Wikipedia: Budapest, Wikipedia: Danube