5 fun facts—things you didn’t know about Buda Castle

Gracefully peeking out from the Buda skyline, the Matthias Church is actually called the Church of the Assumption of the Buda Castle. While it was used as the coronation and wedding site for kings, including Matthias, it also housed a stable and even a mosque over the course of history. The Church of the Assumption of the Buda Castle became associated with King Matthias because he held his wedding there, and commissioned significant renovations. Today, it’s the colourful Zsolnay-tiled roof and the neo-Gothic interior that catch the eye—yet in the Middle Ages it was even more vivid, filled with frescoes and giving the impression of a truly ‘colourful city church.’

Buda Royal Palace already had lifts at a time when they were far from widespread. In the early 20th century, both passenger and food lifts operated here, sparing the need to carry everything up the stairs. After the devastation of World War II, much of Buda Castle was rebuilt. Its current form is, in part, a reconstruction—historically authentic in atmosphere, yet restored in modern times. It may seem like ‘historical cosplay,’ but in reality, it is the result of serious heritage conservation work. Throughout its history, the Buda Castle often faced threats not from weapons, but from epidemics and poor sanitation. In the Middle Ages, wastewater was often simply poured into the streets, which must have been a striking experience within the enclosed castle walls, and it also caused many diseases. Yet this was how things worked across the world at the time.

The Labyrinth of Buda Castle and the cave and cellar system beneath the Castle are like tunnels through time. In the Middle Ages, servants and soldiers moved through the Labyrinth of Buda Castle so as not to disturb the lords above—a kind of ‘backstage’ network operated beneath the surface. However, in the 1950s during the Cold War, part of the tunnels was converted into a secret shelter, complete with thick doors and a ventilation system. It hasn’t been fully mapped even today, which is why closed-off passages and bricked-up sections still occasionally come to light during renovations. Buda Castle seems to jealously guard some of its secrets.

Buda Castle’s 800-year history is full of unexpected twists. By the 18th and 19th centuries, the Castle was no longer just a fortress, but also an elegant residential district. Fewer soldiers, more gardens, cafés and strolling—it was, in fact, a kind of elite residential park of the period. The area around Saint George Square (Szent György tér) became the informal centre of court life. If you wanted to know who had fallen politically or whose favour they had gained, this was where to go and watch.

The microclimate is peculiar too, as ‘up here the weather is always different’ from the rest of the city due to the elevation, stone walls and narrow streets. It is milder in winter and more humid in summer. As you walk along the cobblestones, don’t just take in the panorama. Imagine hens once running about, kings swearing eternal loyalty, soldiers marching, diplomats whispering and engineers installing a lift in the royal palace. Go up the road, turn into the side streets, look down at the Danube and venture underground too!