Gyngys [] is a town in Heves county in Hungary, 80 km (50 mi) east of Budapest.

Situated at the foot of the Sr-hegy and Mtra mountains, it is the home of numerous food
production plants, including milk production and sausage factories. It is also the home of
many vineyards on the slopes of the Srhegy.
The Art-Nouveau and Baroque buildings around the main square were reconstructed after a
disastrous fire started in the local hospital in 1917,[1] destroying a number of buildings.[2]
The meaning of the town's name is "Made of Pearls"; Croats from Hungary call this
city unu (pronounced as "Dyun-dyush"). The 16-17th century historian Mikls Istvnffy wrote
that the name of the town comes from the Hungarian word for mistletoe (fagyngyliterally "wood-
pearl"), which is abundant in the local woods.

The town was built in attractive natural surroundings at the foot of the Mtra mountains. It is
the second largest town of Heves county and is situated about 80 kilometres from Budapest.
Today it is a cultural and touristic centre of the Mtra Region. In the past it used to be a
market town. King Charles Robert gave this status in 1334. Wine production was and is still
famous. The Franciscan Order moved into the town in the 14th century. Between 1546 and
1687 Gyngys was under Turkish rule. The towns real development started after the Turks
had been banished. Buildings built in baroque style characterised the towns image. At the
turn of the century public services were introduced, new roads were built, trees started to be
planted and the town was getting prettier. In 1917 a huge fire broke out and set the town in
flames. The rebuilding of Gyngys started after the First World War. The result of this is the
towns attractive looks today. Those days there were carriages drown by horses today people
use modern cars. People wore old fashioned clothes, now they wear fashionable clothes. The
buildings were smaller and traditional, now there are a lot of block of flats. Today it is a busy
town with lots of entertainment and shopping facilities. The sights worth visiting are the Big
church, Main square, The Mtra Museum and The Franciscan church. Students can choose
from several schools. Unfortunately, there are traffic jams in the rush hour and the exhaust
fumes cause pollution. Most cities face the same problem.

Gyngys, the second largest town of Heves county, the Gate of the Mtra is located at the
meeting of the Great Hungarian Plain s northern border and the looming Mtras southern
slopes covered with woods. The town is the cultural, economic and tourist centre of the region
north-east from Budapest.

The name of the town is first mentioned as Gungus in 1261 then King Charles Robert granted
Gyngys the status of a town in 1334 giving its inhabitants privileges. Owing to winemaking and
viniculture, the trade routes crossing the town and the permanent market place, the town began
flourishing soon also thanked for the Franciscans settled here.
From 1546 to 1687 Gyngys was occupied by the Turks but enjoyed a relatively high degree of
protection since it became the private property of the Sultans viniculture and commerce, especially
wine trading throve further here.
At the beginning of the 17th century industrial guilds appeared. The town played a significant role in
the War of Independence led by Ferenc Rkczi II. By that time most houses of the town had already
been built in Baroque style.
Although viniculture and wine trading of the town and its surroundings were destroyed by phylloxera in
the 1880s, supplying with public services started, new roads were built, the whole town was beautified
and prospered at the turn of the century. On 21 May 1917 a spark from the hospitals washhouse set
fire and the disastrous conflagration enveloped the town destroying 549 houses and 1400
outbuildings.11 people died in the catastrophe and 8000 citizens were made homeless. As there was
a lack of water, it was transported from Vmosgyrk by train, the inhabitants tried to douse the flames
with wine as well. Two days after the fire King Charles IV and his wife visited the town and made law
to rebuild it moreover he gave financial assistance too. The whole country wanted to help Gyngys
with donations to reconstruct the town, which began following the plans of Lszl Warga, professor of
architecture after the World War I. This reconstruction work offered Gyngys the present-day skyline.
After 1945 the town expanded over the centre and new housing estates were built in the greenbelt so
the relatively small downtown retained its charming atmosphere.
Sightseeing
We start our sightseeing at the centre of the town, the Main Square used to be called Market Place for
centuries. It had been rebuilt first after the Great Fire of Gyngys in 1917 then the square gained its
present appearance in 2000. The previous Town Hall located at the old market place besides the
landowners and wealthy citizens houses of middle aged origin . These renovated buildings provide
that particular, unified, peaceful townscape nowhere else can be seen in Hungary. The two storey
Baroque building of the former Grassalkovich Mansion at 10 Main Square now houses the Town
Library. In the gallery upstairs the permanent exhibition of paintings by Hermann Lipt and the Lajos
Huszr Coin Collection are on display. Throwing a glance at the gate above we can see the
ornamental Baroque coat of arms of Grassalkovich family.
On the other side we come to 11 Main Square, the classical building of the Orczy family which
conceals particular values. The excavated Gothic hall of it is the oldest secular architectural relic. The
neighbouring house at no.13 is the Town Hall .On its facade is the coat of arms of the town. Its
relevant motifs the golden Sun, the human faced Moon and the wolf - decorate three of those four
fountains placed in the corners of the square. The significant motif of the fourth fountain in the south-
east corner is grape referring to the Town of Grapes and Wine title was gained in 1984. The renewed
ancient well situated in the south depicts the coat of arms of the twin towns of Gyngys- Ringsted in
Denmark, Zeltweg in Austria, Kzdivsrhely in Romania, Pieksamakki in Finland and Sanok in
Poland. The fountains as well as the well were made during the renovation in 2000, which was
awarded Hild prize.
Going along 150 meters in Zsigmond Mricz Street from the square to the south in a little park you can
see the statue Hussar Looking at His Sword by Zsigmond Kisfaludy Strbl made in 1932 .It was
erected in memory of The Wrtenberg hussars who fought in the eastern battle-line during the World
War 1. Names of settlements of Galicia can be read on the pedestal of the statue.
Walking along Rzsa then Sndor Krsi Csoma Street to the bank of Gyngys Stream there is the
Baroque building designed by Jakab Fellner, which was originally the barracks of Ndor hussars led
by Gbor Hertelendy from 1800 is now known as the County Hall. The last residents here were the
Wrtenberg hussars earlier mentioned. Its present-day appearance was gained in 1929 when the
Ministry of Agriculture bought the building to use as a state stud-farm. This is the reason why it is
commonly called Csdrs (Stallion) Barrack . Before continuing walking take a closer look at the
facade of the building, the ancient coat of arms of Heves County.
Opposite the County Hall on the other side of the stream bank there is the classical building of the old
Synagogue built by Kroly Rbl , the son of the town between 1816-1820.It is now occupied by the
local television. On the wall of the building a nice commemorative plaque to the memory of Jewish
victims of World War II can be seen .The neighbouring new synagogue was constructed by Lipt
Baumhorn and Gyrgy Somogyi in 1930. In the centre of the cathedral- like building is the huge dome.
The donkey- spined doors and windows, the entablatures and several little cupolas make the building
so splendid. Tragically the great majority of 2071 Gyngys Jews- counted in 1941- fell victim to the
holocaust in Auschwitz therefore the building has not been used as a synagogue any more .
Retracing your steps to the Main Square down rpd Puky Street next to the Town Hall and the Orczy
Mansion there is the former Heves County General Bank Cos building at no.9 constructed by Valr
Mende in 1911 which was one of the first ferro-concrete buildings of Hungary now houses the
Hungarian Army Casino.
The building at no.8 was the residence of Jnos Almsy, the sub-prefect of Heves county. As the
memorial plaque says the inhabitants of the county gathered here after Almsys summons in October
1703 to join the Rkczi s War of Independence. During the last 200 years the building has been
renovated several times but from 1883 the house was owned by Kolos Hank, a supreme court judge
who was the freeman of Gyngys. His HK monogram can be seen on the wrought iron railing of the
balcony.
The former residence of Ferenc Rkczi II stood at no.2 where the prince held peace negotiations with
Pl Szchenyi, the son of the town, the archbishop of Kalocsa in 1704.Only a stone door frame of the
original building from 1731 was preserved . The house was replaced by the Commercial and
Corporate Bank Cos mansion designed by Dezs Frend but the entrance keeps the memory of the
prince and the historical events.
In the northern part of the square at a four-road crossing stands the impressive two-steepled Saint
Bartholomew Parish Church, the Big Church, of which present form is in baroque style. In its place
once was a much smaller church in the second half of the 13th century. It was reconstructed first by
Tams Szchenyi, a nobleman of the town around 1300 then at the end of the 15th century it was
rebuilt as one of the biggest gothic halled churches of Hungary. The only remaining parts of the gothic
church are the large twin windows on both sides of the apse and the relic of the former bell tower wall
built to the southern aisle. The old gothic church was reconstructed in baroque style between 1746
and 1756. The steeples were added later, the northern one between 1772 and 1773 while the
southern one in 1815. During the great fire of 1917 the building was seriously damaged. Although it
was partly restored soon but the huge steeples still need restoration. The painting of the baroque main
altar shows the martyrdom of Saint Bartholomew, the patron saint of the church. The treasured rarity
of the church is the gothic bronze baptizing pool from the 15th century standing on the southern side
of the shrine.
Opposite the western main entrance of Saint Bartholomew Church King Charles Roberts full statue by
Pl K stands on a column on a round paved square built in 2000. The towns coat of arms and the
starting lines of the certificate granting the town rights to the settlement can be read on the column.
The statue was raised by the town for the 650th anniversary of Gyngys being declared a town. The
statue of Saint Stephen, the first Hungarian king by Pl K was made for the 1000th anniversary of the
state foundation . The lion headed well by Istvn Mt stands behind the statues. Its carvings show
the most significant events of the towns history.
Right behind the Saint Bartholomew church is the one storey baroque building of the former Jesuit
then Fransiscan Grammar School today Jnos Ptzay Music School. The first grammar school of the
town was built in the 17th century, the new baroque building was constructed a century later.
At 3 Szent Bertalan Street stands the former Almssy mansion which is known today as the House of
the Holy Crown. The Holy Crown of Hungary was guarded here three times between 1806 and 1809.
The building is today the presbytery of Saint Bartholomew and houses the unique treasury of the
church collected for centuries. During the World War II while the Soviet troops were staying in the town
three priests hid the treasure under the southern steeple. Then the last living priest told the secret
before dying in 1967.
This is the third richest and most considerable church exhibition of Hungary where one can see
several chasubles, books, statues and goldsmiths work of which twelve pieces are from the medieval
period. The so-called pinhead chalices are unique examples of Hungarian goldsmiths art.
From the treasury going along the memorial to the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 we continue our
walking in Lajos Kossuth Street. At the beginning of it is the neo-baroque building of the Fire Station
designed by Gyula Walder between 1924-1925 with the statue of Saint Florian.
On the corner of Mtrai Street and Kossuth Street stands the former Orczy Mansion today Mtra
Museum. The baroque building built in the 18th century gained its present- day classicist facade in
1826 by Lrinc Zofahl. The one- storey building fully renovated in 2005 is surrounded by a beautiful
park which is guarded by two lions standing at the entrance. The biggest, nearly 200 years old Turkish
hazel of Hungary can be found in the park as well. The museums exhibitions present the history of the
town, the flora and fauna of the Mtra and the history of hunting. This is Hungarys second largest
natural science museum with its paleontological, geological and zoological collections. Apart from
these, it is best known for the completely preserved mammoth skeleton found in 1949.
At the crossing of Lajos Kossuth Street and Kohry Street is the Saint Elisabeths church. The
medieval building was renovated in 1994 when the crypt under the shrine was excavated. Its material
can be seen in the Mtra Museum.
To the south from the church is the former hospital of the town where mostly the poor and the ill were
cured then it was used by a school for almost one and a half century.
In front of the beautiful eclectic building of the Wine Palace stands Sndor Kliegls bronze work ,the
Hoers of Gyngys, as a reminder of the vineyard workers of Gyngys. Today this is the largest
winery of the town.
In the south-east part of the town centre on Bartok Square is the Franciscan Church and Monastery .
According to the local traditions the Franciscan monks settled in Gyngys in the 14th century and
finished building the gothic construction of the church in 1494.It was demolished several times in the
past but the order rebuilt it each time. In the 18th century the church was reconstructed by the famous
Italian architect, Giovanni Battista Carlone in baroque style but retained its gothic character with a
single nave. The monastery was also built between 1701 and 1727 as one of the largest Franciscan
monastery of Hungary. The roof , the two steeples and the monastery itself were damaged by the fire
of 1904. The renovation was lead by Frigyes Schulek and Klmn Lux. Inside the building is the 18th
century chapel and altar of the Mater Dolorosa under the second window of the nave. Above the altar
there is the statue of the Golden Pieta, made in 1680, which has been revered by the locals for
centuries. On the southern wall of the shrine is the red marble plaque to the memory of Jnos Vak
Bottyn, Prince Ferenc Rkczis most appreciated general since, according to chronicles, he was
buried here.
Entering the ornamented monastery entrance leading to the southern part one can see the inestimable
Franciscan Monastic Library with its 16000 volumes, codices and early printed books. This is one of
the oldest and continuously functioning order library of Hungary.
On the southern side of Bartok Square stands the Pearls Mtra Cultural Centre built in 1978. In the
assembly hall is the huge stained glass window made by Gbor Szinte describing the phoenix rising
from the ashes .This represents the whole history of Gyngys and the Mtra as the town has always
revived after several fire .