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Founding
Founding of Miskolc
city in Northeastern Hungary
- 1365
- Europe
Founding
city in Northeastern Hungary
Fetching the article from Wikipedia…
Miskolc ( MEESH-kolts, MISH-kohlts; Hungarian: [ˈmiʃkolt͡s] ⓘ; Czech and Slovak: Miškovec; German: Mischkolz; Yiddish: Mishkoltz; Romanian: Mișcolț) is a city in northeastern Hungary, known for its heavy industry. With a population of 143,502 as of 2024, Miskolc is the fourth largest city in Hungary, behind Budapest, Debrecen, and Szeged. It is also the county capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and the regional centre of Northern Hungary.
The name derives from Miško, Slavic form of Michael. Miškovec → Miskolc with the same development as Lipovec → Lipólc, Lipóc. The name is associated with the Miskolc clan (also Miskóc or Myscouch, Slovak Miškovec, plural Miškovci) named after the settlement or vice versa. Earliest mentions are que nunc vocatur Miscoucy (around 1200), de Myschouch (1225), Ponyt de genere Myscouch (1230), in Miscovcy (1245).
The city lies at the meeting point of different geographical regions – east of the Bükk mountains, in the valley of the river Sajó and the streams Hejő and Szinva. According to the 2001 Census the city has a total area of 236.68 km2 (91.38 sq mi). The ground level slopes gradually; the difference between the highest and lowest area is about 800 m (2,600 ft).
The lowest areas are the banks of the river Sajó, with an altitude of 110–120 m (360–390 ft). The area belongs to the Great Plain region and is made up of sedimentary rocks. Between the Avas hill and Diósgyőr lies the hilly area of the Lower Bükk (250–300 m or 820–980 ft) consisting of sandstone, marl, clay, layers of coal, from the tertiary period, and volcanic rocks from the Miocene.
The Central Bükk, a gently sloping mountainous area with an altitude between 400 and 600 m (1,300 and 2,000 ft), is situated between Diósgyőr and Lillafüred; the area is made up of limestone, slate, dolomite and other rocks from the Triassic period. The surface was formed mostly by karstic erosions.
The highest area, the 600–900 m (2,000–3,000 ft) high Higher Bükk bore Bükk Highlands begin at Lillafüred. This mostly consists of sea sediments (limestone, slate, dolomite) from the Paleozoic and Mesozoic, and volcanic rocks like diabase and porphyry. Several caves can be found in the area. The city is also known for the lowest temperature ever recorded in Hungary at−35 °C (−31 °F).
Summers are fresh but sometimes warm and humid in Miskolc. Daytime temperatures of 20–30 °C (68–86 °F) or higher are commonplace. Snow and ice are dominant during the winter season. Miskolc receives about 120 centimetres of snowfall annually. Days below freezing and nights below −20 °C (−4 °F) both occur in the winter.
The area has been inhabited since ancient times – archaeological findings date back to the Paleolithic, proving human presence for over 70,000 years. Its first known dwellers were the Cotini, one of the Celtic tribes. Hungarians have settled the area since the conquest of the Carpathian Basin in the late 9th century. It was first mentioned by this name around 1210 AD. The Miskóc clan lost their power when King Charles I centralized his power by curbing the power of the oligarchs.
Following the devastating Mongol invasion of 1241–1242, which left the original local fortifications in ruins, Miskolc was elevated to the rank of oppidum (market town) in 1365 by King Louis I. He also had the castle of the nearby town Diósgyőr, now a district of Miskolc, transformed into a Gothic fortress. The city developed in a dynamic way, but during the Ottoman occupation of most of Hungary the development of Miskolc was brought to a standstill. The Ottomans under Suleiman the Magnificent took Miskolc in 1544 and the city prospered further until 1687. It was also ruled by Ottomans after Battle of Mezőkeresztes in 1596 as part of Eyalet of Egir until 1687. It was during these years that Miskolc became an important centre of wine-growing. By the end of the 17th century the population of the city was as large as that of Kassa/Košice, and 13 guilds had been founded.
During the war of independence against Habsburg rule in the early 18th century, Prince Francis II Rákóczi, the leader of the Hungarians, put his headquarters in Miskolc. The imperial forces sacked and burnt the city in 1707. Four years later half of the population fell victim to a cholera epidemic. Miskolc recovered quickly, and another age of prosperity began again. In 1724, Miskolc was chosen to be the city where the county hall of Borsod county would be built. Many other significant buildings were built in the 18th and 19th centuries, including the city hall, schools such as Lévay József Református Gimnázium és Diákotthon, churches, the synagogue, and the theatre. The theatre is commonly regarded as the first stone-built theatre of Hungary, although the first one was actually built in Kolozsvár (then a part of Hungary, now Cluj-Napoca, Romania). According to the first nationally held census (1786) the city had a population of 14,719, and 2,414 houses.
These years brought prosperity, but the cholera epidemic of 1873 and the flood of 1878 took many lives. Several buildings were destroyed by the flood, but bigger and grander buildings were built in their places. World War I did not affect the city directly, but many people died, either from warfare or from the cholera epidemic. It was occupied by Czechoslovak troops between 1918 and 1919 after the First World War.
After the Treaty of Trianon, Hungary lost Kassa (today Košice, Slovakia) and Miskolc became the sole regional center of northern Hungary. This was one of the reasons for the enormous growth of the city during the 1930s and 1940s.
Early in World War II Hungary became an ally of Nazi Germany. Unhappy with the Hungarian government, German troops occupied Hungary on 19 March 1944 and put the anti-semitic Arrow Cross Party in charge of the government. Jews in Miskolc and elsewhere were ordered to wear yellow stars on their clothing. Under the supervision of Nazi SS-Obersturmbannführer Adolf Eichmann, "deportations" from Miskolc began on 11 or 12 June 1944. Over 14,000 Jewish adults and children were sent by cattle car to Auschwitz, where most were gassed on arrival. After the war Jews who survived the holocaust returned to Miskolc hoping to reclaim their land and possessions. Over 130 were rounded up by members of the local Arrow Cross Party and summarily murdered. The Jewish cemetery on a hill overlooking Miskolc has a memorial for them. It includes the 10 commandments, carved in stone, all written in Hebrew except Thou shall not kill, which is written in Hungarian.
The preparation for World War II established Miskolc as the national centre of heavy industry, a position the city maintained until the 1990s. Although Miskolc suffered a lot during the last year of the war, it recovered quickly, and by absorbing the surrounding villages, it became the second-largest city of Hungary with more than 200,000 inhabitants.
On 30 July and 1 August 1946, the Miskolc pogrom led to death of one accused Jewish black marketeer, the wounding of another, and subsequently the death of a Jewish policeman. Economic hardship and anti-Semitism motivated the riots.
In 1949, the University of Miskolc was founded (as a successor of the Academy of Mining, formerly in Selmecbánya, which is now Banská Štiavnica, Slovakia).
During its long history Miskolc survived fires, floods, plagues and foreign invasions, but maintained its position as the centre of northeastern Hungary. The 1990s brought a crisis in the iron industry with a decline in the population.
Miskolc is now trying to become known as a cultural – instead of merely an industrial – city. Among the various cultural events, one of the most important festivities is the International Opera Festival, held every summer.
Tourist destinations in Miskolc include Tapolca, Lillafüred, and Felsőhámor. Tapolca features a park with a boating pond and a cave bath. Lillafüred and Felsőhámor are villages located in a valley surrounded by mountains and forests; their sights include the Hotel Palace on the shore of Lake Hámori, the Szinva waterfall, the Anna Cave, and the István Cave.
The population (around 1910) is multidenominational and multiethnical, and the differences in the level of education mirrors the stratification of society, following these facts. http://mek.oszk.hu/16900/16992
Dominant religion in Miskolc is Roman Catholicism followed by Calvinism and Greek Catholicism.
Miskolc is generally thought of as an industrial city, and the largest boost to its economy was indeed provided by the industrialization during the Socialist era; in fact industry (including metallurgy) has a long history in the city.
Miskolc was already an important market town in the Middle Ages, mostly due to its proximity to the main trade routes of the region. In regards of the economy, real development started only after the Ottoman occupation. In the 18th century, the town already had a lumber mill, a paper manufacture, a brewery, a gunpowder factory and fifteen mills on the Szinva stream. The glass works manufactures and iron furnaces appeared in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. The first iron furnace, built by Henrik Fazola around 1770, did not survive, but the second one, built in 1813, can still be visited. Several new settlements were formed in the Bükk mountains to provide dwellings for the workers of glass works manufactures and furnaces. Many of them – including Alsóhámor, Felsőhámor, Ómassa and Bükkszentlászló – are now parts of Miskolc.
Development quickened from the second half of the 19th century, partly because of the political situation (after the Ausgleich) and partly because of the newly constructed railway line. A large furnace (second largest in the country) was built in Diósgyőr, and several other factories were built. The mining industry became more and more important, too. Within forty years the population doubled. The industrialization led to the forming of Greater Miskolc with the unification of Miskolc and Diósgyőr (1945) and several nearby towns and villages (between 1950 and 1981). The unification was only the first step in Miskolc being developed into an industrial centre. Development reached its highest point in the 1980s, when the metal factory had more than 18,000 workers and production was over one million tons per year. The population hit all-time record (over 200,000 inhabitants), two-thirds of the working people worked in heavy industry.
The economic recession after the end of the Socialist era hit the industrial cities of Northern Hungary the hardest. The unemployment rate rose until it became one of the highest in the country, the population of Miskolc dramatically decreased (not only because of unemployment though, but also due to suburbanization which became prevalent nationwide). The economic situation of the city went through a change, smaller enterprises appeared in place of the large state-owned companies.
By the early 2000s the decade of changes was over, and the city went through the recession successfully. International companies and supermarkets appeared in the area. The local government is trying to strengthen the city's role in culture and tourism. By the end of 2004, the highway M3 had reached the city.
The most popular sport in Miskolc is football. The leading club of the city is Diósgyőri VTK (short name: DVTK). They have won the Hungarian Cup several times and represented Hungary many times in Europe. The capacity of the stadium, DVTK Stadion, is 14 655 and the stadium has under-soil heating and fully covered stands.
The other team, Miskolci VSC, plays in the county division. Miskolc has got other former first division representatives, namely Miskolci Attila (seven seasons at the highest level), and Perecesi TK (one).
Miskolc's most successful women's basketball team, DKSK Miskolc MISI, has won the National Cup twice.
The DVTK Jegesmedvék ice hockey team plays in the Slovak-based Tipsport Liga. The team's home rink, Miskolc Ice Hall, is in the People's Garden downtown. It has 1 304 seats, a total capacity of 2 200, and opened in 2006.
The women's volleyball team of MVSC also plays at the highest Hungarian level.
Text from the Wikipedia article “Miskolc”, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.