Budapest, including the Banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter and Andrássy Avenue*
UNESCO World Heritage Site
State Party	Hungary
Type	Cultural
Criteria	ii, iv
Reference	400
Region**	Europe and North America
Inscription history
Inscription	1987  (11th Session)
Extensions	2002
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. ** Region as classified by UNESCO.

Andrássy Avenue is an iconic boulevard in Budapest, Hungary, dating back to 1872. It links Elizabeth Square with the City Park. Lined with beautiful Neo-renaissance palaces and houses featuring fine facades, staircases and interiors, it was recognised as a World Heritage Site in 2002.^[1]

[edit] History

Andrássy Avenue with the Hungarian State Opera House (left side), 1896.

It was decreed to be built in 1870, to discharge the parallel Király utca from heavy traffic and to connect the inner city parts with the City Park. Its construction began in 1872 and the avenue was inaugurated on August 20 (a national holiday), 1867. Its realization was a blend of the plans proposed by the top 3 competitors Lajos Lechner, Frigyes Feszl and Klein & Fraser. Its palaces were built by the most distinguished architects (led by Miklós Ybl) of the time, financed by Hungarian and other banking houses. These were mostly finished by 1884 and mostly aristocrats, bankers, landowners and historical families moved in. It was named in 1885 after the main supporter of the plan, Prime Minister Gyula Andrássy.

The construction of the Budapest Metro, the first underground railway in Continental Europe, was proposed in 1870, since the capital had always been opposed to surface transport on this road. Construction began in 1894 and was finished in 1896, so this new metro line could facilitate the transport to Városliget, the main venue of the millennium celebrations of Hungary.

[edit] Main parts

Louis Vuitton on Andrassy út

Andrássy út consists of four main parts, from inside to outside as follows:

1. From Erzsébet tér to Oktogon: an urban-like part mostly for commercial purposes.
2. From Oktogon to Kodály körönd: widened with an allée, including residential areas and universities.
3. From Kodály körönd to Bajza utca: it is even more widened, and residential palaces are fronted by small parks.
4. From Bajza utca to Városliget: the same width; villas encompassed by gardens, including a couple of embassies.

[edit] Notable spots

• Hungarian State Opera House
• Drechsler House
• The Pest Broadway: a junction with four exquisite theatres at its four corners
• Franz Liszt square: a square with the Academy of Music and a multitude of cafés
• Oktogon: junction with Grand Boulevard
• House of Terror (Terror Háza): commemorating the two main oppressing regimes in Hungary, Fascism and Communism, and their victims (website, ÁVH)
• Franz Liszt Memorial House and the old Academy of Music
• Zoltán Kodály Memorial House
• College of Fine Arts
• Ferenc Hopp East-Asian Art Museum
• Heroes' Square: the entrance of the City Park, with the Millennium Monument, the Palace of Art (Budapest), the Museum of Fine Arts (Budapest)

[edit] See also

• List of most expensive streets by city

[edit] References

[edit] External links

• Budapest Tourism Office on Andrássy Avenue
• Andrássy út – another description
• Photo

v • d • e World Heritage Sites in Hungary Budapest, including the Banks of the Danube, the Buda Castle Quarter and Andrássy Avenue · Caves of Aggtelek Karst and Slovak Karst (with Slovakia) · Early Christian Necropolis of Pécs (Sopianae) · Fertő / Neusiedlersee Cultural Landscape (with Austria) · Old Village of Hollókő and its Surroundings · Hortobágy National Park – the Puszta · Millenary Benedictine Abbey of Pannonhalma and its Natural Environment · Tokaj Wine Region Historic Cultural Landscape

Coordinates: 47°30′38″N 19°04′17″E / 47.51056°N 19.07139°E / 47.51056; 19.07139