The Hunyadi Castle

The Hunyadi Castle is a historic building, the oldest one in Timișoara, witness to the most important events in the life of this city, over hundreds of years.

Due to the political unrest in fourteenth century Hungary, King Charles Robert of Anjou transferred his residence to Timișoara, building here a heavily fortified castle. The construction, built on an island, was completed in 1315, surrounding a huge quadrangular courtyard and being connected to the rest of the town through a draw bridge.

The castle was rebuilt between 1443 and 1447 by John Hunyadi, Count of Timiș. After the reconstruction, the building served as the residence of all the kings, captains, as well as noblemen who would stop in Timișoara. Even during the Ottoman occupation, the Governor of the Vilayet of Timișoara used to live in the castle.

The building of the Castle was damaged during the siege of the Austrian army, it situation worsened during the Revolution of 1848-1849.

The Castle was rebuilt within a period of 7 years, and the façade underwent substantial changes.

Today, the Castle preserves very little of the original architecture, but the placement around the rectangular courtyard was maintained, while still dominated by a low donjon tower, decorated with battlements at the top. The main entranced is flanked by two massive pilasters, each leading to a collection of weapons specific to the Middle Ages, revealing the Gothic appearance of the Castle.

Since 1947, Hunyadi Castle has served as headquarters of the History Museum of Banat, housing the history and natural sciences departments.

Currently, Hunyadi Castle is in repair, the National Museum of Banat being hosted by the Therezian Bastion.

Text and photo sources: https://www.facebook.com/MuzeulBanatuluiTimisoaraOficial/; https://timisoara.eventya.eu/