Military History Museum and other Budapest, Hungary Things to Do Tips

Before visiting this museum it is useful to read some pages on the history of Hungary otherwise the visit will limit itself to a look at weapons, uniforms, military equipments without being able to connect them with the events they represent.
The Museum of Military History has a large collection of weaponry and war memorabilia housed on two main floors. The museum has permanent collections starting with the wars against the Turks (16 - 17th century) covering the 1848 revolution and War of Independence against the Habsburg, both World Wars and the 1956 uprising, together with more modern displays showing machinery, guns and other military equipment used by the Hungarian army.
On the first floor exhibits on military history during the Austro-Hungarian Empire, including uniforms worn by the Hungarian Hussar regiment.
In 1914 as part of the Austrian empire Hungary was on the side of Germany and lost many territories in 1918. Under Miklos Horthy, Hungary made an alliance with Nazi Germany and fought WW2 on their side. There are large display cases featuring models and battle scenes from World War II.
Hungary was for the second time in the century in the camp of the losers and got dominated by the Soviet Union in 1948 under Rakosi and his Stalinist regime which led to the revolution of 1956.
The displays devoted to the tragic events of the 13 days uprising in October 1956 are the most poignant by far. Remarkable are the red, white and green Hungarian flags pierced in the centre. The revolutionaries cut the communist emblem which decorated the centre of the flag.
A complex and dramatic history!
I would advise this museum visit to the true amateurs.
Most notices are only in Hungarian, a few are in English.

Open 9 - 17 h (closed on Monday)
On Sunday: 10 - 18h
Free entrance.

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Address: Tóth Arpád sétány 40 Budapest (Var)
Directions: N.W. corner of the castle hill

Avant de visiter ce musée il est utile de lire quelques pages sur l'histoire de la Hongrie sans quoi la visite se limitera à regarder avec plus ou moins d'intérêt des armes, uniformes, équipements militaires sans pouvoir les relier aux événements qu'ils représentent.
Les salles du musée sont consacrées aux armes en Hongrie du 9e au 17e siècle,les deux guerres mondiales, la révolution des 13 jours de 1956, l'aviation hongroise, les forteresses. .
Au travers des départements de ce musée on trouve un fil conducteur qui est celui de la lutte du peuple hongrois pour sa liberté, indépendance et intégrité territoriale.
On y voit la lutte du peuple Magyar contre la domination et occupation Turc Ottomane au 16e et 17e siècle, la lutte contre l'absolutisme autrichien des Habsbourg au 18e et 19e siècles, la guerre au sein de la coalition Allemagne -Autriche en 1914-18, le démembrement de l'empire austro-hongrois en 1918, l'instauration en 1919 d'une République Soviétique Hongroise, l'occupation par la Roumanie. En juin 1920 le traité de Trianon fixa les limites du royaume de Hongrie, sans roi, mais régenté par l'amiral Miklos Horthy.
La Hongrie avait perdu 71% de son territoire d'avant guerre. Pour récupérer ces territoires, Horthy en 1930 fit alliance avec l'Allemagne nazie. Après la guerre de 1940-45, la Hongrie se trouva pour la seconde fois en un siècle dans le camp des vaincus et passa sous domination Soviétique en 1948 sous Rakosi et son régime stalinien qui conduisit à la révolution de fin octobre 1956.
On remarquera les drapeaux rouge, blanc, vert de cette époque troués au centre. Les révolutionnaires découpaient l'emblème communiste qui ornait le centre du drapeau.
En 1989-1990 la Hongrie retrouva sa totale liberté.
Complexe et dramatique histoire qu'il vaut mieux connaître avant de visiter ce musée que je réserverais aux vrais amateurs.
Les indications sont en hongrois, quelques panneaux d'informations historiques sont en anglais.

Ouvert 9 - 17 h (fermé lundi)
Dimanche: 10 - 18h
Entrée gratuite.

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Address: 40 Tóth Árpád sétány Budapest (Var)
Directions: Pointe N.W. de la colline du château.

The Kozlekedesi museum is one of Europe’s oldest transportation collections. It is an absolute must for railway connoisseurs and amateurs. This museum has a unique collection of locomotives and wagons on a 1:5 scale. This means that a locomotive of, for example, 10 m length is reproduced with all details in a 2 m length model!
The models show a wide range of railway technology. The museum shows also a locomotive and wagon in real size with a railway station of the 1900s.

In other parts of the museum are shown :
-The history of road traffic: horse-drawn and machine-driven vehicles, road and bridge building with a collection of old cars, motorcycles and bicycles.
- The history of sailing
Sailing from the prehistoric ages; the history of Hungarian boat manufacturing, showed by models.
- Permanent exhibition about the history of flight and space flight Original Hungarian and foreign airplanes, including JUNKERS F-13 the first airplane in the world with metal frame-work. The cabin of the first Hungarian astronaut, Bertalan Farkas. Development of engines and instruments. Modern rocket-technique.
- The history of town traffic shows the public traffic in Buda and Pest before the appearance of trams and buses. The 'Omnibusz' and the first trams in Budapest.

From 27 September to 1 May:
On weekdays (except Monday): 10 - 17h
On Saturday and Sunday: 10 - 18h
From 1 May to 26 September:
Every day (except Monday): 10 - 18h
Entrance: 200 Ft

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Address: 11 Városliget körút, XIV Budapest
Directions: Southeastern corner of City Park - Városliget,

There have been many favourable comments here on the bridges of Budapest and indeed the view from these bridges on the Buda castle or the Pest part of the town are beautiful especially at night when all monuments are under light.
But there would be no monumental bridges if there was not the wide river Danube, Duna in Hungarian. At the "Chain Bridge" the width of the Danube is about 350 m. Upstream the river is even wider when passing the Parliament and reaches more than 450 m at the point of the Margit Island.
The average discharge of the river, flowing through Budapest, is 2.350 m3/sec.

The Danube has its origin in the Black Forrest (Germany) and ends up after 2.888 km in the Black Sea, flowing through—or forming a part of the borders of—ten countries: Germany, Austria, Slovakia, Hungary, Croatia, Serbia, Bulgaria, Romania, Moldova, and Ukraine.

The Danube is an important transport route in the European Union. Since the opening of the Rhine-Main-Danube Canal, the river connects the Black Sea with the industrial centres of Western Europe and with the Port of Rotterdam.
But, surprisingly enough, during my 5 days stay in Budapest, I saw nearly no commercial traffic on the Duna (even if I had a room with river view). Certainly, I saw cruise ships, even large ones, but nearly no cargo barges as one uses to see, in large numbers, on other European rivers.

Where were the "large scale inland vessels on an important transport route" I read about?

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