A busy transportation hub on theMureș River and an important cultural and industrial center, Arad has hosted one of the firstmusic conservatories in Europe,[3][4] one of the earliestnormal schools in Europe,[5] and the first car factory in Hungary and present-day Romania.[6] Today, it is the seat of aRomanian Orthodox archbishop and features a Romanian Orthodox theological seminary and two universities.
KingBéla II of Hungary and his wife QueenHelena are sitting on the throne at the assembly of Arad in 1131. The Queen orders the execution of the magnates who advised the blinding of childBéla II during the rule of KingColoman. (Chronicon Pictum, 1358)Arad on an 18th-century map
The evidence ofPre-Indo-European civilisation occurs with the establishment of the first settlement on the northern bank of theMureş River in the 5th millennium BC, and the extension of the human settlements on the left bank of the Mureş River occurs in the 4th millennium BC. In the 3rd millennium BC, prosperous settlements appear on both banks and on the islands of the Mureş River, belonging to anIndo-European civilisation, which peaked around 1000 BC. Excavations made for the foundations of the Astoria Hotel found a human skeleton from theBronze Age.[11]
The firstDacian settlements appear in the 1st millennium BC. In the 5th century a group ofScythians settled in the region. And between the 4th and 3rd centuries, theCelts settled on both banks of the Mureş River, in the vicinity of the existing settlements.
The Dacian settlement in the south of theMicălaca district was conquered by theRoman troops between 101 and 102. During theSecond Dacian War (105–106), the EmperorTrajan conquered territories north of Mureş River, making them part of theRoman Dacia. In the Aradul Nou area, the Roman army built the fortCastra of Aradul Nou, that housed the legionLegio IV Flavia Felix. During the period between the 2nd and 4th centuries, Dacian andSarmatian settlements were present in the area of today's city, with intense commercial relations with theRoman Empire.
In the 10th century the Hungarians begantheir expansion in Transylvania, one of the main access routes being the valley of Mureş. RulerGlad, under the threat of the Hungarian expansion, built a fortress atVladimirescu-Schanzen, which the Hungarians conquered and destroyed in the middle of the tenth century. Another ruler,Achtum, rebuilt it, but the Hungarians destroyed it again in 1028.
Arad was first mentioned in documents in the 11th century. According to theChronicon Pictum, at "an assembly of the realm near Arad"[12] in early to mid-1131, QueenHelena ordered the slaughter of all noblemen who were accused of having suggested the blinding of her husband to KingColoman.[13][14] KingBéla II of Hungary distributed the goods of the executed magnates between the newly establishedArad Chapter and the early 11th-centuryÓbuda Chapter.[15] TheMongol invasion of theKingdom of Hungary in 1241 showed the importance of the fortifications in this place, to which were added in the second half of the 13th century more stone fortresses at Șoimoș, Șiria, and Dezna. TheOttoman Empire conquered the region from Hungary in 1551 and kept it until thePeace of Karlowitz of 1699, although during this period it was temporarily reintegrated in the Principality of Transylvania, after the Transylvanian troops cleared the lower valley of the Mureș in 1595; and after the victory ofMihai Viteazu's troops at Șelimbăr, the city entered under the Voivode's authority.[16] During the Ottoman period, Arad became aneyalet center, which comprised thesanjaks of Arad,Lugoj, Kacaș,Beşlek andYanova from 1660 till 1697, when it was captured by Austrians (Serbian Militia under command ofSubota Jović) during Ottoman-Habsburg wars (1683–1699). After 1699, the city was ruled by theHabsburg monarchy. At the beginning of the 18th century, Arad became the center of the Eastern OrthodoxEparchy of Arad. According to 1720 data, the population of the city was composed of 177 Romanian families, 162 Serbian, and 35 Hungarian.[17]
The firstJew allowed to settle inside the city was Isac Elias in 1717.[18] Eventually the Jewish population of Arad numbered over 10,000 people, more than 10% of the population, before theSecond World War.[19]
The new fortress was built between 1763 and 1783. Although it was small, it proved formidable, having played a great role in the Hungarian struggle forindependence in 1849. The city possesses a museum containing relics of this war of independence.[20]
Courageously defended by theAustrian general Berger until the end of July 1849, it was captured by the Hungarian rebels, who made it their headquarters during the latter part of theHungarian Revolution of 1848. It was from Arad thatLajos Kossuth issued his famous proclamation (11 August 1849), and where he handed over the supreme military and civil power toArtúr Görgey.[20]
The fortress was recaptured shortly after thesurrender at Világos (nowȘiria, Romania), with the surrender of general Artúr Görgey to theRussians. It became an ammunition depot. Thirteen rebel generals were executed there on 6 October 1849, by order of the Austrian generalJulius Jacob von Haynau. These men are known collectively asthe 13 Martyrs of Arad, and since then Arad is considered the "HungarianGolgotha". One of the public squares contains a martyrs' monument, erected in their memory. It consists of a colossal figure of Hungary, with four allegorical groups, and medallions of the executed generals.[20]
Arad enjoyed great economic development in the 19th century. In 1834 it was declared a "free royal town" by EmperorFrancis I of Austria.
Aradu Nou /Neu Arad / Újarad ("New Arad"), situated on the opposite bank of the Mureș river, is a neighborhood of Arad, to which it is connected by theTrajan Bridge. It was founded during the Turkish wars of the 17th century. The works erected by the Turks for the capture of the Fortress of Arad formed the nucleus of the new settlement.[20]
In 1910, the town had 63,166 inhabitants: 46,085 (73%) Hungarians, 10,279 (16.2%) Romanians, 4,365 (7%) Germans.[21] DuringWorld War I, the Austro-Hungarian authorities set up an internment camp in theFortress of Arad in which around 4,000Serb detainees died.[22]
1551 – 1595 – The town was occupied and administered by the Ottoman Empire, the former county being divided into three sanjaks.
1553 – 1555 – Between these years, the Ottomans built the first fortress of the city on the northern bank of the river Mureș.
1595 – Transylvanian troops cleared the lower valley of the Mureș, thus the city of Arad was reintegrated in the Transylvanian Principality.
1599 – After the victory of Mihai Viteazu's troops at Șelimbăr, the city enters under the Voivode's authority until 1601 when Gabriel Bethlen gives the Mureș valley back to the Ottomans.
1687 – After the failure of the Ottoman siege of Vienna, Habsburg troops conquer the city in 1687.
1699 – After thePeace of Karlowitz, the Mureș river valley became the new border between The Habsburg Empire and the Ottoman Empire, thus the city became the headquarters of the frontier guard troops. Arad becomes the seat of Eastern OrthodoxEparchy of Arad.
1702 – The furriers' guild was registered – the oldest one.
1715 – Camil Hofflich, Franciscan friar, set up the first German language school.
1724 – First German settlers fromFranconia come to the south of the river and establish Neu Arad.
1732 – Almost the entire area of the county was donated toRinaldo of Modena, who, later disgraced in 1740, lost it to the Austrian crown.
1765 – 1783 – The new fortress was built, inVauban-Tenaille style.
1781 – Following the building interdiction in the city, providing clear gunshot fields, the Empire considered moving the city in the Zimand pusta; subsequentlyEmperor Joseph II gave up the idea.
1812 – The foundation ofPreparandia –the first Romanian pedagogy school in Transylvania.
1817 – The Hirschl Theatre was built.
1818 – The safety perimeter of the fortress was reduced from 2 kilometers as put out in 1783, to just 500 m.
1909–1914 – Production of motorcars by (MARTA), a subsidiary ofAustro-Daimler. MARTA was the acronym ofMagyar Automobil Részvény Társaság Arad (Hungarian automobile joint stock company Arad)
1911–1913 –Arad-Podgoria Narrow Railway was electrified. Apart from factory rails and urban trams, it was the third electric railway in Hungary and the sixth one in Habsburg Monarchy. In 1920, it should become the first electrical railway of Romania.
1918 – Arad becomes the headquarters ofThe Romanian National Central Council, the provisional government of Transylvania, and also its unofficial capital.
At the2021 census, Arad had a population of 145,078[28] in trend with general tendencies for Romania, with decreases as a consequence of internal migration to larger, more developed cities and a suburbanization of cities, with rural localities knowing pronounced growth.
The ethnic composition of the city of Arad changed according to the realities of the aftermath of theWorld War I, as the newHungary–Romania border was drawn by an international commission[29] overseen by the French cartographerEmmanuel de Martonne, that wanted to have the respective ethnicities on different sides, but at the same time advocated maintaining certain transport connections to the individual new countries[30], even if it meant to keep certain towns and villages "on the wrong side of the border“.[31]
In the past, according to the 1880 census, whilst still in theAustro-Hungarian Empire, of the 35,556 inhabitants, 19,896 were Hungarians (56%), 6,439 Romanians (18.1%), 5,448 Germans (15.3%), 1,690 Serbs (4.8%) and 2,083 (5.9%) of other ethnicities.[32] In 1910, from 63,166 inhabitants, 46,085 were Hungarian (72.95%), 10,279 Romanian (16.27%), 4,365 German (6.91%), 1,816 Serbian (2.87%), 277 Slovak (0.43%) and 133 Czech (0.21%).[33]
The city government is headed by a mayor.[34] Since 2019, the office is held by Călin Bibarț.[35] Decisions are approved and discussed by the local government (consiliu local), made up of 23 elected councillors.[34]
With a rich industrial and commercial tradition, Arad is one of the most prosperous cities in Romania. Thanks to numerous investments in industry and commerce, Arad has a booming economy.[citation needed]
The main industries are:railroad cars, food processing, furniture and household accessories, equipment for the car industry, electric components, instrumentation, clothing and textiles, and footwear.
Arad is the most important trans-European road andrail transportation junction point in Western Romania, included in the4th Pan-European Corridor, linking Western Europe to South-Eastern European and Middle Eastern countries. The city has an extensive tram network and several bus lines, covering most of the city's neighbourhoods and suburbs.Arad International Airport (IATA: ARW,ICAO: LRAR), with the largest and most moderncargo terminal in Western Romania, is situated only 4 km west from central Arad and is directly connected to the Arad West bypass road, part of theA1 Motorway.
The Fortified Town of Arad is one of the Transylvanian fortresses built in theVauban star-shaped style, in the second half of the 18th century. It was used as a prison for the rebels led by Horia, Cloșca, and Crișan
The House with Cannon Balls, built in 1800. Its name derives from the fights between 1848 and 1849. Seventeen cannonballs are incorporated in its walls.
The High Teacher Training School (Clădirea Preparandiei), the first school for Romanian-language teachers from Transylvania, 1812
The House with the Padlock, built in 1815
The Old Theatre (Hirschl), built by Jacob Hirschl in 1817, the oldest stone theatre in Romania
Water Tower, built in 1896,medieval dungeon architectural style
The Old Custom House, built in 1907, used as a customs point for goods entering the Arad markets
The "Birth of Saint John the Baptist" Cathedral (Romanian Orthodox), raised in 1862–1865,Baroque architecture, architectAntoniu Czigler. The mural painter,Anastase Damian, started his work in 1957 and finished it one year later
Neptun Swimming Place, known in Romanian as "Ștrandul Neptun" is the second biggest Swimming Place in Europe, situated near a river. Due to its size and its recreational activities Strandul Neptun has over three million visitors annually, according to Recons Arad.
Delta Gallery, with three major events of Arad artistic life: The International Biennial Drawing Saloon, The Biennial Small Sculpture Saloon, The Annual Art Saloon.
Alfa Gallery
Clio Gallery
Water Tower Gallery
Takács Gallery
Carola's Gallery
Expo Arad International, The Exhibition Centre of the Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture of the County of Arad, the only purely exhibitional arena in western Romania and second only toRomexpo.
The most important hospitals in Arad areArad County Clinical Hospital and Arad Municipal Hospital (in the late 2000s it merged withArad County Clinical Hospital). The city also has a number of public hospitals (Arad Maternal Hospital, The Polyclinic, The Dental Clinic, etc.) and private hospitals (MedLife Genesis, Laser System, Mediqua, etc.)
TheUTA Arad (formerly ITA) football team was founded in 1945 and has won six Romanian championships and two Romanian Cups. In the 2020–1 season, UTA plays in the first national league, Liga I. The team has won more league titles than any other team that is not based in Bucharest, and the third most afterSteaua andDinamo[citation needed]; it is the 3rd more successful modern team in the country and 4th countingVenus Bucharest, a team from the Inter-War period.The team's most notable performance on the international stage is the elimination from theEuropean Champions Cup ofErnst Happel'sFeyenoord in the1970–71 season, when the Dutch team were defendingEuropean champions and later won theIntercontinental Cup.
In basketball, the women's ICIM and the men's West Petrom teams have national prominence, their record including some recent national championship wins (ICIM in 1998 through 2001, West Petrom in 2001 and 2002). In men's water polo, Astra Arad also plays in the first division. The men's rugby team Contor Group Arad plays in the National Rugby League, reaching the playoff final in 2006.
World Champion and Olympic medalist in gymnasticsEmilia Eberle was born in Arad.
^Zainea, Ion. "SOME ASPECTS REGARDING BORDER DRAWING AND REGULATION RELATIONS BETWEEN ROMANIA AND HUNGARY AFTER TRIANON".Annals of the Academy of Romanian Scientists, Series on History and Archaeology.12 (2).
Engel, Pál (2001).The Realm of St Stephen: A History of Medieval Hungary, 895–1526. I.B. Tauris Publishers.ISBN1-86064-061-3.
Kristó, Gyula; Makk, Ferenc (1996).Az Árpád-ház uralkodói[Rulers of the House of Árpád] (in Hungarian). I.P.C. Könyvek.ISBN963-7930-97-3.
Makk, Ferenc (1989).The Árpáds and the Comneni: Political Relations between Hungary and Byzantium in the 12th century. Translated by György Novák. Akadémiai Kiadó.ISBN963-05-5268-X.
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