The nameSzombathely is from theHungarianszombat, "Saturday" andhely, "place", referring to its status as a market town, and the medieval markets held on Saturday every week. Once a year during August they hold a carnival to remember the history of "Savaria".
TheLatin nameSavaria orSabaria comes fromSibaris, the Latin name of the riverGyöngyös (GermanGüns). The root of the word is theProto-Indo-European word*seu, meaning "wet". The Austrian overflowing of the Gyöngyös/Güns is calledZöbern, most probably a derivation of its Latin name. The city is known inCroatian asSambotel, inSlovene asSombotel and inYiddish as סאמבאטהעלי (Sombathely).
TheGerman name,Steinamanger, means "stone on the green" (Stein am Anger). The name was coined by German settlers who encountered the ruins of the Roman city of Savaria.[citation needed]
The now datedSlovak name,Kamenec, also stems from the root 'stone' (kameň = stone), similar to the German variant.
Szombathely is the oldest recorded city inHungary. It was founded by theRomans[3] in 45 AD under the name ofColonia Claudia Savariensum (Claudius' Colony of Savarians), and it was the capital of thePannonia Superior province of theRoman Empire. It lay close to the important "Amber Road" trade route. The city had an imperial residence, apublic bath and anamphitheatre. In 2008, remains of amithraeum were discovered.
EmperorConstantine the Great visited Savaria several times. He ended thepersecution of Christians, which previously claimed the lives of many people in the area, including BishopSt. Quirinus and St. Rutilus. The emperor reorganised the colonies and made Savaria the capital of the provincePannonia Prima. This era was the height of prosperity for Savaria: its population grew, and new buildings were erected, among them theatres and churches. St.Martin of Tours was born here.[4] During the reign of EmperorValentinian III, theHuns invadedPannonia.Attila's armies occupied Savaria between 441 and 445. The city was destroyed by anearthquake in 456.
Óperint Street - Memorial plaque to BishopSt. Quirinus, remembering the anniversary of his death in 1700
The city remained inhabited throughout theMiddle Ages. Its city walls were restored, and new buildings were constructed using the stones from the remains of Roman buildings. Much of the Latin population moved away, mostly toItaly, while new settlers, mostlyGoths andLongobards, arrived.
In the 6th–8th centuries, the city was inhabited byPannonian Avars andSlavic tribes. In 795, theFranks defeated these peoples and occupied the city.Charlemagne visited the city where St. Martin was born.
KingArnulf of the Franks gave the city to thearchbishop of Salzburg in 875. It is likely that the castle was built around this time, using the stones from the Roman baths. Around 900, they were succeeded byHungarians, who became the dominant population.
Szombathely was destroyed during theMongol invasion of Hungary in 1241–1242 but was rebuilt shortly after. It was grantedFree royal town status in 1407. In 1578, it became the capital of Vas comitatus.[5] The city prospered. In 1605 it was occupied by the armies ofIstván Bocskai.
During theOttoman occupation of Hungary, the Ottomans invaded the area twice, first in 1664, when they were defeated at the nearby town ofSzentgotthárd. Nearly twenty years later, they invaded again in 1683, during theBattle of Vienna. The city walls protected Szombathely both times.
A peaceful period followed the retreat of the Turks untilPrince Rákóczi's rebellion against theHabsburgs in the early 18th century. During the rebellion, the city residents supported the prince. The city was occupied by Habsburg armies in 1704, freed in November 1705, then occupied alternately by the two armies over the next years. In June 1710, more than 2,000 people died in aplague, and on May 3, 1716, the city was destroyed by a fire.
After such losses throughout the region, the Habsburg Crown recruitedGermans to resettle the depopulated areas, particularly along theDanube River. They were valued for their farming abilities. The Crown allowed them to keep their language and religion. As a result, the city had a German majority for a long time. With increased population, the city began to prosper again. With the support of FerencZichy, Bishop ofGyőr, a high school was built in 1772. The Diocese of Szombathely was founded in 1777 byMaria Theresa. The new bishop of Szombathely,János Szily, did much for the city: he had the ruins of the castle demolished and had new buildings constructed, including a cathedral, the episcopal palace complex, and a school (opened in 1793).
In 1809,Napoleon's armies occupied the city and held it for 110 days, following a short battle on the main square. In 1813, acholeraepidemic claimed many lives. In 1817, two-thirds of the city was destroyed by fire.
During therevolution in 1848–49, Szombathely supported the revolution. There were no battles in the immediate area because the city remained under Habsburg rule. The years after theAustro-Hungarian Compromise of 1867 brought prosperity. A railway line reached the city in 1865, and in the 1870s Szombathely became a major railway junction. In 1885 the city annexed the nearby villagesÓ-Perint andSzentmárton and increased its area.
In the 1890s, when Gyula Éhen was the mayor, the city underwent significant infrastructure development: roads were paved, a sewage system built, and the tram line was built to connect the rail station, the downtown, and the Calvary Church. Private and public interests built the City Casino, the Grand Hotel (Kovács Szálló, later Hotel Savaria), and the area's first orphanage. In forty years, the population quadrupled.
During the mayoralty of Tóbiás Brenner, this prosperity continued. A museum, public bath, monasteries, and several new downtown mansions were built. A school of music and an orchestra were founded.
The County HallMain squareNewM86 motorway in SzombathelyCity sign in German and Croatian language
After theTreaty of Trianon, Hungary lost many of its western territories to Austria. Only 10 kilometres (6 miles) from the new state border, Szombathely ceased to be the centre of Western Hungary. Trying to regain the throne of Hungary,Charles IV visited the city, where he was greeted with enthusiasm, but he failed to regain power.
Between the world wars, Szombathely prospered. Many schools were founded, and between 1926 and 1929, the most modern hospital of the Transdanubian region was built.
During World War II, as with many other towns in the region, Szombathely was strategic due to the railway, junction, marshalling yards, local aerodrome, and barracks. The town formed part of the logistical military infrastructure supportingAxis forces. In 1944 and 1945, the town and locality were bombed by day on several occasions by aircraft of the US15th Air Force; at night, bombing runs were made by aircraft from the Royal Air Force 205 Group. These aircraft operated from bases in Italy.
In the 1970s, the city was industrialized, and many factories were built. In the 1980s, the city prospered, and several new public buildings were built. These included the County Library, public indoor swimming pools, and a gallery.
In 2006, the refurbishing of the city centre's main square was completed, with financial assistance from European Union funds.
28 June 2014 from the highway is also available in the city, having opened the M86 motorway.[6]
In 1567, EmperorMaximilian II granted the town the privilege of allowing none butCatholics to dwell within its walls. By the 17th and 18th centuries, although the municipal authorities rented shops to Jews, the latter were permitted to remain in the town only during the day, and then only without their families. They lived outside in their own community, known as ashtetl. By the beginning of the nineteenth century, only three or four Jewish families lived in the city.[citation needed]
The residents of the shtetl Stein-am-Anger dwelt in the outlying districts (now united into one municipality). They separated in 1830 from the community ofRechnitz (Rohonc), of which they had previously formed a part, and were henceforth known as the community of Szombathely. When the Jews of Hungary were emancipated by the law of 1840, the city allowed them to live there. In the unrest of the revolution of 1848, many Jews were attacked and their places looted[citation needed]; they were threatened with expulsion. The authorities intervened and restored peace. The community quickly developed in the city.
The first Jewish elementary school was founded in 1846, and was organized as a normal school in 1905, with four grades and about 230 pupils. The firstsynagogue was built by the former lord of the town, DukeBatthyányi, who sold it to the Jews. In 1880 the community supported building a largetemple, one of the most beautiful in Hungary. Designed by Ludwig Schöne, it combinedOriental andRomantic elements.[citation needed]
The founder of the community and its first rabbi wasLudwig Königsberger (d. 1861); he was succeeded in turn byLeopold Rockenstein,Joseph Stier([1]), and Béla Bernstein (called in 1892;[2]). A smallOrthodoxcongregation, numbering about 60 or 70 members, separated from the main body in 1870. From 1896 to 1898 Pál Jungreis was rabbi of the Orthodox community but his convictions were not tolerated so Márk Benedikt was appointed rabbi.[3]According to the 1910 census, 10.1% of the city's population, or 3125 people, were Jewish by religion. By then they were merchants and professionals, an integral part of the city's culture.
In World War II, during theoccupation of Hungary by Nazi Germany, 4228 Jews were deported (July 4–6, 1944) from Szombathely toAuschwitz. The community was essentially destroyed. Since 1975, the former Jewish temple has been adapted for use as a concert hall. A memorial outside commemorates the Jews deported in World War II.
Szombathely's climate is classified ashumid continental climate (KöppenDfb) closely bordering on anoceanic climate (KöppenCfb). The annual average temperature is 10.6 °C (51.1 °F), the hottest month in July is 21.0 °C (69.8 °F), and the coldest month is −0.2 °C (31.6 °F) in January. The annual precipitation is 612.6 millimetres (24.12 in), of which July is the wettest with 77.0 millimetres (3.03 in), while January is the driest with only 23.9 millimetres (0.94 in). The extreme temperature throughout the year ranged from −29.0 °C (−20.2 °F) on February 11, 1929 to 39.7 °C (103.5 °F) on August 8, 2013.[7]
Climate data for Szombathely, 1991−2020 normals, extremes 1901-2020
The current mayor of Szombathely isAndrás Nemény (MSZP).
The local Municipal Assembly, elected at the2019 local government elections, is made up of 21 members (1 Mayor, 14 Individual constituencies MEPs and 6 Compensation List MEPs) divided into this political parties and alliances:[10]
Szombathely is home to the basketball teamFalco KC, 2019 champion of theNemzeti Bajnokság I/A, the country's top basketball league. Falco plays its home games at theArena Savaria. Szombathelyi Haladás Football Club are also based in the city.
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