From the Foundation Stone to the Cathedral: Architecture of the Votive Church of Szeged

Eszter Baldavári

doi:10.2478/jbe-2019-0012

Abstract

After the flood has demolished the largest part of Szeged the citizens decided to build a Votive church dedicated to Virgin Mary as a symbol of Hungarian national identit. After the opening design tender finally Ernő Foerk was assigned as architect to design the new church. During the years numerous events stucked the construction like from the question of the designer person, the breaking out of the World War I. till the finding of a medieval tower inside the walls of the former church. We can have a deeper glimpse into the details of the story of the architecture due to Foerk’s diary is held in the Hungarian Museum of Architecture.

References

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[2] The art objects of the permanent exhibition belong to the The Episcopal Museum and Treasury of Szeged-Csanád. The art historians and restorers of the Museum of Applied Arts and the colleagues of the Hungarian Castle Project Ltd took part in the organisation of this exhibiton. Hereby I would like to thank them for their work.
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[3] This presentation was also held in Szeged on 22 November 2018 at the conference commemorating Ernő Foerk and Gyula Glattfelder at the Ferenc Gál College. This paper can be read in Hungarian in the publication of the Department.
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[4] The jury of the tender consisted of György Lázár, the mayor of Szeged, Endre Gaál, Sándor Ivánkovits, Géza Jászay, Pál Kótay, Ferenc Pálffy, Frigyes Stelczel, Mihály Tóth and Ferenc Varga, Frigyes Schulek and Győző Czigler, teachers of the Technical University of Budapest, Kamill Fittler the director of the Academy of Arts and Crafts.
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[6] Foerk signed in his plans as „Förk”. According to his diary (1905) he changed his name Förk to Foerk because the name of his family has mistyped many times.
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[7] Antal Hofhauser’s I.N.R.I. code-word plans were recommended for purchasing and László Gyalus’s O.A.M.D.G., Lajos Ybl’s Patrona Hungariae and the code-words: Deo, Czentrális, Dóm, Szent Erzsébet and 1879. Finally the city of Szeged has purchased only Hofhauser’s and Gyalus’. Antal Robelly prepared the technical revision of the plans of the tender.
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[8] ʺIncredible news: the Committee does not want to give the commission to Aigner but the former jury member, Frigyes Schulek. Exactly these days the new policy of design tenders has been published. According to the Bulletin a former jury member is not allowed to have a commission neither directly nor indirectly.”
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[29] 11 December 1924, ʺEverything is all right, we will meet the deadline. We are about to construct the towers. ʺFoerk diary, HMA, pp.86.
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From the Foundation Stone to the Cathedral: Architecture of the Votive Church of Szeged

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