Boedapest: tussen Oost en West

by Victor Sebestyen, Rob de Ridder (translator)

Boedapest heeft een rijke en veelbewogen geschiedenis. Vanwege zijn centrale ligging en de verbindingen via de Donau is het altijd een kruispunt geweest van handel, cultuur en volken. In de afgelopen tweeduizend jaar verschoof het zwaartepunt van de macht in Boedapest herhaaldelijk tussen Oost en West, en de stad vertoont nog altijd de littekens van de opkomst en ondergang van meerdere rijken, twee wereldoorlogen, revoluties en het communisme.

In dit boek vertelt historicus Victor Sebestyen het verhaal van deze tumultueuze, vaak verdeelde, maar altijd fascinerende stad. Hij voert ons mee naar de gebeurtenissen die Boedapest en zijn inwoners hebben gevormd. Van de Romeinse aanwezigheid in het oude Boeda en de Ottomaanse overheersing tot de opkomst van Boedapest als tweede hoofdstad van Oostenrijk-Hongarije en het roerige Sovjettijdperk. Daarnaast verdiept hij zich in de verschillende culturen, talen en religies die de stad nog altijd rijk is. Boedapest is een stad van uitersten, en Sebestyen toont het historische belang van de stad voor Hongarije, Europa én de rest van de wereld.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Hungary, Travel, Cities, World History, European History

468 pages, Hardcover

First published May 12, 2022

About the author

Victor Sebestyen was born in Budapest and was only an infant when his family left Hungary. He has worked for many British newspapers, including the Evening Standard. He lives in England.

Reviews

[Mark]

“Despite turmoil, there are things in Budapest that never change” p377

Victor Sebestyn’s “Budapest: Between East and West” is an absolute deep-dive into the tumultuous history of what is today the Hungarian nation and its jewel of a capital city sparkling on the Danube, privy to the most chaotic history that I had never imagined.

Sebestyn paints an incredible portrait of this city that straddles Eastern and Western Europe, from its birth as Aquincum in the early part of the first century to the arrival of Magyars, the legacy of King Stephen l, the arrival of the Ottoman’s, the Habsburg years, the devastation reaped by two world wars, the communist era and finally the 21st century. I’m honestly quite speechless at the turbulent history of two very different cities, Buda and Pest, on either side of the Danube that united to become the city we know as Budapest.

I read somewhere in the book that Hungary was amazing at losing wars and out of each loss came the next chapter of the ongoing saga of this city. Revolution after revolution, siege after siege, it seems that Budapest barely gets on its feet that it’s knocked down again. The only constant for a the best part of a millennium is change and as Sebestyn highlights, “Hungary is a nation of political extremes where differences are not always settled with calm moderation and common sense.”

An absolutely fascinating read. I’m heading to Budapest later this year for the first time and I feel quite awestruck to know I’ll be walking the streets where history is alive and a city has been formed out of so much sacrifice and turmoil. I cannot wait.

[Alexandra]

Things I knew about Budapest before reading this: it used to be two towns, and pictures of Soviet tanks in the streets in 1956. I think that's about it, really.

An intriguing aspect of this book is that it's written by a man born in Budapest, whose family fled Hungary when he was a child. Sebestyen makes no secret of this, and of his connection to the country and the city. So there's a mix of 'objective' history, and also the occasional mention of how things relate to him personally. I like this kind of honesty a lot.

One annoying aspect - and this might just be a personal gripe - isn't peculiar to Sebestyen, and is at least partly a reflection of the historical record (and my personal preferences). The book begins with a very brief look at what is known of the area around Budapest from pre-history, and then moves to what the Romans did. There's barely a discussion of Attila and the Huns. By p30 we're up to the year 1000. p109 and we're already at 1800 and at p272 it's the accommodation between Hungary and Hitler's Germany. The book is 377 pages long. While I know that there's a lot more evidence for the alter centuries, it always makes me despair that history is given such an unbalanced presentation. As if the modern world is the only bit worth discussing. Sigh.

Despite this preponderance of modern history, Sebestyen does give a good overview of the history of Budapest - as Simon Sebag Montefiore notes in the front cover quotation., it's really a history of Central Europe. You can hardly have a history of the city without discussing the history of (what is now) the country; and in this particular case, at least some of what was happening in Austria for a few centuries. And so I learned more about the Turkish occupation, as well as how the Habsburgs managed to create Austria-Hungary as a dual monarchy; and of course the role of Hungary in both world wars and then as part of the Soviet bloc.

The story is largely told chronologically, with occasional chapter breaks about particular themes - one in particular that stood out was about the role of the Jewish population in the city. I had no idea that Hungary had been something of a haven for European Jews, although they were still not safe from the occasional pogrom (because anti-Semitism is apparently just too easy). The way that Jews stood outside of the feudal system, basically - and the incredibly bizarre way Hungarian feudalism was structured, with a massive number of nobles who refused to get into trade or anything similar - meaning that Jewish artisans and traders filled that niche.

This book fits into a tradition of using city histories as a way of looking at changes over time, to everything from culture and tradition to language and politics and everything else. The sub-title is pointed, here: part of Sebestyen's argument is that Hungary doesn't really fit into the way Europe sees itself, and doesn't particularly fit elsewhere either. (The story of Hungarian as a language, and the efforts to revive and develop it, is a particularly fascinating part of the book.)

Thoroughly enjoyable.

[Liam Ostermann]

[This review has gained a 'spoiler alert' which I didn't put there and can't remove. Please ignore it I don't reveal any 'secrets' (I can hardly call them plot details it is a history book not a novel) the only thing I reveal is that it is a bad book. Because of the 'spoiler alert' I have removed two stars].

This is a good book but not a very good book. Perhaps the problem is me, I just don't have the patience for 1,000 years of history in 377 pages. You can't really write history like that. The first 500 years get about 78 pages, that's everything from the arrival of the Magyars to the arrival of Habsburg rule. Way too much but the little there is, is boring. The next 500 years sweep by in 300 pages but it isn't enough. You could write 300 pages on Hungary between 1848 and 1919 and barely cover the complexities. As for Communist Hungary and 1956? it is pointless to criticise because it isn't the books fault it is mine. If I knew nothing I would probably love it. But I know enough to see inadequacies.

I didn't like it but it isn't deserving of being shelved as disappointing. I am the wrong reader for this book. I honestly believe unless you know nothing it would be better to read about Hungary in other books. Certainly The Fall of the Habsburg Monarchy by Edward Crankshaw although old is a better book to understand 19th Hungary (although I must stress that Crankshaw's book is not only about Hungary). I believe more concentrated, thematic histories are better. Even literature is a better guide; The Dukhays by Lajlos Zilahy, or the amazing Transylvania Trilogy by Miklos Banffy would be more of worthy of your time.

This is not a bad book it is just not a book I would recommend to anyone.

[Mai H.]

Non-fiction November TBR

📱 Thank you to NetGalley and Pantheon

[Charlotte]

4,5

Must read voor alles expats en exchange students hier, kan mij de laatste keer niet herinneren dat ik een non-fictieboek (ja, jawel, dat van Katrin) (een geschiedenisboek dan nog) als ‘pakkend’ heb omschreven (maar ik ben dan ook wel wat bevooroordeeld na zes weken in de mooiste stad van Europa).

“De merkwaardige intensiteit van hun bestaan kan misschien worden verklaard door een buitengewone eenzaamheid. Hongaar zijn is een collectieve neurose.” - Koestler

[Dennis van Gulik]

Great read, providing an insightful overview of Budapest history in not too long, accessible chapters. Highly recommendable when looking for historical context to enrich a trip to Budapest.

[Keen Reader]

“During the 19th Century Berlin and Budapest were the fastest growing cities in Europe, and from the millennium year to the start of the First World War Budapest was the fastest growing one…The speed of growth was spectacular and utterly transformed its people and its lifestyle. This was the period when modern Budapest was formed, planned to look more like Paris than a Habsburg town.”

Sebestyen has written a really strong and readable book on one of the most culturally and historically richest cities in all of Europe. He covers a lot of interesting ground, from the likes of the Khan, Ottomans, Habsburg and the Roman empires, dynasties and invasions, also tackling the likes of 1848, 1956, both World Wars and of course the Trianon Treaty and Communist era with aplomb.

He also gives a fine description of the unique and challenging Magyar language, which is part of the Uralic family, and apparently stems from Siberia and scholars still debate about the exact classification etc, but either way this part of the world has successfully created a linguistic island within in Slavic, Teutonic and Romantic lands

“In the millennium year Hungary was nearly three times the size it would be just 25 years later and its population around 50% higher. Most of present day Croatia and Slovakia, a third of Romania and a large slice of Serbia were all part of Greater Hungary. It possessed a busy seaport on the Adriatic with a busy merchant navy. Then the disaster of WWI struck…Hungary has never recovered from the shock.”

Sebestyen spends a lot of worthwhile attention on the many dark chapters which have shadowed so many eras and years of the city, at one point he says of the communist dictator, Matyas Rakosi,

“Had he acted on a bigger stage he would now be recognised as one of the greatest monsters of the 20th Century…over less than a decade in power he murdered and jailed as many Hungarians proportionately, as his patron managed in the Soviet Union after thirty years.”

[Mary]

Fascinating and accessible overview of Budapest.

[Amit]

It’s my first book written on a city in a manner it is . All the history , rulers, men on the throne and behind it , king and kingmakers, queens and wonderful time line weaved in as part of the story.
The book has made me now more than ever eager to visit Budapest.
It also puts in context the history and turmoil of being Hungary. As you read it you understand the outcomes of second word war and get a context of many world events.

A delightful and yet detailed book which will hold your hand and take you through centuries of stories and events.

A little more post world wars and a little less of history pre 1900’s would have made the book more contemporary yet it’s to be read if you want to understand the history of the east and the west .

[Moonkiszt]

Budapest: Between East and West is an ambitious biography of a city it is clear the author loves. Victor Sebestyen approaches his subject almost Michener-like: at the very beginning. I read this slowly, as it covers a wide range of populations indigenous, conquering, settling, social systems, wars, trade — in and out, arriving and departing.

Despite all, the author affirms at the book's conclusion, that regardless of all that's been there is a constancy in the spirit of people and the spirit of the place that is Budapest.

*A sincere thank you to Victor Sebestyen, Knopf, Pantheon, Vintage, and Anchor | Pantheon, and NetGalley for an ARC to read and review independently.* #Budapest #NetGalley 26|52:10a

[Arnold Huijgen]

Goed leesbaar en boeiend overzicht van de geschiedenis van Boedapest. Soms een tikkeltje droog, maar het wordt spannender vanaf de 19e eeuw - om het voorzichtig te zeggen…

[James]

Told in a very accessible way for someone with very little knowledge of Hungarian history. Great mix of daily life and experience and historical events

[Alex]

Finished reading this while sipping a Transylvanian beer down a little Budapest side street, after enjoying a meal at the historic Pilvax café.. This read made the city feel more alive and rich in stories than any guidebook could have.
Perfect? Maybe not. I would have liked more on the effects of WW1 and the collapse of the Austria-Hungarian empire. But overall, a great read.

[Dominic Arbuthnott]

As a friend of the author, it is always hard not to give 5☆ but Victor Sebestyen has written an accessible, fast-paced and helpful history of Hungary really, with the focus on Budapest. I found the description of Buda and Pest under the Turks very interesting, they were essentially a military outpost, desolate. The book comes into its own once we reach the 19C, in particular its description of the role that Hungarians of Jewish faith played in its magnificent development after the formation of the dual-monarchy in 1867. But Victor is primarily a 20C historian and this shows in the final chapters on the Horthy regime, the seige of Budapest and the post-war rise of the Communists. Most importantly, this book stands up as a bulwark against the current regime's attempt to whitewash the Hungarian people's direct involvement in the Holocaust. I say this not to bash my adopted country of 30 years, but to avoid history, in some way, repeating itself. Germany has come to terms with its past, Hungary still needs to do the same, and I hope Victor's book will help start this process.

[Sally Paul]

Interesting subject matter, covering the history of Budapest and the impact of its conquest by the Romans, the Magyars, the Ottomans, the Habsburgs, the Nazis, and finally the Soviets. The writing is a bit dry and dragged in parts, but still it kept my interest. But I have to say I was disappointed that the story ended in 1989 with the fall of the Soviet Union. The subsequent 34 years are covered in a 4-page "Conclusion" section. I had hoped for at least a chapter tying this history to the Hungarians' more recent decisions to join NATO and the EU only to seemingly tilt toward Russia and China now. Thus, the book feels unfinished. I suppose it's a good sign that it left me wanting more.

[Matthias]

I basically read this book because of a personal fascination for pre-Communist Hungary. However, it were exactly the chapters about the Communist era that read like a page-turner. Just a pity that the book ended with the fall of the Wall. I had loved to read more about the Orbán era.

In spite of the title, the book is rather a general history of Hungary, though with a special focus on Budapest (at times).

Very interesting and well-written book, but with quite some factual and orthographical errors.

[John]

I had the privilege to live in Budapest for four months back in 2013. I fell in love with the city and it became a second home. I enjoyed the opportunity I had to explore every part of the place. I lived in Obuda (Old Buda) in District 3, which you can see on the map in Sebestyen's book. There were Roman ruins where I lived, so the beginning of Victor Sebestyen's book covers the Romans being in Hungary. That brought back memories of walking to the grocery store and passing ancient artifacts from that time period. I had not seen Roman ruins in person at the time, so it was amazing to see.

Sebestyen continues on with the history of the Magyars and then with the Turks invading Hungary. He covers the Austrian-Hungarian Empire, the World Wars, Soviet occupation and other topics. I enjoyed the beginning of the book and the end of the book immensely. In the middle, however, I found myself bored at times. I wish Sebestyen had a glossary to keep track of all the Hungarian names. I knew some of the figures, but others were new to me and I had to remember who was who.

I did not love this book as much as his biography about Vladimir Lenin, but I still enjoyed this book. Like I said before, it brought back memories of my time there. There is a photo of the city from a high point. That is Gellert Hill and it is the best spot to see a picturesque view of Budapest. I walked from apartment to Gellert Hill many times to enjoy this. Sebestyen's description of the Shoe Monument to honor the Jews murdered by the Arrow Cross Party, a fascist Hungarian militia, succinctly describes my emotions when I saw it.

Sebestyen's best part of the book is when he describes Buda versus Pest. Although the same city, they are extremely different. Considering I lived in Obuda I felt like I was not in a city. It was quiet and relaxed where I lived, no hustle and bustle like on the Pest side. They did not unite until 1873. Also, when Sebestyen explains that Hungary is not European and is its own culture was something I connected with a lot. When I landed at the airport in Budapest, I did not feel like I was in Europe, and please do not take that as a negative statement because I do not mean it that way. Hungary is a unique country and I have a lot of great memories living in Budapest. Sebestyen definitely brought back some of my cherished moments there. An excellent book for those who have been to Budapest or plan to visit. It will help you understand it better and appreciate the uniqueness.

[Samantha]

A thorough and well-researched account of the history of Budapest.

I was disappointed when I discovered that this is almost exclusively a political history rather than a cultural history of the union of Buda and Pest and the aftermath, but it’s certainly a well-crafted and written political history if that’s what you’re after.

I had hoped for far more cultural content, and something that felt more like a blend of sociocontextualism and political background. I was in absolute heaven while reading the section about coffeehouses, but that kind of content is rare in this one.

I also wish the chronological distribution has been a bit more skewed toward earlier history of Buda and Pest, or at least more evenly distributed. It’s frustrating because most histories of this region lean very heavily into more modern history (this one is sadly no exception), and that’s disappointing because that information is already widely disseminated and easy to find.

Less common is the earlier history (let’s say pre-1850 or so) for this and surrounding regions, and that’s the information I’m really after. Even an equal distribution from one era to the next would have been understandable, but to skew so much toward modern history feels like an all-too-common problem in these types of histories.

This flows well, the writing is good, and if you’re looking for recent Hungarian political history, this is about as good as it gets. But if you’re looking for something that focuses on earlier eras or examines the area through à sociocontextual lens, look elsewhere.

*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*

[Danny Jacobs]

Ik sluit 2023 af met twee meesterwerken van de Hongaars-Britse schrijver Victor Sebestyen. Naast zijn opus magnum ‚Lenin‘ sloot ik net ‚Boedapest‘ af, een klepper van opnieuw 500 pagina’s. Opmerkelijk hoe weinig we eigenlijk weten van de geschiedenis van midden-Europa, was de bedenking die onmiddellijk bij me opkwam.

Victor Sebestyen is een historicus die veel kennis heeft van de geschiedenis van Oost-Europa. Boedapest is de stad waar Victor geboren is. Het is een zeer indrukwekkende geschiedenis die hij tot in detail beschrijft. Boedapest is een van de belangrijkste steden in Europa en is altijd het middelpunt geweest van de handel tussen Oost en West. De stad is nog niet zo oud want ze werd pas in 1873 Boedapest door het samenvoegen van Boeda en Obuda (het westelijke deel) en Pest (het oostelijke deel). De Donau, de langste rivier binnen de Europese Unie, loopt dwars door Boedapest en verdeelt de stad figuurlijk nog altijd in Oost en West.

Het boek is verdeeld in drie delen. Het eerste deel heet De Magyaren. Een wreed en oorlogszuchtig volk dat moordend en plunderend door Europa trok. In het tweede deel is een hoofdrol weggelegd voor de Oostenrijkse Habsburgers die de Hongaarse troon opeisten. Het derde deel begint in 1914 en en eindigt in 1989 met een de eerste openbare speech van een 26-jarige langharige jongeman, Victor Orban. Lezen maar…

[joanna]

“𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐇𝐮𝐧𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐚𝐥, 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐏𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐟𝐥𝐲 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐠𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐁𝐮𝐝𝐚 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐞𝐟𝐥𝐲 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐡𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐜 𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐲.”

This was fantastic. It was well-researched, easy to read, and for the most part well-paced. I wish it would have focused less on the Hasburgs, but overall this was an amazing portrait of Budapest, and Hungary.

Even though I really enjoyed this, it definitely had some problems. For example, it focused so little on 1956 or 1848, but we had a whole chapter dedicated to a woman who wasn’t even Hungarian.

I would have liked to see less of the author’s personal interjections. But, this wasn’t written by a professional historian either, which is understandable.

Overall I did enjoy this.

[David]

I picked up this book because the Economist magazine highly recommended it. For me this is 3.5 stars, with a friendly rounding up to 4.

I’m Hungarian and Budapest resident. The book has definitely merit in showing aspects of history that are left out from high school textbooks.

Quotes from foreign commentators and impartial descriptions of characters (regarded as saints by Hungarians) offered a fresh perspective for me.

However, the book is centered around key events and persons of Hungarian history but misses the underlying social and economic processes. It is supposed to be a book about Budapest. It isn’t really. How could it be silent about the population boom after the WWII? The actual unification of Pest-Buda in 1873? The total destruction of vineyards in the Buda hills by a pest?

We learn very little about the economy. The author describes the city as impoverished then bourgeois in an instant.

And why does the story, published in 2022, end in 1990?

Lastly, there are quite some misspellings and geographic inaccuracies, which do not serve the book very well.

If you’re interested in Budapest, read this book, but do not stop here.

[Ben G]

I read this in anticipation of visiting Budapest and happy to say it's great! Casts the story of the city as the development of the Hungarian national character: a relatable antihero, perennial underdog and occasional badly-behaved overdog. Tight, almost to the point of being insufficiently detailed. Loads of nice little asides about the city itself which made the trip that much richer. The last few chapters, from the Red Army siege through occupation, revolution and up to the fall of the USSR was so goddang enthralling that I forgot I was absolutely knackered and stuffed into a delayed ryanair flight at midnight.

[Michael Mahoney]

I learned a lot about what the people of Hungary or the Magyars went through in their 1,000-year history. The movements of the early Magyar peoples into present day Hungary, the influence and occupation of both the Ottoman and Hapsburg Empires, the joint agreement with Austria to sharing an empire, the little known but very bloody siege of Budapest by the Red Army in 1944 to being under the Iron Curtain. Yes, Sebestyen covers it all in this well written and well researched book. You don't just learn about Budapest; you learn about who the Hungarians are and what they went through.

[Dimitri]

***1/2 Het is niet ongebruikelijk dat de geschiedenis van de hoofdstad spreekt voor het land, al bleven Buda en Pest bescheiden van omvang & gescheiden van elkaar tot de tekst gas terugneemt over de Donaubruggen medio 19e eeuw, om dan plots de decennia na de Opstand af te haspelen. Alles bij elkaar een liefdevol overzicht met veel voeling voor de Hongaarse mentaliteit.

[Mushy]

Goed geschreven boek over de geschiedenis van Hongarije

[Jim Swike]

Plan to visit Budapest, visited or interested in Budapest? This is a quick and interesting about the city's history. Enjoy!

[Lander Hardy]

Toch pechvogels 😂

[Ellie Peskin]

very interesting book, i learned so much

excited to head there next week for the semester!

[Jacob Kuchta]

Amazing historical perspective on a city that is so cultural and has been through SO much.

[Catherine Young]

I knew nothing of Hungary before reading/listening to this book. We have a friend from Hungary, and my son visited him there. Wow; what a poignant, often heart-wrenching history they have had! I’m so glad to have read this book. I listened to it on Audible, so I could hear the language pronounced correctly. The reader’s voice is beautiful. Highly recommend.