382 CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE
For hotels and restaurants in this region see pp390–93 and pp394–7
Eger: Eger Castle
Eger Vár
The site of a legendary siege against the invading
Ottomans, Eger Castle is an imposing edifice. Entered
by a tiny gate set into 3-m (10-ft) thick walls with the
menacing upper fortress in the back ground, it was here,
in 1552, that the greatest rear guard action in Hungarian
military history was carried out. The castle, defended
by a garrison of just 2,000 soldiers and ably assisted
by the women of the town, held out against a formid-
able Ottoman force five times that size for six weeks.
The Ottomans eventually retreated, but took the castle
44 years later, only for much of it to be destroyed in
1702 by the Habsburgs.
STAR FEATURES. Bishop’s Palace
. Ruins of Romanesque
Cathedral
. Underground Corridors
. Bishop’s Palace
The names of all those who
defended the castle in 1552
are engraved in a marble
tablet in the main hall.
Fold Bastion Waxworks
A great collection of
lifelike wax figures,
displayed over three
levels of the bastion,
recreates scenes from
the siege.
Dobó Bastion
The bastions
and walls were
fortified from
the mid-1500s
under István
Dobó, who led
the defenders
during the siege.Art Gallery
The Art Gallery hosts an unrivalled
collection of Hungarian Baroque
paintings and sculptures, including
this bas-relief above the entrance.
Round
To w e rTicket
Office