The rebirth of the Buda Palace District has reached another important stage, and the reconstruction of the building of the Honvéd High Command is beginning, the National Hauszmann Program announced on their facebook page.

The neo-renaissance building of the Honvéd High Command , built between 1895 and 1897 on the plot at 17 Dísz tér, was designed by the architect of the formerly demolished Ministry of Defense, the Buda Vigadó and the Lutheran church in Buda, Mór Kallina.

The building of the Honvéd High Command once (Source: FSZEK Budapest Collection)

As the announcement recalls, in World War II, in the basement of the building, the Crown Guard got involved in a firefight with an SS unit about to break in. During the World War II battles, the roof structure of the building was damaged, and although its damage was not fatal, it was declared ruined by the people of the communist power from 1947, and instead of restoration it was gradually demolished to the height of the first floor. Since then, the building has stood as a war memento, and between 2012-2014 it was only partially renovated.

Renovated foyer of the building (Photo: Castle Headquarters)

The building during deconstruction in 1963. The dome of Buda Palace under reconstruction visible in the background (Photo: Fortepan/No.: 5221)

The building nowadays (Photo: Castle Headquarters)

As they write, the reconstruction work is now underway, during which the building of the Honvéd High Command will be restored to its original height. The useful area of the building will more than triple, even though the Ministry of Defense, which was once attached to it, will not be rebuilt.

In the future, the Honvéd High Command will operate as a visitor center, the cultural and tourist gateway of the Buda Castle District, with exhibitions, a community space and gastronomic functions.

Medieval well excavated on the basement level of the building (Photo: Castle Headquarters)

Archaeological excavations will be carried out in the area prior to each construction. New finds from the excavations are always professionally processed and presented to the general public in an authentic, up-to-date way. Recently, at the basement level of the Honvéd Headquarters, our archaeologists found a well from which valuable finds, mainly consisting of ceramic jars and glasses, were found. The earliest pieces of the find come from the late Árpádian era, but in really large numbers, the finds are from the Sigismund era, from the turn of the 14th to the 15th century, objects were found from the first decades of the century.

Cover photo: Visual design of the building of the Honvéd High Command (Source: Castle Headquarters)