Alcsút Palace

[1][2] On 20 September 1795, Holy Roman Emperor Francis II appointed his younger brother Archduke Joseph of Austria as governor of Hungary.

Between 1819 and 1827, Palatine Joseph built a summer residence in Alcsút according to the plans of the well-known architect Mihály Pollack (1773–1855) in a neoclassical style.

He had new wings added, created a courtyard and rebuilt the rear facade of the palace in an eclectic style.

Over the decades, the palace has housed a valuable picture gallery, numerous works of art and furniture from a wide variety of epochs.

The Alcsút palace and estate remained property of the Habsburg family until the end of the Second World War.

The last owner, Archduke Joseph Francis and his wife, stayed the longest, leaving the palace on 19 December 1944, shortly before the Red Army invaded.

With the knowledge of the then communist authorities, the local residents stole the usable building material from the ruins in the second half of the 1940s.

In February 1951, the entire palace ruin was demolished, with the exception of the main facade, which is still visible today.

The former model farm Hatvanpuszta of the estate is now owned by the family of Viktor Orbán, Hungary’s Prime Minister.