Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
SISI, THE FRIEND OF HUNGARY
One of the most popular historical figures in Hungary today is
Empress Elizabeth
(1837-98), the beautiful wife of the Austrian Emperor Franz Josef. She might seem a
strange choice, given that her husband crushed the Hungarians in 1848, but that may be
the clue to the bond that developed between the empress and Hungary. She loathed life in
the Viennese court and was none too attached to the emperor either, and Budapest came to
represent a refuge for her. She also avoided staying in the empty Royal Palace in Budapest,
preferring to spend her time in the palace in Gödöllő and a villa in the Buda Hills near
the
Jáno-shegy
. The Hungarians called her Sisi (pronounced see-see) and she pleaded their
cause in Vienna. There were even rumours of affairs with the Hungarian statesman Count
Gyula Andrássy.
Sisi'slater yearswereblighted bytragedy-thedeathofhersiblingsandthesuicide ofher
son Rudolf at Mayerling - before she herself was stabbed to death by an anarchist in 1898
in Switzerland. Mourned throughout Hungary, she became the focus of a cult that outlasted
all attempts to stifle it under Communism.
Gödöllő Town Museum
Gödöllői Városi Múzeum • Szabadság tér 5 • Tues-Sun 10am-6pm • 600Ft • 28 422 002
Back across the main road and the HÉV tracks and down to the right, the delightful
Gödöllő
Town Museum
focuses on the
Gödöllő Artists' Colony
. Founded in 1901, the colony was
inspired by the English Pre-Raphaelites and the Arts and Crafts movement of William Mor-
ris and John Ruskin, whose communal, rural ethos it took a stage further. Members included
Aladár Körösfői-Kriesch, who wrote a book about Ruskin and Morris, and Sándor Nagy,
whose home and workshop may eventually become a separate museum. There was a strong
tradition of weaving in the artists' colony - here at least the lack of English captions is no
obstacle to enjoyment. The museum's other displays include good exhibitions of regional
history, including mock-up rooms illustrating the life of the Gödöllő estate; the displays on
hunting and the Gödöllő scout troop should not detain you too long.
ARRIVAL AND INFORMATION: GÖDÖLLŐ
By train
HÉV trains from Örs Vezér tere (every 30min) take about 50min to reach Gödöllő;
get off at the Szabadság tér stop, bang opposite the palace. BKK tickets (and Budapest Cards)
are valid as far as the city limits, so you will need to buy a supplementary ticket to cover the
remaining part of the journey, or show a BKK pass or ticket when buying a ticket at the sta-
tion or on the train.
Tourist booth
There's a Tourinform booth inside the palace (Tues-Sun: Nov-March
