Royal castle of Óbuda

The settlement inside the walls of Aquincum was already an important regal centre in the beginning of the Árpád-age, in the 11th century. In the center of the city the huge church of the Saint Peter’s provostry emerged, next to it is the probable site of the royal mansion. The royal castle of Óbuda was built in the 1230s outside the city, over the Roman city walls. During the time of King Béla IV it took over the function of the royal residence of Esztergom, and became the residence of Hungarian kings until the end of the 13th century.
The regular square shaped middle yarded castle was decorated by a gate tower. Next to it stood the multi-leveled castle chapel and opposite of it the two storey great hall. A suite of rooms were situated next to the other side of the yard accompanied by a bath with hypocaust. Ornate windowed corridor overlooked the surrounding landscape from the royal residence. The inner castle was surrounded by a moat and a square shaped castle wall. After the death of King Charles Robert, King Louis the Great donated it to his mother, Queen Elisabeth, who supplemented the building with a late gothic chapel and hanging gardens, which from that time onwards, served as the seat of Hungarian Queens. The castle turned to ruin in the Ottoman era, its walls were demolished in the 18th century.