Ópusztaszer

The location of the first Hungarian Parliament. Although properly speaking we cannot talk about a national assembly, but still, peaple associations it with the name of Ópusztaszer, if they hear it. This is beacause Anonymus wrote in his 'Gesta' that after the Hungarians occupied the territory, the seven chiefs gathered here to discuss the further tasks. Our famous Nameless historian also seemed to know about them confirming their blood-contract on this occasion. Whatever happened, this place must have had a special significance , since according to the findings of the archeological excavations, there was a monastery here even under the rule of István, which was extended into a huge, three-body church by the end of the 12th century. This structure was destroyed by the Tartars and it was never rebuilt. This lowland settlement, devastated by the Ottomans, Tartars and Labances, was forgotten for a long time. But later amidst the great national enthusiasm of the millenium, it seemed only natural to raise a monument to the events and to chief Árpád in Pusztaszer, where the aforementioned meeting supposedly took place. After 1956, the construction works of the National Historic Monument Park were started. Today, it has an area of 22 000 hectares. Besides the old Árpád monument, the other well-known monument is the huge panorama painting of Árpád Feszty, finished in 1894. It is 15 m high, 115 m long and its area is 1725 square metres. It shows the history of the Hungarians in pageant style, starting with their leaving their ancient homeland, through the age of wandering and finishes with their arrival in the Carpathian Basin and with scenes of setting, putting the commanding figure of Árpád in the middle.The outdoor ethnographical collection (village museum) of Pusztaszer has been expanding since 1979. This tries to show the life of the 19th-20th century lowland farms, villages and towns.