Budapest 1900: A Historical Portrait of a City and Its Culture

I purchased this book to learn a little about Hungary at the turn of the century. My grandparents emigrated in 1904 and though they didn't live in Budapest, I thought I'd get a feel for Hungary during that era. However, the early part of the book was mostly about the intellectuals, etc. of that era and an immediate switch to WWII and the Communist era. While that was interesting, it was not what I expected. It was also a very short book, with a great deal of the book consisting of bibliography and index. Thus, the book was very disappointing.

I was led to this bobook after reading The Burning of the World, the memoir by a young man sho served in the Royal Hungarian army in the disastrous Galician campaign of 1914. John Lucacs is a professional historian and a vivid writer, with Hungarian background. I delighted in his evocation of what was the most modern city in Europe inform the 1880s. He recounts the progress of building and the associated works, and on the composition of the population, is customs, and the names, the schools, the arts, the brilliant peopleand the tempo of the place. He also trecounts what happened, the turmoil at at the end of 14-18, the Horthy regime, the Nazi occupation of 1944 and the slaughter, physical destruction, the Communist era, and the beginning of revival after The Budapest story is well worth reading about in addition to the Viena 1900 books that appeared in the 1980s and 90s.To me, this is a model of history, throroughly researched annotated, full of flavor and appreciation--and comment.

As best as one can, Lukacs captures the flavor of Budapest 100 years ago. Beginning with a microcosmic view of the sights, sounds and smells of the city and in expanding concentric circles, Lukacs broadens his lens to encompass fin-de-sicle Hungary in all its splendor.1900 is intentionally chosen as a both as a specific moment in time relevant to Budapest, and as a metaphor for the generation that lived and grew-up at that time and in that place, when the second capital of the Dual Monarchy was at its zenith. Economically it was the commercial hub of the eastern half of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, socially its non-Germanic soul. Towards those ends (and reminiscent of Frederic Morton's  Thunder At Twilight: Vienna 1913/1914  which I would recommend as a companion to this book) Lukacs has mixed success in capturing the zeitgeist of this magnificent city.The opening chapters are his strongest as he discusses the districts of the city and their accompanying smells, flavors and peoples as the city spread out. I had a clear and vivid understanding of exactly what and how things were changing and why the author chose this moment in time to focus on Budapest. The later chapters on politics and (Lukacs' words) the "generation of 1900" were less visceral. If Lukacs' intent was to create a portrait of the city in its youth, I felt he began to stray from this intent in these sections, and compared to the way in which he captured my imagination in the opening, it was almost dull by comparison.But I love Budapest - in many ways it reminds me of my adopted home, Portland: the cafe culture, bridges, even the flat, industrial side on the east and the older, wealthier side on the hilly west these cities share in common. Throughout the book Lukacs reminded me in a number of small ways what is remarkable, unique and beautiful about Budapest in 1900 and now. If you are, like me, a fan of the time or interested in central Europe, this is an interesting read. If you have been (or - lucky you - will be going, especially for the first time), this would be on my "must read before you go" list.

I just finished this book, but heard about it about 20 years ago when the author appeared on BookTV, describing his "Hitler of History".Lukacz is a self-proclaimed "reactionary", pining for the values of days gone past. This book, describing his native city at the turn of the 20th century seems to be an attempt to describe the values he has in mind.To my reading those values are: free markets, tolerance, repect for high forms of literature and art, and rule by law.Lukacz is now in very advanced age. Whether or not he will live to see such a society is presently quite up in the air.Maybe the outcome of politics and culture in the next few years will tell. In the meantime, we can only be impressed with this author's vast knowledge of history, architecture, literature, art and the thorough mastery of his adopted language, English, which he's obviously added to his Hungarian, German, French, etc.

A bit dryer than I'd hoped. I visited Budapest 30 years ago, and I was interested in its history, not I'm not sure I'll finish the book.

Excellent research, deep insight, clear presentation.A very unbiased analysis of the political, sociological, and psychological developments in Budapest between 1900-1945/46I hope that Professor Lukacs will surprise us with more studies , dealing with the the problems of the Hungarian Society arising infront of our eyes since 2008 .. The rise of the Extreme Right neo -Nazi movement in Europe is quite worry some .It is the role of the Historian, to lay down facts , and present them to Governmental Representatives who should by understanding past developments ,keep the extreme elements under checks and balances .

Excellent introduction to late 19th and early-to-mid 20th century Hungarian history. Richly detailed and seemingly extremely well informed. Occasionally I was put off by Lukacs's sweeping generalizations about the Hungarian character.

Well written. We vacationed there several years ago and it was fascinating to read about the city’s history.

I guess this was a very specialist purchase. I bought it because my grandparents moved to Budapest from the Bohemian peasant countryside around 1890 and lived there ever after. I wanted to learn about the city and why they moved there. I found this book gave a vivid picture really conveying the vibrancy and explosive growth of Budapest around 1900. It captures the author's awe at how Budapest rose from almost nothing to the fastest growing city in Europe, the world's 6th biggest city, with Europe's biggest parliament building, stock exchange and railway station. I learned the place was so fashionable it even became "cool" to have a Hungarian-sounding name. It's also a sad book as it details how after its zenith around 1900 20th century disaster after disaster befell the city. A very readable book, captivating, but probably of limited interest to readers with a connection with the city.

I love it so far--will add later.

Beautiful book

Excellent