Former mosques, Baroque, Art Nouveau and a thousand-year-old relic – let’s delve into the most intriguing churches in Budapest….
The churches in Budapest may not be as widely known as those in cities such as Vienna and Prague, but they tell a fascinating story.
Their history goes back a thousand years, embodied in the famous relic of the right hand of St Stephen of Hungary, the nation’s first King. Some of Budapest’s churches were converted into mosques during the 140-year Turkish occupation, That’s a very long time – spanning the Renaissance and early Baroque periods – when no churches were built in the city.
But there are plenty of wonders to seek out, from the Gothic-meets-Art-Nouveau Mátyás templom to the delightful Baroque church of St Anna close to the right bank of the Danube. I hope you enjoy discovering them.
Where To Stay In Budapest
***** – Four Seasons Gresham Palace Budapest – 5-star luxury in gorgeous Art Nouveau building close to the Danube and Chain Bridge
**** – Continental Hotel Budapest – beautiful Art Nouveau building, great location in Pest close to Metro
**** – Gerloczy Boutique Hotel – Parisian-style boutique hotel, superb location in Pest a few minutes’ walk from the Danube
*** – Benczur Hotel – great 3-star option in lovely quiet area close to Heroes Square, City Park and Metro
*** – Budget Hotel Victoria – brilliant Buda budget option, one block from the river and a few minutes’ uphill walk from the Fishermen’s Bastion and Mátyás templom church.
The Most Beautiful Churches In Budapest
St Stephen’s Basilica (Szent István Bazilika)
19th-century home to a 1,000-year-old relic
The Basilica, on the Pest side of the river, is the largest church in Budapest, and a co-cathedral (joint cathedral) with the Basilica in Esztergom, the ‘Hungarian Canterbury’ an hour or so north along the Danube.
Like the Esztergom Basilica, St Stephen’s is a surprisingly recent building. It was begun in 1851, built on elevated ground away from the river and deemed safe from flooding. It’s dedicated to St Stephen (Szent Istvan), the first King of Hungary, who ruled from 1001 to 1038. He was born a pagan but converted to Christianity, and established Hungary as a Christian state.
The Basilica is built in the Neoclassical style, and elaborately decorated within. The ceilings, including that of the dome, are adorned by mosaics by Gyula Benczur and Bertalan Szekely. With the profusion of marble pillars and statues, it’s quite a sight.
However, the church’s most prized treasure is housed in a glass and gold reliquary. It’s the Holy Right Hand of St Stephen of Hungary (Szentjobb). It was apparently stolen by a priest and discovered in 1084 in what is now Romania. It later ended up in Dubrovnik, and later Székesfehérvár, before doing the rounds in the former Austrian Empire. It has been kept in the Basilica since 1950.
The Basilica’s dome can be climbed for superb views over the city. It is exactly the same height as the nearby Hungarian Parliament (Országház), at 96 metres, or 315 feet. This is deliberate, reflecting the view that secular and religious considerations should be equal.
Getting there: Metro M1 to Bajcsy-Zsilinszky út
Mátyás templom (Matthias Church)
The finest Gothic church in Budapest
The Mátyás templom is at the heart of Tourist Budapest, just up the hill from Buda Castle and a few metres from the Fishermen’s Bastion, with its awesome views across the Danube to Pest.
We’ll get the church’s name(s) out of the way first. It’s widely known as the Matthias Church, after Matthias Corvinus, who was responsible for the rebuilding of the belltower in the late 15th century. However, the church’s official name is the Church of Our Lady of Buda Castle, or, in Hungarian, Budavári Nagyboldogasszony templom.
The original church was founded in the early 11th century, but was destroyed by the Mongols in 1241. The 13th-century Gothic church which replaced it was later remodelled, and a rebuild of the 15th-century iteration of the church is what you see today. It also served as a mosque during the Turkish occupation of Budapest. It has been the venue of many national events, most notably the coronation of Austrian Emperor Franz Josef I as King of Hungary in 1867.
It’s mostly a Gothic church, but for two centuries was rebuilt in the Baroque style. This was stripped out in the 19th century, as it was restored to its former Gothic beauty under the direction of Frigyes Schulek. He was responsible for the wonderful Art Nouveau wall paintings inside, enriching the interior with colour. They have a wondrous effect – similar to that of the late 19th century Basilica in Vyšehrad Prague.
Getting there: Buses 16, 16 A or 116 to Szentháromság tér. If you want to avoid the walk up the hill from the river, either catch the 16 from Hild tér (on the Pest side, near the Basilica) or from Clark Ádám tér (next to the funicular). Otherwise it’s worth catching the funicular (Siklo) at least one during your stay in Budapest.
St Anna Church Batthány tér
The high point of Budapest Baroque
The twin-towered church of St Anne is one of the most beautiful churches in Budapest. This Italian Baroque gem was built between 1740 and 1762, on the site of an earlier church destroyed by the occupying Ottoman Turks. It’s the parish church of Felsőviziváros (which translates as ‘Upper Watertown’), the riverside district of Buda.
St Anne’s dominates what is now a not terribly attractive square next to the Danube. Batthány tér is a busy transport hub, with a Metro station where several tram and bus routes converge. While the Metro was being built under Communist rule, demolition was considered, but it was eventually restored in the 1970s and 1980s.
And thankfully so. The Baroque façade and spires are beautiful, as are several Baroque works of art within the church. These include the Holy Trinity fresco in the sanctuary by Gergely Vogl and the superb wrought iron screen in front of the former Loreto Chapel.
While passing through the square outside, take a minute or two to appreciate the view directly across the Danube to the Hungarian Parliament building, one of the most famous landmarks in Budapest.
Getting there: Metro line M2 to Batthány tér
Reformed Church (Református templom)
Riverside Protestant church with superb Art Nouveau tiled roof
Also in the Viziváros district, overlooking the Danube on Szilágyi Dezső tér, the Reformed Church is one of the main Calvinist Protestant churches in Budapest.
It was designed and built by architect Samu Pecz between 1893 and 1896. Its layout is markedly different from Roman Catholic churches in Budapest, having more in common with the likes of the Frauenkirche in Dresden, with more emphasis on height, and the closeness of the congregation to the pulpit and altar.
The most notable feature of the church is its Zsolnay tiled roof, one of the best examples in Art Nouveau Budapest.
Getting there: Trams 19 or 41 to Halász utca
Tabán Church (St Catherine of Alexandria Church)
Baroque beauty at the foot of Gellért Hill
I’ve always been drawn to this lovely Baroque church close to the right bank of the Danube, in the Buda side of the city. It’s in the Tabán district, a short riverside tram ride away from the famous Chain Bridge, just beyond the outer ramparts of Buda Castle.
The Tabán Church has had a turbulent history. The first building on the site was a mosque, converted into a chapel after the departure of the occupying Turks. A Baroque church was later built there, only to be destroyed in a major fire in 1810. It was later rebuilt in the Baroque style later in the 19th century, only to suffer further serious damage during the bombing of Budapest towards the end of the Second World War.
For many years the church served the South Slav community settled in this part of the Viziváros district, and it wasn’t until the 20th century that Hungarian became the dominant language of the congregation.
One of the most remarkable medieval stone carvings in Hungary was discovered in the church in the early 1900s. The Tabán Christ, which was probably originally part of a series of sculptures, can now be seen in the Budapest History Museum up the hill in Buda Castle.
Getting there: Trams 56 or 56A to Döbrentei tér, or trams 19 and 41 to Várkért Bazár
Gellért Hill Cave Church (Gellérthegyi Barlang)
Quirky 20th-century church with a tragic tale
According to tradition, this cave on the Danube waterfront was home to a hermit called Szent Ivan who treated the sick with water from what are now the Gellért Baths. It was also later home to a family in the latter part of the 19th century.
The Cave Church only came into being after 1920, when it was modelled on a similar church in Lourdes, the popular pilgrimage destination in the Pyrenees. It was part of a monastery established by the Pauline Order.
It was later requisitioned by the Nazis during World War Two, when it served as a field hospital. It was closed and sealed up in 1951, and its clergy were imprisoned – the head of the monastery was sentenced to death – as part of the Communist persecution of the Church.
Getting there: Metro line M4 or trams 19, 41, 47, 48 or 49 to Szent Gellért tér Müegyetem, then a 5-minute walk past the famous Gellért Hotel
Belváros Inner City Parish Church
Historic medieval church mostly rebuilt Baroque style after 1723 fire
The Church of Our Lady of the Assumption, or as it’s officially known in Hungarian, Belvárosi Nagyboldogassszony Főplébánia templom, is one of the oldest churches in Budapest, and overlooks the Danube from the Pest side, close to Erzsebet hid (Elizabeth Bridge).
The church was founded in the 12th century, but little survives from this period. It was the original burial place of St Gellért, also known as Bishop Gerald of Csanad, but his tomb has been lost. The oldest part of the church is a Gothic chapel. The Ottoman Turks converted it into a mosque – the prayer niche, or mihrab, can still be seen.
Most of the medieval church was lost in 1723 when a fire swept through the building. It was rebuilt in the Baroque style soon afterwards,
Getting there: Trams 2, 2B or 23, or buses 5, 7, 8E, 15 or 107 to 15. Marcius tér
Ják Chapel, Vajdahunyad Castle
Part-replica of Romanesque Basilica in western Hungary
Vajdahunyad Castle, on the edge of the City Park (Városliget), was built for the 1896 Hungarian Millennium celebrations. And it’s filled with replicas of great Hungarian buildings spanning the centuries. The oldest of these is the copy of the façade of the Romanesque Basilica at Ják, in the far west of Hungary, a mile or two from the Austrian border.
At Vajdahunyad, you see a copy of the main portal of the Benedictine monastery church, which most likely dates from the late 12th or early 13th centuries. It’s a stunning portal, with a rounded Romanesque arch below a pointed Gothic one, richly carved with figures. The figures in the tympanum above the arches are of Jesus and his Apostles.
Behind the façade, there’s a small church and cloister with garden. The original Jaki Church is much larger, the portal flanked by twin towers with spires, and the interior bridging the Romanesque-Gothic transition of the early 13th century. I haven’t visited the original church but would love to. If you’re ever in the vicinity of Szombathely, it’s only a few miles south of there, so I suggest seeing it for yourself.
Getting there: Metro M1 to Hősök tére
Churches in Budapest – Final Thoughts
I hope you’ve enjoyed this guide to the churches of Budapest. Most of them are along the banks of the Danube, or close by, and you could conceivably visit them all in a day, with a bit of help from the trams of Budapest.
The Hungarian capital is one of the most photogenic cities in Europe, particularly at night. Check out my guide to Photographing Budapest for pro tips on the best places tp photograph – and, crucially, the best times of day. Also take a look at my companion article on Art Nouveau Budapest, which shows the pick of the best buildings in Budapest from this period.
If you’re planning on exploring Hungary beyond Budapest -something I strongly recommend – then take a look at my article on the best day trips from Budapest.
And if you’re interested in exploring more churches around Central Europe and beyond, check out some of these articles:
Churches in Vienna – from a stunning Gothic Cathedral to a concrete Brutalist gem
Churches in Prague – the wonders of the City of a Hundred Spires
Churches in Dresden – Baroque beauties including the iconic Frauenkirche
Churches in Berlin – the city’s turbulent history told through its fascinating churches
Churches in Nuremberg – discover the Gothic wonders of the Imperial City
St Barbara’s Cathedral Kutná Hora – glorious Gothic in a town made rich by silver
Kutná Hora Bone Church – the astonishing skeleton art of the Sedlec Ossuary
Visiting Naumburg Cathedral – amazing early Gothic masterpiece
Nikolaikirche Leipzig – the church that helped bring down the Berlin wall
Churches in Venice Italy – St Mark’s, San Giorgio Maggiore and many more Venetian wonders