|
|
||||||
| Home | |||||||
City of Heviz
Introducing the cityThe town of Heviz can be found near Keszthely, that is one of the largest towns at Lake Balaton. With almost 6,000 inhabitants it is the best known medicinal bath and thermal spa in Hungary, with important tourism industry. The thermal lake is the second largest lake with peat bottom in the world. In summer its temperature is 34 degrees Celsius, in winter 28 degrees Celsius and has a special curative effect on the different rheumatic, locomotor, muscle, and nervous system's disorders and gynaecological problems. The number of the visitors of the lake bath is actually as high as 700.000 to 950.000 a year and the number of guest-days goes well over a million. In major hotels, almost any kinds of therapy are available. Heviz is one of the most important health and tourist resort of Transdanubia. The 200. anniversary of its foundation was celebrated in 1995. During these 200 years Heviz lake became known not only in Europe but all over the world. The other attraction is the Pannonian landscape which embellishes the town wet with mediterranean mist and provides not only healing but also recreation for visitors. Heviz is full of life, there is always something going on in town as culture and entertainment are concerned. The participants of the varied programmes from Hungary and abroad speak of the beauty, the safety and the various opportunities of the town in high terms. The town of Heviz attracts the visitors with its natural wonders, rich touristic and cultural life and friendly residents.History of HevizThe name of Heviz was first mentioned in a charter written in the year 1328. In this charter a marsh had been registered by the name of Hosszusar, which was fed by the warm water flowing freely out of the lake. No documents were found from the centuries of the Middle Age that would indicate that the water of the lake in Heviz was used for curing, however, the possibility cannot be precluded for thermal waters were popular during the Turkish occupation of Hungary especially among soldiers who often suffered from gout. The thermal waters hiding among the reeds and sedges of the marsh were used for occasional bathing by people living in this region. Documents from the 17th century gave an account of the drainage work in the valley of Heviz in connection with the building of mills, which shows the utilization of the outflowing water. During the 18th century the lake of Heviz became well-known and at the end of the century Hevizfurdo was established. Near the end of the century the lake of Heviz was already marked in some maps. In the map of the first military survey from 1783 ordered by Joseph II the lake of Heviz was called "a warm, sulphurous lake" and the rill which was operating several mills was called "Heviz Brook". Later the brook was called "warmrill" while the expression 'Heviz' was only used for the lake itself. The name of Heviz appeared in print for the first time in 1780 in Karoly Windisch's German-speaking work titled Gottlieb. ("The Geography of the Hungarian Kingdom"). Heviz was also mentioned in the Hungarian historical-geographical dictionary published in 1786. In the 18th century the value of the valley of Heviz was given by the mills and the excellent hay yield in some places. In the last decade of the century the utilization of the healing water came into the limelight, the rediscovery of which and the establishment of the spa are Gyorgy Festetics's achievements. The possibility of major developments was provided by the land consolidation of 1857 and 1958 and by the exchange contract between the Bishopric of Veszprem and Count Taszilo Festetics. Due to the letter, the estate obtained an area suitable for constructions where the so-called 'uj-telep' (New Colony) was built. Till 1871 seven houses were built near the lake. The so-called 'Hetes haz' (The Seventh House) still stands today. Due to the constructions the spa became a more and more significant and frequently visited place. The Festetics family let the spa out on lease for shorter or longer periods at the turn of the century. Thanks to Sandor Lovassy, an academical teacher of economics in Keszthely, water-lilies from India were planted in the lake in 1898. The flowers are still a famous sight of Heviz. Between the two world wars the significance of Heviz was increasing: since after the Peace Treaty of Trianon lots of spas were disannexed from Hungary, Heviz became the most important spa of Hungary. The constructions continued around the lake: a lido was built in 1926 and the next year a multi-storied bath house on the northern shore of the lake. The construction of big holiday centres started in the middle of the 1920s. The number of the rooms was 74 at the health resort in 1905 while it amounted to 250 in 1939. Further developments could not be carried out because of the war period and the unstable political atmosphere following it, not to mention the problems arising by the fact that the Festetics family, the owner of the estate, left the country. During the war years visitors came exclusively from Germany. Lots of wounded soldiers were cured in the spa between 1944 and 1945. Hevizfurdo was nationalized in 1948 and in the following years the catering establishments were also taken into public ownership. The Heviz Public Spa Hospital was established by the Ministry of Health on 1st January 1952. Heviz became the biggest spa in the country where patients were treated for rheumatic diseases. The Spa Hospital was enlarged and modernized in the 1960s and new streets and parks were built in 1965. This was the year when the bus station, which is still used today, was built. Heviz was given the status of an incorporated municipality on 1st January 1970. Visitors arrived mainly from Hungary and from the Eastern European countries. At the end of the 1970s 80 percent of the visitors were Hungarians. In the 1970s the trade union holiday centres were renovated one after the other. In the middle of the 1980s the number of the guests from Western Europe noticeably increased. Private accommodation services became more and more important. The renovation of the spa started in the middle of the 1970s - the modernization and winterizing took almost a decade. In March 1986 the spa's central building made of wood caught fire and its biggest part burnt down. More than years were needed for the complete renovation. The problems of Heviz checked the growth of tourism by 20 perccent in the second part of the 1980s. Naturally, the political changes in 1989 and 1990 caused radical changes in Heviz as well. Due to the lack of solvent demand, the number of the guests from Hungary and Eastern Europe decreased. Parallel with this, the number and proportion of guests from the West, particularly from the German-speaking areas, significantly increased. After the privatization a considerable part of the trade union holiday centres were converted into modern and well-equipped hotels. In the 1990s the development was bigger than ever before. Hotels and other catering establishments were built one after the other by Hungarian and foreign investors. By the middle of the 1990s Heviz become a regional centre offering more and more services and programmes. In the second part of the decade several churches were built in Heviz. The new sports centre and the modern, large town hall were inaugurated in September 1999. At the beginning of the 21st century Heviz is one of the most popular and dinamically developing spas in Hungary visited by guests all year round.How was the Lake of Heviz formed ?The origin of the lake goes back to several millions years. During the Triassic period, which was about 200 million years ago, crystal-clear sea water covered this region as well as the site of the present day Transdanubian Mountains. Out of the water dolomite formed a deposit around Heviz. It happened in the Jurassic and the Cretaceous, about 160-170 million years ago, that the sea withdrew from this area. During the following periods the region of Heviz remained a 'mainland'. The last epoch of the period, the Pliocene, however, was very eventful. At the end of the Pliocene and at the beginning of the Pleistocene (about 2 to 4 million years ago) the wind and water streams carried the majority of the material of the Pannonian layers southwards. The welling up of hot springs, and thus the Primordial Spring were the first sign of postvolcanic activities. Due to earth movements and the crustal collapse two trench systems were formed in the middle of the Pleistocene epoch. Moisture accumulated in them: Lake Balaton was formed about 22 thousand years ago. This was the time when the history of the Lake of Heviz also started. There are several pieces of evidence proving that the thermal water of the Lake of Heviz did not well up at the level in the geological past it does today but much higher. The water of the Heviz Lake welled up at its present site about 20-22 thousand years ago, simultaneously with the formation of Lake Balaton. The warm water rushing up first flowed into Lake Balaton. Due to the changes in the climate the water level of Lake Balaton dropped. A peat-moor formed from the once lush flora in the former basin of the lake. The boggy, peaty, flat surface of the Heviz valley extends 1-1.5 km eastwards of the lake as far as Mt. Dobogo at the eastern part of the valley and the mountain range of Cserszegtomaj surrounding the valley from the east. The peaty area extends southwards as far as river Zala and northwards as well as the country tavern of Gyongyos. The water of the Heviz Lake is 'heated' by geothermal energy. The deep-seated waters enclosed in underground storage systems formed during the Triassic and the Pannonian periods are heated by heat conducted and radiated from deep-lying layers of the crust of the earth. Based on the amount of carbon isotope in the water scientists have found out that the cold rill of the spring - from the period of penetration till the date of welling up - is 5-7 thousand years old, while the warm-water spring is 10-12 thousand years of age. Waters infiltrating into the depth from the surface come from a quite extensive area: from the Bakony Hills, the Keszthely Mountains and the Zala Hills. A part of the water does not permeate too deep into the ground (as far as the Pannonian layer) - this is the so-called karst water zone - and from here it gets into the 'mixing cave' of the Lake of Heviz through the cold rill. The majority of the water gets much deeper, into the Triassic dolomite layers where it gets warmed up. During its journey it dissolves various metals and minerals, then it flows towards the surface again to arrive finally at the spring cave. If we keep a close watch on the surface of the Heviz Lake, we can see that it does not stand still.The gastronomy of HevizHungary is not only well known for its thermal baths and hospitality but also for its delicious culinary delights and renowned wines. All visitors can enjoy the tastes of the International cuisine as well as the typical Hungarian dishes in Heviz and sorrounding areas. An important feature to the image of Hévíz, is the part of the town known as Egregy, which is about 1.5 kms from the town centre. This place has retained a real village atmosphere. The beautiful Roman- style Church of Egregy was built in the 13th century, during the rule of Arpad. Behind the church are the picturesque vineyards where one can taste the delicious local wines, for example, the "Egregyi Grinzing". There many restaurants where local delicacies are offered in a homey atmosphere. Each year Egregy celebrates its grape harvest, this is a time for eating, drinking and having a lot of fun.AttractionsChapelThe medieval church was built in the 13th century in Romanesque style. At the two sides of the nave medieval and baroque paintings can be seen. The chapel can be found in the area of Egregy, that was an independent village earlier. Nowdays the building works as chapel and mortuary. From the near of the chapel the visitors can enjoy the beautiful scenery of the land.Roman Catholic Church (Heart of Jesus)The church was built on the basis of Bocskay Janos's plans and was inaugurated in 1999. The seven towers of the building symbolizes the seven gifts of the Holy Ghost. The inner space has a fan shape, the seats form a rounded arch around the altar. The high altar is made of wood and it has dove shape. In its heart the Holy Communion can be seen. The side-altars also have dove shapes. The organ of the church was made by the organmakers of Aquincum. |
