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1683 Oradea in 2010's: 1. Holy Cross Monastery 2. The City Hall
3. The Theatre 4. Black Eagle Palace 5. Astoria. |
Posted on 20.06.2015, 23.04.2016
Located in an area of transition from relief hills to the
Pannonian plain,
Oradea, the capital city of
Crişana region, is one of the important centers of economic, social and cultural development in the western part of
Romania, retaining these characteristics throughout history. Lying on the banks of
Crişul Repede River, that divides the city into almost equal halves, it is the gateway to Central and Western Europe. While modern Oradea is first mentioned in 1113, under the Latin name
Varadinum, the region was inhabited by
Dacians and
Celts long before.
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2482 Oradea in 1980's: 1. The City Hall 2. View on Crişul Repede River
3. The bridge aver Crişul Repede River 4. Republica Square |
After
the conquest of Dacia, the Romans established a presence in the area. The city flourished both economically and culturally during the 13th century, when was built the Citadel of Oradea, destroyed and rebuilt several times over the course of following centuries. In 1474 the city was captured by the Turks after a protracted siege. Their mostly tolerant policies ensured that the city would become an ethnic mosaic of
Romanians,
Hungarians,
Austrians,
Slovaks,
Hebrews,
Ruthenians and
Turks, causing Oradea to grow as an urban area starting with the 16th century.
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| 2483 Oradea: The Theater |
After the
Ottoman invasion of Hungary, the city became a constant point of contention between the
Principality of Transylvania, the
Ottoman Empire, and the
Habsburg Monarchy. Under the Habsburgs the city entered its golden age. The Viennese engineer Franz Anton Hillebrandt given the task of planning the city in the
Baroque style and, starting with 1752, many of the city's current landmarks were constructed. At the end of WWI, Oradea became a part of the
Kingdom of Romania. Ethnic tensions sometimes ran high in the area in the past but the different ethnic groups now live together in harmony.
