1911 Encyclopædia Britannica/Szeged

SZEGED (Ger., Szegedin), the capital of the county of Csongrad in Hungary, 118 m. S.E. of Budapest by rail. Pop. (1900), 100,270. It is situated on both banks of the Theiss just below the confluence of the Maros, and contains the inner town and four suburbs. It is the second town in Hungary as regards population, and since the disastrous inundation of the Theiss on the night of the 11th of March 1879, which almost completely destroyed it, Szeged has been rebuilt. It is now one of the handsomest towns of Hungary, and has several large squares, broad avenues, boulevards and many palatial buildings. It has also been encircled with a strong dam in order to protect it from floods. Among the principal buildings are a Franciscan convent, with a rich library and an interesting collection of antiquities and ecclesiastical objects; a Piarist and a Minorite convent; a handsome new town-hall; and a natural history and historical museum to which is attached a public library. Szeged is the chief seat of the manufacture of paprica, a kind of red pepper largely used in Hungary, and of a pastry called tarhonya; and has factories of soap, leather, boots, saw-mills and distilleries. Szeged is the centre of the commerce and industry of the great Hungarian Alfold, being an important railway junction and the principal port on the Theiss.

Since the 15th century Szeged has been one of the most prominent cities in Hungary. From 1541 till 1686 it was in possession of the Turks, who fortified it. It is also notorious for its many witchcraft trials. In 1848 it sent strong detachments to the national Hungarian army. In July 1849 the seat of the government was transferred hither for a short time.