One of the Biggest Baroque Palaces in the Country to be Renewed26 March 2009
Construction work of the Edelény Palace Island Cultural and Tourism Centre priority project costing nearly 2.2 billion HUF may get underway within the framework of the Development of Tourist Attractions initiative of the North Hungary Operational Programme.
This is one of Hungary’s biggest baroque palaces. The assistance contract of the project was signed at the palace on 25 March in the presence of Mr László Varju State-Secretary of the Ministry for National Development and Economy and Mr Ferenc Csák State-Secretary of the Ministry of Education and Culture.
The reconstruction of the palace building will be completed (creating level handicap access on an area of over 1600 square metres) and the entire palace park will be renewed on an area of 50 hectares within the framework of the investment.
The main building of the palace in Edelény built nearly 300 years ago will be renewed both inside and out; art treasures on exhibition in the halls of the building will be restored and the building will be made suitable for use for tourism and cultural purposes to ensure its long-term maintenance and the conservation of its values. Restoring the island characteristic of the surroundings of the palace by setting up a visitor-friendly visitor’s centre with a parking lot suitable for accommodating 70 cars and 8 buses on the far side of the River Bódva is a key component of the project. A newly built footbridge will connect the visitor’s centre to the palace island.
Nearly 30 jobs will be created as an outcome of the project and services tying in with the tourist attraction will provide work for many enterprises in the region. 100,000 visitors are expected to visit the palace by the fifth year following the completion of reconstruction work.
The objective of the renewal of the run-down historic building that was left vacant for long years is geared towards using the palace for tourism purposes, which equally benefits the development of tourism in the Cserehát and Galyaság regions and stimulates the region’s economy.
Main sub-components of the development:
• Using the palace building as a museum and visitor’s centre: renewal of the building facade and halls; restoration of paintings on the walls and the ceiling; accommodating temporary and permanent exhibitions, setting up the region’s information point and creating a venue for prestigious scientific and cultural events. The real life scenes depicted in rococo style on the frescoes lining the walls of the upstairs rooms are brought to life with the help of a 3D film within the framework of the project.
• Reconstruction of the palace-park and garden: retracing the ambiance of the Baroque Era, creating programme venues and a children’s playground; building the footbridge from the parking lot spanning the River Bódva enabling access to the island.
• Setting up auxiliary services: parking lot, bicycle rack, cashier and information centre, as well as catering and service points, a café and museum shop.
History of the palace
The L'Huillier-Coburg Palace located at the gateway to Aggtelek is one of the biggest and most significant baroque palaces in the country. The L'Huillier-Coburg Palace in Edelény was built between 1716 and 1730 by the captain of Eger Castle Jean François L'Huillier of Lotharingia. The walls of the palace’s seven upstairs rooms are lined with frescos painted in rococo style, which constitute some of the best preserved wall frescoes in the world depicting real life laic scenes. They are particularly interesting on account of how all of the female figures in the frescoes presumably portray Maria Theresa.
Edelény fell under the ownership of the family of the Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in the 19th century. The palace was not considered significant in the life of the family, which surrendered a part of the palace to the District Court in 1861. The palace came under the ownership of the Ministry of Justice in 1928 and a prison wing was even set up in the palace at the time. After the Second World War, the palace was used to accommodate apartments, a kindergarten and the District Prosecution Office and most of its park was subdivided and the garden was transformed into a football pitch after 1945.
The deteriorating historic building complex left vacant for many years during the 1990s was handed over to the National Trust for Historical Monuments in 2001 and the most urgently needed preservation work was undertaken. Certain parts of the building were also restored between 2004 and 2006, such as the mansard roof structure, and the National Trust began to elaborate the details of the 2.2 billion HUF priority tourism project in 2006.