Hungary

Introduction & Quick Facts
Land
- Relief
- Drainage and soils
- Climate
- Plant and animal life
People
- Ethnic groups and languages
- Religion
- Settlement patterns
  - Traditional regions
  - Urban settlement
  - Rural settlement
- Demographic trends
Economy
- Overview
- Agriculture
- Resources and power
- Manufacturing
- Finance
- Trade
- Services
- Labor and taxation
- Transportation and telecommunications
Government and society
- Overview
- Constitutional framework
- Local government
- Justice
- Political process
- Security
- Health and welfare
- Housing
- Education
  - General considerations
  - Higher education
Cultural life
- Cultural milieu
- Daily life and social customs
- The arts
- Cultural institutions
- Sports and recreation
- Media and publishing
History
- Origins of the Magyars
- The kingdom to 1526
  - The Árpáds
    - The Christian kingdom
    - The early kings
    - Consolidation and expansion
    - Social and political developments
    - The Mongol invasion: the last Árpád kings
  - Hungary under foreign kings
    - The Angevin kings
    - Sigismund of Luxembourg
    - János Hunyadi and Matthias Corvinus
    - The Jagiellon kings: National decay
- The period of partition
  - Royal Hungary and the rise of Transylvania
  - War and liberation
- Habsburg rule, 1699–1918
  - Habsburg rule to 1867
    - Charles III and Maria Theresa
    - Joseph II and Leopold II
    - Francis I: the reform generation
    - The nationalities
    - Revolution, reaction, and “compromise”
  - The Dual Monarchy, 1867–1918
    - Hungary under dualism
    - Social and economic developments
    - World War I
- Revolution, counterrevolution, and the regency, 1918–45
  - The regency, 1920–45
    - The Treaty of Trianon
    - Postwar confusion and reconstruction
  - Financial crisis: the rise of right radicalism
  - War and renewed defeat
- Hungary in the Soviet orbit
  - The communist regime
    - Political developments
    - Economic developments
  - The Revolution of 1956
  - The Kádár regime
  - Reforms of the late 1980s
    - Economic reforms
    - Political reforms
- Postcommunist Hungary
  - Political developments
  - Economic and social change

References & Edit History Facts & Stats

Images, Videos & Interactives

Flag of Hungary featuring three horizontal stripes of red, white, and green.

Political map of Hungary showing national and regional boundaries, major cities, rivers, and neighboring countries including Austria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia. An inset locator map highlights Hungary's position within Europe.

Parliament Building, Budapest

Map highlighting Hungary in central Europe, surrounded by Slovakia, Austria, Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Romania, and Ukraine, with Budapest marked as the capital. Neighboring countries including Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Poland, Czech Republic, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, and Kosovo are also labeled.

Budapest: Buda Castle

A cultural guide to Budapest

Map of Hungary showing its physical features, including major rivers such as the Danube and Tisza, mountain ranges like the Matra and Mecsek, Lake Balaton, national parks, and surrounding countries. A small locator map in the bottom right highlights Hungary's location within Europe.

Győr, on the Rába River

Vineyard rows descend a hillside beside Lake Balaton in Hungary, with wooded shores and distant hills across the water.

At a Glance

default image

Hungary summary

Related Questions

Hungary

country, Europe

Also known as: Magyar Köztársaság, Magyarország, Republic of Hungary(Show More)

Written by

Nicholas A. VardyAll

Fact-checked by

Britannica Editors

Last updated

Nov. 13, 2026 •History

Hungary, landlocked country of central Europe. The capital is Budapest. At the end of World War I, defeated Hungary lost 71 percent of its territory as a result of the Treaty of Trianon (1920). Since then, grappling with the loss of more than two-thirds of their territory and people, Hungarians have looked to a past that was greater than the present as their collective psyche suffered from the so-called “Trianon Syndrome.” The syndrome was widespread...

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