We arrive at the venue of the next Hungarian exhibition in our illustrated series showcasing the world of exhibitions.
We are in the city of ancient heritage, surrounded by the memory of the great figures of our history. We arrive in the City of Kings, which served as a royal seat and coronation city for half a millennium, where 32 kings were crowned within its walls.
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“It was the capital city / with roaring bells / Coronation seat / with royal couples. / Historical memory / City of Kings / you will not be disappointed in this place / beautiful Alba Regia.
We have arrived in the city of Székesfehérvár, this ancient historical city whose main square features the Országalma (Apple of the Country) symbolizing the medieval coronation city, with a Latin inscription stating that Saint Stephen granted Alba the city’s rights. In 1222, one of the significant events in the country’s history took place here, the issuance of the Golden Bull, whose memory is preserved by the Golden Bull statue located on Csúcsos Hill.
Székesfehérvár is our oldest Hungarian city, built at the junction of important trade routes. In 972, Prince Géza established his royal seat here, and here he built the first stone church of the Hungarians, which also served as his burial place. The city truly became a significant center during the reign of Saint Stephen. At that time, the Basilica of the Assumption (coronation basilica), serving as the coronation and royal burial site, was built.
The remains of this and the ruin garden and memorial site created to display the sarcophagus of Saint Stephen have now become a national pilgrimage site.
From the 11th to the 16th century, Székesfehérvár was a royal seat, and most of our kings were buried here, including Saint Stephen, Coloman the Learned, Charles Robert, Louis the Great, John Zápolya, and King Matthias. King Stephen was canonized here, and as previously mentioned, Andrew II proclaimed the Golden Bull here, which established the rights of the population living on royal estates and the nobiliary privileges.
During the 150 years of Turkish occupation, the city was completely destroyed. At the beginning of the 18th century, the ruined city began to develop again, and the baroque city founded on medieval foundations was born, which also became an episcopal seat at the disposal of Queen Maria Theresa. The 18th and 19th-century downtown, with its medieval streets, baroque churches, and rococo palaces, flourished once more. Education, intellectual, and cultural life thrived within its walls. This cultural vibrancy has remained to this day. Today’s Székesfehérvár is uniquely rich in historical, cultural, archaeological, museological, and fine arts values and curiosities. Visitors can discover countless treasures, including Roman-era monuments, sarcophagi, and fine arts works.
Among these rich historical memories, the Park of Kings located in the Palotaváros honors the kings buried in Székesfehérvár.
In the park, life-size wooden carved statues created by the artists commemorate our princes Géza, Saint Stephen, Géza II, Stephen IV, Béla II, Béla III, and Coloman the Learned.
One of the city's most beautiful museum values is Jenő Bory's romantic knight's castle. The Bory Castle is an artistic level building complex, built by architect and sculptor Jenő Bory according to his own plans over 40 years. The castle consists of 7 towers and 30 smaller and larger rooms, everywhere sculptures, pictures, antiques and art objects in countless shapes and forms. Along the corridors running around the hundred-column courtyard of the castle stand the great figures, heroes, bards and kings of Hungarian history.
The castle is also a symbol of everlasting love and exemplary marriage. Jenő Bory's marble statues preserve the memory of his love for his wife, the charming lady. In the rooms, courtyard and garden, an art collection consisting of more than 500 works can be viewed.
Among the city's tourist attractions, the most wonderful is the Flower Clock located in the city center. The clock, operating since 1960, is powered by a mechanism built into the ground, with its numbers and minutes formed from different colored flowers every year.
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In the city, this wonderfully beautiful Flower Clock watches over time from May to November.
Among Székesfehérvár's natural sights, the Rowing and Fishing Lake in the Amusement Park enchants visitors with its picturesque beauty. The lake is an artificial lake built in the 1960s, located within the city limits. The current environment of the rowing lake developed at the end of the 1900s and is a popular resting place for locals and visitors alike.
After this little historical time travel, we arrive at the green area of the Bregyóköz Camping. The camping area often hosts various leisure activities, sporting events, and occasions, and it just served as the venue for the dog show where the dog breeders were expecting the exhibitors and visitors from 7 a.m.
Beatrix Pethő and her husband, Imre, breeders of the "Black Jade Pakony" pug kennel, recall the exhibition as follows:
"Bad weather was promised for Sunday. It arrived. We also arrived, but not without some problems, as we didn't see any CACIB signs anywhere in the city, although it wasn’t everywhere clear which was the correct way to the camping site.
The new sports center is a nice thing, but it was built exactly where the previous parking lot was, and we had to hike at least two sports field distances to get there. And on top of that, a top setting: together with the FeHoVa 1500 HUF parking fee, they gave us the most expensive parking of the season so far, which only earned a big black mark in our evaluation.
The nearly 750 dogs were distributed among 14 judges; some judged a dozen or so in one breed group, while the "top" was judge Levente Miklós with 101 small and large dogs, leading the second judge by 25 and the third by about 40, and he judged at least four breed groups. Of course, we were also judged, near the end, so there was still excitement about whether we would finish before the heavy rain predicted for noon or get thoroughly soaked. I add that, generally, the dogs didn’t tolerate the weather well either, as fights broke out in several places.
A foreign roaming team also attended this CACIB, in this case a less well-managed Czech brigade compared to the Russians at FeHoVa. As far as I know, they had less success (at least in our circle), if not, please correct me.
Mr. Miklós Bíró honorably managed the marathon program, to which the organizers also contributed with some time savings: true to a good Hungarian CACIB show, there was no need to bother with ribbons and cords; magnificent, large cards will adorn the inside of the desk drawer. I note that, in theory, the CACIB show is the international competition, so mostly the Hungarian shows are judged based on the experiences here, no matter how much the small local organizations try at the CAC shows…
I would be unfair not to mention as positives the dog presentations organized primarily for entertaining children visitors, as well as the farewell props (carousel, bouncy castle), and the vendors also came in the usual large numbers (and with the usual high prices).
After the breed evaluations, we packed up just in time, because by the time we got into the car, it started to rain. But even if we had gotten wet, we would not have minded, because we got what we came for, and even slightly overachieved.”
Photos by kutyaegydolog.hu:
The Ebugatta television crew also participated at the Székesfehérvár show. We recommend the video they made to our readers’ attention:
Congratulations to all exhibitors, and especially to the winners for their excellent results achieved at the show!
Many thanks to Beatrix Pethő and Imre on behalf of the Black Jade Pakony pug kennel for the interesting and detailed show report and the many beautiful photos, giving us a little insight into the “Colorful and Special World of Shows”.
If you liked the article, please share it so it can reach as many dog lovers and families as possible! Thank you!
If you are a dog exhibitor, or if you are interested in the world of dog shows, I recommend the author’s official website, where you can find the dog show calendars from recent years, the official 2020 MEOESZ dog show calendar, and all 2020 MEOESZ dog show guides in Hungarian and English in the usual format!
Find the official website of dog article writer and author Ildikó Vámosi:
Http://ildikovamosi.hu/
🙂 Thank you if you honor me with your visit! 🙂
