HISTORICAL GEOGRAPHY AND SETTLEMENT MORPHOLOGY OF EGER

Abstract

The paper is a new achievement of the research series focused on the settlement morphology and historical geography of cities with county rank in Hungary. The focus of this survey is on Eger, the centre of Heves County, a city with long historical past. The birth of the trading and Episcopal settlement at the entrance of the valley between the Mátra and the Bükk mountains is examined, together with the historical geography of the city, especially the development of its base plan, urban structure and functions. The change of the images of Eger is followed, with special regard to the period after the regime change. The horizontal homogeneity and the vertical fragmentation of building up are demonstrated, as are the styles of building up and the distribution of these styles within the city. One of the main objectives of the research was the discovery and demonstration of the functional structure of the city and the functional zones. Also, an effort was made to explore the reasons for and consequences of the changes, and to outline the special settlement morphology features of Eger.