Budapest – District XI (Statue of Gábor Bethlen)

This statue in District XI of Budapest commemorates the life of Gábor Bethlen, a rather important figure in Hungarian history. He was the Prince of Transylvania from 1613 to 1629 and also King-elect of Hungary (he never quite took control of the entire country) from 1620 to 1621 and he was also the Duke of Opole (one of my favourite cities) from 1622 until 1625. He is particularly known for leading Transylvania into its “golden age” and for his wise rule, economic reforms and for defending Protestantism in Hungary during the Thirty Years’ War. There are rather more decadent statues of him around the city, but this one is suitably under-stated and also has a coat hook for reasons unknown to me.