Debüt
Our school, János Xántus Secondary School can be found in Markó Street, in the inner city of Budapest, in the proximity of Western Railway Station. This district is home to building complexes built at the end of the 19th century, such as the Parliament, the Museum of Ethnography, St Stephen's Basilica, furthermore the palaces of ministries, the Supreme Court and the Ministry of Justice are at close quarters as well.
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The building was designed by Alajos Hauszmann (1847-1926), one of the most outstanding architects of the time, who was a former professor of the University of Technology. He is one of the most prominent figures of the eclectic style in Hungarian architecture. His masterpieces are the Royal Palace of Buda, the Museum of Ethnography, and the New York Palace with its famous New York Cafe on the ground floor, which is often considered to be one of the most fabulous cafes in Europe. It was the most important meeting place of writers and poets at the beginning of the 20th century. |
Bernát Alexander 1850-1927 philosopher, aesthete |
The building construction of the school took place between 1883 and 1886. The elegant red brick building with its simple façade reflects the harmony of Italian Renaissance and matches its surroundings well. During its 110 years of existence the building has always functioned as an educational institution. Previous specialisations of the school were commerce and textile industry and currently it is a secondary grammar school and a vocational school of tourism. Renowned teachers worked on the grounds of the institution in the past, namely, the writer-literary historian Zsolt Beöthy, the writer-ethnographer Dezső Malonyai, the mathematician Ignác Rados, the philosopher Bernát Alexander, the botanist Vince Barabás and last but not least the historian Dávid Angyal. |
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The most famous former students of the school are the mechanical engineer Donát Bánki, the mathematician Manó Beke, the architect and the country's first Olympic champion Alfréd Hajós, the composer Viktor Jacobi, the writer Frigyes Karinthy, the poet Miklós Radnóti, the painter István Szőnyi and finally the physicist and Nobel Prize laureate Dénes Gábor. |
Zsolt Beöthy 1850-1927 philosopher, aesthete |