Eger Minaret

The Eger Minaret is one of the most unexpected sights in central Europe: a slender, forty-metre Ottoman tower standing in the middle of a Hungarian Baroque city. Built in the late seventeenth century as part of a mosque complex, it is the northernmost surviving Ottoman minaret on the European continent — a reminder that the Ottomans occupied Eger for almost ninety years before the Habsburgs retook the city in 1687.

A narrow spiral staircase with 97 steps leads to a small balcony near the top, from which the view over the Baroque roofscape of central Eger is excellent. The climb is tight and not suitable for those with claustrophobia, but the views justify the effort. The minaret is located a short walk from Dobó Square and is usually open to visitors during daylight hours. It is one of the most photographed sights in Hungary.

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A story
At 40 metres tall, the minaret of the former Kethüda Mosque is the northernmost surviving Ottoman minaret in Europe. When the Habsburgs expelled the Ottomans from Eger in 1687, they demolished all the mosques but stopped short of tearing down the minaret — perhaps because of the effort involved, perhaps because it was too useful as a lookout tower. A small Christian chapel was added at its base as if to consecrate the structure by proximity.