thumb|right|Downtown of Gyula
thumb|Siege of Gyula 1566
thumb|right|Trilingual ([[Hungarian language|Hungarian, Romanian, German) table in Gyula (meaning "social health insurance")]]
thumb|right|Birth house of [[Ferenc Erkel, the composer of the Hungarian national anthem]]
thumb|right|Roman Catholic chapel in Gyula
Gyula (; ; or ) is a town in Békés County, Hungary.
The town is best known for its medieval castle and a thermal bath. Ferenc Erkel, the composer of the Hungarian national anthem, and Albrecht Dürer the Elder, the father of Albrecht Dürer, were also born in Gyula, Gyula was also a title among the Hungarian tribes and still a common male given name.
In Romanian, the town is known as or , in German as and in Turkish as .
Geography
Gyula is located in the Great Hungarian Plain on the River Fehér-Körös, southeast from Budapest and from the border with Romania. The (Szeged-)Békéscsaba-Gyula-Kötegyán railway line and Highway 44 also cross the town. Highway 44 is a four-lane expressway between Gyula and the county seat Békéscsaba.
Neighbourhoods
The town has several quarters including Óváros (Old Town), Újváros (New Town), Nagyrománváros (Great Romanian Quarter), Kisrománváros (Little Romanian Quarter) Magyarváros (Hungarian Quarter), Németváros (German Quarter), Kisváros (Small Town), Kastélykert (Castle Garden), Krinolinkert (Crinoline Garden), Szentpálfalva (Saint Paul's Village), Ajtósfalva (Doormaker's Village).
History
The first recorded reference to Gyula was in a document dated 1313 which mentions a monastery called Gyulamonostora (Julamonustra in Latin). By 1332 the settlement around the monastery was called Gyula. The construction of Gyula Castle began in the 14th century but finished only in the mid-16th century. The landowner János Harruckern invited German, Hungarian, and Romanian settlers, who re-established the town in the early 18th century. Gyula became a popular tourist destination in the 20th century. The thermal bath was established in 1942 and expanded in 1959, and the castle was restored in 1962.
Gyula is the center of the small native Romanian community of Hungary. It has its own newspaper published in Gyula, Foaia Românească ("The Romanian Sheet"). Gyula also has a school for its Romanian population, the Nicolae Bălcescu Romanian Gymnasium, Primary School and College, as well as a Research Institute of the Romanians of Hungary seated in the town. Furthermore, the Diocese of Gyula, the Romanian Orthodox diocese serving the Romanians in Hungary, is seated in Gyula. The town itself hosts two Romanian Orthodox churches, the and the St. Paraskeva Church. There is also a consulate general of Romania in Gyula.
In 2011 there were 5,726 (18.4%) Roman Catholic, 5,560 (17.9%) Hungarian Reformed (Calvinist), 606 (2.0%) Orthodox and 507 (1.6%) Lutheran in Gyula. 8,304 people (26.7%) were irreligious and 453 (1.5%) Atheist, while 9,012 people (29.0%) did not declare their religion.
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|Fidesz-KDNP
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| Gyulai Városbarátok Köre
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| Movement for a Better Hungary (Jobbik)
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| Unity (Együtt-PM-MSZP-DK)
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Sport
The Christián László Municipal Sports Complex is a municipal sports complex, consisting of 13 hectares of sports facilities, which includes the Himer Center field with an athletics track and a football pitch surrounded by a motorcycle speedway track. In addition, there are two more full size football pitches, tennis courts, basketball and skateboarding facilities.
Notable people
Born in Gyula
- Béla Bánáthy (1919–2003), social scientist and professor
- Zoltán Bay (1900–1992), physicist (born in Gyulavári, now part of Gyula)
- Imre Bródy (1891–1944), physicist
- Béla Bartók (1881–1945), Hungarian composer