Prime Minister Viktor Orbán's Speech at the Inauguration of the Restored Marionette Theatre of the Eszterházy Palace in Fertőd.
(19 June 2013, Fertőd)

Ladies and Gentlemen,

In the 20th century, we Hungarians constantly had to get used to the sound of the snipping of scissors. The snipping of scissors with which the threads of our national traditions were severed. This is what happened in Trianon, then later when the communists took power. Communism tore the stately homes of the nobility away from their original purpose. Some were converted into old people's homes or orphanages, or perhaps they became museums in which they were presented as the strongholds of Hungarian feudalism. Visitors could shuffle around in their standard issue felt mules while listening to the standard issue drawl.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Hungary can only be renewed if we succeed in ridding ourselves of the ghost houses of communism and succeed in establishing true, frequented, popular and high standard community spaces. It was in the spirit of this ideal that the Millennium City Center and the Millenáris Park were constructed during our first period in office. And this is the way in which the Ludovica Academy is currently being built and the reason renovation work on the Várbazár [Castle Bazaar] is underway.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

The era of the simple felt-muled museum visitor is over. These days, it is not enough to simply restore these historical sites, but they must also be made appealing to the public. There is huge competition throughout the world for tourists, visitors and music-lovers, and a country for which tourism represents a significant part of the gross national product must take such new challenges seriously. These days, it is not enough to simply renovate a stately home, as a relic of the past, but as here in Fertőd, for instance, it must magically conjure up for visitors the world that deservedly gave the court of Prince Miklós "the Magnificent" Eszterházy the name, the Versailles of Hungary. 250 years ago, a unique creation came into being on the outskirts of the village of Süttör. What was constructed was not simply a stately home, but a centre for the arts, a veritable bastion of culture.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Culture without philanthropists is like professional sport without sponsors. Perhaps the most prestigious philanthropist in Hungary during the second half of the 18th century was Miklós Eszterházy. He served loyally and with a spirit of chivalry on the battlefield, and it was with this same commitment that he set forth to realise his dreams. It is a strange parallel, that Louis XIV envisioned the Palace of Versailles on a piece of useless swampland, and Prince Miklós Eszterházy found a similar site for his home. Both sets of buildings are masterpieces of baroque architecture and both became the centres of cultural life in their time.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

No less of a personality than Haydn lived and composed here. The palace also included an opera house, a music room and a wonderful art gallery, which was added to through three generations and was already world famous at the time. The feasts and celebrations of the aristocracy were not complete without puppet operettas and marionette shows, for which, as we have heard, the Prince had a separate theatre constructed. The marionette theatre, as we have been told by Professor Hiller, was opened in 1773, the year in which the Empress Maria Theresa was a guest at the palace, and Haydn himself conducted the overture to the piece we heard here earlier.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Through the court of the determined aristocrat, Hungary was able to enter the period's most modern and exceptional flow of European culture.

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Professor Hiller and our fellow MP, a member of the socialist party group, correctly recognised the significance of this site and came to the right decision when he made a decisive step so that the palace may find its way back into the main stream of European culture. We, in turn, were driven by the goal that the palace should be not simply a symbolic site of Hungarian high culture, but also one of its real, live venues. Thanks to successive development projects, Hungary's largest baroque palace shall soon once again await both Hungarian and foreign visitors in its former glory and in a state and environment that is worthy of its title as a world heritage site. A country that does not remain true to its cultural roots and which turns away from its past also turns its back on its future. History holds many examples of a people or country choosing a new path for themselves, but were rarely find an example of them shunning the creations of their ancestors. A country which is capable of living in unity with the legacy of its forefathers and which does not fritter away its inheritance shall become strong and successful. This is why we decided to renovate the Royal Palace of Gödöllő in relation to the Hungarian Presidency of the European Union, and despite the rigid requirements of the crisis, we will do everything possible to ensure that the Eszterházy Palace in Fertőd may once again become one of the bastions of European culture. As the great poet Jókai said in his memorial speech on Széchényi, and I quote: "Money spent on culture takes root in the soil and ensures the growth of the nation that makes such a sacrifice".

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Hungary's government is holding its next session here today. This gesture is a tribute from a plebeian government to the exemplary achievements of the Hungarian aristocracy.

Thank you for your attention.

(Prime Minister's Office)