Budapest is the capital and largest city of Hungary, with around 1.68 million people. The modern city was created in 1873 through the unification of Buda, Pest and Óbuda, although settlement along the Danube stretches back to Roman times and earlier. The river still defines the city, with hilly Buda on the western bank and flatter Pest on the eastern side, connected by a series of bridges including the 19th-century Chain Bridge. Major landmarks include Buda Castle, the Hungarian Parliament Building, Fisherman’s Bastion, St Stephen’s Basilica and Heroes’ Square, while the city is also famous for its historic thermal baths and extensive public transport network. Budapest has long been the centre of Hungary’s rock and heavy metal scene. Pokolgép emerged here in the early 1980s as one of the pioneering Hungarian heavy metal bands, while Tormentor, formed in Budapest in 1985, became one of the country’s most influential extreme metal groups and an important early name in European black metal.

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