Batthyány Eternal Flame

The bronze lamp in front of you never goes out. It commemorates Count Lajos Batthyány, Hungary's first prime minister, and marks the exact spot where he died.

1A barracks that no longer exists

At the end of the 18th century the Újépület, the "New Building", rose here: a vast barracks and prison. After the defeat of the 1848–49 revolution, the Austrians locked many of its leaders inside. In 1848 Batthyány had headed Hungary's first government answerable to Parliament. He was tried for treason and sentenced to hang.

The day before the execution, his wife, Antónia Zichy, smuggled him a small dagger. The count cut his own neck to escape the humiliation of the rope, and the sentence was changed to death by firing squad. He died in the barracks courtyard on 6 October 1849, the same day that thirteen generals of the revolutionary army were executed in Arad. The sources record that he refused a blindfold and shouted: "Allez, Jäger! Long live the homeland!"

2The flame and the beer

The barracks was demolished in 1897. The lamp, designed by Móric Pogány, was unveiled on 6 October 1926 and became a rallying point for protests in 1941, 1943 and 1988.

Many Hungarians won't clink beer glasses: the story goes that Austrian officers did so to celebrate the executions of 1849.

3What to look for

• The red glass goblet holding the flame, inside the bronze lantern.
• The three-step base, with the wreaths and ribbons laid every 6 October.
• The plaque recalling the execution in the courtyard of the old barracks.