Timisoara

Timişoara (German Temeswar or Temeschburg, Hungarian Temesvár, Serbo-Croatian Temišvar,TurkishTamışvar) is a city in western Romania, in the Banat region, Timiş county, population 329,554 in 2000. All of the variants of its name derive from the Timisel river, now known as Bega after it was rechannelled. An industrial city with extensive services, it was the first European city to be lit by electricity. Timişoara is a multicultural city with influential minorities, mainly Germans, Hungarians, and Serbs, as well as Italians, Palestinians and Greeks. It was the birthplace of Johnny Weissmuller (an Olympic swimmer, best known for his role as Tarzan).Timisoara was also visited by Eifel, the creator of the Eifel tower in Paris built a foot brige over Bega too.

In December 1989 a popular uprising began in Timişoara against the Communist regime of Nicolae Ceauşescu. The Hungarian Methodist pastor Laszlo Tokes was ordered to be deported by the secret police (the Securitate) and as a reaction his house was surrounded by members of his church. People supporting him, including people of Romanian origin, gathered at the central square (Opera Square). The army was ordered to fire at the people by the Communist administration. A number of army officers refused to open fire and sided with the people. That was the beginning of the end for the Communist regime, which fell a week later.

History

• 1019 - Timisoara (as Dibiscos/Bisiskos/Tibiskos/Tibiskon/Timbisko/etc.) is mentioned for the first time in written documents by byzantine Emperor Basil II (not all historians agree with this identification).
• 1154 - The arab geographer Sarif al Idrisi, in his work "The book of pleasures", is describing precisely the road from Cavorz (ie Karlowitz/Sremski Karlovci) to Timisoara, passing trough Cnez (ie Satchinez/Knez); he declare that Timisoara is "a pleasant city ... offering big richness".
• 1177 - First mention of the Castrensis de Thymes in a medieval document.
• 1241 - The town is partly destroyed by the Tatars.
• 1307 - Charles I of Hungary builts the stone fortress and makes the city the capital of his kingdom.
• 1323 - King Charles I of Hungary attend the holy service in Saint George's church [Sfantu Gheorghe]. This church still exists today in Timisoara.
• 1342 - Timisoara was mentioned for the first time with the title of "civitas"/city
• 1370 - The first handicraftsmen’s guild is documented in Timisoara.
• 1396 - The town is the starting point for the Nicopolis Crusade.
• 1478-1494 - Pavel Chinezul becomes county head of Timis and Captain of Timisoara.
• 1500 - Pelbart of Timisoara, the only author of incunabula in Romania, publishes his works in Hagenau.
• 1514 - Fortress Timisoara is attacked by rebel peasant troops led by Gheorghe Doja. The revolt was put down and Gheorghe Doja executed in a cruel and unmerciful way (along with others 40,000-60,000 rebel peasants) in Timisoara. Today, on the place of the martyrdom, of the hot throne, there is the statue of Saint Mary, manufactured by architect Laszlo Szekely and sculptor Gyorgy Kiss. According to the legend, during Gheorghe Doja's surplice, the Jesuits monks saw in the ear the image of Holy Mary. The first statue was raised here in 1865. The actual monument was raised in 1906.
• 1549 - Opening of the Protestant School in Timisoara founded and led by Istvan Kiss of Szeged.
• 1552 - Timisoara is conquered by Turks.
• 1596 - Sigismund Bathory and Mihai Viteazul, ruler of Wallachia, after a 40 days siege, fails to re-conquest Timisoara.
• 1660 - The otoman historian, geograph and globetrotter Evliya Celebi (B 1611, D March 1682) visit Timisoara. According to him (in Seyahatname/The book of travels), the locality had more than 36,000 inhabitants (living in 10 suburbs -1500 houses- around the fortress) and the fortress's garrison numbered 10,000 soldiers. In the fortress existed 1200 houses, more than 400 shops, 4 public baths, 3 restaurants and confectioneries, 7 schools.
• 1688 - The East Banat is conquered by the House of Habsburg's general Veterani (born in Venice).
• 1688 - The turkish army from Timisoara is uprising against the ottoman authorities.
• 1696 - The imperial troops lead by prince August II of Poland are besieging unsuccessfully Timisoara.
• 1716 - Eugen de Savoya take the town from the Turks.
• 1722-1726 - First wave of German colonists (Schwaben) under emperor Carol II.
• 1728/1771/1783 - Digging and regularization of the Bega channel. Bega was transformed into a navigable fluvial channel [115 km]. Only for the digging of Bega Channel were needed more than 3 million days of work and 1.440.000 m³ of earth to be removed [more earth was moved than at the buildings of the pyramids]. Banat gets connected to the European navigation system. The first attempt to regularize Bega and Timis rivers were made under the Ottomans occupation by A. Cornaro when some work were done also in the Budint-Chizatau zone. Between 1728-1732, under Count Florimund Mercy's leadership, the fist steps are made.
• 1728 - The first tobacco mill in today Romania is setup in Timisoara. The factory is still in function.
• 1753 - The first mention of the organized theatre of Timisoara. A German group of actors performed theatre plays in the town between May-November. Timisoara is the third town in the Empire ,after Vienna and Budapest with a permanent theatre season.
• 1760 - Timisoara is the first town in the Empire where the public lightening using suet candles and lamps with oil and grease is introduced.
• 1763-1772 - Second wave under empress Maria Tereza.
• 1782-1786 - Third wave under emperor Iosif II.
• 1738-1739 - Epidemic of plague.
• 1762-1763 - Epidemic of plague.
• 1771 - The first printing house/owner Mathäus Heimerl in Fabric quarter.
• 1781 - 21 December Joseph II's decree regarding the privilege of imperial free city Timisoara.
• 1796 - The Magic Flute was performed in Timisoara at one year from his premiere in Vienna.
• 1815 - Printer Joseph Klapka – the future mayor – sets up in Timisoara the first borrowing library in a Hungarian town.
• 1819 - Joseph Klapka becomes mayor of Timisoara.
• 1823 - November 3 In his letter addressed from Timisoara to his father in Targu Mures, mathematician Janos Bolyai mentions that he discovered the principles of the Non-Euclidean geometry.
• 1823 - November 25 Johanna von Greth ,born d'Honrath on 1.08.1770 in Köln, married in 1788 with Captain Karl von Greth, the first love of Johann von Beethoven is dying in Timisoara. In 1823, Beethoven, in his conversions book, will note: "Address of captain von Greth, commandant in Timisoara".
• 1846 - Composer and pianist Franz Liszt halts in Timisoara and performs three concerts in the Theater’s hall.
• 1847 - Johann Strauss II, the “king of waltz”, performs in Timisoara with his orchestra.

Timisoara has 22.560 inhabitants

• 1849 - Between April 26th and August 8th Timisoara is sieged by Hungarian revolutionary forces (the longest siege of the town)
• 1852 - Timisoara is linked with Vienna trough the telegraph electric line. This is the first line in today Romania.
• 1855.02.09 -Giuseppe Verdi's "La Traviata" opening night in Timisoara.
• 1857 - Public street lighting with aerian gas.
• 1857 - Inauguration of the first railroad in the Banat's plain: Szeged-Kikinda-Jimbolia-Timisoara [112 km]. To travel from Timisoara to Budapest it was needed 26h and from Timisoara to Vienna 36h. The first railroads station is opened in Timisoara.
• 1866 - Ruler Alexandru Ioan Cuza stops in Timisoara on his way in the exile. He stays at the “Trompetistul” road house.
• 1869 - First tram with horses (6,6 km).
• 1870 - The first metallic bridge ,the Bem bridge, is build on Bega Channel. During the time, only in Timisoara, on Bega were build 71 bridges. Today in Timisoara exists 13 bridges.
• 1879 - Start of the works on the town’s telephone network [first 52 subscribers] in Timisoara. The network was build as a private enterprise by Ignatiu Leyritz.
• 1879.09.15 - Recital of Johannes Brahms and Joseph Joachim in Timisoara.
• 1883.06.05 - The Orient Express Train is launched passing trough Banat: Szeged-Kikinda-Jimbolia-Timisoara-Caransebes-Orsova.
• 1884 - Public street lighting with electricity.
• 1886 - Set up of the “Ambulance” service of Timisoara. This is the first ambulance station in Hungary and today Romania.
• 1891 - The first permanent museum is opened in Timisoara.
• 1899.06.25 - The first football/soccer mach in today Romania was held in Timisoara between the schoolboys of the Piarist High-school lead by Carol Müller, gymnastic professor.
• 1907 - The walls of the fortress are destroyed to allow for new construction.
• 1918 - November 15th, Serbian forces enter into the town. The Banat region was desired by both Serbia and Romania.
• 1918 - December 3rd, French colonial forces arrive to avoid any possible conflicts between Serbia and Romania.
• 1919 - July 28th, Romanian administration is installed. Banat is partitioned between Serbia (2/3) and Romania (1/3).
• 1919 - August 3rd, Romanian army enters Timisoara.
• 1920 - The theater is destroyed by a fire. It will be rebuild and opened in 1928.
• 1920 - Set up and opening of the Polytechnic School of Timisoara.
• 1921 - George Enescu’s first concerts in Timisoara.
• 1921-1927 - The soccer team "Chinezul" from Timisoara is the champion of Romania in 6 consecutive editions of the championship.
• 1926 - The statue of "Lupoaica" ("She-wolf" - Remullus and Remus), a gift from Italian autorities and later the town symbol, is inaugurated in the center.
• 1928 - The first professional soccer club from Romania -"Ripensia"- is founded in Timisoara.
• 1930 - Timisoara has 91,866 inhabitants (census).
• 1932-1938 - The soccer team "Ripensia" from Timisoara is for 5 time the champion of Romania.
• 1944 - June 16-17th, the city is bombed for the first time, by Britain's RAF.
• 1944 - July 3rd, the city is bombed again, by the United States Air Force.
• 1944 - September 12, the Soviet Red Army enters.
• 1945 - The first profesional Romanian theatre group is established in Timisoara.
• 1946 - The Romanian Opera is established, and its first performance, in April 1947, is "Aida" by Giuseppe Verdi.
• 1953 - The State Magyar Theater (Teatrul Maghiar de Stat) is established (known since 1990 as Csiky Gergely theatre), as well as the State German Theater (Teatrul German de Stat)
• 1955 - The first radio show broadcasted by Radio Timisoara.
• 1969 - , the first romanian computer was made in Timisoara
• 1986 - The Botanic Park is opened in Timisoara. The Zoo is opened in the same year.
• 1989 - 16 December, the Revolution against the communist regime of Nicolae Ceasescu begins in Timisoara. On 20 December Timisoara is declared the first Free Town. 1,104 people died and 3,352 were wounded.
• 1992 - Free and just elections. Viorel Oancea becomes the Timisoara's mayor.

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