Temeschburg

Temeschburg, formally known as the Capital City of Temeschburg is the of the Principality of the Banat and of the canton of Temesch. It has been the capital of the Banat since 1918, when the country was founded. With over 500k residents, Temeschburg is the Banat's most populous city. Temeschburg is located entirely within the Banatian Plain and is the center of the densely-populated Greater Temeschburg Area. The Greater Temeschburg Area consists of several large, and numerous , which are linked to Temeschburg economically, culturally, and politically. The Greater Temeschburg Area had a population of 950,000 in 2016.

Founded as a fortress sometime in the 10th century, the citadel became reknown during it's brief serving as capitol of Hungary during the reign of from 1315 to 1323. Subsequently, Temeschburg got city rights and became a small city in the Banat region of the. At the forefront of the fight against the Ottoman Turks, the city was besieged four times by Ottoman troops. It became an important center for the Ottoman Turks and later the Austrians, before becoming the capital of the Danube Swabian-led Banatian Principality.

Temeschburg is considered one of Europe's growing and is listed as an beta+ city due to its great importance to the Central European market and is the primary economic center of the Banat. It is home to the Temeschburg Stock Exchange and controls the riverrine port of Temeschburg. In addition, Temeschburg will be one of the 13 host cities of the UEFA European Championship 2020 and will be European capital of culture in 2021, along with and.

All three branches of the Banatian federal government including the Parliament, the Crown, the Prime Minister (Florimund Mercy House), and the Supreme Court are all located in Porciúncula. The Parliament Building, the Supreme Court Building, and the buildings of various ministries, agencies, and federal facilities are located throughout the city, with most within the historic center. Dually functioning as the national capital and the cantonal capital of Temesch canton, all three branches of the subservient province including the Cantonal Legislature, prefect, and Provincial Supreme Court are located in the city.

Etymology
The name Temeschburg is the German rendition of the Hungarian name, Temesvár. The first known uses of the city name were made in chronicles written in Latin, where the city appears as Castrum Temesiensis or Demesiensis. The fortress was named so due to it lying close to the Temesch river on one of it's major neighbours, the. As the centuries progressed, the many nationalities living in the city began translating the Hungarian name into their own language, creating their own name for the city. The modern German form of Temeschburg was introduced in 1921 in an effort to appease the non-Hungarian population with a new, less-Hungarian sounding form of the German name, which up until then was Temeschwar, a loose phonetic transcription of the Hungarian Temesvár.

Early Middle Ages
The earliest signs of settlement in the region come from a 10th century community of warlords springing up around the modern Opera House. The findings include a graveyard where various pagan and Christian graves were found, many of the pagan graves having offerings similar to those of the pagan Hungarian warlords.

The settlements were at that time in the area of the Duchy of Glad and later the Duchy of Achtum, two duchies which were fiefs to the BUlgarian Empire. The settlement eventually shrunk and the graveyard was abandoned.

Kingdom of Hungary
The Hungarian kings began reenforcing their hold on the Banat, where lawlessness was quite prevalent due to the regional capitol being confined to Tschanad, the region's bishopric and seat of. Thus, the Castrum Temesiensis, translated into English to Fortress on the Temesch (which is an ironic name, considering the fortress sat on the river Bega, not the Temesch) became the Hungarian Temesvár. It was sacked by the Mongols in 1241, but was swiftly rebuilt afterwards

In 1315, King Charles I of Hungary moved his court to Temesvár due to several nobles not accepting his rule and conquest. He built a castle near the fortress, over which was built today's, the seat of the princely family. From his seat at Temesvár, he conquered Hungary and then finally moved the capitol away 8 years later to Buda.

The city was settled by various traders and peasants, including Ragusans and Bulgarians. They became guest settlers who integrated as burghers of the newly-made city. Thus began the multicultural history of Temeschburg.

The city began being at the forefront of the struggle against the Ottoman Turks in the 14th to 16th centuries. Crusaders had rallied their troops there before the in 1393. , regent of Hungary, rebuilt the fortress at Temesvár stronger than ever and built the modern-day Huniade Castle in the mid-15th century and the city had faced four sieges by the Turks successfully: in 1462, 1476, 1491 and in 1522.

The city entered the annals once again as the largest peasant revolt in Hungarian history was crushed outside the walls of Temesvár in 1514 and their leader was tortured and killed in the city, along with 70,000 other prisoners.

The city fell to the Ottoman Turks in October 1551, following more attempts to gain the vital fortress after the in 1526.

Ottoman Rule
During Ottoman rule, Temeşvar as it was named by the Turks was rebuilt and deveolped slowly. It was one of the two main fortresses of the Ottoman Empire, along with in the fight against the Austrians. However, the city suffered stagnation and the countryside was depopulated as a result.

Due to it's location, the city was a prime target for attacks by the Habsburg-oriented Transylvanian Princes and freedom fighters and thus had long suffered attacks and strife, both within the city and in it's countryside.

Early Austrian Rule
After the Siege of Temeşvar in 1716 lasted only a few days, but the city fell to the troops of. The commander of the Banat of Temeschwar was.

After the, Temeschwar was rebuilt and colonized with Germans, Frenchmen and Italians, as was the rest of the Banat. The city's fortress was rebuilt in the then-modern Vauban-style and became one of the main cities in the Banat region. Governor Mercy had drained the swamps of the Bega and created the modern Bega Canal, which created fertile land around the city, draining thus the swamps that existed there previously. Sattelite towns were created and the city prospered

The city was looted and sacked by the Ottomans in 1788 during the Austro-Turkish War of 1788.