It is part of the European Union, a member of NATO and feels more westward facing than ever. Today’s Hungary has a much different spirit compared with that of the country that was occupied for so long. This speaks to the biggest, most chilling event in Hungary between the end of World War II and the collapse of communism: The 12 days in November 1956 when Soviet troops entered Budapest and brutally crushed an uprising demanding more democratic politics. The blaring of communist propaganda and the cramped cells ensure visitors are left in no doubt as to how challenging these times were.Ī hulking tank dominates the permanent exhibition. The wall of images showing the more than 3,000 people who perished here is a stark reminder of the brutality experienced by local people during the second half of the 20th century. Since 2002 it has been a memorial to those captured, held, tortured and killed in this building by both regimes, during what those in Budapest call the double occupation.

In previous incarnations it was the headquarters of the local Nazi party and, following World War II and Hungary’s position within the Soviet sphere of influence, the head of the communist secret police.

Today, it’s home to the House of Terror museum. An atmosphere of fear and terror was pervasive and 60 Andrassy was the nerve center of it all. It’s a sobering fact that, just 35 years ago, Budapest had a much different feel compared with its current vibrant air. The House of Terror museum building was previously a Nazi HQ and home to communist-era secret police.

The pirate plague of the dead map