Keszthely-Fenékpuszta (Castellum)

The inland castrum Keszthely-Fenékpuszta was in the Roman Empire a part of the Pannonian Limes (Limes Pannonicus). The excavation site lies today in the district Fenékpuszta of the town Keszthely at the western end of Lake Balaton in the county Zala in Hungary.

Fenékpuszta is one of the most important sites in Hungary. At the centre of archaeological research stands the late Roman fortification there. It probably originated in the middle third of the 4th century. Its special feature is that beyond the 5th century a settlement continuity is present, which extended to the 9th century. It was one of the largest building projects in late antique Pannonia. The multi‑phased fortification, a rectangular complex with round side and corner towers, was erected in the territory of the Roman province Pannonia I and belongs to the group of so‑called interior fortifications. In the 5th century the castrum advanced to a Gothic royal residence. Its inhabitants were later the founders of the so‑called Keszthely culture. This reached its greatest flourishing under Avar rule. Since the end of the 19th century more than 1,000 burials both extra and intra muros (= within and outside the walls) as well as 29 stone structures within the fortress have been recorded. Most of these graves were laid out between the 4th and 9th centuries.

Location

The castrum probably belonged in Late Antiquity to the administrative area of the province Pannonia I. Whether it belonged to Valeria or already to Pannonia I is uncertain, because the border between the two provinces is not precisely known. It was situated at the southern tip of the Fenékpuszta peninsula. This loess‑soil elevation extended far south into Lake Balaton in antiquity. Fenékpuszta was therefore largely surrounded by swamp and water. The inland fortress could therefore be well defended and could also be supplied without difficulty via the waterway. In its vicinity the long‑distance roads Aquincum – Aquileia and Augusta Treverorum – Sirmium crossed in antiquity. Not far from there was also a crossing over Lake Balaton (lacus pelsoidis or pelso), as the lake narrowed sharply at this point.

Today large parts of the ancient Lake Balaton have dried up, so Fenékpuszta is no longer on a peninsula but on the western shore of the lake. The excavation site is located seven kilometres south of the town of Keszthely, immediately west of the lakeside road and the parallel railway line. The place Fenékpuszta consists of the no longer maintained neoclassical buildings of the former stud farm of the Austro-Hungarian noble family Festetics. The preserved ancient wall remains are a few metres north and east of this group of houses. They are openly accessible. An information board at the parking lot provides information about the castle and its history.

Name

Earlier it was assumed that the castle was identical with the ancient Valcum. This view is today disputed, just as all other attempts to equate the excavation site with a name preserved in written sources could not be proven. With considerable certainty the castle is named in the Notitia Dignitatum, but it has so far not been assignable to any of the names that could apply there. The present place name Keszthely could derive from the late‑antique fort. The etymology of the word Keszthely can be traced back to its originally Slavic origin Kostel, which in turn derives directly from the Latin castellum (= fort or castle) and has the same meaning. In the year 1247 the place is called Kesztel. The later developing Hungarian word part hely means place, location.

If the inland forts were under the command of an officer, then the regulations concerning the army would also have applied to their garrisons. Nevertheless, the term castrum, often used in the Codex Theodosianus, was probably not used for the inland fortifications but for border installations. Contemporary or near‑contemporary sources suggest that the designation castella or castellum applied to them most appropriately, which is also documented several times in the Notitia Dignitatum. The castella also controlled their surrounding territory.