Pápa

Pápa is a historical town in Veszprém county, Hungary, located close to the northern edge of the Bakony Hills.

The population is largely descendants of German settlers, who came here mostly in the 18th century. The Jewish population, numbering about 1250 people before the Second World War, was almost completely exterminated during the Holocaust. Pápa has a large historical centre, with renovated old burgher's houses, cafes, and museums, including the Blue-Dying Museum (Kékfestő Múzeum), set up in a one-time factory where they produced clothes and other textiles dyed with indigo blue under a unique method. The town is also noted for its thermal baths, particularly a newly constructed swimming complex, the Esterházy family's palace, its grand Roman Catholic church, and Calvinist secondary school; the town is an important religious centre. It also boasts a large park near the centre of town. Pápa was an administrative regional capital from 1945 to 1983.