Zsámbék-Medence

Telki is a one-thousand-year-old scenic village located to the west of Budapest on the southern slopes of the Buda Hills, on the eastern perimeter of the Zsámbék Basin.

At one time the Benedictine abbey founded in honor of St. Stephen was the owner of the settlement and it took its name from the fact it was built on the land (telkek) of the Árpád dynasty kings. The first documented reference dates back to 1198, and although according to the details of this document the monastery must have been around 100 years old at the time, the age of the settlement is calculated from this date.

Similarly to the surrounding villages Telki was also devastated during Turkish rule, the abbots escaped and local people hid in the forest. The depopulated estate reorganized after the occupation and King Leopold handed the abbey over to the Scots Benedictines of Vienna in 1700. Starting from the 18th century Maria Theresa settled Germans on the territory and their expertise and diligence meant the region began to flourish. The 1739 plague claimed a lot of victims, as commemorated by the memorial cross, which according to tradition stands on the site of the former Benedictine Abbey.

After the 2nd World War, 90 percent of the German population were displaced and replaced by Szekler Hungarians from Transylvania.