University of Pécs

The University of Pécs (Hungarian: Pécsi Tudományegyetem PTE; Latin: Universitas Quinqueecclesiensis) is one of the largest higher education institutions in Hungary. The history of the university began in the Middle Ages, when in 1367, at the request of King Louis I the Great, Pope Urban V granted permission to found the institution. This made it the first university in Hungary and the fourth in Central Europe. The official successor of the university is the Elisabeth University of Pozsony (Bratislava), founded in 1912. In 1921, after Bratislava became part of Czechoslovakia, the university was moved to Pécs in 1951, the Faculty of Medicine separated and existed as an independent institution, until it merged with the Janus Pannonius University (Hungarian: Janus Pannonius Tudományegyetem) in 2000, which united the other faculties in Pécs. This is how the current University of Pécs was created.

The Klimo Library (Hungarian: Klimo Könyvtár), Klimo Collection (Hungarian: Klimo Gyűjtemény) or Episcopal Library (Hungarian: Püspöki Könyvtár) established in 1774 is the first public library of Hungary. It was established in Pécs by György Klimó, Bishop of Pécs and it is still operating. Although Klimó could not establish a university in Pécs, he still opened the library for the public. Until the Great War, the library was operating constantly under the episcopal see. After that, the building of the library and its collection were given to the university by Bishop Gyula Zichy for eternal use.