The town was inhabited in the prehistoric ages, thanks to its favourable location. It was an important river crossing, and part of the Limes Romanus system named as Avanum during Roman rule. In the 16th century, after the Turks conquered Buda in 1541, the town, along with Esztergom, came under the Ottoman rule. Many attempts to retake the town from the Turks followed, but they were unsuccessful except 1595–1605 period, until 1683, when the Turks lost a battle near Párkány which became referred to as Ciğerdelen ("Liver driller" in Turkish) during the Ottoman rule.