Bratislava

(Slovak pronunciation: [ˈbracɪslava] formerly Slovak Prešporok; German: Pressburg formerly Preßburg, Hungarian: Pozsony) is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 460,000, the country’s largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia, occupying both banks of the Danube River and the left bank of the Morava River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.

Bratislava is the political, cultural, and economic centre of Slovakia. It is the seat of the Slovak president, the parliament, and the Slovak Executive. It is home to several universities, museums, theatres, galleries and other important cultural and educational institutions. Many of Slovakia’s large businesses and financial institutions also have headquarters there.

Bratislava-Capital of Slovakia

The history of the city has been strongly influenced by people of different nations and religions, namely by Austrians, Czechs, Germans, Hungarians, Slovaks, and Jews. The city was the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary, a part of the larger Habsburg Monarchy territories,from 1536 to 1783 and has been home to many Slovak, Hungarian, and German historical figures.

The city got its modern name in 1919. Beforehand it was mostly known in English by its German name, Pressburg. Its first recorded name, in the 10th century Annales Iuvavenses, was probably Brezalauspurc (literally: Braslav‘s castle). This is the term which the German, the pre-1919 Slovak (Prešporok) and Czech name (Prešpurk) derive from.The origin of the city’s Hungarian name, Pozsony, is unclear: it might come from the Hungarian Poson (name of the city’s first castellan), the Czech Pos or the German Poscho, which are personal names. The Hungarian name is still used by Hungarian speakers today.The city’s modern name is attributed to Pavel Jozef Šafárik‘s misinterpretation of Braslav as Bratislav when analyzing medieval sources, thus coming up with the term Břetislaw, later Bratislav.

During the revolution of 1918–1919, the name ‘Wilsonov’ or ‘Wilsonstadt’ (after President Woodrow Wilson) was proposed by American Slovaks, as he supported national self-determination. The name Bratislava, which was used before only by some Slovak patriots, became official in March 1919.

Europe Place - Komarno in Slovakia

While Slovakia as a country may seem uncertain about its future orientation – west to the European Union or a return eastwards? – Komarno knows exactly what it wants. And contrary to what nationalist politicians believe, it does not want a Greater Hungary.

Europa Place

Komarno simply wants to be a part of Europe.

The city’s Euro-attitude is embodied by its newest attraction: Europe Place. The recently constructed square in the city centre consists of buildings designed in architectural styles distinct to different European countries and beyond. The Hungarian building is found next to the Slovak, the French next to the Russian, the Austrian next to the Spanish. Everyone is included here, from Greenland to Turkey, the Vatican to Transylvania.

The square was opened in December 2000 and covers 6,500 square metres of land. There is an underground car park, and ‘Euro Alley’, a shopping complex below the square. The centrepiece is the Millennium Fountain. On the whole, the square is dazzling, a dizzying swirl of colour and fine detail.

Ironically, this project of unity is found in an area that has long been divisive for Slovaks. Populists love to paint the predominantly ethnic-Hungarian residents as anti-Slovak, saying that they have the interests of Hungary dearer to their hearts than those of Slovakia. Who can ever forget an allegedly drunk Ján Slota, the former head of the Slovak National Party, making his impassioned call in 1998 for Slovaks to man their tanks and storm Budapest?

Controversy also arose in 2001 when the ethnic-Hungarian party, SMK, demanded the formation of a ‘Komárno County’ during public administration reform. The district’s voters would have been predominantly Hungarian. Party leaders said it would allow locals a louder voice in regional governments; nearly every other Slovak politician was opposed, saying the creation of such a county would be tantamount to dividing the country along racial lines.

The most recent row originated in Budapest. In summer 2001, Hungarian legislators passed a Status Law that would give ethnic Hungarians living in neighbouring countries special privileges, including subsidies for education at Hungarian schools in Slovakia. Bratislava charged the Hungarians with imposing a foreign law on a sovereign state, a law that would no less discriminate against ethnic Slovaks. Budapest responded by hinting that they would block Slovakia’s Nato entry.

Considering all the above, one almost expects to find a city on the edge, where ethnic Slovaks and Hungarians are constantly at each other’s throats (the racial division is approximately 65% Hungarian, 35% Slovak). This of course is not the case. Komárno is peaceful and friendly – and surprisingly indifferent to disparaging comments made up north about southern Slovakia.

“People like Slota have blinders on,” said Cszaba (pronounced Cha-ba), an ethnic-Hungarian I met at Europe Place. “When they say the things they say, what can we do but shrug our shoulders? We just ignore it down here. Every country has its nationalists. Slovakia is no different.

“What they don’t seem to realise is that it is all about money. If the Slovak economy were better, Hungarians in Slovakia would not be a problem. But nobody has money. Unemployment is everywhere. So they pick on us. They say we’re trying to undermine the state, that we’re not loyal, that we want to be a part of a Greater Hungary. If we all had some more money, though, this would not be an issue.”

Unemployment has been particularly devastating in Komárno. Because it sits at the confluence of the Danube and the Váh, Slovakia’s longest river, the economy has been based around shipbuilder Slovenské Lodenice Komárno (Slovak Shipyards Komárno). But mismanagement in the late 1990s forced the firm to cut its workforce, from 5,500 before the revolution to about 800 today. The effects are felt all around town: Unemployment is at about 25%, and in the Euro Alley shopping complex only a quarter of the retail space has been opened as traders wonder who they would sell to.

The problems here are no different from in the rest of the country, says Cszaba, who is tired of speaking about these issues. “How many times do we have to say we don’t want to go back to Hungary? These nationalists up north are pointing their fingers at Hungarians and thumping their chests for Slovaks, but what we should all be doing is working together for the EU. I prefer politicians like [Foreign Minister] Eduard Kukan. He looks around and says, ‘Okay, how can we all – Hungarian, Slovak, whoever – work together to improve our lives and our country. I like Kukan. But I don’t like politicians with tunnel-vision.”

Komárno may surprise first-time visitors. It is not anti-Slovak, the people are not pining for a Hungarian reunion. And contrary to popular ethnic-Slovak belief, everyone here speaks Slovak. The language of choice may be Hungarian, but people addressed in Slovak switch over with neither hesitation nor irritation. In public places, visitors are greeted with the bilingual “Jó napot. Dobrý deň.” The Irish Pub on Europe Place even has a waiter who throws in a ‘Good day’. (He speaks German, too.)

“Everyone has to learn the national language,” an elderly man told me in Slovak. “Sure, we mainly speak Hungarian here, but if I go 100 kilometres north, nobody does. I hate that term ‘Na Slovensku, po slovensky’ (In Slovakia, speak Slovak). But – without the silly nationalist rhetoric behind it – it is true… to a certain extent.”

Euro Place. Multilingual and open-minded people. A firm western orientation. Could it be that Komárno – so often the target of national ire – is more prepared for the European Union than is the rest of Slovakia?

 Zelezna studienka, Bratislava, Slovakia

Bratislava Železná studienka railway station (Slovak: Železničná zastávka Bratislava – Železná studienka) is a small railway station (technically a train halt) inside the Bratislava Forest Park recreational zone in northern Bratislava, Slovakia.

The station is still in use, although few trains stop here nowadays. It has two platforms, the one by rail no. 1 being 149 meters long and 3 meters wide and the one by rail no. 2 being 160 meters long and 3,6 meters wide.

Until 1947, the train station was called Červený most (Red bridge in English). From 1947 to 1951 it was called Bratislava – Červený most. In 1951 it received it current name Bratislava – Zelezná studienka. It is named after the area it is situated in – Zelezná studienka (Little iron well in English). The name comes from the fact, that in the past people thought the water source here was rich in iron and minerals, but 19th century analysis showed the water here is not mineral.^[1]

The original Red bridge was built in 1848 next to the place where the train station will once be, carrying only one rail track on the Wien – Gänserndorf – Bratislava line, which was launchced on August 20th, 1848. The bridge crossed the valley over river Vydrica. In 1891, the line between Bratislava hlavná stanica and Devínska Nová Ves was converted to 2 parallel rail tracks and the Red bridge was rebuilt.

The current train station was established in 1904 under the name Bratislava – Red Bridge (in German Rote Brücke, in Hungarian Vörös híd), being named after the nearby bridge. The waiting room and station-guard’s house, both from 1904, are culturally protected.

On September 20, 2010 a fire completely destroyed one of the station’s historical waiting rooms. The fire was probably started by accident by the homeless people sleeping inside. That day’s morning has been quite chilly and homeless people have been known to sleep there for years.^[2][3]

Bratislava Castle (Slovak:  Bratislavský hrad , German: Pressburger Schloss, Hungarian: Pozsonyi Vár) is the main castle of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia.

The massive rectangular building with four corner towers stands on a quite isolated rocky hill of the Little Carpathians directly above the Danube river in the middle of Bratislava. It is an outstanding feature of the city.

It provides an excellent view of Bratislava, of Austria and, when there is good weather, of Hungary. Many legends are connected with the history of the castle.

The castle site includes the following:

The castle building includes 4 towers (one on each corner) and a courtyard with an 80 m deep water well. The biggest tower is the Crown Tower in the south-east from the 13th century, which housed the crown jewels (see History). The outside walls and inside corridors contain fragments of old Gothic and Renaissance construction elements. To the east of the main entrance, one can see the walled up entrance gate from the 16th century. Behind the entrance, there is an arcade corridor and then the big Baroque staircase, which leads to the expositions of the Slovak National Museum. The left part of the southern part of the building houses the 4 halls of the Treasure Chamber (opened in 1988) with a collection of the most precious archaeological findings and other objects found in Slovakia, including the prehistoric statute called the Venus of Moravany. The 3rd floor houses the exposition History of Slovakia. The 1st floor in the southern part of the building houses the rooms of Slovak parliament — the National Council of the Slovak Republic – including parts of furniture from the 16th century. The northern part of the building- the former Baroque chapel, houses the Music Hall in which concerts are held. The courtyard includes the entrance to the Knights Hall.

Entrance gates to the site

Sigismund Gate

• Sigismund Gate in the south-east– the best preserved original part of the site, built in the 15th century
• Vienna Gate in the south-west – built in 1712
• Nicholas Gate in the north-east – built in the 16th century
• Leopold Gate

[edit] Other buildings and objects

To the west of the castle building (see the picture), there is the newly reconstructed Hillebrandt building built in 1762 and destroyed by the 1811 fire (see History). The Yard of Honor is the space directly before the castle entrance. It was created in the late 18th century. Behind the Sigismund Gate and in front of the castle building, there is the Leopold Yard from the 17th century with bastions. To the east of the castle building the constellation of the Great Moravian basilica (9th century), the Church of St Savior (11th century) and other Early medieval objects is indicated on the ground. The true archaeological findings are directly below this indicated constellation. To the north-east of the castle building, next to the Nicholas Gate, there is the Lugiland Bastion (which was a Gothic entrance gate in the 15th century), a long building from the 17th century (today a building of National Council of the Slovak Republic), and a Baroque stable (today a famous restaurant). An English park is located to the south of the stable. The whole northern border of the castle site is formed by a long Baroque building from the 18th century, which today houses the Slovak National Museum and the castle administration.

The castle, like today’s city, has been inhabited for thousands of years, because it is strategically located in the center of Europe at a passage between the Carpathians and the Alps, at a very important ford used to cross the Danube river, and at an important crossing of central European ancient (trade) routes running from the Balkans or the Adriatic Sea to the Rhine river or the Baltic Sea, the most important route being the Amber Route.

The people of the Boleráz culture (the oldest phase of the Baden culture) were the first known culture to have constructed settlements on the castle hill. This happened around 3500 BC (i.e. in the high Eneolithic Period). Their “castle” was a fortified settlement and a kind of acropolis for settlements in today’s Old Town of Bratislava.

Further major findings from the castle hill are from the Hallstatt Period (Early Iron Age, 750 – 450 BC). At that time the people of the Kalenderberg Culture built a building plunged into the rock of the castle hill. Again, the “castle” served as an acropolis for settlements found in the western part of the Old Town.

Celts and Romans (450 BC – 5th Century AD)

The castle hill, which was situated at the Danube and thus since 9 BC at the border of the Roman Empire, was also settled by the Romans during the Roman Period (1st to 4th century AD) as findings of bricks of Roman legions (Legion XIII GAN, Legion X GEPF etc.) and some parts of architecture (a Roman figural relief, roof parts etc. ) suggest.

The developments in the 5th century (the time of the Great Migration of Peoples) are largely unclear.

Slavs, Nitrian Principality, Great Moravia (500 – 907)

Material from old Roman buildings was used to construct this Slavic castle in Bratislava. This could be a confirmation of the disputed statement of Aventinus from the 16th century, who – referring to lost sources – claimed that around 805/7 the Great Moravian prince Uratislaus (i.e. Vratislav) constructed today’s Bratislava (Castle?) at the place of a destroyed Roman frontier fort called Pisonium, and the new settlement was named after him Uratislaburgium / Wratisslaburgium. Another probable fact is that around 900 the castle and the territory it controlled was given in fief to Predslav the third son of the Great Moravian king Svätopluk and that Pre(d) slav, or a person of the same name, is the person after which the castle and the town received its old German name Pressburg (from which the old Slovak name Prešporek is derived). The oldest version of this name was Preslava (Slovak)/*Preslav(a) sburg (German). It appeared for the first time in 907 (Battle of Pressburg) in the forms Brezalauspurc(h), Braslavespurch and Pressalauspruch and then around 1000 on Hungarian coins as Preslav(v) a Civitas (meaning Bratislava Castle). On the other hand the exact location of Brezalauspurc is still disputed.

High and Late Middle Ages (907 – 1531)

Emperor Henry III losing his fleet below Pressburg Castle in the oldest known image of the castle (11th century)

The construction of a new castle of stone started in the 10th century, but it was not finished. Under King Stephen I of Hungary (1000–1038), however, the castle was already one of the central castles of the Kingdom of Hungary. It became the seat of Pozsony county and protected the kingdom against Bohemian (Czech) and German attacks (e.g. in 1030, 1042, 1052, 1108, 1146) and played an important role in throne struggles in the Kingdom of Hungary (e.g. struggles after the death of King Stephen I). In 1052 Henry III tried to occupy the castle. According to Hungarian tradition Zothmund a Hungarian soldier, swam to the ships of the invading fleet to drill holes in them, and they were sunk. King Solomon of Hungary had lived here until he was taken to the jail of Nyitra according to Ladislaus I‘s order. At the same time the old rampart was modernized and the Church of the St. Savior with a chapter and a church school were added. Stephen III of Hungary escaped from his enemies to the castle almost 100 years later.

The castle was turned into a proto-Romanesque palace of stone in the 12th century (probably after 1179), maybe because King Béla III (1173–1196) decided to make Esztergom the definitive seat of kings of the Kingdom of Hungary. It was a palace similar to those constructed in Germany under Friedrich Barbarossa. In 1182 Friedrich Barbarossa gathered his crusader army under the castle. The church institutions and building at the castle were moved to the town below the castle in the early 12th century.

The well-fortified Pressburg Castle was among the few castles of the Kingdom of Hungary to be able to withstand Mongol attacks in 1241 and 1242. As a reaction to these attacks, a huge “tower for the protection of the kingdom” was constructed at the castle building in 1245 immediately next to two older palaces. The tower was actually a huge high residential building. In addition, 7 (genuine) square towers were built into the old rampart and a stone wall was added around the castle proper (i.e. the residential building). The biggest of the rampart towers was at the same time a corner tower of the stone wall. Today it is a part of the castle building — it is identical with the present-day “Crown tower”, which is the biggest one of today’s four towers of the castle building. It was probably built around 1250 when Knights of St. John were active at the castle.

On 25 October in 1265 the Czech King, Přemysl Otakar and the Hungarian King Béla IV.‘s grandchild Kunigunde, were engaded here. Andrew II and Gertrude‘s daughter, Elisabeth was born here. The new castle had to face further conflicts. In 1271, King Otakar II of Bohemia invaded the territory of today’s western Slovakia and charged the knight Egid with the administration of the conquered castle. Egid rebelled against Otakar two years later and was defeated by Otakar, but due to problems in Bohemia, Otakar had to leave this territory. In 1285-86, the noble Nicholas of Güssing (Kysak/Köszeg) occupied the castle in order to use it as a basis for a rebellion against the Hungarian king, but he was defeated. Shortly afterwards, 1287–1291, the Austrian duke Albert of Habsburg, supporting Nicholas, occupied the castle, but was defeated by Matthew Csák, who was made county head of Pozsony county for this. A more or less successful Austrian occupation of the castle and the county occurred in 1302-1312/1322 by duke Rudolf^{[disambiguation needed]}.

As a result of these permanent fighting, the Hungarian king granted the city rights (town charter) to a part of the settlements below the castle in 1291, thereby withdrawing them from the authority of the county head in the castle. Some settlements on the castle hill remained under the castle’s authority and the fortification was gradually extended to them.

In 1385, King Sigismund of Luxembourg occupied the castle and Pozsony county and one year later put the county in pawn to his cousins, the Moravian margraves Prokop and Jošt in exchange for a loan they provided to him. The castle was reconquered by Stibor of Stiboricz in 1389, who was made the county head of the Pozsony county in 1389-1402 as a reward. He had a chapel built in Bratislava Castle.

The castle and the town of Pressburg on a picture from the 15th century

Other allies of King Sigismund, especially in his fights against the Czech Hussites, was the noble family Rozgonyi, which received the Pozsony county head function in 1421. At some point between 1420 and 1430, King Sigismund (Holy Roman Emperor) decided to make Bratislava Castle – due to its central location — the center of his new German-Czech-Hungarian empire. In 1423, the king ordered the Rozgonyis to improve the fortifications of the castle as a protection against Hussite attacks, because the castle was situated close to the Czech border and it was still protected only by the old wooden ramparts. They replaced the old rampart with a new better stone bulwark. Then between 1431 and 1434 a total rearrangement of Pressburg castle took place. Experts from Germany were invited, material was transported from Austria, towns were imposed special taxes specifically for the construction of the planned largest castle ever built. The construction master was Konrad von Erlingen. The residential “tower” was demolished, and the form of the new Gothic palace was approximately similar to that of the present-day castle (but without two towers). Today, the only completely preserved part of the castle from that time is the Sigismund Gate (wrongly called the Corvinus Gate), i.e. the eastern entrance gate in the bulwark. Smaller parts have been preserve in the main palace. Sigismund plans, however, did not materialize, because the castle was never made Sigismund’s residence and Sigismund always lived in the town below the castle.

After Sigismund’s death in 1437, his widow Barbara of Celje was imprisoned in the castle by the new king Albert of Habsburg. In 1438, Albert’s daughter, Anne was engaged to the markgrave William III, Landgrave of Thuringia in the castle. John Hunyadi and his wife Erzsébet Szilágyi also stayed here and Hungarian women respected them. Later on, Ladislas the Posthumous was probably living in the castle (parts of the castle were adapted for him at least). In 1440-1443, there were fighting between the castle of Pressburg ruled by county heads from the Rozgonyi family (supporting King Władysław III of Poland) and the town of Pressburg (supporting – and owned by – Queen Elisabeth which ruled for the young Ladislaus Posthumus) – see History of Pressburg for details. Castle repairs of 1438, 1452 and 1463 included repairs of damages caused by the above conflict. A water well was constructed in the yard of the castle in the 15th century.

Main castle of the Kingdom of Hungary (1531 – 1783)

Political events

[edit] Holy Crown of Hungary in the crown tower

The Crown, Sword and Globus Cruciger of Hungary used to be kept in the Crown Tower of the castle

Pressburg Castle in the second half of the 16th century (by Hogenberger)

Between 1552 and 1784 the Holy Crown of Hungary stayed in the castle. It did not symbolize the Hungarian state, it was the Hungarian state. Two Hungarian crown guards, 50 Hungarian and 50 Austrian infantry soldiers took care of it. Hungarian Kings who derived from foreign dynasties as Habsburgs could not possess it. They temporarily got it at coronation time.

The Renaissance conversion

Immediately after the defeat of the Kingdom of Hungary in the battle at Mohács in 1526, during which the king died, the queen – Maria of Habsburg – fled with her retinue from Buda to Pressburg. The royal treasure (mostly very valuable objects of art, the royal scepter, apple and sword, the globe of Ladislaus of Jagiello known as Astrolabium etc.) and many other important objects she has taken with her were deposited in Pressburg Castle and guarded by the royal burgrave John Bornemisza. Shortly afterwards, however, this precious treasure was mostly destroyed by the new king Ferdinand I of Habsburg, who needed it to finance his participation in a civil war in Royal Hungary, and smaller parts went to the Treasury Chamber of Vienna (Wiener Schatzkammer), or became personal property of Maria, or got lost forever.

Taking into account the new role of the castle, the emperor Ferdinand I. of Habsburg had it rebuilt into a Renaissance castle by Italian builders and artists, such as Giulio Licino da Pordanone and Maciotanus Ulisses from Rome, between 1552 and 1562 (but some work continued even afterwards). The main designer and supervisor of the construction was the Italian architect Pietro Ferrabosco, who had been serving the emperor in Vienna and knew Count Eck Salm, the captain of Pressburg from 1552 – 1571. The building’s form did not change (except that the entrance was shifted), but it was completely changed inside and outside. Above all, floors and rooms were rearranged, and most rooms received precious (golden etc.) equipment. In late 16th century, a ball house (for various ball games) at the eastern wall and a second, better water well were added. Unfortunately, basically only one part of the castle chapel has been completely preserved from this time, paradoxically because it was walled up as “unnecessary” in the 17th century. As for the rest of the site, there were wooden dwellings for the guards (up to the 18th century) in the north-west, a (today unknown) “old tower” somewhere to the left of the castle building was improved, and the western entrance gate of the site was replaced by a big armoury.

In terms of the castle’s functions after 1530, the castle was home to selected participants of Diet meetings (including apartments of the king (emperor), which have been already there since the Gothic reconstruction ), to some central authorities of Royal Hungary, the county head of Bratislava etc., to the apartment of the Governor of Royal Hungary (usually a brother of the emperor), and since 1552, the crown jewels were deposited here as well – in what is today known as the Crown Tower.

Early Baroque

were done in haste (especially the wooden roof), as early as in 1616 a new, gradual Early Baroque reconstruction started based on a design by the main imperial architect Giovanni Battista Carlone. The works were intensified in 1635 and finished around 1647. It was mostly financed by Count Paul Pálffy (Pálfi), the captain of the castle and county head of Pozsony county. The look the castle received through this conversion is basically the look the castle has kept till the present. The northern and western part of the main building have been newly built and a new, 3rd floor was added in the whole building, the main entrance was shifted back to the middle of the wall, the ancient fortifications were improved, the chapel was shifted from the southern part to the northern part (today’s Musical Hall), and 2 new towers were added – yielding in sum the present 4 towers in the corners. As a reward for not having misappropriated state funds during the conversion, the Diet appointed Count Paul Pálffy lifelong captain of Pressburg Castle, county head of the Pozsony county and usufructuary of the castle (which remained in possession of the crown) in 1650. One year later, the emperor made those functions and titles hereditary for the Pálffys.

In 1653, all wooden ceilings turned out to be bad and had to be replaced in the following years, so that precious paintings placed on them got lost. Ten years later, facing one of frequent Turkish (Ottoman) attacks to the territory of Slovakia, the fortifications were improved under the leadership of the military engineer Josef Priami of the Imperial Court in Vienna. Further improvements of the fortifications followed around 1673. They ended with the final defeat of the Turks at Vienna in 1683. In 1703, barracks were built in the north-east of the site and the armoury was turned into barracks too. The present-day Vienna Gate was constructed on the occasion of the coronation of Emperor Charles VI in 1712 and it was used as the main entrance to the castle site since then.

[edit] The Maria Theresa conversion

The reconstructed grand staircase dates to the times of Maria Theresa

When Maria Theresa of Austria became the queen of the Kingdom of Hungary in 1740, she promised to the nobles of the kingdom that she would have a residence both in Austria and in the Kingdom of Hungary – that is in Pressburg Castle. She kept the promise and spent much time in Bratislava. A corresponding conversion of the defense castle into a (at that time) modern royal residence was performed between 1761 and 1766.

Minor changes however were done as early as from 1740 onwards: besides various changes in the interior, a large garden was added in the northern part of the site and Emperor Francis I (Maria Theresa’s husband, who was interested in botany) created a small garden to the east of the castle building. The chief designer until 1757 was J. B. Martinelli.

The Hungarian orders supported Maria Theresa with “Vitam et Sanguinem” exclamation marks in the castle at Seven Years’ War‘s time.

Major changes inside the castle (in the rococo style) were begun in 1760. The new chief designer between 1761 and 1762 was Franz Anton Hillebrandt. A new single floor building for the kitchen, servants and horses was added to the western wall of the castle. Because the water supply for the castle was not sufficient, Maria Theresa had Johann Wolfgang von Kempelen build a special water pipe drawing water from a tank in the town at the Danube bank using pumps. The stairs throughout the castle were rebuilt with a lower gradient, on Maria Theresa’s request, to enable her to ride her horse upon them. The result of these changes, as for the exterior of the palace itself and the site gates, was very similar to Bratislava Castle as we know it today.

Due to disputes with Hungarian nobles, Maria Theresa did not appoint a palatine, who used to represent the nobles, and instead in 1765 appointed a governor for the Kingdom of Hungary, who obeyed the queen. Bratislava Castle became his seat and the office of the county head left the castle. The second governor was Albert of Saxe-Teschen since 1765, the queen’s son-in-law – the husband of queen’s favorite daughter, Marie Christine of Austria. Albert and Maria Christine moved to the castle in 1766. Since both of them were promoters of culture and science, the castle and the town became a place of frequent events and visits in the sphere of culture and science.

Because the governor did not have enough space, a new palace (later called the Theresianum) was built at the eastern wall of the castle building in 1767 – 1770. It had been designed by Hillebrandt in the classic style. Its furnishings were very expensive and precious and included hundreds of objects of art. The first floor was home to a family gallery, which later became the basis of today’s Albertina Gallery in Vienna.

In addition, a winter riding school was added at the northern end of the castle site, a summer riding school was situated directly in the castle yard, both castle gardens were adapted (in the Schönbrunn style), and night lighting using oil lanterns was introduced on the access road to the castle for the first time in history. In 1770, Maria Theresa herself ordered further valuable paintings and furniture to be provided to both the main castle and the Theresianum, and the governor moved into the completed Theresianum. Maria Theresa visited them frequently there, however mostly unofficially.

Loss of importance and destruction (1783 – 1811)

The office of governor of the Kingdom of Hungary was re-abolished in 1781 by the new king Joseph II, and Albert of Sachsen-Teschen left the castle and took many parts of the equipment away. The (present-day Albertina Gallery) art collection went partly to Vienna, partly to Belgium, where Albert became a new governor. Other objects moved mostly to Vienna. In 1783, Pressburg ceased to be the seat of central authorities of the kingdom. They were moved to Buda (now Budapest). The crown jewels of the Kingdom of Hungary were moved to the Hofburg in Vienna.

In 1784, the Theresianum, some other secondary buildings of the site, and the gardens were adapted, because the castle became a “general seminary”, which was a type of state school for Catholic priests introduced by Joseph II. The general seminary of Pressburg Castle played an important role in Slovakia’s history, because it has educated many important Slovak intellectuals, for example Anton Bernolák, the author of the first successful codification of a Slovak standard language.

In 1802, the general seminary moved to another place, and the castle was assigned to the military as barracks. This was the beginning of the end of the castle. The rococo interiors of the castle were adapted in order to house some 1500 soldiers. In 1809, the Pressburg and the castle was bombarded by cannons by Napoleon‘s troops. On 28 May 1811, the castle burst into huge flames due to carelessness of Austrian and Italian soldiers in the castle. The fire even spread into parts of the town.

Pressburg Castle, mid-19th century Castle in ruins (1811 – 1953)

The destroyed castle gradually deteriorated. The military sold parts of the main castle buildings as construction materials in the surrounding areas. Between the two world wars, attempts were made to demolish the castle to build government offices and a university district on the castle hill and in its surroundings in the first Czechoslovak Republic and in the first Slovak Republic. Many parts of the site however continued to be used as barracks and adapted accordingly till 1946.

In 1946, the ruin was opened to the public. Two years later, the town constructed an amphitheater in the northern part of the castle site. The amphitheater was in use for some 15 years.

Restoration and modern history (after 1953)

Bratislava Castle and the roofs of Old Town, as seen from east in 2006

Reconstructed trophy that has been restored as part of the renovation efforts

Equestrian statue of King Svatopluk I at the Honorary Courtyard since 2010

Finally it was decided to restore the castle. Archaeological and architectural research started in 1953 and long restoration works began in 1957. The restoration was done to the last (Baroque) state of the main building, but at many places older (Gothic, Renaissance) preserved elements or parts have been restored. The Theresianum has not been restored and the Hillebrandt building of 1762 was restored only around the year 2000. The Slovak painter Janko Alexy gained recognition for the restoration of the castle. The finishing of the restoration in 1968 was interrupted in August 1968, when the castle was occupied by Warsaw Pact troops (see Prague Spring). On 28 October 1968, however, the Federation Law, turning the centralist state of Czechoslovakia into a federation of a Czech Socialist Republic (later called Czech Republic) and a Slovak Socialist Republic (later called Slovak Republic), was signed in the Federation Hall of the castle. On 3 September 1992, the new constitution of independent Slovakia was signed in the Knights Hall of the castle.

Since 1968, the castle has been housing exhibitions of the Slovak National Museum and at the same time its rooms have been used by the National Council of the Slovak Republic (today the National Council of the Slovak Republic) for presentation purposes. In 1992, the castle housed a branch-office of the Czechoslovak president temporarily and later in the 1990s the Slovak president temporarily. It still houses the museum and the presentation rooms for the National Council of the Slovak Republic and for the president. A new restoration has been planned for years, because since 1968 (except for adding the Hillebrandt building) only minor adaptations have been performed, such as the 1988 creation of the Treasure Chamber, the 1995 replacement of glass in the arcades of the solemn staircase, and the 1996-97 complete repair of the roof. The last minor adaptations occurred on the occasion of the Bush-Putin Bratislava summit in February 2005. A massive reconstruction was started in 2008. It should take 5 years and cost 1.5 to 2 billion Slovak korunas (47.06 to 62.75 million euro).^[3]

On June 6, 2010 the reconstruction of the Honorary Courtyard of Bratislava Castle was completed with a large nationally televised unveiling ceremony of an equestrian statue of King Svätopluk I by Slovak sculptor Ján Kulich.

Bratislava has a very pleasant medieval inner city with narrow, winding streets, a hill-top castle next to the river Danube, and many historic churches and buildings to visit. The old town is centered on two squares, Hlavne namestie (main square) and Hviezdoslavovo namestie (Hviezdoslav square, named after a famous Slovak poet). Of a rather different architectural character are some of the communist-era buildings found in the modern parts of the city; a prime example is Petrzalka housing estate, the biggest Communist-era concrete block housing complex in Central Europe, which stretches on endlessly just across the river. Move further east and there are plenty of rural places to explore. Farms, vineyards, agricultural land, and tiny villages are situated less than 50 kilometres to the north and east of Bratislava.

Bratislava (Slovak pronunciation: [ˈbracɪslava] ( listen), English pronunciation: /ˌbrætɨˈslɑːvə/ or /ˌbrɑːtɨˈslɑːvə/; formerly Slovak Prešporok; German: Pressburg formerly Preßburg, Hungarian: Pozsony) is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 460,000, the country‘s largest city.^[1] Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia, occupying both banks of the Danube River and the left bank of the Morava River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.^[2]

Bratislava is the political, cultural, and economic centre of Slovakia. It is the seat of the Slovak president, the parliament, and the Slovak Executive. It is home to several universities, museums, theatres, galleries and other important cultural and educational institutions.^[3] Many of Slovakia’s large businesses and financial institutions also have headquarters there.

The history of the city has been strongly influenced by people of different nations and religions, namely by Austrians, Czechs, Germans, Hungarians, Slovaks, and Jews.^[4] The city was the capital of the Kingdom of Hungary, a part of the larger Habsburg Monarchy territories,^[5] from 1536 to 1783 and has been home to many Slovak, Hungarian, and German historical figures.

Etymology

History of Bratislava

The city got its modern name in 1919. Beforehand it was mostly known in English by its German name, Pressburg. Its first recorded name, in the 10th century Annales Iuvavenses, was probably Brezalauspurc (literally: Braslav‘s castle). This is the term which the German, the pre-1919 Slovak (Prešporok) and Czech name (Prešpurk) derive from.^[6] The origin of the city’s Hungarian name, Pozsony, is unclear: it might come from the Hungarian Poson (name of the city’s first castellan), the Czech Pos or the German Poscho, which are personal names. The Hungarian name is still used by Hungarian speakers today.^[5] The city’s modern name is attributed to Pavel Jozef Šafárik‘s misinterpretation of Braslav as Bratislav when analyzing medieval sources, thus coming up with the term Břetislaw, later Bratislav.

During the revolution of 1918–1919, the name ‘Wilsonov’ or ‘Wilsonstadt’ (after President Woodrow Wilson) was proposed by American Slovaks, as he supported national self-determination. The name Bratislava, which was used before only by some Slovak patriots, became official in March 1919.^[7]

Other alternative names of the city in the past: Greek: Ιστρόπολις Istropolis (meaning “Danube City”, also used in Latin), Czech: Prešpurk, French: Presbourg, Italian: Presburgo, Latin: Posonium, Croatian: Požun, Romanian: Pojon, Serbian: Požun/ Пожун. The name Pressburg was also used in English-language publications until 1919, and it is occasionally used today.

In older documents, confusion can be caused by the Latin forms Bratislavia, Wratislavia etc., which refer to Wrocław (Breslau), Poland – not to Bratislava.^[8]

History

An original Biatec and its replica on a former 5-koruna coin

The first known permanent settlement of the area began with the Linear Pottery Culture, around 5000 BC in the Neolithic era. About 200 BC, the Celtic Boii tribe founded the first significant settlement, a fortified town known as an oppidum, and also established a mint, which produced silver coins known as biatecs.^[9] The area fell under Roman influence from the 1st to the 4th century AD and was made part of the Limes Romanus, a border defence system.^[10] The Romans introduced grape growing to the area and began a tradition of winemaking, which survives to the present.^[11]

The Slavs arrived between the 5th and 6th centuries during the Migration Period.^[12] As a response to onslaughts by Avars, the local Slavic tribes rebelled and established Samo‘s Empire (623–658), the first known Slavic political entity. In the 9th century, the castles at Bratislava (Brezalauspurc) and Devín (Dowina) were important centres of the Slavic states: the Principality of Nitra and Great Moravia.^[13] Scholars have debated the identification of the two castles as fortresses built in Great Moravia based on linguistic arguments and because of the absence of convincing archaeological evidence.^[14][15]

The first written reference to a settlement named “Brezalauspurc” dates to 907 and is related to a battle, during which a Bavarian army was defeated by the Hungarians.^[14] It is connected to the fall of Great Moravia, already weakened by its own inner decline^[16] and under the attacks of the Hungarians.^[17] The exact location of the battle remains unknown, and some interpretations place it west of Lake Balaton.^[18]

Pressburg in the 17th century

In the 10th century, the territory of Pressburg (what would later become Pozsony county) became part of Hungary (called “the Kingdom of Hungary” from 1000) and developed as a key economic and administrative centre on the kingdom’s frontier.^[19] This strategic position destined the city to be the site of frequent attacks and battles, but also brought it economic development and high political status. It was granted its first known town privileges in 1291 by the Hungarian King Andrew III,^[20] and was declared a free royal town in 1405 by King Sigismund. He authorized the town to use its own coat of arms in 1436.^[21]

The Kingdom of Hungary was defeated by the Ottoman Empire in the Battle of Mohács in 1526. The Turks besieged and damaged Pressburg but failed to conquer it.^[22] Owing to Ottoman advances into Hungarian territory, the city was designated the new capital of Hungary in 1536, becoming part of the Austrian Habsburg monarchy and marking the beginning of a new era. The city became a coronation town and the seat of kings, archbishops (1543), the nobility and all major organisations and offices. Between 1536 and 1830, eleven Hungarian kings and queens were crowned at St. Martin’s Cathedral.^[23] The 17th century was marked by anti-Habsburg uprisings, fighting with the Turks, floods, plagues and other disasters, which diminished the population.^[24]

Coronation of Maria Theresa in 1741

Pressburg flourished during the 18th-century reign of Queen Maria Theresa,^[25] becoming the largest and most important town in Hungary.^[26] The population tripled; many new palaces,^[25] monasteries, mansions, and streets were built, and the city was the centre of social and cultural life of the region.^[27] Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart gave a concert in 1762 in the Pálffy Palace in Bratislava. Joseph Haydn performed in 1784 in the Grassalkovich Palace in Bratislava. Ludwig van Beethoven was a guest in 1796 in the Keglević Palace in Bratislava.^[28][29]

But, the city started to lose its importance under the reign of Maria Theresa’s son Joseph II,^[25] especially after the crown jewels were taken to Vienna in 1783 in an attempt to strengthen the union between Austria and Hungary. Many central offices subsequently moved to Buda, followed by a large segment of the nobility.^[30] The first newspapers in Hungarian and Slovak were published here: Magyar hírmondó in 1780, and Presspurske Nowiny in 1783.^[31] In the course of the 18th century, the city became a centre for the Slovak national movement.

Pressburg in a drawing from 1787

19th-century history was closely tied to the major events in Europe. The Peace of Pressburg between Austria and France was signed here in 1805.^[32] Theben Castle was ruined by Napoleon‘s French troops during an invasion of 1809.^[33] In 1825 the Hungarian National Learned Society (the present Hungarian Academy of Sciences) was founded in Pressburg using a donation from István Széchenyi. In 1843 Hungarian was proclaimed the official language in legislation, public administration and education by the Diet in the city.^[34]

As a reaction to the Revolutions of 1848, Ferdinand V signed the so-called April laws, which included the abolition of serfdom, at the Primate’s Palace.^[35] The city chose the revolutionary Hungarian side, but was captured by the Austrians in December 1848.^[36] Industry grew rapidly in the 19th century. The first horse-drawn railway in the Kingdom of Hungary,^[37] from Pressburg to Szentgyörgy Svätý Jur, was built in 1840.^[38] A new line to Vienna using steam locomotives was opened in 1848, and a line to Pest in 1850.^[39] Many new industrial, financial and other institutions were founded; for example, the first bank established in present-day Slovakia was founded in 1842.^[40] The city’s first permanent bridge over the Danube, Starý most, was built in 1891.^[41]

Allied ordnance damage at the Apollo company industrial plant in Bratislava, September 1944

Before World War I, the city had 42% German, 41% Hungarian and 15% Slovak population (1910 census). After World War I and the formation of Czechoslovakia on October 28, 1918, the city was incorporated into the new state despite its representatives’ reluctance.^[42] The dominant Hungarian and German population tried to prevent annexation of the city to Czechoslovakia and declared it a free city. However, the Czechoslovak Legions occupied the city on January 1, 1919, and made it part of Czechoslovakia.^[42] The city became the seat of Slovakia’s political organs and organizations and became Slovakia’s capital on 4 – February 5.^[vague][43] On February 12, 1919 the German and Hungarian population started a protest against the Czechoslovak occupation, but the Czechoslovak Legions opened fire upon the unarmed demonstrators.^[44] On March 27, 1919, the name Bratislava was officially adopted for the first time.^[45] Left without any protection after the retreat of the Hungarian army, many Hungarians were expelled or fled^[46] and Czechs and Slovaks took their houses and moved to Bratislava. Education in Hungarian and German was radically reduced.^[47] By the 1930 Czechoslovakian census, the Hungarian population of Bratislava had decreased to 15.8% (see the Demographics of Bratislava article for more details).

In 1938, Nazi Germany annexed neighbouring Austria in the Anschluss; later that year it also annexed the still-independent Petržalka and Devín boroughs on ethnic grounds, as these had many ethnic Germans.^[48][49] Bratislava was declared the capital of the first independent Slovak Republic on March 14, 1939, but the new state quickly fell under Nazi influence. In 1941–1942 and 1944–1945, the new Slovak government expelled most of Bratislava’s approximately 15,000 Jews,^[50] with most of them being sent into concentration camps, where many died.^[51]

Bratislava was bombarded by the Allies, occupied by German troops in 1944 and eventually taken by the Soviet Red Army on April 4, 1945.^[48][52] At the end of World War II, most Bratislava ethnic Germans were evacuated by German authorities. A few returned after the war, but were expelled without their properties under the Beneš decrees.^[53]

Slavín war memorial commemorates fallen soldiers during the liberation of Slovakia in World War II

After the Communist Party seized power in Czechoslovakia in February 1948, the city became part of the Eastern Bloc. The city annexed new land, and the population rose significantly, becoming 90% Slovak. Large residential areas consisting of high-rise prefabricated panel buildings, such as those in the Petržalka borough, were built. The Communist government also built several new grandiose buildings, such as the Most Slovenského národného povstania bridge and the Slovak Radio headquarters.

In 1968, after the unsuccessful Czechoslovak attempt to liberalise the Communist regime, the city was occupied by Warsaw Pact troops. Shortly thereafter, it became capital of the Slovak Socialist Republic, one of the two states of the federalized Czechoslovakia.

Bratislava’s dissidents anticipated the fall of Communism with the Bratislava candle demonstration in 1988, and the city became one of the foremost centres of the anti-Communist Velvet Revolution in 1989.^[54]

In 1993, the city became the capital of the newly formed Slovak Republic following the Velvet Divorce.^[55] In the 1990s and the early 21st century, its economy boomed due to foreign investment. The flourishing city also hosted several important cultural and political events, including the Slovakia Summit 2005 between George W. Bush and Vladimir Putin.^[56]

Geography of Bratislava

Map of Bratislava

Bratislava seen from SPOT satellite

Astronaut View of Bratislava

Bratislava is situated in south-western Slovakia, within the Bratislava Region. Its location on the borders with Austria and Hungary makes it the only national capital that borders two countries. It is only 62 kilometres (38.5 mi) from the border with the Czech Republic and only 60 kilometres (37.3 mi) from the Austrian capital Vienna.^[57]

The city has a total area of 367.58 square kilometres (141.9 sq mi), making it the second-largest city in Slovakia by area (after the township of Vysoké Tatry).^[58] Bratislava straddles the Danube River, which it had developed around and for centuries was the chief transportation route to other areas. The river passes through the city from the west to the south-east. The Middle Danube basin begins at Devín Gate in western Bratislava. Other rivers are the Morava River, which forms the north-western border of the city and enters the Danube at Devín, the Little Danube, and the Vydrica, which enters the Danube in the borough of Karlova Ves.

The Carpathian mountain range begins in city territory with the Little Carpathians (Malé Karpaty). The Záhorie and Danubian lowlands stretch into Bratislava. The city’s lowest point is at the Danube’s surface at 126 metres (413 ft) above mean sea level, and the highest point is Devínska Kobyla at 514 metres (1,686 ft). The average altitude is 140 metres (460 ft).^[59]

Climate

Bratislava lies in the north temperate zone and has a moderately continental climate^[60] (original/US Köppen–Geiger climate classification Cfb^[61]/Dfb, Trewartha climate classification DCbo) with mean annual temperature (1990-2009)^[62] of around 10.5 °C (50.9 °F), average temperature of 21 °C (70 °F) in the warmest month and −1 °C (30 °F) in the coldest month, four distinct seasons^[60] and precipitation spread rather evenly throughout the year. It is often windy with a marked variation between hot summers and cold, humid winters. The city is in one of the warmest and driest parts of Slovakia.^[63] Recently, the transitions from winter to summer and summer to winter have been rapid, with short autumn and spring periods. Snow occurs less frequently than previously.^[60] Extreme temperatures (1990-2009)^[62] – absolute maximum: 38.9 °C (102.0 °F), absolute minimum: −20.3 °C (−4.5 °F). Some areas, particularly Devín and Devínska Nová Ves, are vulnerable to floods from the Danube and Morava rivers.^[64] New flood protection has been built on both banks.^[65]

Eastern Slovakia Cathedral Tower

St. Elisabeth Cathedral in Eastern Slovakia

There are many sights and places in Eastern Slovakia like Eastern Slovakia St. Elisabeth Cathedral that are interesting or important from historical, cultural or environmental perspective. If somebody is interested in architecture or history, he/she should visit some of the picturesque historical towns, churches, monasteries, castles, or manor houses, for instance Bardejov, Kežmarok, Levoča, Spiš Castle, Stará Ľubovňa Castle, Krásna Hôrka Castle, Betliar Manor House, Markušovce Manor House, wooden Orthodox churches in the north-western part of Eastern Slovakia, Church of Holy Spirit in Žehra, Cathedral of St. Martin in Spišská Kapitula etc.

The St. Elisabeth Cathedral (Slovak: Dóm svätej Alžbety, Hungarian: Szent Erzsébet-székesegyház, German: Dom der Heiligen Elisbeth) is a Gothic cathedral in Košice. It is Slovakia‘s biggest church, as well as one of the easternmost Gothic cathedrals in Europe.

History

The record on the existence of Košice dating from 1230 in connected with that on the existence of the rectory church. In the process of the settlement’s transformation from a rural community into a town, all its periods of success and failures had been reflected on St. Elizabeth’s Cathedral. According to historic data the present-day cathedral was built on the site of an edifice of older date which was consecrated to St. Elisabeth as well. It was referred to in the document of Pope Martin V of the year 1283 and in the letter of 1290, which stated that Eger bishop Andrew II exempted Košice parish from the dean’s sphere of jurisdiction.

This medieval monument was built in the High Gothic style between 1378 and 1508 in several stages on the site of a parish church that burned down in 1370, in memory of Saint Elisabeth of Hungary, the patrona of all armed mercenaries and also Portugal.

The cathedral was often damaged by calamities (1556) and underwent numerous restorations. The most extensive restoration works took place in the years 1877-1896 by the drafts of Imre Steindl. The northern tower was completed in 1775, while the southern, Matthias tower in 1904. During the last phase of the restoration a crypt was built under the northern nave of the cathedral. In 1906 the remains of Francis II Rákóczi and his friends from Rodosto were buried there

HighTatra.com

High Tatra is dominating the northern part of Slovakia. They form part of the, massive Karpatian Mountain span,1200 km long and form its highest mountain range.The Tatras form a natural frontier between Slovakia and Poland.The High Tatras,a relatively small area spreading 786 sq. km,550 sq.km in Slovakia,are abundant in natural monuments,rich and individual fauna and flora species.The Tatra Mountains are 78 km long and 17 km wide and are divided into the West Tatra and East Tatra Mountains. The East Tatra Mountains are further divided into the Vysoke and Belianske Tatry Mountains.Regardless of your actual location,you will surely succumb to its magic and be overwhelmed with the desire to familiarize yourself with the Tatra Mountains. Since the beginning of time,man has been drawn to the sky.In the Tatra Mountains you can really enjoy the excitement that the elevation gives you.In the company of experienced guides,less experienced tourists can also conquer the high peaks of Slovakia,eleven of which exceed a height of 2,600 m.It is a unique experience to ascend the highest peak of the High Tatras,the Gerlachovsky stit (peak)(2,655 m above sea level).In the sunshine,you can enjoy a breathtaking view not only of Popradska kotlina (basin),with its small towns and villages,but also an immense part of the Slovak country in the distance.

High Tatras or High Tatra (Slovak and Czech: Vysoké Tatry, Polish: Tatry Wysokie) are a mountain range on the borders between Slovakia and Poland. They are a part of the Tatra Mountains. The High Tatras, with their 17 peaks over 2500 m AMSL, are, together with the Southern Carpathians, the only mountain ranges with an alpine character in the whole 1200 km length of the Carpathian Mountains.

The mountain range borders Belianske Tatras to the east, Podtatranská kotlina to the south and Western Tatras to the west. The major part and all the highest peaks of the mountains are situated in Slovakia. The highest peak is Gerlachovský štít at 2,655 m. Many rare and endemic animals and plant species are native to the High Tatras. Large predators, such as the bear, Eurasian lynx, marten, wolf and fox live there.

The area is well known for winter sports. Ski resorts include Štrbské pleso, Starý Smokovec and Tatranská Lomnica in Slovakia and Zakopane in Poland. The town of Poprad is the gateway to the Slovak Tatra resorts.

The first European cross-border national park was founded here—Tatra National Park—Tatranský národný park in Slovakia in 1948 and Tatrzański Park Narodowy in Poland in 1954

Unique wooden churches

are found in Slovakia. Very specific was the way they were built – all parts had to be made of wood and no nails were allowed. According to historical records there were more than 300 wooden churches in Slovakia. Their architecture combined elements of the western, mainly Roman Catholic tradition and of the Byzantine culture. At present, there are around 50 sacred monuments which were built during the 16th – 18th century.

Wooden Churches in Slovakia

Carpathian Wooden Churches is the name of a UNESCO World Heritage Site that consists of nine wooden religious buildings constructed between the 16th and 18th centuries in eight different locations in Slovakia. They include two Roman Catholic  wooden churches (Hervartov, Tvrdošín), three Protestant wooden churches(so-called Articular churches in Hronsek, Leštiny, Kežmarok) and three Greek Catholic wooden churches (Bodružal, Ruská Bystrá, Ladomirová) plus one belfry in Hronsek. In addition to these wooden churches there are about 50 more wooden churches in the territory of present-day Slovakia mainly in the northern and eastern part .

Roman Catholic Gothic wooden church of All Saints in Tvrdošín was built in the second half of the 15th century and modified in a Renaissance style in the 17th century. Baroque main altar depicting All Saints is from the end of the 17th century. Remaining part of the original Gothic altar with St. Peter and St. John the Baptist ended up in muzeum in Budapest after the World War I. Worth of notice are also ceiling paintings depicting the starry heaven, as well as many religious artefacts from the 17th century.

Articular Protestant wooden church in Hronsek

Severe restrictions embodied in the articles of the Congress of Sopron (1681) that enabled building of Protestant, so called articular, churches caused their extraordinary appearance. They must have been built within the single year, without any metal parts such as nails, and without any tower. Thus the construction of the church in Hronsek began on 23 October 1725 and was finished in the autumn of the 1726, the same year when the adjacent belfry was built as well. Church is 8m high and has a shape of the cross with arms 23 and 18m long. As there are many unusual motives from Scandinavian architecture, it is assumed that craftsmen from Norway and/or Sweden participated on the construction site. Unique is also the ordering of the benches on the choirs so that the church can accommodate 1100 worshipers through its 5 doors. The altar has 6 tables from 1771 by Master Samuel Kialovič.

Construction of the wooden evangelical articular church in Leštiny in the Orava region of Slovakia was ordered by Jób Zmeškal and finished in 1688. Interior dates back to the 17th and 18th century nad it is whole beautifully painted. Main altar is from the 18th century and the famous Slovak poet Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav was baptised here as well.

Articular wooden church in Kežmarok

Built in 1717, wooden church in Kežmarok with one of the most fascinating interiors with exceptional wall paintings as well as wood carvings is considered to be the most beautiful of the last 5 remaining articular churches in Slovakia. In order to raise money for the construction of the church, fund-raising campaigns were conducted in many parts of Europe, e.g. Sweden and Denmark. The architect of the church was Juraj Müttermann from Popradu and with its width of 30.31m, length of 34.68m, and height of 20.60m, it together with 6 side choirs it can serve more than 1500 worshipers, which is quite an achievement for a wooden church. Ceiling paintings started in 1717 and continued for several decades. They depict blue heaven, 12 apostles, 4 evangelists, plus the Holy Trinity above the altar. Ján Lerch from Kežmarok made the altar between 1718 and 1727 with the central motive of the Calvary. Extraordinary masterwork is also the organ built between 1717 and 1720 by Vavrinec Čajkovský, and extended in 1729 by Master Martin Korabinský from Spišská Nová Ves. After general restoration in the 1990s services are again regularly hold there.

Greek Catholic wooden church of St. Nicholas in Bodružal built in 1658 consists of three interconnected square-shaped parts along the east-west axis with 3 towers (the biggest one with the bells) topped with little onion domes and iron crosses. Artistically it belongs to folk Baroque style. Church is surrounded with the cemetery, wall, and the belfry from the 19th century. Some of the 18th century wall paintings are still preserved as well as iconostasis, and other icons from the same century. Altar was reconstructed in 1990s and the whole building subsequently in the 2004. Two of the three bells was melted down in the World War I and replaced only in the second half of the 1920s. From 1968 until the middle of the 1990s the church was biritual, i.e. holding Greek Catholic as well as Eastern Orthodox services. nowadays it belongs only to the Greek Catholic Church.

Wooden Church of St. Nicholas in Ruská Bystrá built at the beginning of the 18th century has just 2 towers and the shape of its almost perfect geometric roof resembles traditional houses of peasants. Interior with religious artefacts dates back to the 18th century as well.

Wooden Church of Archangel Michael in Ladomirová built in 1742 without a single nail has basically the same design as the one in Bodružal including its surroundings (wall, cemetery, belfry).

Discover Levoca and Spis region’s Hidden Gothic Gems

Discover hidden gems in Levoca

Discover Levoca and Spis region Hidden Gothic Gems,  in Eastern Slovakia. You’ve probably heard the word before Bratislava. You might even know that really is a city somewhere in Eastern Europe like Levoca. However, very few people know that, in Bratislava, Slovakia, comfortable capital city is very attractive, unique and well-preserved old town and back to back to the times before Christ was born.

Our Little Big City Levoca was hidden behind the Iron Curtain for many years. However, even the long rule of the communist regime could not destroy the unique character of the city on the Danube. Bratislava was unveiling itself recently become very popular with tourists. The main low-cost airlines, plus the destination list, Bratislava, more and more visitors to find out what gem Bratislava.

Over the past decade, tremendous growth in the number of countries traveling an expanding European Union and the Eastern Slovakia was particularly popular. People have discovered what a fabulous city of Bratislava, for example, and only 60 km from Vienna, it is easily accessible to many people. Now is a real enthusiasm for exploring the less well-known in this fascinating, landlocked country is – a small town Levoca fabulous selection.

Levoca and the Spis Region , with less than 15,000 inhabitants, is a historical Slovakia at its most picturesque and attractive. Approximately 370 km from Bratislava, and part of what is called “Gothic Route Levoca is extremely picturesque Spiš heart. Close national parks Slovak Paradise and the High Tatras, which are popular in both summer and winter tourists Levoca makes an ideal base for exploration of all of this attractive area.

Slovakia Online will show you that Levoca and the Spis region is the only city that was recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage list since June, 2009 – but the visitors quickly appreciate the fact that this recognition was well deserved. Well-preserved city walls – 6 watch towers, still the same old three gates – the majority of buildings in the city center still have their original walls dating back to the Middle Ages.

The main portal of the city, Kosice gateway is directly behind the ornate Baroque church and monastery from the eighteenth century. Town Square, which is a photographer’s dream location, home of the 14th century St. Jacob’s church, Town Hall, dating back to 15th century, parts, and several other impressive buildings and grand symbolic and strange “shame” Cage.

The medieval old town is quite small, but it is packed with historical monuments, shops and nice cafes, restaurants and bars creates a unique atmosphere. It’s great just to sit in cafes and soak up the spirit of the place.

Unlike the crowded colorful neighborhood in Prague, Vienna and Budapest, you can actually enjoy the local flavor in Levoca and the Spis region. Come and experience the unique atmosphere of this Little Big City.

Levoča is located in the historical region of Spiš (formerly Szepes), which was inhabited as early as the Stone Age. In the 11th century, this region was conquered and, subsequently, became part of the Kingdom of Hungary and remained such until 1918. After the Mongol invasions of 1241/1242, the area was also settled by Germans. The town became the capital of the Association of Spiš Germans, with a form of self-rule within the Kingdom of Hungary. The oldest written reference to the city of Levoča dates back to 1249. In 1317, Levoča (at that time generally known by the German name of Leutschau – see Chronology below for lists of changing names) received the status of a royal town. In 1321 a wide storing right was granted enticing merchants, craftsmen and mine owners to settle in this town.

In the 15th century the town, located on an intersection of trade routes between Poland and Hungary, became a rich center of commerce. It exported iron, copper, furs, leather, corn, and wine. At the same time the town became an important cultural centre. The English humanist Leonard Cox taught around 1520 in a school in Levoča. The bookseller Brewer from Wittenberg transformed his bookstore in a prolific printing plant, that lasted for 150 years. Finally, one of the best-known medieval woodcarvers Master Paul of Levoča settled here.

The town kept this cultural and economic status until the end of 16th century, in spite of two damaging fires : the first in 1550 destroyed nearly all of the Gothic architecture and another in 1599. In this period of prosperity several churches were built and the town had a school, library, pharmacy, and physicians. There was a printing press as early as 1624. Levoča was a center of the Protestant Reformation in Northern Hungary. The town started to decline during the anti-Habsburg uprisings in the 17th century.

In a lurid sequence of events in 1700, the mayor of the town was accidentally wounded by a local nobleman during a hunt, generating a series of revenge attacks, finally resulting in the murder of the mayor, Karol Kramler, a Saxon magistrate. The mayor’s arm was then cut off, embalmed, and preserved in the town hall as a call to further revenge. This became the subject of a Hungarian novel about the town, The Black City, by the writer Kálmán Mikszáth.^[2]

The economic importance of the town was further diminished in 1871 when the important new Košice–Bohumín Railway was built just 8 km (5.0 mi) to the south, bypassing Levoča and going through the nearby town of Igló, (today known by its Slovak name, Spišská Nová Ves). Later, in 1892, only a spur line was built from Spišská Nová Ves railway station to Levoča.

After the Treaty of Trianon and the dismantling of the Kingdom of Hungary, the city became part of the newly formed Czechoslovakia and its Slovak name Levoča was formally adopted. Later, during World War II, under the auspices of the First Slovak Republic, 981 local Jews were deported from the town to concentration camps.

On July 3, 1995 Levoča was visited by Pope John Paul II. He celebrated a mass for 650,000 celebrants at the traditional pilgrim site of Mariánska hora, a hill about 2 km north of Levoča with a spectacular view of the town.

Slovakia Small Cities

Slovakia is so much more than in Bratislava and the High Tatras, Slovakia, which is the usual destination of tourists from abroad. There are really so much to do and see throughout the country, and no more than the central Slovakia.

In particular, there are 5 places that you really should visit the above, if you are traveling in this area:

A). Banska Bystrica

Banska Bystrica is one of the most beautiful cities in the Slovak town squares and just brimming with culture. There are many churches, museums and art galleries can be found at any visit is the highlight of a great museum of the SNP, which is designed to deliver world-war events from the perspective of Slovakia.

After a busy day of sightseeing, be sure to sit in the main square of a number of cafes and terraces to relax with a meal and local wine.

2). Donovaly

Ski resort Donovaly throughout the year and during the spring and summer months are a great place to walk or just breathtaking scenery. Resort Entertainment Arena has some great attractions to enjoy the adrenaline, including: bungee trampoline, rope center, climbing wall and shelves run.

3). Poruba

Poruba, without doubt, one of the most attractive cities in Slovakia. Located in a valley with beautiful views of mountains all over the city, it boasts two ski centers, art galleries and museums, is unusual in houses and wooden bridge, which includes the Orava river.

4). Kremnica

Famous for its Mint, which has been producing since the XIV century. Coin, Kremnica is excellent in the heart of the city of Slovakia. There are some very interesting museums showcase the city’s rich past as well as the plague column and Kremnica Castle.

Make sure that you take the time to visit a small village a few kilometers Kremnica north, known as the Bane Kremnicke vrchy. This is the geographical center of Europe and a little plaque near the monastery marks the actual spot.

5). Bojnice

If you can make only one place in central Slovakia, then make sure that it Bojnice. With its spa, zoo, falconry, fairy-tale castle and the oldest tree, a small town that is just packed with tourist attractions. The boulevard leads to the castle has several good restaurants serving excellent food at very affordable prices, so do not take a packed lunch.

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