Malacky and its surrounding, Záhorie

Welcome in Záhorie, frontier piece of land in the west of Slovakia. It is a region of natural beauties, possessions of earth, thermal healing waters, plains, foothills and hills covered by woods. Malokarpatské chrbty create natural south-east borders of this region, which was for its position named Záhorie. Through cultural and architectonical relics we can still see the tradition of markets and music. „Záhoráci“ protect their songs and folklore.
The town of Malacky lies in the center of Záhorská nížina. Region is a part of the Morava River area with its creeks Rudava and Malina. From Lozorno to Šaštín lies characteristic territory of Záhorie - Bor, created with pine woods. There are Záhorské pláňavy in the east, Lakšárska pahorkatina in the north, in the north Podmalokarpatská zníženina beneath Karpaty.
Average height above the sea level of this part of Záhorie moves from 138 m to 250 m above the sea level, in the region of Malé Karpaty it is slightly above 700 m above sea level. Average year temperature is 9-10 degrees, the hottest month is July with 19,4 degrees, the coldest one is January with 1,8 degrees. Rainfalls are at average rate of 560 mm. Záhorie is the area with hot and mild wet climate with mild winters.
Border with Austria is almost exactly conservated region. You can find there the nest of rare sorts of birds, rich flora and large meads and forests. There arent bigger beasts there, rare beaver, otter and water-rat lives in clean waters of Záhorie. On Záhorie are registered above 200 sorts of birds, around 60 sorts of mammals, 51 sorts of fish, 13 sorts of amphibians and 7 sorts of reptiles here. The remains of flooded forests are full of willows and poplars, flooded areas and large nets of both running and standing waters.
Záhorie is attractive from fungologic view too. This region was declared to CHKO Záhorie in year 1989. It protectes unique flooded forests, wet meads, swamps, lakes and mosses, that are changing with sand-dunes.
Záhorie is also rich in natural results. There are underground reservoires of natural gas, the stone mines, big bearings of limestone. Large supplies of underground wells are for now used only in the baths of Smrdáky (north of Senica) for curing different kinds of diseases.
After establishing of Ugrian Kingdom Záhorie became a part of a boundary zone named konfínium, that neighboured with Czech Kingdom and Austria. In 12. and 13. century kings began to divide the land and gave it to their well-wishers.

To protect the borders Sikuls and Plavs from Asian habitations came. In the places, where the Sikuls settled, rised new villages, e.g. Sekule and Stráže. Plavs settled round new-builded castle, which was later named Plavecký hrad after them. Some villages got second name Plavecký, too(Štvrtok, Mikuláš, Peter, Podhradie).
In year 1206 king Ondrej II gaves this land of Plavecký Štvrtok to earl Alexander from an old Hont-Poznan family. In the giftlist are stated the new borders of the county. Between the marks, which indicate the county, both river MALISCAPOTOCA and the village MALISCAPOTOCA - nowadays Malacky are mentioned. It is the first remark of Malacky.
Hont-Poznans got large land by the both sides of Malé Karpaty mountain and their residences had in Svätý Jur and Pezinok They get Plavecký hrad with his villages too. So was Plavecké panstvo established, which lied from around the castle to the border with Austria. The families died gradually out, after 300 years lords of Plavecké panstvo died out. After them, it was given to another lords like G.Serédy, Salmos of Luxemburg, Fuggers from Červený Kameň, family Balaša from east of Slovakia. In the 1940 was Malacky for a while a royal residence. The czech king Vaclav with his yard, knights and army was encamped in the field near village Malacky.
Balaš family after obtaining the Plavecké panstvo chgange the religion on their properities - it was Luther reformation and built parish church in Malacky in year 1600. He built first school in Malacky in 1596, too. When Balaš’s family died out, the king kept the land again and gave it to earl Pavol Pálfi of Erdőd in year 1622. So he made the Pálfi’s family to lords of Malacky. Then the new era began. Palfi renovated the cloister with the church, which was initially an old hunting mansion of Balaš‘s family and gave it to the Franciscan monastery. They opened here the elementary and secondary school. Later on a higher school was founded here, wich changed into grammar school in 1927. In this grammar school studied a lot of important persons of cultural life, writers, poets, historians and philologists like Rudolf Dilong, Svetoslav Veigl, Ľudo Zúbek ...
Palfi’s got the county in their hands, they move their residence to Malacky. The trade began spreading and growing. In 17. century were many guilds in Malacky. There were tanners, blacksmiths, locksmiths and in the next century guild of booters, tailors, masons, carpenters and coopers. Behind the mansion were the producers of beer - braxatorises.

Hutterite’s ceramists moved here in the 17.th century, which worked here for more then 200 years.
Pálfi’s richness was in large woods, which they intensively cultivated. They invited specialists from Tyrol to a people into a forest’s goverment, to build sawmill together with monorail. In 1872 a postroad was opened, which joined Bratislava with Brno and Wien. Till year 1891 a railway to Bratislava was opened.
The area of Franciscan’s church is highly evaluated. Altar in this church is slit from wood with a statue of Taintless Virgin Maria and it was been here since year 1720. There is also an organ in the church since year 1729 and the epitaph of Mikuláš Palfi, which is there since 1741. Best-know place of the church is the Holy Stairs. There are only three of these in the world. Under the church, in the larges crypts you could found the heart of the founder of the temple - Pavol and his son Ján Anton, both of them closed in silver boxes. The first heart was lost in last century, the second is still in the box in the form of heart.
In the crossroads in the public square stands famous statue called „Severín“. It is a statue of František Xaverský, which is remembered since 1773.
After the second world war were new industrial stores built and the population growed up to 10 000 inhabitants, who settled here because of their jobs. The result was large developement of flats, schools, and cultural and social facilities a. s. o. Nowadays, the population of Malacky is about 20 000 inhabitants.