Bratislava, My Native Town

History

Bratislava is the capital city of the Slovak Republic, it is the largest town with about 5OO OOO inhabitatants. It´s situated on the banks of the River Danube, in the heart Europe, on borders of three countries- Slovakia, Austria and Hungary. It also lies at the foothills of the Little Carpathian Mountains. Bratislava is an ancient historical city.
The beginnings of settlement in this place go back to the Stone age. The first ethnic group which settled on the crossroad of the European trade routes were the Celts, whose oppidum as we have learned from archeological findings, represented the centre of Celtic power on the cenral Danube during the last centuries B.C. For four centuries Limes Romanus – the border of the Roman Empire – passed throught the city and the territory of the city comprised the centres of two large areas of culture and civilization – the Roman and the Barbarian.
During the 5th and 6th centuries the Slavs settled permanently in Slovakia. In the 9th century the large Slavonic fortified settlements on the Castle Hill in Bratislava and on Devin became the centres of the first common state of the Slovaks and the Czechs – the Great Moravian Empire. The first written records about Bratislava are actually connected with the Great Moravian period – there is a mention made of Dowina (Devín) and in 907 of Presalauspurch (Bratislava).
In the 10th century the fortified settlement of Bratislava was transformed into a royal castle and into a robust border fortress of the newly formed Hungarien state. In 1291 the settlement of craftsmen and merchans around the castle was granted priviledges of a free town by Andrew III., and it developed into one of the most important of Hungarian cities. In 1465 King Mathias Corvinius founded the Academia Istropolitana here, the first university, on the Slovakian territory. The political importance of the city increased after the battle at Moháč in 1526, when the Turks occupied a large part of Hungary. For 250 years Bratislava became the capital and the coronation town of the Hungarian Kingdom. In St. Martin´s Cathedral eleven Kings and eight Queens were crowned, and it was there that they received into their hands the golden sceptre and the golden apple – the symbols of power.
The city underwent an extraordinary boom in the 18th century during the reign of Queen Maria Theresia.

Not only the Castle, but also the newly built baroque and rococo palaces of the nobility enjoyed a lively political, social and cultural life, enriched by the visits of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Joseph Haydn, Ludwig van Beethoven and Franz Liszt. At the end of the 18th century Joseph II. moved the central governmental bodies to Buda. The importance of Bratislava partially decreased, although the Hungarian Assembly still had its sessions here.
1848 marked an important time in history with the memorable struggle of Ľudovít Štúr for the rights of the Slovak nation. Bratislava played an important role in the formation of the Slovak nation, its schools in particular acting as the cradle of national revival. General Seminary – the establishment of which was ordered by Joseph II. in 1783 – contributed to the education of the Bernolák generation, and led to the first codification of the standard literary language (1787). The Evangelical Lycee, where one of the teachers was Matej Bel, a Slovak scientist of European renown, educated a number of Slovak national revivalists, scientists and politicians.
In the second half of the 19th century the modern era in the history of the town began. In 1918, after becoming part of the newly formed Czecho-Slovak state, Bratislava turned into a metropolis of Slovakia. In1968, when the Constitutional Act of Czecho-Slovak Federation was signed in Bratislava Castle, the city became the capital of the Slovak Republic.

Sightseeing in Bratislava

The dominant landmark in our town is the Medieval Castle of Bratislava. The earliest powerful fort erected on this hill was a Slav fortification dating back on the 8th - 9th centuries. After the fall of the Great Moravian Empire, Bratislava Castle became one of the most important border strongholds of the new Hungarian state. In the 12th century the Castle was constructed of stone. In the 16th century it was rebuilt (for the 2nd time) in the renaissance style. Reconstruction in the middle of the 18th century turned the castle into a dignified royal palace. In 1811 the Castle of Bratislava was set on fire by Napoleon´s army and had until recently lain in ruins. Today the Castle is renovated. The Medieval Hall of Knights is used for various ceremonies, artistic and scientific expositions.The historical section of the Slovak National Museum has been arranged in the Castle Palace. Several apartmens in the Castle are reserved for ceremonies and sessions of the Government of the Slovak Republic. The Act of Federation was signed there too.
The gothic Cathedral of St. Martin is situated just below the Castle hill.

Coronations in Bratislava are commemorated by the Coronation Tower of the Castle and the Hungarian crown on a cushion, located on a 85 metres hight tower of St. Martin´s Cathedral. In the Cathedral is placed the baroque sculpture group of St. Martin. It´s a masterpiece of the well-known sculptor Raphael Donne.
On the Main Square is situated a complex of buildings – Old Town Hall. The oldest part – the tower – is the original house of Mayor Jakub. It was built at a time when the city was not yet protected by massive stone fortifications, whose last parts we can see renovated today. In the 2nd building the Town Council was seated.
Looking straight into the windows of the the Town Hall, there is on top of Maximilian´s fountain, the legendary statue of the Knight Roland, the defender of the city´s rights. During the coronation celebrations of this first Hungarian King (Maximilian) crowned in Bratislava a fire broke out in the town and due to shortage of water caused a lot of damage, and that´s why this fountain was built. In the 18th century several grand and luxurious palaces were built in Bratislava. Their style – late baroque, turning into rococo, is often designated as the “Pressburg baroque”. These summer palaces were characterized by their extensive French parks. They were about 18 in number – e.g. Grassalkovich´s Palace, Mirbach´s Palace – the present city Gallery. The most beautiful palace of Bratislava – the Primate´s Palace was built in the style of the French classicism in1781. And in 1805 in this palace the so called Bratislava Peace between Napoleon and Austria was signed.
The first thing to attract our attention on the Hviezdoslav Square, is the building of the opera and ballet of the Slovak National Theatre. It was built in 1886, in the spirit of neo-renaissance on designs by architects from Vienna.The space in front of the theatre is enhanced by Ganymed´s Fountain.

BRATISLAVA CASTLE IS A CHARASTERISTIC DOMINANT OF THE CITY. A PALACE WITH FOUR TOWERS WAS BUILT IN 15TH CENTURY AND WAS BURNT DOWN IN EARLY 19TH CENTURY. AFTER RENOVATION IN 20TH CENTURY IT IS USED BY STATE AND ALSO FOR THE SLOVAK NATIONAL MUSEUM EXHIBITIONS.