Bratislava
 

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Here is a map of Slovakia. The 4 cities that have missionaries serving in them are listed in red. From the latest I’ve heard, there are 14 missionaries in Bratislava, 2 in Trenčin, and 4 in Žilina (2 of whom serve in Martin). Click on the name of the city for more information on the city. I’ve had problems getting the cities to stay in the same place sometimes (why? I don’t know. I’m not a web design expert). If you experience the same problem, I would recommend resizing your screen (either larger or smaller). I don’t know why, but this seems to scare them back into place.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Bratislava –

                                    Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia. Click here to see some of my pictures from Blava.

-          Population: 428,672 (give or take a few)

- In Petržalka alone – 126,469 people in 28.7 km2

-          367,56 km2

-          Mayor: Jozef Moravčík

-          907 AD: first (preserved) written reference to Bratislava

-          1436 - King Žigmund gave city coat of arms

-          1783 - Became capital to Hungary

-          1968 - The Act of Czechoslovak Federation signed in Bratislava Castle. Bratislava gains the status of capital of the Slovak Socialist Republic

-          1993 – Bratislava becomes capital of independent Slovak Republic

            Oficiálne stránky mesta Bratislava

           

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Trenčín –

 

Trenčín is there in the middle. I never served in Trenčín so my knowledge is a bit limited.

-          Population: not found

-          720.05 km2

-          AD 179 – Roman carvings in rock in remembrance of great battle – now visible from the inside terrace of Hotel Tatra

-          1412 – made free imperial city by King Žigumnd

-          1454 – castle is built

-          1905 – castle given to town

Oficiálne stranky mesta Trenčín

 

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Žilina –

 

                             Žilina is one of my favorite cities in Slovakia. Click here to see some pictures from Žilina.

-          Population: 86,818

-          80.03 km2

-          Mayor: Ing. Ján Slota

-          AD 1208 – area first mentioned in writing – referred to as terra de Selinan

-          1297 – name Žilina appears in writing – by 1321, writings show that Žilina is a town by this point

-          more forthcoming

            Oficiálne stránky mesta Žilina

 

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Martin –

         

 

Martin is about 30 minutes by train from Žilina. 2 missionaries travel almost daily to Martin and work there (at least we did when I was there…has it changed?).

-          Population: 60,121 (as of 1999)

-          Mayor: Ing. Stanislav Bernát

-          1284 – first mention in writing of “villa Sancti Martini”

-          1557 – Latin School established in Martin

-          1859 – establishment of Slovak library

-          1863 – establishment and first meeting of the Matica Slovenská

-          1873 – cholera epidemic throughout Martin

-          1875 – Hungarian government closed Matica Slovenská and the Slovak gymnazium

-          1908 – First Slovak National Museum in Martin

-          1919 – re-establishment of the Matica Slovenská

-          1943 – Slovak radio broadcast begun from the Matica Slovenská

-          1990 – Vrútky breaks off to become an independent town.

-          Area: not found

You may notice that I mentioned a lot about the Matica Slovenská in this history. The Matica figured largely into Slovak history in general besides just the history of Martin so it was very important to write about. They were key in maintaining the Slovak national identity alive during harsh times of Magyarization. Many of the historical documents of Slovakia can be found through the Matica. If you would like to learn more, go to http://www.matica.sk/.  

            Oficiálne stránky mesta Martin

 

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