History

Recent History

On 1 January 1993, Bratislava once again became the capital of Slovakia. Since then, the city centre has been extensively renovated, with the re-cobbling of old town streets and the repainting of historical facades.

Bratislava is a youthful city, bursting with big ideas and fresh optimism. Bars and restaurants are popping up across town and the city plays host to most of the country's best museums and galleries. In fact, for travellers tired of ogling the sights of Budapest and Prague, down-to-earth Bratislava, roughly halfway between the two and largely devoid of tourists, offers an ideal - and cheapish - reality check.

Modern Day History

After WWI and the collapse of the Austro-Hungarian empire, the Slovaks threw in their lot with the Czechs. On 1 January 1919 the city, now with its Slovak name Bratislava, became part of the new Czechoslovakia.

Bratislava's dress-rehearsal as capital came in 1939 when Slovakia was declared a puppet state after Germany invaded Czechoslovakia. The August 1944 Slovak National Uprising (Slovenské národné povstanie or SNP) overthrew this state, but was itself crushed by the Nazis.

With the arrival of the communists, Bratislava was ruthlessly modernised. In 1972, Slovak communist officials cut the ribbon on their pride and joy, the New Bridge (Nový most) and overpass, which had been built over the bulldozed remains of the city's old Jewish quarter. The following year, the vast tower blocks of Petržalka were begun.

Pre 20th Century History

It's hard to believe that Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, hasn't been very 'Slovak' for long. Officially, it only came into existence in 1919; for 700 years preceding that it was known as Pressburg.

The site of Bratislava has been inhabited, more or less, for the past 4000 years. The Celts gave the town a kick start in the 1st century BC by building a large settlement on the site of Bratislava Castle. The Romans enjoyed a period of occupation before leaving the area for good in 378, at which time the Slavs moved in. A 5th-century Slav fort - called Brezalauspurc - grew into an important citadel of the Great Moravian Empire. With the empire's defeat in 906 by the Magyars, this became an administrative centre of the growing Hungarian kingdom.

By the 14th century the settlement had become a busy commercial centre at the intersection of several major trade routes, and in 1465 King Matthias Corvinus founded the first Hungarian (and Slovak) university here.

Then came the Turks. At the Battle of Mohács in 1526 they defeated the Hungarian forces and began their slow march across the plains, finally taking Buda. The Hungarian capital was hurriedly moved to Pressburg in 1536, and the town's heyday began. Wealthy burghers and Viennese aristocrats built grand palaces, many of them still standing. Musical life flourished; frequent visitors included Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven and, later, Liszt.

But with the defeat of the Turks by the Habsburgs, most government functions moved back to Buda and Pressburg fell on hard times. It wasn't all doom and gloom though; many factories sprung up in the 18th century, which helped keep the city's economy afloat - until the Napoleonic Wars, when French troops took the city in 1805.

Slovak national awareness began to grow in the 19th century; one of its leading figures, Ļudovít Štúr, lived and published in the city. In 1848 Ferdinand V signed his name to one of Štúr's demands: the abolition of serfdom. This was short-lived however, as the 1867 amalgamation of the Austrian (Habsburg) and Hungarian crowns brought a policy of 'Hungarisation' across the whole of Slovakia, which made life miserable once more.