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Zólyom
Zvolen
Zólyom
Hungarian:
Zólyom
Slovak:
Zvolen
German:
Altsohl
Latin:
Vetusolium, Veterosolium, Solium
Historical Hungarian county:
Zólyom
Country:
Slovakia
District:
Banskobystrický kraj
River:
Garam, Szalatna Brook
Altitude:
293 m
GPS coordinates:
48.576672, 19.125539
Google map:
Population
Population:
43k
Hungarian:
0.36%
Population in 1910
| Total | 8799 |
|---|---|
| Hungarian | 56.52% |
| German | 2.38% |
| Slovak | 40.67% |
Pusztavár Castle, which was built on a hill southwest of the town in the 11th century, was the seat of Zólyom County. It originally covered a huge area stretching to the Polish border. It was the private hunting ground of the Hungarian kings of the House of Árpád, and its scarce population served as foresters and rangers. In 1338, as the population was growing, King Charles I of Hungary divided Zólyom County into four counties, which were Zólyom, Liptó, Turóc and Árva. His son, King Louis I, often referred to as Louis the Great or the Knight King, built a hunting castle in Zólyom, because he could reach both his kingdoms, Hungary and Poland, easily from here. Pusztavár Castle was destroyed under unknown circumstances in the second half of the 15th century, and the hunting castle had no real defense value and did not play a serious military role. Balassa Bálint, a Hungarian Renaissance poet, was born here, who fought heroically against the Turks. The statue of Kossuth Lajos, the political leader of the Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence, was removed after the Czechoslovak occupation in 1919. It was found hidden in a farm building in 1943, and later re-erected in Borsi. The town lost its Hungarian population during the persecutions of the 20th century.
Check out other towns in Upper Hungary (Slovakia) as well!
History
Sights
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895
Arrival of the Hungarians
Little more...
895
The alliance of the seven Hungarian tribes took possession of the then largely uninhabited Carpathian Basin. Until then, the sparse Slavic population of the north-western Carpathians had lived under Moravian rule for a few decades after the collapse of the Avar Khaganate in the early 9th century.
1000
Foundation of the Hungarian Kingdom
Little more...
1000
The Kingdom of Hungary was established with the coronation of King Stephen I. He converted the Hungarians to Christianity and created two archdioceses (Esztergom and Kalocsa) and ten dioceses. He divided Hungary into counties led by ispáns, who were appointed by the king.
11th century
The castle of Pusztavár was constructed southwest of the town. The settlement was the seat of Zólyom County until 1776.
June 29, 1095
According to a legend the Hungarian king Saint László (László I) died here.
1222
The Forest County of Zólyom was mentioned for the first time. The title ispán was worn by the Zólyomi clan, who were the ancestors of the Balassa noble family. The Forest County of Zólyom was the private hunting ground of the Hungarian kings of the House of Árpád. It was a huge and scarcely populated area, and its inhabitants served as foresters and rangers.
1230s
King Béla IV of Hungary granted Zólyom town status.
1241-1242
Mongol Invasion
Little more...
1241-1242
The hordes of the Mongol Empire invaded Hungary and almost completely destroyed it. One third to one half of the population was destroyed. The Mongols also suffered heavy losses in the battle of Muhi and they could not hunt down the king. After their withdrawal, King Béla IV reorganized Hungary. He allowed the feudal lords to build stone castles because they were able to successfully resist the nomadic Mongols. The vast majority of stone castles were built after this. The king called in German, Vlach (Romanian) and Slavic settlers to replace the destroyed population.
1301
The extinction of the House of Árpád
Little more...
1301
The House of Árpád, the first Hungarian royal dynasty, died out with the death of King Andrew III. Hungary was ruled by oligarchs, the most powerful of whom was Csák Máté, whose main ally was the Aba family. King Charles I (1308-1342), supported by the Pope, eventually emerged as the most prominent of the contenders for the Hungarian throne. But it took decades to break the power of the oligarchs.
1306
The oligarch Csák Máté occupied Zólyom from Zólyomi Demeter and Master Dancs.
1314
Master Dancs, who was forced to serve the oligarch Csák Máté, thought it was time to side with King Charles I of Hungary and he liberated the territory of the Forest County of Zólyom.
1321
Csák Máté died, and all his lands were taken over by the king. Master Dancs was appointed ispán of Zólyom.
1338
King Charles I removed Master Dancs from the leadership of the Forest County of Zólyom and divided its land into four counties: Zólyom, Liptó, Turóc and Árva.
1364
King Louis I of Hungary (Louis the Great) ordered the construction of a hunting castle in Zólyom, from where he could reach both his kingdoms, Hungary and Poland.
1379
King Louis I of Hungary and Wenceslaus IV, King of Bohemia and of Germany met in the newly built castle of Zólyom. The marriage of Mary, Louis's daughter and Sigismund, Marquis of Brandenburg (brother of Wenceslaus IV) was confirmed.
1382
King Louis I called the Estates of Poland together here shortly before his death.
1424
King Sigismund of Hungary gave Zólyom to his wife, Cillei Borbála.
December 5, 1437
King Sigismund arrested his wife in Znaim (Moravia) and brought her to Pozsony, because the queen disagreed with the succession of Albert of Habsburg, Duke of Austria on the Hungarian throne.
1438
The queen, Cillei Borbála was released from custody after she resigned from all her lands.
1437-1439
King Albert of Hungary gave it to his wife, Elisabeth.
1440
After the death of King Albert of the House of Habsburg, the Estates of Hungary elected the Polish Ulászló to the throne. Elisabeth, the widow queen, in order to secure the throne for László, her baby boy, called in the Czech Hussite mercenary leader Jan Jiskra. She gave him the title "Captain of the Mining Towns and Kassa", and gave him the castle of Zólyom.
1440-1441
The Czech Hussites soon occupied much of northern Hungary. They reinforced the castles and turned them into bandit lairs. They were pillaging everywhere and large areas became uninhabited. They wiped out the local German and Hungarian population, who were replaced by Czech and other Slavic settlers. The Czech Hussite devastation largely contributed to the Slavicisation of northern Hungary (now Slovakia).
late 1451
Hunyadi János launched a campaign against Jiskra, who controlled the northern part of Hungary. But Jiskra didn't dare to risk an open battle, he withdrew his forces into his castles instead. Hunyadi burned Zólyom, which was one of Jiskra's main hideout and raised a new castle in front of it on the Strázsa hill. Afterwards he was forced to end his campaign because the royal council, which was full of his enemies, decided to make peace with Jiskra. Jiskra obliged to abide by the laws of Hungary.
1462
At the end of the war that King Matthias of Hungary had waged against the Hussites since 1458, Jiskra swore loyalty to the king and handed over the castles he still held. Afterwards Jiskra fought in the service of King Matthias until his death.
second half of the 15th century
Castle Pusztavár was destroyed among unknown circumstances.
early 16th century
The outer walls of the castle were raised by the Thurzó family.
1526
Battle of Mohács and the splitting of Hungary into two parts
Little more...
1526
Sultan Suleiman I launched a war against Vienna, instigated by the French. Ferdinand I, Duke of Austria, was the brother-in-law of King Louis II of Hungary. The army of the Ottoman Empire defeated the much smaller Hungarian army at Mohács, and King Louis II died in the battle. A group of the barons elected Ferdinand I of the House of Habsburg to the throne, who promised to defend Hungary from the Turks. He was the younger brother of the most powerful European monarch Emperor Charles V. But the nobility chose the most powerful Hungarian baron, Szapolyai János, who was also crowned as King John I. The country was split in two and a decades-long struggle for power began.
around 1526
The Balassa family acquired the castle.
1541
The Turkish occupation of the capital, Buda, and the division of Hungary into three parts
Little more...
1541
The Turks conquered Buda, the capital of Hungary, after the death of King John I. The central part of the country was under Turkish rule for 150 years. The western and northern parts (including present-day Slovakia) formed the Kingdom of Hungary ruled by the Habsburg emperors. The eastern parts (now mainly under Romanian rule) were ruled by the successors of King John I of Hungary, who later established the Principality of Transylvania.
October 20, 1554
Balassa Bálint was born in the castle of Zólyom. He was the greatest Hungarian Renaissance poet of the era.
1570
The establishment of the Principality of Transylvania
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1570
John II (John Sigismund), the son of King John I of Hungary, renounced the title of King of Hungary in favor of King Maximilian of the House of Habsburg, and henceforth held the title of Prince. This formally created the Principality of Transylvania, which was the eastern half of Hungary not ruled by the Habsburgs and was also a vassal of the Ottoman Empire. John II died in 1571, after which the three nations of Transylvania (the Hungarian nobility, the Székelys and the Saxons) elected the prince.
1604-1606
Uprising of Bocskai István
Little more...
1604-1606
The alliance of the Habsburgs and the Principality of Transylvania was defeated by the Ottoman Empire in the Fifteen Years' War. The war devastated Transylvania, which was occupied by the Habsburg imperial army, and General Basta introduced a reign of terror. The nobility and the burghers were upset about the terror, the plundering mercenaries and the violent Counter-Reformation. Bocskai István decided to lead their uprising after the Habsburg emperor tried to confiscate his estates. Bocskai also rallied the hajdú warriors to his side. He was elected Prince of Transylvania and soon liberated the Kingdom of Hungary from the Habsburgs. In 1605 Bocskai István was crowned King of Hungary with the crown he received from the Turks.
April 1605
Bocskai István occupied Zólyom without a fight.
23 June 1606
Peace of Vienna
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23 June 1606
Bocski István made peace with Emperor Rudolf. Their agreement secured the constitutional rights of the Estates of Hungary, and the freedom of religion. The counties of Szatmár, Bereg and Ugocsa were annexed to the Principality of Transylvania. Bocskai died of illness in the same year, leaving to his successors the idea of unifying Hungary from Transylvania.
1619
The campaign of Prince Bethlen Gábor of Transylvania in the Thirty Years' War
Little more...
1619
At the beginning of the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648), Prince Bethlen Gábor of Transylvania went to war against the Habsburg emperor as an ally of the rebelling Czech-Moravian-Austrian estates. The whole Kingdom of Hungary joined him, only the Austrian defenders of Pozsony had to be put to the sword. With his allies, he laid siege to Vienna. However, he was forced to abandon the siege because the Habsburg-loyal Hungarian aristocrat Homonnai Drugeth György attacked his heartland with Polish mercenaries. On 25 August 1620, the Diet of Besztercebánya elected Bethlen Gábor King of Hungary as vassal of the Turks. He continued to fight after the defeat of the Czechs at White Mountain on 8 November 1620, but without real chance to achieve decisive victory, he decided to come to an agreement with Emperor Ferdinand II.
1619
Prince Bethlen Gábor of Transylvania occupied Zólyom peacefully. The Ispán of Zólyom was at that time the Habsburg-friendly Esterházy Miklós.
June 1621
Zólyom surrendered to the Imperials.
July 3, 1621
An army of Prince Bethlen Gábor of Transylvania under the command of Egry István met the Imperial army of Pálffy, which was blocking the pass of Garamberzence, west of Zólyom. Egry broke through the pass by defeating the twice as large Imperial army.
July 5, 1621
Zólyom and the seven mining towns surrendered to Prince Bethlen Gábor of Transylvania again.
31 December 1621
Peace of Nikolsburg
Little more...
31 December 1621
Prince Bethlen Gábor of Transylvania made peace with Emperor Ferdinand II. Their agreement secured the constitutional rights of the Estates of Hungary, and later it was supplemented with the freedom of religion. Bethlen renounced the title of King of Hungary in exchange for seven counties of the Upper Tisza region (Szabolcs, Szatmár, Bereg, Ugocsa, Zemplén, Borsod, Abaúj) for the rest of his life, other estates in Hungary as his private property and the imperial title of Duke of Oppeln and Ratibor (Opole and Racibórz), one of the Duchies of Silesia. Prince Bethlen went to war against the Habsburgs in 1623 and 1626, but was unable to negotiate more favourable terms.
1644-1645
The campaign of Prince Rákóczi György I of Transylvania in the Thirty Years' War
Little more...
1644-1645
Prince Rákóczi György I of Transylvania allied with the Swedes and the French in the Thirty Years' War and went to war against the Habsburg Emperor Ferdinand III. On 18 July 1645 his army joined forces with Torstenson's Swedish army under Brno (Moravia). The excellent artillery of Transylvania opened fire on the city walls. However, Rákóczi had to give up the siege, having been informed that the Turks were planning a punitive campaign against Transylvania, because he went to war against the Sultan's prohibition.
spring 1644
Zólyom surrendered to Prince Rákóczi György I of Transylvania for a short time.
16 December 1645
Peace of Linz
Little more...
16 December 1645
Prince Rákóczi György I of Transylvania made peace with Emperor Ferdinand III. It secured the freedom of religion for the Protestants and extended it also to the serfs. Rákóczi received the same seven Hungarian counties that Prince Bethlen Gábor had also held (Abauj, Zemplén, Borsod, Bereg, Ugocsa, Szabolcs, Szatmár) until his death, and the counties of Szabolcs and Szatmár were also to be inherited by his sons. The Rákóczi family also received several new estates.
after 1671
Kuruc Movement
Little more...
after 1671
Many noble, burgher and preacher fled to the Principality of Transylvania and the territory under Turkish occupation from the reprisals after the exposure of the anti-Habsburg Wesselényi-conspiracy and from the violent Counter-Reformation. They were joined by dismissed Hungarian soldiers of the Turkish border forts, who were replaced by German mercenaries. They were called the fugitives (bujdosók). They started an armed movement against the Habsburg rule. Because of the Turkish ban, the Principality of Transylvania could not openly support them. From 1677, the French supported their cause with money and Polish mercenaries. They achieved their first serious success when they temporarily occupied the mining towns of northern Hungary (now central Slovakia) under the command of Thököly lmre. He then became the sole leader of the movement. In 1679, the French made peace with Emperor Leopold I and withdrew their support for the fugitives. Between 1678 and 1681 Thököly Imre led successful raids against the Habsburgs and their supporters in the territory of the Kingdom of Hungary. The insurgents were called kurucs.
October 3, 1678
The kuruc army of Thököly Imre and the army of Boham united at Zólyom. They took the town of Zólyom by siege and the castle surrendered. But after the defeat at Barsszentkereszt on the 1st of November they had to retreat.
1682
Thököly Imre, Prince of Upper Hungary
Little more...
1682
Thököly Imre, the leader of the kuruc insurgents, gained the support of the Turks. He launched a campaign against the Habsburgs in the Kingdom of Hungary. With the support of the Turkish army, he occupied the town of Kassa and also the important stronghold of Fülek. He was then recognized by the Turks as King of Hungary, but he chose the title of Prince of Upper Hungary.
September 1682
After the united armies of Thököly Imre kuruc leader and the Turks captured Fülek, the Imperial army of Caprara, consisting of mainly fresh recruits, retreated to Trencsén. Thököly occupied Zólyom and sent Görgey Boldizsár to capture the mining towns. They returned with rich booty.
1683
Turkish defeat at Vienna and the formation of the Holy League
Little more...
1683
The combined armies of the Habsburg Empire and the Kingdom of Poland defeated the Turkish army besieging Vienna. Emperor Leopold I wanted to make peace with the Turks, but was refused by Sultan Mehmed IV. In 1684, at the persistent urging of Pope Innocent XI, the Holy League, an alliance of the Kingdom of Poland, the Habsburg Empire, the Republic of Venice and the Papal States, was formed to expel the Turks from Hungary. Thököly Imre, who had allied himself with the Turks, was gradually driven out of northern Hungary.
autumn 1683
Zólyom was again in Imperial hands.
1685
The Turkish captivity of Thököly Imre and the fall of the kuruc movement
Little more...
1685
The Pasha of Várad captured Thököly Imre as he was asking for Turkish help and offered him to Emperor Leopold I for peace. But the Imperial emissaries laughed at his face, because, having the upper hand, they no longer cared for Thököly. On the news of his capture, the town of Kassa and the kuruc strongholds surrendered to the Emperor one after the other. The Turks, seeing their fatal mistake, released Thököly the following year and tried to restore his authority, but his power was broken forever and the Hungarian insurgents no longer trusted the Turks. Most of the insurgents joined the imperial army and helped to liberate the rest of Hungary from the Turks.
1686
Recapture of Buda and the liberation of Hungary from the Turks
Little more...
1686
The army of the Holy League recaptured Buda from the Turks by siege. In 1687, the Imperial army invaded the Principality of Transylvania. The liberation was hindered by the French breaking their promise of peace in 1688 and attacking the Habsburg Empire. By 1699, when the Peace of Karlóca was signed, all of Hungary and Croatia had been liberated from the Ottoman Empire with the exception of Temesköz, the area bounded by the Maros, the Tisza and the Danube rivers. It was not until the Peace of Požarevac in 1718 that Temesköz was liberated from the Turks. However, the continuous war against the Turkish invaders and the Habsburg autocracy, which lasted for more than 150 years, wiped out large areas of the Hungarian population, which had previously made up 80% of the country's population, and was replaced by Vlachs (Romanians), Serbs and other Slavic settlers and Germans. The Habsburgs also favoured the settlement of these foreign peoples over the 'rebellious' Hungarians.
1701
The castle survived the decree of Emperor Leopold I, which ordered the destruction of many Hungarian castles, because it was the center of the Habsburg-friendly Ispán of Zólyom, Csáky László.
1703-1711
Hungarian War of Independence led by Prince Rákóczi Ferenc II
Little more...
1703-1711
After the expulsion of the Turks, the Habsburgs treated Hungary as a newly conquered province and did not respect its constitution. The serfs rose up against the Habsburg ruler because of the sufferings caused by the war and the heavy burdens, and they invited Rákóczi Ferenc II to lead them. Trusting in the help promised by King Louis XIV of France, he accepted. Rákóczi rallied the nobility to his side, and soon most of the country was under his control. The rebels were called the kurucs. In 1704, the French and the Bavarians were defeated at the Battle of Blenheim, depriving the Hungarians of their international allies. The Rusyn, Slovak and Vlach peasants and the Saxons of Szepes supported the fight for freedom, while the Serbs in the south and the Saxons in Transylvania served the Habsburgs. Due to lack of funds Rákóczi could not raise a strong regular army, and in 1710, Hungary was also hit by a severe plague. Rákóczi tried unsuccessfully to forge an alliance with Tsar Peter the Great of Russia. In his absence, without his knowledge, his commander-in-chief, Károlyi Sándor, accepted Emperor Joseph I's peace offer. The Peace of Szatmár formally restored the Hungarian constitution and religious freedom and granted amnesty, but did not ease the burden of serfdom. Rákóczi refused to accept the pardon and went into exile. He died in Rodosto, Turkey.
September, 1703
The cavalry of Ocskay László and Borbély Balázs kuruc captains captured Zólyom without any resistance, but they were beaten by the mercenaries of Schlick in October.
November 15, 1703
The kuruc army of Bercsényi Miklós routed the Imperial army of Forgách Simon and captured the town.
December 7, 1703
Bottyán János gave up the castle to the kuruc forces in exchange for free retreat.
August 1708
After the lost battle at Trencsén, the kuruc insurgents abandoned Zólyom and the mining towns.
1802
The Royal Council purchased the castle from the Eszterházy family who owned it for a long time. State offices worked in the building.
1848-1849
Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence
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1848-1849
Following the news of the Paris Revolution on 22 February 1848, the Hungarian liberal opposition led by Kossuth Lajos demanded the abolition of serfdom, the abolition of the tax exemption of the nobility, a parliament elected by the people, and an independent and accountable national government. The revolution that broke out in Pest on 15 March expressed its demands in 12 points, which, in addition to the above mentioned, included the freedom of the press, equality before the law, the release of the political prisoners and the union with Transylvania. A Hungarian government was formed, Batthyány Lajos became prime minister, and on 11 April Emperor Ferdinand V ratified the reform laws. On August 31 the Emperor demanded the repeal of the laws threatening with military intervention. In September the Emperor unleashed the army of Jelacic, Ban of Croatia, on Hungary, but they were defeated by the Hungarians in the Battle of Pákozd on 29 September. An open war began for the independence of Hungary. The Habsburgs incited the nationalities against the Hungarians. The Rusyns, the Slovenes and most of the Slovaks and Germans supported the cause persistently, but the Vlachs (Romanians) and the Serbians turned against the Hungarians. The glorious Spring Campaign in 1849 led by General Görgei Artúr liberated almost all of Hungary. On 1 May 1849, Emperor Franz Joseph, effectively admitting defeat, asked for the help of Tsar Nicholas I of Russia, who sent an intervention army of 200,000 soldiers against Hungary. The resistance became hopeless against the overwhelming enemy forces and on 13 August Görgei Artúr surrendered to the Russians at Világos. Bloody reprisals followed, and on 6 October 1849, 12 generals and a colonel of the Hungarian Revolution, the martyrs of Arad, were executed in Arad. On the same day, Batthyány Lajos, the first Hungarian Prime Minister, was executed by firing squad in Pest. The Habsburgs introduced total authoritarianism in Hungary, but they also failed to fulfil their promises to the nationalities that had betrayed the Hungarians.
1867
Austro-Hungarian Compromise
Little more...
1867
The Habsburg Empire was weakened by the defeats it suffered in the implementation of Italian and German unity. The Hungarians wanted to return to the reform laws of 1848, but they did not have the strength to do so. Emperor Franz Joseph and the Hungarian opposition, led by Deák Ferenc, finally agreed to restructure the Empire and abolish absolutism. Hungary was given autonomy in its internal affairs, with its own government and parliament, which was essential for the development of its economy and culture. However, foreign and military affairs remained in the hands of the Habsburgs and served their aspiration for becoming a great power. The majority wanted Hungary's independence, but they were excluded from political power.
1871-72
The town got railway connection on the Fülek - Losonc - Zólyom - Ruttka line. Zólyom became an important railway node.
1914-1918
World War I
Little more...
1914-1918
As part of the Austro-Hungarian Monarchy, Hungary took part in the war on the side of the Central Powers.
November 1918 - January 1919
The Czech, Romanian and Serbian occupation of Hungary
Little more...
November 1918 - January 1919
In Hungary, the freemasonic subversion brought the pro-Entente Károlyi Mihály to power. The new government, naively trusting the Entente powers, met all their demands and disbanded the Hungarian military, which rendered the country completely defenseless in the most dire need. Under French and Italian command, Czech, Romanian and Serbian troops invaded large parts of Hungary, where they immediately began the takeover. They fired Hungarian railway workers, officials and teachers, banned the use of the Hungarian language, abolished Hungarian education, and disposed of everything that reminded them of the country's Hungarian past. Hundreds of thousands of Hungarians were forced to leave their homeland, and the forcible assimilation of the remaining Hungarians was begun.
January 3, 1919
The Czechoslovaks invaded Zólyom.
21 March - 1 August 1919
Communist takeover and the Northern Campaign
Little more...
21 March - 1 August 1919
After the Entente put vast areas with a Hungarian population under foreign administration, the pro-Entente government resigned and the traitorous Prime Minister Károlyi Mihály handed over power to the communists, who had little support anyway. They raised the Hungarian Red Army, which liberated large parts of northern Hungary from Czech occupation in the 'Northern Campaign'. The aim was to unite with the Russian Red Army, which ultimately failed because of the Russians' defeat. French Prime Minister Clemenceau promised the Jewish Kun Béla that he would recognise the Hungarian Soviet Republic and invite it to the peace conference if it would call back the army from northern Hungary. Calling back the army demoralized the soldiers, who fought for their homeland and not for communism. Clemenceau broke his promise and let the Romanian horde cross the Tisza River and capture Budapest.
June 7, 1919
The army of the Hungarian Soviet Republic liberated Zólyom from the Czechoslovak invaders.
4 June 1920
Trianon Dictate
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4 June 1920
Hungary was forced to sign the Treaty of Trianon, although the country was not invited to the peace talks. Hungary lost two thirds of its territory that had belonged to it for more than 1000 years. One-third of the Hungarian population came under foreign rule. On the basis of the national principle, countries with a more mixed and less ethnically balanced composition than the former Hungary were created, such as Czechoslovakia and the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Yugoslavia). For example, while 48% of the population of the territory ceded to Czechoslovakia was Slovak and 30% Hungarian, 54% of the population of the former Hungary was Hungarian and 10.6% Slovak. And in the territory that is now part of Serbia, the Hungarians outnumbered the Serbs. The part of the territory allocated to Romania from Hungary was larger than the remaining territory of Hungary, despite the fact that there were 10 million Hungarians and less than 3 million Romanians in the former Hungary. While Hungary used to have the most liberal nationality policy in Europe, the successor states had no respect at all for the national and cultural rights of the indigenous Hungarians and engaged in forced assimilation. The Trianon Dictate destroyed the organic economic unity of the region. Before the First World War, Hungary had a dynamic economy, more advanced than Spain's. After 1920, the successor states formed the so-called "Little Entente", putting Hungary under an economic blockade and sabotaging it on the international stage.
14 March 1939
First independent Slovakia was established
Little more...
14 March 1939
The first independent Slovakia was established under German patronage. Josef Tiso became president of the country. In 1938, Hungary regained 11,927 km2 of territory from Czechoslovakia under the First Vienna Award. Its population was 869 thousand people, 86.5% of whom were Hungarian. From the remaining territory that Hungary did not get back, Slovakia was formed.
Autumn 1944 - Spring 1945
Soviet occupation
Little more...
Autumn 1944 - Spring 1945
The Soviet Red Army occupied Hungary and Slovakia, which resulted in the recreation of Czechoslovakia.
June 7, 1919
The army of the Hungarian Soviet Republic took the town back.
March 14, 1945
The Soviets invaded Zólyom.
5 April 1945
Beneš decrees and the persecution of Hungarians
Little more...
5 April 1945
In Hungarian-majority Kassa, the president of occupying Czechoslovakia, Edvard Beneš, promulgated his government program, the so-called Beneš decrees. As part of this, the Hungarian population was deprived of their rights. Their complete expulsion was planned, with the support of the Soviet Union, and only the veto of the USA prevented it. Under the 'Reslavakization' programme, only those Hungarians who recognised themselves as Slovaks were allowed to regain their rights, thus renouncing all linguistic and cultural rights. In the violent expulsions that followed, nearly 200,000 Hungarians were deprived of their property and expelled from their homeland on the basis of their nationality.
1960s
The renovation of the castle started.
1 January 1993
Dissolution of Czechoslovakia
Little more...
1 January 1993
Czechoslovakia disintegrated due to ethnic differences between Czechs and Slovaks, shortly after the withdrawal of Soviet tanks. Slovakia was formed entirely from territory carved out of historic Hungary, and Slovak national identity is still largely based on falsified history and artificial hatred of Hungarians. Despite deportations, expulsions, forced assimilation and strong economic pressure, there are still nearly half a million Hungarians living in the country.
Castles
Sights
All
Churches, religious buildings
Public buildings
Private buildings
Memorials
Museums and Galleries
Churches, religious buildings
St. Elisabeth of Hungary Roman Catholic Church
Kostol svätej Alžbety
Originally:
church
Currently:
church
Church:
Roman Catholic
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St. Elisabeth of Hungary Roman Catholic Church
History
The church was built between 1381 and 1390 in Gothic style. (According to the homepage of the parish, the church was built between 1243 and 1250 in late Romanesque, early Gothic style.) The church was later reconstructed in Renaissance style. It has a Baroque tower. In 1650 a chapel was built to its southern side, which has a Rococo altar of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows from the second half of the 18th century.
Public buildings
Town Hall
History
The town hall was built in the 17th century.
Private buildings
Urbányi-Fink Mansion
Finkova kúria
Originally:
mansion / manor house
Currently:
restaurant / confectionery / café
Note:
Tea house.
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Urbányi-Fink Mansion
History
The mansion was built in the 17th century and was modified in the second half of the 18th century. It has a late Baroque facade, which is adorned by the coat of arms of its original owners, Urbányi András and his wife Countess Esterházy Mária. The mansion was owned by the Fink family until 1948. Fink Elemér established an ornithological garden behind the mansion in 1924. It had more than 2000 different species of birds.
Museum of Forestry
History
Memorials
former Statue of Rákóczi Ferenc II
._Fortepan_86644.jpg)
FOTO:FORTEPAN / Magyar Földrajzi Múzeum / Erdélyi Mór cége / Public domain
Originally:
statue / memorial / relief
Currently:
statue / memorial / relief
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former Statue of Rákóczi Ferenc II
History
Rákóczi Ferenc II was the leader of the Hungarian War of Independence between 1703 and 1711.
The statue was unveiled on June 2, 1907. It is the artwork of Mayer Ede. The statue was erected at the initiative of the National Association of Engine Drivers. It was inspired by the countywide joy experienced by the engine drivers in 1906, when the remains of Prince Rákóczi Ferenc II were transported home from Turkey, where the Prince died in exile.
At the end of World War I the Czechoslovak invaders removed this statue as well. The teacher Balassa Géza, who was entrusted with establishing a museum in Zólyom, found the statue in 1943 in a farm building in the courtyard of the town hall. It was wrapped in hay. One of the farmers of Zólyom hid the statue there from the Czechoslovaks.
The statue was reerected in the village of Borsi, where there is also a Rákóczi Castle, in 1969.
Plaque of Balassa Bálint
History
The plaque was placed in 1994 at the castle gate.
Balassa Bálint was a Hungarian Renaissance poet and warrior, who fought against the Turks.
Museums and Galleries
Museum of Forestry
History
Check out other towns in Upper Hungary (Slovakia) as well!
{"item":"town","set":{"mapcenter":{"lat":"48.5766720000","long":"19.1255390000"},"townlink":"zolyom-zvolen","town":{"townId":31,"active":1,"name_HU":"Z\u00f3lyom","name_LO":"Zvolen","name_GE":"Altsohl","name_LT":"Vetusolium; Veterosolium; Solium ","seolink":"zolyom-zvolen","listorder":15,"oldcounty":12,"country":2,"division":6,"altitude":"293","gps_lat":"48.5766720000","gps_long":"19.1255390000","population":43,"hungarian_2011":0.36,"population_1910":8799,"hungarian_1910":56.52,"german_1910":2.38,"slovak_1910":40.67,"romanian_1910":0,"rusin_1910":0,"serbian_1910":0,"croatian_1910":0,"slovenian_1910":0,"coatofarms":"","coatofarms_ref":"","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Mat\u00fa\u0161 Korb\u00e1\u0161 .ml \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:960_01_Zvolen,_Slovakia_-_panoramio.jpg\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022960 01 Zvolen, Slovakia - panoramio\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/d\/d7\/960_01_Zvolen%2C_Slovakia_-_panoramio.jpg\/512px-960_01_Zvolen%2C_Slovakia_-_panoramio.jpg\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:960_01_Zvolen,_Slovakia_-_panoramio.jpg\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EMat\u00fa\u0161 Korb\u00e1\u0161 .ml\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","georegion":"Garam Valley","river":"Garam, Szalatna Brook","description":"Pusztav\u00e1r Castle, which was built on a hill southwest of the town in the 11th century, was the seat of Z\u00f3lyom County. It originally covered a huge area stretching to the Polish border. It was the private hunting ground of the Hungarian kings of the House of \u00c1rp\u00e1d, and its scarce population served as foresters and rangers. In 1338, as the population was growing, King Charles I of Hungary divided Z\u00f3lyom County into four counties, which were Z\u00f3lyom, Lipt\u00f3, Tur\u00f3c and \u00c1rva. His son, King Louis I, often referred to as Louis the Great or the Knight King, built a hunting castle in Z\u00f3lyom, because he could reach both his kingdoms, Hungary and Poland, easily from here. Pusztav\u00e1r Castle was destroyed under unknown circumstances in the second half of the 15th century, and the hunting castle had no real defense value and did not play a serious military role. Balassa B\u00e1lint, a Hungarian Renaissance poet, was born here, who fought heroically against the Turks. The statue of Kossuth Lajos, the political leader of the Hungarian Revolution and War of Independence, was removed after the Czechoslovak occupation in 1919. It was found hidden in a farm building in 1943, and later re-erected in Borsi. The town lost its Hungarian population during the persecutions of the 20th century.","nameorigin":" s\u00f3lyom","history":"#1|@#3|@11th century|The castle of Pusztav\u00e1r was constructed southwest of the town. The settlement was the seat of Z\u00f3lyom County until 1776.@June 29, 1095|According to a legend the Hungarian king Saint L\u00e1szl\u00f3 (L\u00e1szl\u00f3 I) died here.@1222|The Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom was mentioned for the first time. The title isp\u00e1n was worn by the Z\u00f3lyomi clan, who were the ancestors of the Balassa noble family. The Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom was the private hunting ground of the Hungarian kings of the House of \u00c1rp\u00e1d. It was a huge and scarcely populated area, and its inhabitants served as foresters and rangers.@1230s|King B\u00e9la IV of Hungary granted Z\u00f3lyom town status.@#5|@#6|@1306|The oligarch Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9 occupied Z\u00f3lyom from Z\u00f3lyomi Demeter and Master Dancs.@1314|Master Dancs, who was forced to serve the oligarch Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9, thought it was time to side with King Charles I of Hungary and he liberated the territory of the Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom.@1321|Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9 died, and all his lands were taken over by the king. Master Dancs was appointed isp\u00e1n of Z\u00f3lyom.@1338|King Charles I removed Master Dancs from the leadership of the Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom and divided its land into four counties: Z\u00f3lyom, Lipt\u00f3, Tur\u00f3c and \u00c1rva.@1364|King Louis I of Hungary (Louis the Great) ordered the construction of a hunting castle in Z\u00f3lyom, from where he could reach both his kingdoms, Hungary and Poland.@1379|King Louis I of Hungary and Wenceslaus IV, King of Bohemia and of Germany met in the newly built castle of Z\u00f3lyom. The marriage of Mary, Louis's daughter and Sigismund, Marquis of Brandenburg (brother of Wenceslaus IV) was confirmed.@1382|King Louis I called the Estates of Poland together here shortly before his death.@1424|King Sigismund of Hungary gave Z\u00f3lyom to his wife, Cillei Borb\u00e1la.@December 5, 1437|King Sigismund arrested his wife in Znaim (Moravia) and brought her to Pozsony, because the queen disagreed with the succession of Albert of Habsburg, Duke of Austria on the Hungarian throne.@1438|The queen, Cillei Borb\u00e1la was released from custody after she resigned from all her lands.@1437-1439|King Albert of Hungary gave it to his wife, Elisabeth.@1440|After the death of King Albert of the House of Habsburg, the Estates of Hungary elected the Polish Ul\u00e1szl\u00f3 to the throne. Elisabeth, the widow queen, in order to secure the throne for L\u00e1szl\u00f3, her baby boy, called in the Czech Hussite mercenary leader Jan Jiskra. She gave him the title \u0022Captain of the Mining Towns and Kassa\u0022, and gave him the castle of Z\u00f3lyom.@1440-1441|The Czech Hussites soon occupied much of northern Hungary. They reinforced the castles and turned them into bandit lairs. They were pillaging everywhere and large areas became uninhabited. They wiped out the local German and Hungarian population, who were replaced by Czech and other Slavic settlers. The Czech Hussite devastation largely contributed to the Slavicisation of northern Hungary (now Slovakia).@late 1451|Hunyadi J\u00e1nos launched a campaign against Jiskra, who controlled the northern part of Hungary. But Jiskra didn't dare to risk an open battle, he withdrew his forces into his castles instead. Hunyadi burned Z\u00f3lyom, which was one of Jiskra's main hideout and raised a new castle in front of it on the Str\u00e1zsa hill. Afterwards he was forced to end his campaign because the royal council, which was full of his enemies, decided to make peace with Jiskra. Jiskra obliged to abide by the laws of Hungary.@1462|At the end of the war that King Matthias of Hungary had waged against the Hussites since 1458, Jiskra swore loyalty to the king and handed over the castles he still held. Afterwards Jiskra fought in the service of King Matthias until his death.@second half of the 15th century|Castle Pusztav\u00e1r was destroyed among unknown circumstances.@early 16th century|The outer walls of the castle were raised by the Thurz\u00f3 family.@#8|@around 1526|The Balassa family acquired the castle.@#9|@October 20, 1554|Balassa B\u00e1lint was born in the castle of Z\u00f3lyom. He was the greatest Hungarian Renaissance poet of the era.@#10|@#13|@April 1605|Bocskai Istv\u00e1n occupied Z\u00f3lyom without a fight.@#14|@#15|@1619|Prince Bethlen G\u00e1bor of Transylvania occupied Z\u00f3lyom peacefully. The Isp\u00e1n of Z\u00f3lyom was at that time the Habsburg-friendly Esterh\u00e1zy Mikl\u00f3s.@June 1621|Z\u00f3lyom surrendered to the Imperials.@July 3, 1621|An army of Prince Bethlen G\u00e1bor of Transylvania under the command of Egry Istv\u00e1n met the Imperial army of P\u00e1lffy, which was blocking the pass of Garamberzence, west of Z\u00f3lyom. Egry broke through the pass by defeating the twice as large Imperial army.@July 5, 1621|Z\u00f3lyom and the seven mining towns surrendered to Prince Bethlen G\u00e1bor of Transylvania again.@#16|@#17|@spring 1644|Z\u00f3lyom surrendered to Prince R\u00e1k\u00f3czi Gy\u00f6rgy I of Transylvania for a short time.@#18|@#21|@October 3, 1678|The kuruc army of Th\u00f6k\u00f6ly Imre and the army of Boham united at Z\u00f3lyom. They took the town of Z\u00f3lyom by siege and the castle surrendered. But after the defeat at Barsszentkereszt on the 1st of November they had to retreat.@#22|@September 1682|After the united armies of Th\u00f6k\u00f6ly Imre kuruc leader and the Turks captured F\u00fclek, the Imperial army of Caprara, consisting of mainly fresh recruits, retreated to Trencs\u00e9n. Th\u00f6k\u00f6ly occupied Z\u00f3lyom and sent G\u00f6rgey Boldizs\u00e1r to capture the mining towns. They returned with rich booty.@#23|@autumn 1683|Z\u00f3lyom was again in Imperial hands.@#24|@#25|@1701|The castle survived the decree of Emperor Leopold I, which ordered the destruction of many Hungarian castles, because it was the center of the Habsburg-friendly Isp\u00e1n of Z\u00f3lyom, Cs\u00e1ky L\u00e1szl\u00f3.@#27|@September, 1703|The cavalry of Ocskay L\u00e1szl\u00f3 and Borb\u00e9ly Bal\u00e1zs kuruc captains captured Z\u00f3lyom without any resistance, but they were beaten by the mercenaries of Schlick in October.@November 15, 1703|The kuruc army of Bercs\u00e9nyi Mikl\u00f3s routed the Imperial army of Forg\u00e1ch Simon and captured the town.@December 7, 1703|Botty\u00e1n J\u00e1nos gave up the castle to the kuruc forces in exchange for free retreat.@August 1708|After the lost battle at Trencs\u00e9n, the kuruc insurgents abandoned Z\u00f3lyom and the mining towns.@1802|The Royal Council purchased the castle from the Eszterh\u00e1zy family who owned it for a long time. State offices worked in the building.@#28|@#30|@1871-72|The town got railway connection on the F\u00fclek - Losonc - Z\u00f3lyom - Ruttka line. Z\u00f3lyom became an important railway node.@#31|@#32|@January 3, 1919|The Czechoslovaks invaded Z\u00f3lyom.@#34|@June 7, 1919|The army of the Hungarian Soviet Republic liberated Z\u00f3lyom from the Czechoslovak invaders.@#36|@#38|@#41|@June 7, 1919|The army of the Hungarian Soviet Republic took the town back.@March 14, 1945|The Soviets invaded Z\u00f3lyom.@#42|@1960s|The renovation of the castle started.@#44|&varak.hu|https:\/\/varak.hu\/latnivalo\/index\/2317-Zolyom-var\/\nvarak.hu|https:\/\/varak.hu\/latnivalo\/index\/2318-Zolyom-Pusztavar\/"},"castles":[{"castleId":46,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"Pust\u00fd hrad","settlement_HU":"Z\u00f3lyom","settlement_LO":"Zvolen","address":"","listorder":27,"gps_lat":"48.5553110000","gps_long":"19.1080360000","oldcounty":12,"country":2,"division":6,"cond":5,"entrance":2,"varaklink":"https:\/\/varak.hu\/latnivalo\/index\/2318-Zolyom-Pusztavar\/","homepage":"http:\/\/pustyhrad.com\/","openinghours":"","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Igor Viszlai \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Pust%C3%BD_hrad.png\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022Pust\u00fd hrad\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/2\/2e\/Pust%C3%BD_hrad.png\/512px-Pust%C3%BD_hrad.png\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Pust%C3%BD_hrad.png\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EIgor Viszlai\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","name":"Z\u00f3lyom Pusztav\u00e1r ","seolink":"zolyom-pusztavar-castle-pusty-hrad","georegion":"J\u00e1voros","description":"","nameorigin":"","history":"#1|@#3|@late 11th century|The castle was raised above the main road leading towards Krakow. It was the seat of Z\u00f3lyom County.@June 29, 1095|Saint L\u00e1szl\u00f3 (King L\u00e1szl\u00f3 I of Hungary) died here according to a legend.@1222|The Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom was mentioned for the first time. The title isp\u00e1n was worn by the Z\u00f3lyomi clan, who were the ancestors of the Balassa noble family. The Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom was the private hunting ground of the Hungarian kings of the House of \u00c1rp\u00e1d. It was a huge and scarcely populated area, and its inhabitants served as foresters and rangers.@#5|@#6|@1306|The oligarch Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9 occupied Z\u00f3lyom from Z\u00f3lyomi Demeter and Master Dancs.@1314|Master Dancs, who was forced to serve the oligarch Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9, thought it was time to side with King Charles I of Hungary and he liberated the territory of the Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom.@1321|Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9 died, and all his lands were taken over by the king. Master Dancs was appointed isp\u00e1n of Z\u00f3lyom.@1338|King Charles I removed Master Dancs from the leadership of the Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom and divided its land into four counties: Z\u00f3lyom, Lipt\u00f3, Tur\u00f3c and \u00c1rva.@1364|King Louis I of Hungary (Louis the Great) ordered the construction of a hunting castle in Z\u00f3lyom, from where he could reach both his kingdoms, Hungary and Poland. Pusztav\u00e1r gradually lost its importance.@1440|After the death of King Albert of the House of Habsburg, the Estates of Hungary elected the Polish Ul\u00e1szl\u00f3 to the throne. Elisabeth, the widow queen, in order to secure the throne for L\u00e1szl\u00f3, her baby boy, called in the Czech Hussite mercenary leader Jan Jiskra. She gave him the title \u0022Captain of the Mining Towns and Kassa\u0022, and gave him the castle of Z\u00f3lyom.@1440-1441|The Czech Hussites soon occupied much of northern Hungary. They reinforced the castles and turned them into bandit lairs. They were pillaging everywhere and large areas became uninhabited. They wiped out the local German and Hungarian population, who were replaced by Czech and other Slavic settlers. The Czech Hussite devastation largely contributed to the Slavicisation of northern Hungary (now Slovakia).@1450s|Jiskra occupied the castle.@1462|At the end of the war that King Matthias of Hungary had waged against the Hussites since 1458, Jiskra swore loyalty to the king and handed over the castles he still held. Afterwards Jiskra fought in the service of King Matthias until his death.@second half of the 15th century|The castle was destroyed among unknown circumstances.&"},{"castleId":74,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"Zvolensk\u00fd z\u00e1mok","settlement_HU":"Z\u00f3lyom","settlement_LO":"Zvolen","address":"N\u00e1mestie SNP 1, 960 01 Zvolen","listorder":2,"gps_lat":"48.5731170000","gps_long":"19.1272680000","oldcounty":12,"country":2,"division":6,"cond":1,"entrance":1,"varaklink":"https:\/\/varak.hu\/latnivalo\/index\/2317-Zolyom-var\/","homepage":"https:\/\/www.sng.sk\/en\/zvolen","openinghours":"https:\/\/www.sng.sk\/en\/zvolen\/visiting-us\/admission-and-opening-hours","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Thaler Tamas \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen1FotoThalerTamas.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022Zvolen1FotoThalerTamas\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/0\/06\/Zvolen1FotoThalerTamas.JPG\/512px-Zvolen1FotoThalerTamas.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen1FotoThalerTamas.JPG\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EThaler Tamas\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","name":"Z\u00f3lyom","seolink":"zolyom-castle-zvolensky-zamok","georegion":"Garam Valley","description":"","nameorigin":"","history":"#1|@#3|@11th century|The castle of Pusztav\u00e1r was constructed southwest of the town. The settlement was the seat of Z\u00f3lyom County until 1776.@June 29, 1095|According to a legend the Hungarian king Saint L\u00e1szl\u00f3 (L\u00e1szl\u00f3 I) died here.@1222|The Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom was mentioned for the first time. The title isp\u00e1n was worn by the Z\u00f3lyomi clan, who were the ancestors of the Balassa noble family. The Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom was the private hunting ground of the Hungarian kings of the House of \u00c1rp\u00e1d. It was a huge and scarcely populated area, and its inhabitants served as foresters and rangers.@#5|@#6|@1306|The oligarch Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9 occupied Z\u00f3lyom from Z\u00f3lyomi Demeter and Master Dancs.@1314|Master Dancs, who was forced to serve the oligarch Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9, thought it was time to side with King Charles I of Hungary and he liberated the territory of the Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom.@1321|Cs\u00e1k M\u00e1t\u00e9 died, and all his lands were taken over by the king. Master Dancs was appointed isp\u00e1n of Z\u00f3lyom.@1338|King Charles I removed Master Dancs from the leadership of the Forest County of Z\u00f3lyom and divided its land into four counties: Z\u00f3lyom, Lipt\u00f3, Tur\u00f3c and \u00c1rva.@1364|King Louis I of Hungary (Louis the Great) ordered the construction of a hunting castle in Z\u00f3lyom, from where he could reach both his kingdoms, Hungary and Poland.@1379|King Louis I of Hungary and Wenceslaus IV, King of Bohemia and of Germany met in the newly built castle of Z\u00f3lyom. The marriage of Mary, Louis's daughter and Sigismund, Marquis of Brandenburg (brother of Wenceslaus IV) was confirmed.@1382|King Louis I called the Estates of Poland together here shortly before his death.@1424|King Sigismund of Hungary gave Z\u00f3lyom to his wife, Cillei Borb\u00e1la.@December 5, 1437|King Sigismund arrested his wife in Znaim (Moravia) and brought her to Pozsony, because the queen disagreed with the succession of Albert of Habsburg, Duke of Austria on the Hungarian throne.@1438|The queen, Cillei Borb\u00e1la was released from custody after she resigned from all her lands.@1437-1439|King Albert of Hungary gave it to his wife, Elisabeth.@1440|After the death of King Albert of the House of Habsburg, the Estates of Hungary elected the Polish Ul\u00e1szl\u00f3 to the throne. Elisabeth, the widow queen, in order to secure the throne for L\u00e1szl\u00f3, her baby boy, called in the Czech Hussite mercenary leader Jan Jiskra. She gave him the title \u0022Captain of the Mining Towns and Kassa\u0022, and gave him the castle of Z\u00f3lyom.@1440-1441|The Czech Hussites soon occupied much of northern Hungary. They reinforced the castles and turned them into bandit lairs. They were pillaging everywhere and large areas became uninhabited. They wiped out the local German and Hungarian population, who were replaced by Czech and other Slavic settlers. The Czech Hussite devastation largely contributed to the Slavicisation of northern Hungary (now Slovakia).@late 1451|Hunyadi J\u00e1nos launched a campaign against Jiskra, who controlled the northern part of Hungary. But Jiskra didn't dare to risk an open battle, he withdrew his forces into his castles instead. Hunyadi burned Z\u00f3lyom, which was one of Jiskra's main hideout and raised a new castle in front of it on the Str\u00e1zsa hill. Afterwards he was forced to end his campaign because the royal council, which was full of his enemies, decided to make peace with Jiskra. Jiskra obliged to abide by the laws of Hungary.@1462|At the end of the war that King Matthias of Hungary had waged against the Hussites since 1458, Jiskra swore loyalty to the king and handed over the castles he still held. Afterwards Jiskra fought in the service of King Matthias until his death.@second half of the 15th century|Castle Pusztav\u00e1r was destroyed among unknown circumstances.@early 16th century|The outer walls of the castle were raised by the Thurz\u00f3 family.@#8|@around 1526|The Balassa family acquired the castle.@#9|@October 20, 1554|Balassa B\u00e1lint was born in the castle of Z\u00f3lyom. He was the greatest Hungarian Renaissance poet of the era.@#10|@#13|@April 1605|Bocskai Istv\u00e1n occupied Z\u00f3lyom without a fight.@#14|@#15|@1619|Prince Bethlen G\u00e1bor of Transylvania occupied Z\u00f3lyom peacefully. The Isp\u00e1n of Z\u00f3lyom was at that time the Habsburg-friendly Esterh\u00e1zy Mikl\u00f3s.@June 1621|Z\u00f3lyom surrendered to the Imperials.@July 3, 1621|An army of Prince Bethlen G\u00e1bor of Transylvania under the command of Egry Istv\u00e1n met the Imperial army of P\u00e1lffy, which was blocking the pass of Garamberzence, west of Z\u00f3lyom. Egry broke through the pass by defeating the twice as large Imperial army.@July 5, 1621|Z\u00f3lyom and the seven mining towns surrendered to Prince Bethlen G\u00e1bor of Transylvania again.@#16|@#17|@spring 1644|Z\u00f3lyom surrendered to Prince R\u00e1k\u00f3czi Gy\u00f6rgy I of Transylvania for a short time.@#18|@#21|@October 3, 1678|The kuruc army of Th\u00f6k\u00f6ly Imre and the army of Boham united at Z\u00f3lyom. They took the town of Z\u00f3lyom by siege and the castle surrendered. But after the defeat at Barsszentkereszt on the 1st of November they had to retreat.@#22|@September 1682|After the united armies of Th\u00f6k\u00f6ly Imre kuruc leader and the Turks captured F\u00fclek, the Imperial army of Caprara, consisting of mainly fresh recruits, retreated to Trencs\u00e9n. Th\u00f6k\u00f6ly occupied Z\u00f3lyom and sent G\u00f6rgey Boldizs\u00e1r to capture the mining towns. They returned with rich booty.@#23|@autumn 1683|Z\u00f3lyom was again in Imperial hands.@#24|@#25|@1701|The castle survived the decree of Emperor Leopold I, which ordered the destruction of many Hungarian castles, because it was the center of the Habsburg-friendly Isp\u00e1n of Z\u00f3lyom, Cs\u00e1ky L\u00e1szl\u00f3.@#27|@September, 1703|The cavalry of Ocskay L\u00e1szl\u00f3 and Borb\u00e9ly Bal\u00e1zs kuruc captains captured Z\u00f3lyom without any resistance, but they were beaten by the mercenaries of Schlick in October.@November 15, 1703|The kuruc army of Bercs\u00e9nyi Mikl\u00f3s put to rout the Imperial army of Forg\u00e1ch Simon and captured the town.@December 7, 1703|Botty\u00e1n J\u00e1nos gave up the castle to the kuruc forces in exchange for free retreat.@August 1708|After the lost battle at Trencs\u00e9n, the kuruc insurgents abandoned Z\u00f3lyom and the mining towns.@1802|The Royal Council purchased the castle from the Eszterh\u00e1zy family who owned it for a long time. State offices worked in the building.@#28|@#30|@#31|@#32|@#36|&"}],"sights":[{"sightId":603,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"","address":"","mapdata":"1|892|871","gps_lat":"48.5729830000","gps_long":"19.1274500000","religion":0,"oldtype":"39","newtype":"39","homepage":"","openinghours":"","muemlekemlink":"","csemadoklink":"http:\/\/emlekhelyek.csemadok.sk\/emlekhelyek\/balassi-balint-emlektabla-zolyomban\/\r","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Patrik Kunec \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Balassi_B%C3%A1lint_-_Valent%C3%ADn_Bala%C5%A1a_-_pam%C3%A4tn%C3%A1_tabu%C4%BEa_-_Zvolensk%C3%BD_z%C3%A1mok.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022Balassi B\u00e1lint - Valent\u00edn Bala\u0161a - pam\u00e4tn\u00e1 tabu\u013ea - Zvolensk\u00fd z\u00e1mok\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/8\/8b\/Balassi_B%C3%A1lint_-_Valent%C3%ADn_Bala%C5%A1a_-_pam%C3%A4tn%C3%A1_tabu%C4%BEa_-_Zvolensk%C3%BD_z%C3%A1mok.JPG\/512px-Balassi_B%C3%A1lint_-_Valent%C3%ADn_Bala%C5%A1a_-_pam%C3%A4tn%C3%A1_tabu%C4%BEa_-_Zvolensk%C3%BD_z%C3%A1mok.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Balassi_B%C3%A1lint_-_Valent%C3%ADn_Bala%C5%A1a_-_pam%C3%A4tn%C3%A1_tabu%C4%BEa_-_Zvolensk%C3%BD_z%C3%A1mok.JPG\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EPatrik Kunec\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","name":"Plaque of Balassa B\u00e1lint ","seolink":"plaque-of-balassa-balint","note":"","history":"The plaque was placed in 1994 at the castle gate.@Balassa B\u00e1lint was a Hungarian Renaissance poet and warrior, who fought against the Turks."},{"sightId":604,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"Kostol sv\u00e4tej Al\u017ebety","address":"N\u00e1mestie SNP, 960 01 Zvolen","mapdata":"1|780|426","gps_lat":"48.5780050000","gps_long":"19.1256090000","religion":1,"oldtype":"1","newtype":"1","homepage":"http:\/\/www.farazv.sk\/cms\/index.php","openinghours":"","muemlekemlink":"","csemadoklink":"http:\/\/emlekhelyek.csemadok.sk\/emlekhelyek\/zolyomi-szent-erzsebet-templom\/\r","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Mat\u00fa\u0161 Kraj\u0148\u00e1k \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen_katolicky_kostol_z_neba.jpg\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022Zvolen katolicky kostol z neba\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/9\/97\/Zvolen_katolicky_kostol_z_neba.jpg\/512px-Zvolen_katolicky_kostol_z_neba.jpg\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen_katolicky_kostol_z_neba.jpg\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EMat\u00fa\u0161 Kraj\u0148\u00e1k\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","name":"St. Elisabeth of Hungary Roman Catholic Church ","seolink":"st-elisabeth-of-hungary-roman-catholic-church","note":"","history":"The church was built between 1381 and 1390 in Gothic style. (According to the homepage of the parish, the church was built between 1243 and 1250 in late Romanesque, early Gothic style.) The church was later reconstructed in Renaissance style. It has a Baroque tower. In 1650 a chapel was built to its southern side, which has a Rococo altar of Our Lady of Seven Sorrows from the second half of the 18th century."},{"sightId":605,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"Star\u00e1 radnica","address":"N\u00e1mestie SNP 21\/31, 960 01 Zvolen","mapdata":"1|757|527","gps_lat":"48.5768590000","gps_long":"19.1250890000","religion":0,"oldtype":"12","newtype":"12","homepage":"https:\/\/www.zvolen.sk\/","openinghours":"","muemlekemlink":"","csemadoklink":"\r","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Ladislav Luppa \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen_-_pam%C3%A4t._budova_-_n%C3%A1m._SNP_31.jpg\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022Zvolen - pam\u00e4t. budova - n\u00e1m. SNP 31\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/0\/0e\/Zvolen_-_pam%C3%A4t._budova_-_n%C3%A1m._SNP_31.jpg\/512px-Zvolen_-_pam%C3%A4t._budova_-_n%C3%A1m._SNP_31.jpg\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen_-_pam%C3%A4t._budova_-_n%C3%A1m._SNP_31.jpg\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003ELadislav Luppa\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","name":"Town Hall ","seolink":"town-hall","note":"","history":"The town hall was built in the 17th century."},{"sightId":606,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"","address":"N\u00e1mestie SNP","mapdata":"1|828|711","gps_lat":"48.5747800000","gps_long":"19.1264370000","religion":0,"oldtype":"38","newtype":"38","homepage":"","openinghours":"","muemlekemlink":"","csemadoklink":"http:\/\/emlekhelyek.csemadok.sk\/emlekhelyek\/ii-rakoczi-ferenc-mellszobra\/\r","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022FOTO:FORTEPAN \/ Magyar F\u00f6ldrajzi M\u00fazeum \/ Erd\u00e9lyi M\u00f3r c\u00e9ge \/ Public domain\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:F%C5%91_t%C3%A9r,_II._R%C3%A1k%C3%B3czi_Ferenc_mellszobra_(Mayer_Ede,_1907.)._Fortepan_86644.jpg\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022F\u0151 t\u00e9r, II. R\u00e1k\u00f3czi Ferenc mellszobra (Mayer Ede, 1907.). Fortepan 86644\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/8\/85\/F%C5%91_t%C3%A9r%2C_II._R%C3%A1k%C3%B3czi_Ferenc_mellszobra_%28Mayer_Ede%2C_1907.%29._Fortepan_86644.jpg\/512px-F%C5%91_t%C3%A9r%2C_II._R%C3%A1k%C3%B3czi_Ferenc_mellszobra_%28Mayer_Ede%2C_1907.%29._Fortepan_86644.jpg\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:F%C5%91_t%C3%A9r,_II._R%C3%A1k%C3%B3czi_Ferenc_mellszobra_(Mayer_Ede,_1907.)._Fortepan_86644.jpg\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EFOTO:FORTEPAN \/ Magyar F\u00f6ldrajzi M\u00fazeum \/ Erd\u00e9lyi M\u00f3r c\u00e9ge\u003C\/a\u003E \/ Public domain","name":"former Statue of R\u00e1k\u00f3czi Ferenc II ","seolink":"former-statue-of-rakoczi-ferenc-ii","note":"","history":"R\u00e1k\u00f3czi Ferenc II was the leader of the Hungarian War of Independence between 1703 and 1711.@The statue was unveiled on June 2, 1907. It is the artwork of Mayer Ede. The statue was erected at the initiative of the National Association of Engine Drivers. It was inspired by the countywide joy experienced by the engine drivers in 1906, when the remains of Prince R\u00e1k\u00f3czi Ferenc II were transported home from Turkey, where the Prince died in exile.@At the end of World War I the Czechoslovak invaders removed this statue as well. The teacher Balassa G\u00e9za, who was entrusted with establishing a museum in Z\u00f3lyom, found the statue in 1943 in a farm building in the courtyard of the town hall. It was wrapped in hay. One of the farmers of Z\u00f3lyom hid the statue there from the Czechoslovaks.@The statue was reerected in the village of Borsi, where there is also a R\u00e1k\u00f3czi Castle, in 1969."},{"sightId":607,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"Evanjelick\u00fd kostol sv\u00e4tej Trojice","address":"N\u00e1mestie SNP 27, 960 01 Zvolen","mapdata":"1|788|648","gps_lat":"48.5755540000","gps_long":"19.1256910000","religion":3,"oldtype":"1","newtype":"1","homepage":"https:\/\/www.ecavzvolen.sk\/","openinghours":"","muemlekemlink":"","csemadoklink":"\r","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Palickap \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen,_evanjel%C3%ADcky_kostol.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022Zvolen, evanjel\u00edcky kostol\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/8\/88\/Zvolen%2C_evanjel%C3%ADcky_kostol.JPG\/512px-Zvolen%2C_evanjel%C3%ADcky_kostol.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen,_evanjel%C3%ADcky_kostol.JPG\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EPalickap\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/4.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","name":"Trinity Lutheran Church","seolink":"trinity-lutheran-church","note":"","history":"The church was built in 1782 in late Baroque style. It was modified in neo-Gothic style between 1922 and 1923."},{"sightId":608,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"Finkova k\u00faria","address":"N\u00e1mestie SNP 41, 960 01 Zvolen","mapdata":"1|767|294","gps_lat":"48.5795670000","gps_long":"19.1254140000","religion":0,"oldtype":"51","newtype":"81","homepage":"","openinghours":"","muemlekemlink":"","csemadoklink":"\r","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Patrik Kunec \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen_-_Finkova_k%C3%BAria_na_n%C3%A1mest%C3%AD_SNP.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022Zvolen - Finkova k\u00faria na n\u00e1mest\u00ed SNP\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/a\/aa\/Zvolen_-_Finkova_k%C3%BAria_na_n%C3%A1mest%C3%AD_SNP.JPG\/512px-Zvolen_-_Finkova_k%C3%BAria_na_n%C3%A1mest%C3%AD_SNP.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen_-_Finkova_k%C3%BAria_na_n%C3%A1mest%C3%AD_SNP.JPG\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EPatrik Kunec\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","name":"Urb\u00e1nyi-Fink Mansion ","seolink":"urbanyi-fink-mansion","note":"Tea house.","history":"The mansion was built in the 17th century and was modified in the second half of the 18th century. It has a late Baroque facade, which is adorned by the coat of arms of its original owners, Urb\u00e1nyi Andr\u00e1s and his wife Countess Esterh\u00e1zy M\u00e1ria. The mansion was owned by the Fink family until 1948. Fink Elem\u00e9r established an ornithological garden behind the mansion in 1924. It had more than 2000 different species of birds."},{"sightId":609,"townId":31,"active":1,"name_LO":"Lesn\u00edcke a drev\u00e1rske m\u00fazeum","address":"N\u00e1mestie SNP, 22 22\/33, 960 01 Zvolen","mapdata":"1|759|515","gps_lat":"48.5770260000","gps_long":"19.1252280000","religion":0,"oldtype":"53","newtype":"98","homepage":"https:\/\/www.lesy.sk\/pre-verejnost\/lesnicke-drevarske-muzeum\/","openinghours":"https:\/\/www.lesy.sk\/lesy\/pre-verejnost\/lesnicke-drevarske-muzeum\/otvaracie-hodiny-vstupne\/","muemlekemlink":"","csemadoklink":"\r","picture":"\u003Ca title=\u0022Patrik Kunec \/ CC BY-SA (https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0)\u0022 href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen_-_N%C3%A1m._SNP_%C4%8D._22.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003Cimg width=\u0022512\u0022 alt=\u0022Zvolen - N\u00e1m. SNP \u010d. 22\u0022 src=\u0022https:\/\/upload.wikimedia.org\/wikipedia\/commons\/thumb\/a\/af\/Zvolen_-_N%C3%A1m._SNP_%C4%8D._22.JPG\/512px-Zvolen_-_N%C3%A1m._SNP_%C4%8D._22.JPG\u0022\u003E\u003C\/a\u003E","picture_ref":"\u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/commons.wikimedia.org\/wiki\/File:Zvolen_-_N%C3%A1m._SNP_%C4%8D._22.JPG\u0022 title=\u0022via Wikimedia Commons\u0022\u003EPatrik Kunec\u003C\/a\u003E \/ \u003Ca href=\u0022https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by-sa\/3.0\u0022\u003ECC BY-SA\u003C\/a\u003E","name":"Museum of Forestry","seolink":"museum-of-forestry","note":"","history":""}]},"language":"en","region":"slovakia","regionid":2,"offer":[],"gallery":false,"album":false}