Nové Zámky
Encyclopedia
Nové Zámky is a town in southwestern Slovakia
.
, on the Nitra River
, at an altitude of 119 metres. It is located around 100 km from Bratislava
and around 25 km from the Hungarian
border. It is a road and railway hub of southern Slovakia.
The town lies in the temperate
zone and has a continental climate
. Annual average temperature reaches around 10 °C (50 °F), with the warmest month being July with an average of 20 °C (68 °F) and the coldest January with -2 °C. Average annual precipitation is 556 mm.
. A fortress was built, against the Ottoman Turks
, on the site of an older settlement in the years 1573-81. The town developed around the fortress. The huge new fortress was one of the most modern fortresses in Europe when it was built, a prime example of the star fortress which was considered to be adapted to the advance in artillery in the preceding centuries. (In fact, the Hungarian name means "the archbishop's new castle".)
The Turks failed to conquer it six times (except Turkish rule between 1566-1595 and 1605-1606), but in 1663 they managed to do so. It was made the center of a Turkish eyalet
in present-day southern Slovakia - with the subordinate sanjak
s of Litra
, Leve
, Novigrad
, Holok, Bukabak
and Şefradi (probably Šahy
).
The saying "Strong as a Turk
in front of Nové Zámky", which means working with determination and stability, reflects the memory of conquest determination of the Turks.
In 1685 it was conquered by the imperial troops of Charles V, Duke of Lorraine
. Six years later, it received town privileges from the Esztergom
archbishop.
The town also played an important role in many anti-Habsburg
uprisings in the northern parts of Royal Hungary
in the 17th century. Emperor Charles VI
had it razed in 1724–1725, to prevent potential further insurrections which would use the fortress as their base.
After break-up of Austria-Hungary
in 1918/1920, the town became part of newly created Czechoslovakia. As a result of the First Vienna Award
, it returned to Hungary
between 1938 and 1945. Finally, during World War II
(1944), the town was heavily damaged by bombings of the Allies
. Only small parts of the fortress are still standing today. It is, however, still depicted on the city's coat of arms.
, Košice
, Bardejov
and Nové Zámky) that are used for religious purposes by the local Jewish community.
The Franciscan church and monastery was built in the early baroque
style in the middle of the 17th century. The complex was renovated in the 18th and at the end of the 19th century.
, 27.52% Hungarians and others. The most widespread religion was Roman Catholicism (71.72%), followed by a group without denomination (17.75%) and Evangelics
(3.36%).
Ethnic comparison:
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
.
Geography
The town is located on the Danubian LowlandDanubian Lowland
The Danubian Lowland or Danube Lowland is the name of the part of Little Alföld situated in Slovakia, located between the Danube, the Little Carpathians and all other parts of the Western Carpathians....
, on the Nitra River
Nitra River
The Nitra is a 197 km long river in western Slovakia. It flows into the Váh river close to its confluence with the Danube in Komárno. Its source is in the Malá Fatra mountains north of Prievidza. The river Nitra passes through the towns of Bojnice, Topoľčany, Nitra and Nové Zámky....
, at an altitude of 119 metres. It is located around 100 km from Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
and around 25 km from the Hungarian
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
border. It is a road and railway hub of southern Slovakia.
The town lies in the temperate
Temperate
In geography, temperate or tepid latitudes of the globe lie between the tropics and the polar circles. The changes in these regions between summer and winter are generally relatively moderate, rather than extreme hot or cold...
zone and has a continental climate
Continental climate
Continental climate is a climate characterized by important annual variation in temperature due to the lack of significant bodies of water nearby...
. Annual average temperature reaches around 10 °C (50 °F), with the warmest month being July with an average of 20 °C (68 °F) and the coldest January with -2 °C. Average annual precipitation is 556 mm.
History
The town has a distinguished history. From the second half of the 10th century until 1918, it was part of the Kingdom of HungaryKingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
. A fortress was built, against the Ottoman Turks
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, on the site of an older settlement in the years 1573-81. The town developed around the fortress. The huge new fortress was one of the most modern fortresses in Europe when it was built, a prime example of the star fortress which was considered to be adapted to the advance in artillery in the preceding centuries. (In fact, the Hungarian name means "the archbishop's new castle".)
The Turks failed to conquer it six times (except Turkish rule between 1566-1595 and 1605-1606), but in 1663 they managed to do so. It was made the center of a Turkish eyalet
Uyvar Eyalet
Uyvar Eyalet was an eyalet of the Ottoman Empire.It was established during the reign of Mehmed IV. In 1663 the Ottoman expeditionary force led by Köprülü Fazıl Ahmed defeated the Austrian garrison of the city of Uyvar and conquered the region. The Peace of Vasvár recognised Ottoman control over...
in present-day southern Slovakia - with the subordinate sanjak
Sanjak
Sanjaks were administrative divisions of the Ottoman Empire. Sanjak, and the variant spellings sandjak, sanjaq, and sinjaq, are English transliterations of the Turkish word sancak, meaning district, banner, or flag...
s of Litra
Nitra
Nitra is a city in western Slovakia, situated at the foot of Zobor Mountain in the valley of the river Nitra. With a population of about 83,572, it is the fifth largest city in Slovakia. Nitra is also one of the oldest cities in Slovakia and the country's earliest political and cultural center...
, Leve
Levice
Levice is a town in western Slovakia. The town lies on the left bank of the lower Hron river. The Old Slavic name of the town was Leva, which means "the Left One"....
, Novigrad
Nógrád
Nógrád is a village in Nógrád County, Hungary.- External links :*...
, Holok, Bukabak
Pukanec
Pukanec anz, ; ) is a village and municipality in the Levice District in the Nitra Region of southern Slovakia.-History:In the past, it was one of the nine free royal mining towns, where silver and other precious ore was mined....
and Şefradi (probably Šahy
Šahy
Šahy is a town in southern Slovakia, The town has an ethnic Hungarian majority and its population is 7,971 people , with an average age of 42.5.-Geography:...
).
The saying "Strong as a Turk
Turkish people
Turkish people, also known as the "Turks" , are an ethnic group primarily living in Turkey and in the former lands of the Ottoman Empire where Turkish minorities had been established in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Greece, Kosovo, Macedonia, and Romania...
in front of Nové Zámky", which means working with determination and stability, reflects the memory of conquest determination of the Turks.
In 1685 it was conquered by the imperial troops of Charles V, Duke of Lorraine
Charles V, Duke of Lorraine
Charles V , Karl V. Leopold, , son of Nicolas François, Duke of Lorraine, and Claude Françoise de Lorraine. Karl Leopold was born in Vienna and became the brother in law of Emperor Leopold and son in law of emperor Ferdinand III...
. Six years later, it received town privileges from the Esztergom
Esztergom
Esztergom , is a city in northern Hungary, 46 km north-west of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom county, on the right bank of the river Danube, which forms the border with Slovakia there....
archbishop.
The town also played an important role in many anti-Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
uprisings in the northern parts of Royal Hungary
Royal Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary between 1538 and 1867 was part of the lands of the Habsburg Monarchy, while outside the Holy Roman Empire.After Battle of Mohács, the country was ruled by two crowned kings . They divided the kingdom in 1538...
in the 17th century. Emperor Charles VI
Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles VI was the penultimate Habsburg sovereign of the Habsburg Empire. He succeeded his elder brother, Joseph I, as Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia , Hungary and Croatia , Archduke of Austria, etc., in 1711...
had it razed in 1724–1725, to prevent potential further insurrections which would use the fortress as their base.
Austria-Hungary
Austria-Hungary , more formally known as the Kingdoms and Lands Represented in the Imperial Council and the Lands of the Holy Hungarian Crown of Saint Stephen, was a constitutional monarchic union between the crowns of the Austrian Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary in...
in 1918/1920, the town became part of newly created Czechoslovakia. As a result of the First Vienna Award
First Vienna Award
The First Vienna Award was the result of the First Vienna Arbitration, which took place at Vienna's Belvedere Palace on November 2, 1938. The Arbitration and Award were direct consequences of the Munich Agreement...
, it returned to Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
between 1938 and 1945. Finally, during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
(1944), the town was heavily damaged by bombings of the Allies
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
. Only small parts of the fortress are still standing today. It is, however, still depicted on the city's coat of arms.
Synagogue
The orthodox synagogue is located at Česká bašta and dates from the second half of the 19th century. After reconstruction in 1992 it was registered as a historic landmark of Slovakia. It is one of only four synagogues in Slovakia (in BratislavaBratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
, Košice
Košice
Košice is a city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary...
, Bardejov
Bardejov
Bardejov is a town in North-Eastern Slovakia. It is situated in the Šariš region and has about 33,000 inhabitants. The spa town, mentioned for the first time in 1241, exhibits numerous cultural monuments in its completely intact medieval town center...
and Nové Zámky) that are used for religious purposes by the local Jewish community.
Franciscan church and monastery
- see Franciscan church and monastery, Nové Zámky
The Franciscan church and monastery was built in the early baroque
Baroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
style in the middle of the 17th century. The complex was renovated in the 18th and at the end of the 19th century.
Demographics
The 2001 census recorded a population of 42 262 people, with 69.67% of them being SlovaksSlovaks
The Slovaks, Slovak people, or Slovakians are a West Slavic people that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is closely related to the Czech language.Most Slovaks today live within the borders of the independent Slovakia...
, 27.52% Hungarians and others. The most widespread religion was Roman Catholicism (71.72%), followed by a group without denomination (17.75%) and Evangelics
Evangelicalism
Evangelicalism is a Protestant Christian movement which began in Great Britain in the 1730s and gained popularity in the United States during the series of Great Awakenings of the 18th and 19th century.Its key commitments are:...
(3.36%).
| Year |
Population |
Year |
Population |
| 1694 |
1200 |
1880 |
10 584 |
| 1713 |
1525 |
1890 |
11 299 |
| 1731 |
2970 |
1900 |
13 204 |
| 1755 |
3873 |
1910 |
16 228 |
| 1779 |
4671 |
1940 |
23 306 |
| 1787 |
5167 |
1945 |
13 400 |
| 1811 |
5493 |
1946 |
18 710 |
| 1821 |
5957 |
1950 |
20 031 |
| 1830 |
6904 |
1961 |
22 041 |
| 1851 |
6936 |
1965 |
23 457 |
| 1857 |
7622 |
1991 |
42 923 |
| 1869 |
9483 |
2001 |
42 262 |
Ethnic comparison:
| Year |
||||||||
| 1700 |
1720 |
1890 |
1910 |
1930 |
1938 |
1991 |
2001 |
|
| 61% |
46% |
71% |
91.43% |
45% |
88% |
31.10% |
27.50% |
|
| Slovak |
25% |
36% |
8% |
5.94% |
42% |
9.5% |
66.82% |
69.70% |
| German |
13% |
17% |
4% |
2% |
- |
- |
- |
<0.1% |
| Gypsy |
- |
- |
3% |
- |
- |
- |
- |
0.80% |
| Jewish |
- |
- |
13% |
8,48% |
8% |
- |
- |
0,4% |
Famous people
- György PrayGyörgy PrayGyörgy Pray was a Hungarian Jesuit Abbot, canon, librarian of the University library of Buda and important historian.-Biography:...
, Jesuit Abbot, canon, librarian, historian - Lucien AignerLucien AignerLucien Aigner was a Hungarian photographer and pioneering photojournalist. He was born in Érsekújvár, Austria-Hungary and died inWaltham, Massachusetts....
, photographer - Anton BernolákAnton BernolákAnton Bernolák Anton Bernolák Anton Bernolák (1 October 1762 in Slanica (a now inundated village near Námestovo – 15 January 1813 in Nové Zámky) was a Slovak linguist and Catholic priest and the author of the first Slovak language standard.-Life:...
, linguist - Ferenc HelbingFerenc HelbingFerenc Helbing was a Hungarian graphic artist and painter.Helbing was born in Érsekújvár, then in Hungary, today in Slovakia. He started his career as a lithographer. After studying applied graphics and applied arts, he became a printing manager...
, graphic artist - Lajos KassákLajos KassákLajos Kassák was a Hungarian poet, novelist, painter, essayist, editor, theoretician of the avant-garde and occasional translator, was the father of many modernisms....
, poet - Henrieta NagyováHenrieta NagyováHenrieta Nagyová is a Slovak female professional tennis player. She turned professional in 1994 and has been ranked as high as the 21st in the world . In recent years her ranking has fallen due to constant injury. In late 2005, she brought her ranking up to a year ending 145, after it fell below 200...
, tennis player - Martina SucháMartina SucháMartina Suchá is a retired female tennis player from Slovakia.With a height of 1.70 m and a weight of 57 kg , she is right-handed, and plays with a two-handed backhand....
, tennis player - Peter ÖlveckýPeter OlveckýPeter Ölvecky is a Slovak professional ice hockey forward currently playing for KalPa in the SM-liiga.-Playing career:Ölvecky was drafted by the Minnesota Wild at the 2004 NHL Entry Draft, 78th overall...
, professional ice hockey player - Ladislav PatakiLadislav PatakiLadislav Pataki was an American coach, sports scientist, and masters track and field thrower. He defected from Czechoslovakia in 1985 with his wife and daughter, settling in Los Gatos, California...
– sports scientist, athletics coachCoach (sport)In sports, a coach is an individual involved in the direction, instruction and training of the operations of a sports team or of individual sportspeople.-Staff:...
, masters athletics champion