Vlkolínec - monument reservation of folk architecture
Monument reservation of folk architecture in Vlkolinec is a picturesque village under the administration of the town of Ružomberok. Historically, however, it was a separate village. The first written mention of the village came from 1376 and after 1882 it became part of Ružomberok. Vlkolínec is ...
Red Stone Castle
The first mention of Red Stone Castle was in the first half of the 13th century. The castle was built at a request of Queen Konstancia Uhorska, the widow of the Czech king, on her own land before 1240. At the same time the castle got the name – Red Stone (Červený Kameň in Slovak) or Beaver Castle. The castle belongs to the administration of the Slovak National Museum. The castle was originally held by the Crown and later passed into the ownership of Matus Cak Trenciansky and a number of families including Zapolski, Turzo and the counts of Svaty Jur and Pezinok.According to the heirship the castle and estate passed from the hands of Queen Maria Habsburg, the wife of the Austria-Hungarian King Ludovit II Jagel to the Fugger family. Despite the fact, the two noble families played the most significant role in the history of the castle. It was the German family of Fugger and the Austria-Hungarian family of Palfi. The Fugger family obtained the castle from the previous owner and business partner, the Turzo family. This was how the red-stone estate and the gothic castle became a property (year 1535) of one of the richest business families of former Europe. Anton Fugger, the head of the family, was not only educated but also rich, capable businessman coming from the South-German town of Ausburg. He decided to utilize the strategic position of Red Stone, situated close to Bratislava and Vienna and transform the old gothic castle into a safe storehouse for goods traded across the whole Europe. Rebuilding the medieval castle into the renaissance fortress required an investment of a lot of money and time. Since 1537 the castle was gradually demolished as to clear an area for construction of four defensive bastions connected with walls and a single residential wing. This is how the modern renaissance fortress was constructed according to the modern knowledge of contemporary architecture. It was adapted for an effective protection of everything hidden in spacious storerooms (cells). Business plans of the Fugger family in this part of Europe grew gradually weaker. The reason was an increasing danger of Turks´ attacks. Therefore they decided to sell the castle. Many buyers were interested in purchasing the castle but only one could be the winner. In 1588, the young Baron Mikulas II Palfi finally became the owner of the whole estate (also won a heart of young women Maria Magdalena Fugger, the daughter of Marek Fugger and the grandchild of already mentioned Anton Fugger). Descendants of Mikulas and Maria took a hold over the estate until 1945. Many castle reconstructions had been done by the Palfi family. In the 16th century Mikulas II Palfi converted the Fugger fortress into dwelling premises. After one century, Mikulas IV Palfi together with his wife Maria Eleonora Harrach rebuilt the castle in an early baroque style. Further modernization and enlargement of the castle were carried out by Rudolf Palfi and his wife Maria Eleonora Kaunitz – Rietberg (the second half of the 18th century). The next centuries did not bring any significant changes in a shape and outward aspect of the castle. The last owner of Palfi family left in 1945. Thereafter, the castle was proclaimed a national cultural property.
Tatra Mountains
Location
The Tatra Mountains (in Slovak Tatry) are located in the north of Slovakia and in the south of Poland. It is a geomorphological unit of the Fatra-Tatra area. In Slovakia, it is located in the Prešov region (in the districts of Poprad, Kežmarok) and in the Žilina region (in the ...
Belianske Tatras
Belianske Tatras mountain range (in Slovak Belianske Tatry) is strictly preserved, it is part of the TANAP (Tatra National Park), and access is strictly limited. For tourists are available only seasonally valleys: Monk Valley (Monkova dolina), Valley of Seven Springs (Dolina siedmych prameňov), Zadné Meďodoly valley. Belianske Tatras is a mountain range in the Eastern Tatras in north-west of East Slovakia - in Prešov Region (Prešovský kraj), district Poprad. The 14 km long main ridge runs in the north-south-southeast direction and in the central part main ridge of High Tatras (Vysoké Tatry) mountains follow up to it at right angle. The area of Belianske Tatras mountains is 64 km2 (6 400 ha). The highest peak in Belianske Tatras is Havran (2 151,5 m. a.s.l.). Like most of the area, the peak is not accessible for tourists to protect the nature. From a geomorphological point of view Belianske Tatras as a geomorphological part is part of sub-whole East Tatras. Part Belianske Tatras is not divided into subsections.
