Bytca
Encyclopedia
Bytča is a town in northwestern Slovakia
. It is located at the Váh
river near the cities of Žilina
and Považská Bystrica
. It belongs to Upper Váh region
of tourism.
in the 13th century and rebuilt in the 16th century in Renaissance
style. The town also houses the Wedding Palace from 1601, which is the only building of this kind in Slovakia, Renaissance, Baroque
and Classical
bourgeoisie
houses, an archive, and a museum (in the Wedding Palace).
, the town had 11,150 inhabitants. 98.27% of inhabitants were Slovaks
and 0.58% Czechs
. The religious make-up was 90.87% Roman Catholics, 4.35% people with no religious affiliation and 1.51% Lutherans.
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...
. It is located at the Váh
Váh
The Váh is the longest river in entire Slovakia. A left tributary of the Danube river, the Váh is 406 km long, including its Čierny Váh branch...
river near the cities of Žilina
Žilina
Žilina is a city in north-western Slovakia, around from the capital Bratislava, close to both the Czech and Polish borders. It is the fourth largest city of Slovakia with a population of approximately 85,000, an important industrial center, the largest city on the Váh river, and the seat of a...
and Považská Bystrica
Považská Bystrica
Považská Bystrica is a town in northwestern Slovakia. It is located on the Váh river, around 30 km from the city of Žilina. It belongs to Upper Váh region of tourism.- Profile :...
. It belongs to Upper Váh region
Upper Váh region
Upper Váh region is the tourism region in the north-west of Slovakia, because of its beautiful countryside it is one of the most visited regions in Slovakia...
of tourism.
History
The town arose in 1946 by a merger of the settlements Malá Bytča (including Beňov and Mikšová), Veľká Bytča and Hliník nad Váhom. The first written reference to the town's main part Veľká Bytča dates from 1234 as terra Bycha. The settlement got its town charter in 1378. It was the seat of a feudal dominion and later a town with many craftsmen. In Hungarian, it was known as Biccse.Landmarks
The town features a famous castle built as a water castleWater castle
A water castle is a castle or stately home whose site is entirely surrounded by moats or natural waterbodies. Topographically water castles are a type of lowland castle.There is a further distinction between:...
in the 13th century and rebuilt in the 16th century in Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
style. The town also houses the Wedding Palace from 1601, which is the only building of this kind in Slovakia, Renaissance, 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...
and Classical
Classicism
Classicism, in the arts, refers generally to a high regard for classical antiquity, as setting standards for taste which the classicists seek to emulate. The art of classicism typically seeks to be formal and restrained: of the Discobolus Sir Kenneth Clark observed, "if we object to his restraint...
bourgeoisie
Bourgeoisie
In sociology and political science, bourgeoisie describes a range of groups across history. In the Western world, between the late 18th century and the present day, the bourgeoisie is a social class "characterized by their ownership of capital and their related culture." A member of the...
houses, an archive, and a museum (in the Wedding Palace).
Demographics
According to the 2001 censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
, the town had 11,150 inhabitants. 98.27% of inhabitants were Slovaks
Slovaks
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...
and 0.58% Czechs
Czech people
Czechs, or Czech people are a western Slavic people of Central Europe, living predominantly in the Czech Republic. Small populations of Czechs also live in Slovakia, Austria, the United States, the United Kingdom, Chile, Argentina, Canada, Germany, Russia and other countries...
. The religious make-up was 90.87% Roman Catholics, 4.35% people with no religious affiliation and 1.51% Lutherans.
Economy
Today, the town is home to machine (Kinex), textile, wood processing (sports equipment), and food (brewery) industries.Boroughs
Boroughs (year of merge in brackets):- Beňov (c. 1899 with Malá Bytča)
- Hliník nad Váhom (1946)
- Hrabové (1971); )
- Malá Bytča (1946); )) (She was also called Miksofalva between 1907–1919)
- Mikšová (1907 with Malá Bytča)
- Pšurnovice (1971);
- Veľká Bytča (1946; )
Famous people
- Adolf NeubauerAdolf NeubauerAdolf Neubauer was sublibrarian at the Bodleian Library and reader in Rabbinic Hebrew at Oxford University....
, Jewish scholar - Jozef TisoJozef TisoJozef Tiso was a Slovak Roman Catholic priest, politician of the Slovak People's Party, and Nazi collaborator. Between 1939 and 1945, Tiso was the head of the Slovak State, a satellite state of Nazi Germany...
, president of the Slovak State