Košice
Encyclopedia
Košice (ˈkɔʃɪt͡sɛ, Ukrainian: Кошиці, ) 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
. With a population of approximately 240,000, Košice is the second largest city in Slovakia after the capital Bratislava
.
Being the economic and cultural center of eastern Slovakia, Košice is the seat of the Košice Region
and Košice Self-governing Region
, the Slovak Constitutional Court
, three universities
, various diocese
s, and many museums, galleries, and theaters. Košice is an important industrial center of Slovakia. The U.S. Steel Košice
steel mill
is the biggest employer in the region. The town has good railway
connections and an international airport
.
The city has a well preserved historical center, which is the largest among Slovak towns. There are many heritage
protected buildings in Gothic
, Renaissance
, Baroque
, and Secession
styles with Slovakia's largest church - St. Elisabeth Cathedral
. The long main street, rimmed with aristocratic palaces, Catholic churches, and townsfolk's houses, is a thriving pedestrian zone with many boutiques, cafés, and restaurants. The city is well known as the first settlement in Europe to be granted its own coat-of-arms.
In 2013, it will hold the European Capital of Culture
title together with Marseille
, France
.
Koša with the patronymic slavic
suffix "-ice". The city may derive its name from Old Slovak kosa, "clearing", related to modern Slovak kosiť, "to reap". Though according to other sources the city name may derive from an old Hungarian first name which begins with "Ko". Historically, the city has been known as Kaschau in German
, Kassa in Hungarian
, Cassovia in Latin
, Cassovie in French
, Caşovia in Romanian
, Кошице (Košicy) in Russian
, and Koszyce in Polish
(see here for more names).
era. The first written reference to the Hungarian town of Košice (as the royal village - Villa Cassa) comes from 1230. After the Mongol invasion
in 1241, King
Béla IV of Hungary
invited German colonists to fill the gaps in population.
The city was made of two independent settlements: Lower Košice and Upper Košice, amalgamated in the 13th century around the long lens-formed ring, of today's Main Street. The first known town privileges
come from 1290. The city grew quickly because of its strategic location on an international trade
route from central Hungary
to Poland
. The privileges given by the king were helpful in developing crafts, business, increasing importance (seat of the royal chamber for Upper Hungary
), and for building its strong fortifications. In 1307, the first guild
regulations were registered here and were the oldest in Kingdom of Hungary.
As a Hungarian free royal town, Košice reinforced the king's troops in the crucial moment of the bloody Battle of Rozgony
in 1312 against the strong aristocratic Palatine Amadé Aba (family)
. In 1347, it became the second place city in the hierarchy of the Hungarian
free royal towns with the same rights as the capital
Buda
. In 1369, it received its own coat of arms from Louis I of Hungary. The Diet convened by Louis I in Košice decided that women could inherit the Hungarian throne.
The significance and wealth of the city in the end of the 14th century was mirrored by the decision to build a completely new church on the grounds of the previously destroyed smaller St. Elisabeth Church. The construction of the biggest cathedral in the Kingdom of Hungary - St. Elisabeth Cathedral
- was supported by the Emperor Sigismund of Luxemburg
, and by the apostolic see
itself. Since the beginning of the 15th century, the city played a leading role in the Pentapolitana
- the league of towns
of five most important cities in Upper Hungary
(Bardejov
, Levoča
, Košice, Prešov
, and Sabinov
). During the reign of King Matthias Corvinus
the city reached its medieval population peak. With an estimated 10,000 Hungarian inhabitants, it was among the largest medieval cities in Europe.
The history of Košice was heavily influenced by the dynastic disputes over the Hungarian throne, which together with the decline of the continental trade brought the city into stagnation. Vladislaus III of Varna failed to capture the city in 1441. John Jiskra
's mercenaries from Bohemia
defeated Tamás Székely's Hungarian army in 1449. John I Albert
, Prince of Poland, could not capture the city during a six month long siege in 1491. In 1526, the city homaged for Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
. János Szapolyai captured the city in 1536 but Ferdinand I reconquered the city in 1551. In 1604, Stephen Bocskay
occupied Košice during his insurrection against the Habsburg dynasty. Giorgio Basta
, commander of the Habsburg forces, failed to capture the city, but Ferdinand I eventually recaptured it in 1606. Stephen Bocskay died in Košice on 29 December 1606 and was interred there.
On 5 September 1619, Gabriel Bethlen
captured Košice in another anti-Habsburg insurrection. He married Catherine von Hohenzollern, of Johann Sigismund Kurfürst von Brandenburg, in Košice in 1626. On 18 January 1644, the Diet in Košice elected George I Rákóczi
the prince of Hungary. In 1657, a printing house and a college were founded by the Jesuits
there. The city was besieged by kuruc
armies several times in the 1670s and it revolted against the Habsburg emperor. The rebel leaders were massacred by emperor's soldiers on 26 November 1677. A modern pentagonal fortress (citadel
) was built by the Habsburgs south of the city in 1670s. Another rebel leader, Imre Thököly
captured it in 1682 but the Austrian
field marshal Aeneas de Caprara
got it back on 1685. In 1704-1711 Prince of Transylvania Francis II Rákóczi
made Košice the main base in his War for Independence
. The fortress was demolished by 1713.
In the 17th century it was the capital of Upper Hungary
(in 1563-1686 as the seat of the "Captaincy of Upper Hungary", and in 1567-1848 as the seat of the Chamber of Szepes county (Spiš, Zips), which was a subsidiary of the supreme financial agency in Vienna
responsible for Upper Hungary). Due to Ottoman
occupation, the city was the residence of Eger
's archbishop from 1596 to 1700. Since 1657, it was the seat of the historic Royal University of Košice (Universitas Cassoviensis). It was transformed into a Royal Academy in 1777, then into a Law Academy in the 19th century; it ceased to exist in the turbulent year of 1921. After the end of the anti-Habsburg uprisings in 1711 the victorious Austrian armies drove the Ottoman forces
back to the south and this major territorial change created new trade routes which circumvented Košice. The city began to decay and turned from a rich medieval town into a provincial town known for its military base and dependent mainly on agriculture.
In 1723, the Immaculata
statue was erected in the place of a former gallows
at Hlavná ulica (Main Street) commemorating the plague
from the years 1710-1711. This was one of the centers of the Hungarian language
regenerate movement which published the first Hungarian language periodical called the Magyar Museum in Hungary in 1788. The city's walls were demolished step by step from the early 19th century to 1856; only the Executioner's Bastion
remained with few parts of the wall. The city became a seat of its own bishopric
in 1802. The city's surroundings became a theater of the war again during the Revolutions of 1848
, when the Imperial cavalry general Franz Schlik defeated the Hungarian army on 8 December 1848 and 4 January 1849. The city was captured by the Hungarian army on 15 February 1849, but the Russian troops drove them back on 24 June 1849.
At the beginning of the 19th century there were three manufacturers and 460 workshops in 1828. The first factories were established in the 1840s (sugar and nail factories). The first telegram message arrived in 1856 and the railway connected the city to Miskolc
, Hungary in 1860. In 1873, there were already connections to Prešov
, Žilina
, and Chop
(in today's Ukraine
). The city gained a public transit system in 1891 when track was laid down for a horse-drawn tramway. The traction was electrified in 1914. In 1906, Francis II Rákóczi
's house of Rodosto
was reproduced in Košice and his remains were buried in the St. Elisabeth Cathedral
.
After World War I
and during the gradual break-up of Austria-Hungary, the city at first became a part of the transient "Eastern Slovak Republic", declared on 11 December 1918 in Košice and earlier in Prešov
under the protection
of Hungary. On 29 December 1918, the Czechoslovak Legions
entered the city, making it part of the newly established Czechoslovakia
. However, in June 1919, Košice was occupied again, as part of the Slovak Soviet Republic
, a proletarian
puppet state
of Hungary. The Czechoslovak troops secured the city for Czechoslovakia in July 1919, which was later upheld under the terms of the Treaty of Trianon
in 1920.
Košice was ceded to Hungary
, by the First Vienna Award
, from 1938 until early 1945. The town was bombarded on 26 June 1941
, in what became a welcome pretext for the Hungarian government to declare war on the Soviet Union
a day later. The German occupation of Hungary led to the deportation of Košice's entire Jew
ish population of 12,000 and an additional 2,000 from surrounding areas via cattle cars to the concentration camps
. The town was captured by the Soviets in January 1945 and for a short time it became a temporary capital city of the restored Czechoslovak Republic until the Soviet Red Army
reached Prague
. Among other acts, the Košice Government Program was declared on 5 April 1945.
After the Communist Party
seized power in Czechoslovakia
in February 1948, the city became part of the Eastern Bloc
. Several present day cultural institutions
were founded and large residential areas around the city were built. The construction and expansion of the East Slovak Ironworks caused the population to grow from 60,700 in 1950 to 235,000 in 1991. Before the breakup of Czechoslovakia (1993), it was the fifth largest city in the federation. Following the Velvet Divorce
and creation of the Slovak Republic, Košice became the second largest city in the country and became a seat of a constitutional court. Since 1995, it has been the seat of the Archdiocese of Košice
.
and covers an area of 242.77 square kilometres (93.7 sq mi). It is located in eastern Slovakia, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) from the Hungarian
, 80 kilometres (50 mi) from the Ukrainian
, and 90 kilometres (56 mi) from the Polish
borders. It is about 400 kilometres (249 mi) east of Slovakia's capital Bratislava
and a chain of villages connects it to Prešov
which is about 36 kilometres (22 mi) to the north.
Košice is situated on the Hornád River in the Košice Basin, at the easternmost reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains
. More precisely it is a subdivision of the Čierna hora mountains in the northwest and Volovské vrchy mountains in the southwest. The basin is met on the east by the Slanské vrchy mountains.
with four distinct seasons. It is characterized by a significant variation between hot summers and cold, snowy winters.
, 89.1% of its inhabitants were Slovaks
, 3,8% Hungarians, 2,1% Roma, 1.2% Czechs, 0.5% Rusyns
, 0.5% Ukrainians
, and 0.2% Germans
. The religious makeup was 58.3% Roman Catholics, 19.4% people with no religious affiliation, 7.6% Greek Catholics
, and 4.1% Lutherans
.
The town had German majority in the 16th century. Cassovia consisted of 72,5% which may have been Hungarians, 13,2% Germans, 14,3% Slovaks or of uncertain origin in 1650. According to the Turkish traveler Evliya Çelebi
, the city was inhabited by "Hungarians, Germans, Upper Hungarians" in 1661.
The linguistic makeup of the town's population underwent historical changes that alternated between a growth of the ratio of those who claimed Hungarian
and those who claimed Slovak
as their language. With a population of 28,884 in 1891, just under half (49.9%) of the inhabitants of Košice declared the then official Hungarian language as their main means of communication, 33.6% Slovak, and 13.5% German
; 72.2% were Roman Catholics, 11.4% Jews, 7.3% Lutherans, 6.7% Greek Catholics, and 4.3% Calvinists
. The results of this census are questioned by some historians by claiming that they were manipulated, in order to increase the percentage of Magyar population in the period of the Magyarization
.
By 1910 census, which is sometimes accused of being manipulated by the ruling Hungarian bureaucracy, 75.4% of the 44,211 inhabitants claimed Hungarian, 14.8% Slovak, 7.2% German, and 1.8% Polish
. The Jews were split among other groups by the 1910 census, as only the most frequently used language and not ethnicity was registered. The linguistic balance within the town limits began to shift towards Slovak after World War I
with Slovakization
in the newly established Czechoslovakia
. As a consequence of the Vienna Awards
, Kosice was ceded to Hungary. During the German occupation of Hungary towards the end of World War II
, approximately 10,000 Jews were deported by the Arrow Cross Party
and the nazis and killed in Auschwitz. The ethnic makeup of the town was dramatically changed by the persecution of the town's large Hungarian majority and their replacement with Slovak peasants from the north following mass deportations.
. It accounts for about 9% of the Slovak gross domestic product
. The steel mill, U.S. Steel Košice
with 16,000 employees, is the largest employer in the city and the second largest employer in the country. As an interesting coincidental sidenote, U.S. Steel's world headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, is just a few hundred meters from the place where the documents were signed in 1918 giving legal authority
for the creation of the former Czechoslovakia. Other major sectors include mechanical engineering
, food industry
, services, and trade. GDP per capita
in 2001 was €
4,004, which was below Slovakia's average of €4,400. The unemployment rate
was 11.4% in September 2005, which was below the country's average 15.6% at that time.
The city has a balanced budget
of 2.78 billion Slovak koruna
s (almost €83 million, as of 2007) with a small surplus of 25 million korunas. The budget for 2008 projects spending of 2.82 billion korunas.
The dominant monument of the city is Slovakia's largest church, the 14th century Gothic
St. Elisabeth Cathedral
, it is the easternmost cathedral of western style Gothic architecture in Central Europe
, and is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Košice
. In addition to St. Elisabeth, there are the 14th century St. Michael Chapel
, the St. Urban Tower
, and the Neo-baroque State Theater
in the center of town. The Executioner's Bastion
and the Mill Bastion are remains the city fortification system. The Church of the Virgin Mary's Birth
is the cathedral for the Greek Catholic Eparchy of Košice
. Visitors can discover the beauty of several other monuments and buildings of great cultural and historical interest: the old Town Hall, the Old University, the Captain's Palace, Liberation Square, etc., as well as several galleries (the East Slovak Gallery
) and museums (the East Slovak Museum
). There is a Municipal Park
located between the historical city center and the main railway station and the city has its own zoo
, located northwest of the city, in the borough of Kavečany
.
was founded in 1945 (then under the name of the East Slovak National Theater). It consists of three ensembles: drama, opera, and ballet. Other theaters include the Marionette Theater and the Old Town Theater (Staromestské divadlo). Due to the presence of Hungarian
and Roma minorities, it also hosts the Hungarian "Thália" theater and the professional Roma theater "Romathan".
Košice is the home of the State Philharmonic Košice (Štátna filharmónia Košice), established in 1968 as the second professional symphonic orchestra
in Slovakia. It organizes festivals such as the Košice Music Spring Festival
, the International Organ Music
Festival, and the Festival of Contemporary Art
.
(Vychodoslovenské múzeum), originally established in 1872 under the name of the Upper Hungarian Museum. The Slovak Technical Museum
(Slovenské technické múzeum) with planetarium
, established in 1947, is the only museum in the technical category in Slovakia that specializes in the history and traditions of science and technology. The East Slovak Gallery
(Východoslovenská galéria) was established in 1951 as the first regional gallery with the aim to document artistic life in present day eastern Slovakia.
, takes place every year in June in Košice. The Hungarian writer Sandor Marai
was born in this town and wrote about it in his autobiography.
in Europe and second oldest in the entire world, after the world famous Boston Marathon
, is the Košice Peace Marathon
, founded in 1924. It is run in the city every year on the first Sunday of October.
Ice hockey
club HC Košice
is one of the most successful Slovak hockey clubs. It plays in Slovakia's highest league, the Extraliga
, and has won six titles in 1995, 1996, 1999, 2009, 2010 and 2011, and two titles (1986 and 1988) in the former Czechoslovak Extraliga. Since 2006, their home is the Steel Aréna
which has a capacity of 8,343 spectators. Football club
MFK Košice
currently plays in the Corgoň Liga. It was the first club from Slovakia reach the group stages of the UEFA Champions League
and is a two times domestic league winner (1998 and 1999). After relegation
in 2003, the club returned to the Corgoň Liga in 2005. Other clubs in the city include the women's basketball team Good Angels Košice.
Košice is host to the 2011 IIHF World Championship in ice hockey.
and since 2002 it is the seat of the autonomous Košice Self-governing Region
. Additionally, it is the seat of the Slovak Constitutional Court
. The city hosts a regional branch of the National Bank of Slovakia
(Národná banka Slovenska) and consulates of Hungary, Belgium, Spain, Russia and Turkey.
The local government is composed of a mayor , a city council
(mestské zastupiteľstvo), a city board (mestská rada), city commissions (Komisie mestského zastupiteľstva), and a city magistrate's office (magistrát). The directly elected
mayor is the head and chief executive of the city. The term of office is four years. The previous mayor, František Knapík
, was nominated in 2006 by a coalition of the political parties KDH
, SMK
, and SDKÚ-DS. In 2010 he finished his function. The current mayor is MUDr. Richard Raši, PhD., MPH. He was inaugurated to the function on 21 December 2010.
Administratively, the city of Košice is divided into four districts: Košice I
(covering the center and northern parts), Košice II
(covering the southwest), Košice III
(east), and Košice IV
(south) and further into 22 boroughs (wards):
in Slovakia, after Bratislava. The Technical University of Košice
is its largest university, with 16,015 students, including 867 doctoral students. A second major university is the Pavol Jozef Šafárik University
, with 7,403 students, including 527 doctoral students. Other universities and colleges include the University of Veterinary Medicine in Košice
(1,381 students) and the private Security Management College in Košice (1,168 students). Additionally, the University of Economics in Bratislava
, the Slovak University of Agriculture
in Nitra
, and the Catholic University in Ružomberok
each have a branch based in the city.
There are 38 public elementary school
s, six private elementary schools, and three religious elementary schools. Overall, they enroll 20,158 pupils. The city's system of secondary education
(some middle school
s and all high schools) consist of 20 gymnasia
with 7,692 students, 24 specialized high school
s with 8,812 students, and 13 vocational school
s with 6,616 students.
Company of the city of Košice). The municipal mass transit system is the oldest one in present day Slovakia, with the first horse-car line beginning operation in 1891 (electrified in 1914). Today, the city's public transportation system is composed of buses (in use since 1950s), trams, and trolleybuses (since 1993).
Košice railway station
is a rail hub of eastern Slovakia. The city is connected by rail to Bratislava
, Prešov
, Čierna nad Tisou
, Humenné
, Miskolc
(Hungary
), and Zvolen
. There is a broad gauge track from the Ukraine
, leading to the steel mill
southwest of the city. The D1 motorway connects the city to Prešov
and more motorways and roads are planned around the city.
The Košice international airport
is located south of the city. Regular direct flights from the airport are available to: Bratislava, Vienna, and Prague. Regular flights are provided by Czech Airlines
, Austrian Airlines
, and Danube Wings. At its peak in year 2008, it served 590,919 passengers but the number has since declined.
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 situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains
Slovak Ore Mountains
Slovak Ore Mountains is an extensive mountainous region of Slovakia's Spiš and Gemer region, and in small part in northern Hungary, within the Carpathians. It is the largest mountain range in Slovakia...
, near the border with 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...
. With a population of approximately 240,000, Košice is the second largest city in Slovakia after the capital 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...
.
Being the economic and cultural center of eastern Slovakia, Košice is the seat of the Košice Region
Košice Region
The Košice Region is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions. It consists of 11 districts .-Geography:It is located in the southern part of eastern Slovakia and covers an area of 6,752 km²...
and Košice Self-governing Region
Košice Self-governing Region
The Košice Self-governing Region or the Košice Higher Territorial Unit is one of Slovakia's eight "self-governing regions" whose territory is identical with that of the administrative Košice Region....
, the Slovak Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court of Slovakia
The Constitutional Court of Slovakia is a special court established by the Constitution of Slovakia. Its seat is in Košice.-Tasks:...
, three universities
University
A university is an institution of higher education and research, which grants academic degrees in a variety of subjects. A university is an organisation that provides both undergraduate education and postgraduate education...
, various diocese
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
s, and many museums, galleries, and theaters. Košice is an important industrial center of Slovakia. The U.S. Steel Košice
U. S. Steel Košice, s.r.o.
U. S. Steel Košice, s.r.o. is a steel company located in Košice, Slovakia.In November 2000, the ownership of the complete metallurgical operation of former Východoslovenské železiarne Košice was transferred to the United States Steel Corporation....
steel mill
Steel mill
A steel mill or steelworks is an industrial plant for the manufacture of steel.Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon. It is produced in a two-stage process. First, iron ore is reduced or smelted with coke and limestone in a blast furnace, producing molten iron which is either cast into pig iron or...
is the biggest employer in the region. The town has good railway
Rail transport
Rail transport is a means of conveyance of passengers and goods by way of wheeled vehicles running on rail tracks. In contrast to road transport, where vehicles merely run on a prepared surface, rail vehicles are also directionally guided by the tracks they run on...
connections and an international airport
Airport
An airport is a location where aircraft such as fixed-wing aircraft, helicopters, and blimps take off and land. Aircraft may be stored or maintained at an airport...
.
The city has a well preserved historical center, which is the largest among Slovak towns. There are many heritage
Cultural heritage
Cultural heritage is the legacy of physical artifacts and intangible attributes of a group or society that are inherited from past generations, maintained in the present and bestowed for the benefit of future generations...
protected buildings in Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
, 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...
, 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 Secession
Secession
Secession is the act of withdrawing from an organization, union, or especially a political entity. Threats of secession also can be a strategy for achieving more limited goals.-Secession theory:...
styles with Slovakia's largest church - St. Elisabeth Cathedral
St. Elisabeth Cathedral
The St. Elisabeth Cathedral is a Gothic cathedral in Košice...
. The long main street, rimmed with aristocratic palaces, Catholic churches, and townsfolk's houses, is a thriving pedestrian zone with many boutiques, cafés, and restaurants. The city is well known as the first settlement in Europe to be granted its own coat-of-arms.
In 2013, it will hold the European Capital of Culture
European Capital of Culture
The European Capital of Culture is a city designated by theEuropean Union for a period of one calendar year during which it organises a series of cultural events with a strong European dimension....
title together with Marseille
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
Etymology
The first written mention of the city was in 1230 as "Villa Cassa". The Slovak name of the city comes from the Slavic personal namePersonal name
A personal name is the proper name identifying an individual person, and today usually comprises a given name bestowed at birth or at a young age plus a surname. It is nearly universal for a human to have a name; except in rare cases, for example feral children growing up in isolation, or infants...
Koša with the patronymic slavic
Slavic languages
The Slavic languages , a group of closely related languages of the Slavic peoples and a subgroup of Indo-European languages, have speakers in most of Eastern Europe, in much of the Balkans, in parts of Central Europe, and in the northern part of Asia.-Branches:Scholars traditionally divide Slavic...
suffix "-ice". The city may derive its name from Old Slovak kosa, "clearing", related to modern Slovak kosiť, "to reap". Though according to other sources the city name may derive from an old Hungarian first name which begins with "Ko". Historically, the city has been known as Kaschau in German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, Kassa in Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
, Cassovia in Latin
Latin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
, Cassovie in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, Caşovia in Romanian
Romanian language
Romanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
, Кошице (Košicy) in Russian
Russian language
Russian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
, and Koszyce in Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
(see here for more names).
History
The first evidence of inhabitance can be traced back to the end of the PaleolithicPaleolithic
The Paleolithic Age, Era or Period, is a prehistoric period of human history distinguished by the development of the most primitive stone tools discovered , and covers roughly 99% of human technological prehistory...
era. The first written reference to the Hungarian town of Košice (as the royal village - Villa Cassa) comes from 1230. After the Mongol invasion
Battle of Mohi
The Battle of Mohi , or Battle of the Sajó River, was the main battle between the Mongol Empire and the Kingdom of Hungary during the Mongol invasion of Europe. It took place at Muhi, Southwest of the Sajó River. After the invasion, Hungary lay in ruins. Nearly half of the inhabited places had...
in 1241, King
King of Hungary
The King of Hungary was the head of state of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1000 to 1918.The style of title "Apostolic King" was confirmed by Pope Clement XIII in 1758 and used afterwards by all the Kings of Hungary, so after this date the kings are referred to as "Apostolic King of...
Béla IV of Hungary
Béla IV of Hungary
Béla IV , King of Hungary and of Croatia , duke of Styria 1254–58. One of the most famous kings of Hungary, he distinguished himself through his policy of strengthening of the royal power following the example of his grandfather Bela III, and by the rebuilding Hungary after the catastrophe of the...
invited German colonists to fill the gaps in population.
The city was made of two independent settlements: Lower Košice and Upper Košice, amalgamated in the 13th century around the long lens-formed ring, of today's Main Street. The first known town privileges
Town privileges
Town privileges or city rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium.Judicially, a town was distinguished from the surrounding land by means of a charter from the ruling monarch that defined its privileges and laws. Common privileges were related to trading...
come from 1290. The city grew quickly because of its strategic location on an international trade
International trade
International trade is the exchange of capital, goods, and services across international borders or territories. In most countries, such trade represents a significant share of gross domestic product...
route from central 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...
to Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
. The privileges given by the king were helpful in developing crafts, business, increasing importance (seat of the royal chamber for Upper Hungary
Upper Hungary
Upper Hungary is the usual English translation for the area that was historically the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, now mostly present-day Slovakia...
), and for building its strong fortifications. In 1307, the first guild
Guild
A guild is an association of craftsmen in a particular trade. The earliest types of guild were formed as confraternities of workers. They were organized in a manner something between a trade union, a cartel, and a secret society...
regulations were registered here and were the oldest in Kingdom of Hungary.
As a Hungarian free royal town, Košice reinforced the king's troops in the crucial moment of the bloody Battle of Rozgony
Battle of Rozgony
The Battle of Rozgony or Battle of Rozhanovce was fought between King Charles I of Hungary and the family of Palatine Amade Aba on June 15, 1312, on the Rozgony field. Chronicon Pictum described it as the "most cruel battle since the Mongol invasion of Europe"...
in 1312 against the strong aristocratic Palatine Amadé Aba (family)
Aba (family)
Aba is the name of a Genus Aba in the Kingdom of Hungary. Their ancestors may have been among the tribal leaders of the Kabars...
. In 1347, it became the second place city in the hierarchy of the Hungarian
Kingdom 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...
free royal towns with the same rights as the capital
Capital City
Capital City was a television show produced by Euston Films which focused on the lives of investment bankers in London living and working on the corporate trading floor for the fictional international bank Shane-Longman....
Buda
Buda
For detailed information see: History of Buda CastleBuda is the western part of the Hungarian capital Budapest on the west bank of the Danube. The name Buda takes its name from the name of Bleda the Hun ruler, whose name is also Buda in Hungarian.Buda comprises about one-third of Budapest's...
. In 1369, it received its own coat of arms from Louis I of Hungary. The Diet convened by Louis I in Košice decided that women could inherit the Hungarian throne.
The significance and wealth of the city in the end of the 14th century was mirrored by the decision to build a completely new church on the grounds of the previously destroyed smaller St. Elisabeth Church. The construction of the biggest cathedral in the Kingdom of Hungary - St. Elisabeth Cathedral
St. Elisabeth Cathedral
The St. Elisabeth Cathedral is a Gothic cathedral in Košice...
- was supported by the Emperor Sigismund of Luxemburg
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...
, and by the apostolic see
Apostolic See
In Christianity, an apostolic see is any episcopal see whose foundation is attributed to one or more of the apostles of Jesus.Out of the many such sees, five acquired special importance in Chalcedonian Christianity and became classified as the Pentarchy in Eastern Orthodox Christianity...
itself. Since the beginning of the 15th century, the city played a leading role in the Pentapolitana
Pentapolitana
Pentapolitana was a league of towns of the five most important Hungarian royal free towns of present-day eastern Slovakia in the Middle Ages.The first meeting of the representatives of...
- the league of towns
League of towns
A league of towns is an alliance of two or more, usually geographically close, towns and/or cities for the protection of their political and/or economic interests....
of five most important cities in Upper Hungary
Upper Hungary
Upper Hungary is the usual English translation for the area that was historically the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, now mostly present-day Slovakia...
(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...
, Levoča
Levoca
Levoča is a town in the Spiš region of eastern Slovakia with a population of 14,600. The town has a historic center with a well preserved town wall, a Renaissance church with the highest wooden altar in Europe, carved by Master Paul of Levoča, and many other Renaissance buildings.On 28 June 2009,...
, Košice, Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
, and Sabinov
Sabinov
Sabinov is a small town located in the Prešov Region , approximately 20 km from Prešov and 55 km from Košice. The population of Sabinov is 12,378.- History :...
). During the reign of King Matthias Corvinus
Matthias Corvinus of Hungary
Matthias Corvinus , also called the Just in folk tales, was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1458, at the age of 14 until his death...
the city reached its medieval population peak. With an estimated 10,000 Hungarian inhabitants, it was among the largest medieval cities in Europe.
The history of Košice was heavily influenced by the dynastic disputes over the Hungarian throne, which together with the decline of the continental trade brought the city into stagnation. Vladislaus III of Varna failed to capture the city in 1441. John Jiskra
John Jiskra
Jan Jiskra z Brandýsa , in English sometimes referred as John Giskra, was a Czech strategist and mercenary soldier.-Early life:...
's mercenaries from Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
defeated Tamás Székely's Hungarian army in 1449. John I Albert
John I Albert of Poland
John I Albert was King of Poland and Duke of Głogów .-Life:John was the third son of Casimir IV Jagiellon, King of Poland, and Elisabeth of Austria, daughter of Albert II of Germany. As crown prince, he distinguished himself by his brilliant victory over the Tatars at Kopersztyn...
, Prince of Poland, could not capture the city during a six month long siege in 1491. In 1526, the city homaged for Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor
Ferdinand I was Holy Roman Emperor from 1558 and king of Bohemia and Hungary from 1526 until his death. Before his accession, he ruled the Austrian hereditary lands of the Habsburgs in the name of his elder brother, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor.The key events during his reign were the contest...
. János Szapolyai captured the city in 1536 but Ferdinand I reconquered the city in 1551. In 1604, Stephen Bocskay
Stephen Bocskay
Stephen Bocskai or István Bocskai Stephen Bocskai or István Bocskai Stephen Bocskai or István Bocskai (or Bocskay, (1 January 1557 – 29 December 1606) was a HungarianCalvinist nobleman, Prince of Transylvania (1605–06), who defended Hungarian interests when Hungary was divided into Ottoman...
occupied Košice during his insurrection against the Habsburg dynasty. Giorgio Basta
Giorgio Basta
Giorgio Basta, Count of Huszt was an Italian general of Arbëreshë descent, employed by the Holy Roman Emperor Rudolf II to command Habsburg forces in the Long War of 1591-1606 and later to administer Transylvania as an Imperial vassal to restore Catholicism as a predominant religion in...
, commander of the Habsburg forces, failed to capture the city, but Ferdinand I eventually recaptured it in 1606. Stephen Bocskay died in Košice on 29 December 1606 and was interred there.
On 5 September 1619, Gabriel Bethlen
Gabriel Bethlen
Gabriel Bethlen was a prince of Transylvania , duke of Opole and leader of an anti-Habsburg insurrection in the Habsburg Royal Hungary. His last armed intervention in 1626 was part of the Thirty Years' War...
captured Košice in another anti-Habsburg insurrection. He married Catherine von Hohenzollern, of Johann Sigismund Kurfürst von Brandenburg, in Košice in 1626. On 18 January 1644, the Diet in Košice elected George I Rákóczi
George I Rákóczi
György Rákóczi I was elected Hungarian prince of Transylvania from 1630 until his death. During his influence Transylvania grew politically and economically stronger.-Biography:...
the prince of Hungary. In 1657, a printing house and a college were founded by the Jesuits
Society of Jesus
The Society of Jesus is a Catholic male religious order that follows the teachings of the Catholic Church. The members are called Jesuits, and are also known colloquially as "God's Army" and as "The Company," these being references to founder Ignatius of Loyola's military background and a...
there. The city was besieged by kuruc
Kuruc
The kuruc was a term used to denote the armed anti-Habsburg rebels in Royal Hungary between 1671 and 1711....
armies several times in the 1670s and it revolted against the Habsburg emperor. The rebel leaders were massacred by emperor's soldiers on 26 November 1677. A modern pentagonal fortress (citadel
Citadel
A citadel is a fortress for protecting a town, sometimes incorporating a castle. The term derives from the same Latin root as the word "city", civis, meaning citizen....
) was built by the Habsburgs south of the city in 1670s. Another rebel leader, Imre Thököly
Imre Thököly
Count Imre Thököly de Késmárk was a Hungarian statesman, leader of an anti-Habsburg uprising, Prince of Transylvania, and vassal king of Upper Hungary.- Early life :Imre Thököly was born at Késmárk, Royal Hungary Count Imre Thököly de Késmárk (Thököly/Tököly/Tökölli Imre in Hungarian, Mirko...
captured it in 1682 but the Austrian
Habsburg Monarchy
The Habsburg Monarchy covered the territories ruled by the junior Austrian branch of the House of Habsburg , and then by the successor House of Habsburg-Lorraine , between 1526 and 1867/1918. The Imperial capital was Vienna, except from 1583 to 1611, when it was moved to Prague...
field marshal Aeneas de Caprara
Aeneas de Caprara
Count Aeneas Sylvius de Caprara , also known as Enea Silvio or Äneas Sylvius von Caprara, was an Austrian Field Marshal during the Nine Years' War.-Biography:...
got it back on 1685. In 1704-1711 Prince of Transylvania Francis II Rákóczi
Francis II Rákóczi
Francis II Rákóczi Hungarian aristocrat, he was the leader of the Hungarian uprising against the Habsburgs in 1703-11 as the prince of the Estates Confederated for Liberty of the Kingdom of Hungary. He was also Prince of Transylvania, an Imperial Prince, and a member of the Order of the Golden...
made Košice the main base in his War for Independence
Rákóczi's War for Independence
Rákóczi's War for Independence was the first significant attempt to topple therule of Habsburg Austria over Hungary. The war was fought by a group of noblemen, wealthy and high-ranking progressives and was led by Francis II Rákóczi Rákóczi's War for Independence (1703–1711) was the first...
. The fortress was demolished by 1713.
In the 17th century it was the capital of Upper Hungary
Upper Hungary
Upper Hungary is the usual English translation for the area that was historically the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, now mostly present-day Slovakia...
(in 1563-1686 as the seat of the "Captaincy of Upper Hungary", and in 1567-1848 as the seat of the Chamber of Szepes county (Spiš, Zips), which was a subsidiary of the supreme financial agency in Vienna
Vienna
Vienna is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Austria and one of the nine states of Austria. Vienna is Austria's primary city, with a population of about 1.723 million , and is by far the largest city in Austria, as well as its cultural, economic, and political centre...
responsible for Upper Hungary). Due to Ottoman
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...
occupation, the city was the residence of Eger
Eger
Eger is the second largest city in Northern Hungary, the county seat of Heves, east of the Mátra Mountains. Eger is best known for its castle, thermal baths, historic buildings , and red and white wines.- Name :...
's archbishop from 1596 to 1700. Since 1657, it was the seat of the historic Royal University of Košice (Universitas Cassoviensis). It was transformed into a Royal Academy in 1777, then into a Law Academy in the 19th century; it ceased to exist in the turbulent year of 1921. After the end of the anti-Habsburg uprisings in 1711 the victorious Austrian armies drove the Ottoman forces
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...
back to the south and this major territorial change created new trade routes which circumvented Košice. The city began to decay and turned from a rich medieval town into a provincial town known for its military base and dependent mainly on agriculture.
In 1723, the Immaculata
Plague Pillar (Košice)
The Immaculata is a Baroque plague column in Košice, Slovakia. It was erected at the place of medieval gallows at Fő utca in 1723 and it commemorates the end of the plague of 1710-1711.It is a 14 metre high column on the stone basement with sculptures of Saint Joseph, Saint Sebastian and...
statue was erected in the place of a former gallows
Gallows
A gallows is a frame, typically wooden, used for execution by hanging, or by means to torture before execution, as was used when being hanged, drawn and quartered...
at Hlavná ulica (Main Street) commemorating the plague
Black Death
The Black Death was one of the most devastating pandemics in human history, peaking in Europe between 1348 and 1350. Of several competing theories, the dominant explanation for the Black Death is the plague theory, which attributes the outbreak to the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Thought to have...
from the years 1710-1711. This was one of the centers of the Hungarian language
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
regenerate movement which published the first Hungarian language periodical called the Magyar Museum in Hungary in 1788. The city's walls were demolished step by step from the early 19th century to 1856; only the Executioner's Bastion
Executioner's Bastion
The Executioner’s Bastion is a bastion situated at Stará baštová Street in the historic center of Košice, Slovakia.Its name is derived from the fact that the bastion was situated near a medieval executioner’s house. It is semicircular building with eight cannon chambers erected around the year 1500...
remained with few parts of the wall. The city became a seat of its own bishopric
Prince-Bishop
A Prince-Bishop is a bishop who is a territorial Prince of the Church on account of one or more secular principalities, usually pre-existent titles of nobility held concurrently with their inherent clerical office...
in 1802. The city's surroundings became a theater of the war again during the Revolutions of 1848
Revolutions of 1848
The European Revolutions of 1848, known in some countries as the Spring of Nations, Springtime of the Peoples or the Year of Revolution, were a series of political upheavals throughout Europe in 1848. It was the first Europe-wide collapse of traditional authority, but within a year reactionary...
, when the Imperial cavalry general Franz Schlik defeated the Hungarian army on 8 December 1848 and 4 January 1849. The city was captured by the Hungarian army on 15 February 1849, but the Russian troops drove them back on 24 June 1849.
At the beginning of the 19th century there were three manufacturers and 460 workshops in 1828. The first factories were established in the 1840s (sugar and nail factories). The first telegram message arrived in 1856 and the railway connected the city to Miskolc
Miskolc
Miskolc is a city in northeastern Hungary, mainly with heavy industrial background. With a population close to 170,000 Miskolc is the fourth largest city of Hungary It is also the county capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and the regional centre of Northern Hungary.- Geography :Miskolc is located...
, Hungary in 1860. In 1873, there were already connections to Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
, 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 Chop
Chop, Ukraine
Chop is a city located in the Zakarpattia Oblast of western Ukraine, near the borders of Slovakia and Hungary. It is separated from the Hungarian town of Záhony by the river Tisza, and the city itself is designated as a separate raion within the oblast.-Demography:According to the Ukrainian...
(in today's Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
). The city gained a public transit system in 1891 when track was laid down for a horse-drawn tramway. The traction was electrified in 1914. In 1906, Francis II Rákóczi
Francis II Rákóczi
Francis II Rákóczi Hungarian aristocrat, he was the leader of the Hungarian uprising against the Habsburgs in 1703-11 as the prince of the Estates Confederated for Liberty of the Kingdom of Hungary. He was also Prince of Transylvania, an Imperial Prince, and a member of the Order of the Golden...
's house of Rodosto
Tekirdag
Tekirdağ , the ancient Bisanthi , is a city in Eastern Thrace, in the European part of Turkey. Tekirdağ is the capital of Tekirdağ Province, felt by the local people to be a quieter and more pleasant town than the industrial centre of Çorlu, which it administers. The city population as of 2009 was...
was reproduced in Košice and his remains were buried in the St. Elisabeth Cathedral
St. Elisabeth Cathedral
The St. Elisabeth Cathedral is a Gothic cathedral in Košice...
.
After World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
and during the gradual break-up of Austria-Hungary, the city at first became a part of the transient "Eastern Slovak Republic", declared on 11 December 1918 in Košice and earlier in Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
under the protection
Protectorate
In history, the term protectorate has two different meanings. In its earliest inception, which has been adopted by modern international law, it is an autonomous territory that is protected diplomatically or militarily against third parties by a stronger state or entity...
of Hungary. On 29 December 1918, the Czechoslovak Legions
Czechoslovak Legions
The Czechoslovak Legions were volunteer armed forces composed predominantly of Czechs and Slovaks fighting together with the Entente powers during World War I...
entered the city, making it part of the newly established Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. However, in June 1919, Košice was occupied again, as part of the Slovak Soviet Republic
Slovak Soviet Republic
The Slovak Soviet Republic comprised a very short-lived communist state in south and eastern Slovakia from 16 June to 7 July 1919, with its capital in...
, a proletarian
Proletariat
The proletariat is a term used to identify a lower social class, usually the working class; a member of such a class is proletarian...
puppet state
Puppet state
A puppet state is a nominal sovereign of a state who is de facto controlled by a foreign power. The term refers to a government controlled by the government of another country like a puppeteer controls the strings of a marionette...
of Hungary. The Czechoslovak troops secured the city for Czechoslovakia in July 1919, which was later upheld under the terms of the Treaty of Trianon
Treaty of Trianon
The Treaty of Trianon was the peace agreement signed in 1920, at the end of World War I, between the Allies of World War I and Hungary . The treaty greatly redefined and reduced Hungary's borders. From its borders before World War I, it lost 72% of its territory, which was reduced from to...
in 1920.
Košice was ceded 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...
, by 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...
, from 1938 until early 1945. The town was bombarded on 26 June 1941
Košice attack
The Kassa attack was the June 26, 1941 aerial bombing of the city of Kassa, today Košice , then a part of Hungary. This attack became the pretext for the government of Hungary to declare war on the Soviet Union, on 27 June 1941....
, in what became a welcome pretext for the Hungarian government to declare war on the Soviet Union
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
a day later. The German occupation of Hungary led to the deportation of Košice's entire Jew
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
ish population of 12,000 and an additional 2,000 from surrounding areas via cattle cars to the concentration camps
Nazi concentration camps
Nazi Germany maintained concentration camps throughout the territories it controlled. The first Nazi concentration camps set up in Germany were greatly expanded after the Reichstag fire of 1933, and were intended to hold political prisoners and opponents of the regime...
. The town was captured by the Soviets in January 1945 and for a short time it became a temporary capital city of the restored Czechoslovak Republic until the Soviet Red Army
Red Army
The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army started out as the Soviet Union's revolutionary communist combat groups during the Russian Civil War of 1918-1922. It grew into the national army of the Soviet Union. By the 1930s the Red Army was among the largest armies in history.The "Red Army" name refers to...
reached Prague
Prague
Prague is the capital and largest city of the Czech Republic. Situated in the north-west of the country on the Vltava river, the city is home to about 1.3 million people, while its metropolitan area is estimated to have a population of over 2.3 million...
. Among other acts, the Košice Government Program was declared on 5 April 1945.
After the Communist Party
Communist Party of Czechoslovakia
The Communist Party of Czechoslovakia, in Czech and in Slovak: Komunistická strana Československa was a Communist and Marxist-Leninist political party in Czechoslovakia that existed between 1921 and 1992....
seized power in Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
in February 1948, the city became part of the Eastern Bloc
Eastern bloc
The term Eastern Bloc or Communist Bloc refers to the former communist states of Eastern and Central Europe, generally the Soviet Union and the countries of the Warsaw Pact...
. Several present day cultural institutions
Cultural institutions
Cultural institutions are elements within a culture/sub-culture that are perceived to be important to, or traditionally valued among, its members for their own identity. Examples of cultural institutions in modern Western society are museums, churches, schools, work and the print media.Television...
were founded and large residential areas around the city were built. The construction and expansion of the East Slovak Ironworks caused the population to grow from 60,700 in 1950 to 235,000 in 1991. Before the breakup of Czechoslovakia (1993), it was the fifth largest city in the federation. Following the Velvet Divorce
Dissolution of Czechoslovakia
The dissolution of Czechoslovakia, which took effect on 1 January 1993, was an event that saw the self-determined separation of the federal state of Czechoslovakia. The Czech Republic and Slovakia, entities which had arisen in 1969 within the framework of Czechoslovak federalisation, became...
and creation of the Slovak Republic, Košice became the second largest city in the country and became a seat of a constitutional court. Since 1995, it has been the seat of the Archdiocese of Košice
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Košice
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Košice is a Roman Catholic archdiocese in eastern Slovakia, with its seat in Košice. It covers central and eastern parts of the Prešov and Košice regions, with an area of 10,403 km². On that area, there was a population of around 1,118,000 people, of which around...
.
Geography
Košice lies at an altitude of 206 metres (676 ft) above sea levelAbove mean sea level
The term above mean sea level refers to the elevation or altitude of any object, relative to the average sea level datum. AMSL is used extensively in radio by engineers to determine the coverage area a station will be able to reach...
and covers an area of 242.77 square kilometres (93.7 sq mi). It is located in eastern Slovakia, about 20 kilometres (12 mi) 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...
, 80 kilometres (50 mi) from the Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, and 90 kilometres (56 mi) from the Polish
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
borders. It is about 400 kilometres (249 mi) east of Slovakia's capital 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 a chain of villages connects it to Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
which is about 36 kilometres (22 mi) to the north.
Košice is situated on the Hornád River in the Košice Basin, at the easternmost reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains
Slovak Ore Mountains
Slovak Ore Mountains is an extensive mountainous region of Slovakia's Spiš and Gemer region, and in small part in northern Hungary, within the Carpathians. It is the largest mountain range in Slovakia...
. More precisely it is a subdivision of the Čierna hora mountains in the northwest and Volovské vrchy mountains in the southwest. The basin is met on the east by the Slanské vrchy mountains.
Climate
Košice lies in the north temperate zone and has a continental climateContinental climate
Continental climate is a climate characterized by important annual variation in temperature due to the lack of significant bodies of water nearby...
with four distinct seasons. It is characterized by a significant variation between hot summers and cold, snowy winters.
Demographics
Košice has a population of 233,659 (31 December 2008). 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...
, 89.1% of its 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...
, 3,8% Hungarians, 2,1% Roma, 1.2% Czechs, 0.5% Rusyns
Rusyns
Carpatho-Rusyns are a primarily diasporic ethnic group who speak an Eastern Slavic language, or Ukrainian dialect, known as Rusyn. Carpatho-Rusyns descend from a minority of Ruthenians who did not adopt the use of the ethnonym "Ukrainian" in the early twentieth century...
, 0.5% Ukrainians
Ukrainians
Ukrainians are an East Slavic ethnic group native to Ukraine, which is the sixth-largest nation in Europe. The Constitution of Ukraine applies the term 'Ukrainians' to all its citizens...
, and 0.2% Germans
Germans
The Germans are a Germanic ethnic group native to Central Europe. The English term Germans has referred to the German-speaking population of the Holy Roman Empire since the Late Middle Ages....
. The religious makeup was 58.3% Roman Catholics, 19.4% people with no religious affiliation, 7.6% Greek Catholics
Greek Catholic Church
The Greek Catholic Church consists of the Eastern Catholic Churches which follow the Byzantine liturgical tradition and are thus in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, the Pope.-List of Greek Catholic Churches:...
, and 4.1% Lutherans
Lutheranism
Lutheranism is a major branch of Western Christianity that identifies with the theology of Martin Luther, a German reformer. Luther's efforts to reform the theology and practice of the church launched the Protestant Reformation...
.
Historical demographics
| Year | Population | Year | Population | Year | Population |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1480 | 10,000 | 1890 | 28,900 | 1961 | 79,400 |
| 1800 | 6,000 | 1910 | 44,200 | 1970 | 142,200 |
| 1820 | 8,700 | 1921 | 52,900 | 1980 | 202,400 |
| 1846 | 13,700 | 1942 | 67,000 | 1991 | 235,160 |
| 1869 | 21,700 | 1950 | 60,700 | 2001 | 236,093 |
| 2008 | 233,659 |
The town had German majority in the 16th century. Cassovia consisted of 72,5% which may have been Hungarians, 13,2% Germans, 14,3% Slovaks or of uncertain origin in 1650. According to the Turkish traveler Evliya Çelebi
Evliya Çelebi
Evliya Çelebi was an Ottoman traveler who journeyed through the territory of the Ottoman Empire and neighboring lands over a period of forty years.- Life :...
, the city was inhabited by "Hungarians, Germans, Upper Hungarians" in 1661.
The linguistic makeup of the town's population underwent historical changes that alternated between a growth of the ratio of those who claimed Hungarian
Hungarian language
Hungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
and those who claimed Slovak
Slovak language
Slovak , is an Indo-European language that belongs to the West Slavic languages .Slovak is the official language of Slovakia, where it is spoken by 5 million people...
as their language. With a population of 28,884 in 1891, just under half (49.9%) of the inhabitants of Košice declared the then official Hungarian language as their main means of communication, 33.6% Slovak, and 13.5% German
German language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
; 72.2% were Roman Catholics, 11.4% Jews, 7.3% Lutherans, 6.7% Greek Catholics, and 4.3% Calvinists
Calvinism
Calvinism is a Protestant theological system and an approach to the Christian life...
. The results of this census are questioned by some historians by claiming that they were manipulated, in order to increase the percentage of Magyar population in the period of the Magyarization
Magyarization
Magyarization is a kind of assimilation or acculturation, a process by which non-Magyar elements came to adopt Magyar culture and language due to social pressure .Defiance or appeals to the Nationalities Law, met...
.
By 1910 census, which is sometimes accused of being manipulated by the ruling Hungarian bureaucracy, 75.4% of the 44,211 inhabitants claimed Hungarian, 14.8% Slovak, 7.2% German, and 1.8% Polish
Polish language
Polish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
. The Jews were split among other groups by the 1910 census, as only the most frequently used language and not ethnicity was registered. The linguistic balance within the town limits began to shift towards Slovak after World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
with Slovakization
Slovakization
Slovakization or Slovakisation is a term used to describe a cultural change in which ethnically non-Slovak people are made to become Slovak. The process can be named as 'accelerated assimilation'....
in the newly established Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
. As a consequence of the Vienna Awards
Vienna Awards
The Vienna Awards are two arbitral awards by which arbiters of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy sought to enforce peacefully the claims of Hungary on territory it had lost in 1920 when it signed the Treaty of Trianon...
, Kosice was ceded to Hungary. During the German occupation of Hungary towards the end of 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...
, approximately 10,000 Jews were deported by the Arrow Cross Party
Arrow Cross Party
The Arrow Cross Party was a national socialist party led by Ferenc Szálasi, which led in Hungary a government known as the Government of National Unity from October 15, 1944 to 28 March 1945...
and the nazis and killed in Auschwitz. The ethnic makeup of the town was dramatically changed by the persecution of the town's large Hungarian majority and their replacement with Slovak peasants from the north following mass deportations.
Economy
Košice is the economic hub of eastern SlovakiaSlovakia
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 accounts for about 9% of the Slovak gross domestic product
Gross domestic product
Gross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
. The steel mill, U.S. Steel Košice
U. S. Steel Košice, s.r.o.
U. S. Steel Košice, s.r.o. is a steel company located in Košice, Slovakia.In November 2000, the ownership of the complete metallurgical operation of former Východoslovenské železiarne Košice was transferred to the United States Steel Corporation....
with 16,000 employees, is the largest employer in the city and the second largest employer in the country. As an interesting coincidental sidenote, U.S. Steel's world headquarters in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA, is just a few hundred meters from the place where the documents were signed in 1918 giving legal authority
Rational-legal authority
Rational-legal authority is a form of leadership in which the authority of an organization or a ruling regime is largely tied to legal rationality, legal legitimacy and bureaucracy...
for the creation of the former Czechoslovakia. Other major sectors include mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering
Mechanical engineering is a discipline of engineering that applies the principles of physics and materials science for analysis, design, manufacturing, and maintenance of mechanical systems. It is the branch of engineering that involves the production and usage of heat and mechanical power for the...
, food industry
Food industry
The food production is a complex, global collective of diverse businesses that together supply much of the food energy consumed by the world population...
, services, and trade. GDP per capita
Gross domestic product
Gross domestic product refers to the market value of all final goods and services produced within a country in a given period. GDP per capita is often considered an indicator of a country's standard of living....
in 2001 was €
Euro
The euro is the official currency of the eurozone: 17 of the 27 member states of the European Union. It is also the currency used by the Institutions of the European Union. The eurozone consists of Austria, Belgium, Cyprus, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg,...
4,004, which was below Slovakia's average of €4,400. The unemployment rate
Unemployment
Unemployment , as defined by the International Labour Organization, occurs when people are without jobs and they have actively sought work within the past four weeks...
was 11.4% in September 2005, which was below the country's average 15.6% at that time.
The city has a balanced budget
Balanced budget
A balanced budget is when there is neither a budget deficit or a budget surplus – when revenues equal expenditure – particularly by a government. More generally, it refers to when there is no deficit, but possibly a surplus...
of 2.78 billion Slovak koruna
Slovak koruna
In 1993, coins were introduced in denominations of 10, 20 and 50 haliers, 1, 2, 5 and 10 korunas. The 10 and 20 halier coins were taken out of circulation on 31 December 2003....
s (almost €83 million, as of 2007) with a small surplus of 25 million korunas. The budget for 2008 projects spending of 2.82 billion korunas.
Sights
The city center and most historical monuments are located in or around the Main Street (Hlavná ulica) and the town has the largest Town Monument Reserve in Slovakia.The dominant monument of the city is Slovakia's largest church, the 14th century Gothic
Gothic architecture
Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture....
St. Elisabeth Cathedral
St. Elisabeth Cathedral
The St. Elisabeth Cathedral is a Gothic cathedral in Košice...
, it is the easternmost cathedral of western style Gothic architecture in Central Europe
Central Europe
Central Europe or alternatively Middle Europe is a region of the European continent lying between the variously defined areas of Eastern and Western Europe...
, and is the cathedral of the Archdiocese of Košice
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Košice
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Košice is a Roman Catholic archdiocese in eastern Slovakia, with its seat in Košice. It covers central and eastern parts of the Prešov and Košice regions, with an area of 10,403 km². On that area, there was a population of around 1,118,000 people, of which around...
. In addition to St. Elisabeth, there are the 14th century St. Michael Chapel
St. Michael Chapel
The St. Michael Chapel is a Gothic Chapel in Košice, Slovakia.It was probably erected in the first half of the 14th century. It was built as a cemetery chapel inside the town walls in the place of the present-day park at Hlavná ulica...
, the St. Urban Tower
St. Urban Tower
The Urban Tower in Košice, Slovakia is originally a Gothic prismatic campanile with a pyramidal roof. It was erected in the 14th century....
, and the Neo-baroque State Theater
State Theatre Košice
The State Theatre, Košice is situated in the centre of Košice, Slovakia.The representative building of the State Theatre was built in a Neo-baroque style according to projects of Adolf Lang during the years 1879–1899....
in the center of town. The Executioner's Bastion
Executioner's Bastion
The Executioner’s Bastion is a bastion situated at Stará baštová Street in the historic center of Košice, Slovakia.Its name is derived from the fact that the bastion was situated near a medieval executioner’s house. It is semicircular building with eight cannon chambers erected around the year 1500...
and the Mill Bastion are remains the city fortification system. The Church of the Virgin Mary's Birth
Greek-Catholic Church of Virgin Mary's Birth (Košice)
The Greek Catholic Cathedral Church of Virgin Mary's Birth is located at Moyzesova Street in the historic centre of Košice, Slovakia. It is the cathedral of the Eparchy of Košice....
is the cathedral for the Greek Catholic Eparchy of Košice
Eparchy of Košice
The Eparchy of Košice is an eparchy of the Slovak Greek Catholic Church which covers the territory of the Košice Region in Slovakia. The eparchy is suffragan to the metropolitan Archeparchy of Prešov. It was established on 30 January 2008 by Pope Benedict XVI on the basis of the Apostolic Exarchate...
. Visitors can discover the beauty of several other monuments and buildings of great cultural and historical interest: the old Town Hall, the Old University, the Captain's Palace, Liberation Square, etc., as well as several galleries (the East Slovak Gallery
East Slovak Gallery
The East Slovak Gallery in Košice was founded in 1951 as the first regional gallery in Slovakia.The Baroque-Classical palace-type building was erected in 1779 for the needs of the Abov comitatus council. The building continued to serve as a comitatus hall until 1928...
) and museums (the East Slovak Museum
East Slovak Museum
The East Slovak Museum in Košice, Slovakia, is one of the oldest Slovak museums; it was founded in 1872.A neo-Renaissance building was erected in the early 20th century. It was the first building in the town designed to serve its needs as a museum...
). There is a Municipal Park
Urban park
An urban park, is also known as a municipal park or a public park, public open space or municipal gardens , is a park in cities and other incorporated places to offer recreation and green space to residents of, and visitors to, the municipality...
located between the historical city center and the main railway station and the city has its own zoo
Košice Zoo
-History:Construction of the zoo started in 1979, and the zoo opened to the public in 1985 with only 23 species. A petting zoo was opened for children in 2000.-Animals:...
, located northwest of the city, in the borough of Kavečany
Kavecany
Kavečany is a city part of Košice, Slovakia. Before 1976, it was a separate municipality.It's known mostly as a place for recreation and relaxation...
.
Sacral buildings
|
Holy Spirit Church (Košice) The Holy Spirit Church or Hospital Church of the Holy Spirit is the eldest building of the city part of Košice-Juh . It is located at beginning of Južná trieda , close to the historic centre of medieval Košice.It is a baroque church erected between 1730 and 1733... Plague Chapel of St. Rosalie The Plague Chapel of St. Rosalie in Košice was built at the bottom of Red bank, according to work of T. Tornyossy and J. Goresch , near the cemetery in 1714–1715 as the memorial of the plague from 1710–1711. The chapel was successfully erected in 1785, thanks to the foundation of priest Józef... Premonstratensian Church (Košice) The Premonstratensian church , initially Jesuit church , is the most valuable Baroque object of Košice, Slovakia, especially notable for its interior.... , former Jesuit Church Orthodox synagogue in Košice The Orthodox synagogue in Košice was built in the years 1926-1927 at Puškinova Street in the historic centre of Košice, Slovakia.The Orthodox Jews built a representative synagogue with 800 seats with a school and the Talmud Torah school headed by rabbis... |
Performing arts
There are several theaters in Košice. The Košice State TheaterState Theatre Košice
The State Theatre, Košice is situated in the centre of Košice, Slovakia.The representative building of the State Theatre was built in a Neo-baroque style according to projects of Adolf Lang during the years 1879–1899....
was founded in 1945 (then under the name of the East Slovak National Theater). It consists of three ensembles: drama, opera, and ballet. Other theaters include the Marionette Theater and the Old Town Theater (Staromestské divadlo). Due to the presence of Hungarian
Hungarians in Slovakia
Hungarians in Slovakia are the largest ethnic minority of the country, numbering 520,528 people or 9.7% of population . They are concentrated mostly in the southern part of the country, near the border with Hungary...
and Roma minorities, it also hosts the Hungarian "Thália" theater and the professional Roma theater "Romathan".
Košice is the home of the State Philharmonic Košice (Štátna filharmónia Košice), established in 1968 as the second professional symphonic orchestra
Orchestra
An orchestra is a sizable instrumental ensemble that contains sections of string, brass, woodwind, and percussion instruments. The term orchestra derives from the Greek ορχήστρα, the name for the area in front of an ancient Greek stage reserved for the Greek chorus...
in Slovakia. It organizes festivals such as the Košice Music Spring Festival
Košice Music Spring Festival
The Košice Music Spring Festival is an annual classical music festival held in Košice, Slovakia for one week during the month of May. Founded in 1956, the festival is one of the oldest music festivals in Slovakia and is considered the highlight of Košice's concert season...
, the International Organ Music
Organ (music)
The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
Festival, and the Festival of Contemporary Art
Contemporary art
Contemporary art can be defined variously as art produced at this present point in time or art produced since World War II. The definition of the word contemporary would support the first view, but museums of contemporary art commonly define their collections as consisting of art produced...
.
Museums and galleries
Some of the museums and galleries based in the city include the East Slovak MuseumEast Slovak Museum
The East Slovak Museum in Košice, Slovakia, is one of the oldest Slovak museums; it was founded in 1872.A neo-Renaissance building was erected in the early 20th century. It was the first building in the town designed to serve its needs as a museum...
(Vychodoslovenské múzeum), originally established in 1872 under the name of the Upper Hungarian Museum. The Slovak Technical Museum
Slovak Technical Museum
The Slovak Technical Museum is a museum based in the eastern Slovak city of Košice, with branches throughout Slovakia. It was established in 1947 and opened to the public in 1948 under name Technical Museum , renamed in 1983 to the current name.-Museums:The main museum has expositions focused on...
(Slovenské technické múzeum) with planetarium
Planetarium
A planetarium is a theatre built primarily for presenting educational and entertaining shows about astronomy and the night sky, or for training in celestial navigation...
, established in 1947, is the only museum in the technical category in Slovakia that specializes in the history and traditions of science and technology. The East Slovak Gallery
East Slovak Gallery
The East Slovak Gallery in Košice was founded in 1951 as the first regional gallery in Slovakia.The Baroque-Classical palace-type building was erected in 1779 for the needs of the Abov comitatus council. The building continued to serve as a comitatus hall until 1928...
(Východoslovenská galéria) was established in 1951 as the first regional gallery with the aim to document artistic life in present day eastern Slovakia.
Media
The first and the oldest international festival of local TV broadcasters (founded in 1995) - The Golden BeggarGolden Beggar
The Golden Beggar is the first and the oldest international festival of local TV broadcasters, which takes place every year in June in Košice, Slovakia....
, takes place every year in June in Košice. The Hungarian writer Sandor Marai
Sándor Márai
Sándor Márai was a Hungarian writer and journalist.-Biography:...
was born in this town and wrote about it in his autobiography.
Sports
The oldest annual marathonMarathon
The marathon is a long-distance running event with an official distance of 42.195 kilometres , that is usually run as a road race...
in Europe and second oldest in the entire world, after the world famous Boston Marathon
Boston Marathon
The Boston Marathon is an annual marathon hosted by the U.S. city of Boston, Massachusetts, on Patriots' Day, the third Monday of April. Begun in 1897 and inspired by the success of the first modern-day marathon competition in the 1896 Summer Olympics, the Boston Marathon is the world's oldest...
, is the Košice Peace Marathon
Košice Peace Marathon
The Košice Peace Marathon is the oldest marathon in Europe and the second-oldest in the world .The first course was held in 1924. The marathon takes place each year on the first October Sunday...
, founded in 1924. It is run in the city every year on the first Sunday of October.
Ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
club HC Košice
HC Košice
Hockey Club Košice is a professional ice hockey team playing in the Slovak Extraliga and is one of the most successful hockey teams in Slovakia and the former Czechoslovakia.-Honours:* Czechoslovak First Ice Hockey League* 1985–86, 1987–88...
is one of the most successful Slovak hockey clubs. It plays in Slovakia's highest league, the Extraliga
Slovak Extraliga
Slovak Extraliga is the name of the highest-level ice hockey league in Slovakia. As of 2009, it is ranked by the IIHF as the fifth strongest league in Europe. The name of the league is leased to sponsor and changes frequently. From 1993/94 to 1997/98 season it was called Extraliga, then the name...
, and has won six titles in 1995, 1996, 1999, 2009, 2010 and 2011, and two titles (1986 and 1988) in the former Czechoslovak Extraliga. Since 2006, their home is the Steel Aréna
Steel Aréna
Steel Aréna – Košický štadión L. Trojáka is the new home arena of the ice hockey club HC Košice....
which has a capacity of 8,343 spectators. Football club
Football team
A football team is the collective name given to a group of players selected together in the various team sports known as football.Such teams could be selected to play in an against an opposing team, to represent a football club, group, state or nation, an All-star team or even selected as a...
MFK Košice
MFK Košice
MFK Košice is a professional Slovak first division football club based in Košice. The club, founded in 1952, won the Slovak League twice, the Slovak Cup four times and the Czechoslovak Cup once. The most successful era of the club has been in 70's and 90's years of past century which they have...
currently plays in the Corgoň Liga. It was the first club from Slovakia reach the group stages of the UEFA Champions League
UEFA Champions League
The UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
and is a two times domestic league winner (1998 and 1999). After relegation
Promotion and relegation
In many sports leagues around the world, promotion and relegation is a process that takes place at the end of each season. Through it, teams are transferred between divisions based on their performance that season...
in 2003, the club returned to the Corgoň Liga in 2005. Other clubs in the city include the women's basketball team Good Angels Košice.
Košice is host to the 2011 IIHF World Championship in ice hockey.
Government
Košice is the seat of the Košice RegionKošice Region
The Košice Region is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions. It consists of 11 districts .-Geography:It is located in the southern part of eastern Slovakia and covers an area of 6,752 km²...
and since 2002 it is the seat of the autonomous Košice Self-governing Region
Košice Self-governing Region
The Košice Self-governing Region or the Košice Higher Territorial Unit is one of Slovakia's eight "self-governing regions" whose territory is identical with that of the administrative Košice Region....
. Additionally, it is the seat of the Slovak Constitutional Court
Constitutional Court of Slovakia
The Constitutional Court of Slovakia is a special court established by the Constitution of Slovakia. Its seat is in Košice.-Tasks:...
. The city hosts a regional branch of the National Bank of Slovakia
National Bank of Slovakia
National Bank of Slovakia , is the central bank of Slovakia, which is a member of the European Union and the European System of Central Banks. Since 1 January 2009, it has also been a member of Eurosystem.-History:...
(Národná banka Slovenska) and consulates of Hungary, Belgium, Spain, Russia and Turkey.
The local government is composed of a mayor , a city council
City council
A city council or town council is the legislative body that governs a city, town, municipality or local government area.-Australia & NZ:Because of the differences in legislation between the States, the exact definition of a City Council varies...
(mestské zastupiteľstvo), a city board (mestská rada), city commissions (Komisie mestského zastupiteľstva), and a city magistrate's office (magistrát). The directly elected
Direct election
Direct election is a term describing a system of choosing political officeholders in which the voters directly cast ballots for the person, persons or political party that they desire to see elected. The method by which the winner or winners of a direct election are chosen depends upon the...
mayor is the head and chief executive of the city. The term of office is four years. The previous mayor, František Knapík
František Knapík
František Knapík is the current mayor of the Slovak city of Košice and a member of the Christian Democratic Movement ....
, was nominated in 2006 by a coalition of the political parties KDH
Christian Democratic Movement
The Christian Democratic Movement is a political party in Slovakia.It is represented in the parliament. It was also member of the government coalition, but it left that coalition on 7 February 2006 due to disputes over an international treaty between Slovakia and the Holy See dealing with the...
, SMK
Party of the Hungarian Coalition
The Party of the Hungarian Coalition, officially registered under the compound name Strana maďarskej koalície – Magyar Koalíció Pártja, is a political party in Slovakia, for the ethnic Hungarian minority...
, and SDKÚ-DS. In 2010 he finished his function. The current mayor is MUDr. Richard Raši, PhD., MPH. He was inaugurated to the function on 21 December 2010.
Administratively, the city of Košice is divided into four districts: Košice I
Košice I
Košice I is adistrict in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice II, Košice III, Košice IV and Košice-okolie districts.Until 1918, the district was part of theHungarian countyof Abaúj-Torna....
(covering the center and northern parts), Košice II
Košice II
Košice II is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice I, Košice IV and Košice-okolie districts. Until 1918, the district was part of the Hungarian county of Abaúj-Torna.-City parts:* Lorinčík...
(covering the southwest), Košice III
Košice III
Košice III is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice I, Košice IV and Košice-okolie districts. Until 1918, the district was mostly part of the Hungarian county of Abov.-City parts:...
(east), and Košice IV
Košice IV
Košice IV is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice I, Košice II, Košice III and Košice-okolie districts. Until 1918, the district was mostly part of the Hungarian county of Abov.-City parts:...
(south) and further into 22 boroughs (wards):
| District | Boroughs |
|---|---|
| Košice I Košice I Košice I is adistrict in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice II, Košice III, Košice IV and Košice-okolie districts.Until 1918, the district was part of theHungarian countyof Abaúj-Torna.... |
Džungľa, Kavečany Kavecany Kavečany is a city part of Košice, Slovakia. Before 1976, it was a separate municipality.It's known mostly as a place for recreation and relaxation... , Sever, Sídlisko Ťahanovce Sídlisko Tahanovce Sídlisko Ťahanovce [pronunciation: 'seedlisko 'tyahano-utse], literally: Ťahanovce Housing Estate, is a city part of Košice, Slovakia.Construction of the microdistrict began in May 1985. Today there are more than 22,000 people living in Sídlisko Ťahanovce... , Staré Mesto, Ťahanovce Tahanovce Ťahanovce [pronunciation: 'tyahanoutse] is a city part of Košice, Slovakia.The first written mention about Ťahanovce is dated back to 1263. It was an independent village until 1969 when it was connected with Košice... |
| Košice II Košice II Košice II is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice I, Košice IV and Košice-okolie districts. Until 1918, the district was part of the Hungarian county of Abaúj-Torna.-City parts:* Lorinčík... |
Lorinčík, Luník IX Luník IX Luník IX is a borough in the city of Košice, Slovakia, in the Košice II district. It is located in the western-central part of the city, surrounded by the boroughs of Pereš, Myslava, Barca, Juh and Západ.-Characteristics:... , Myslava, Pereš Peres Peres is a Portuguese and Galician surname. Originally a patronymic, meaning Son of Pedro or Son of Pero , it has another version: Pires... , Poľov, Sídlisko KVP, Šaca Šaca Šaca is a borough of Košice, Slovakia.The first written record about Šaca dates back to 1275. Since 1427 the landowners of Šaca were the family of Semsey which built a castle here in the 15th century, however, it was pulled down on the order of the King Matthias Corvinus... , Západ |
| Košice III Košice III Košice III is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice I, Košice IV and Košice-okolie districts. Until 1918, the district was mostly part of the Hungarian county of Abov.-City parts:... |
Sídlisko dargovských hrdinov, Košická Nová Ves Košická Nová Ves Košická Nová Ves is a city ward of Košice, Slovakia.It was originally a separated municipality until 1968 when it was joined to the city. It became a city ward in 1990. The first mention of Košická Nová Ves is from 1297. In that year, St. Ladislav's church was built there... |
| Košice IV Košice IV Košice IV is a district in the Košice Region of eastern Slovakia, in the city of Košice. It is bordered by the Košice I, Košice II, Košice III and Košice-okolie districts. Until 1918, the district was mostly part of the Hungarian county of Abov.-City parts:... |
Barca Košice-Barca Barca is a city part of Košice, Slovakia.It was originally a village in its own right. The first written record about Barca dates back to 1215... , Juh Košice-Juh Košice-Juh is part of the city of Košice, Slovakia. It is located in the southern area of the town.The oldest building there is the Holy Spirit Church, erected in 1733.-Statistics:* Area: 10.3 km²* Population: 23,561... , Krásna Krásna Krásna is part of the city of Košice, Slovakia.The first written mention of Krásna dates back to 1143. It was an independent village until 1945, when it was connected with Košice. Krásna is home to approximately 3,500 people and it has a rural character.... , Nad jazerom, Šebastovce, Vyšné Opátske |
Education
Košice is the second university townCollege town
A college town or university town is a community which is dominated by its university population...
in Slovakia, after Bratislava. The Technical University of Košice
Technical University of Košice
Technical University of Košice is the second greatest university of technology in Slovakia.- University structure :* Faculty of Mining, Ecology, Process Control and Geotechnology* Faculty of Metallurgy...
is its largest university, with 16,015 students, including 867 doctoral students. A second major university is the Pavol Jozef Šafárik University
University of Pavol Jozef Safarik
The Pavol Jozef Šafárik University in Košice is a university located in Košice, Slovakia. It was founded in 1959 and is organized in 5 faculties...
, with 7,403 students, including 527 doctoral students. Other universities and colleges include the University of Veterinary Medicine in Košice
University of Veterinary Medicine in Košice
The University of Veterinary Medicine and Pharmacy in Košice is the only institution in the Slovak Republic offering higher education in the veterinary field. It has been providing the veterinary education in English for 15 years. Nowadays the University offers two English study programmes: 6-year...
(1,381 students) and the private Security Management College in Košice (1,168 students). Additionally, the University of Economics in Bratislava
University of Economics in Bratislava
University of Economics in Bratislava is the oldest university of economics in Slovakia.-History:The university was established in 1940 as a private university under the name...
, the Slovak University of Agriculture
Slovak University of Agriculture
Slovak University of Agriculture in Nitra is a public university in Nitra, Slovakia. It offers Bachelor's, Engineer's and Doctoral degrees in six faculties:*Faculty of Agrobiology and Food Resources*Faculty of Biotechnology and Food Sciences...
in Nitra
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...
, and the Catholic University in Ružomberok
Catholic University in Ružomberok
The Catholic University in Ružomberok is a university in the town of Ružomberok in northern Slovakia. It was established by law from 2000 and officially was established on 10 July 2000.The university has four faculties:*Faculty of Theology...
each have a branch based in the city.
There are 38 public elementary school
Elementary school
An elementary school or primary school is an institution where children receive the first stage of compulsory education known as elementary or primary education. Elementary school is the preferred term in some countries, particularly those in North America, where the terms grade school and grammar...
s, six private elementary schools, and three religious elementary schools. Overall, they enroll 20,158 pupils. The city's system of secondary education
Secondary education
Secondary education is the stage of education following primary education. Secondary education includes the final stage of compulsory education and in many countries it is entirely compulsory. The next stage of education is usually college or university...
(some middle school
Middle school
Middle School and Junior High School are levels of schooling between elementary and high schools. Most school systems use one term or the other, not both. The terms are not interchangeable...
s and all high schools) consist of 20 gymnasia
Gymnasium (school)
A gymnasium is a type of school providing secondary education in some parts of Europe, comparable to English grammar schools or sixth form colleges and U.S. college preparatory high schools. The word γυμνάσιον was used in Ancient Greece, meaning a locality for both physical and intellectual...
with 7,692 students, 24 specialized high school
High school
High school is a term used in parts of the English speaking world to describe institutions which provide all or part of secondary education. The term is often incorporated into the name of such institutions....
s with 8,812 students, and 13 vocational school
Vocational school
A vocational school , providing vocational education, is a school in which students are taught the skills needed to perform a particular job...
s with 6,616 students.
Transport
Public Transport in Košice is managed by Dopravný podnik mesta Košice (literally the Public TransportPublic transport
Public transport is a shared passenger transportation service which is available for use by the general public, as distinct from modes such as taxicab, car pooling or hired buses which are not shared by strangers without private arrangement.Public transport modes include buses, trolleybuses, trams...
Company of the city of Košice). The municipal mass transit system is the oldest one in present day Slovakia, with the first horse-car line beginning operation in 1891 (electrified in 1914). Today, the city's public transportation system is composed of buses (in use since 1950s), trams, and trolleybuses (since 1993).
Košice railway station
Košice railway station
Košice railway station serves the city of Košice, seat of the Košice Region, eastern Slovakia.Opened in 1860, the station is the eastern terminus of the Košice–Žilina railway, which forms part of Slovakia's main east-west rail corridor...
is a rail hub of eastern Slovakia. The city is connected by rail to 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...
, Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
, Čierna nad Tisou
Cierna nad Tisou
Čierna nad Tisou is a town and municipality in the Trebišov District in the Košice Region of extreme south-eastern Slovakia, near the Tisa river.-History:The town and municipality is one of the newest in the Košice Region established in 1828....
, Humenné
Humenné
Humenné is a town in the Prešov Region in eastern Slovakia and the second largest town of the historic Zemplín region. It lies at the volcanic Vihorlat mountains and at the confluence of the Laborec and Cirocha Rivers.-Characteristics:...
, Miskolc
Miskolc
Miskolc is a city in northeastern Hungary, mainly with heavy industrial background. With a population close to 170,000 Miskolc is the fourth largest city of Hungary It is also the county capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and the regional centre of Northern Hungary.- Geography :Miskolc is located...
(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...
), and Zvolen
Zvolen
Zvolen |Slatina]] rivers, close to Banská Bystrica. With its ancient castle, the town has a historical center, which represents the seat of an okres .-History:...
. There is a broad gauge track from the Ukraine
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
, leading to the steel mill
U. S. Steel Košice, s.r.o.
U. S. Steel Košice, s.r.o. is a steel company located in Košice, Slovakia.In November 2000, the ownership of the complete metallurgical operation of former Východoslovenské železiarne Košice was transferred to the United States Steel Corporation....
southwest of the city. The D1 motorway connects the city to Prešov
Prešov
Prešov Historically, the city has been known in German as Eperies , Eperjes in Hungarian, Fragopolis in Latin, Preszów in Polish, Peryeshis in Romany, Пряшев in Russian and Пряшів in Rusyn and Ukrainian.-Characteristics:The city is a showcase of Baroque, Rococo and Gothic...
and more motorways and roads are planned around the city.
The Košice international airport
Košice International Airport
Košice International Airport serves Košice, Slovakia and is the second largest international airport in Slovakia. It is located to the south of St. Elisabeth Cathedral, above sea level, covering an area of . It serves both scheduled and chartered, domestic and international flights...
is located south of the city. Regular direct flights from the airport are available to: Bratislava, Vienna, and Prague. Regular flights are provided by Czech Airlines
Czech Airlines
Czech Airlines j.s.c. , trading as Czech Airlines , is the national airline of the Czech Republic and temporary in Slovakia with its head office on the grounds of Ruzyně Airport in Ruzyně, Prague...
, Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines
Austrian Airlines is the flag carrier airline of Austria, headquartered in Office Park 2 on the grounds of Vienna International Airport in Schwechat, Wien-Umgebung and a subsidiary of Deutsche Lufthansa AG. Together with regional subsidiary Tyrolean Airways and charter arm Lauda Air, it operates...
, and Danube Wings. At its peak in year 2008, it served 590,919 passengers but the number has since declined.
Twin towns — sister cities
Košice has several partner towns and sister cities around the world:| Budapest Budapest Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter... , 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... (since 1997) Bursa, Turkey Turkey Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe... (since 2000) Cottbus Cottbus Cottbus is a city in Brandenburg, Germany, situated around southeast of Berlin, on the River Spree. As of , its population was .- History :... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... (since 1992) Miskolc Miskolc Miskolc is a city in northeastern Hungary, mainly with heavy industrial background. With a population close to 170,000 Miskolc is the fourth largest city of Hungary It is also the county capital of Borsod-Abaúj-Zemplén and the regional centre of Northern Hungary.- Geography :Miskolc is located... , 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... (since 1997) Niš Niš Niš is the largest city of southern Serbia and third-largest city in Serbia . According to the data from 2011, the city of Niš has a population of 177,972 inhabitants, while the city municipality has a population of 257,867. The city covers an area of about 597 km2, including the urban area,... , Serbia Serbia Serbia , officially the Republic of Serbia , is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeast Europe, covering the southern part of the Carpathian basin and the central part of the Balkans... (since 2001) |
Ostrava Ostrava Ostrava is the third largest city in the Czech Republic and the second largest urban agglomeration after Prague. Located close to the Polish border, it is also the administrative center of the Moravian-Silesian Region and of the Municipality with Extended Competence. Ostrava was candidate for the... , Czech Republic Czech Republic The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest.... (since 2001) Plovdiv Plovdiv Plovdiv is the second-largest city in Bulgaria after Sofia with a population of 338,153 inhabitants according to Census 2011. Plovdiv's history spans some 6,000 years, with traces of a Neolithic settlement dating to roughly 4000 BC; it is one of the oldest cities in Europe... , Bulgaria Bulgaria Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east... (since 2000) Raahe Raahe Raahe is a town and municipality of Finland. Founded by Swedish statesman and Governor General of Finland Count Per Brahe the younger in 1649, it is one of 10 historic wooden towns remaining in Finland. Examples of other Finnish historic wooden towns are Kaskinen , Old Rauma, Porvoo , Jakobstad ,... , Finland Finland Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside... (since 1987) Rzeszów Rzeszów Rzeszów is a city in southeastern Poland with a population of 179,455 in 2010. It is located on both sides of the Wisłok River, in the heartland of the Sandomierska Valley... , Poland Poland Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north... (since 1991) Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg Saint Petersburg is a city and a federal subject of Russia located on the Neva River at the head of the Gulf of Finland on the Baltic Sea... , Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... (since 1995) |
Uzhhorod Uzhhorod Uzhhorod or Uzhgorod is a city located in western Ukraine, at the border with Slovakia and near the border with Hungary. It is the administrative center of the Zakarpattia Oblast , as well as the administrative center of the surrounding Uzhhorodskyi Raion within the oblast... , Ukraine Ukraine Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia... (since 1993) Verona Verona Verona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona... , Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... (since 1992) Mobile Mobile, Alabama Mobile is the third most populous city in the Southern US state of Alabama and is the county seat of Mobile County. It is located on the Mobile River and the central Gulf Coast of the United States. The population within the city limits was 195,111 during the 2010 census. It is the largest... , United States United States The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district... (since 2000) Vysoké Tatry Vysoké Tatry (town) Vysoké Tatry , informally Mesto Vysoké Tatry , is a town at the feet of the Slovak part of High Tatras in Slovakia including all the major resorts in that region... , Slovakia 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... (since 2006) Wuppertal Wuppertal Wuppertal is a city in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located in and around the Wupper river valley, and is situated east of the city of Düsseldorf and south of the Ruhr area. With a population of approximately 350,000, it is the largest city in the Bergisches Land... , Germany Germany Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate... (since 1980) |
External links
- Official website of the town of Košice
- Official website of the European Capital of Culture - Kosice 2013
- Košice Tourist Board and Visitor Centre - official travel information
- DPMK - Public Transport Office Site
- Official Tourist guide & website
- Cassovia.info Photos and history of Košice
- Tourist guide
- Tourist guide
- Online information portal of Kosice metropolitan area