Rače
Encyclopedia
Rače is a settlement in and the administrative centre of the municipality
of Rače-Fram
in northeastern Slovenia
. It lies under the eastern Pohorje
hills on the edge of the plain on the right bank of the Drava
River to the south of Maribor
. The area is part of the traditional region of Lower Styria
. The municipality is now included in the Drava statistical region
.
Rače Castle is a 16th-century castle
to the west of the settlement. It was built between 1528 and 1533 and was originally surrounded by a moat
. In the 17th century two round towers and a chapel
dedicated to Saint John of Nepomuk
were added to the building. A square tower on the opposite side of the building only dates to 1915.
Municipality
A municipality is essentially an urban administrative division having corporate status and usually powers of self-government. It can also be used to mean the governing body of a municipality. A municipality is a general-purpose administrative subdivision, as opposed to a special-purpose district...
of Rače-Fram
Race-Fram
Rače-Fram is a municipality to the south of Maribor in northeastern Slovenia. Its administrative centre is the settlement of Rače. The area was traditionally was part of the Lower Styria region. It is now included in the Drava statistical region. The municipality covers an area of 52 km2 and...
in northeastern Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
. It lies under the eastern Pohorje
Pohorje
Pohorje is a mountain range in northern Slovenia, near the towns of Dravograd and Maribor. Made of metamorphic rock, it is geologically part of the Central Eastern Alps, though due to its location south of the Drava River it is commonly regarded as a Southern Limestone Alps range.-Peaks:The most...
hills on the edge of the plain on the right bank of the Drava
Drava
Drava or Drave is a river in southern Central Europe, a tributary of the Danube. It sources in Toblach/Dobbiaco, Italy, and flows east through East Tirol and Carinthia in Austria, into Slovenia , and then southeast, passing through Croatia and forming most of the border between Croatia and...
River to the south of Maribor
Maribor
Maribor is the second largest city in Slovenia with 157,947 inhabitants . Maribor is also the largest and the capital city of Slovenian region Lower Styria and the seat of the Municipality of Maribor....
. The area is part of the traditional region of Lower Styria
Lower Styria
Lower Styria or Slovenian Styria is a traditional region in northeastern Slovenia, comprising the southern third of the former Duchy of Styria. The population of Lower Styria in its historical boundaries amounts to around 705,000 inhabitants, or 34.5% of the population of Slovenia...
. The municipality is now included in the Drava statistical region
Podravska statistical region
The Drava statistical region is a statistical region in Slovenia. The largest town in the region is Maribor. Its name comes from the Drava River and includes land on both banks along its course through Slovenia as well as the Pohorje mountains in the northeast of the region. The Drava is used for...
.
Rače Castle is a 16th-century castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
to the west of the settlement. It was built between 1528 and 1533 and was originally surrounded by a moat
Moat
A moat is a deep, broad ditch, either dry or filled with water, that surrounds a castle, other building or town, historically to provide it with a preliminary line of defence. In some places moats evolved into more extensive water defences, including natural or artificial lakes, dams and sluices...
. In the 17th century two round towers and a chapel
Chapel
A chapel is a building used by Christians as a place of fellowship and worship. It may be part of a larger structure or complex, such as a church, college, hospital, palace, prison or funeral home, located on board a military or commercial ship, or it may be an entirely free-standing building,...
dedicated to Saint John of Nepomuk
John of Nepomuk
John of Nepomuk is a national saint of the Czech Republic, who was drowned in the Vltava river at the behest of Wenceslaus, King of the Romans and King of Bohemia. Later accounts state that he was the confessor of the queen of Bohemia and refused to divulge the secrets of the confessional...
were added to the building. A square tower on the opposite side of the building only dates to 1915.