Hviezdoslavovo námestie (Bratislava)

Hviezdoslavovo námestie ('Hviezdoslav Square') is a town square in Bratislava. It is located in the Old Town, between the New Bridge and the Slovak National Theater. The square is named after Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav. This square has existed in the Kingdom of Hungary for 1000 years.

Hviezdoslav Square

History
Statue of Hviezdoslav

Previous names of the square include:[1] (Hungarian: Kossuth Lajos tér-German: Kossuth Lajos platz, Hungarian: Radetzky tér-German: Radetzky platz, Hungarian: Séta tér-German: Promenade)

Many medieval houses were built there. The northern part contains the houses Kőszeghy, Eszterházy, Széchenyi, Stáhl, Záborszky, Pálffy, Sulkovszky Maldeghem, Malatinszky, and Werner. The southern part holds the houses Spineger, Gervay, Löw-Palugyay, Kozics, Wigand, Adler, Pollák, and Sprinzl.[2] The most notable buildings are the Cathédrale Notre Dame Cloister and Slovak National Theater, which can be found in the eastern part. Earlier, the most important noblemen sent their daughters to learn in this cloister, for example, Pálffy, Forgách, Harrach and Lichtenstein.

On March 17, 1848, Hungarian national leader Lajos Kossuth proclaimed from Hotel Zöldfa to the assembling mass because Ferdinand V signed March laws at the Primate's Palace last day.[3] The first Hungarian fencing school's practicing hall was there.[4] Lajos Kossuth, Franz Joseph, Albert Einstein, and Alfred Nobel stayed at this hotel. This hotel was today's HotelCarlton's place.[5]

In 1911, Sándor Petőfi's sculpture was erected opposite what became Slovak National Theater. It was unsuccessfully attacked with dynamite after the Czechoslovak army occupied the city in 1918.[6][7] After this event, the sculpture was boarded over until its removal.[8]

The square underwent major reconstruction at the end of the 20th century. Before reconstruction, it looked like a small city park; now it looks like a city promenade.

On February 24, 2005, US President George W. Bush gave a public speech in Hviezdoslav Square during his visit to Bratislava for the Slovakia Summit 2005 with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Configuration

The square is primarily a pedestrian zone with a lot of green. A podium occupies the central part for cultural events, and two parallel fountains run along the square. Close to the theater is the larger than life-sized statue of Hviezdoslav.

Important buildings
Building of the Slovak National Theater (opera)

Probably the best-known building is the old headquarters of the Slovak National Theater (opera). On the southern side are the Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel, as well as the German and American embassies. On the northern side are many bars and restaurants.

References
  1. Varga 1995, p. 74.
  2. Ortvay 1991, p. 83.
  3. Varga 1995, p. 15.
  4. Ortvay 1991, p. 303.
  5. Varga 1995, p. 75.
  6. "A vándorló Petőfi". Madách-Posonium Kft. n.d. Archived from the original on January 24, 2005. Retrieved July 20, 2008.
  7. Keszeli 2004, pp. 122, 150, 154.
  8. Keszeli 2004, pp. 150, 154.

Bibliography
  • Keszeli, Ferenc (2004). Pozsony... Anno... Századfordulós évtizedek, hangulatok képes levelezõlapokon (in Hungarian) (1st ed.). Pozsony: Méry-Ratio. ISBN 80-88837-49-9.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Varga, Erzsébet (1995). Pozsony (in Hungarian) (1st ed.). Pozsony: Madách-Posonium. ISBN 80-7089-245-5.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  • Ortvay, Tivadar (1991). Pozsony város utcái és terei (in Hungarian) (reprint ed.). Budapest: Püski Kiadó Kft. ISBN 963-7845-65-8.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
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