Pezinok (; hu, Bazin; german: Bösing; lat, Bazinium) is a town in southwestern

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...

. It is roughly northeast of

Bratislava Bratislava (, also ; ; german: Preßburg/Pressburg ; hu, Pozsony) is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approximately 140% of ...

and, as of December 2018, had a population of 23,002. Pezinok lies near the Little Carpathians and thrives mainly on viticulture and agriculture, as well as on brick-making and ceramic(s) production.

History

From the second half of the 10th century until 1918, it was part of the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coronation of the Hungarian monarch, c ...

. Pezinok, or at least its surroundings, was for the first time mentioned in 1208 under name "''terra Bozin''". During the next few centuries, the town changed from a mining settlement to a vineyard town. It gained the status of a free royal town on 14 June 1647. Pezinok had its most glorious era of wealth and prosperity in the 17th and 18th centuries when it was also one of the richest towns in the Kingdom of Hungary. Its wealth was based on the production of quality wines. In the 19th century, the town slowly began to industrialize: the first

sulphuric acid Sulfuric acid (American spelling and the preferred IUPAC name) or sulphuric acid ( Commonwealth spelling), known in antiquity as oil of vitriol, is a mineral acid composed of the elements sulfur, oxygen and hydrogen, with the molecular for ...

factory in Hungary or the known brickworks were established here. It boomed further after it was connected to the railway. After the breakup of

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

in 1918/1920, the town became part of the newly created

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

. In the first half of the 20th century, it was declining, vineyard production was declining, forcing many inhabitants to emigrate. It is growing again after the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

Geography and tourism

Pezinok lies at an altitude of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance ( height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''. Th ...

and covers an area of . It is located in the

Danubian Lowland ::''The Serbian lowland is treated under Danube Plain (Serbia)'' The Danubian Lowland or Danube Lowland () is the name of the part of Little Alföld (Slovak: ''Malá dunajská kotlina'') situated in Slovakia, located between the Danube, the Lit ...

at the foothills of the Little Carpathians, around north-east of Bratislava. Another major city,

Trnava Trnava (, german: Tyrnau; hu, Nagyszombat, also known by other alternative names) is a city in western Slovakia, to the northeast of Bratislava, on the Trnávka river. It is the capital of a ''kraj'' ( Trnava Region) and of an '' okres'' ( T ...

, is located around to the east. A ski resort is situated on the ''Baba'' mountain. The neighbouring Little Carpathians offer numerous

hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...

paths. All of the city forests are part of the

Little Carpathians Protected Landscape Area Little Carpathians Protected Landscape Area ( sk, Chránená krajinná oblasť Malé Karpaty) is one of the 14 protected landscape areas in Slovakia. The Landscape Area is situated in the Little Carpathians, part of the Carpathian Mountains, in ...

. Some people might argue that one of the most interesting wildlife appearances in the Protected Area, is Tomas Rolko The Little Carpathians Museum (Malokarpatské múzeum), which is in a typical wine merchant's house in the centre of the town, was undergoing a major renovation in 2008 and promises to be one of the best small museums in Slovakia. It has the biggest collection of wine presses in central Europe, some of them gigantic wooden affairs dating from the early seventeenth century; the atmospheric old cellars of the building are partly given over to an exhibition of them. But Martin Hrubala, the deputy director of the museum, is keen to make the museum not just about the old but also the new: the entrance fee includes a

wine tasting Wine tasting is the sensory examination and evaluation of wine. While the practice of wine tasting is as ancient as its production, a more formalized methodology has slowly become established from the 14th century onward. Modern, professional w ...

, accompanied by a sommelier. And the museum promises interactivity at a level unusual for Slovak museums. Visitors, for instance, as well as tasting wine will also get the opportunity to make their own. Pezinok seems to have been investing heavily in public facilities lately: the city museum, in a building opposite the Little Carpathians Museum, opened in 2003. It features a range of attractively presented local archaeological finds and a selection of stonework salvaged from nearby churches; labelling, however, is in Slovak only. And at the northern end of the city centre, next to a park which once formed its landscaped grounds, is Pezinok Castle. Originally a moated fortress which was later turned into a chateau for the aristocratic Pálffy family, the cellars of the castle are now home to the National Wine Salon.

Little Carpathians Museum The Small Carpathian Museum (aka ''Little Carpathian Museum'') in Pezinok, Bratislava, Slovakia, is a local museum with an emphasis on wine making. Overview The museum was reopened to the public on 18 November 2008 after two years of renovat ...

(''Malokarpatské múzeum'') is situated in Pezinok. File:Bazini-kastelycivertanlegi1.jpg File:Bazini-kastelycivertanlegi2.jpg

Town suburbs

* Historical suburb Grinava * Town center * Historical suburb Cajla * Estate housing: ** Sever ( en, North) ** Juh ( en, South) ** Muškát ** Záhradná (originally ''Stred'') ** Za hradbami and 1. mája (originally ''Stred II.'') ** Moyzesova (originally ''Prednádražie'') ** Starý dvor ( en, Old yard) ** Sahara * Unigal * Panholec * Glejovka * Čikošňa * Turie brehy ( en, Shores of cattles) * Talihov dvor ( en, Talih's yard; originally ''Nataliin majer'') * Recreation areas ** Kučišdorf Valley ** Leitne ** Reisinger ** Slnečné údolie ( en, Sun Valley) ** Stupy

Traditional Events

February Ethnofestival March Selection of the Queen of wine PAFF – alternative (amateur) film festival in House of Culture April Wine markets - international competition, exhibition and wine tasting May Ad Una Corda - International church choir festival Sponsorship march in support if UNICEF June Cibulák - theater festival Competition of ancient cars July Slovakia Matador - competition of cars driving in The mountain July - August Promenade concerts take place as a part of Cultural sumer Flamenco Verano summer flamenco school in Pezinok August Pezinský Permoník - Small Carpathian exhibition and bourse of minerals, fossils and precious stones connected with gold washing on the streets Dychovky v preši - International festival of brass music September Vinobranie - celebrations of wine including rich cultural program and tasting of regional specialties in the streets of the city center October Pezinský strapec - International competition in ballroom dancing November St. Martin's blessings of wine includes tasting of young wine Day of Open Cellars regional promotional wine tasting in private cellars December Christmas Inspirations - sell of Christmas goods Including cultural program on Radničné square and at Old Town hall

Demographics

According to the 2001

census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating information about the members of a given population. This term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common censuses inc ...

, the town had 21,083 inhabitants. 96.51% of inhabitants were

Slovaks The Slovaks ( sk, Slováci, singular: ''Slovák'', feminine: ''Slovenka'', plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history and speak Slovak. In Slovakia, 4.4 mi ...

, 1.21%

Czechs The Czechs ( cs, Češi, ; singular Czech, masculine: ''Čech'' , singular feminine: ''Češka'' ), or the Czech people (), are a West Slavic ethnic group and a nation native to the Czech Republic in Central Europe, who share a common ancestry, ...

and 0.52%

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars ( ; hu, magyarok ), are a nation and ethnic group native to Hungary () and historical Hungarian lands who share a common culture, history, ancestry, and language. The Hungarian language belongs to the ...

. The religious makeup was 64.83%

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, 21.02% people with no religious affiliation, and 8.22%

Lutherans Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched ...

People

*Katarína Aulitisová *Bekim Aziri *

Ján Bahýľ Ján Bahýľ (25 May 1856 – 13 March 1916) was a Slovak inventor and engineer. He specialised in military science, military construction, and engineering. Flying machines were a particular interest of his. In 1895, he was granted a patent ...

*Juraj Bindzár *

Zuzana Čaputová Zuzana Čaputová, (; Strapáková; born 21 June 1973) is a Slovak politician, lawyer and environmental activist. She is the fifth president of Slovakia, a position she has held since 15 June 2019. Čaputová is the first woman to hold the presi ...

*Roman Féder *Katarína Franklová * Moritz Fuerst * Eduard Chmelár *Jaroslav Knil * Ján Kupecký *František Meissl *Milan Mlsna *Ján Baptista Najmar *Karol Pekník *Rudolf Pepucha * Filip Polc *Štefan Prokop *

Ľudovít Rajter Ľudovít Rajter ( hu, Rajter Lajos; 30 July 1906 in Bazin, Kingdom of Hungary – 6 July 2000 in Bratislava, Slovakia) was a Hungarian composer and conductor from Slovakia. The Rajter family immigrated to Hungary from South Germany, but w ...

Richard Réti Richard Selig Réti (28 May 1889 – 6 June 1929) was an Austro-Hungarian, later Czechoslovakian, chess player, chess author, and composer of endgame studies. He was one of the principal proponents of hypermodernism in chess. With the ex ...

*Štefan Sandtner *Lajo Slimák *

Dušan Slobodník Dušan Slobodník (11 April 1927, Pezinok - 13 December 2001, Bratislava) was a Slovaks, Slovak literary theoretician, translator and politician. Early life He attended the elementary school and high school in Zvolen. In February and March 1945 ( ...

*František Srna *

Eugen Suchoň Eugen Suchoň (September 25, 1908 – August 5, 1993) was one of the most important Slovak composers of the 20th century. Early life Eugen Suchoň was born on September 25, 1908 in Pezinok, (Slovakia). His father, Ladislav Suchoň, was an ...

*Ondrej Šteberl *Ján Štohl *Ján Štrba *Emil Venkov

Twin towns — sister cities

Pezinok is twinned with: *

Neusiedl am See Neusiedl am See (; cs, Nezider; hr, Niuzalj; hu, Nezsider; sk, Nezider) is a town in Burgenland, Austria, and administrative center of the district of Neusiedl am See. Neusiedl am See is located on the northern shore of the Neusiedler See. ...

, Austria *

Mosonmagyaróvár Mosonmagyaróvár (; german: Wieselburg-Ungarisch Altenburg; also known by other alternative names) is a town in Győr-Moson-Sopron County in northwestern Hungary. It lies close to both the Austrian and Slovakian borders and has a populatio ...

, Hungary *

Mladá Boleslav Mladá Boleslav (; german: Jungbunzlau) is a city in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 42,000 inhabitants. Mladá Boleslav is the second most populated city in the region and a major centre of the Czech automotive ind ...

, Czech Republic *

Izola Izola (; it, Isola ) is a town in southwestern Slovenia on the Adriatic coast of the Istrian peninsula. It is the seat of the Municipality of Izola. Its name originates from Italian ''Isola'', which means 'island'. History An ancient Roman ...

, Slovenia

References

External links

Official WebsitePanoramaaussicht von Pezinok (Lutheranischer Kirchenturm)Pezinok - Spectacular Slovakia
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Slovakia Villages and municipalities in Pezinok District