Beckov (, ) is a village and

municipality A municipality is usually a single administrative division having municipal corporation, corporate status and powers of self-government or jurisdiction as granted by national and regional laws to which it is subordinate. The term ''municipality' ...

in the

Nové Mesto nad Váhom District Nové Mesto nad Váhom District (, ) is a district in the Trenčín Region of western Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, ...

in the

Trenčín Region The Trenčín Region (, ; ; ) is one of the eight Slovak administrative regions. It consists of nine districts ('' okresy''). The region was established in 1996: previously it had been a part of the West Slovak Region () and partly the Central S ...

of western

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, 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 west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

History

In historical records the village was first mentioned in 1208. ''Mihály de genere Bána'', royal

equerry An equerry (; from French language, French 'stable', and related to 'squire') is an officer of honour. Historically, it was a senior attendant with responsibilities for the horses of a person of rank. In contemporary use, it is a personal attend ...

, who was the forefather of the

Cseszneky Cseszneky is a surname of Hungarians, Hungarian origin. Notable people * Benedek Cseszneky, office holder, diplomat * György Cseszneky, castellan of Tata, Hungary, Tata and Győr * Gyula Cseszneky (1914-ca 1970) poet, translator, Macedonian Voivo ...

family, performed several heroic deeds against the Mongolian invaders of Hungary (during the invasion in 1241–42) and for his bravery in 1241 King Béla IV appointed him Count (''comes'') of Beckó. Before the establishment of independent

Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia ( ; Czech language, Czech and , ''Česko-Slovensko'') was a landlocked country in Central Europe, created in 1918, when it declared its independence from Austria-Hungary. In 1938, after the Munich Agreement, the Sudetenland beca ...

in 1918, Beckov was part of

Trencsén County Trencsén county (Latin: ''comitatus Trentsiniensis / Trenchiniensis''; Hungarian language, Hungarian: ''Trencsén (vár)megye''; Slovak language, Slovak: ''Trenčiansky komitát / Trenčianska stolica / Trenčianska župa''; ) was an administra ...

within the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from 1000 to 1946 and was a key part of the Habsburg monarchy from 1526-1918. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the Coro ...

. From 1939 to 1945, it was part of the

Slovak Republic Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, 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 west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's ...

. On the 6th of April 1945, the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army, often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Republic and, from 1922, the Soviet Union. The army was established in January 1918 by a decree of the Council of People ...

dislodged the

Wehrmacht The ''Wehrmacht'' (, ) were the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany from 1935 to 1945. It consisted of the German Army (1935–1945), ''Heer'' (army), the ''Kriegsmarine'' (navy) and the ''Luftwaffe'' (air force). The designation "''Wehrmac ...

from Beckov and it was once again part of Czechoslovakia.

Geography

The

lies at an

altitude Altitude is a distance measurement, usually in the vertical or "up" direction, between a reference datum (geodesy), datum and a point or object. The exact definition and reference datum varies according to the context (e.g., aviation, geometr ...

of 190 metres and covers an

area Area is the measure of a region's size on a surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape or planar lamina, while '' surface area'' refers to the area of an open surface or the boundary of a three-di ...

of 28.629 km². It has a

population Population is a set of humans or other organisms in a given region or area. Governments conduct a census to quantify the resident population size within a given jurisdiction. The term is also applied to non-human animals, microorganisms, and pl ...

of about 1469 people, recorded in 2021.

Sights

Overlooking the village is Beckov Castle, now in ruins. The village, which used to be a town, was fortified by a mighty wall, large parts of which are still preserved. Religious buildings include the gothic catholic parish church and the former

baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

monastery with a church located within the walled town and a protestant parish church found outside the walls. There are several

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

and Baroque manors, some of which are restored and well-kept while others are dilapidated and falling into ruins.

People

Jozef Miloslav Hurban Jozef Miloslav Hurban (; pseudonyms ''Slavomil F. Kořennatý, Ľudovít Pavlovič, M. z Bohuslavíc, M. Selovský'', 19 March 1817 – 21 February 1888) was a leader of the Slovak National Council (1848-1849), Slovak National Council and the ...

born 1817 * Baron

László Mednyánszky Baron László Mednyánszky, also known by his Latinized name Ladislaus Josephus Balthasar Eustachius Mednyánszky (; 23 April 1852 – 17 April 1919), was a Slovaks, Slovak–Hungarians, Hungarian painter and philosopher, considered one of the ...

born 1852 * Dionýz Štúr born 1827

Gallery

Image:Beckocivertanlegi1.jpg Image:Beckocivertanlegi2.jpg Image:Beckocivertanlegi3.jpg

Sources

* Györffy György: Az Árpád-kori Magyarország történeti földrajza

Genealogical resources

The records for genealogical research are available at the state archive in

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

(). * Roman Catholic church records (births/marriages/deaths): 1676–1934 (parish A) * Lutheran church records (births/marriages/deaths): 1792–1942 (parish A)

References

External links

Municipal website

Villages and municipalities in Nové Mesto nad Váhom District {{Trenčín-geo-stub