Kremnica (; , ) is a town in central

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 ...

. It has around 5,300 inhabitants. The well-preserved medieval town built above important

gold Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

mines is the site of the oldest still-working

mint Mint or The Mint may refer to: Plants * Lamiaceae, the mint family ** ''Mentha'', the genus of plants commonly known as "mint" Coins and collectibles * Mint (facility), a facility for manufacturing coins * Mint condition, a state of like-new ...

in the world.

Name

The name is derived from Slovak ''kremeň'', ''kremenina'' (

quartz Quartz is a hard, crystalline mineral composed of silica (silicon dioxide). The Atom, atoms are linked in a continuous framework of SiO4 silicon–oxygen Tetrahedral molecular geometry, tetrahedra, with each oxygen being shared between two tet ...

) with a feminine suffix ''-ica'', functioning to create local names.Martin Štefánik - Ján Lukačka et al. 2010, Lexikón stredovekých miest na Slovensku, Historický ústav SAV, Bratislava, 2010, pp. 503, 360, . http://forumhistoriae.sk/-/lexikon-stredovekych-miest-na-slovensku

History

Kremnica was among the major

mining Mining is the Resource extraction, extraction of valuable geological materials and minerals from the surface of the Earth. Mining is required to obtain most materials that cannot be grown through agriculture, agricultural processes, or feasib ...

towns of the world during the

Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...

and in the

modern era The modern era or the modern period is considered the current historical period of human history. It was originally applied to the history of Europe and Western history for events that came after the Middle Ages, often from around the year 1500 ...

due to the abundant gold ore deposits in the

Kremnica Mountains The Kremnica Mountains (, , ) are a volcanic mountain range in central Slovakia. They are part of the Western Carpathians and the Slovenské stredohorie Mts. The mountain range is situated east of the town of Kremnica, which gave it its name. ...

. However, the first evidence of sub-surface mining activities comes from the 9th century. In the 13th century the inhabitants of this area were affected by the invasion of the Mongols. Following that difficult period, Hungarian kings invited new colonists from present-day

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

(more specifically

Carpathian Germans Carpathian Germans (, or ''felvidéki németek'', , , ) are a group of Germans, ethnic Germans in Central and Eastern Europe. The term was coined by the historian :de:Raimund Friedrich Kaindl, Raimund Friederich Kaindl (1866–1930), originally ...

Zipser Germans The Zipser Germans, Zipser Saxons, or, simply, just Zipsers (, , , ) are a German-speaking (more specifically Zipser German-speaking as native dialect) sub-ethnic group in Central- Eastern Europe and national minority in both Slovakia and Roma ...

) to settle in the region to help replenish the decimated population. Their innovative technology and knowledge restored the mining activities in the town. The first written reference to the town dates back to 1328, when it was granted royal

town privileges Town privileges or borough rights were important features of European towns during most of the second millennium. The city law customary in Central Europe probably dates back to Italian models, which in turn were oriented towards the traditio ...

by King

Charles I of Hungary Charles I, also known as Charles Robert (; ; ; 128816 July 1342), was King of Hungary and Croatia in the union with Hungary, Croatia from 1308 to his death. He was a member of the Capetian House of Anjou and the only son of Charles Martel of A ...

. The town's mint was already in existence at the time of the granting of royal privileges. Starting in 1335 the mint produced golden

florins The Florentine florin was a gold coin (in Italian ''Fiorino d'oro'') struck from 1252 to 1533 with no significant change in its design or metal content standard during that time. It had 54 grains () of nominally pure or 'fine' gold with a pu ...

and later the famous "Kremnica

ducat The ducat ( ) coin was used as a trade coin in Europe from the later Middle Ages to the 19th century. Its most familiar version, the gold ducat or sequin containing around of 98.6% fine gold, originated in Venice in 1284 and gained wide inter ...

s", which were used as an international means of payment as a result of their consistently high purity of gold. It was the most important mint, and later the only one, in 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 ...

, in

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 ...

and nowadays in Slovakia; the prosperity brought to the town led to it being given the nickname "Golden Kremnica". In 1331, Kremnica became the seat of the Chamber Count () who was the head of the most important mining and minting chamber of the Kingdom of Hungary. The Count administered all the mines and mints in twelve

counties A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...

of the kingdom in the Middle Ages. At the end of the 14th century, Kremnica became the capital of the mining towns in central

Upper Hungary Upper Hungary (, "Upland"), is the area that was historically the northern part of the Kingdom of Hungary, now mostly present-day Slovakia. The region has also been called ''Felső-Magyarország'' ( literally: "Upper Hungary"; ). During the ...

. The steady annual production of gold and silver guaranteed the prosperous development of the town. In the 15th century Kreminca was the second most important city in the

. The town was continuously being granted new privileges and the deputies of the town occupied the second place in the Hungarian Diet (the first place was reserved for the representatives of

Buda Buda (, ) is the part of Budapest, the capital city of Hungary, that lies on the western bank of the Danube. Historically, “Buda” referred only to the royal walled city on Castle Hill (), which was constructed by Béla IV between 1247 and ...

, the capital of the Kingdom). The population reached 10,000 in the 1840s. Gold mining and coin production in Kremnica culminated in the 14th and 15th centuries. As one of the most important centers of

Protestant Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the papacy and ...

in the country, the town belonged to the Protestant "League of Seven Mining Towns" together with Banská Belá,

Banská Bystrica Banská Bystrica (, also known by other #Etymology, alternative names) is a city in central Slovakia, located on the Hron River in a long and wide valley encircled by the mountain chains of the Low Tatras, the Greater Fatra, Veľká Fatra, and t ...

Banská Štiavnica Banská Štiavnica (; ; , ) is a town in central Slovakia, in the middle of an immense caldera created by the collapse of an ancient volcano. For its size, the caldera is known as the Štiavnica Mountains. Banská Štiavnica has a population of ...

, Ľubietová,

Nová Baňa Nová Baňa (; ) is a town in the west of central Slovakia and the largest town of the Žarnovica District, located in the Banská Bystrica Region. Etymology The original name of Nová Baňa was Štiavnica - derived from the still existing spring ...

, and

Pukanec Pukanec ( / ''Puk(k)an(t)z'', ; ) is a village and municipality (historical town) in the Levice District in the Nitra Region of southern Slovakia. Etymology The name is probably derived from a personal name Baka, Bak, Bukan/Pukan or potentially ...

. In the 16th century, the town was a major centre of production of (mostly religious) medals, especially by Joachim Deschler. At the same time however, the miners had to dig deeper and deeper to reach new deposits and the mining conditions deteriorated because of underground water in the shafts. The cost of mining increased and the mining was becoming less profitable. The last gold was extracted in Kremnica in 1970, at which time all the mines were closed. The German population of the town and its surroundings was expelled in 1945 as the consequential punishment by the former Czechoslovak government after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

Geography

Kremnica lies at an altitude of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of a location's vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) in reference to a vertical datum based on a historic mean sea level. In geodesy, it is formalized as orthometric height. The zero level ...

and covers an area of . It is located in the

on the brook ''Kremnický potok'', which is a tributary of the

Hron The Hron (; ; ; ) is a long left tributary of the DanubeP ...

River. It is located around west of

(by line), south of

Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

and around from

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. ...

Main sights

The

castle A castle is a type of fortification, fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by Military order (monastic society), military orders. Scholars usually consider a ''castle'' to be the private ...

built in the 13th through 15th centuries towers over the town. In the first half of the 14th century, it became the residence of the Chamber Count. The town was immediately fortified with a double wall containing several bastions and towers. The castle represents a unique example of a very well preserved fortification system in Central Europe. In the 14th century, it developed into a multifunctional complex of buildings and thus became the centre of local administration, religious life, and defense. At the end of the 15th century, the Chamber Count moved to a newly built house with a unique diamond vault. Thereafter the residence of the Count in the castle was converted into the St. Catherine's Church. Other sites of interest also include the Museum of Coins and Medals, the Museum of Skiing and a historical main square with a monumental

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 ...

plague column. The Gothic Church of St. Catherine hosts the popular European

Organ Organ and organs may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a group of tissues organized to serve a common function * Organ system, a collection of organs that function together to carry out specific functions within the body. Musical instruments ...

Festival. A 20-km long aqueduct, built in the 15th century, is still working, supplying three hydroelectric power plants (one of them located 245 m below the ground). Forested mountains around the town offer plenty of opportunities for

hiking A hike is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century. Long hikes as part of a religious pilgrimage have existed for a much longer time. "Hi ...

and

cross-country skiing Cross-country skiing is a form of skiing whereby skiers traverse snow-covered terrain without use of ski lifts or other assistance. Cross-country skiing is widely practiced as a sport and recreational activity; however, some still use it as a m ...

. The

geographical centre of Europe The location of the geographical centre of Europe depends on the definition of the borders of Europe, mainly whether remote islands are included to define the extreme points of Europe, and on the method of calculating the final result. Thus, sev ...

is claimed to be in the nearby village of

Krahule Krahule (; , until 1890: ) is a village in Žiar nad Hronom District in the Banská Bystrica Region of central Slovakia. It is the only municipality in Slovakia that officially uses German along with Slovak. History The town was first mentione ...

Demographics

Kremnica has a population of 5,528 (as of December 31, 2013). According to the 2001

census A census (from Latin ''censere'', 'to assess') is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording, and calculating population information about the members of a given Statistical population, population, usually displayed in the form of stati ...

, 95.8% of inhabitants were

Slovaks The Slovaks ( (historical Sloveni ), singular: ''Slovák'' (historical: ''Sloven'' ), feminine: ''Slovenka'' , plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history ...

and 1.2%

Germans Germans (, ) are the natives or inhabitants of Germany, or sometimes more broadly any people who are of German descent or native speakers of the German language. The Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany, constitution of Germany, imple ...

. However, even among those identifying themselves as Slovaks many are descendants of the

, who played a very important role in the medieval history of the town. The religious makeup was 64.9%

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

, 22.6% people with no religious affiliation, and 5.8%

Lutherans Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched the Reformation in 15 ...

Famous people

* Blažej Baláž, Slovak painter * Ján Levoslav Bella, composer, conductor and music teacher * Ľudovít Černák, politician and businessman * Ladislav Chudík, Slovak actor * Igor Kollár, race walker (representing Czechoslovakia and Slovakia) * Peter Michalica, violinist * Jozef Pribilinec, race walker, Olympic gold medalist

Gallery

File:Kremnicky_zamok.jpg, Town castle File:Kremnica.jpg, Main square File:Kermnica_Town_Sq_2.JPG, Plague column File:Kremnica pomnik SNP a Barbakan.jpg, Barbican File:Kremnica 1729 Rothenfels.jpg, Kremnica, 1729 File:Kremnica morovy stlp koruna detail.jpg, Detail of the plague column

Twin towns — sister cities

Kremnica is twinned with: *

Fidenza Fidenza (, locally ) is a town and (municipality) in the province of Parma, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. It has around 27,000 inhabitants. The town was renamed Fidenza in 1927, recalling its ancient Rome, Roman name of ; before, it was ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

Herbolzheim Herbolzheim () is a town in the Emmendingen (district), district of Emmendingen, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated near the river Elz (Rhine), Elz, 26 km north of Freiburg. People * Yannick Bury (born 1990), CDU politician ...

Kutná Hora Kutná Hora (; ) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 22,000 inhabitants. The history of Kutná Hora is linked to silver mining, which made it a rich and rapidly developing town. The centre of Kutná Hora, i ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

Nový Jičín Nový Jičín (; ) is a town in the Moravian-Silesian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 23,000 inhabitants. The historic centre of Nový Jičín is well preserved and is protected as an Cultural monument (Czech Republic)#Monument reservati ...

* Šurany,

* Várpalota,

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

References

External links

Official municipal website

Information for touristsVirtual Kremnica
- 3D models, panoramas, photographs and more
Museum of Coins and MedalsKremnica CastleKremnické medovníky, Kremnica
{{Authority control Cities and towns in Slovakia Mining communities in the Slovak Republic