Gornja Radgona (; , ) is a town in

Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south and southeast, and a short (46.6 km) coastline within the Adriati ...

. It is the seat of the Municipality of Gornja Radgona. Once it was a defensive stronghold for today's regional centre and its twin city, Bad Radkersburg, on the other side of the Mura River in

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. The towns were split in 1919, when the state of Styria was divided between Austria and Slovenia. They afterward developed separately, and Gornja Radgona grew into a new town centre.

History

Traces of

Neolithic The Neolithic or New Stone Age (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'new' and 'stone') is an archaeological period, the final division of the Stone Age in Mesopotamia, Asia, Europe and Africa (c. 10,000 BCE to c. 2,000 BCE). It saw the Neolithic Revo ...

settlement on Castle Hill attest to settlement during the

Urnfield culture The Urnfield culture () was a late Bronze Age Europe, Bronze Age culture of Central Europe, often divided into several local cultures within a broader Urnfield tradition. The name comes from the custom of cremation, cremating the dead and placin ...

. Later finds indicate that there may have been a small Roman settlement here. The Parish of Gornja Radgona belonged to the Diocese of Salzburg and was founded under the Spanheims in the first half of the 12th century. The

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

in Gornja Radgona is dedicated to

Saint Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the Jewish Christian#Jerusalem ekklēsia, e ...

and was built in 1813 and extended in 1890. The history of Gornja Radgona itself reaches back to the 12th century, when a settlement was established beneath Ratigoj Castle. King Albert I of Habsburg founded today's Radkersburg on an island in the Mura River, and it was mentioned as a market in 1265 and as a town in 1299. Eventually, the old settlement turned into a suburb of the town. Gornja Radgona was built on the slope of Castle Hill (265 m) and the tip of the

Slovene Hills The Slovene Hills or the Slovenian Hills (, or ) is the largest hilly region of Slovenia, a smaller part is located in the Austrian province of Styria. It is situated in the northeast of the country and has an area of . It comprises the ''Western ...

(), which separate the Apače Basin from the Mura Basin. Because of its important location on the Mura River, in the 12th and 13th centuries, Gornja Radgona and Radkersburg suffered multiple attacks by the

Hungarians Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an Ethnicity, ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common Culture of Hungary, culture, Hungarian language, language and History of Hungary, history. They also have a notable presence in former pa ...

and, in the 15th and 16th centuries, attacks by the

Ottoman Turks The Ottoman Turks () were a Turkic peoples, Turkic ethnic group in Anatolia. Originally from Central Asia, they migrated to Anatolia in the 13th century and founded the Ottoman Empire, in which they remained socio-politically dominant for the e ...

. In the early 18th century, peasant rebellions were a major problem. In 1605 the Mura flooded, causing great damage to Gornja Radgona and Radkersberg, and nearly every generation experienced the plague. The worst outbreak was in 1680, and left many houses without occupants. Gornja Radgona received market rights in 1907, and town status after World War II. Prior to 1918, it was administratively connected with Radkersburg. In February 1929, exceptionally cold weather caused ice to accumulate against the old wooden bridge between Gornja Radona and Radkersburg, destroying it. A new wooden bridge was not built until 1932. The favorable geographical location and economic contacts (including joint cooperation in preventing flood and fires, and important transport links) resulted in the joint construction of a new bridge. The bridge was ceremonially opened on 12 October 1968 by Yugoslav leader

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito ( ; , ), was a Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist revolutionary and politician who served in various positions of national leadership from 1943 unti ...

and Austrian President Franz Jonas. During the Ten-Day War for Slovenia's independence in 1991, major fighting occurred at the Gornja Radgona border crossing.

Economy

Gornja Radgona is also known as a host of international fair events that are organized by Pomurski Sejem d.d. The best known is the International Agricultural and Food Fair, which is held every year and is attended by over 120,000 people. Gornja Radgona is known also for its wines.

References

External links

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Gornja Radgona on Geopedia

Gornja Radgona municipal site

Pomurski Sejem d.d. – International fair events
{{Authority control Populated places in the Municipality of Gornja Radgona Austria–Slovenia border crossings Divided cities Cities and towns in Styria (Slovenia)