Medvode (;
[''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 110.]) 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 Medvode. The
Sava
The Sava, is a river in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. From its source in Slovenia it flows through Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally reac ...
and
Sora rivers join in Medvode, from which the town's name (which means 'between the waters') is derived.
History
Following the
annexation of Carantania by Bavarians, the area came under control of Germanic nobles and feudalists. These noticed that the nearby Medanski hill provided a good view over the Medvode and
Ljubljana Basin.
Medvode gained greater importance in the 15th century, when the Emperor gave Kranj, Radovljica and Trzin the right to build a bridge and collect bridge tolls. In the 19th century, the town also began collecting
road tolls.
During that period, Medvode also got a railway station and a savings bank. Due to that, industry began to develop in the town as well, along with an older paper mill in
Goričane. A food oil factory was established in Medvode prior to the First World War. During the Interwar, textile and carpentry industries were established as well, many of which persist up until this day (namely the factory Donit).
After the
Second World War
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 ...
, a
Yugoslav labor camp
A labor camp (or labour camp, see British and American spelling differences, spelling differences) or work camp is a detention facility where inmates are unfree labour, forced to engage in penal labor as a form of punishment. Labor camps have ...
for
political prisoners
A political prisoner is someone imprisoned for their political activity. The political offense is not always the official reason for the prisoner's detention.
There is no internationally recognized legal definition of the concept, although ...
operated in Medvode.
Industry
Two large factories, Color and Donit, are based in Medvode. The
Sava River
The Sava, is a river in Central and Southeast Europe, a right-bank and the longest tributary of the Danube. From its source in Slovenia it flows through Croatia and along its border with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and finally reaches Serbia, fee ...
at Medvode is also the location of the
Medvode Hydroelectric Power Plant. The hydroelectric plant was built in part using forced labor by Catholic priests held as political prisoners after the Second World War. There are a total of 1570 companies registered in Medvode that generate a total of 454,714,000€ annuall
Previously, there was a
lead
Lead () is a chemical element; it has Chemical symbol, symbol Pb (from Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a Heavy metal (elements), heavy metal that is density, denser than most common materials. Lead is Mohs scale, soft and Ductility, malleabl ...
and
quicksilver mine in Ločnica Valley, to the south of Medvode. In the 19th century, the town was increasingly famous to cities as far as Vienna as a tourist spot. The Sora River once attracted many bathers. During summers, a special vacations train connected the town with Kranj and Ljubljana. In 2018, a total of 35,802 tourists spent their nights in Medvode, including 33,966 foreign and 1,836 Slovene ones.
References
External links
*
Medvode on Geopedia
Populated places in the Municipality of Medvode
Cities and towns in Upper Carniola
{{Medvode-geo-stub