Kamnik (; german: Stein
[''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 26–27.] or ''Stein in Oberkrain'') is a town in northern
Slovenia
Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
. It is the central settlement of the
Municipality of Kamnik
The Municipality of Kamnik (; sl, Občina Kamnik) is a municipality in northern Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is the town of Kamnik. Today it is part of the Central Slovenia Statistical Region. It is the 15th-largest municipality by area ...
. It encompasses a large part of the
Kamnik Alps
Kamnik (; german: Stein''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 26–27. or ''Stein in Oberkrain'') is a town in northern Slovenia. It is t ...
and the surrounding area. The town of Kamnik has three
castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...
s as well as many examples of historical
architecture
Architecture is the art and technique of designing and building, as distinguished from the skills associated with construction. It is both the process and the product of sketching, conceiving, planning, designing, and constructing building ...
.
History
The name Kamnik was first mentioned in the 11th century. The first time it was mentioned as a town was in 1229, when it was an important trading post on the road between
Ljubljana
Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center.
During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the ar ...
and
Celje
)
, pushpin_map = Slovenia
, pushpin_label_position = left
, pushpin_map_caption = Location of the city of Celje in Slovenia
, coordinates =
, subdivision_type = Cou ...
. This makes the town one of the oldest in Slovenia. In the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, Kamnik had its own mint and some aristocratic families among its residents. The town was among the most influential centers of power for the
Bavaria
Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total lan ...
n counts of
Andechs
Andechs is a municipality in the district of Starnberg in Bavaria in Germany. It is renowned in Germany and beyond for Andechs Abbey, a Benedictine monastery that has brewed beer since 1455. The monastery brewery offers tours to visitors.
The 2 ...
in the region of
Carniola
Carniola ( sl, Kranjska; , german: Krain; it, Carniola; hu, Krajna) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region sti ...
at the time. The only remnant of the Bavarian nobility are the two ruined castles which are both strategically built on high ground near the town center. The
Franciscan
The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...
monastery built in the town itself is a testament to its importance. The building is well preserved and has undergone extensive renovation in recent years.
Historical suburbs of the town include Šut(i)na (german: Schutt
), Na Produ ( sl, Na produ), Novi Trg (, german: Neumarkt
), Pred Mostom (, german: Vor der Brücke
), Graben, and Podgoro. In 1934 the following formerly independent settlements were annexed by Kamnik:
Fužine (german: Fuschine
),
Žale (in older sources also ''Žalje'',
german: Sallenberg
),
Zaprice (german: Steinbüchel
), Kratno, Pugled,
Zgornje Perovo (german: Oberperau
),
Spodnje Perovo (german: Unterperau
),
Bakovnik
Bakovnik (, german: Bakounik''Intelligenzblatt zur Laibacher Zeitung'', no. 141. November 24, 1849, p. 19.) is a former settlement in the Municipality of Kamnik in central Slovenia. It is now part of the town of Kamnik. The area is part of the trad ...
, and the lower part of
Mekinje.
Most of the old town center is built in an
Austro-Hungarian
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 ...
style. Most of the facades have been renovated in recent years but the process is still ongoing.
Mass grave
Kamnik is the site of a
mass grave from the period immediately after the Second World War. The Cuzak Meadow Mass Grave ( sl, Grobišče Cuzakov travnik) is located in the southeast part of the town, in a grassy area encircled by a road on the premises of the Svit factory. The grave contains the remains of several hundred soldiers and civilians, mostly Croats but also some Serbs, that were murdered on 11 May 1945.
[Ferenc, Mitja, & Želimir Kužatko. 2007. ''Prikrita grobišča Hrvatov v Republiki Sloveniji''. Ljubljana: Inštitut za novejšo zgodovino.]
Notable people
Notable people that were born or lived in Kamnik include:
*
Fran Albreht
Fran Albreht (17 November 1889 – 11 February 1963) was a Slovenian poet, editor, politician and partisan. He also published under the pseudonym Rusmir.
He was born as Franc Albrecht in the Upper Carniolan town of Kamnik in what was then the Aus ...
(1889–1963), author
*
France Balantič
France Balantič (29 November 1921 – 24 November 1943) was a Slovenian language, Slovene poet. His works were banned from schools and libraries during the Titoist regime in Slovenia, but since the late 1980s he has been re-evaluated as one of th ...
(1921–1943), poet
*
Jurij Japelj (1744–1807), philologist
*
Rudolf Maister
Rudolf Maister (pen name: Vojanov; 29 March 1874 – 26 July 1934) was a Slovene military officer, poet and political activist. The soldiers who fought under Maister's command in northern Slovenia became known as "Maister's fighters" ( sl ...
(1874–1934), military leader
*
Jakob Savinšek (1922–1961), sculptor and illustrator
*
Bojan Kraut (1908–1991), engineer
*
Marjan Šarec (born 1977), politician and actor
Gallery
File:Kamnik south.JPG, Southern part of Kamnik with suburbs
File:Upper Kamnik valley and Alps.JPG, Kamnik's northern suburbs with the Kamnik–Savinja Alps in the background
File:R Maister-Birthhouse-Kamnik-Slovenia.JPG, House where Rudolf Maister was born
File:Kamnik-Valvasor.jpg, A copper engraving of Kamnik in 1689
File:Kamnik - Mali grad.jpg, Little Castle
File:Kamnik - Castle Zaprice.jpg, Zaprice Castle
File:Kamnik - Franciscan monastery.jpg, Franciscan monastery
References
External links
*
Kamnik on Geopedia*
Visit Kamnik official page of tourist information centre
Kamnik official page of municipality (in Slovene)
Burger.si.
{{Authority control
Cities and towns in Upper Carniola
Populated places in the Municipality of Kamnik