Puerta de Piedra, Zagreb, Croacia, 2014-04-20, DD 02

Gradec (), Grič (, hu, Gréc, lat, Mons Graecensis prope Zagrabiam) or Gornji Grad (meaning "Upper Town", cf. Donji grad, "Lower Town") is a part of

Zagreb Zagreb ( , , , ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, northwest of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slop ...

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = " Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capi ...

, and together with Kaptol it is the

medieval 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 ...

nucleus of the city. It is situated on the hill of Grič. Today this neighbourhood forms part of the Gornji Grad-Medveščak district.

History

Gradec was given a royal charter by King

Béla IV Béla may refer to: * Béla (crater), an elongated lunar crater * Béla (given name), a common Hungarian male given name See also * Bela (disambiguation) * Belá (disambiguation) * Bělá (disambiguation) Bělá, derived from ''bílá'' (''wh ...

in 1242. The royal charter, also called the Golden Bull, was a very important document by which Gradec was declared and proclaimed "a free royal city on Gradec, the hill of Zagreb". This act made Gradec a feudal holding responsible directly to the king. The citizens were given rights of different kinds; among other things they were entitled to elect their own city magistrate ( hr, gradski sudac) fulfilling the role of

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

. They were also entitled to manage their own affairs. The citizens engaged in building defensive walls and towers around their settlement, fearing a new

Mongol invasion The Mongol invasions and conquests took place during the 13th and 14th centuries, creating history's largest contiguous empire: the Mongol Empire (1206-1368), which by 1300 covered large parts of Eurasia. Historians regard the Mongol devastati ...

. They completed the defensive system at a time between 1242 and 1261. It could be rightly assumed that by building its fortification walls in the middle of the 13th century, Gradec acquired its outward appearance that can be clearly seen in today's Upper Town (Gornji Grad). The defensive walls enclosed the settlement in the shape of a triangle, its top located near the tower called Popov toranj and its base at the south wall (today's Strossmayer Promenade) and Lotrščak tower, which could be explained by the shape of the hill. In some places, rectangular and semicircular towers fortified the defensive walls. There were four main gates leading to the town: the west gate in the Mesnička Street, the new north gate, later known as the Opatička Street gate, Dverce in the south and the Kamenita vrata ( en, Stone gate) in the east. Kamenita vrata is the only gate still preserved to date.

Gornji Grad today

Gornji Grad is a local government unit, encompassing a population of 3,432. Undoubtedly, the focal point of Gornji Grad is the square around St. Mark's Church that had been called St. Mark's Square for years. St. Mark's Church is the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the 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 community activities, ...

of Old Zagreb. When guilds developed in Gradec in the 15th, and later in the 17th century, being the societies of craftsmen, their members including masters, journeymen and apprentices would gather regularly in St. Mark's Church. On the opposite side of the Square at the corner of Basaričekova Street lies the St. Mark's parish office. The house has been standing there since the 16th century, although it underwent reconstruction in the 18th century and had an extension added in the 19th century. At the west end of St. Mark's Square, the mansion called '' Banski dvori'', the former residence of the Civil Governor of Croatia ( hr,

Ban Ban, or BAN, may refer to: Law * Ban (law), a decree that prohibits something, sometimes a form of censorship, being denied from entering or using the place/item ** Imperial ban (''Reichsacht''), a form of outlawry in the medieval Holy Roman ...

), was built at the beginning of the 19th century and yet, it can be classed among the Zagreb antiquities. ''Banski dvori'', along with the

Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including ...

mansion beside it, is the seat of the

Government of the Republic of Croatia The Government of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Hrvatske), formally the Government of the Republic of Croatia ( hr, Vlada Republike Hrvatske), commonly abbreviated to Croatian Government ( hr, hrvatska Vlada), is the main executive branch of government ...

. Since 1734, the

Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament ( hr, Hrvatski sabor) or the Sabor is the unicameral legislature of the Republic of Croatia. Under the terms of the Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the people and is vested with legislative power. The Sa ...

has taken up the east side of St. Mark's Square. In 2008, Gornji Grad was closed to car traffic except for residents, making it a primarily pedestrian zone. In 2014, Zagreb Administrative Court struck down the order prohibiting other cars from parking at residents' parking spaces, and car access and parking was again allowed on Gornji Grad, albeit at a hefty fee for non-residents.

Views of Gradec

Estatua de San Jorge mató al Dragón, Zagreb, Croacia, 2014-04-13, DD 02.JPG, The statue of St George killing the dragon Juraj Julije Klović, kip u Zagrebu ispred Klovićevih dvora.jpg, Juraj Julije Klović statue in front of the eponymous gallery Zagreb City Museum 01.jpg, Zagreb City Museum Meštrović Atelier, Zagreb 01.jpg, Meštrović Atelier

References

External links

* http://www.guide.ndo.co.uk/html/oldzagreb.html * https://web.archive.org/web/20111112164609/http://www.zagreb-city.info/zagreb-photos/43-zagreb-gradec-upper-town/55-gradecgornji-grad-upper-town-zagreb- {{Coord, 45, 49, 00, N, 15, 58, 26, E, region:HR-21_type:city(3432), display=title Neighbourhoods of Zagreb Gornji Grad–Medveščak History of Zagreb