Grad (; formerly ''Gornja Lendava'', Vengušt, Jernej. 1919. ''Seznamek prekmurskih občin (krajev) z označbo pošte in zemljevidom.'' Radgona, p. 9.
/ref>) is a village in the Municipality of Grad in the

Prekmurje Prekmurje (; Prekmurje Slovene: ''Prèkmürsko'' or ''Prèkmüre''; ) is a geographically, linguistically, culturally, and ethnically defined region of Slovenia, settled by Slovenes and a Hungarians in Slovenia, Hungarian minority, lying betwee ...

region of northeastern Slovenia. It is the seat of the municipality and is the largest and oldest settlement in the Goričko region.

Name

Grad was first mentioned in written sources as ''Lyndwa'', and later as ''Gornja Lendava'' (literally 'upper Lendava', contrasting with '' Dolnja Lendava'', literally 'lower Lendava'). The name of the settlement was changed from ''Gornja Lendava'' to ''Grad'' in 1952.

Grad Castle

Grad means 'castle' in Slovene and refers to the large castle strategically situated on a hill of basalt tuff overlooking the settlement. The castle developed from a medieval fortress, the existence of which was first documented in records from 1275, when King

Ladislaus IV of Hungary Ladislaus IV (, , ; 5 August 1262 – 10 July 1290), also known as Ladislaus the Cuman, was King of Hungary and Croatia from 1272 to 1290. His mother, Elizabeth, was the daughter of a chieftain from the pagan Cumans who had settled in Hung ...

donated it to Amadeus Gutkeled. However, archaeological excavations have proven the existence of a building as early as the 11th century. It is one of the largest castle complexes in Slovenia, with 365 rooms. Amadeus' descendants, the Felsőlendvai family possessed the castle until their extinction around 1358. The Hungarian noble family Széchy owned the castle between 1365 and 1685. Under their rule, the castle was extensively expanded. It reached its current size over the course of the 16th and 17th centuries. From 1730, the estate was administered by Austrian nobleman Franz Leopold von Nádasdy. It was acquired by

Moritz, Prince of Dietrichstein Moritz, Prince of Dietrichstein (''Moritz Joseph Johann''; 19 February 1775 – 29 August 1864), was a German prince, member of the Dietrichstein, House of Dietrichstein, 10th and last Prince (''Fürst'') of Dietrichstein zu Mikulov, Nikolsburg, C ...

in 1856 and subsequently changed ownership several times. After World War II, the castle was nationalized by the government of the

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

and was used by municipal offices and an agricultural cooperative. Between 1960 and 1995, the castle was left to decay. In 1999, it was declared a cultural heritage of state importance and restoration efforts were started. With Slovenia joining the European Union, funds have been made available for the restoration of the castle. Since 2003, the administrative offices of the Goričko Nature Park have been housed here. Certain parts of the castle are open to the public.

Church

A pilgrimage church dedicate to the

Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Catholic Mariology#Dogmatic teachings, Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it on 1 November 1950 in his apostolic constitution as follows: It leaves open the question of w ...

stands in the center of the village. It is one of the highest-quality examples of Gothic architecture in the Mura Valley.

Coat of arms

The current coat of arms of the municipality of Grad was introduced in 2016. The building in the arms' center represents the castle of Grad. The crown above symbolizes the Hungarian noble Széchy family, under whose rule the town around the castle developed. The green semicircle under the castle represents the hilly landscape of the Goričko region, the cross represents the tradition of Christianity.

Notable people

Notable people that were born or lived in Grad include: * György Almásy (1867–1933), ethnographer and zoologist * István Szelmár (1820–1877), writer * István Zsemlics (1840–1891), writer * Dénes Szécsi ( 1410–1465), cardinal

References

External links

Grad on Geopedia
Populated places in the Municipality of Grad {{Grad-geo-stub