Hviezdoslavovo námestie ('Hviezdoslav Square') is a town square in

Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...

. It is located in the

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins. In some cases, newer developments on t ...

, between the New Bridge and the Slovak National Theater. The square is named after Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav.

History

Previous names of the square include: (-, -, -) Many medieval houses were built there. The northern part contains the houses Kőszeghy, Eszterházy, Széchenyi, Stáhl, Záborszky, Pálffy, Sulkovszky Maldeghem, Malatinszky, and Werner. The southern part holds the houses Spineger, Gervay, Löw-Palugyay, Kozics, Wigand, Adler, Pollák, and Sprinzl. The most notable buildings are the Cathédrale Notre Dame Cloister and Slovak National Theater, which can be found in the eastern part. Earlier, the most important noblemen sent their daughters to learn in this cloister, for example, Pálffy, Forgách, Harrach and Lichtenstein. On March 17, 1848, Hungarian national leader

Lajos Kossuth Lajos Kossuth de Udvard et Kossuthfalva (; ; ; ; 19 September 1802 – 20 March 1894) was a Hungarian nobleman, lawyer, journalist, politician, statesman and governor-president of the Kingdom of Hungary during the Hungarian Revolution of 1848, r ...

proclaimed from Hotel Zöldfa to the assembling mass because Ferdinand V signed March laws at the Primate's Palace last day. The first Hungarian fencing school's practicing hall was there. Lajos Kossuth,

Franz Joseph Franz Joseph I or Francis Joseph I ( ; ; 18 August 1830 – 21 November 1916) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary, and the ruler of the Grand title of the emperor of Austria, other states of the Habsburg monarchy from 1848 until his death ...

Albert Einstein Albert Einstein (14 March 187918 April 1955) was a German-born theoretical physicist who is best known for developing the theory of relativity. Einstein also made important contributions to quantum mechanics. His mass–energy equivalence f ...

, and

Alfred Nobel Alfred Bernhard Nobel ( ; ; 21 October 1833 – 10 December 1896) was a Swedish chemist, inventor, engineer, and businessman. He is known for inventing dynamite, as well as having bequeathed his fortune to establish the Nobel Prizes. He also m ...

stayed at this hotel. This hotel was today's HotelCarlton's place. In 1911,

Sándor Petőfi Sándor Petőfi ( []; né Petrovics; ; ; 1 January 1823 – most likely 31 July 1849) was a Hungarian poet and Classical Liberalism, liberal revolutionary. He is considered Hungary's national poet, and was one of the key figures of the Hungari ...

's sculpture was erected opposite what became Slovak National Theater. It was unsuccessfully attacked with

dynamite Dynamite is an explosive made of nitroglycerin, sorbents (such as powdered shells or clay), and Stabilizer (chemistry), stabilizers. It was invented by the Swedish people, Swedish chemist and engineer Alfred Nobel in Geesthacht, Northern German ...

after the Czechoslovak army occupied the city in 1918. After this event, the sculpture was boarded over until its removal. The square underwent major reconstruction at the end of the 20th century. Before reconstruction, it looked like a small city park; now it looks like a city promenade. On February 24, 2005, US President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

gave a public speech in Hviezdoslav Square during his visit to Bratislava for the Slovakia Summit 2005 with Russian President

Vladimir Putin Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin (born 7 October 1952) is a Russian politician and former intelligence officer who has served as President of Russia since 2012, having previously served from 2000 to 2008. Putin also served as Prime Minister of Ru ...

Configuration

The square is primarily a pedestrian zone with a lot of green. A podium occupies the central part for cultural events, and two parallel fountains run along the square. Close to the theater is the larger than life-sized statue of Hviezdoslav.

Important buildings

One building in the square is the old headquarters of the Slovak National Theater (opera). On the southern side are the Radisson Blu Carlton Hotel, as well as the German and American embassies. On the northern side are many bars and restaurants.

References

Bibliography

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