Komenda (; ''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v državnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, pp. 26–27.) is a village in the

Upper Carniola Upper Carniola ( ; ; ) is a traditional region of Slovenia, the northern mountainous part of the larger Carniola region. The largest town in the region is Kranj, and other urban centers include Kamnik, Jesenice, Jesenice, Jesenice, Domžale and ...

region of

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 Komenda The Municipality of Komenda (; ) is a municipality in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is the village of Komenda.Kaplja Vas (, ).

Name

Komenda was first mentioned in written sources in 1147–54 as ''de sancto Petro'' (and as ''hospitale Sancti Petri'' in 1296, ''in der pharren von Sand Peter'' in 1322, and ''comendator ad S. Petrum'' in 1446). The name of the village is identical to the Slovene common noun ''komenda'' '

commandry In the Middle Ages, a commandery (rarely commandry) was the smallest administrative division of the European landed properties of a military order. It was also the name of the house where the knights of the commandery lived.Anthony Luttrell and G ...

', referring to a property and residence owned by the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem, commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), is a Catholic military order. It was founded in the crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem in the 12th century and had headquarters there ...

from 1223 to 1872. The noun ''komenda'' is borrowed (probably via German ''Kommende'') from Medieval Latin ''

commenda The commenda was a medieval contract which developed in Italy around the 13th century, and was an early form of limited partnership. The commenda was an agreement between an investing partner and a traveling partner to conduct a commercial enterpris ...

'' 'entrusted property'. In the past the German name was ''Commenda''.

Mass grave

Komenda is the site of a

mass grave A mass grave is a grave containing multiple human corpses, which may or may Unidentified decedent, not be identified prior to burial. The United Nations has defined a criminal mass grave as a burial site containing three or more victims of exec ...

from the period immediately after the Second World War. The Svešek Alder Mass Grave () is located at the edge of the Svešek Alder Woods () along a forest road northwest of

Žeje pri Komendi Žeje pri Komendi ( or ; ''Intelligenzblatt zur Laibacher Zeitung'', no. 141. 24 November 1849, p. 19.) is a village in the Municipality of Komenda in the Upper Carniola region of Slovenia. Name The name of the settlement was changed from ''Žeje' ...

. It contains the remains of 10 to 15 prisoners from

Kamnik Kamnik (; ''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 the ninth-largest town of Slovenia, located in t ...

murdered in May and June 1945. Their nationalities and whether they were soldiers or civilians is unknown.

Church

Above the settlement is a complex with a castle, the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), 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 com ...

dedicated to

Saint Peter Saint Peter (born Shimon Bar Yonah; 1 BC – AD 64/68), also known as Peter the Apostle, Simon Peter, Simeon, Simon, or Cephas, was one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus and one of the first leaders of the Jewish Christian#Jerusalem ekklēsia, e ...

, a parsonage, stables, and a cemetery. A church in Komenda was first referred to in documents dating to 1147. In 1726 the old church was pulled down to make way for the new building. The current one was built in the

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

style and completed in 1729. It was based on plans by the architect

Gregor Maček Jr Gregor is a masculine given name. Notable people and fictional characters with the name include: * Gregor (musician) (1898–1971), Armenian bandleader * Gregor Abel (born 1949), Scottish footballer * Gregor Adlercreutz (1898–1944), Swedish e ...

. The interior and the surroundings were redesigned in the first half of the 20th century based on plans by the architect

Jože Plečnik Jože Plečnik () (23 January 1872 – 7 January 1957) was a Slovenian architect who had a major impact on the modern architecture of Vienna, Prague and of Ljubljana, the capital of Slovenia, most notably by designing the iconic Triple Bridge a ...

Cultural heritage

In addition to Saint Peter's Church, several other structures in Komenda have protected cultural monument status: *The commandery of the Knights Hospitaller, also known as the Šmid Manor (), is located immediately northwest of Saint Peter's Church. It is a two-story structure with four wings and an irregular interior courtyard. Its foundations date to the 13th century, and it was renovated in 1872 and again in 1909. The

Partisans Partisan(s) or The Partisan(s) may refer to: Military * Partisan (military), paramilitary forces engaged behind the front line ** Francs-tireurs et partisans, communist-led French anti-fascist resistance against Nazi Germany during WWII ** Itali ...

burned it in 1944, setting a fire in each room, which destroyed all of the furnishings and badly damaged the frescoes and Gothic stonework. *The Glavar House () is located at Glavar Street () no. 77. It is a two-story structure that Peter Pavel Glavar had built in 1752. Glavar's coat of arms stands above the door casing, and the exterior has three frescoes painted by Franc Jelovšek (1700–1764). *The Glavar Hospital () is located south of the cemetery at Glavar Street () nos. 104 and 106. It is a two-story building with nine bays, a vaulted interior, and an arcaded walkway in the rear. It was built at the bequest of Peter Pavel Glavar to serve the poor, infirm, and aged. The hospital operated from 1805 to 1947.

Notable people

Notable people who were born or lived in Komenda include: * Pietro Giacomo de Testaferrata (; 1673–1763), Maltese knight *

Peter Pavel Glavar Peter Pavel Glavar (2 May 1721 – 24 January 1784) was a Carniolan Roman Catholic Church, Roman Catholic priest, beekeeper, writer, and businessman. Glavar was born in Ljubljana as an illegitimate child, illegitimate child of the Maltese people, ...

(1721–1784), priest, beekeeper, writer, and businessman * Ivan Selan (1902–1981), counterfeiter and cartographer * Ivan Sivec (born 1949), writer and journalist * Agata Zupin (born 1998), hurdles runner *

Tadej Pogačar Tadej Pogačar (; born 21 September 1998) is a Slovenia, Slovenian professional road bicycle racing, cyclist who currently rides for UCI WorldTeam . His victories include three Tour de France, Tours de France (2020 Tour de France, 2020, 2021 Tou ...

(born 1998), professional cyclist and three-time

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

winner

Twin municipalities

Križevci Križevci (; ; ; ) is a town in northern Croatia with a total population of 21,122 and with 11,231 in the town itself (2011), It is the oldest town in its county, the Koprivnica-Križevci County. History The first mention of "Upper Križeva ...

Gallery

File:Komenda Hippodrome.jpg, The horse track and the church File:Komenda Glavar.jpg, The

portal of the house and library of Peter Pavel Glavar, designed by File:Komenda Cemetery.jpg, The cemetery with a Gothic memorial column (1510) erected by the Knights Hospitaller File:Komenda Slovenia - Smid manor.jpg, Šmid Manor, built in the 15th century

References

External links

*
Komenda on Geopedia

{{Authority control Populated places in the Municipality of Komenda