The Predná Hora mansion () is a neo-baroque manor in Muráň,

Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...

, once belonging to king Ferdinand I of Bulgaria. Today, the manor is a sanatorium.

History

King Ferdinand of Bulgaria wanted to have a winter residence in the Slovakian mountains. The architects were D. Jakab an M. Komora, and belonged to the

Budapest Budapest is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns of Hungary, most populous city of Hungary. It is the List of cities in the European Union by population within city limits, tenth-largest city in the European Union by popul ...

company Kondoras-Feledi, who designed a five-storey building in neo-baroque style with a glazed courtyard, a monumental staircase, botanical gardens and a heated pond. Construction started in 1912 and was completed within two years, short before the First World War. After his abdication as Bulgarian King in 1918, the house became the king's main residence together with his

manor house A manor house was historically the main residence of the lord of the manor. The house formed the administrative centre of a manor in the European feudal system; within its great hall were usually held the lord's manorial courts, communal mea ...

in Svätý Anton. In 1944, the king had to leave Slovakia together with the retreating German Army. He fled to

Coburg Coburg ( , ) is a Town#Germany, town located on the Itz (river), Itz river in the Upper Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. Long part of one of the Thuringian states of the Ernestine duchies, Wettin line, it joined Bavaria by popular vote only ...

, where he lived in the ‘Bulgaren Schlösschen’ until his death in 1948. The mansion and estate where confiscated by the Communist government. After 1948, they decided to use the mansion as a

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

sanatorium A sanatorium (from Latin '' sānāre'' 'to heal'), also sanitarium or sanitorium, is a historic name for a specialised hospital for the treatment of specific diseases, related ailments, and convalescence. Sanatoriums are often in a health ...

, which started in 1952. Rebuilding was by the architect J. Tvarozek. In 1973, it was changed into an alcohol treatment centre. In 1995, it also became a hospital for treatment of addiction to

drugs A drug is any chemical substance other than a nutrient or an essential dietary ingredient, which, when administered to a living organism, produces a biological effect. Consumption of drugs can be via inhalation, injection, smoking, ingestio ...

and compulsive gambling. The hospital works together with universities and hospitals in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

, the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

, and

Sweden Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden, is a Nordic countries, Nordic country located on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. It borders Norway to the west and north, and Finland to the east. At , Sweden is the largest Nordic count ...

. The king was a passionate hunter and he also built a small hunting lodge in the forest around the mansion. Today, it contains an exhibition on the king and can be visited. One can also see the bedroom, the study and the kitchen.

References

Literature

External links

* * * {{coord, 48.7717, 20.1112, type:landmark_region:SK, display=title Castles in Slovakia Buildings and structures in Banská Bystrica Region House of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha House of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha-Koháry House of Koháry