Turčianske Teplice (german: Bad Stuben; hu, Stubnyafürdő) is a town in central Slovakia in the Žilina Region. It is about halfway between Martin and

Kremnica Kremnica (; german: Kremnitz, hu, Körmöcbánya) is a town in central Slovakia. It has around 5,300 inhabitants. The well-preserved medieval town built above important gold mines is the site of the oldest still-working mint in the world. Name ...

. The town's population is around 6,500. The town was the historic center of the Upper Turiec subregion within the Turiec region (comitatus), and now enjoys the status of a capital of the

Turčianske Teplice District Turčianske Teplice District (''okres Turčianske Teplice'') is a district in the Žilina Region of central Slovakia. Until 1920, the district was part of Turóc County, Kingdom of Hungary. Municipalities * Abramová * Blažovce *Bodorov� ...

History

The town is one of the oldest spa towns in Europe, and was originally known as ''Štubnianske Teplice''. It was first mentioned in text dating from 1281 when King Ladislaus IV of Hungary granted the lands surrounding the springs to a Count Peter. The

spa A spa is a location where mineral-rich spring water (and sometimes seawater) is used to give medicinal baths. Spa towns or spa resorts (including hot springs resorts) typically offer various health treatments, which are also known as balneothe ...

became popular with royalty, including King Sigismund of Hungary and Emperor

Maximilian I of Mexico Maximilian I (german: Ferdinand Maximilian Josef Maria von Habsburg-Lothringen, link=no, es, Fernando Maximiliano José María de Habsburgo-Lorena, link=no; 6 July 1832 – 19 June 1867) was an Austrian archduke who reigned as the only Emperor ...

. The recuperative abilities of the spa were first studied by the University of

Halle Halle may refer to: Places Germany * Halle (Saale), also called Halle an der Saale, a city in Saxony-Anhalt ** Halle (region), a former administrative region in Saxony-Anhalt ** Bezirk Halle, a former administrative division of East Germany ** Hall ...

medical student Jan Lisschoviny. Štubnianske Teplice was renamed Turčianske Teplice in 1946. In 1951 the town merged with the community of Vieska.

Geography

Turčianske Teplice lies at an altitude of

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...

and covers an area of . It lies in the Turiec Basin and is surrounded in proximity by the Greater Fatra,

, Žiar and Lesser Fatra mountain ranges. The divisions of the town include: * Diviaky (1951-1955 and 1971) * Dolná Štubňa (incorporated in 1971) * Turčiansky Michal (incorporated in 1971) * Turčianske Teplice

Demographics

According to the 2001 census, the town had 7,031 inhabitants. 97.98% of inhabitants were

Slovaks The Slovaks ( sk, Slováci, singular: ''Slovák'', feminine: ''Slovenka'', plural: ''Slovenky'') are a West Slavic ethnic group and nation native to Slovakia who share a common ancestry, culture, history and speak Slovak. In Slovakia, 4.4 mi ...

, 0.67% Czech and 0.37% Germans. The religious make-up was 48.09%

Roman Catholics The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, 30.56% Lutherans, and 17.24% people with no religious affiliation.

Twin towns — sister cities

Turčianske Teplice is

twinned Twinning (making a twin of) may refer to: * In biology and agriculture, producing two offspring (i.e., twins) at a time, or having a tendency to do so; * Twin towns and sister cities, towns and cities involved in town twinning * Twinning inst ...

with: * Holešov, Czech Republic * Havířov, Czech Republic * Skawina, Poland * Wisła, Poland * Aranđelovac, Serbia

Notable people

* Mikuláš Galanda, a modern

painter Painting is the practice of applying paint, pigment, color or other medium to a solid surface (called the "matrix" or "support"). The medium is commonly applied to the base with a brush, but other implements, such as knives, sponges, and ai ...

graphic Graphics () are visual images or designs on some surface, such as a wall, canvas, screen, paper, or stone, to inform, illustrate, or entertain. In contemporary usage, it includes a pictorial representation of data, as in design and manufacture, ...

designer and

illustrator An illustrator is an artist who specializes in enhancing writing or elucidating concepts by providing a visual representation that corresponds to the content of the associated text or idea. The illustration may be intended to clarify complicat ...

. * Matúš Černák, diplomat *

Jozef Lettrich Jozef Lettrich (17 June 1905 — 29 November 1969) was a Slovak writer and politician. Lettrich is best known as the leader of the non-Communist, big tent Democratic Party between 1944 and 1948. Lettrich opposed the Nazi-allied Ľudaks who ruled ...

, politician

References

External links

Town websiteSpa website
Cities and towns in Slovakia Spa towns in Slovakia {{Žilina-geo-stub