Parks and gardens in Bratislava
Encyclopedia
The parks and gardens in Bratislava have formed a part of the landscape of the capital of Slovakia
since the Middle Ages
. Some of the historical gardens of Bratislava
had such architectonic
value that they were widely known outside of the city and well beyond the borders of Hungary
. Perhaps the best known garden of Bratislava was the renaissance
Pálffy Garden, with its famous landmark, a centuries-old linden
tree encased in a wooden terrace frame, seven floors in height. Today, Bratislava's most famous park is Sad Janka Kráľa
, the oldest public park in central Europe.
and all the surrounding properties that were located outside the walls. The plots of land belonging to Bratislava Castle
are only shown schematically.
The Gothic gardens known to have existed were the Franciscan
cloister garden, the Ursulines
cloister garden, the Prepošt palace garden and an unnamed garden that belonged to a townhouse at the place of what became the De Pauly or Wittmann house, which today serves the University Library of Bratislava. It is hidden behind houses on Kapitulská Street, Ventúrska Street, Prepoštská Street and Farská Street.
gardens were the demolished Pálffy Garden and the Lippay Garden, which has partially survived.
Written data relating to the green space between the Castle and the 'Palisades' dates back the 17th century. Situated on the slopes of the hills of the Small Carpathian Mountains
, the area featured Carpathian oak
and hornbeam
forests, fruit gardens, vineyards and renowned flower gardens. The gardens contained so-called 'old horse chestnut' trees, often planted into tree alleys. They also contained native oak and linden
trees, which have proved to be long-lived. The north-west slope of Bratislava Castle's hill contained three important gardens, Pálffy, Prepostská and Jesenák.
garden that was located between Zámocká Street, Škarniclova Street, Palisády Street
, Zochova Street and Pilárikova Street. It was unique at that time and used to be described as the pride of both Bratislava and the whole of Hungary. It's very long but quite narrow terraced garden was almost 4 hectares (9.9 acre) in area and was located on a hillside. It belonged to the family of Count Mikuláš Pálffy, who married into the Augsburg
banking family of Fuggers and acquired financial support to arm soldiers and develop Červený Kameň Castle
. Mikuláš Pálffy was also a captain of Bratislava Castle and a governor of Bratislava province. The spacious garden contained several exotic plants, grottos, statues and fountains. It was divided into several parts. Its most striking attraction was a linden tree that was completely surrounded by wooden scaffolding
and which allowed Count Pálffy's guests to admire the scent of linden flowers while enjoying the spectacular view. The tree is depicted on a 1735 copperplate by M. Engelbrecht and F.B. Werner. The construction that surrounded the tree was onion-shaped and seven floors high.
Pavol Pálffy , a palatine of Hungary, bought extensive vineyards on the slopes of the Little Carpathians
in around 1640 and turned them into garden terraces, reinforced with walls. Some of the remnants of these walls still exist on Zochova Street and Svoradova Street. They are the oldest walls in Bratislava outside the fortifications of the city
and Bratislava Castle's defences.
In the 1630s, Pavol Pálffy was charged by the king with reconstructing Bratislava Castle, a task he helped to fund. Whilst the reconstruction was progressing, he had built for himself a large palace, situated on the castle hill. The palace he built has since been demolished, together with the garden: the Summer Pavilon has been restored as the Pálffy Palace
on Zámocká Street. In 1736, Francis Stephen of Lorraine
, the future Holy Roman Emperor
, resided there. After 1900, the garden was gradually replaced by new schools and campuses
. The only part of the former palace that still exists is a small structure near Zámocká Street and the last remaining remnant of the garden is a hole near Podjavorinskej Street. The remainders of what was a large gardening enterprise can still be seen in the area.
It was grown with vineyards and fruit tree
s but also contained homestead buildings, some ploughed land and a vegetable shop, both leased out. Also, herbs were grown in this garden which were subscribed and delivered to the neighboring Slubek's distillery . After the garden was divided into parcels, a new street was created at its place, named after Pressburg citizen, merchant and banker Teodor Edl - Edlova Street (today Podjavorinskej Street), and it was gradually replaced by houses on Zochova Street and Kozia Street.
Jan Jesenák. It was famous for its linden trees
.
František Forgách as the place of the future summer residence of the Hungarian Pimates' (highest ranking church officials in the country at that time).
Archbishop Georg Lippay (who was archbishop from 1642 to 1666) had the garden converted into a renaissance
garden of Eden by filling it with exotic plants and trees, fountain
s that used water taken from the mountain springs, artificial caves
and a big water pool where horses used to bathe. The garden's masterpiece was a garden pavilion with walls encased in mosaic and streams of water flowing through a musical instrument similar to an organ. The structure even had streams of water ejected upwards from the roof. This garden's configuration did not last long and already in the 30's of the 18th century parts of the garden's fountains started to appear in various other fountains in Bratislava. The pavilion did not survive this period either. Lippay also had a new summer residence built on this property sometime during his tenure as archbishop.
gardens in Bratislava are the Koch Garden, which is inaccessible to the public, the Grassalkovich Garden
and the Medic Garden.
Today, it is an important bird
nesting site in the city, because of its virtual lack of human presence.
Other locations considered to be parks:
(Squares)
(Riverbanks)
(Other)
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
since the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. Some of the historical gardens of Bratislava
Bratislava
Bratislava is the capital of Slovakia and, with a population of about 431,000, also the country's largest city. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia on both banks of the Danube River. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital that borders two independent countries.Bratislava...
had such architectonic
Architectonic
Architectonic may mean:*pertaining to architecture, or suggesting the qualities of architecture*in Aristotelianism, as well as Kantianism, systematization of all knowledge...
value that they were widely known outside of the city and well beyond the borders of Hungary
Kingdom of Hungary
The Kingdom of Hungary comprised present-day Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia , Transylvania , Carpatho Ruthenia , Vojvodina , Burgenland , and other smaller territories surrounding present-day Hungary's borders...
. Perhaps the best known garden of Bratislava was the renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
Pálffy Garden, with its famous landmark, a centuries-old linden
Linden
Linden is one of three English names for the tree genus Tilia . Several of the common names for species within the Tilia genus have Linden in their names...
tree encased in a wooden terrace frame, seven floors in height. Today, Bratislava's most famous park is Sad Janka Kráľa
Sad Janka Krála
Sad Janka Kráľa . But former names were: .It is a park in Bratislava's Petržalka borough. It is located in the northern part of Petržalka, bordered by the Danube in the north, the Old Bridge access road in the east, a main road in the south and the Nový Most access road in the west. The park is one...
, the oldest public park in central Europe.
Gothic gardens
Bratislava's oldest surviving city plan is the Marquart plan, which was drawn by Michael Marquart. It dates from 1765, when the city was known as Poszony or Pressburg. There are few detailed descriptions of the parks and gardens in the city that existed prior to that date. The Marquart plan shows both the houses and parcels of land within Bratislava's mediaeval city wallsBratislava Fortifications
The Bratislava fortifications are the system of fortifications of the city of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, of which one gate and two sections of walls remain today. Most of the medieval fortification system was demolished in the year 1775 by the order of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria,...
and all the surrounding properties that were located outside the walls. The plots of land belonging to Bratislava Castle
Bratislava Castle
Bratislava Castle is the main castle of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia.The massive rectangular building with four corner towers stands on a quite isolated rocky hill of the Little Carpathians directly above the Danube river in the middle of Bratislava...
are only shown schematically.
The Gothic gardens known to have existed were the Franciscan
Franciscan
Most Franciscans are members of Roman Catholic religious orders founded by Saint Francis of Assisi. Besides Roman Catholic communities, there are also Old Catholic, Anglican, Lutheran, ecumenical and Non-denominational Franciscan communities....
cloister garden, the Ursulines
Ursulines
The Ursulines are a Roman Catholic religious order for women founded at Brescia, Italy, by Saint Angela de Merici in November 1535, primarily for the education of girls and the care of the sick and needy. Their patron saint is Saint Ursula.-History:St Angela de Merici spent 17 years leading a...
cloister garden, the Prepošt palace garden and an unnamed garden that belonged to a townhouse at the place of what became the De Pauly or Wittmann house, which today serves the University Library of Bratislava. It is hidden behind houses on Kapitulská Street, Ventúrska Street, Prepoštská Street and Farská Street.
Renaissance gardens
The two greatest RenaissanceRenaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
gardens were the demolished Pálffy Garden and the Lippay Garden, which has partially survived.
Written data relating to the green space between the Castle and the 'Palisades' dates back the 17th century. Situated on the slopes of the hills of the Small Carpathian Mountains
Carpathian Mountains
The Carpathian Mountains or Carpathians are a range of mountains forming an arc roughly long across Central and Eastern Europe, making them the second-longest mountain range in Europe...
, the area featured Carpathian oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
and hornbeam
Hornbeam
Hornbeams are relatively small hardwood trees in the genus Carpinus . Though some botanists grouped them with the hazels and hop-hornbeams in a segregate family, Corylaceae, modern botanists place the hornbeams in the birch subfamily Coryloideae...
forests, fruit gardens, vineyards and renowned flower gardens. The gardens contained so-called 'old horse chestnut' trees, often planted into tree alleys. They also contained native oak and linden
Tilia
Tilia is a genus of about 30 species of trees native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The greatest species diversity is found in Asia, and the genus also occurs in Europe and eastern North America, but not western North America...
trees, which have proved to be long-lived. The north-west slope of Bratislava Castle's hill contained three important gardens, Pálffy, Prepostská and Jesenák.
Pálffy Garden
The Pálffy Garden was a RenaissanceRenaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
garden that was located between Zámocká Street, Škarniclova Street, Palisády Street
Palisády Street
Palisády Street is a major street in Bratislava's Old Town connecting Hodžovo námestie and Bratislava Castle in the Slovakia's capital. The street is served by public transport trolleybusses...
, Zochova Street and Pilárikova Street. It was unique at that time and used to be described as the pride of both Bratislava and the whole of Hungary. It's very long but quite narrow terraced garden was almost 4 hectares (9.9 acre) in area and was located on a hillside. It belonged to the family of Count Mikuláš Pálffy, who married into the Augsburg
Augsburg
Augsburg is a city in the south-west of Bavaria, Germany. It is a university town and home of the Regierungsbezirk Schwaben and the Bezirk Schwaben. Augsburg is an urban district and home to the institutions of the Landkreis Augsburg. It is, as of 2008, the third-largest city in Bavaria with a...
banking family of Fuggers and acquired financial support to arm soldiers and develop Červený Kameň Castle
Cervený Kamen Castle
Červený Kameň Castle is a castle in southwestern Slovakia in the Little Carpathians near the village of Častá.-History:A stone castle was built in the 13th century as part of the chain of country frontier defense castles ranging from Bratislava to Žilina. This castle was completely rebuilt as a...
. Mikuláš Pálffy was also a captain of Bratislava Castle and a governor of Bratislava province. The spacious garden contained several exotic plants, grottos, statues and fountains. It was divided into several parts. Its most striking attraction was a linden tree that was completely surrounded by wooden scaffolding
Scaffolding
Scaffolding is a temporary structure used to support people and material in the construction or repair of buildings and other large structures. It is usually a modular system of metal pipes or tubes, although it can be from other materials...
and which allowed Count Pálffy's guests to admire the scent of linden flowers while enjoying the spectacular view. The tree is depicted on a 1735 copperplate by M. Engelbrecht and F.B. Werner. The construction that surrounded the tree was onion-shaped and seven floors high.
Pavol Pálffy , a palatine of Hungary, bought extensive vineyards on the slopes of the Little Carpathians
Little Carpathians
The Little Carpathians are a low, about 100 km long, mountain range, part of the Carpathian Mountains. The mountains are situated in Western Slovakia, covering the area from Bratislava to Nové Mesto nad Váhom, a very small part called Hundsheimer Berge is situated south of Devín Gate in...
in around 1640 and turned them into garden terraces, reinforced with walls. Some of the remnants of these walls still exist on Zochova Street and Svoradova Street. They are the oldest walls in Bratislava outside the fortifications of the city
Bratislava Fortifications
The Bratislava fortifications are the system of fortifications of the city of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, of which one gate and two sections of walls remain today. Most of the medieval fortification system was demolished in the year 1775 by the order of Empress Maria Theresa of Austria,...
and Bratislava Castle's defences.
In the 1630s, Pavol Pálffy was charged by the king with reconstructing Bratislava Castle, a task he helped to fund. Whilst the reconstruction was progressing, he had built for himself a large palace, situated on the castle hill. The palace he built has since been demolished, together with the garden: the Summer Pavilon has been restored as the Pálffy Palace
Pálffy Palace (Zámocká Street)
Pálffy Palace is a 17th century building on Zámocká Street in the Old Town of Bratislava, Slovakia, situated just underneath the Bratislava Castle. It is the summer pavillon of a large palace complex that was demolished at the beginning of the 20th century...
on Zámocká Street. In 1736, Francis Stephen of Lorraine
Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor
Francis I was Holy Roman Emperor and Grand Duke of Tuscany, though his wife effectively executed the real power of those positions. With his wife, Maria Theresa, he was the founder of the Habsburg-Lorraine dynasty...
, the future Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
, resided there. After 1900, the garden was gradually replaced by new schools and campuses
Svoradov
Svoradov is a university student campus on Svoradova Street in the Old Town of Bratislava, Slovakia. It was the first modern campus building in Bratislava, first parts being constructed in 1932...
. The only part of the former palace that still exists is a small structure near Zámocká Street and the last remaining remnant of the garden is a hole near Podjavorinskej Street. The remainders of what was a large gardening enterprise can still be seen in the area.
Prepoštská Garden
The Prepoštská Garden was a large garden located between Pálffy Garden and Heindl Garden, at the end of today's Kozia Street. Podjavorinskej Street is located within the garden's boundaries.It was grown with vineyards and fruit tree
Fruit tree
A fruit tree is a tree which bears fruit that is consumed or used by people — all trees that are flowering plants produce fruit, which are the ripened ovaries of flowers containing one or more seeds. In horticultural usage, the term 'fruit tree' is limited to those that provide fruit for...
s but also contained homestead buildings, some ploughed land and a vegetable shop, both leased out. Also, herbs were grown in this garden which were subscribed and delivered to the neighboring Slubek's distillery . After the garden was divided into parcels, a new street was created at its place, named after Pressburg citizen, merchant and banker Teodor Edl - Edlova Street (today Podjavorinskej Street), and it was gradually replaced by houses on Zochova Street and Kozia Street.
Jesenák Garden
Jesenák Garden was located at the north-east point of Prepoštská Garden and it belonged to baronBaron
Baron is a title of nobility. The word baron comes from Old French baron, itself from Old High German and Latin baro meaning " man, warrior"; it merged with cognate Old English beorn meaning "nobleman"...
Jan Jesenák. It was famous for its linden trees
Tilia
Tilia is a genus of about 30 species of trees native throughout most of the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The greatest species diversity is found in Asia, and the genus also occurs in Europe and eastern North America, but not western North America...
.
Lippay Garden
This garden was acquired between the years 1607 to 1616 by the archbishop of EsztergomEsztergom
Esztergom , is a city in northern Hungary, 46 km north-west of the capital Budapest. It lies in Komárom-Esztergom county, on the right bank of the river Danube, which forms the border with Slovakia there....
František Forgách as the place of the future summer residence of the Hungarian Pimates' (highest ranking church officials in the country at that time).
Archbishop Georg Lippay (who was archbishop from 1642 to 1666) had the garden converted into a renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
garden of Eden by filling it with exotic plants and trees, fountain
Fountain
A fountain is a piece of architecture which pours water into a basin or jets it into the air either to supply drinking water or for decorative or dramatic effect....
s that used water taken from the mountain springs, artificial caves
Grotto
A grotto is any type of natural or artificial cave that is associated with modern, historic or prehistoric use by humans. When it is not an artificial garden feature, a grotto is often a small cave near water and often flooded or liable to flood at high tide...
and a big water pool where horses used to bathe. The garden's masterpiece was a garden pavilion with walls encased in mosaic and streams of water flowing through a musical instrument similar to an organ. The structure even had streams of water ejected upwards from the roof. This garden's configuration did not last long and already in the 30's of the 18th century parts of the garden's fountains started to appear in various other fountains in Bratislava. The pavilion did not survive this period either. Lippay also had a new summer residence built on this property sometime during his tenure as archbishop.
Baroque gardens
The most important BaroqueBaroque
The Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
gardens in Bratislava are the Koch Garden, which is inaccessible to the public, the Grassalkovich Garden
Summer Archbishop's Palace
The Summer Archbishop's Palace or Summer Archiepiscopal Palace is a palace in Bratislava which houses the government of Slovakia...
and the Medic Garden.
Koch Garden
Koch Garden is a protected area on Partizánska Street in Bratislava, established in the 1930s as part of the Karol Koch Sanatorium complex. It contains a large pool and many items of garden architecture such as benches, staircases, artificial hills, statues and winding walkways. Slovak botanist and dendrologist Jozef Mišák established an extremely varied and exotic garden. His goal was to achieve the garden's green look all around the year. The garden originally included 120 species of trees.Today, it is an important bird
Bird
Birds are feathered, winged, bipedal, endothermic , egg-laying, vertebrate animals. Around 10,000 living species and 188 families makes them the most speciose class of tetrapod vertebrates. They inhabit ecosystems across the globe, from the Arctic to the Antarctic. Extant birds range in size from...
nesting site in the city, because of its virtual lack of human presence.
List of Bratislava's parks
This list does not including the city's cemeteries and children's playgrounds:- Bratislava Forest ParkBratislavský lesný parkBratislavský lesný park or Bratislava Forest Park is a "forest park" in Bratislava, Slovakia, located in the foothills of the Little Carpathians. The park is managed by Bratislava City Forests, a non-profit organization....
- Horský Park
- Lesopark Vrakuňa
- Medická záhrada
- Park of Andrej Hlinka
- Pekníkova Street Park
- Račianske mýto parkRacianske mýtoRačianske mýto is a major transport junction and intersection in Bratislava, Slovakia, at the border of the Staré Mesto and Nové Mesto districts...
- Park in Rusovce
- Pečniansky les
- Presidential garden
- Sad Janka KráľaSad Janka KrálaSad Janka Kráľa . But former names were: .It is a park in Bratislava's Petržalka borough. It is located in the northern part of Petržalka, bordered by the Danube in the north, the Old Bridge access road in the east, a main road in the south and the Nový Most access road in the west. The park is one...
- Poor Clares Garden, behind the walls of the Poor Clares Cloister
Other locations considered to be parks:
(Squares)
- Americké námestie
- Hviezdoslavovo námestieHviezdoslavovo námestie (Bratislava)Hviezdoslavovo námestie is one of the best-known squares in Bratislava. It is located in the Old Town, between the New Bridge and the Slovak National Theatre.The square is named after Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav.-History:...
- Kollárovo námestie
- Námestie Slobody
- Nobelovo námestie
- Šafárikovo námestie
(Riverbanks)
- Park kultúry a oddychuPark kultúry a oddychuPark kultúry a oddychu abbreviated PKO and in the past commonly referred to as Pekáč is a complex of buildings in Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia by the Danube riverbank, built from 1943 to 1948...
- Tyršovo nábrežie
- Vajanského nábrežie
(Other)
- Park na Markovej
- Rímsky parčík, in Rusovce
- Bratislava ZooBratislava ZooThe ZOO Bratislava is a zoo in Bratislava, Slovakia, in the borough of Karlova Ves. It lies in the Little Carpathians forest. As of 2007, the zoo has an area of , and is home to 1307 specimens of 152 animal species. In 2006, the zoo received 203,000 visitors....
- Bratislava Botanic Gardens
Protected landscape areas
- Little Carpathians Protected Landscape AreaLittle Carpathians Protected Landscape AreaLittle Carpathians Protected Landscape Area is one of the 14 protected landscape areas in Slovakia. The Landscape Area is situated in the Little Carpathians, part of the Carpathian Mountains, in West Slovakia...
- Devínska Kobyla National Nature Reserve
- Sandberg Nature Reserve
- Dunajské luhy