The Hungarian name of the town comes from the word "bárd" (English: "chopper"), which indicated an amount of forested territory which could be chopped down by one man in one day. In the Hungarian name (Bártfa), the "fa" (English: "tree") suffix came later, and it also changed the last letter of "bárd" to "bárt", for easier pronunciation.
Bardejov
The territory of present-day Bardejov has attracted settlers since the Stone Age. Traces of human settlements in Bardejov can be traced back to around 20,000 B.C. However, the first written reference to the town dates back to 1247, when monks from Bardejov complained to King Béla IV about a violation of the town’s borders by Prešov, a neighbouring city. There is mention of German settlers coming up from Prešov in these records as well. The city is mentioned in Hypatian Codex for 1240 when in the fall Daniel of Galicia passed it traveling from Hungary to Poland.
In 1320, King Charles Robert granted the settlers extensive city privileges and the town speedily began to grow. The main business of the people was trade, farming and crafts. Bardejov was a convenient center of trade due to its location on the road between the Black Sea and the Baltic Sea. In 1352, the town was granted the privilege to set up an annual fair (jarmok) dedicated to St. Aegidius on September 1. The deed mentions a new construction of the town of Bardejov with an order by King Louis I to fortify it.
The entire defensive circuit was completed, with three gates on the main routes and bastions at strategic points. In 1376, the King Ladislaus I granted Bardejov the status of a free royal town. More than 50 guilds controlled the flourishing economy. Zigmund of Luxemburg granted the town storage privileges in 1402, for the goods brought here by the Russian and Polish merchants. Bardejov merchants were also free to travel across the entire country as far as Dalmatia without paying duty or royal taxes. There was a second phase of fortification between 1420 and 1474.
By the 15th century, Bardejov was a busy town with large economic growth. There were approximately 500 houses and a population of 3000. The linen production and sales to which the town had a monopoly surpassed any activity. In 1455, the king granted the town the privilege of linen bleaching and sale. At that time only Bratislava, Košice and Levoča had larger number of craftsmen and guilds than Bardejov. Beside the linen and weaver's guild that was in existence from 1423, the dressmaker's guild from 1435, the furrier's guild from 1457, and the potter’s guild from 1485 (the first potter's guild in the present-day territory of Slovakia), there were guilds such as: locksmith's, fisher's, butcher's, blacksmith's, boot-maker's, cloth's, sword-maker's, and many others.
The Town Hall Square (Radničné námestie) in Bardejov
The town flourished and was able to acquire 14 serf villages and vineyards in the Tokaj region. Many important structures were built, including the monastery and the church of the Augustinian order. A slaughterhouse was built in close vicinity of the monastery and the town bath was built too. There were also mills, winery, saw-mills, brickwork's, bleaching house, pressing shop, linen warehouse, brewery jail and others. However, by the late 15th century, the town had lost its linen monopoly and the linen trade gradually deteriorated.
In the early 16th century, the city built a Latin school. During the reformation, the acclaimed humanist Leonard Stockel, Martin Luther's disciple (referred to as the Teacher of Hungary), taught at the school beginning in 1539. He gradually turned the school into a significant center of education in what was then north-eastern Hungary. Georg Henisch was one of the student there and, at present, one of the town trade school is named after him. The Reformation and Humanism elevated nationally and culturally not only the German-speaking population, but also the Slovak Protestants. In this spirit, Gutgesell's print shop of Bardejov printed Luther’s Catechism, the first book to be printed in Biblical Czech in 1581.
The early 16th century saw more development: the town hall was rebuilt and a school was built alongside the church. The final phase of fortification took place in the early 16th century, with the modernization of the bastions and digging of a water-filled moat. However, unrest within the old Hungarian Kingdom during the first half of the 16th century saw Bardejov entering into a period of recession. Bardejov’s golden age ended at the end of 16th century, when several wars, pandemics, and other disasters plagued the country.
Counter reformation actions of the Emperor's army against the Kuruc in the 17th century had a grave effect on the town's life. The plundering of the town and its vicinity, as well as the town’s financial contributions to the war efforts, brought the one-time prosperous Bardejov to the brink of poverty. The plague of 1710 made the situation even more critical. The German and Hungarian populations, decimated by the war and the plague, were slowly replaced by the Slovak population.
Beginning in the first quarter of the 18th century, the situation began to improve. Slovaks and Hasidic Jews came into Bardejov in large numbers. By the end of the century, the population of the town had regained the level of the 16th century. The burghers' houses were rebuilt or modified in keeping with current architectural fashion. A Jewish quarter with a synagogue, slaughterhouse, and ritual baths developed in the north-western suburbs. New churches and bridges were built, as well.
Panorama of Bardejov, summer 2008
Despite further fires in the last quarter of the 19th century, the town continued to thrive, thanks to major industrialization projects in the region. In 1893, a railway was opened connecting Presov to Bardejov. However, it declined again following the establishment of the first Czechoslovak Republic and became a backward farming region. World War II saw a worsening in the economic situation, though little damage from bombardment. Bardejov was taken by Soviet troops of the 1st Guards Army on 20 January 1945.
In 1950, Bardejov was declared a protected city core and extensive restoration of its cultural heritage began. These efforts culminated in Bardejov receiving the European Gold Medal by the International Board of Trustees in Hamburg in 1986 – the first town in Czechoslovakia to receive the award. On November 20, 2000, Bardejov was selected by UNESCO as one of its World Heritage Sites, recognized for its Jewish Suburbia and historic town center. In November 2010, the city marked the 10th anniversary of its inscription on the UNESCO World Heritage list.
Today, Bardejov is known mainly for its authentic old town square, which due to extensive restoration and preservation of its Medieval, Renaissance, and Gothic architecture has made Bardejov a popular tourist destination. The town draws on its rich heritage to further develop cultural traditions, such as an annual trade fair and the Roland Games (commemorating its medieval past).
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