Modrý Kameň
Modrý Kameň ( Blaustein German, Hungarian Kekko ) is a city in Okres Veľký Krtíš within the Banskobystrický kraj in southern Slovakia. With 1560 inhabitants ( 31 December 2011) is one of the smallest cities in the country.
Geography
The city is located at the transition from the valley of Ipeľská kotlina (part of Juhoslovenská kotlina ) in the plateau Krupinská planina. Through the town of Krtíš which receives the tributary flows Riečka here. A few kilometers north of the city begins the military site read. The amount in just 19.65 km ² large municipality varies from 200 m nm N.M. to 504 m; it is covered by brown forest soils and illimerisierten floors. The city center lies at an altitude of 240 m nm and is four kilometers from Velky Krtíš and 77 km from Banska Bystrica.
Neighboring municipalities are Horne Strhaře in the north, Dolné Strhaře in the east, Velky Krtíš in the south, Dolné Plachtince the southwest, Stredné Plachtince in the west and Dačov Lom in the northwest.
History
In today's municipality cremations have been found from the early and middle Bronze Age.
Modrý Kameň 1290 was first mentioned in writing as Keykkw; this is also the first mention of the castle and its demesne. Its history is closely linked with the castle; until the end of the Middle Ages came the owner of the family of Balassa, who lived here until the 19th century. During the Turkish wars in the 16th and 17th centuries the town was pulled several times along with the castle in affected and was occupied by the Turks from 1576 to 1593. 1658 Modrý Kameň became the town; the inhabitants were engaged in agriculture and viticulture, and as craftsmen and shepherds. 1828 were counted 163 houses and 1,545 inhabitants.
Until 1918 it belonged to the county Neograd within the Kingdom of Hungary and then came to the newly created Czechoslovakia or Slovakia today. In Czechoslovakia ( 1923-1960 ) and in the First Slovak Republic, the city was the seat of a Okres.
Population
According to the 2011 census lived in Modrý Kameň 1,555 inhabitants, of whom 1,391 Slovaks, 25 Hungarians, 19 Roma, Czechs and six each one German and Pole; two residents were of a different ethnicity. 110 inhabitants did not know. 1,104 residents pleaded with the Roman Catholic Church, 121 inhabitants to the Evangelical Church A. B, four inhabitants of the Greek Catholic Church and the Orthodox Church, two residents to the Baptists and the Church of the Brethren and in each case a resident for Bahaitum, the Old Catholic Church, to United Methodist Church, for evangelistic church and the Reformed Church; four residents were other denomination. 128 inhabitants were non-denominational and 181 inhabitants, the denomination has not been determined.
Results according to the census 2001 (1.434 inhabitants):
After Ethnicity:
- 92.82 % Slovaks
- 2.79% Roma
- 2.02% Magyars
- 0.35% Czechs
- 0.07 % German
After Confession:
- 79.22 % Roman Catholic
- 8.44% no religious affiliation
- 7.60 % Evangelical
- 3.14 % no answer
- 0.84% Greek Catholic
- 0.28 % Orthodox
Attractions
- Castle Blaustein (Slovak hrad Modrý Kameň ), ruins of the Gothic castle, which was rebuilt several times during the Turkish wars, but finally destroyed against half of the 17th century. 1730, Gabriel Balassa build a country castle in Baroque style at the lower castle, a chapel was extended in 1759 to do so. Today it is owned by the state and the seat of the Doll and Toy Museum, part of the network of the Slovak National Museum.
- Calvary of the 18th century
- Roman Catholic Church in the neo-Romanesque, partly baroque style from 1879. 's equipment comes in part from the castle chapel
- Marian column in the late Baroque style of the 18th century
Traffic
Modrý Kameň lies on the regional road II/527 ( Šahy - Velky Krtíš - Babiná ), with connections to the national road network in Velky Krtíš ( I/75, 3 km), Devičie and Babiná ( I/66, E 77, both 34 km away). There is no rail connection, the train station in Velky Krtíš on the railway line Lučenec - Velky Krtíš is without a passenger. Nearest stations with passenger are in Lučenec and Zvolen (37 km and 51 km, railway Salgótarján - Vrútky ) and Šahy (50 km, railway Zvolen - Cata ). There are several regional bus services with surrounding communities and cities.