Bratislava Castle

The castle hill was already settled in the Stone Age. Later, the Celts built an oppidum here, before the area came under Roman control, which lasted until 378 AD. In the late 9th century, during the Great Moravian Empire, an important fortification was built. The first documented mention of the castle occurred either in 805 or 907. After the fall of the Great Moravian Empire, the castle became part of the Kingdom of Hungary. In the 10th century, coins were minted here, and in the 11th and 12th centuries, a pre-Romanesque stone palace emerged. A Romanesque castle from the 13th century, of which a residential tower remains, was conquered by Bohemian troops in 1273 and by Austrian forces in 1287. In the 15th century, under Sigismund of Luxembourg, the castle acquired its current four-winged layout and was reinforced with bastions and the Sigismund Gate. After the Battle of Mohács in 1526, it became the seat of Ferdinand I and underwent extensive Renaissance-style renovations in the 16th and 17th centuries, with the Crown Tower housing the Hungarian crown jewels. Under Palatine Count Paul Pálffy, the castle was raised by one story in the 17th century and gained its characteristic four-towered appearance. In the 18th century, under Maria Theresa, the castle transformed from a defensive structure into a representative Baroque residence. After 1780, it lost its significance, serving as a general seminary and later as a barracks. A devastating fire in 1811 destroyed large parts of the complex. Only from 1953 to 1968 was the castle extensively renovated. Here, the Constitutional Act on the Czechoslovak Federation was signed in 1968, and the current Slovak Constitution in 1992. From 1993 to 1996, it served as the seat of the Slovak president.

Bratislava Castle is located in the Slovak capital, Bratislava, in the Bratislavský kraj, at an elevation of approximately 207 m above sea level.

Today, Bratislava Castle can be visited. It houses museums and serves as a representative building. The former chapel is now used as a concert hall. Since 2008, the complex has been undergoing extensive renovations once again.

• Old Kittsee Castle (Schloss), approx. 6.0 km away
• Pottenburg Castle Ruin (Burg), approx. 6.1 km away
• New Kittsee Castle (Schloss), approx. 6.2 km away
• Wolfsthal Castle (Schloss), approx. 7.0 km away