Medieval Manor House Research Papers (original) (raw)

The region of the Middle Ponitrie is situated in the west part of Slovakia. It has the area of a nowaday district of Partizánske with its 23 villages. It covers more than 300 km2 in the mountain basin along the mean flow of the river Nitra surrounded by Tribeč in the east, Straitly Mountains in the north-west and Považský Inovec in the south-west. Alluvial and loess soils covering the flat parts of the basin have created suitable conditions for varied vegetation that mainly consists of deciduous trees, bushes and grasslands.
The settlement in the region of the Middle Ponitrie remarkably increased in the period of Great Moravia. The numerous archeological remains of agricultural tools from Žabokreky nad Nitrou show the intensive farming here. The existing settlement structure was not disturbed by the downfall of Great Moravia at the beginning of 906. In the last decades of the 10th century the Middle Ponitrie was a part of Nitra apanage duchy. It was reigned by Michael from Arpád dynasty. He appointed the christian Slovak knights from Poznans and Hunts families. Later they gained large estates in Ponitrie too. After the duke Stephen was crowned the first king of Hungary in 1000, the parish churches were built in the whole territory of Hungary and the christianity gradually penetrated into the smallest villages. The early Romance church in Krásno from the 11th century ranks to the oldest big parish churches in the Middle Ponitrie. Its foundations examined by the archaelogists can be seen on the hill above the village.
In Early Medieval times the administrative and regional structure was formed and the region of the Middle Ponitrie became a part of Nitra, Trenčín and Tekov counties. Prevailing king's property started falling apart due to donating the villages. The aristocrats became the owners of the land. The aristocratic families became the secular patrons of the parish churches and from the 12th- 13th centuries they started building fortified residences at their estates. The poorer thanes were initially building log manors (e.g. the manor houses in BoSany and Brodzany unpreserved by today) or simple stone towers with a wooden fortification and basin (Partizánske - Šimonovany, Žabokreky, Bošany). Only the most significant aristocratic families had the means for building stone castles. Such a fortification in the Middle Ponitrie was a castle on Michael hill above Kolačno. Its remains were dated back to the 12th - 13th centuries by the archeologists.
The growing position of aristocracy in society led to building new churches or reconstruction of the older churches in the countryside. The oldest ones are well-preserved churches from the 12th century in Klátova Nová Ves -Sádok, Hradište and Veľký KIíž- Klížske Hradište. The later churches from the 13th century have been reconstructed and preserved in Livina, Partizánske - Šimonovany, Malé Krštenany, Veľke Uherce. Some of them have not been maintained (Bošany, Turčianky, Žabokreky, Nadlice and others). The precious medieval wall paintings have sometimes been preserved in churches (Klátova Nová Ves - Sádok), or medieval bells (in Brodzany from 1483 and Nadlice from 1519).
Establishment of monasteries went with spreading the christianity. Their arising was supported by the king and aristocracy too. One of the minor Benedictine monasteries was founded in Veľký Klíž - Klížské Hradište in the 12th century and its foundations are hidden in the garden of the parish church. In modern times the territory of Slovakia neighboured the extending Ottoman Empire. Besides constructing the forts at the borders the fortified mansions with corner bastions and loopholes were built inland. We have more examples of such mansions in the Middle Ponitrie which secured protection of the owners. The most interesting mansions are the ones in Bošany, Klátova Nová Ves, Brodzany and Veľké Uherce. The poorer noblemen reconstructed the older medieval manors to the mansions of this type (mansions in Bošany, Veľké Uherce), but many of them have not been preserved and we do not know their former architecture (Veľké Uherce - upper mansion, Klátová Nová Ves - Baštin, Partizánske - Šimonovany and others). In some cases the burial places surrounded by walls around the churches on the hills were used as a refuge in danger (Hradište, Krásno, Klátova Nová Ves - Sádok).
After the riots in the country calmed down in the 18th-19th centuries, the local aristocratic families began building comfortable residences without defensive function (Bošany, Klátova Nová Ves). The earlier fortified mansions were gradually rebuilt too and their defensive elements were removed (Brodzany, Ostratice, Veľké Uherce). The parks and gardens have been planted around. The park area was decorated by various park architecture (Veľke Uherce) and minor summer houses have often been built nearby them (Brodzany). In the parks and burial places aristocracy used to make their own burial chapels in the second half of the 19th century. Most of the chapels preserved to present-day were built in Romance style at the end of the 19th century (Bošany, Brodzany, Nedanovce), but in Žabokreky we can still admire a rare Art Nouveau tomb from 1913 with the original interior decoration.
The landscape of the Middle Ponitrie is also shaped by the numerous roadside crosses, statues and pillar chapels from the 18th century. They belong to the cultural and historical heritage of our country. With the exception of several ones from the end of the 18th century the most of these sacred objects emerged during the 19th century and have gradually been replaced by the new ones.
The most important fast dying heritage are the folk houses. The most of these sights disappeared in the last half -century. We can exceptionally admire a couple of authentic and preserved folk houses situated in remote villages (Kolačno - Ondrášová) or next to modern houses in the villages (Livinské Opatovce, Veľký KIíž, Turčianky).
The 19th century brought production development and the first industrialization. From this period there have been preserved several precious and mostly gradually dying technical sightseeings in the area of the Middle Ponitrie. They include former water mills in Hradište and Ješkova Ves or one of the first electric mills in the area built in 1934 in Ostratice with its original technical equipment. A valuable site which originally served for lime production is a residue of the lime site from 1929 in a solitary place Cibajky in Klátová Nová Ves. It is impossible to overlook the stone bridge in Chynorany. From the local factories the most important was a non-existing up-to-now factory for a bentwood furniture Thonet in Veľké Uherce from 1866 and the factory for leather manufacture in Bošany found in 1857 which operates up-today. The well-known was the factory for processing hemp and flax from 1905-1906 in Chynorany which continued the local tradition of processing the flax.
The fast development of architectonic styles in the 20th century evoked the present interest to protect modern sightseeings of so-called functional architecture. They are mainly in a new-built industrial town Partizánske (its original name was Baťovany). Its urban features are even today illustrated by authentic houses and industrial sites with characteristic edged masonry. In addition to the oldest houses in Bata's workers colony from 1938-1939 this town is proud of a singular functionalist church.
The aim of this publication is to popularize the rich and various cultural and historical heritage of the Middle Ponitrie. It focused on the whole variety of sightseeings including died ones which deserve attention. Hopefully, its publishing will help to popularize and protect our common cultural and historical heritage.
the authors