Nicknames of European Cities

Bratislava is a capital of Slovakia, located on Danube river at a tripoint with Austria and Hungary.

Early settlements existed in the area around Bratislava since the iron age, with Celts having had established a fortified town on the site by 150BC. Between 100-400AD, the Danube River acted as a border between the Roman Empire, on the southern side, and the Barbaricum (German tribes), on the northern side. Slavs began arriving to the area between the 400-500s. By the 900s, the town became known as Pressburg (German and English) / Pozsony (Hungarian) / Prešporok (Slovak).

Pressburg was absorbed into the Kingdom of Hungary in the 1000s, and developed into an important economic and administrative centre on the kingdom’s frontier. Its strategic position made it the site of frequent attacks and battles, but also brought it economic development and high political status. Pressburg was granted town privileges in 1291 and declared a free royal town in 1405. The Kingdom of Hungary was defeated by the Ottoman Empire in the Battle of Mohács in 1526 and the kingdom was subsequent partitioned and Hungary became a part of the Habsburg Monarchy. The Ottomans soon besieged Pressburg and Vienna too, but failed to conquer them. In 1536, as a consequence of Ottoman advances, the Hungarian capital was transfered to Pressburg from Buda (which was captured in 1541). In 1848, as a result of the decline of the Ottoman Empire and its influence on the region, Pest replaced Pressburg as the capital of Hungary (the cities of Buda, Pest, and Óbuda would unite into Budapest in 1873). The Habsburg Monarchy united in 1867 and became the Austro-Hungarian Empire. In 1918, following World War I, the Austro-Hungarian Empire collapsed.

In October 1918, the new state of Czechoslovakia was declared, and in 1919 Pressburg was officially renamed Bratislava. In 1938, Czechoslovakia was occupied by Nazi Germany, and in 1945 by the Soviet Union. In 1948, Czechoslovakia came under Communist rule and became a satellite state of the Soviet Union.

In November 1989, the Velvet Revolution began with demonstrations against communist rule. By the end of November, without any violence, the Communist party relinquish power. In December 1989, a non-communist government was appointed and in June 1990 Czechoslovakia held its first democratic elections since 1946. In 1993, Czechoslovakia peacefully split into two countries – Czech Republic and Slovakia – in what became known as the Velvet Divorce. Bratislava became capital of the newly independent Slovakia.

Today, Bratislava is a city of approximately 500,000 and receives over a million tourists a year.