Bratislava bridgehead

Last updated

Bratislava bridgehead is found in the western part of Slovakia. It has an area of 93,7 square km. It is situated on the Little Hungarian Plain, on the left bank of the river Danube. Administratively, it belongs to the district Bratislava V in Bratislava, and has 111,135 inhabitants.[ citation needed ]

History

As a result of the Treaty of Trianon - the peace treaty by Hungary that ended its role in First World War - a bridgehead was created for Czechoslovakia on the right bank of river Danube at Bratislava, mainly for defensive purposes. At this time Petržalka was transferred to the newly founded country.[ citation needed ]

In October 1938, as part of Munich Agreement, Petržalka and Devín were transferred to Nazi Germany for strategical purposes.[ citation needed ]

At the end of World War II, ceasefire agreements mainly restored the pre-war boundaries, except a small part of Carpathian Ruthenia, which became part of Ukraine as per the Moscow Agreement. A camp for Hungarians and Germans impeached for war crimes was located in Petržalka.[ citation needed ]

Territories involved in the Treaties of Paris. The Bratislava bridgehead is in green. Slovakia borders1947.png
Territories involved in the Treaties of Paris. The Bratislava bridgehead is in green.

It was an idea of the Czechoslovakia delegation at the Paris Peace Conference that they would need an extended defensive territory at the Bratislava bridgehead. [1] They sought Dunacsún (Čunovo), Horvátjárfalu (Jarovce), Oroszvár (Rusovce), Rajka and Bezenye. The first three were transferred, creating a territory of 62 km2.

During the 1970s, a microdistrict was built at Petržalka, with a population of 100,000 inhabitants. Today its four villages are a part of the Bratislava V district.[ citation needed ]

Between 1977 and 1992, the Gabčíkovo–Nagymaros Dams was built there. The bridgehead makes the extraction of water to Slovakia possible.[ citation needed ]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slovakia</span> Country in Central Europe

Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the southwest, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's mostly mountainous territory spans about 49,000 square kilometres (19,000 sq mi), with a population of over 5.4 million. The capital and largest city is Bratislava, while the second largest city is Košice.

The History of Slovakia, dates back to the findings of ancient human artifacts. This article shows the history of the country from prehistory to the present day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Treaty of Trianon</span> 1920 peace treaty on Hungary after World War I

The Treaty of Trianon often referred to as the PeaceDictate of Trianon or Dictate of Trianon in Hungary, was prepared at the Paris Peace Conference and was signed in the Grand Trianon château in Versailles on 4 June 1920. It formally ended World War I between most of the Allies of World War I and the Kingdom of Hungary. French diplomats played the major role in designing the treaty, with a view to establishing a French-led coalition of the newly formed states. It regulated the status of the Kingdom of Hungary and defined its borders generally within the ceasefire lines established in November–December 1918 and left Hungary as a landlocked state that included 93,073 square kilometres (35,936 sq mi), 28% of the 325,411 square kilometres (125,642 sq mi) that had constituted the pre-war Kingdom of Hungary. The truncated kingdom had a population of 7.6 million, 36% compared to the pre-war kingdom's population of 20.9 million. Though the areas that were allocated to neighbouring countries had a majority of non-Hungarians, in them lived 3.3 million Hungarians – 31% of the Hungarians – who then became minorities. The treaty limited Hungary's army to 35,000 officers and men, and the Austro-Hungarian Navy ceased to exist. These decisions and their consequences have been the cause of deep resentment in Hungary ever since.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Paris Peace Treaties, 1947</span> Treaties signed in Paris on 10 February 1947

The Paris Peace Treaties were signed on 10 February 1947 following the end of World War II in 1945. The Paris Peace Conference lasted from 29 July until 15 October 1946. The victorious wartime Allied powers negotiated the details of peace treaties with those former Axis powers, namely Italy, Romania, Hungary, Bulgaria, and Finland, which had switched sides and declared war on Germany during WWII. They were allowed to fully resume their responsibilities as sovereign states in international affairs and to qualify for membership in the United Nations.

Bratislava, currently the capital of Slovakia and the country's largest city, has existed for about a thousand years. Because of the city's strategic geographical location, it was an important European hub due to its proximity to the advanced cultures of the Mediterranean and the Orient as well as its link to the rest of Europe, which were possible by the Danube River.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Vienna Award</span> Treaty signed in 1938

The First Vienna Award was a treaty signed on 2 November 1938 pursuant to the Vienna Arbitration, which took place at Vienna's Belvedere Palace. The arbitration and award were direct consequences of the previous month's Munich Agreement, which resulted in the partitioning of Czechoslovakia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pozsony County</span>

Pozsony county was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now mostly part of Slovakia, while a small area belongs to Hungary. In 1969, the three villages that remained in Hungary were combined to form Dunasziget.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Petržalka</span> Borough in Slovakia

Petržalka is the largest borough of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia. Situated on the right bank of the river Danube, the area shares a land border with Austria, and is home to around 100,000 people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Polish–Czechoslovak border conflicts</span> Conflicts from 1918 to 1958

Border conflicts between Poland and Czechoslovakia began in 1918 between the Second Polish Republic and First Czechoslovak Republic, both freshly created states. The conflicts centered on the disputed areas of Cieszyn Silesia, Orava Territory and Spiš. After World War II they broadened to include areas around the cities of Kłodzko and Racibórz, which until 1945 had belonged to Germany. The conflicts became critical in 1919 and were finally settled in 1958 in a treaty between the Polish People's Republic and the Czechoslovak Socialist Republic.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungarian irredentism</span> Political ideas to reunite Historic Hungary

Hungarian irredentism or Greater Hungary are irredentist political ideas concerning redemption of territories of the historical Kingdom of Hungary. Targeting at least to regain control over Hungarian-populated areas in Hungary's neighbouring countries. Hungarian historiography uses the term "Historic Hungary". "Whole Hungary" is also commonly used by supporters of this ideology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slovak Republic (1939–1945)</span> 1939–1945 German client state

The (First) Slovak Republic, otherwise known as the Slovak State, was a partially-recognized client state of Nazi Germany which existed between 14 March 1939 and 4 April 1945. The Slovak part of Czechoslovakia declared independence with German support one day before the German occupation of Bohemia and Moravia. The Slovak Republic controlled the majority of the territory of present-day Slovakia but without its current southern parts, which were ceded by Czechoslovakia to Hungary in 1938. It was the first time in history that Slovakia had been a formally independent state.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Devín</span> Borough in Slovakia

Devín is a borough of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia, located in the Bratislava IV district. Originally a separate village at the confluence of the Danube and Morava rivers, Devín maintained its rural character and today, it is one of the smallest boroughs of Bratislava by population. It is an important archaeological site, featuring the ruins of Devín Castle.

Bratislava V is an okres (district) of Bratislava in the Bratislava Region of Slovakia. It covers southern areas of Bratislava, including the boroughs of Petržalka, Jarovce, Rusovce and Čunovo. It is bordered by the Danube river to the north and east, which forms its borders with the Bratislava IV, Bratislava I, Bratislava II and Senec districts. It borders on Hungary in the south and Austria in the west. Until 1920, the northern part of the district was part of the Hungarian county of Pozsony, while the southern part was part of the county of Moson. It is the only Slovak district which is situated on the right bank of the Danube.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rusovce</span> Borough in Slovakia

Rusovce is a borough in southern Bratislava on the right bank of the Danube river, close to the Austrian border.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Starý most (Bratislava)</span> Bridge in Slovakia

Starý most is a bridge over the river Danube in Bratislava, Slovakia. Before its reconstruction, the 460-meter-long (1,510 ft) bridge included a wooden pathway for pedestrians, a two-lane road, and a railway track, connecting the historic old city of Bratislava with the newer region Petržalka. The bridge was closed for cars in 2009 and for buses on 14 May 2010. On 2 December 2013 it was also closed for pedestrian and bicycle traffic as deconstruction of the old bridge began. At the time of its closure it was the oldest standing bridge in Bratislava.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rusovce Mansion</span>

Rusovce Mansion or Rusovce manor house is a mansion located in the Rusovce borough, part of Bratislava, capital of Slovakia. The mansion was built on the site of an older manor house from the 16th century, with a medieval structure incorporated into the following buildings.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bratislava</span> Capital of Slovakia

Bratislava, historically known as Pressburg, is the capital and largest city of Slovakia. Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, it is estimated to be more than 660,000 — approximately 140% of the official figures. Bratislava is in southwestern Slovakia at the foot of the Little Carpathians, occupying both banks of the River Danube and the left bank of the River Morava. Bordering Austria and Hungary, it is the only national capital to border two sovereign states.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hungary–Slovakia relations</span> Bilateral relations

Hungary and Slovakia are two neighboring countries in Central Europe. There are two major periods of official foreign relations between them in contemporary history. The first period included relations between the Kingdom of Hungary and the first Slovak Republic in 1939–1945. The second period started in 1993, when the countries again established diplomatic relations, the year when Slovakia became independent of Czechoslovakia. Hungary has an embassy in Bratislava and a general consulate in Košice, and in Nitra, and Slovakia has an embassy in Budapest and a general consulate in Békéscsaba.

The Czechoslovak–Hungarian population exchange was the exchange of inhabitants between Czechoslovakia and Hungary after World War II. Between 45,000 and 120,000 Hungarians were forcibly transferred from Czechoslovakia to Hungary, and their properties confiscated, while around 72,000 Slovaks voluntarily transferred from Hungary to Czechoslovakia.

The following is a timeline of the history of the city of Bratislava, Slovakia.

References

  1. Frank, Matthew (2017). "A Paris Affair". Making Minorities History: Population Transfer in Twentieth-Century Europe. Oxford University Press. p. 333. ISBN   978-0191017711.
48°4′42″N17°7′32″E / 48.07833°N 17.12556°E / 48.07833; 17.12556