History of Bratislava

This page gives an overview of the history of Bratislava, the capital of Slovakia and the country's largest city.

In the area where present-day Bratislava lies, three skeletons of the (Epi)Pliopithecus vindobonensis were found in the borough Devínska Nová Ves in 1957, dating 25–15 million years ago. Teeth of the Griphopithecus suessi (formerly known as Sivapithecus darwiny or Dryopithecus darwiny), dating 14–10 million years ago, were also found in Devínska Nová Ves, this time in 1902. From the Paleolithic period, hand-axes and other stone tools of Homo heidelbergensis (from the periods about 0.45 million years and about 0.3 million years ago) and of Neanderthal man were found. The first known permanent settlements on the town's territory (Linear Ceramics Culture) was in Neolithic. The first known fortified settlement on the area of later medieval castle of Bratislava appeared in Eneolithic. In the Bronze Age there were settlements from both older and younger (Urnfield cultures) part of the period. On the area of later Devín caste one finds important clues to final period of Bronze Age (Podoli Culture), when a fortified settlement arose on the strategic place: rock-cliff over river Morava joining river Danube.

Early Iron Age brought a shift of the settlement centre again to the area of today's historical centre and castle of Bratislava. Many finds support the theory that both castle-hill and area of the town (on an important river-crossing) formed an important seat of local Hallstatt Culture Prince, while richly furnished mounds (barrows) were excavated on eastern suburbs of the city.

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