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63-571: Westlawn Cemetery is a Jewish cemetery located in Norridge , a suburb of Chicago in Illinois . The cemetery covers 72 acres (29 ha) and roughly 46,000 people are buried there. Westlawn was the site of gravestone desecration in January 2008. At least 57 tombstones were defaced with anti-Semitic slogans. Using white and blue spray paint, the vandal drew swastikas and slurs on tombstones in

126-473: A European Union grant for a mass survey project of Jewish burial sites using drones. In December 2019 further funding was granted for a new 2019-2021 project "Protecting the Jewish cemeteries of Europe: Continuation of the mapping process, stakeholders’ involvement and awareness raising". Bratislava Bratislava , historically known as Pozsony and Pressburg , is the capital and largest city of

189-522: A mint , producing gold and silver coins known as biatecs . The area fell under Roman influence from the 1st to the 4th century A.D. and was made part of the Danubian Limes , a border defence system. The Romans introduced grape growing to the area and began a tradition of winemaking , which survives to the present. The Slavs arrived from the East between the 5th and 6th centuries during

252-653: A fifth campaign against the Kingdom of Hungary , and besieged Pressburg without success, as the Hungarians sank his supply ships on the Danube river. This strategic position destined the city to be the site of frequent attacks and battles, but also brought it economic development and high political status. It was granted its first known "town privileges" in 1291 by the Hungarian King Andrew III , and

315-608: A western section of the cemetery. A 21-year-old Polish immigrant male was charged with the crime in February 2008. He has been directly linked by police to a neo-Nazi organization in the Chicago area and he was a member of the National Socialist Movement . He was convicted on two charges of felony vandalism and sentenced to 7 years in prison, the maximum sentence. Jewish cemetery The land of

378-749: A widespread expulsion of ethnic Germans from eastern Europe. After World War II, Slovak Republic lost its so-called independence and was reunified again with the Czech Republic as Czechoslovak Republic , Petržalka (currently part of Bratislava's 5th district ) and Devín (currently part of Bratislava's 4th district ) was returned to Czechoslovakia. Furthermore, after signing the Peace Treaty of Paris on 10 February 1947, three Hungarian villages, namely Horvátjárfalu (Jarovce), Oroszvár (Rusovce), and Dunacsún (Čunovo) situated south of Bratislava were transferred to Czechoslovakia, in order to form

441-529: Is 57th largest city in the European Union and 19th-richest region of the European Union by GDP ( PPP ) per capita. GDP at purchasing power parity is about three times higher than in other Slovak regions. Bratislava receives around one million tourists every year, mostly from the Czech Republic, Germany, and Austria. The city received its contemporary name on 16 March 1919. Until then, it

504-478: Is a Jewish tradition equivalent to bringing flowers or wreaths to graves. Flowers, spices , and twigs have sometimes been used, but the stone is preferred because in Jewish religion it is perceived specifically as a Jewish custom. Showing proper respect for the dead ( kevod ha-met ) is intrinsic to Jewish law. The connection between the soul and the human body after death is an essential aspect of Jewish belief in

567-410: Is afforded a proper burial, Jewish communities establish burial societies known as the chevra kadisha , 'Holy Society', to provide these services free of charge. In larger Jewish communities, cemeteries are sometimes subdivided into sections according to the chevra kadisha that uses and is responsible for that section of the cemetery's care and upkeep. Early Jewish cemeteries were located outside of

630-482: Is classified as temperate oceanic climate under Trewartha climate classification (DOak), It is in USDA Plant Hardiness Zone 7b with a mean annual temperature of around 11.1 °C (52.0 °F), an average temperature of 22.0 °C (71.6 °F) in the warmest month and 0.3 °C (32.5 °F) in the coldest month, four distinct seasons and precipitation spread rather evenly throughout

693-738: Is dated around 1500. Founded in 1832, the Jewish Cemetery of Coro , in Venezuela is the oldest Jewish cemetery in continuous use in the Americas . The mission of the International Jewish Cemetery Project is to document every Jewish burial site in the world. The Lo Tishkach European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative was established in 2006 as a joint project of the Conference of European Rabbis and

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756-435: Is in one of the warmest and driest parts of Slovakia. Recently, the transitions from winter to summer and summer to winter have been rapid, with short autumn and spring periods. Snow occurs less frequently than previously. Extreme temperatures (1981–2013) – record high: 39.4 °C (102.9 °F), record low: −24.6 °C (−12.3 °F). Some areas, particularly Devín and Devínska Nová Ves , are vulnerable to floods from

819-445: Is sometimes attributed to Bratislava, but the actual location of Brezalauspurc is under scholarly debate . The city's modern name is credited to Pavol Jozef Šafárik 's misinterpretation of Braslav as Bratislav in his analysis of medieval sources, which led him to invent the term Břetislaw , which later became Bratislav . During the revolution of 1918–1919, the name 'Wilsonov' or 'Wilsonstadt' (after US President Woodrow Wilson )

882-558: Is the only national capital to border two sovereign states . The city's history has been influenced by people of many nations and religions, including Austrians , Bulgarians , Croats , Czechs , Germans , Hungarians , Jews and Slovaks . It was the coronation site and legislative center and capital of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1563 to 1783; eleven Hungarian kings and eight queens were crowned in St Martin's Cathedral . Most Hungarian parliament assemblies were held here from

945-520: The Conference on Jewish Material Claims Against Germany . It aims to guarantee the effective and lasting preservation of Jewish cemeteries and mass graves throughout the European continent. The ESJF European Jewish Cemeteries Initiative was established in 2015 as a German-based nonprofit. It received the initial grant of 1 million euros from German government in 2015 In November 2018 the EJSF received

1008-547: The Habsburg monarchy and marking the beginning of a new era. The city became a coronation town and the seat of kings, archbishops (1543), the nobility and all major organisations and offices. Between 1536 and 1830, eleven Hungarian kings and queens were crowned at St. Martin's Cathedral . The 17th century was marked by anti-Habsburg uprisings, fighting with the Ottomans, floods, plagues and other disasters, which diminished

1071-640: The Hungarian Reform Era (such as the abolition of serfdom and the foundation of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences ) was enacted there. The historic centre is characterized by many baroque palaces. The Grassalkovich Palace , built around 1760, is now the residence of the Slovak president, and the Slovak government now has its seat in the former Archiepiscopal Palace . In 1805, diplomats of emperors Napoleon and Francis II signed

1134-609: The Keglevich Palace . The city started to lose its importance under the reign of Maria Theresa's son Joseph II , especially after the crown jewels were taken to Vienna in 1783 in an attempt to strengthen the relations between Austria and Hungary. Many central offices subsequently moved to Buda , followed by a large segment of the nobility. The first newspapers in Hungarian and Slovak were published here: Magyar hírmondó in 1780, and Presspurske Nowiny in 1783. In

1197-611: The Little Carpathians ( Malé Karpaty ). The Záhorie and Danubian lowlands stretch into Bratislava. The city's lowest point is at the Danube's surface at 126 metres (413 ft) above mean sea level , and the highest point is Devínska Kobyla at 514 metres (1,686 ft). The average altitude is 140 metres (460 ft). Bratislava has recently shifted into the humid subtropical climate under Köppen–Geiger climate classification ( Cfa ), closely bordering on Dfb , and

1260-600: The Migration Period . As a response to onslaughts by Avars , the local Slavic tribes rebelled and established Samo 's Empire (623–658), the first known Slavic political entity. In the 9th century, the castles at Bratislava (Brezalauspurk) and Devín (Dowina) were important centres of the Slavic states: the Principality of Nitra and Great Moravia . Scholars have debated the identification as fortresses of

1323-621: The Petržalka or Dúbravka borough, were built. The Communist government also built several new grandiose buildings, such as the Slovak Radio Building , Slavín or Kamzík TV Tower . A quarter of Bratislava’s Old Town was demolished in the late 1960s for a single project: the bridge of the Slovak National Uprising . To make space for this development, much of the city’s centuries-old, historical Jewish quarter

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1386-688: The Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all cities on the River Danube . Officially, the population of the city is about 475,000; however, some sources estimate it 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

1449-626: The Soviet Red Army 2nd Ukrainian Front during the Bratislava–Brno offensive . The Czechoslovak government and president Edvard Beneš then moved to Bratislava on 8 May. At the end of World War II, most of Bratislava's ethnic Germans were evacuated by the German authorities. A few returned after the war, but were soon expelled without their properties under the Beneš decrees , part of

1512-402: The eternity of the soul . Thus, disinterring the dead, deriving benefit from a corpse or grave, or acting in any way that may be perceived as "ridiculing the helpless" ( l'oeg l'rash ), such as making derogatory remarks or joking, but also partaking in the pleasures or needs of the living, such as eating, drinking or smoking, are forbidden in the presence of the dead. Showing proper respect for

1575-527: The holocaust . A curiosity is the underground (formerly ground-level) restored portion of the Jewish cemetery where 19th-century Rabbi Moses Sofer is buried, located at the base of the castle hill near the entrance to a tram tunnel. The only military cemetery in Bratislava is Slavín , unveiled in 1960 in honour of Soviet Army soldiers who fell during the liberation of Bratislava in April 1945. It offers

1638-635: The only national capital that borders two countries . It is only 18 kilometres (11.2 mi) from the border with Hungary and only 60 kilometres (37.3 mi) from the Austrian capital Vienna . The city has a total area of 367.58 square kilometres (141.9 sq mi), making it the second-largest city in Slovakia by area (after the township of Vysoké Tatry ). Bratislava straddles the Danube River, along which it had developed and for centuries

1701-649: The 14th–15th centuries and now hosts the Bratislava City Museum . Michael's Gate is the only gate that has been preserved from the medieval fortifications , and it ranks among the oldest of the town's buildings; the narrowest house in Europe is nearby. The University Library building, erected in 1756, was used by the Diet of the Kingdom of Hungary from 1802 to 1848. Much of the significant legislation of

1764-643: The 17th century until the Hungarian Reform Era , and the city has been home to many Hungarian, German and Slovak historical figures. Today, Bratislava is the political , cultural and economic centre of Slovakia. It is the seat of the Slovak president , the parliament and the Slovak Executive . It has several universities, and many museums, theatres, galleries and other cultural and educational institutions. Many of Slovakia's large businesses and financial institutions have headquarters there. Bratislava

1827-745: The Czech invasion. The Slovak National Assembly meanwhile called it a "defensive action of the Slovaks themselves, to end the anarchy caused by the flight of the Hungarians." The Allies of World War I drew a provisional demarcation line, this was revealed to the Hungarian government on December 23, in the document known as the Vix Note . The Czechoslovak Legion arrived from Italy, began to advance on 30 December and by 2 January 1919, all important civil and military buildings were in Czechoslovak hands. It

1890-465: The Danube and Morava rivers. New flood protection has been built on both banks. The cityscape of Bratislava is characterized by medieval towers and grandiose 20th-century buildings, but it underwent profound changes in a construction boom at the start of the 21st century. Most historical buildings are concentrated in the Old Town . Bratislava's Town Hall is a complex of three buildings erected in

1953-588: The Hungarian population of Bratislava had decreased to 15.8% (see the Demographics of Bratislava article for more details). In 1938, Nazi Germany annexed neighbouring Austria in the Anschluss ; on 10 October 1938 on the basis of the Munich Agreement it also annexed (still-separate from Bratislava) Petržalka and Devín boroughs on ethnic grounds, as these had many ethnic Germans. Petržalka

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2016-569: The Kingdom of Hungary between 1563 and 1830. The Franciscan Church , dating to the 13th century, has been a place of knighting ceremonies and is the oldest preserved sacral building in the city. The Church of St. Elizabeth , better known as the Blue Church due to its colour, is built entirely in the Hungarian Secessionist style. Bratislava has one surviving functioning synagogue , out of the three major ones existing before

2079-699: The Latin forms Bratislavia, Wratislavia etc., which refer to Wrocław (Breslau), Poland, not Bratislava. The Polish city has a similar etymology despite spelling differences. The first known permanent settlement of the area began with the Linear Pottery Culture , around 5000 B.C. in the Neolithic era. About 200 B.C., the Celtic Boii tribe founded the first significant settlement, a fortified town known as an oppidum . They also established

2142-472: The area to Czechoslovakia with the aim of creating a bridgehead for the newly created Czechoslovak state for controlling the Danube. Left without any protection after the retreat of the Hungarian army, many Hungarians were expelled or fled. Czechs and Slovaks moved their households to Bratislava. Education in Hungarian and German was radically reduced in the city. By the 1930 Czechoslovak census ,

2205-434: The attacks of the Hungarians. The exact location of the battle remains unknown, and some interpretations place it west of Lake Balaton . In the 10th century, the territory of Pressburg (what would later become Pozsony county ) became part of Hungary (called the " Kingdom of Hungary " from 1000). It developed as a key economic and administrative centre on the kingdom's frontier. In 1052, German Emperor Henry III undertook

2268-531: The borders for the strategic reasons, mainly to secure the port and to prevent a potential attack of the Hungarian Army on the town. On the night of 14 August 1919 barefoot Czechoslovak soldiers silently climbed to the Hungarian side of the Starý most (Old Bridge), captured the guards and annexed Petržalka (currently part of Bratislava's 5th district ) without a fight. The Paris Peace Conference assigned

2331-861: The cemetery in the Warsaw Ghetto . The largest Jewish cemeteries of Europe can be found in Budapest , Łódź , Prague , Warsaw , Vienna and Berlin . Other Jewish cemeteries in Europe include the Jewish Cemetery in Khotyn and the Chatam Sofer Memorial (part of the Old Jewish Cemetery in Bratislava ). The Jewish cemetery of Siret is considered one of the oldest cemeteries in Eastern Europe , its foundation

2394-408: The cemetery is considered holy and a special consecration ceremony takes place upon its inauguration. According to Jewish tradition, Jewish burial grounds are sacred sites and must remain undisturbed in perpetuity. Establishing a cemetery is one of the first priorities for a new Jewish community. A Jewish cemetery is generally purchased and supported with communal funds. Placing small stones on graves

2457-638: The chief transportation route to other areas. The river passes through the city from the west to the southeast. The Middle Danube basin begins at Devín Gate in western Bratislava. Other rivers are the Morava River , which forms the northwestern border of the city and enters the Danube at Devín, the Little Danube , and the Vydrica , which enters the Danube in the borough of Karlova Ves . The Carpathian mountain range begins in city territory with

2520-538: The city's ethnic composition at 36% German, 33% Slovak and 29% Hungarian but this may have reflected changing self-identification, rather than an exchange of peoples. Many people were bi- or trilingual and multicultural. After World War I , the dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire began. U.S. president Woodrow Wilson and the United States played a major role in the establishment of

2583-701: The city. In the Diaspora , it is traditional to bury the dead with the feet in the direction of Jerusalem . Some findings showed that the dead would be buried with a handful of soil from the Holy Land. The tombstones usually have inscriptions in Hebrew and the regional language. During the Nazi Germany regime, Jewish cemeteries all over Europe were destroyed and desecrated; for this reason, some cemeteries have therefore also become Holocaust memorials, such as

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2646-608: The course of the 18th century, the city became a centre for the Slovak national movement . The city's 19th-century history was closely tied to the major events in Europe. The Peace of Pressburg between the Austrian Empire and French Empire was signed here in 1805. Devín Castle was ruined by Napoleon 's French troops during an invasion of 1809. In 1825 the Hungarian National Learned Society (the present Hungarian Academy of Sciences)

2709-409: The dead also requires a prompt burial , the waiver of certain rabbinic restrictions on Shabbat and religious holidays to ensure proper care of the dead, the ritual cleaning ( tahara ) and dressing of the body in shrouds ( tachrichim ) before burial, as well laws concerning proper conduct in a cemetery. To ensure that the requirements for Jewish burial are met and that each member of the community

2772-580: The end of the war in the Holocaust . Bratislava, occupied by German troops, was many times bombarded by the Allies . Major air raid included the bombing of Bratislava and its refinery Apollo on June 16, 1944 by American B-24 bombers of the Fifteenth Air Force with 181 victims Bombardment group attacked in four waves with overall 158 planes. On 4 April 1945, Bratislava was liberated by

2835-414: The first bank in present-day Slovakia was founded in 1842. The city's first permanent bridge over the Danube, Starý most (Old Bridge), was built in 1891. Between the years 1867-1918, the territory of Pressburg became part of Austro-Hungarian Empire . Before World War I , the city had a population that was 42% German, 41% Hungarian and 15% Slovak (1910 census). The first post war census in 1919 declared

2898-622: The fourth Peace of Pressburg in the Primate's Palace , after Napoleon's victory in the Battle of Austerlitz . Some smaller houses are historically significant; composer Johann Nepomuk Hummel was born in an 18th-century house in the Old Town. Notable cathedrals and churches include the Gothic St. Martin's Cathedral built in the 13th–16th centuries, which served as the coronation church of

2961-410: The largest and most important town in the Kingdom of Hungary . The population tripled; many new palaces, monasteries, mansions, and streets were built, and the city was the centre of social and cultural life of the region. Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart gave a concert in 1762 in the Pálffy Palace . Joseph Haydn performed in 1784 in the Grassalkovich Palace . Ludwig van Beethoven was a guest in 1796 in

3024-433: The new Czechoslovak state . American Slovaks proposed rename the city “Wilsonovo mesto” (Wilson City), after Woodrow Wilson. On 28 October 1918, Czechoslovakia was proclaimed, but its borders were not settled for several months. The dominant Hungarian and German population tried to prevent annexation of the city to Czechoslovakia and declared it a free city , while the Hungarian Prime Minister Károlyi protested against

3087-434: The population. Great epidemics were spreading in Bratislava in 1541–1542, 1552–1553, 1660–1665 and 1678–1681. A terrible outbreak of 1678–1681 left approximately 11,000 casualties among Bratislava’s residents (city population was in that time around 30,000 people). The last plague outbreak of Bratislava was between the years 1712–1713. Pressburg flourished during the 18th-century reign of Queen Maria Theresa , becoming

3150-425: The so-called " Bratislava bridgehead " (currently all three of them are part of Bratislava's 5th district ). After the Communist Party seized power in Czechoslovakia in February 1948, the city became part of the Eastern Bloc . The city annexed new land, and the population rose significantly, becoming 90% Slovak. Large residential areas consisting of high-rise prefabricated panel buildings , such as those in

3213-527: The surname Božan, likely a prince who owned the castle before 950. Although the Latin name was also based on the same surname, according to research by the lexicologist Milan Majtán, the Hungarian version is not found in any official records from the time in which the prince would have lived. All three versions, however, were related to those found in Slovak, Czech and German: Vratislaburgum (905), Braslavespurch, and Preslavasburc (both 907). The medieval settlement Brezalauspurc (literally, ' Braslav 's castle')

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3276-429: The two castles built in Great Moravia, based on linguistic arguments and because of the absence of convincing archaeological evidence. The first written reference to a settlement named "Brezalauspurc" dates to 907 and is related to the Battle of Pressburg , during which a Bavarian army was defeated by the Hungarians . It is connected to the fall of Great Moravia, already weakened by its own inner decline and under

3339-497: The two states of the federalized Czechoslovakia . Bratislava's dissidents anticipated the fall of Communism with the Bratislava candle demonstration in 1988, and the city became one of the foremost centres of the anti-Communist Velvet Revolution in 1989. The end of Communist rule in Czechoslovakia in 1989 was followed once again by the country's dissolution, this time into two successor states . Czechoslovak Socialist Republic renamed as Czech and Slovak Federative Republic ,

3402-434: The word "socialist" was dropped in the names of the two republics within the federation, the Slovak Socialist Republic renamed as the Slovak Republic . In 1993, Bratislava once again became the capital of the newly formed independent Slovak Republic , following the Velvet Divorce . Bratislava is situated in southwestern Slovakia, within the Bratislava Region . Its location on the borders with Austria and Hungary makes it

3465-425: The year. It is often windy with a marked variation between hot summers and cold, humid winters. There also can sometimes be a significant difference in weather, between the parts of the city. Bratislava, just like any other city, has an urban heat island effect, but there is no weather station directly in the urban core, so the temperature there can be slightly higher than the official weather station reports. The city

3528-421: Was Pozsony, mostly known in English as "Pressburg" (from its German name, Preßburg ), since after 1526, it was dominated mostly by the Habsburg monarchy and the city had a relevant ethnic German population. That is the term from which the pre-1919 Slovak ( Prešporok ) and Czech ( Prešpurk ) names are derived. The linguist Ján Stanislav believed the city's Hungarian name, Pozsony , to be attributed to

3591-402: Was captured by the Austrians in December 1848. Industry developed rapidly in the 19th century. The first horse-drawn railway in the Kingdom of Hungary, from Pressburg to Szentgyörgy ( Svätý Jur ), was built in 1840. A new line to Vienna using steam locomotives was opened in 1848, and a line to Pest in 1850. Many new industrial, financial and other institutions were founded; for example,

3654-431: Was declared a free royal town in 1405 by King Sigismund . In 1436, he authorized the town to use its own coat of arms . The Kingdom of Hungary was defeated by the Ottoman Empire in the Battle of Mohács in 1526. The Ottomans besieged and damaged Pressburg, but failed to conquer it. Owing to Ottoman advances into Hungarian territory, the city was designated the new capital of Hungary in 1536, after becoming part of

3717-419: Was founded in Pressburg using a donation from István Széchenyi . In 1843 Hungarian was proclaimed the official language in legislation, public administration, and education by the Diet in the city. As a reaction to the Revolutions of 1848 , Ferdinand V signed the so-called April laws , which included the abolition of serfdom , at the Primate's Palace . The city chose the revolutionary Hungarian side, but

3780-563: Was proposed by American Slovaks, as he supported national self-determination. The name Bratislava , which had been used only by some Slovak patriots, became official in March 1919 with the aim that a Slavic name could support demands for the city to be part of Czechoslovakia. Other alternative names of the city in the past include Greek : Ιστρόπολις , romanized :  Istropolis (meaning ' Danube City', also used in Latin), Latin : Posonium , Romanian : Pojon , Croatian : Požun . In older documents, confusion can be caused by

3843-419: Was razed, including the 19th-century Moorish-styled Neolog Synagogue. Communism also brought the practice of public toilets in Bratislava , which remained in practice after the fall of communism. In 1968, after the unsuccessful Czechoslovak attempt to liberalise the Communist regime, the city was occupied by Warsaw Pact troops. Shortly thereafter, it became capital of the Slovak Socialist Republic , one of

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3906-485: Was renamed Engerau . The Starý most (Old Bridge) became a border bridge between Czechoslovakia and Nazi Germany. Bratislava was declared the capital of the first independent Slovak Republic on March 14, 1939, but the new state quickly fell under Nazi influence. In 1941–1942 and 1944–1945, the new Slovak government cooperated in deporting most of Bratislava's approximately 15,000 Jews; they were transported to concentration camps , where most were killed or died before

3969-420: Was the beginning of the conflict, which later continued as the Hungarian–Czechoslovak War . The city became the seat of Slovakia's political organs and organizations and became Slovakia's capital on 4 February. On March 27, 1919, the name Bratislava was officially adopted for the first time to replace the previous Slovak name Prešporok. At the beginning of August 1919, Czechoslovakia got permission to correct

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