Žilina

At the crossroads of frequented routes, the colonizing town Žilina grew up through the incorporation of several Slav settlements. When the colonists began to exclude Slovaks from the town´s council, the ruler Luis I. with his edict "Privilegium pro Slavis" of 1381, ensured a parity representation for them. Trades and commerce, the right to hold fairs and to collect toll duties became the source of the town´s prosperity. A Budatin Castle was erected to protect the road and ford. On a hill on the opposite riverbank there stood another fortress around which the town of Žilina later evolved. Nothing has remained from the original castle system, except local names, such as: Upper and Lower Rampart, The moat, as also the elevation on which subsequently the parish church was built. Houses grew up along the regular place with open arcades permitting fairs to be held also in unfavorable weather. Fires and reconstructions left a mark especially on the facades. Unsuitable adjustments of arcades and the disproportional, discordant, extraneous design of the former bank have disrupted the character of the square. The baroque church with the Franciscan monastery is incorporated into the row of houses in the street. The Jesuits church and monastery on the main square has two towers with a gable and a Loreto chapel. The monastery houses the regional Považie Gallery. The synagogue was built in 1933-1934.

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