The Ljubljana Castle - Ljubljana Life Magazine

Ljubljana Life

The Ljubljana Castle

The story behind Ljubljana’s #1 tourist destination.

by petra stušek, september 2005

The year 2005 is a significant one for the Capital of Slovenia. It offers plenty of reasons for staging the big celebration which will take place in Ljubljana during the last weekend in October, on Prešernov trg (Prešeren square) in the heart of the city.

Why there? This square is named after the greatest Slovene poet, France Prešeren (1800-1849). His poetry is a symbol of longing for love and freedom, which is why one of his poems, “Zdravljica ⁄ A Toast” became the country's national anthem. The monument to Prešeren was unveiled in the autumn of 1905 and is the work of architect Maks Fabiani and sculptor Ivan Zajc. When the monument was erected a hundred years ago, according to Ivan Stopar, author of the book Walks in old Ljubljana, "a storm raged in Ljubljana over the presentation of a nude Muse that was considered scandalous". The controversy eventually settled down and over the course of the following century the monument came to be seen as a symbol of national awakening and national freedom. Today it attracts crowds of tourists and young Slovenes who like to sit on the steps of the base and enjoy the city atmosphere or simply observe the wonderful views of the old town and the castle.

The Ljubljana castle, which has also had its fair share of controversy and transformation over the years, is connected to yet another centenary, which will likewise be celebrated during the last weekend in October. This year marks a hundred years since the Ljubljana castle passed into the hands of the Municipality of Ljubljana. The castle is the crown of the city, the symbol of the Slovene capital, one of the most besieged tourist sites in Slovenia, and a lively cultural setting too.

Although it was nearly written off at the end of the 18th century, fortune saved the castle from demolition. Many plans were produced on how to rescue it from dilapidation and construct it anew. Now we are witness to the most recent plan for renovation, which is still continuing and nearing completion.

Archaeologists have confirmed the continuous presence of human activity at the Ljubljana castle site since the late Bronze Age. In the vicinity of the bastille piles, structures were discovered which were thought to have been erected by peoples of the urn grave culture in the 12th century BC. The fort ramparts were built from mounds of earth with a stone core. Small defence towers were presumably erected at the entrances to the settlement by the settlers of that time. How many huts and inhabitants there were in the ancient fort is unclear, since their presence at the castle site is revealed only by fragments.

During the time of the Roman town of Emona (the name which preceded Ljubljana) the castle hill may have had an observation tower and a site for cult practices. The period following Emona until the beginning of the Middle Ages has also remained a mystery. During that time, a stronghold stood on the hill known as Spanheim castle, which differed from the present-day edifice. Following the period of control by this aristocratic family, the castle changed hands several times until it came under the ownership of the Habsburgs and remained in their possession for more than five centuries.

The Ljubljana castle acquired its appearance gradually and its current floor layout was formed in the 15th and 16th centuries. Individual sections or tracts were first built of timber, then brick, and embraced the castle court as they do today. The outer sides were enclosed by the castle wall with towers whose traces are still visible in places.

The first residents of the castle were its owners or their deputies. It is believed that it is the birthplace of one of the sons of the German king Albrecht who died young and is buried in Stična monastery not far from Ljubljana. The castle then acquired new residents – soldiers and convicts as well as wardens, constables and others. In a state of dilapidation, it needed new occupants to take care of it. At long last, they were found: the castle was transformed into a prison! It was ceremoniously opened in 1815 and proclaimed as one of the most modern in the monarchy. To mark the occasion, the grey walls of the building were replastered and whitewashed. However, the interior was left in an unpleasant state, judging by the inscriptions of the inmates! The prison operated until the Great Earthquake of April 1895, which strongly shook Ljubljana and the castle walls. It was then vacated and the inmates were taken elsewhere.

On 16 May 1905 the city assumed ownership of Ljubljana castle, mostly due to the credit of the mayor Ivan Hribar, who had planned that it would house several museums, but unfortunately his idea was not realised. When the First World War broke out, the military authorities used the castle as an assembly point for political suspects, subsequently as a jail and then as a quarantine station for Italian prisoners of war. At the end of the war the castle premises were occupied by many residents from the lower social classes. The dwellings proved unsuitable, yet the number of residents kept increasing. By 1926 there were more than 500 of them. What emerged was the "Castle Republic", as they themselves termed it, which organised various sporting and cultural activities and even published its own newspaper.

Afterwards, the idea of renovating the castle did not rest. The architect Jože Plečnik conceived the edifice as the acropolis of Ljubljana and in 1932 designed a bold solution: he planned the removal of all the walls so that only six groups of castle buildings would remain arranged around an irregular pentagonal courtyard. He also planned an extension of one storey for all the buildings. Even more idealistic and audacious was his plan for the Slovene People's Assembly on the castle hill, which likewise remained only on paper.

In addition to Plečnik, the architect Boris Kobe was also involved in creating elaborate plans for the castle. His contribution to its renovation is not insignificant, though it is not as well known as Plečnik's. The city council set about the task of completely renovating the castle after the final residents were relocated in 1975. The works ran according to the plans of the architects Edo Ravnikar Jr., Miha Kerin and Majda Kregar. In 2000 the management of the castle was taken over by the Ljubljana Festival, which also organizes events there. It will attain its full splendour once the ongoing renovation works are completed in full. By then a cable railway to the Ljubljana castle should be operating.

The number of visitors to the castle is continuing to increase. Many decide to view the capital of Slovenia from the highest point in the city – the castle viewing tower. From there fine vistas open up; not only of the city, but also of the hills and valleys that lie around the entire Ljubljana basin.

The Ljubljana castle and other castles in Ljubljana can be explored with the help of the new brochure “Ljubljana’s castles”, written by the well-known Slovenian journalist Darinka Kladnik and published by the Ljubljana Tourist Board. The booklet is available free of charge in all three Tourist Information Centres, along with other brochures, which reveal many other secrets of Ljubljana.