Mošovce Facts for Kids

Mošovce in Slovakia

Mošovce is one of the largest villages in the Turiec Region of Slovakia. It has a long history and many interesting places to visit.

History of Mošovce
Interesting Places to See
Beautiful Nature
Culture and Famous People
Gallery
See also

History of Mošovce

The coat of arms of Mošovce

Mošovce has been around for 770 years. During this time, people built many old and beautiful buildings. The first time Mošovce was mentioned in writing was in 1233 by King Andrew II.

At first, Mošovce had two parts. One part was called Machyuch, located where Starý Rad Street is today. The village got its current name from the second part, Terra Moys. This name means "The Land of Mojš". We believe this means the whole village belonged to a person named Mr. Mojš. His name might have been a shorter version of a longer Slavic name like Mojtech or Mojmír. Over time, the village's name changed many times before becoming Mošovce.

Mošovce was first a royal village. Around 1350, it became a special town that belonged to the royal castle of Blatnica. But in 1527, the Révay family became its owners. They took away the town's special rights for almost 400 years.

In the past, Mošovce was an important center for crafts in the Turiec region. Crafts were very successful here. There were about 15 different groups of craftspeople called guilds. The bootmakers and furriers (people who made things from fur) had guilds that lasted the longest. Today, Mošovce is a popular place for tourists with many interesting sights.

The old look of houses in Mošovce

Interesting Places to See

One of the most interesting buildings in Mošovce is a small Rococo-Classical Palace. It has a large English park around it. This palace was built between 1750 and 1800.

Other interesting places in the town include:

The birthplace of Ján Kollár, a famous poet.
A Neo-gothic Catholic church with a valuable altar. It was built where an older church used to be.
A Lutheran church built in 1784.
A Mausoleum, which is a building where people are buried. It is now a Museum of Crafts.
An Art-Nouveau greenhouse and a pavilion from 1800.

Beautiful Nature

The nature around Mošovce is truly beautiful. There are old roads lined with trees and small forests, creating a lovely landscape. This scenery looks even nicer with the forests of the Veľká Fatra Mountains nearby. This mountain range is one of the most beautiful in Slovakia.

People from all over the world come to see the amazing Limestone and dolomite rocks. They also enjoy the beautiful nature in the Blatnická and Gaderská Valleys, which are not far away.

Culture and Famous People

Many important people were born in Mošovce. Some of the most well-known include:

Frico Kafenda (1883-1963), a composer who wrote music.
Anna Lacková-Zora (1899-1988), a writer.
Štefan Krčméry (1892-1955), a literary critic, historian, and poet.
Júr Tesák Mošovský, a Baroque playwright who wrote plays.
Miloslav Schmidt, who started the amateur fire brigades in Slovakia.

Perhaps the most important person born in Mošovce is the great Slavic poet, philosopher, and Lutheran priest, Ján Kollár (1793-1852). He was very active in the literature of at least two nations. He wrote a famous book of poems called Slávy Dcera (The Daughter of Sláva). His work was very important for patriots and national activists who lived at the same time as Kollár. People translated his book into many Slavic and other languages.