Ahoj a vitaj (ahoy-ah-vit-eye)… hello and welcome back. I am two weeks late to post, as I had promised in our first blog/post. I had a long bout of “flu-ishness”  and I was out of commission for the nearly the past half-month. Excepting the details, I lost some weight, read some, and slept a great deal of the time. In the interrum, our weather has transitioned to Fall. Our days are mostly in the teens during the day (17C/62-63F), and single digits in the evening (5-7/low 40’sF). The last few days have been filled with nice slow walks through a nearby cintorin (cin-tor-een), a cemetery. This quiet, green space is just what I needed. A short walk from my apartment here on the east side of the Stare Mesto (Old Town). I am happy to be moving again, and had my 65th birthday last weekend. I have to thank my good friend Karol (Slovak – Carl), a physiologist who was very kind in helping me to get well… his care and advice were definitely a game-changer.

HISTORY CORNER

   As I have done in the past blog/posts, I will continue to refer to this place as Slovakia, even though we are a long way from the actual term applying to our existence here in Central Europe. The Slavic tribes that will appear in the 5th and 6th centuries AD are the forerunners of our modern Slovaks. I just think it will be easier and less confusing to use the terms “Slovakia” and “Slovaks” when I speak about this history. We will be using the age-old citation of BC and AD, eschewing the modern trend of BCE/CE; a personal preference and it has no bearing on the accuracy of the eras cited.

   Omitted in the opening blog/post was my notion of how closely history and geography are related. We know geography came first, and recorded history second – but the  influence on each other is certainly “yin and yang”. There have been attempts to combine the two disciplinary studies; I prefer the dynamism of each study being separate in a numinous and equi-perpetuating entity. On to our story….

   Our topography drew many cultures prior to the arrival of the Slavs in the 5th and 6th centuries AD. The earliest known and recorded were the Celts c. 450BC. Before the Celts, Slovakia’s fertile lands were host to many “lithic” cultures. Artifacts dated to 270,000 BC have been discovered near Nove Mesto nad Vahom – NE of Bratislava. This is near Trencin.  The most notable cultures were the Gravettian and Puchov, with influence spreading into the surrounding areas. The Gravettians existed more than 33,000 years ago, and were hunter-gatherers. They were known for hunting mammoths, during this particularly colder period in Paleolithic Europe. Despite our notions regarding the Paleolithic peoples – “Stone-agers”, the Gravettians did not live in caves, but in near-subterranean dwellings. More famously, the Gravettians in the West were known to live in caves.The Gravettians in the region of Slovakia were nomadic and mobile. They innovated the use of tools – arrowheads, knives, and bone/antler/ivory-pointed spears…etc. Most often their remnants are discovered in our river valleys.

   The most telling of the Gravettian Culture was the “The Venus of Moravany”. Unearthed by accident in the 1930’s by a farmer and his plow, this ancient ideal of beauty and fertility was fashioned from mammoth bone. The statuette has been radio-carbon dated to 22,000 B.C.. Oddly, and humorously enough, this figurine pre-dates the Venus from classical mythology. It should be remembered that these ideals were common; many of the earliest cultures and civilizations honored the “goddess” of fertility, love, wisdom, beauty…etc. Another famous “Venus” is “The Venus of  Willendorf”, carved from limestone is from the Upper Paleolithic Gravettians.

   Just as importantly as the figurines and tools/pottery of Paleo periods (Lower, Middle, and Upper), are the remains of shell necklaces originating from the Mediterranean areas which have been found in Slovakia. We can clearly relate Slovakia’s geographic position between the Baltic and Adriatic Seas, to its trade and commercial bearing from early in its habitable time. Essentially, sitting in the geographic center of Europe, this land will serve as a trading hub- North/South, and East/West… a recurring motif we will hear very often going forward.

   We must keep in mind that the “lithic” periods haven’t any hard stop and start points. As with Bronze and Iron Ages, there is a melding and coalescing among the vast amount of early cultures and civilizations. Not one of the pre-history humans were ahead or behind the development curve. Their growth as societies, tool-makers, artists, and the like were entirely dependent and influenced by the geography and climate they lived in. In short, human development was occuring world-wide at its proper pace, not just in Slovakia and Central Europe. Modern-day Slovakia has many open-air museums scattered across it. I have been to many, and hold Havranok as my own personal favorite; we will see this in our next post, in which we delve into the Iron and Bronze Ages.

   Around the rough border of the Upper Paleolithic and Neolithic periods – 11,000 to 8,000 B.C., there is a sort of “settling down” for some cultures as they domesticate livestock, invest more time in their tool work and pottery/vessel making. This true of the tribes and cultures in Slovakia’s region. During this Neolithic periods, the design of pottery and containers became more intricate in construction. Around this time, the “neolithics” began to color their pottery. Agriculture grows as they are now clearing fields in keeping with the transition to husbandry for consumption. The hunter/gatherers are beginning to build permanent structures, mining ores and metals, and crafting jewelry. Here is the point that we can see the development of cultures becoming a bit more complex. This period in Slovakia witnesses the inhabiting cultures trade and barter for goods such as shells, weapons (from others and their own outward), and more importantly amber. The “Amber Road” ran from the Northern regions of the Baltic Sea, South through to Poland, Bratislava, down and Southwest-ward to the Adriatic Sea. This trade route is of importance because 1) it has been in place well before the Neolithic era (16th century B.C.) and 2), it replaced the Mediterranean center for the trade in amber. Also of note is the fact that trade networks “spiderwebbed” off the Amber Road, supplying many more goods and assets than just amber. A phenomenon similar to the Silk Road, which we will discuss further in upcoming posts. In the next post, forthcoming by this weekend, We will finish up with the Neolithic period and discover the “Ages” in Slovakia. Both the Bronze and Iron Ages are an incredibly significant time in the cultural development of those in Slovakia. I also want to introduce the importance of the Steppe in our history. Yes, more geography!… the Eurasian Steppe was an “incubator” for civilizations and tribes entering Europe and this cannot be overlooked.

   UMBRELLA MOMENT

   At this period in the history of the entire globe, there are developing cultures nearly everywhere. It is difficult to be precise about exactly where innovation is occuring because many cultures are growing according to their geography, climate, and resources. Some are at the fore of  “civilizing” technologies, while others are still chipping stone weapons, and figuring out how to make their lives easier (in a manner of speaking). Our coming “Umbrella Moments” will delineate exactly who is doing what, when it is happening, and where it takes place.

   I appreciate your time, and patience as I have not fulfilled my promise to be more consistent in posting. Being unwell put a damper on my plans. I hope to post again by Sunday the 20th of October. I thank you all sincerely for sticking with me, and have a fire lit under me to deliver a timely and relevant post in the future. Until we meet again, please, take care of yourselves… and take care of each other. There is not enough of this behavior in the world today.

   Ahoj a vitaj… hello and welcome! After a short summer break, I am resuming our blogs/posts on Slovakia, and the history of my ancestors here in Central Europe. Yes, this is “Central Europe”. We will disseminate this subject shortly. First a very short introduction. The most important facet of our history is the “where”, followed by the “who” and “when”, and then perhaps coloring in the “what” and “why”.

   We are going to expound on this in our next post, but the “where” – the geography is the most consequential – “the where” – before we get into the “who”… the Slovaks and those that came before them.

   The history of Slovakia, the geographical entity, is clothed in the movement of people and cultures early on. Beginning in the earliest of historical and archeological times, this land had seen various groups move in, and then move out. Only in the post-Roman era it would be settled out and steeped in political tumult.  From roughly the 5th/6th centuries, until total control by the Magyar/Hungarians in the 11th century, the early Slovaks had a ruling leadership that were Slavic. Magyar/Hungarians are not Slavic – we will delve into that subject in a later posts. In this first post, my aim is to lay before the reader my geographic reasoning behind the attraction of this particular place in Central Europe. [See Endnotes]

  

   I want to highlight the fact that, as with most of the European continent, there are enumerable reasons why this particular geographic area was amenable to the tribes that moved through it. Slovakia is rich in features that range from mountains, to thick forests, open grasslands, and riverine habitats. Mixed in are specific places where wine has been made since 600 AD, with introduction by the Romans, early mining of metals, and grain production. Waterways remain a singular asset when humans are seeking a place to settle. Wildlife drew the first hunter-gatherers here, and the rivers were full of fish. From the North to the South, Slovakia has three significant mountain ranges, 1) the Tatras, 2) the Fatras, and 3) the Matras. The Tatras are the backbone of the Northern Carpathians forming Slovakia’s border with Poland. The Fatras lie below the Tatras, and are divided into the Velka (Big/Large), and Mala (Little/Small) Fatras. They are part of the Western Carpathians. In the South, the Matra range, which are mostly in modern Hungary, are claimed a bit by Slovakia… they appear as one of three mountains on its flag. 

   In turn, two of the above-mentioned ranges (Tatra and Fatra) drain their snow-melt and rain run-off into Slovakia’s rivers. Slovakia holds the Vah as its longest river (403km/250mi), followed by the Hron (300km/186mi), and the Ipel, Nitra, and Orava rivers. The Danube, Europe’s 2nd longest river forms Slovakia’s Southern edge, and serves as the recipient of Slovakia’s drainage accepting 96% of its watersheds. The other 4% flows northward to the Vistula (Poland), and on into the Baltic Sea. In any of the settlement sites of early European history, we can find the activity centered around rivers and large bodies of water (oceans and lakes). 

   Another influence in exactly how geography impacts history is climate. Slovakia’s climate is “continental” which means it experiences all four seasons. For those that live in the US, our climate which is similar to the Midwest (“humid-continental”), or Notheast (also “humid-continental”), and only lacks the high summer humidity found in either of those zones.  Our winters are snowy in the north, with cold and damp being the motif here in Bratislava (Southwestern Slovakia).  Although, it was in the past, much colder and snowier, I have my suspicions that climate change is actively changing weather everywhere, as of this writing, we experienced our hottest summer in recorded history… as well as the mildest winter (2023/2024). As we wind our path through Slovakia’s earliest history, we will certainly be considering weather as a deciding factor in how history takes place. This will include weather/climate holding sway over the outcome of battles, the many famines or crop failures, and the movement of peoples. 

   Being swaddled in a near-horseshoe of mountains did not shutter Slovakia from the movement of people. Spread to the East, beyond the Carpathians, and beginning in neighboring Ukraine and Romania is the Eurasian Steppe. From this vast grassland came a prolific number of people, forming my own theory of how much of Europe became populated. I have termed this theory the “Caspian Conveyor Belt”, and we will incorporate this into our next post on the migratory growth of Slovakia going forward. Slovakia, is among the countries that share the “Pannonian Steppe” which is a steppe area extended through the Carpathians… a continuation of the Great Eurasian Steppe. Through the gaps of the Carpathians, and around its Southern edge came the migrating tribes and bands from the East and the South. It is at this point that Slovakia’s history crosses tracks with human habitation. Supported by archeologic and anthropologic evidence, we can follow along the development of mankind’s movements and settlements in Slovakia.

   The most outstanding feature of Slovakia is the Carpathian Range; from this arc of mountains, comes an extensive cave system, upland forests, meadowlands and glens, as well as the rivers which were noted prior. Our area is not vast – actually it is quite compact. When compared to the rest of the 50+ European countries, Slovakia falls in at 28th in size. As with many places in Europe, Slovakia has remnants of Paleolithic (Old Stone Age) settlements, and can even boast a “Venus figurine” that is a prevalent motif of the earliest cultures. the Gravettians, and Slovakia’s “Venus of Moravany” dates from nearly 25,000 years ago. This was a “colder” period in the climate of Central Europe, and the Gravettians were a noted hunter/gatherer culture, carving their statuettes out of mostly mammoth tusk. There is archelogical and anthropological evidence of Neanderthals and then Neolithic settlement of our area from the Stone Age, and then on into the Bronze Age and the Iron Age.

   In short, Slovakia has a history, both geographic and human, as old as that of the rest of Europe. Slovakia as an political ideal will not appear for many years, but Slovakia the geographic entity has existed for many eons. In the ensuing blogs, I will refer to these portions of this first blog on Slovakia, because our geography has defined us. From as early as the 4th century (300 CE), the Slavs (forerunners of the Slovaks) are chronicled as having inhabited the Eastern areas of Slovakia. I want to create as vivid a picture as possible, and although maps can be deceiving, I will make great use of them to illuminate the growth of this land at the crossroads of Northern, Southern, Eastern, and Western Europe…  this is for all intent and purpose “Central Europe”. We will delve into my reasoning in our next post, and it is important that all disagreements are on the table. I will accept comments arguing against any notion of mine. In the next post, geography will continue to be the subject matter as we discuss how Slovakia became populated. This post is just the beginning of our longer journey with Slovakia, its environs, and its past as our focus.

End Notes

   I have my own notions as a lay historian, and I will posit many of them as we once again visit this place in Central Europe – its land, its people, and its history. For many that have been following this blog/post, it will be a re-visit of the last 5 years of the history, and culture of Slovakia. The difference in this next round will be that I have learned 2 to 3 times more than I knew before, and I will do my best to cast a greater recounting, on a singular event, and thus a more precise idea of what “Slovakia” means to me. We will delve into the history of the bordering areas, as they are crucial in the development of the story of Slovakia also. We will have the same format as in past posts: 1) my cultural and personal experiences, 2) “The History Corner”, and 3) “The Umbrella Moment”, and if necessary “End Notes”.  I have an aim to post weekly, usually on Sunday/Monday, and I will do my level best to adhere to that goal. In the past, I believe there was a longer period between posts.

   In the next many posts, I will begin with a sketch of the importance of the Eurasian Steppe as regards the complex and lengthy fall of the Roman Empire, the parting of the Papacy into two Christian capitals, and the spread of the Slavs (among others) into Central Europe. Of utmost importance is a short tutorial on how I approach my study of history, using both my “PERSIA” and “The 5 C’s  of Historical Thinking” outlines. We will incorporate the elements of “PERSIA” where possible in order to broaden my dear reader’s scope of understanding exactly what is happening here at any one time in the historical period we are looking at. Along the way I will also take the time to introduce you, the reader and my companion on this journey, to the chroniclers, historians, and observers of the past… they will emerge in the “End Notes” section I will include – in order for you to look further for yourselves if you are so inclined.

   In the end, I will do just as I had with the last series of blog/posts, finishing up with my own ancestry and their emigration to the United States. I am, and have been of the mind, that knowing ones past pathways will always illuminate one’s future pathways. Lastly, I will do my best to keep the blog/posts to a “short-read” of no more than 5/6 minutes, as I know most are busy and don’t have a great deal of time. I ask humbly for your indulgence if I happen to run a bit longer. We are looking at at least 1,500 years of history, and even as we travel decade-by-decade, or yet event-to-event, it may require a tad more length in attention. In the lower right-hand of the page will be a subscribe toggle, readers can get direct-to-email box delivery of the blog/posts. I encourage you to do so, and more importantly, I encourage comments, questions, and the like from you, dear reader… don’t be shy. Receiving comments and questions from anyone reading this blog is a great joy, and I stand ready to take suggestions as well; if there is a particular aspect of our journey you would like to see, let me know… I pay for this site, and receive no compensation for anyone subscribing to it, so it’s free and it belongs to both of us.

   I will close with this thought… I am merely beginning to scratch the surface of the history of this fantastic country, and its fantastic people. I absolutely love living here, and although I miss my family and friends in the US, I feel more fulfilled than I have for quite some time. Sharing this timeless history and its places, brings me immense joy, and ever greater gratitude. I thank you all for reading this very short introduction, and it is good to be back after a short summer vacation from writing. I wish all of you peace, love, and understanding (what’s so funny ’bout it?). I will post again next week, and look forward to our shared journey from here on out. 

My Grandparents: Jan (John) and Mary (Maria) Hlavatovich

  Our little town, Blue Island, Illinois… was surely a miniature version of the “immigrant experience”. Coming of age there in the late 1960’s, and then through the 1970’s and early 1980’s… my generation dwelled in a  time and space that was something out of a Norman Rockwell painting. While we were hardly sheltered from the outside world, there was still a sense of being nestled and cared for. Both of my Slovak Grandparents would be gone by the time of my birth in 1959. My Dedko (Grandfather) would pass first in 1956, and my Babicka [Bah-beech-ka] (Grandmother) followed two years later in 1958. Between them passed my Uncle Rudy (Rudolph) in 1957, a son that marched off to Europe to fight in WWII.  What they may or may not have known – was that they left a lasting legacy in me that would not go away. My Dad and my Tetkas (Aunts) would carry on to achieve the “American Dream” that Dedko and Babicka set out to find almost 50 years prior. 

   Blue Island, the town they settled in, was a tiny window into that “Dream”. We had virtually the whole world’s ancestry in that “City On The Hill”. My Mother’s lineage was filled with Western European blood from the earliest 1st wave of immigration to the beginnings of the massive 2nd wave. My best friend Greg Roll had the same, with German, Swedish, and French-Canadian (among a few) bloodlines; of whom the Rolls began a coal and ice business in 1886, and are still trading to this day as a building materials business – 5 generations. We had Greek grocers, a bakery began by the Iversens (Scandanavian) and still in business to this day, although under ownership outside of the family… I went to high school with the scion that took over from his Father and retired, selling the business that operates to this day. Small stores, owned or started by immigrants in the late 19th or early 20th century, occupied corner spaces on every other block, it seemed – along with taverns, and for years a neighborhood could get their goods in the style of the homeland… yet it would be reshaped and remolded over the years. By the time we were growing up in the 1960’s and early 1970’s, the population of our town was hardly as segregated as it had been in prior decades. There were whole sections that held one or two distinct defined groups of immigrant populations, with fresh arrivals altering the make-up of our town’s cultural flavor. New immigrants from Mexico, Central America, and Asia have again re-shaped the cultural landscape of the small railroad town. Blue Island’s history is a mirror of the immigrant experience in that it was mostly Western Europeans that settled it in the 1830’s, with the tenor changing as it grew, drawing more Central, Southern, and Eastern Europeans to the surrounding factories that were expanding… aided by their proximity to the the heart and soul of its body – the railroads.

    Another best friend Bill Murphy was “all Irish” and many of my good friends were “100%  Italian” and “100% Polish”. There were many of us though with a mix of ancestry; the notion of “staying within one’s own” was a rarity as the young of many immigrants didn’t discriminate when it came to attraction and love. Overall, as generations continue to adapt to the cultural and economic tides, the immigrant’s descendants did as well… sometimes with positive results and sometimes with a downward trend. Our little town was no exception.  I think the most telling, and saddest trend was the “death of Main Street”.  As kids, we could go uptown, a roughly 6 to 7 block-long run of Western Avenue, our “Main Street”… and shop for anything and everything. When the first malls were built in the late 1960’s and early 1970’s the death knell of our commercial district was beginning to toll (I’m looking at you Dixie Square, Orland Square, and Evergreen Plaza) Without knowing it, the folks that were happy to drive 30 minutes to shop under a single-roofed indoor warehouse of goods, penned the obituary of the well-being of our little town. A ripple-effect spread to their neighbors who owned and worked in those stores and shops. As a side note: my Mother chose to shop in town until there were very few options, then she like everyone else, drove to the malls.

   The “immigrant experience” for those from any part of Europe is long past, but in thousands of cities and towns in the US, past generations are still noticeable… even though most (or all) of its progeny have relocated.

   My “immigrant experience”, although removed by a generation, is one that I’m extremely proud of. Sure, I’m happy to claim that I was born and raised in the US, although the thought of myself or my countrymen as “The Americans” is repellent… I’m happier still to think that my family (both sides) helped to grow, and shape the United States from 1848 onward. More than the Rockefellers, Duponts, J.P. Morgans, Fricks, or Carnegies, it was the blood, sweat, tears, and trials that built it… not the money of the tycoons. Until perhaps sometime at the turn of the 20th/21st century, we in the US were not afraid to think big thoughts, or to reach for the stars. We worked hard to solve our problems together with the combined wit, wiles, and intelligence of our forefathers and mothers. In this time, that same thinking is belittled, and sullied by those who choose not to embrace such a lofty ideal as working together. Intelligence is now seen as a fault, as it has been replaced by “if you’re not with us, you’re against us” polemics. Oh for simpler times, the events and days of our youth!

   As ever, the cultural/societal struggles had continued for those of us in the US. While my Grandparents dealt with nativism, cultural segregation, and the endless conflicts among the political parties of their day. It was no different for those of my generation coming of age in the 1960’s and 70’s, as we had a front row seat to the social and cultural tumult related to the war in Vietnam, racial unrest related to the rights of the Black-Americans, Women’s liberation, the killings of nascent leaders, and the shooting of students at Kent State University. There were always elements of a “counter-culture”, but during this time it became much more visible and prominent. Blue Island was no different as it squirmed and flexed like a body trying to get into a too-small shirt. All in all, we were safe, well-fed, clothed, and given every opportunity to go further than our parents and ancestors. Through all of this, came my “greater awakening” to my heritage, proffered by my Tetkas and my own Mother  who imbued me with a sense-of-self. I think in a some manner, I owe it to them to tell this story. Perhaps someday I will undertake the re-telling of the history behind my maternal ancestry; no less compelling, yet as deep and rich as my Slovak antecedents. For now, I am entirely “Slovakia’s Grandson”.

  My Dad with his Sisters on vacation. (L to R) Irene, Elsie, and Jennie. First-generation Slovaks One of my personal favorites, we chided my Father because he looked like a “mob-boss”.

    The Endnotes here are, in one sense not a finish, but a pause. I wish to begin anew in the Autumn with a newer, and possibly a fresher interpretation of our history. I have learned vastly so much more at the elbow of Professor Homza, as I work with him on his own book regarding the earliest Slovak History. I hope to fill in the open spaces that my posts over these last 3 to 4 years have exposed. My aim will be to forego broad strokes of the history of the Slovaks here in Central Europe, and focus on the timeline in greater detail, while also bringing in the sharper contrast of what surrounded them as well. Instead of chunks of time, I would prefer to get through smaller passages on an event-by-event basis. There is no denying that their history is exigent and complex, but I wish to do a better job at conveying the richness and notability of the Slovaks in the grand sweep of history. Somewhere along the re-telling, I plan to make visible my distaste for “Modern Czecho- Slovakia” (Post-WWI), and my reasoning for ending with Slovak emigration to the US.

As this is my last post until the Autumn, I will now be giving more of my attentions to Prof. Homza’s book, my single English tutee (the others are through now with school ending), and the possibility of proofreading and editing a book on the Treaty of Trianon. It may prove to be my busiest summer ever in Bratislava. My own birth certificate is in the process of being apostilled, and that should be the end for “documents needed”. My visa should be well in hand this Fall.

   In closing, I wish to acknowledge those whom are most important in this “journey of discovery”. My warmest and deepest thanks to my daughter Ana, my dear Sister Sue, and my Brother John. To ex-wife Romaine – along with my Brother-in-law (always!) Jack Rusnak, love to you both. To my Son Cezar, Niece Laura, and Nephew Jim – I love you and thank you. Also no less important are my Cousin Patricia, my Cousin Randall, his wife Sandra, and daughter Jenny Brown and her husband David, my supreme cheerleaders. A true “Brother from another Mother”, my very best friend on the planet, Gregory Roll, as well as his Brother Brian. Amy Malysa, and Diane Bolda Rice, the best “Soul Sisters” I could ask for; their boundless enthusiasm and strength has made it possible for me to carry on during times that I wanted to throw in the towel and return to the US. To my only Hlavatovich relative outside of my immediate family… thanks Chris, you always give me something to think about!  My good old Buddies John Mican and Jeff Piediscalzi, for always staying touch and taking the time to read and comment. To my close brethren from the “back-country days”, Alex Kaye and Jim Rivera, this is just another of the many trails we have traveled… thanks for sharing your gorp.  To the innumerable family members, friends, and band-mates that wholeheartedly boosted this idea, and my dearest-of-dear friends Tooch and Vera… you know who you are!

Not to be outshined, nor overlooked; John and Mirella Mahoney, friends, neighbors, and legal counsel of the highest order. Deb and Bob Petersen, and Bob Kosobucki, that I miss profoundly and wish well. Hovering above as a ethereal raft are my own Slovak angels, Professor Martin Homza, and Vlad Sveda, always my grandest benefactors. A short parade of my kindest confidants, Daniel Halcin, Stanislava (Stanka) Mysova, Vlado Andras, Jan Vician, and Igor Cajka… the best friends an ex-pat is allowed. Lastly, and not least, to my good friend Ildar Bagautdinov who continues to light the way for me here in Central Europe… “you’re the best – Chad!”. Every single person mentioned has aided in shaping me to exist at this moment in time as a humble retired Slovak-American, a lay historian, and an open vessel into which is poured the sweet wine of life… aged by the past and present. Lastly, my sincerest and most earnest bow to the staff of Dolnozemska Krcma, Mishko, Illia, Lenka, Viky, Valerii, Nastia, Filip, and Ema. My endless time on your Palacovy Rad Terasa (Palace Row Terrace) to read and write unhurried, coupled with your bottomless hospitality, is worth more to me than you can know. Finally, to the readers and followers that I have not met, a glowing and honest “thank you”. It is you that this blog is important to reach. The intent of my posts was for the whole round world to know the history and culture of the Slovaks, and I can only wish that I have been able to provide it in some small measure; I offer you a steady Buddhist bow.

    Until we meet again in September, please take care of yourselves, and take care of each other.

   Last Wednesday, 19 June, I was treated to half of Sitra Achra. Bobos, Pista, and Juraj filled in for an act that couldn’t make it. Pista is on of my favorite guitarists, as I have mentioned before, and Juraj is a great bluesman, and wonderful interpreter of the Blues. Bobos is one of the pre-eminent harp players on this side of the globe. As I have mentioned before, I have been unbelieveably blessed to play with them… if only on a small djembe. They have truly become “bratko” (brother) to me. Originally, I was going to support Pista, as he was playing with the act that couldn’t make it, and upon my arrival I found the three of them filling in. Petko, the owner of Jazztikot, has become a friend too! He somehow always manages to find great bands, and they run the gamut from pure jazz, fusion, traditional, and of course, the blues. Petko always keeps a table for me right down in front, and if I am able to check in with him the day of a show, he tells that the table is already mine… no questions. I also attended a gallery opening for Prof. Homza’s daughter Greta. She is well on her way to being an artist-in-standing. I was graced with meeting a gentleman from Britain who has lived here for 30 years and will meet him this coming week for a time. Bratislava has a great art and music scene, as I have been saying, and the more people I meet, the better the exposure I get to it. Along the way there are fascinating conversations regarding, the history of the people I meet, and often, their take on our history as well. I am never “not learning”.

   Let us return to the “History Corner” and one of our last posts on this subject of our dear Slovaks and immigration to the US. I  previously mentioned in my last post, the fact that my Slovak Grandparents wanted my Dad and his siblings to “be American”, there didn’t seem to be much talk about “the old country”. In later years, any query I posed my Tetkas (Aunts) were usually given short shrift and they would talk about my Grandmother and her letter-writing back to Slovakia. The overall consensus from my Dad and my Tetkas was that my Dedko (Grandfather) was “a hard man” and didn’t show affection to his children on any notable scale. My Grandmother was the doter and made sure that her children were fed, clothed, and loved. The running theme that I perceive from reading a book or two about the Slovaks immigrants, was that the women were in charge of the house and all of its functions, and the men were to attend to their duties everyday in the mines, steelyards, refineries, railroads, or any place that they earned a paying wage. It is not debatable who really did the most work. I have to believe that it was the women. Most took on boarders to help subsidize the cost of rent and food, which in turn, created a day as long as the men… or longer. While I cannot argue that a 10 hour shift, sometimes for 7 days a week could be harrowing for the men (remember, this is in the days before OSHA and any care for worker safety); the women were up before the men, preparing breakfast and lunchboxes, getting the children ready for school (if they went at all), and then washing clothes, cleaning the house, shopping, back in the kitchen for supper, and then getting things for their husbands (or boarders) who worked the night shifts. One outstanding account of this is the book (available on Kindle), “Out Of This Furnace” by Thomas Bell. I found it to be an informative and compelling read. A story that surrounds 3 generations of Slovaks from 1881 into the 1930’s. Interwoven into this story is the history of steel strikes centered in Braddock, Pennsylvania from the 1890’s through to post-depression United States. For me, Bell’s telling of the trials and travails of immigrant life in the US, struck me as hard as reading “The Jungle” by Upton Sinclair. Although written for different purposes, both books give an inside look at the conditions of the immigrant’s lives in the tumult-filled growth of the US as an industrial power on the world stage.

   My research also reveals that the Slovaks by and large eschewed Socialism/Communism in growing the unions. This was mostly due to the strong ties to their churches and the dim view the Clergy had regarding either ideological/political movements. Apolitical to some degree, the Slovaks, as well as the other various immigrants, simply wanted better working conditions, better pay, and better welfare measures… which if one knows anything about the “barons of industry” in the US, these were not issues they felt germane to the well-being of their profits. For this lay historian, this is a riveting facet of the of the life of the immigrants in the US, Slovaks or otherwise. As I continually point out, the Slovaks share their struggle across the board with those who arrived to the US in the great 2nd wave of the late-19th and early-20th centuries. I must confess that there are many websites dedicated to the Slovaks in the US, and it is difficult to avoid going down the many “rabbit-holes” doing research on exactly what life was like for the Slovaks after they passed through Ellis Island. I might add, it was the very people that fled their homeland that re-ignited the flame for Slovak autonomy in the Hungarian Kingdom. The Slovaks in the US were influential in the push for Slovak rights and succession after WWI. They sent their sons to fight for the US, and cobbled statehood together with the Czech-Americans at the time. This sole facet is a history unto itself and it was one that could be quite tense at times. Despite this, the Slovak immigrants continued on, as they faced some of the issues they had originally fled Upper Hungary for.

   The immigrants that chose to travel by rail, from the East coast westward, discovered a situation very similar to their Trans-Atlantic crossing. They were segregated, as were the Negroes, and the Asians and Native Americans. The railroads mirrored the US social/cultural landscape and the new arrivals from Sothern, Central, and Eastern Europe were given no quarter. Although it was a cheap form of transportation, it may having been very trying for those with limited English; the stations were not adorned with any multi-lingual signage as today. Also, lacking any guidance, the immigrants were susceptible to being taken advantage of. The dichotomy (or contradiction) here, is that  the earlier and present immigrant groups made major contributions to the growth of the US rail system from the mid-19th century until well after WWI. [immigrationtounitedstates.org]

   For my own Slovak Grandparents, I have to assume they covered the distance from New York to Whiting/East Chicago, Indiana by rail. How they came to live in Blue Island, Illinois is also a question that I cannot answer. So I will turn my attention to what I do know, and we will lay the foundation for our next, and last post on the Slovaks, their history, and the path that led to my “walk through the rich parade of history”.

    I can guess that my Dedko, Jan Hlavatovich, wanted to “make his mark” in the US, he may have wanted his children to be successful, and he might have been pleased to know that many of his grandchildren acquired college degrees and became successes in their own right. The 5 children of Jan and Mary (Marija) Hlavatovich in order: Irene, Elsie, Rudolph, Jennie, and Lester (my Dad). All 1st generation “Americans”, and as I pointed out, the 2nd generation would attained higher educational degrees; in this tier their would be a Psy.D. (Doctor of Psychology), 2 Masters, and a small slew of Bachelor degrees (I hold two of them). In my Father’s legacy, there is virtually a complete sweep: from 5 Grandchildren (John and Mary’s great-grandchildren) there are 4 degrees: PhD in Physics at the top, and 3 Bachelors degrees, with the youngest (my son) attaining a real estate license. Not a bad run for the 3rd generation of semi-literate immigrants upon arriving on the shore of Ellis Island in 1907 and 1912… respectively. We will look at life in our small town in the last post.  

   In the last, I would like to reveal a short list of my bibliography on this subject. For those reading this, even if you are not Slovak, perhaps it might compel you to look into your own ancestry. The amount of information at hand on the internet is simply staggering. Talking to a friend recently, my age, we were laughing about doing research in a library, at a big table, with piles of books surrounding us as if building a castle wall. Arrayed inside would be 2 or3 legal pads brimming with information and cites. Here are a few of my sources from the web:

* archive.wvculture.org/history/government/immigration 05. html {Regarding Slovaks in West Virginia coal mining}

* sav.sk/journals/hum/full/num198f.pdf {Contemporary Ethnicity… Slovak-Americans in Western Pennsylvania}

* guides.loc.gov/slovaksinamerica/chronology {a bibliography that is short, but full of great books}

* immigration to United States.org/category/20 {Nativism and a myriad of subjects related to immigration}

* Anything by M. Mark Stolarik, the distinguished professor from the University of Ottawa, Canada, the University of Minnesota, and Cleveland State University. His writing is all I could ever hope to achieve regarding our dear Slovaks. One paper “The Slovaks & The Socialist/Labor Movements” —> core.ac.uk.download/pdf/33267783.pdf   (This is an important look inside the mindset of the working-class Slovaks in North America)

* “Out of This Furnace” by Thomas Bell {I downloaded this to Kindle and couldn’t put it down}

For Illinois Residents —>

* encyclopedia.chicagohistory.org/pages/1152.html

* cl.streator.il,US/about_streator/city_profile.php {Streator is the 1st place in Illinois to have both Slovak Catholic and Protestant churches, and maybe the earliest…1883 &1893, respectively)

Elsewhere:

* https://www.nailhed.com/2014/06/no-place-like-home.html { The Slovaks in the history of mining in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, and their contribution to industry in the State of Michigan}

The resources are endless. Each state has some background for the Slovaks. Beside the industrial-heavy states like New Jersey, Pensylvania, Ohio, Michigan, NW Indiana, and Illinois… the Slovaks have a history in the rural communities as far-flung as West Virginia, North Carolina, Arkansas, Minnesota, Wisconsin, The Dakotas, and as well, the neighbors to the North – Canada. Slovaks can be found in cities and towns from Nova Scotia west across the prairies to British Columbia.

   My final post, within the next few days, will be the very end of the “immigration experience”, how it affected me, my family, and what life was like in our small town on the Southern edge of Chicago. I will consider this post as an “Endnote On Slovakia, and My Journey Through It”. Because I have nearly finished the draft for it, I want to post it as soon as this coming mid-week. It may end up being a longer read, but I am unconcerned at this point in time. I am eternally thankful to those that have stopped by, choose to “follow” and comment, and give me feedback on how I am doing.

   Until this coming mid-week, please take care of yourselves, and please… take care of each other.

  

   

  

   It has been a good week here in Bratislava, the weather has been spotty though, with rain and cooler temperatures at night. After facing a few days that were 50% rain-forecasted, and no rain, I decided to ride my bike along the Danube and got caught in a torrential downpour. I returned to my flat feeling like a wet dog. I had the distinct joy of playing again with Sitra Achra at Next Apache and just a few nights ago, I was able to see my dear friends Silvia and Pista (Peesh-ta) play at Jazztikot. As with Sitra Achra, they have wonderful re-workings of the Blues classics. Silvia combines power-house vocals with a chanteuse’s breathiness, and Pista’s playing is truly incredible. His “feel” and ability to fill a space is incomparable.

   I may have pointed out that the Danube cruise season has begun, and the Stare Mesto (Old Town) is once again full of tourists being – well – tourists. On the terrace at Dolnozemska, where I do most of my writing (research at home), I love to hear the tourists talking about what they are experiencing. You cannot “not” hear it. Most are loud and the people from the US seem to be the loudest. If they hear me engaging the staff in English and Slovak, they will ask where I’m from, and most are taken aback by the fact that I left the US to retire here. After citing my reasons, they are speechless, and summarily don’t have much to say. That is when I wish them a good trip, ask them to come back and see all of Slovakia (not the 1/4 mile from the boat), and return to my writing. While I find the other Europeans far more understanding about living here, people from the US (Canadians are really nice) seem to have the most culture shock.

    Since we’re on the subject of “culture shock”, I would imagine that it was much like that for my Grandparents in the US in the early 20th century. Even after traveling through the largest cities in Europe, and on to Bremen, Germany where they would depart… I’m sure New York, Boston, Philadelphia, or any of the big East coast cities might have been overwhelming. After looking through countless books and articles about the immigrant’s experience in the US, this is the most apparent sense that I gather; that and the feeling that at times they were not wanted in “America”. Often some immigrants had been made well aware that they “different”. At times they would have been stigmatized by their own people, who a generation earlier stood in the very same shoes. Add to this, the bias or bigotry they may have faced, and it is difficult for us to understand. Yet it still occurs to this day. I have mentioned “Nativism” in a prior post, and at the risk of repeating myself it was quite prevalent for the immigrants from Central, Eastern, and Southern Europe. What my Grandparents faced, I can only make a guess, and to my knowledge it wasn’t great.

   I do know that there was an effort to have my Dad and his siblings to “be American”, and there was not a great deal of talk of the “old country” from either Dedko or Babicka. The neighborhood that my Grandparents settled into was filled with mostly Polish, and other Central/Eastern Europeans. By the 1950’s, the neighborhood had changed somewhat and was populated by a few Mexican families, as well as families from the Southern US. Blue Island, while founded and settled by Western Europeans, became a center of railroading, and industrial support, providing jobs for many people of Eastern/Central, and Southern European backgrounds. It is easy to get too much into the immigrants in Blue Island, and I would like to avoid it, if at all possible… it may be unavoidable. I can say, based on my own experience, that virtually every ethnic group was living and thriving in our little town of 23,000 on the Southern edge of Chicago.

   I would like to finish this post with some facts and figures I’ve come across as I researched the incredible journey of the Slovaks to the United States. I will state also, that I find it necessary and immediate to carry on another post regarding the “immigrant experience” for the Slovaks in the United States. After the last 2 weeks of nearly exhaustive digging (and the occurrence of a few “rabbit-holes”), I want to share what it is exactly that I’ve found, and if it’s not too “marne” (Slovak – vain… or in vanity), I’m hoping to share what I’ve learned from this education. Here is a good list of some of the facts and figures that have revealed themselves; Slovak Immigration To The U.S./ Numbers & Factoids.

* In the 1870’s the US railroads sent agents to Europe (Upper Hungary/Slovakia included), and offered to pay the $70 fare for Slovak laborers.

* By the start of WWI (1914), an estimated 1/3rd of Slovakia’s total population was in the US.

* Between 1900 & 1915 – 15 million immigrants arrived in the US. Equal to the number that has arrived in the previous years combined.

* 1910 –> this is the 1st census to classify a person by “language spoken”, replacing Slovaks as “Austrians” or “Hungarians”.

* In 1900 there were 29,243 Slovak emigrants = 21,235/men and 8,008/women.

* 1907 —> mo papers were required to enter the US.

* During peak immigration/ 1905-1912/ 10,000 passengers and several ships a day [Ellis Island}

* 1919/1920 US census reports –> 619,866 Slovaks, 1st and 2nd generation/ 296,219 in Pennsylvania

* The Dillingham Commission (formed in 1911) counts that the turn of the century (19th/20th) finds Slovaks accounted for 13.1% of US steelworkers, 12.8% of its coal miners (bituminous coal). The Pittsburgh region had higher numbers –> 15.3% steelworkers & 20.3% of the miners.

* 1980 & 1990 census has the area of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and adjacent counties as the locale with the most significant population of Slovaks in the US, followed by Cleveland, Ohio, and Chicago, Illinois.

* The University of Pittsburgh is the only university in the US where students can take language and culture classes, and opt to receive a minor in Slovak Studies.

   There is so very much more, a veritable monolith of dates and facts, and I plan to intersperse some in my next post, along with a bibliography to look for yourselves… if you may be inclined. Without risking too much of a read-time (5-8 minutes max) I feel there is a need to extend this coverage. Also, this journey is not quite over, so with your kind permission, I have plans to post at least two more blogs on this subject (with an “Endnotes” blog) before starting all over again to explore Slovakia’s history. My intention is to convey the complexity of the Slovak/Magyar relationship. Having already primed my dear friend Prof. Martin Homza with two questions, his reply is that it is “very complicated to answer these questions”. We will table that matter for the here and now. There has been a vast amount learned at the elbow of Prof. Homza, in the editing of his coming e-book, and in our casual confabs regarding the minute details of this “history very few know”.

   Once again, apologies for taking two weeks to post, but with the weather becoming nicer, I am riding my bike, taking nice long walks and spending a great deal of time on “the terrace” at Krcma. I hope this post finds you all hale, happy and healthy. My deepest gratitude for those who choose to follow, and equally to those that have just stopped by. Until we meet again, please take care of yourselves… and please… take care of each other. 

   When we left off in the previous post, our dear Slovaks had entered New York Harbor. My Pradedo (Great-Grandfather) Matej, and my Babicka (Bah-beech-ka/Grandmother) Mary (Marija/Maria) went through the “process” at Ellis Island, and if all went well, they would have been admitted in a few hours. I must point out again, that 80% of the emigrants entering the US from 1892 to pre-WWI, came in through Ellis Island. What is also surprising is that Boston, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and New Orleans along with Angel Island in California, were also points of arrival. I have very little input on the Asians and the West Coast as my focus is on the Slovaks and their emigration from Europe.

   My ancestors would have gone through the process of being admitted. They had to face another medical exam, and a barrage of questions like:  “where were you born?, what is your name?, do you have a criminal past?, do you have any money?, and do you know anyone in this country?”. For a good many of the Slovaks, the answers would have been positive. The average of $11.42 in their pockets might have been enough to further them along. I imagine that both of my Grandparents were in good health, being so young… and my Pradedo might have just shown his ticket of passage back to Bremen and led my Babicka to her next step on her journey. The mean average for most emigrants was 3 to 4 hours. Having been admitted to the US, my Babicka was now an “immigrant”. As a reminder, “emigrant” is leaving and going to… while “immigrant” is coming in and remaining. My own decision to retire in Slovenska is a reversal of my Grandparents; I “left and went to”, and I will attain a visa and remain.

   What befell the immigrants after they landed in the US is essentially the same across the board. I must say that the “nativists”, those who had earlier ancestry to the US, looked down on the “huddled masses” and believed themselves the “true Americans”. This sentiment is captured well in many films like “The Gangs of New York”, for example. Among most immigrant groups the Irish bore the brunt of backlash from the “nativists”, owing to the fact that the bigotry of the Protestant English pervaded the common thinking of the White Anglo-Saxon Protestants in the US. All immigrants faced some form of discrimination at some point, as they do to this day. Honestly, if you are not First Nation (“American Indian”), you have descended from immigrants somewhere in your past, and you have very little right to deny anyone a chance to make a go of it in the US.

   Most immigrant groups dealt with discrimination in various ways. The most common way to combat it, obviously, was to keep to their fellow cultures. It is widely known in many big urban centers of the US that there is a “Chinatown”, or “Little Italy” for example. Those of us from the Chicago area know of Pilsen, Andersonville, Little Italy, and our own Chinatown… to name a few. For the East/Central Europeans, Aid Societies and churches were magnets for survival. Passaic, New Jersey had one of the largest and most active Aid Societys on the Eastern seaboard, helping young Slovak women in the 19th century… the waves began with men that were able to get out of the KIngdom of the Hungary; a law enacted in 1879 deterred men as they were to remain and “fulfill their military obligation” to the Kingdom.

   If I am able to assume the path that both Grandparents took west, it might be westward, across Pennsylvania, through Cleveland, and on to Whiting, Indiana. A color map of Slovaks and their distribution across the US, reveals an arc from New York (State & City), around and down to the Western Pennsylvania/Pittsburgh area… as well as the Eastern seaboard. The thickest of the color spreads west to the southern shorelines of Lakes Erie and thins out west to Lake Michigan. The town of Whiting, Indiana is where my ancestors had friends (or family) to help them out. Whiting has a sizeable Slovak population – whether in ancestory, or in Slovaks remaining there (I have not looked into the demographics). I can recall my father and Tetkas (Aunts) talking about going to Whiting on the weekends and staying with family friends.

   From Whiting, it is not entirely clear how both Grandparents made it to Blue Island where our family was centered, and where I was born. I don’t know how they met, or where, and I know virtually nothing about their early lives in the US. What I do know is that they lived on Vine Street, along the old Grand Trunk tracks. I know also that there were many Slavs in their neighborhood… Poles mostly, and my Dedko (Grandfather) would spend time at Holstein’s Bar/Saloon at the end of the their street on the north side of Broadway.

   I do know that my Babicka worked as a maid in the Prairie Avenue district of Chicago for a time. As for my Dedko, I am not sure how he got his job at Ingalls and Shepard (bought by Wyman Gordon in 1920) working in the drop forge shop. I am sure he knew another Slovak that helped him get the job, that was how it worked in those days. It was not uncommon for a single group of immigrants to work side by side in a factory in the US. Sometimes, it might two or three different cultures working witin a particular industry. The immigrant experience was virtually the same across the board. They stayed close to their own cultures, and had a developed “support network”, I.e., churches, shops within their communities, and fraternal organizations. Outside aid groups would also assist with the assimilation into the US culture.

   Lastly, one bit of information, the letters home and communication with the “old country”. There are two sides to this subject. Those who were successful, and those who did not do well. Either way, the letters back to their home countries were embellishments, or truth. Some that struggled, chose to not correspond at all. In the “old country”, the letters (or postcards) would draw the whole village to see how “Jano” or “Marija” were making out. Often the letters were printed in the local newspaper. This would spur further emigration, it is thought, and those who sent the letter might be responsible for the next incoming emigrate to their fold in the US. The immigrants found out very quickly that the “streets of gold” did not exist. Without seeing the letters back home, I can only surmise that those who did well were anxious to convey it to their friends and family from the homeland. Those who were only a little better off, possibly belied how they were doing, and would 1) continue to struggle, 2) assume that their situation might change, or 3) return to the homeland no better than when they had left – humiliated and again in need.

    Up to this point, this is my best take on the immigrant Slovaks in the US. I am doing research for my next two posts. I have decided to continue with the “last two” because this aspect of the “Slovak experience” is very fascinating, and a story that I feel is relevant to my own past as well as Slovakia’s. I still, at times, feel like I am existing in a dream. My whole life, from my late-teens onward, has been to know not only about my own roots and “Slovakness”, but also the incredible and unparalleled history of this country and its people. I can only hope that I am doing it justice… if slightly – I will be content. I thank you all for joining me on this odyssey of discovery, and I deeply appreciate  your attention. Please…prosim, feel free to comment, or if you’d like, contact me at bodhindh1012@gmail.com., you can do so. In the meantime, take care of yourselves, and take care of each other.

   A couple of Mondays ago, I had the distinct honor of playing a small djembe with some of my dear friends in Sitra Achra. My good buddy Ico (Eee-cho) was there to support me. and my dear drumming brother Ajdzi (eyed-zhee) kept me in line with eye contact as I accompanied them through a few of their brilliant covers of blues, country blues, and beyond. This was definitely something I will never forget. They are all great musicians and I am thankful to have met them.

 

   Next Apache is one of my top “have-to-visits” in Bratislava. I’ve written about it in past posts. It is a funky-cool bistro that fills quickly with students of all studies, and some of the most interesting people here in town. It has great energy when full, and very nice quiet vibe when less populated. The backroom we played in is lined with bookshelves, and crammed to the gills with everything you can imagine, in many languages, and intriguing in its eclectic mix. I’ve met people here, young and old, who’ve become good friends. I am grateful to Ico for introducing me to it many months ago.

   The following post will be my second-to-last on the Slovaks, as I intend to end with WWI. The outcome of the war, Czecho-Slovakia, has a history that I am not very fond of, and have limited knowledge of. Realizing, of course, that the Slovaks needed the Czechs to help form their own place as a “free entity” after the Treaty of Trianon, the reality of the the actual situation was no less an advantage than being under the thumb of the Hungarians for almost 1,000 years… that is just my opinion. Some historians would easily shoot my outlook down, but the Slovaks needed the Czechs mainly because they had nothing in place to administer themselves. The Slovak portion of the union had to be built from the ground up, in effect – administration, judiciary, infrastructure…etc. They were still treated as “little brothers” by the Czechs, and not as equals. I will leave it at that, again… just my opinion. On to the History Corner and the exodus of the Slovaks from the “Kingdom of Hungary” to the U.S. in the early 20th century. This is perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the history of Slovakia for me. Because it is here that the past (my ancestors) comes into direct contact with my life.

HISTORY CORNER

   If you have been following my posts, even a few, you might get the sense that I am incredibly proud to be of Slovak heritage… if just 1/2 – from my Father’s side. I have tried to give an unblemished account of what our history was like and made an effort to keep my emotional involvement in check. It is a difficult task to carry out. My heritage is very close to my heart, and I have been studying it for more than half of my lifetime.

   In this post I would like to set the scene for our last post in this series… the experience of the Slovaks prior to WWI. I have pointed out that the first real exodus, of the Slovaks from the Kingdom of Hungary began in 1873, and they were mostly from the Spis (Speesh) area. This is an area in the north of Slovakia. There were many Slovaks that went before this group, some time earlier, a few so early into the world that they would end up taking part in the US revolutionary war against Great Britain, and an entire unit from Chicago that would fight for the Union in the US Civil War.

   Although I have cited Hungary’s forced Magyarization as a primary reason for the Slovaks to leave their natural and historical homeland, there are other reasons, and it is important to point out that many of those reasons were shared across the board with other emigrating cultures. The story of the Slovaks is well related to any and all of the emigres that went west to the US. Unsurprisingly though, they quickly discovered that it wasn’t paved in gold. Oddly enough, many Slovaks were only going for a short time to work and save enough money to buy their own plot of land in Slovakia, returning in a much stronger financial standing than when they had left. Many decided to stay in the US, after all, and sent for the rest of their families… but back to a couple of the other circumstances. There was a Cholera epidemic in 1873 (among many from1831/32, 1848/49, 1854/55, 1866/67, and numerous crop failures. The promised (and enacted) land reforms did not manifest a better quality of life for the peasants. The large estates reserved the best arable lands for themselves, thus leaving a thin poor soil for subsistence farming. The average income for any peasant working the estates was 15 cents a day; some would make up to .30 cents in a day. A paltry sum when compared to wages in the US. $1.00/$1.50 a day was an enticement to try their luck in the United States. But before they go West, let’s look at the conditions that they had to meet prior to getting on the boat to their new life.

   Since we have an idea of the “why” for the Slovak emigration, I want to touch on the “how”. Let’s begin the odyssey in Pokryvac where my Babicka (Bah-beech-ka), my Grandmother was born. It is located in the far north of Slovakia (“Upper Hungary” at the time), and my Great-Grandfather accompanied Babicka, Marija Halaj (Huh-lie) to New York City. My Babicka was about 15 years old at this time in 1912. The trip that my Great-Grandfather undertook, he had done three years earlier with my Great-Aunt Zuzana, Marija’s older sister, in 1909. If you stop to think about it, Matej (Mah-tay) crossed the Atlantic four times. In that day and age, this is epic. He was a MIller; quite a prestigious line of work for the age. The millers were considered go-betweens from the people working the land and the estate owners. Also, they had to be good with their hands, and adept mechanically to keep the water-driven mill in top shape. How did they go about getting from a remote place to a port? Many emigres traveled by cart, by one of the few railways, or they walked. The distance from Pokryvac to Gdansk, Poland (nearly straight north) was 700km (430mi +/-), and to Bremen, Germany it was a little more than 1,000km (620mi +/-). To the south was the port of Trieste, and it would have been an 815km (500mi +/-), through Hungary proper – so that route was a not a choice. We can only assume that it was not an easy trip by any measure. Most went to Bremen.

   Once in Bremen, they may have had to wait until the ship was to set sail. I’m sure that Matej and Zuzana/Marija would have been in 3rd class, if not steerage to cut costs. On the “Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse”, which both Grandparents traveled on, the whole ship was renovated after a fire in 1906 – all 3rd class. In 1912, for instance, the Titanic charged 7pounds for 3rd class travel. It equates to roughly $1,000 (+/-) in todays money. Often, 3rd class was steerage; the emigres were crowded into essentially the bottom-rear of the ship. The noise of the engines, the heat, and the density of human bodies would not have been pleasant. The passage could take up to ten days, depending on how often the ship stopped at various other ports-of-call. In this day and age, it is nearly unimaginable, that they could be treated like cattle, and had the meddle to endure the 7-10 day trip in a such a small space. The wretchedness of which is well-known.  Most often the emigrants would under-go a medical inspection before boarding the ship; this was either mandated by the steamship lines, or the state in which the port was located. This was done also because, most often, the steamship companies had to pay the return passage for those that were turned away from their port of entry… be it the US or Canada – another country the emigres would seek to enter.

If you want to understand what that experience was like, I am attaching a very good read via a link to a post on the steerage experience. https://freepages.rootsweb.com/~gregkrenzelok/family/The%20Steerage%20Experience.html. I thank and cite Greg Krenzelok for this report.

   Although I think it would’ve been possible for the emigrants to leave their 3rd class (steerage) compartments, it would not seem likely that they could do it very often. One had to believe that the pictures we are most familiar with seeing, people crowding the deck to see the Statue of Liberty, the emigrants were not only excited to see that they had finally made it to the “new land”, but I”m absolutely sure that were happy to get fresh air at last.

   In my last post on this subject, I will aim to explain what the experience was like for my Grandparents, not only going through Ellis Island, but finding their way from New York to Blue Island, Illinois… where they finally settled.

   I want to thank you all for following my posts, and welcome any to comment. In the next (last?) post I will also explain my reasoning for starting all over again with early Slovak History, and more importantly the reason that I cannot bring myself to follow Slovakia in the post-WWI era. Until we meet again, please take care of yourselves, and please, take care of each other.

  

  

     

  

   It looks like we are back to Spring here in Bratislava. Last week we had a quick rush to 26C/78F weather. Sunny and warm, with the weather changing to a fantastic thunderstorm to usher in much cooler weather… it even hailed this morning. The forecast for the next week is the high of 13C/55F, and rain with some “mix” thrown in for variety. I got a chance to see one of my favorite Blues harp players on Saturday past. Juraj is not only adept at harp, but has a great blues voice as well. Behind him was a crack band, and not a one them a slouch at all. It was a great way to spend a Saturday night. I’m trying to clear up some money matters, and this was a cheap evening out with no cover, and to boot, a cheap glass of Urpiner while a watched the Fellas blow through a few sets of incredible live blues. I love living here and cannot wait until I get my whole visa mess cleaned up and I am  able to travel a little bit.

THE HISTORY CORNER

   To sum up this experience of Magyarization for the Slovaks, I just want my readers to be clear on what it was and what it was not.

   The state policy of extending the Hungarian border by language is a culmination of nearly 1,000 years of appropriation. When you look at the fact that the early Slovaks had already been participants  in Samo’s Empire (7thc.), followed by their participation in the formation of the Principality of Nitra (9thc.), and then Great Moravia Late-19th to early 10thc.) as it had conquered Nitra. They then had a hand in extending the remains of Charlemagne’s Holy Roman Empire, through their own duke and king… namely Rastislav and Svatopluk, respectively. All of this occurred 400 +/- years after they had settled in the territory of present-day Slovakia. The previous took place before the Magyars were established as a political entity. The Magyars entered into the Carpathian region from the East, and began to occupy and populate the territory near the end of the 9th century and the beginning to the 10th. Through battle and conquest, they acquired the land of the early Slovaks, and settled down to create the Hungarian Kingdom. Poland had acquired the Slovak lands in the early 10th century, and then ceded it back to the Hungarians in 1108. From that time until the end of WWI, the Slovaks would remain tied to the Magyars through the Kingdom of Hungary. I have covered this subject in many past posts, and will again when I have concluded the posts at the end of WWI… yet I will proceed in less of an “overview” and delve into the details of how the Slovaks developed. On to my definition of Magyarization.

   First, I would like to limn out what Magyarization was not: 1) Magyarization was not a polite invitation to become part of the Hungarian/Magyar Kingdom by accepting Budapest’s ostensibly benevolent rule, 2) anything close to that which was stated in the Nationalities Law, which was not only ambiguous, but the stated intention was not practiced, 3) any perceived idea that the kingdom’s subjects would give up their mother tongue to become “living and breathing members of the “Great Kingdom of Hungary”, and lastly, 4) peasants with limited education (or none at all) could see through this facade as an avenue to cede their past traditions, culture, or language to someone else, for the sake of being something they had no desire to be.

   What Magyarization was:The impact of the forced appropriation of language is, by all accounts, a very cruel and immoral tool of assimilation and acculturation. The system that the Hungarians installed was one that rewarded those who had abandoned their mother tongue for advancement in the Hungarian/Magyar society. Passing and installing laws that said one thing, yet in reality the matter was a veneer to disguise what the Hungarians were actually trying to attain. Plainly speaking, this is what it was; a ruse to homogenize the Hungarian/Magyar minorities into one vast culture. As I stated in the previous post, this is a similar situation to what the Native Americans experienced in the United States… minus the violence. When tested on this subject, my dear friend Prof, Homza had this to say: “The difference between Magyarization and what happened in the USA is not only violence, but the privatizationof the history of an entire community by one particular part of it. The original multilingual aristocracy, which was the political nation of the Kingdom of Hungary, identified with the modern Magyar nation in the mid-19th century and created the attractive concept of ‘Magyarness’. Violence was less present than in North America, but the concept of ‘Magyarness’ was false and remained so, which is why a large part of the Kingdom of Hungary did not identify with it.”

   As I have stated in previous posts, the aristocracy – the middle and upper-level landowners – directed and impelled an “other-than” type of thinking. They foisted this notion onto the minorities in its territory from the very beginning and never ceased… even though the were (until 1867) under the sway of Austria and the Habsburgs. This what Magyarization was. As I have stated in past posts, the relationship between the Slovaks and the Hungarians was very complex. We will delve into it in during the next cycle of posts.

   What was the outcome? Many citizens of the empire emigrated away from it. To be clear, emigration is leaving, and immigration is coming in. One would emigrate (going out) to the United States, and once there, became an immigrant (coming in). Most of us, who are descendants of immigrants to the United States, owe a huge debt of gratitude to those that chose (or were forced) to leave their homelands behind for a better life. In this modern era of travel, it is hard to believe that it would take weeks, or months, to go from Central (or Eastern) Europe to North America. Although many Slovaks left earlier, 1873 is the first year that we have a solid number – 1,300 Slovaks. Most from the Eastern areas of Slovakia, and the impetus for this was not only Magyarization, but also a cholera epidemic, and massive crop failures. There was also a lack of arable land, and the anxiety over the coming of industrialization. The reasons for emigration, the numbers, and the waves of Slovak emigration to the United States will be covered in our next post.

Our map (above) does not reflect any outcome of Magyarization pre se, but gives the reader an idea of how predominant the Hungarians were in most of Slovakia, especially Central, East, and the South. If I had more time, I would have liked to point out the extent of Magyarization empire-wide… but my interest here is the Slovaks. Heading into the early years of the 20th century, it is important to point out that the Slovaks, by population as mostly (90%) peasants, were under the control of the Hungarian land-owners, who reigned over 90% of the land, and thus a family of four was forced to get by on a plot that was roughly 5 acres. We can go to some length to exhibit how appalling the conditions were for the Slovaks, as well as for the other minorities in the empire. This situation is to a degree, made even worse by the fact that the Slovaks had no voice, no representation, and very little local control over their affairs. I have referenced in past posts, that quite a few towns did have local control, to a degree, but overall it fell under the aegis of Austria, and after 1867 the Hungarians had full control. This does not include the oldest charter towns which were directing their own fortunes.

   In the end, the compulsory drive to a single language under the Hungarian rule was just one of the factors to drive the emigration to not only the United States, but also to other portions of the Hungarian Kingdom, and Europe where there was a broader spectrum of opportunities for the rural Slovaks. In the next post I want to look into the Slovak emigration to the U.S., the different waves of such, and perhaps the conditions of their travel and adjustment.

   There is so very much more to this epic story of the Slovaks and Slovakia; unfortunately I have only 5 (maybe 8) minutes max to explain this beautiful tale. When I have finished this series, I would like to begin again, as I have learned in leaps and bounds, to the credit Prof. Homza, and also through my many friends here who have helped me to fill in the blanks. I am beyond grateful that you have stopped by, follow me, or took the time to read this missive after a search of Slovakia. Until we meet again… please take care of yourselves and take care of each other.

   

One thing I really enjoy is the musical variety here in Bratislava. Besides Scherz Cafe, and Next Apache, there are few places that I feel more at home (Chicago-style) is Jazztikot. It’s a geat venue, located just off Hlavne Namestie (The Main Square). and run by one of the nicest guys I know. Petr (Petko) somehow seems to find the best musicians… jazz, fusion, blues, traditional “Americana”, and everything else in between. Last Friday (5 April), I was fortunate enough to see some of my favorites from Sitra Achra with an amazing young lady on vocals… sincere and strong interpretations of the Blues. (photo above) The players have become friends and a few even stay in touch on SMS and Whatsapp. There is so much to like about living here, and as I slowly learn the language, it gets even better. Also “terrace season” has officially begun and my favorite place to write is, as you know, Dolnozemska Krcma (kerch-ma). The staff is a great group of youngsters, almost have become like nieces and nephews. This photo with Valerii is a week or so older, because he doesn’t work often, and it is always good to see him. I would be remiss to mention that the “boat season” has begun, and the cruise boats from the Danube a few blocks away dump any number of tourists into our Stare Mesto (Old Town). It’s fun to watch visitors behaving badly in a foreign country. I’ll leave my comments to that point.

THE HISTORY CORNER

   Following the Compromise of 1867 between Austria and Hungary, there was a forthright attempt by the Magyars to instill a policy of “one nation, with one language”. While this agreement between the two empires was now a “real union” between Austria and Hungary, meaning the two countries shared some institutions, but the monarch cedes an equal partnership with another state. Prior to 1867, this union was a “personal union”, meaning the monarch in this case, Franz Josef (and his antecedents), had been the sole ruler of both states and “called the shots”… for the most part. One of the lingering aspects of the union before 1867 was that the Austrian Habsburgs wanted German to be the official language of the dual-monarchy. While this issue is just one of many for the Hungarians, it was too much for the nationalistic Magyars; they wanted their language to be the one and only in their territory. The Hungarians were able to restore “territorial integrity” and shake off the military dictatorship, of absolutist-Franz Jozef.

   This brings us to 1868 and Magyarization. This was a state policy furthered by the Nationality Law (or Act), and it was Hungary that was the first nation in Europe to adopt laws that protected minority rights. In 1848, as we saw in an earlier post, and here in 1868. It should be noted that Austria was second in 1867/68, and Belgium was the third in 1898. These three countries were the only three out of all the pre-WWI nations to adapt such awareness for the ethnic-minority rights of those in their territories. To what extent those minorities in Austria and Belgium fared, I cannot be sure as my research and area of interest has been Slovakia. As a new state policy, this was based on the “classical liberal concepts of individualism” – the rights or civil liberties of the singular person/citizen. Using post-revolution France as a model, their  intent was to encourage the various ethno-cultural minorities to assimilate into their culture. France standardized their language and it was the only one to be used, from top to bottom – there was no give and take. With the Hungarians there is a righteous facade to this manner of thinking; my research reveals the “classical ideals of individual rights” as a sham. In fact the underlying reasons are a bit more nefarious; the Magyars were hoping to placate the various ethnicities, like the Slovaks, Serbs, Romanians…etc, into backing down from the call for autonomy in their respective regions. We know from my past posts, that the Slovaks had always been seeking “territorial ethnic autonomy” and not minority rights. As the 1870’s wash into the 1880’s, there will be more struggle to come for our dear Slovaks. Research revealed that there are many definitions of “Magyarization”, but I believe the best way to draw a conclusion is to read as many different accounts as one can, and let the facts sift down to make a decision. My personal definition is this: “Magyarization was a state policy that allowed the Hungarians to exercise their (imagined) cultural superiority over those ethno/cultural groups within their realm”.

    I have read papers (in translation, of course), that talk about “ethnic cleansing”. This is a matter of modern terminology as it was first used in  World War II as a euphemism for the Croats committing atrocities against Serbs. I cannot find any hard data or evidence that it occurred with our Slovaks. What did occur was an assimilation or acculturation that was meant to “wash away Slovak-ness”. Again, it is a mistake to apply our modern view (and terms) to the past. I understand, yes, genocide/ethnic cleansing took place many, many times in the history of mankind. But if we must “tag” these events with our modern terminology to understand it… so be it. I don’t believe that the Slovaks were forced off of their land, raped or pillaged, or any of the terms we want to use to describe what occurred in the Upper Kingdom. If it did take place, it may have been isolated. My research shows me something more insidious, and pointed in the manner with which the Hungarians operated. In Hungary at this time, there were many open-minded and liberal thinkers, Ferenc Deak comes to mind. He was a moderate and always sought the middle path. There were quite a few men in his mold… I’m looking at you Zsigmond Kemeny and Isztvan Szechenyi; but it was men like Lajos Kossuth, Menyheert Lonyay, and Kalman Tisza who embodied the nationalistic thinking of “Magyar superiority” of the ethnic groups in the territory. For the Slovaks this forced assimilation was viewed as an act of aggression in its discrimination, especially in their territory where they made up the majority of the population.

    Let me take an aside here. The behavior by the Magyars is not a “modern contrivance”; they are doing exactly as every empire before them. I cover this aspect of “empire consolidation” in a paper I am writing about empires on way up. Those familiar with US history know very well what the Native Americans experienced after they were subdued by force, disease, catastrophic loss of their food sources, and their culture. Native children were taken by the thousands and “Anglicized” (or “Americanized”) in white schools, speaking only English, dressing in western clothes, and forbidden to do anything that reflected their heritage. Their cultural values were de-emphasized, they were treated as “less than” by the majority white population, and governmental policies assigned them to a “back-seat position” in society. The various states that contained their reservations maintained the federal systems within their borders. This is the essence of what the Magyar were trying to achieve… all under the guise of the Nationalities Law. Just like the First Nations (Native AMericans) in the US, the Slovaks were still second-class citizens in their own territory and homes.

   As a social policy, which has always been my focus, Magyarization in the past didn’t begin in earnest until the 1830’s; even though there was a “Hungarian National Awakening” as well. The Austrian throne tried to exert influence with German as the language of the Crown Lands at that time. At this time it is just language in education, and there were no religious or ethno/cultural elements involved until Lajos Kossuth appears on the scene. In the early 1840’s when the Slovaks were trying to get their own language off the ground, Kossuth promoted for a quick transformation to Magyar as the “lingua franca” (common language) of the Hungarian Kingdom. Everything changed in 1867, and the Magyar/Hungarians had carte blanche to do as they deemed fit to compel everyone in their “empire” to be “Magyar… or Hungarian”.   

   By 1878 the charter of Matica Slovenska was annulled, and the library with its art and historic collections were confiscated. The funds for Matica Slovenska were confiscated as according to Hungarian law, “no Slovak nation existed”. A fervent squeeze was adopted to have surnames made Hungarian in order to gain access to local administration, education, and justice. While most of my research reveals that the Hungarians were some-what successful in the imposition of their Magyarization policy (mostly in Hungary proper) there were other aspects that I find intriguing. History written by Hungarian authors will not mention the cruelty that was practiced in the wake of this policy. Some seem to gloss over this period as “nation building” and the strength of their leaders to make Hungary an internationally recognized state. Be it well or not, this the past the various minorities in the Kingdom of Hungary experienced.

   It is also proposed in one website that over 2 million predominantly Catholic children were taken from Slovakia, spirited away to be “properly Magyarized” in parishes/seminaries, and required to confirm to state-imposed restrictions. Whether this is factual or not, I am unable to find data that supports this. It is noted however, that FEMKE (an acronym in Magyar that was the “Upper Hungary Magyar Educational Society”) “transferred” 500 +/- Slovak children into “pure Magyar districts”. Somewhere between 1887 and 1890.  Also, I must point out that the aim of this policy is primarily linguistic… for the most part. We saw in earlier posts how the Slovaks were able to agree on and formulate a culturally appropriate language system for themselves, thereby beginning their journey to gain recognition in the Magyar-ruled Kingdom. The Hungarians struck at language to be their tool to bring the minorities under their thumb. This subject between the Slovaks and Magyars is one that had been a burr in their shoes and it would ignite some indignation for many years to come.

     In terms of national identity, language is first, followed by customs/traditions, third is birthplace, and fourth is religion. These four elements are typically considered the “4 dimensions of national identity”. The Magyars were resolved to bring all outliers within a single language, even though at least 13 different languages were spoken in the territory of the Hungarian Kingdom. I can see their (Magyar’s) point, in order to gain control over others, start with the language. From 1874 through to 1883 there was aggressive enforcement of the state policy of Magyarization. This coercion continued and took many forms, such as the “Banffy Law of Villages” – which signified that all significant villages and towns in the Hungarian Kingdom had to be titled/named in Hungarian/Magyar… this was passed as a law in 1897. To bring the 19th century to a close, we have one more. In 1898 the book ” How To Magyarize Family Names” was printed, and written by a Hungarian… of course.

   I will seek to cover a bit more at the turn of the 19th into the 20th century, in my next post. I would like to introduce a few population tables as well. I want to touch on the results of this policy of “forced linguistic assimilation”, and cultural erasure. I will give emigration examples in numbers leading up to WWI, and a short recounting of what I know about the travel of my own Grandparents from Trnava and Orava… respectively. We will look at the greater methods of the Magyar/Hungarians from the turn of the century until the end of “The Great War”. I will also lay out my reasons for ending my study of our history, after 1918.

   I thank each and everyone for taking the time to read my short missives from Central Europe. Until we meet again, feel free to leave a comment – I am always looking for ways to improve my writing. I wish you all the very best. Please take care of yourselves… and take care of each other.

   

  

This past week was a good time for me, I was able to meet my lawyer and develop a strategy for a long stay. Jan wants nothing less than a passport for me… dual citizenship. Also, I had a fun night at Jazztikot with Stephko, Sylvia, and Bobos (bo-bohsh). Also, a few good visits to the Slovak National Gallery (SNG). We had elections for president on Saturday… makes sense right? At this point in my life, and in this place, I have become truly apolitical. But it is interesting to see the “morally-just” right vs. the “corrupt-woke” left still alive even here. While the “more to the right” Robert Fico is Prime Minister, and now the Slovaks have to elect a president. It will come down to the two candidates elected last weekend; a “west-leaning” candidate, and a candidate that is sometimes not clear on his platform. The elections in the US, are a hot topic here, and I have a difficult time convincing the people that I talk to, that (in my opinion) they are two of the worst candidates to have to choose from. Here in east central Europe, the idea of an autocrat (like Trump or Putin) still carries some appeal. I can’t wrap my head around it; another reason why I am apolitical… I don’t want to think about it anymore. I’d rather study the past, it is much more interesting, and less of the “same old – same old” of the present.

   In the past three posts, we have looked at Slovakia’s art. We started with its visual art from the Middle Ages, and followed along until the Neo-Classical/Romantic. The intervening two portions were focused on the written form in literature, poetry, and drama. This is my last popst in this series, and I want to end with visual art from the mid-19th century to the 1880’s/90’s. After the turn of the 20th century, the art in Slovakia bursts into the scene of the “modern era”, and they are no longer behind the western waves of creativity… instead right along the top of the crest. We will look at it when we near WWI.

   I want to mention again the portrait of Empress Maria Theresa, by Franz Anton Palko (1755-1756). I pointed out in Part I that Palko was a “Baroque” painter, when in fact further research and discussion with an art historian revealed that Palko was part of the “Old Masters” of Austrian art. The “Old Masters” title refers to mostly painters, and is not specific about their style or the movement to which they belong. Generally speaking, this to a wide range of the greatest figures in western art… da Vinci, Caravaggio, Rembrandt, and Durer… to name a few. My best description of Palko’s painting in that post was okayed by an art historian I met at the SNG> It’s nice to know that the art aesthetics courses I had at Columbia College 40 years ago have stuck with me.

   I have to include this again because it is so lovely, and the first that draws my eye when I walk into the gallery. Absolutely one of my favorite paintings in the SNG. While he was born in southwestern Poland, Palko did spend some time in Slovakia.

For all of the works that you will see going forward, more “modern”, if you will… there was still Sacred Art being done. But overall, there is much more portraiture that takes place, eventually going from the sittings of the aristocracy, to the “everyday people” in the middle portion of the 19th century. Representative of this style is Johann Rombauer, an “ethnic-German” born in Levoca – wholly “Slovak” in my book. His story is fascinating, if you just Wiki him, his travels alone make for good reading.

   This is Rombauer’s Salvador Mundi from early in the 19th century.

   From Mundi, you see the growth of Rombauer’s work in 1810 or so to his portrait of noblewoman Thereza Mattyasovszka in 1836. Gone is any hint of the secular, and he paints her in repose, with depth, light and dark, as well as the deeper colors of the flowers in the vase. The fine detail of her dress is also very clear.

   As I pointed out earlier, there is a movement afoot during this time to show the struggles of the commoners, heroic depictions, and themes more emblematic of the early Realist period.

   In this period of our interest – 1820’s to 1890’s, we begin to see a change in the way Slovaks are shown. Peter Michal Bohun has a vast catalog of work than spans everything from single-subject portraiture to settings of villagers, farm workers, and families throughout the Slovakia of his time… 1822-1897. Personally I love Bohun’s work for its richness of life, and strength of form and color. Add to that, the fact that he came from my Grandmother’s region near Dolny Kubin makes him all the more dear to me. I think it also important to acknowledge the fact that Bohun was another founding member of Matica Slovenska, and fervent about Stur and the Slovak revival. I will include one more before we move on.

   With Bohun, and so many other Slovak artists, we cross over from Romantic to Realist period. The rejection of “the individual in the majesty of the natural world”, a romanticizing of the living in the outdoors, and “sky and landscape” first – then everything after. We will see our people, places, and things as they were; an emphasis on nationalism, and the hardships and struggles of people at work… bringing empathy and recognition to their station in life.

   We will pass over many of our best; Jozef Czanczik (Czauczik/Czaucsig) is another favorite of mine, and along with Johann Rombauer, and is considered a leader in Slovak art of the 19th century, and wholly Slovak. He was born in Levoca, studied – it is said- in Vienna, and returned to Levoca to spend the rest of his life their. Another exploration, even if just a look in Wiki, Czanczik was an incredibly talented painter who not only did portraiture, but also (like many) he created frescoes in a few of the churches in Spis (Speesh).

   As we see with both Marko and Benicky (ben-itz-key), the “Realist” effect is beginning to take hold. Marko is Hungarian, and Benicky is Slovak, I believe – both bios are difficult to come by. Marko goes on to paint grand landscapes. This is the art of the middle periods, and typifies what was being lived, experienced and seen by the Slovaks of the day. Artists such as Jozef Bozetech Klemens are beginning to segue from portraiture to landscapes. Klemens was born in Slovakia and did the now-famous painting of Ludovit Stur (you saw it in Part III), and he did work as a geologist, as well as a photographer.

   In a span of roughly 15 years, we can see Klemens develop as an artist. Zofia Brezovicka is a wonderful painting and its glowing shape-filled aura asks me to look into it… as well does his Mountain waterfall. But we continue to move forward in the growth and development of our art and artists. While there are still portraits being painted, there is a strong accent by many to show the struggle of those not well-off enough to pay to have their pictures painted. Heading into the back half (and bringing this all together) of our 19th century, we have two of the great artists of the age in Eduard Majsch (my-sh) and Ladislav Mednyansky, or Mednansky (med-nee-yahnskee). Although neither were entirely Slovak, they were born here and created some of our best late 19th century art.

   Eduard Majsch (1852-1919) renders many of the styles of the mid-to-late 19th century. He seems to mirror the work of the Dutch “Old Masters” in “Serenade” with its light and dark themes, In “Blind Joe”, Majsch gives a sanpshot of everyday life, and the run-up to his earnest semi-impressionistic work of Bratislava and the Danube in winter. Impressionism was sweeping western Europe at the time, as it begun on 10/15 earlier in Paris. Majsch is a little lighter on detail than say “Blind Joe”, but remains outdoor to give this wide open look at his city with Bratislava Castle silhouetted against the winter sky. I see more in his paintings everytime I go to the SNG. He is considered a “Hungarian” painter, even though his father, Sebastian was an “Austrian painter of Slovak descent”. Nonetheless, Eduard’s paintings captured the feel of the life in Slovakia during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Ladislav Mednaynsky (1852-1919), was a giant in Slovak art. Both he and  Majsch were actually born in the territory of Slovakia, but were considered “Hungarian’ despite there origin of birth… Mednaynsky in Beckov (Western Slovakia) and Majsch (Bratislava). It’s a funny thing, that the Hungarian/Magyars were so nationalist in this sense. Add to this that Magyarization was in full swing with Kossuth’s fervent appeal to have the language and culture in the whole of the Kingdom attain a number one status… Hungarian/Magyar first. I’m not sure if either artist at this time was “political”, but they put their work to canvas and gave us art on a par with anything else at the time. They are not alone, there are many, many that we could look at; I chose them because they appeal to me the most. Also, Martin Benka (1888-1971) bears mention here, as he is looked up on as the root of the “Modernist” movement in Slovakia. Benka is entirely Slovak and dedicated himself to recording rural life, the simple live of those in the countryside living in the natural world. When you stand in front of his work, you can almost get the sense of him creating this work spontaneously, and without any contrivance. I will include one of Benka’s works at our close.

   For my eye, Mednaynsky seems to embody the early-Modern painter. He was taught early on in watercolor at 12/14 years old and then earned his education in Munich and Paris. He had a studio in Montmatre at the beginning of the Bell Epoque in Paris. He was influenced by the Barbizon School (outdoor moods/landscape), and of course Impressionism. In the SNG, in front of Mednaynsky, time passes slowly as my eye (and mind) wander across his rich paintings of our past.

We will end here with an early painting by Martin Benka. I know there are so many more to mention, but time does not allow for an extensive trip through the astounding treasure of written, visual, and dramatic art that has been created under the thumb of the Hungarians… but art always survives. Hippocrates said it best: “ars longa, vita brevis”… art lasts, but life is short > and I paraphrase. Telling our story through art is absolutely important. Slovakia may have had setbacks during the nearly 1,000 years of Hungarian/Magyar rule, but its spirit endured, and that spirit is apparent in the art it created. I sincerely hope that I shed a little more light on the richness and fullness of a people, culture, or nation that didn’t exist in the minds of many Hungarians… leaders and citizens.

   We will return to the History Corner, and our regular posts on what exactly happened from the post-Ausgleich (Compromise of 1867) period to our run-up to WWI, where I will end the posts on SLovak history, and begin anew with all that I am learning about single events from Medieval to pre-WWI Slovakia.

   I thank all of you who have been following me, or just dropped in, and I appreciate your indulgence as I may have run a bit long on this post. Until we meet again… please take care of yourselves, and take care of each other.

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