Ljubljana Castle, at the summit of Castle Hill in Ljubljana, capital of Slovenia, rises above the red roofs of city centre properties.
Ljubljana, Slovenia: Ljubljana Castle and the castle’s square and battlemented Panoramic, Outlook or Viewing Tower (Razgledni Stolp), on the summit of Castle Hill, rising above trees and red roofs. The Viewing Tower was added to the castle between 1845 and 1848, replacing an old wooden tower with a new stone tower; it was raised by metres in 1982, so that its viewing point is now exactly 400 metres above sea level; it was again renovated in 2009. A castle or stronghold on Ljubljana’s Castle Hill is believed to have been built in the 1000s. However, it was comprehensively fortified in the 1400s in response to Turkish invasions - the Turks first knocked at the City Gates in 1415. At that time, the old fortress was almost completely destroyed and a new castle built. The new castle’s ground plan was irregular, in the style of medieval fortresses, and represented a traditional non-Italian trend. Ljubljana is the capital city and economic, political and cultural centre of Slovenia. With a population of 293,000, it is one of the smallest European capitals. It is located halfway between Vienna and Venice, at the intersection of major European transport routes, and is a blend of German, Mediterranean and Slovenian culture. A walled Roman encampment was built on the site of the present city in the 1st century BCE and developed into a settlement, destroyed by Attila in the mid-400s CE. It was rebuilt in the 1100s by Slovene Slavic tribes and gained city rights in 1220. In the late 1200s, rule passed to the Habsburgs and in 1335 it became the capital of the Habsburg-Austrian province of Carniola. Foreign rule ended in 1918 when Ljubljana and Slovenia became part of the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (later Yugoslavia). In 1991, when Slovenia gained independence, Ljubljana became the national capital.
Size: 4256px × 2832px
Location: Ljubljana, Slovenia
Photo credit: © Terence Kerr / Alamy / Afripics
License: Royalty Free
Model Released: No
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