Stropkov – Holiday Apartment, Church Tower and Castle Grounds

In the centre of Stropkov stands the Church of the Most Holy Body of the Lord on a slight elevation in the grounds of the former castle. The parish church is dated to the 14th century. Its medieval furnishings include a Gothic monstrance from 1527. The church, its furnishings and the castle grounds point to different layers of the town’s history: the building defines the central location, while individual details inside preserve their own historical traces. The location in the centre, the slight elevation and the former castle grounds thus identify three different spatial references of the same building: its position in the present-day town, its elevated position and its historical context.

History

The Kaštieľ Stropkov forms part of the historical surroundings. It is the last preserved secular part of the former town castle. The medieval town castle, of which Kaštieľ Stropkov is part, was built by the Peréňovci in the 15th century. The ground floor and attic of Kaštieľ are used for museum purposes. As a result, the preserved secular structure, the medieval history of its origins and the present-day use of two floors for museum purposes stand side by side within the same historic complex.

Culture

The imposing church tower rises on the southern side of the church. The rectangular tower has seven storeys and was built in the Renaissance style in 1593. Its viewing platform is located just under 30 metres above the ground and offers a view of the surrounding area. Its architecture can therefore be viewed not only from below: the tower combines its clearly recognisable Renaissance form with an elevated platform and a view across the immediate surroundings of Stropkov. The stated height of the platform and the view of the surrounding area add an explicitly named spatial perspective to the architectural description.

Tickets for the Stropkov church tower are available at the Stropkov Tourist Information Centre in the town hall, Hlavná 38/2, or online at www.veza.stropkov.sk. There are therefore two explicitly stated ways to obtain tickets for the visit: the in-person contact point at the town hall and the specified online address. The address Hlavná 38/2 also identifies the exact location of the Tourist Information Centre.

Nature

Another public facility in Stropkov is Park zvierat. Park zvierat became accessible to the public on 11 May 2020. The entire Park zvierat grounds are barrier-free. The park can therefore be described both by its opening as a publicly accessible facility and by the barrier-free access expressly stated for the entire grounds. Both characteristics form part of the classification of the site and stand independently alongside the historic sights in the town centre. 11 May 2020 marks the beginning of this public accessibility; the barrier-free access expressly applies to the entire grounds.

Food and Drink

The Stredoveký festival in Stropkov includes food and drink stalls. These culinary offerings are associated with the festival and therefore fall within the time frame of this event. The food and drink aspect complements the medieval associations there; it is limited to the festival and does not describe a permanent offering in the town.

If you would like to view other place pages at the same level as Stropkov, you can find Bžany and Havaj here.

For the higher-level travel overview: Okres Stropkov.