1995
- visit of the Pope
3
July 1995 is the day of the most precious pilgrim's visit in Levoca.
The
Pope John Paul II has visited Slovakia according to his program.
Bratislava, where he landed on 30 June 1995, was followed by his visit to
Nitra and Sastin the next day. The Pope started the day of 2
July by a holy mass in Kosice . He visited Presov in the afternoon and in
the evening he came from Presov to Spisska Kapitula / the Spis
Chapter\. The next morning he went to one of the oldest and most famous
pilgrim places - to Marianska hora in Levoca. The papal altar
and the precinct of the acceptation was built on 21 ha of agricultural
soil, cca 500m beneath the basilica. There was a stage 30x35m and a tower
with a cross which was 25m high. More than 650.000 pilgrims took part in
the holy mass at Marianska hora, including the statesmen led by the
president Michal Kovac. After the blessing and saying good-bye, the Pope
set off to go the High Tatras. His journey across Slovakia was finished by
the departure from the Poprad airport in the evening.
The Pope has also signed the Memorial Book of the Town of Levoca. His
signature became a permanent remembrance of this great encounter for the
history of Levoca and its citizens.
1999
- 750th anniversary ...
The town of Levoca celebrated the 750th anniversary of
the first written document concerning Levoca.
Levoca was mentioned for the first time in a charter issued by the
Hungarian king Belo IV on 19 September 1249. The original of the charter
is deposited at the State Regional Archives in Levoca. The king Belo IV
documented presenting the village of Jablonov to the Spis Prior Matej. At
the same time he was allowed to build a palace and a tower at the Spis
castle. Defining the borders of the village and its territory the
Charter says that the border, at one part, descended "to a big road
which leads to Levoca" /ad magnam viam, qua itur ad Leucha/. Levoca
is mentioned in the Charter at another place,too, where the ruler says
that there is a meadow called Wizosnica belonging to the village of
Jablonov, which is situated "in a forest above Levoca" /in
silva supra Leucham/.
The text makes it obvious that Levoca is considered a well-known trade
and market center. Today we know, from the historians' and archaelogists'
findings, that the Levoca from the Charter, the "old Levoca",
was situated about 2 km south of the present center of Levoca. It is the
location, where the foundations of St. Nicolaus' Church were discovered.
The size of this church was respectable: its length was 23.5m, the width
of the nave was 12m and the apse was over 8m. And it was the St. Nicolaus
Church around which the old Slavonic settlement called Levoca was
situated.
The president of Slovakia Rudolf Schuster, the head of the
Constitutional Court Milan Cic, as well as other guests from partner
towns, neighbouring districts and many of the town's natives took part in
the in the important celebration on 24-26 September 1999.
1998 - summit of
the Presidents
The 5th Summit of the Presidents of the Countries of Central
Europe took place on 23-24 January 1998 in Levoca. Its central theme was:
Civil Society - Hope of United Europe.
The idea of regular informal summits of the heads of Central
European countries was born in Salzburg during the summit of Czech,
Hungarian, German and Austrian presidents in 1993. The first summit took
place in the Czech town of Litomysl. In 1995 Italian president joined his
counterparts of the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Austria, Hungary, Germany,
Slovenia and Poland in Hungarian Keszthely. They met again in Portorozie,
Slovenia, at their 4th summit. A year ago, Ukranian president was invited
to Lancut, Poland. The president of Slovakia Michal Kovac invited the
presidents of Romania, Bulgaria and Ukraine as well.
Eleven presidents met on the 5th Summit in Levoca. They were: Petar
Stojanov /Bulgaria/, Vaclav Havel /the Czech Republic/, Arpad Goncz
/Hungaria/, Roman Herzog /Germany/, Aleksander Kwasniewski /Poland/,
Thomas Klestil /Austria/, Emil Constantinescu /Romania/, Milan Kucan
/Slovenia/, Oscar Luigi Scalfaro /Italy/, Leonid Kucma /Ukraine/, and
Michal Kovac /Slovakia/.
Levoca, decorated with snow, welcomed the heads of the European
countries by a fire of a cannon. At 2 p. m. the eleven presidents greeted
the people of Levoca. After the honourable fire and a "historic
round", a round -table discussion in the historical Town Hall
ollowed. The president Michal Kovac and the mayor Peter Pekarcik unveiled
a memorial board, which catches the greatness of the event.
The presidents went to a chamber concert at the Town Theatre in the
evening and they had an official dinner.
The second day of the Levoca summit continued by a meeting with 13
nongovernmental organizations. After a press conference with almost 400
journalists, members of protocol and diplomats of the participating
countries at the Town Theatre, the presidents had lunch in Stary Smokovec,
after which they went back home from the airport in Poprad.)
The Levoca Summit was the best full stop after five years of the
mandate of the first president of independent Slovakia. It was equally
appreciated by the participating presidents who valued president Kovac as
a man promoting the European norms of democracy.
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