The set of monuments in Černová – today the western part of the city of Ružomberok – relate to the modern history of the Slovak national struggle for self-determination.
On 27 October 1907, the day on which a new church designed by M M Harminec was to be consecrated, the bishop decided to substitute another priest in place of nationalist priest Andrej Hlinka, a dauntless fighter for the rights of the Slovak nation, causing protests among the crowds. The police opened fire on these discontented citizens, killing 15. Another 40 persons were condemned to 37.5 years in prison for incitement against Hungarian nationality. These events aroused the interest of several major international public figures, including Tolstoy, Björnson and Viator (Steton Watson), in the fate of the oppressed nation. The Černová church which suffered the bloodstained consecration, the monument erected in 1937 to the victims of the massacre, and the memorial plaque commemorating the birth of Andrej Hlinka, all symbolise the hard road of the Slovak nation towards its own sovereignty.
Heritage > National cultural monuments