Introduction

Samorin is a small town in Slovakia located near the Danube 20 km southeast from Bratislava. According to the tradition the name Samorin (Slovak), or Somorja (Hungarian), or Somerheim (German) originates from the Latin expression "Santa Maria". The symbol of the town is the Saint Maria with Child Jesus in her arms (see above). This symbol is placed also as a sculpture on the City Hall.

The Character of the Town

The original character of the town was typical "mezovaros", Hungarian expression with meaning of a agricultural settlement with some architectural dominants and lot of farmers houses.  The painting of local artists Mr. Skriba Pal is showing a part of the Main Street  (Fo Utca) with dominant of the "Regoczy haz". The old houses where in private property, but the state did not encourage the owners to maintain and reconstruct the houses and instead the state offered for the owners apartments in the standardized block houses. Thus in sixties and seventies substantial part of the old houses was demolished and replaced by "socialists block houses" or left alone for gradual deterioration.The three houses displayed on the painting were also destroyed and replaced by new buildings in the fashionable architectural styles.

However, some parts of the town were kept and now they are in course of reconstruction and revitalization.From the two parallel main streets "Fo utca" and "Gazda sor" only 25% was maintained. As an example here are typical houses at the old part of Main street. In other parts of the Main street there are either housing blocks or new architecture mentioned above.
 
 
 
 

The dominant architecture of all communist regimes consisting of prefabricated houses is coexisting with old reformed church built in in roman style. In such housing blocks there lives about 30% of the population of Samorin.

Outstanding buildings

Inspite of the architectural systematic devastation, the main architectural dominants however were prevented and even partially  reconstructed. The three traditional churches supported by the local citizens maintained their temples. The description of the sacral buildings is on the page 2.

Samorin was in the past regional centre, seat of the Court with penalty right, commercial and administrative centre of the upper "Zitny ostrov". The headquarters of these bodies was the City Hall located at the Main Square. In the cellar there was the arrest and the examination place. There are recorded also witch monster trials.

The former renesance City Hall is still serving the same function. Of course, the arrest in the cellar is not used any more for its original purpose.

Together with the construction of the baroque church, in the same complex there was built the monastery of the Order of Paulaner (Fratres Minores). The order settled at 1721 in Samorin and they immediately started not only religious, but also educative and economic activities. The monks were introducing progressive agricultural technologies.  In 1778 they completed the construction of the imposing complex of the church and adjoin monastery. The cellar of the monastery was used as storage of grain and wine. However the Emperor Joseph II in his decree from 7 February 1786 expelled the order from Austria-Hungary. The catholic church took over all the real estate, part of the monastery was used as parish office and the rest was rented for profane purposes like saloon, hotel, restaurant, ball hall, etc. which got known as "Korona" (The crown). The building was not maintained for last 100 years and was subject of permanent devastation. In the nineties, the community of Samorin was confirmed as the legal owner of the building and performed the emergency reconstruction (roof and statics).

In the WW I. in the Samorin there was a prisoner camp. In the municipal cemetery there are buried Russian and Italian prisoner of war. The Italian government supported the creation of the central Italian monument for all Italian soldiers who died on the territory of recent Slovakia.