Trencin

Trenčín (in German: Trentschin, in Latin (Roman Period): Laugaricio) is a town in western Slovakia (close to the Czech border) at the Váh river. Population: 57,000. Seat of a region (kraj) or Higher Territorial Unit (VÚC) and of a district (okres).

The site was inhabited since time immemorial. A typical medieval fortified castle is situated on a rock above the town. Trenčín is best known for a Roman (Latin) inscription on the castle rock from 179, stemming from the era of the Markoman Wars, more exactly a war between the Roman Empire and the Germanic Quadi. It denotes the site as "Laugaricio" and it is the northernmost evidence of the presence of Roman soldiers in central Europe. Between 1302 and 1321, the castle was the seat of the Hungarian magnate Matthew Csák, who controlled Slovakia politically and militaristically and became a de-facto ruler of Slovakia for several years.

See also: Slovakia, History of Slovakia