Szentgotthárd

Szentgotthárd
City centre with the Rába River
Coat of arms
Szentgotthárd Location of Szentgotthárd
Coordinates: 46°56′56″N 16°16′45″E / 46.94876°N 16.27907°E / 46.94876; 16.27907Coordinates: 46°56′56″N 16°16′45″E / 46.94876°N 16.27907°E / 46.94876; 16.27907
Country	Hungary
County	Vas
Area
– Total	67.73 km2 (26.2 sq mi)
Population (2004)
– Total	9,136
– Density	134.88/km2 (349.3/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
– Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	9970
Area code(s)	94

Szentgotthárd (German: St. Gotthard; Slovene: Monošter) is the westernmost town of Hungary. It is situated on the Rába River near the Austrian border, and is home to much of Hungary's small Slovene ethnic minority.

The town took its name from, and grew up round, the Cistercian Szentgotthárd Abbey, founded here in 1183.

In 1664, it was the site of the Battle of Saint Gotthard, where an Austrian army led by Raimondo Montecuccoli defeated the Ottoman Empire so that the Turks had to agree to the Peace of Vasvár, which held until 1683.

The town serves as the cultural centre of the Hungarian Slovenes.

People

• Tibor Gécsek
• Ferenc Joachim

External links

• OPEL_Hungary