Carpathian Germans (German: Karpatendeutsche, Slovak: Karpatskí Nemci), sometimes simply called Slovak Germans (German: Slowakeideutsche), is the name for a group of German language speakers on the territory of present-day Slovakia. The German people (Deutsche are an Ethnic group, in the sense of sharing a common German culture, descent and speaking the German language as The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. The Slovak language ( slovenčina, slovenský jazyk, not to be confused with Slovenščina) sometimes referred to as "Slovakian" Slovakia (long form Slovak Republic; Slovak:, long form, is a Landlocked country in Central Europe with a population of over five million The term was coined by the historian Raimund Friedrich Preindel, and is also sometimes used to refer to Germans in the Carpathian Ruthenia. Carpathian Ruthenia, aka Transcarpathian Ruthenia, Rusinko Subcarpathian Rus, Subcarpathia ( Rusyn and Ukrainian

Germans settled in the northern territory of the Kingdom of Hungary (territory of present day Slovakia) from the 12th to 15th centuries, mostly after the Mongol invasion of 1241. The Kingdom of Hungary (short form Hungary) was a considerable state in Central Europe that existed from 1001 to 1918 then from 1919 to 1946 There were probably some isolated settlers in the area of Pressburg earlier. ARTICLE TEXT BEGINS AFTER THESE COMMENTS - PLEASE READ 1 Please do not edit the lead without reading The Germans were usually attracted by kings seeking specialists in various trades, such as craftsmen and miners. They usually settled in older Slavic market and mining settlements. The main settlement areas were in the vicinity of Pressburg and some language islands in the Spiš and the Hauerland regions. Spiš (- Slovak; Latin: Scepusium, Zips Szepesség Spisz is a region in north-eastern Slovakia, with a very small area in south-eastern Hauerland is the name for a region presently located in central Slovakia (Slovak Republic once inhabited by a German minority population belonging to three islands of German ^[1] The settlers in the Spiš region were known as Zipser Sachsen. Until approximately the 15th century, the ruling classes of most cities in present day Slovakia consisted almost exclusively of Germans.

Westungarischer Grenzbote, 1891

Pressburger Zeitung, 1869

The Carpathian Germans were, as the Slovaks, subjected to Magyarization policies in the latter half of the 19th and the beginning of the 20th century. } The Slovaks or Slovakians are a western Slavic People that primarily inhabit Slovakia and speak the Slovak language, which is Magyarization (also "Magyarisation" "Hungarisation" "Hungarization" "Hungarianization" "Hungarianisation" is a designator applied

On 28 October 1918 the National Council of Carpathian Germans in Kežmarok declared their loyalty to the Kingdom of Hungary, but Slovakia became part of Czechoslovakia two days later. Kežmarok ( German: Kesmark/Käsmark, Késmárk Kieżmark Latin: Kesmarkium) is a town in the Spiš region of eastern Slovakia Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia.

During the First Czechoslovak Republic (1918-1938), Carpathian Germans had a specific political party, the Zipser deutsche Partei (1920-1938) of Andor Nitsch, who was elected from 1925 to 1935 on a common Hungarian-German list for parliamentary elections. In 1929, another party, more nationalist-oriented, was formed in Bratislava, the Karpathendeutschen Partei, which made a common list at the 1935 parliamentary elections with the Sudeten German Party, whose leader Konrad Henlein became its head in 1937 with Franz Karmasin as deputy. The Sudeten German Party (in German Sudetendeutsche Partei, abbreviation SdP) was created by Konrad Henlein under the name Sudetendeutsche Heimatfront DrJur Konrad Ernst Eduard Henlein ( May 6, 1898 - May 10, 1945) was the most important pro- Nazi politician in Czechoslovakia In 1935, both parties obtained a seat in both parliamentary assemblies. In 1939 the KdP was renamed Deutsche Partei with as führer Franz Karmasin, who had become in October 1938 state secretary for German Affairs in the Tiso government. The Slovak Republic ( Slovak: Slovenská republika) was an independent national Slovak state which existed from 14 March 1939 ^[2][3][4]

The status of Slovak Republic as a client state of Nazi Germany during World War II made life difficult for Carpathian Germans at the war's end. Nazi Germany and the Third Reich are the common English names for Germany under the regime of Adolf Hitler and the National Socialist German Workers World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Nearly all remaining Germans fled or were evacuated by the German authorities before the end of the war. Most Germans from Spiš evacuated to Germany or the Sudetenland before the arrival of the Red Army. Sudetenland ( Czech and Polish: Sudety) is the German name used in English in the first half of the 20th century for the western regions of The Red Army ( Russian: Рабоче-Крестьянская Красная Армия R aboche- K rest'yanskaya K rasnaya A rmiya This evacuation was mostly due to the initiative of Adalbert Wanhoff and the preparations of the diocese of the German Evangelical Church, between mid-November 1944 and January 21, 1945. EKD redirects here For the Basque political party see Democracia Cristiana Vasca. Year 1944 ( MCMXLIV) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Events 1189 - Philip II of France and Richard I of England begin to assemble troops to wage the Third Crusade. Year 1945 ( MCMXLV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar The Germans from Bratislava were evacuated in January and February of 1945 after long delays, and those of the Hauerland fled at the end of March 1945. The Red Army reached Bratislava on April 4, 1945. Events 1581 - Francis Drake completes a circumnavigation of the world and is knighted by Elizabeth I.

After the end of the war, one third of the evacuated or fugitive Germans returned home to Slovakia. However, on August 2, 1945, they lost the rights of citizenship,^[i] by Beneš decree no. Events 338 BC - A Macedonian army led by Philip II defeated the combined forces of Athens and Thebes in the The Beneš decrees is a current popular term (officially they are called Decrees of the President of the Republic - dekrety presidenta republiky) for a series of 33, and they were interned in camps (German: Sammellager) in Bratislava-Petržalka, Nováky, and in Handlová. Nováky (Nyitranovák is a town in the Prievidza District, Trenčín Region in western Slovakia. Handlová (Krickerhau Nyitrabánya before 1913 Handlova is a town in the Prievidza District, Trenčín Region in western Slovakia. In 1946 and 1947, about 33,000 people were expelled from Slovakia by the Potsdam Agreement, while around 20,000 persons were entitled to remain in Slovakia. Year 1946 ( MCMXLVI) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display full 1946 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1947 ( MCMXLVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1947 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. The Potsdam Agreement was an agreement on policy for the occupation and reconstruction of Germany and other nations after fighting in the European Theatre of World War II Out of approximately 128,000 Germans in Slovakia in 1938, by 1947 only some 20,000 (15. Year 1938 ( MCMXXXVIII) was a Common year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Year 1947 ( MCMXLVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1947 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. 6% of the pre-war total) remained. 270 civilians from Dobšiná, mostly Germans fled to Czech lands as refugees and intended to return home after the war. Dobšiná (Dobschau Dobsina Latin: Dobsinium) is a Town in the Slovenské rudohorie mountains (Slovak Ore Mountains in Slovakia Czechoslovakian soldiers forced them off the train at the train station of Přerov and ordered them to dig their own graves before butchering all of them including small children. Czechoslovakia may also refer to what is now the Czech Republic and Slovakia. Přerov ('pr̝̊ɛrof is a city in the Olomouc Region of the Czech Republic, situated on the Bečva river. When Communists took power in 1948 they made research of the site and investigation of the massacre impossible. ^[5] The decree was revoked in 1948.

In 2004 there were fewer than 6,000 Germans in Slovakia. The Carpathian German Homeland Association exists now to maintain traditions. The most prominent member of this group is the former Slovak president and politician, Rudolf Schuster. Rudolf Schuster (born January 4, 1934 in Košice, Czechoslovakia) was the 2nd President of Slovakia (1999-2004

Sources and notes