Zvolen has been inhabited since the
Paleolithic. In the ninth century, a
Slavic settlement (today the Môťová neighborhood) became a regional center of what is now central Slovakia. Zvolen remained the capital of
Zólyom County until the 1760s. In the 11th and 12th centuries, one of the largest medieval castles in Europe,
Pustý hrad, was constructed. The town, originally built under the castle, lay on an important trade route (
Via Magna) from
Buda to
Kraków. Zvolen was granted
town privileges by King
Béla IV in the 1230s, as one of the first towns in the
Kingdom of Hungary. The privileges were confirmed on 28 December 1243, after the original document was destroyed in war. Later, King
Louis I the Great built a new
castle, which became a popular hunting resort of the Hungarian kings. The future queen regnant
Mary of Hungary and emperor
Sigismund celebrated their wedding there in 1385. In the
Rákóczi's War of Independence, the Kuruc army in the
battle of Zvolen defeated the enemy forces from Austria, Denmark,
Vojvodina, and Hungary. In 1848–49,
Ľudovít Štúr was a member of the Diet, with Zvolen as his constituency. In 1871–1872, two new railways were built, and Zvolen became an important railroad hub and an important industrial center. Zvolen played an important role during the
Slovak National Uprising. Two of its
armored trains, which were made in the local railway manufactory,
Hurban and
Štefánik, can be seen near the Zvolen castle. Zvolen is an important railroad, an important road hub and has a large timber factory and a technical university, the
Technická univerzita vo Zvolene. An
airport in nearby
Sliač used to offer direct flights to
Prague, but has been used exclusively by the military since 2021. The town square was modernized in 2002, and local businesses are popular with tourists. In wintertime, an ice rink is constructed in the center and festive celebrations run throughout December. == Population ==