Ljubljana

Short history...The legend: After steeling the Golden Fleece from king Aeëtes, the Greek hero Jason fled with his ship Argo and sailed vast seas. Instead of heading for the south, the Argonauts reached the spring of the Ljubljanica river, where Jason fought a great monster and, as it usually happens in legends, beat it. The monster - a dragon - is featured in the town’s coat of arms and is the main symbol of Ljubljana. Thus Jason, the great winner, became the first inhabitant of Ljubljana.***2300-1800 BC:The first settlements in the Ljubljana basin appear on the Ljubljana Marshes. Since the end of the Neolithic, this was the place where the culture of the Ljubljana Marshes developed, reaching its peak in the Copper Age.***14–15 BC - The Roman town of Emona:The arrival of the Romans and the emergence of a settlement called Emona. It was surrounded by a wall, a part of which has been preserved at Mirje in the southern part of the city.***1144: The German name for Ljubljana, Laibach, is first mentioned and two years later the Slavonic name for Ljubljana, Luwigana, is first mentioned.***1243:On April 13, Ljubljana is first mentioned as a town.***16th century:The time of Reformation. Ljubljana is an important educational centre. It gets its first Latin school, a printing office and a public library.***1550:Thanks to Primož Trubar, a Slovenian reformer, Slovenians get the first two books in their mother tongue – Abecednik and Katekizem.***1713:Ljubljana gets its first café called Nationalcafé.***1809-1813:The French arrive at Ljubljana, which becomes the capital of the IllyrianProvinces.***1849:First train from Vienna. 1957 first train from Trst.***1881:The first electric bulb is lit on Congress Square.***1919:The establishment of the first Slovenian university with five faculties. 942 students register: 914 men and 24 women.***1941-1945:On April 11, 1941, Ljubljana is occupied by Italian forces.***1945:On May 9, Ljubljana is liberated.***after 1945:After liberation, Ljubljana becomes the political, cultural and economic centre of Slovenia with fast growing industry, craft, trade, banking, catering, tourism and other branches of economy.***1991:On June 26, Slovenia declares its independence.***2004 1. may:Slovenia joins to the European Union.