Bled

Not to be confused with The Bled.

For the film, see Bled (film).

Bled
—  Town and Municipality  —
Bled: lake, castle and parish church
Flag Coat of arms
Location of the Municipality of Bled in Slovenia
Bled Location of the Town of Bled in Slovenia
Coordinates: 46°22′N 14°07′E
Country	Slovenia
Government
• Mayor	Janez Fajfar (SNS)
Area
• Total	188.5 km2 (72.8 sq mi)
Population (2002)
• Total	10,899
• Density	58/km2 (150/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+01)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+02)

Bled (German: Veldes) is a town and a municipality in northwestern Slovenia in the region of Upper Carniola. The area, within the Julian Alps, is a popular tourist destination.

History

Bled Castle.

A settlement area since Mesolithic times, Bled was first mentioned as Ueldes (Veldes) within the March of Carniola on April 10, 1004, when it was awarded by Emperor Henry II to Bishop Albuin I of Brixen. Bled Castle was first mentioned in a 22 May 1011 deed in which Henry II donated it to Albuin's successor, Bishop Adalberon of Brixen. With Carniola, Bled was ceded to Rudolph of Habsburg after he defeated King Ottokar II of Bohemia at the Battle on the Marchfeld in 1278. From 1364 until 1919, Bled (Veldes) was part of the Duchy of Carniola, except for a stint between 1809 and 1816 as one of the Napoleonic Illyrian Provinces

After the dissolution of Austria-Hungary in 1918, Bled came under the rule of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia and became a summer domicile of the ruling House of Karađorđević, a tradition that President Josip Broz Tito continued, when he built his residence here in 1947. Bled became an independent municipality in 1996. In 2000, Bled became the home of IEDC-Bled School of Management.

Tourism

Bled Island.

Bled is known for the glacial Lake Bled, which makes it a major tourist attraction. Perched on a rock overlooking the lake is the iconic Bled Castle. The town is also known in Slovenia for its vanilla-and-cream pastry called kremna rezina ("cream slice") or kremšnita (from German Cremeschnitte).

Naturopath Arnold Rikli (1823–1906) from Switzerland contributed significantly to the development of Bled as a health resort in the 2nd half of the 19th century. Due to its mild climate, Bled has been visited by aristocratic guests from all across the world. Today it is an important convention centre and tourist resort, offering a wide range of sport activities (golf, fishing, horseback-riding) and is a starting point for mountain treks and hikes especially within the nearby Triglav National Park.

A small island in the middle of the lake is home to the Assumption of Mary Pilgrimage Church; visitors frequently ring its bell for good luck. Human traces from prehistory have been found on the island. Before the church was built, there was a temple consecrated to Živa, the Slavic goddess of love and fertility. One can get to the island on a traditional wooden row barge called Pletna. The island on Lake Bled has 99 steps. A local tradition at weddings is for the husband to carry his new bride up these steps, during which the bride must remain silent.

Gallery

• 

  Bled, church nearly outside the town

• 

  Bled, church: Marienkirche

• 

  Bled, Bled Castle

• 

  Bled, church in the town

• 

  View of Bled from Castle

Events

Bled hosted the World Rowing Championships, for the 4th time in history, in 2011. It previously hosted the Championships in 1966, 1979 and 1989.

In 1961 the Grand Hotel Toplice in Bled was the site of one of most important international tournaments in chess history. In 2002, the 35th Chess Olympiad was held in the city.

Notable people

• Slavko Avsenik, musician and composer, born in Begunje near Bled on November 26, 1929
• Špela Pretnar, skier, Olympic athlete, born in Bled on March 5, 1973
• Sara Isakovič, freestyle swimmer, Olympic medalist, born in Bled on June 9, 1988
• Julius von Payer, Arctic explorer, born in Šanov, Teplice on September 2, 1841, died in Bled on August 19, 1915
• Denis Žvegelj, rower, Olympic medalist, born in Jesenice on June 24, 1972
• Iztok Čop, rower, multiple Olympic medalist, born in Kranj on June 17, 1972
• Peter Florjančič, inventor, born in Bled in 1919

International relations

Twin towns — Sister cities

See also: List of twin towns and sister cities in Slovenia

Bled is twinned with:

• Brixen (Bressanone), Italy
• Velden am Wörther See, Austria

External links

• on Wikitravel
• Official website
• Slovenia Explorer - Bled
• Bled castle official website
• Bled Island official website
• Bled on Geopedia