The Park in Voderady :: ✻ VODERADY INFO ✻

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The Park in Voderady

Park behind the manor house was originally built in the French style. Count Franz Zichy ordered a park landscape architect and agronomist Bernhard Petri to rebuild the park into an English style in 1794. The 24-year-old native from a German town Zweibrϋcken created a true masterpiece behind the manor house that was renowned throughout the whole Europe at that time. Bernhard Petri also wrote an article about the successful rebuilding of the park which was published in Leipzig anthology Taschenbuch für Garten - Freunde in in 1797. Count Franz Zichy built a 12 meter long obelisk featuring a plaque that recorded this event to honor the successful rebuilding of the park

Park Voderady was the first ever natural-sentimental park on the territory of Slovakia. The hallmark of the sentimental park was a free application line, non-textured tree, natural integration of the park into the surrounding nature and creating sentiments through various natural and structural elements that gave the impression of an abandonment, mystery and historicity. The main task of the already finished park was to trigger romantic memories of the past as well as support elegiac mood in visitors.

The park had included special features such as artificial cave (grotto) with stalactite decoration - water flowing over it which would fall into a small pond in front of one of the entrances, the ruins of an imitation of a prison, loggia and drawbridge, hermitage, chapel, an old mill, artificial ruins, tombs, bridges, wells as well as an imitation of the old bastions. All of this was hidden between the different trees, compounded by mourning plants, particularly a sad willow plant would stand out and a small waterfall. The park also included rare plants such as japanise sophora, catalpa, gingko, tulip tree, hackberries, gymnokladus, eastern white pine, canadian walnut, sycamore maple, weeping ash, silver spruces and many others. However secular oaks attracted the greatest attention of all visitors since they were scattered in the woods behind the park.

Park was once admired not only by visitors, but also professionals. Once, it was the best known and most admired park throughout the entire Bratislava stool. Voderady managed to be published in the handbooks and encyclopedias thanks to this park at the time. Mainly Trnavian people used to attend this park during its biggest fame and they would bring dozens of carriages and wagons throughout the Easter and Whit Monday.

However, there was a period of decline as well as a gradual devastation of the noble park resulting in some scenery completely disappearing after 1945.

Despite the current unflattering state of the Voderady Park it became a national monument. Its owners are Trnava county and the local village.