Vývoj katolíckeho školstva v Ružomberku za prvej Československej republiky
The Development of Catholic Education in Ružomberok during the first Czechoslovak Republic

Summary/Abstract: The town of Ružomberok, thanks to a rapid development of industry at the end of 19th century and important figures of cultural and political events (Andrej Hlinka, Karol Sidor, Vavro Šrobár a.o.) is ranked in the group of the most important cities of Slovakia, within the inter-war period. Education has not been left aside which, by means of the clerics and their grammar school, was famous beyond the borders of the kingdom. Today, hardly anyone knows that in lower Liptov, at the beginning of the last century, there were other, less important schools, mostly lower type (elementary schools). The ambition of this study is, therefore, to overcome this negative fact and enrich the history of church education with interesting knowledge acquired by regional research. The introductory part, the aim of which is to inform percipients in the broader historical context of the socio-political situation and the school system in the newly established Republic, then in the paper to turn the attention of the reader to a micro-history, where the status of Catholic schools in Ružomberok, within the period under review, is analysed. The benefits of the work in this case are the new findings about the activities of the School Sisters of St. Francis O. S. F. in Ružomberok, as well as the establishment of the Institute for Education of Kindergarten Teachers, which has so far remained on the periphery of interest.The path of the collapse of the multi-nation, Austro-Hungarian Empire, and the declaration of the Czechoslovak state, in Prague on the 28th October, 1918, to which was unanimously added, in about two days, on the 30th October, 1918, also Slovak political representation, has not been easy, nor hassle free. The post-war uncertainty, fear and concern about the future direction of the state was reflected, not only on an economic level, but also on a cultural one. Education and the school system in the newly established Republic was, in the early twenties, undergoing a stage of radical change. After an initial consolidation of the different shares, a priority task of school administration was to ensure the unification of the school system and to eliminate illiteracy, which in the Slovak counties represented a value of almost 35% of the population. Among other equally important tasks, was also included the introduction of the Slovak language as the teaching language in all types and levels of schools.In the post-revolutionary years, state, municipal, church and private (federal) schools operated, according to who had established them. In the period investigated by us, a confessional school system in Slovakia prevailed and consisted of almost 80% of all elementary schools. The town of Ružomberok was no exception, which was, thanks to rapid development of industry, in the late 19th century, and outstanding people of cultural and political significance, ranked in the interwar period among the number of the most important towns in Slovakia. Since Ružomberok, at the beginning of the 20th century, already was demographically one of the most religious, most of the schools had a confessional character.In view of these circumstances, the main objective of the study is to present some aspects of the development of Catholic education in Ružomberok, during the years 1918–1938. After the introductory part, the purpose of which is to inform the reader in a broader historical context about the socio-political situation and the school system in the newly established Republic, the paper subsequently analyses the status of the Ružomberok Catholic school system, in our examined period. The benefit of the work in this case is the new findings on the operation of the School Sisters of St. Francis O.S. F. in Ružomberok, as well as on the establishment of the Institute for Education of Kindergarten Teachers, which has so far remained on the periphery of interest.

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