„Starí učia mladých lietať!“ Vplyv Andreja Kmeťa na formovanie Karola Antona Medveckého v úvodnej dekáde 20. storočia
“The old teach the young to fly!” The Influence of Andrej Kmeť on the Formation of Karol Anton Medvecký in the First Decade of the 20th Century

Summary/Abstract: The article analyses the relationship of two Catholic priests Andrej Kmet and Karol Anton Medvecky in the early years of the 20th century. The more than 30-year age difference between the two men prejudged their unequal position in terms of education, life experience, contacts and the method of work. Nevertheless, it is astonishing how these two men managed to unite at such different stages of their lives. Kmet, in the first decade of the 20th century, was at the peak of his scientific career with public recognition, which he enjoyed in the Slovak national movement. He was the founder and chairman of the „Slovak Museum Society “and for his discoveries in botany and archaeology he was an accepted author in the whole of the Austria-Hungary Empire. On the other hand, Karol Anton Medvecky was a young priest who tended to ethnography and history. Due to his young age and previous formation in Franciscan monasteries, he lacked significant professional and human experience. In the relationship between the two priests, we find several areas that connected them and through which they moulded each other. At certain stages, Kmet became Medvecky’s tutor and “spiritual father”, providing him with support and advice for work and life difficulties. Medvecky learned a lot from Kmet, and after his death he became his real and symbolic successor. The article is based on previously unpublished correspondence. Their letters document the intensive communication and close friendship of two members of the Slovak national movement.

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