Nógrád County

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/N%C3%B3gr%C3%A1d_County_%28former%29

Nógrád (Hungarian; Latin: comitatus Neogradiensis, German: Neuburg or Neograd, Slovak: Novohrad) was an administrative county (comitatus) of the Kingdom of Hungary. Its territory is now in southern Slovakia and in northern present-day Hungary. The name Novohrad is still used in Slovakia as an informal designation of the corresponding territory. The name is derived from the former Nógrád (Novohrad) castle in Hungary.

• Geography

In 1910, Nógrád county shared borders with the counties Hont, Zólyom (Zvolen), Gömör-Kishont (Gemer-Malohont), Heves and Pest-Pilis-Solt-Kiskun. It was situated approximately along the line Poltár, Losonc (today Lučenec), Szécsény and Vác. The river Ipeľ/Ipoly flowed through the county. Its area was 4,133 km² around 1910.

• Capitals
  • The capital of the county was Balassagyarmat, except for the 18th century, when the capital was Lučenec.
• History

Nógrád was one of the first counties of the Kingdom of Hungary, founded in the 11th century. It was ruled by the Ottoman Empire from 1541 to 1595, and from 1605 to 1686, as part of Budin Province and Egri Province.

In the aftermath of World War I, the part of Nógrád county north of the river Ipeľ/Ipoly became part of newly formed Czechoslovakia (as Novohrad county), as recognized by the concerned states in the 1920 Treaty of Trianon. The southern part stayed in Hungary. Following the provisions of the controversial First Vienna Award, the northern half of Novohrad came under Hungarian control in November 1938. After World War II, the Trianon borders were restored. In 1993, Czechoslovakia dissolved and Novohrad became part of independent Slovakia. Since 1996, it is part of the Slovak administrative unit Banska Bystrica region.

The Hungarian part of Nógrád merged with the Hungarian part of Hont county to form Nógrád-Hont county. Between 1939 and 1945 it was united with the occupied half of the Slovak part of Nógrád county. Since 1950, the Hungarian part of Nógrád, with a small part of former Hont county added, forms the present Hungarian county Nógrád.

• Demographics around 1900 population of 239,097
  • linguistic communities: Hungarian: 168,614 (70.5%); Slovak: 64,287 (26.9%); German: 3,958 (1.7%); Romanian: 83 (0.0%); Croatian: 33 (0.0%); Serbian: 19 (0.0%); Ruthenian: 16 (0.0%); Other or unknown: 2,087 (0.9%)
• religious communities: Roman Catholic: 172,804 (72.3%); Lutheran: 52,205 (21.8%); Jewish: 9,541 (4.0%); Calvinist: 4,195 (1.8%); Greek Catholic: 212 (0.1%)

   Greek Orthodox: 103 (0.0%);    Unitarian: 16 (0.0%);    Other or unknown: 21 (0.0%)

*Subdivisions of Nógrád/Novohrad county

• *Districts (= járás) - Capital
  • *Balassagyarmat - Balassagyarmat
    • Gács - Gács, SK Halič
    • Losonc - Losonc, SK Lučenec
    • Nógrád - Rétság
    • Salgótarján - Salgótarján
    • Szécsény - Szécsény
    • Szirák - Szirák
  • Urban districts (rendezett tanácsú város)
    • Losonc, - SK Lučenec

The towns of Lučenec and Halič are now in Slovakia.