Send Gift Baskets to Humenne, Slovakia

The Laborec river and Carpathian mountains determined the town’s development, and the highest point of the Vihorlat mountains – the 1,075 m (3,526.90 ft) Vihorlat volcano – served as a silent witness. Several archeological finds indicate that the town has been attractive to people since the Stone Age due to its advantageous location and pleasant climate, conditioned by the neighboring mountains. In the 5th century, the Slavic ancestors of the Slovaks gradually moved to the Humenné basin.

In the middle of the 13th century, this area was intensively settled and organized after the Mongol raids. There is a written record of Humenné dating back to 1317. Originally from Naples, the Drugeth family (Drugs, Drugetovci) is closely related to Humenné’s history. Who arrived in the Kingdom of Hungary at the beginning of the 14th century with King Charles Robert of Anjou (the territory of present-day Slovakia was part of the Kingdom of Hungary). Humenné became the center of one of Upper Hungary’s most extensive feudal dominions under the Drugs. During the reign of King Matthias Corvinus, the town received civic privileges (town status), which were validated by a seal with its coat of arms. In those days, an important trade route connected the Kingdom of Hungary with the Kingdom of Poland crossed the town. Among the royal customs offices, Humenné was granted a right of storage and a supposedly market right. Shepherd colonization from Transcarpathia by the Walachians (Ruthenes, Poles, and Romanians) also increased during this period.

Around 1610, a Renaissance castle replaced an original stone castle as the most significant monument in the city. The court became an essential characteristic of the town and is used today as a museum and cultural center.