THE TOMA GAJDEK ROUTE – VELIKO TRGOVIŠĆE

The town of Veliko Trgovišće stands out for its long and distinguished history. It was first mentioned in written documents as early as 1501, with a notable population increase at the beginning of the 19th century. Before that, the surrounding lands belonged to the estates of Counts Erdödy from Novi Dvori Klanječki – including Domahovo, Družilovec, and Erpenja, where most of the inhabitants lived. It is not much of a surprise, therefore, that most of the churches in the area were built by this noble family, which is especially significant for the Church of the Holy Three Kings in Erpenja, which had the oldest church of the Balkan region of the time founded right next door. There were no teachers in Veliko Trgovišće until the middle of the 19th century, and teaching was essentially just private lessons by the pastor. The public school in Veliko Trgovišće opened in 1860, owing to the efforts of the great Illyrian Toma Gajdek, who was the parish priest in Marija Gorica at the time. Classes were held in the parish vineyard house in Jezero, which was not suitable for teaching. A new school building was built in Veliko Trgovišće in 1891, and the classes began in October. Veliko Trgovišće is the birthplace of the first Croatian president, Dr. Franjo Tuđman.